140 THE COUSINS.

opinion; will make us dress, and talk, and act,
in order to attract their admiration, and, there-
fore, will cause us to dread, above all things, their
ridicule and contempt. Now, my dear child, do

you not see that if, as you think, your vanity—

 

your excessive desire for admiration—was de-
stroyed wholly, you would not be so much dis-
tressed at the idea of being laughed at?”

Lucy hung her head in silence. Mr. Lovett,
too, remained for some time silent, with his eyes
fixed on Lucy, in painful thought; at length he
said, ‘Lucy, I desire, above all things, for you,
that you may be beautiful; Lucy looked up in
surprise ; “but the beauty I ask for you is the
‘beauty of holiness ;’ constantly I pray that the
deformities of your sovl may be taken away, and
that our gracious Saviour may be able to present
you before the throne of his Father without spot
or blemish. If I should tell you, Lucy, that you
would certainly, by walking out, be cured of
this contraction in your muscles, which disfigures
your person, would you not go without hesitation,
even though the whole city were assembled to
see you? Answer me truly, my daughter.”