At the least sorrow, the slightest obstacle on the path of life, he had been wont to enter a church, where, kneeling down, he would humble his littleness in the presence of Omnipotence.

And he had been used to go forth thence, fortified by prayer, fully prepared to give up the good things of this world, possessed by the single yearning for eternal salvation.

But at present he only practiced by fits and starts, when the terror of hell came upon him.

All kinds of weak inclinations had overcome him, and the thought of Nana disturbed his devotions.

And now the thought of God astonished him.