“That you should ’ave come back to this—and me believin’ the war ’ad done ye good—lifted you up, like. Not but what you was the best man ever lived before the war—” “Oh no, Lovey. No one knows what I was better than yourself.” “You was good even then, sonny—even in them awful old days. Goodness ain’t just in doin’ certain things; it’s in being certain things. I don’t ’ardly know what it is; but I can tell it when I see it. And I seen it in you, Slim—right from the first. Me and God A’mighty seen it together. That’s why He pulled you up out o’ what you was—and made you rich—and dressed you in swell clo’es—and sent you to the war—and made you a ’ero—and stuck you all over with medals—and brought you ’ome again to me. And if you’d only waited—” “Well, if I’d only waited—what?” “You’d ’a’ got somethink better still. You’d ’a’ got it pretty soon.” “What should I have got?” [Illustration: “That you should ’ave come back to this—and me believin’ the war ’ad done ye good—lifted you up, like. Not but what you was the best man ever lived before the war—”] “I ain’t a-goin’ to tell ye. If you’d come ’ome with me you’d see.” Before I could follow up this dark hint he continued: “God A’mighty don’t play no tricks on His children. Look at me! All He’s give me. Kep’ me well while you was away—and ’elped me to knock off the booze when it was mortal ’ard to do it—and pervided me with a good ’ome, thanks to you, Slim!—and work—and wages—and a very nice man to work for, all except bein’ a bit stuck on ’isself—and let me off washin’ windows, which was never a trade for an eddicated man like me—and brought you back to me, which was the best thing of all—and just because I waited.” “What do you mean by waiting?” “I mean waitin’ for Him. That’s somethink I’ve found out since you went away, sonny. It’s a tip as Beady Lamont give me. You’ve got to wait patient-like for Him; and if you do He’ll come to you.” “I don’t know what you’re talking about.” “Of course you don’t. That’s why I’m a-tellin’ of you. It was like this: When you went away it was somethink fierce for me—nothink but that empty flat—and everythin’ speakin’ to me o’ you, like—yer clo’es and yer boots and yer books and yer pipes, and the chairs you used to sit on, and the bed you used to sleep in—and everythink like that—till I thought I was goin’ crazy. Many’s the time I wanted to come and do just what you’re a-doin’ of now—but I’d think o’ the promise I give you before ye went—and I’d ’ang on a bit more. And then God A’mighty Hisself come and spoke to me, just as He did to Beady Lamont that time he told us about when we was in the blue stars.” “And what did God Almighty say?” “He come in the middle o’ the night, and woke me up out of a sound sleep—” “How did you know it was He?” “Oh, I knowed. Ye couldn’t ’elp knowin’.” “Did you hear His voice?”