For the praise of men, and the love of that praise, having now restored him
to his own good graces, he regarded himself with more interest and
approbation than ever; and his continued omission of inquiry after Isy,
heedless of the predicament in which he might have placed her, was a far
worse sin against her, because deliberate, than his primary wrong to her,
and it now recoiled upon him in increased hardness of heart and
self-satisfaction.
Thus in love with himself, and thereby shut out from the salvation of love
to another, he was specially in danger of falling in love with the
admiration of any woman; and thence now occurred a little episode in his
history not insignificant in its results.
He had not been more than a month or two in his parish when he was
attracted by a certain young woman in his congregation of some inborn
refinement and distinction of position, to whom he speedily became anxious
to recommend himself: he must have her approval, and, if possible, her
admiration! Therefore in his preaching, if the word used for the lofty,
simple utterance of divine messengers, may without offence be misapplied
to his paltry memorizations, his main thought was always whether the said
lady was justly appreciating the eloquence and wisdom with which he meant
to impress her--while in fact he remained incapable of understanding how
deep her natural insight penetrated both him and his pretensions.
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