"Yes," said David, out of mere revolt. Then, seeking to justify himself, his face lit up with sudden inspiration. "Who need ever know? The _Maggid_ is dead. Old Hyams has gone to America. So Hannah has told me. It's a thousand to one Leah's people never heard of the Law of Leviticus. If they had, it's another thousand to one against their putting two and two together. It requires a Talmudist like you to even dream of reckoning Hannah as an ordinary divorced woman. If they did, it's a third thousand to one against their telling anybody. There is no need for you to perform the ceremony yourself. Let her be married by some other minister--by the Chief Rabbi himself, and to make assurance doubly sure I'll not mention that I'm a _Cohen_" The words poured forth like a torrent, overwhelming the Reb for a moment. Hannah leaped up with a hysterical cry of joy. "Yes, yes, father. It will be all right, after all. Nobody knows. Oh, thank God! thank God!" There was a moment of tense silence. Then the old man's voice rose slowly and painfully. "Thank God!" he repeated. "Do you dare mention the Name even when you propose to profane it? Do you ask me, your father, Reb Shemuel, to consent to such a profanation of the Name?" "And why not?" said David angrily. "Whom else has a daughter the right to ask mercy from, if not her father?" "God have mercy on me!" groaned the old Reb, covering his face with his hands. "Come, come!" said David impatiently. "Be sensible. It's nothing unworthy of you at all. Hannah was never really married, so cannot be really divorced. We only ask you to obey the spirit of the Torah instead of the letter." The old man shook his head, unwavering. His cheeks were white and wet, but his expression was stern and solemn. "Just think!" went on David passionately. "What am I better than another Jew--than yourself for instance--that I shouldn't marry a divorced woman?" "It is the Law. You are a _Cohen_--a priest." "A priest, Ha! Ha! Ha!" laughed David bitterly. "A priest--in the nineteenth century! When the Temple has been destroyed these two thousand years." "It will be rebuilt, please God," said Reb Shemuel. "We must be ready for it." "Oh yes, I'll be ready--Ha! Ha! Ha! A priest! Holy unto the Lord--I a priest! Ha! Ha! Ha! Do you know what my holiness consists in? In eating _tripha_ meat, and going to _Shool_ a few times a year! And I, _I_ am too holy to marry _your_ daughter. Oh, it is rich!" He ended in uncontrollable mirth, slapping his knee in ghastly enjoyment. His laughter rang terrible. Reb Shemuel trembled from head to foot. Hannah's cheek was drawn and white. She seemed overwrought beyond endurance. There followed a silence only less terrible than David's laughter.