diseases of the spinal marrow.' " 

**I don't know how many times I have 



Tfu Gates Ajar. 165 

thought of  I believe it was the poet Gray^ 
who said that his idea of heaven was to lie on 
the sofa and read novels. That touches the 
lazy part of us, though." 

"Yes, they will be the active, outgoing, 
generous elements of our nature that will be 
brought into use then, rather than the self- 
centred and dreamy ones. Though I suppose 
that we shall read in heaven,  being influenced 
to be better and nobler by good and noble 
teachers of the pen, not less there than here." 

" O think of it ! To have books, and music, 
 and pictures?" 

"All that Art, 'the handmaid of the Lord/ 
can do for us, I have no doubt will be done. 
Eternity will never become monotonous. Va- 
riety without end,* charms unnumbered with- 
in charms, will be devised by Infinite inge- 
nuity to minister to our  Perhaps,  
this is just my fancying,  perhaps there will 
be whole planets turned in|p galleries of art, 
over which we may wander at will ; or into 
orchestral halls where, th^ highest possibilities 
of music will be realized to singer and to 
hearer. Do you