"Because other people _do_," continued Lottson, "and it wouldn't seem scholarly to accept that which was taught and accepted by men whose demonstrations were not made by the assistance of material things. If you stick to your ideas, men will hold you to them. You can't live up to them in your business; you'll lose money if you try it, and you'll be called a fool for your pains. Why don't you be consistent? There's no consistency between morals and business excepting through the medium of the Christian belief. Believe what you choose so long as you believe in a First Cause, be one of us, accept the promises that were made to provide for your condition as well as that of every other man that finds a constant disagreement between life and law. Then you'll at least have done what is the business duty of every man--you'll have provided against the dangers which you don't fear, and yet daren't defy for fear they may exist." "That's a cold-blooded way of putting it, any way," remarked the broker, after a moment or two of thought, which was apparently amusing. "I don't deny it," said the president, "but reason is always cold-blooded. You don't pretend that in your darling scientific hobbies it's anything else, do you? You free-thinkers claim to monopolize reason; but you can't help seeing that religion deals in it just as much as science does, and that it leads men to the church as truly as it does to the study. And I want it to lead you to us, as it is bound to do if you're as fair as you pretend to be." "You want me to be a religionist, do you?" asked Whilcher; "a shouting, sentimental exhorter! What a fine reputation you want me to make--and lose--among my friends!" "I don't want you to do anything of the sort," said the president. "Did you ever hear of _me_ shouting or exhorting?" Mr. Whilcher laughed long and loud at the mere thought, as would any other of the president's acquaintances have done. The president colored a little and contemplated the matting of the cabin floor, but replied: "It's nothing to my discredit, nor anything to laugh about. Because excitable people get into the church, drawn there by appeals to their emotional nature, it doesn't prove that noise and talk are necessary results of religion. You don't find any nonsense of that kind in St. Paul's Epistles, do you? _He_ was a man after my own heart--a fellow who believed that the laborer was worthy of his hire, who kept himself before the people, who talked solid sense, and explained how easy it was for every man to take advantage of the sacrifice that was made for him. You know the little company there is in the city that insures against accidents? I don't believe you'd lend twenty-five cents on the dollar on its stock--I'll sell you some of their certificates cheaper than that, if you ever want any--but whenever you make a trip out of town I understand you take out one of their policies."