,ver4#jd4bi4ic99;,,end99 ,,for ,,greater ,,things ,the story of ,saint ,stanislaus ,kostka by ,william ,t4 ,kane1 ,s4,j4 with a preface by ,james ,j4 ,daly1 ,s4,j4 ,,preface ,among ,christian evidences the heroic virtue and holiness of ,catholic youth must not be overlooked4 ,juvenile and adolescent victories of a conspicuous kind1 over the flesh1 the world1 and the devil1 can be found in no land and in no age1 except a ,christian land and age1 and in no ,church except the ,catholic ,church4 ,it is of all excellences the very rarest and most difficult1 this triumphant mastery over human weakness and human pride4 ,it has defied the life-long strivings of men whom the world recognizes as beings of superior wisdom and power of will4 ,the philosophers who have described it most beautifully and encouraged its pursuit in the most glowing and impressive terms remain themselves sad examples of human futility in the struggle to disengage the spirit from the claws of dragging and unclean influences4 ,for the forces of evil are infinite in their variety1 insidious beyond the ability of natural sharpness to detect and guard against1 and unsleeping in the pressure of their siege upon the heart of man4 ,who will explain how it comes to pass that youth1 whose callowness and inexperience are the mockery of the world1 has laid prostrate in single combat this giant of evil and won fields where the reputations of the world's wisest and noblest and most tried lie buried8 ,it is a matter of idle curiosity with us how an unbelieving generation1 ingenious in devising natural explanations 7which are most unnatural7 of supernatural phenomena1 would explain away the wonder of the young ,saint's life which is the subject of the following pages4 ,it presents to us a picture of ,divine ,condescension guiding and inspiring and aiding human effort1 so convincingly clear and transparent in its smallest details and in its general effect as to seem outside the pale of all possible mutilation and misinterpretation by malice or skeptical analysis4 ,natural reaction against sinful excess1 thwarted ambitions1 disappointed hopes1 meek conformity with environment1 ecclesiastical manipulation of pliant material1 tame acquiescence in family traditions and arrangements1 these and all the other stock explanations1 with which a groveling world seeks to pull down the ,saints to its own dreary level1 cannot be invoked to dissipate the mystery and the glory surrounding ,stanislaus4 ,how did he come so early in life1 and in a nobleman's family1 to set such store upon spiritual values8 ,how did his tender and immature mind grasp with such swift sureness the one lesson of all philosophies1 that life on its material side is an incident rather than the sum of human existence and can never satisfy the soul's desires 8 ,how could this mere boy have developed1 so young1 an iron will which wrought that hardest of all laborious tasks1 namely1 the conformation of conduct with lofty ideals8 ,there are supernatural answers to these and similar questions which might be raised concerning the brief career of ,st4 ,stanislaus4 ,we know of no merely natural answers4 ,the lively and energetic style adopted in the present biography may create a trace of mild surprise in older readers4 ,sanctity1 it is true1 some one may say1 is a very beautiful achievement in a world of poor and1 at best1 mediocre performance2 but1 after all1 the business of sanctity is a serious business4 ,it calls for grit and endurance1 and1 as a picture1 is only saved from the sordid by spiritual motives which are unseen4 ,if all moral life is a monotonous warfare1 the life of a ,saint is warfare in the very first ranks where the trenches are filled with water and the shells fall thickest and the general discomfort and pettiness are at their maximum4 ,it is misleading and not in strict accord with known realities1 to paint the portrait of a ,saint in rose color and sunlight1 diffusing an iridescent atmosphere of cheerful gayety and buoyancy4 ,the criticism is not without some foundation2 but youthful readers will not adopt it4 ,for youth is generous1 and age is crabbed4 ,and because ,saints never become crabbed we are right in concluding that they always remain youthful4 ,and1 to draw out our conclusion1 the lives of ,saints1 contrary to the popular belief1 are much more interesting to the child than they are to the man4 ,it is a pity that ,catholic parents do not recognize this outstanding truth4 ,no ,saint's life is dull to the average intelligent child4 ,grown-ups are dull3 they never yield to sublime impulses3 they measure1 calculate1 practice a hard-and-fast moderation1 reduce the splendid possibilities of life to a drab level of safe actuality1 and pursue ideals at a canny and cautious pace4 ,not so the ,saints4 ,they always retained the freshness and confidence and generous impulses of childhood4 ,if ,god spoke to their inner ear and bade them leap boldly forth into ,his ,infinite ,arms1 spurning irretrievably the solid footing of our spinning globe1 without hesitation or question they took the leap4 ,and every child can see the wisdom of it4 ,to the child it is common sense3 to his elders it is inspired heroism or unintelligible hardihood4 ,we have always entertained a deep- seated suspicion that there is no child who does not think it easy to be a ,saint1 so native is sanctity to ,catholic childhood4 ,cardinal ,newman1 we believe1 exhorted us all to make our sacrifices for ,god while we are young before the calculating selfishness of old age gets hold of us4 ,still it may not be quite clear to the inquiring mind why the desperate difficulties of sainthood can be truthfully viewed in the light of a breathless adventure4 ,learn1 then1 the great secret4 ,the love of ,god in the heart is the magical light which touches the dreariness and hardship of self-thwarting with a splendor of sublime ,romance4 ,you cannot have holiness without love4 ,holiness can be either greater nor less than the love of ,god4 ,let this love faint or grow cold1 there is at once a loss of holiness1 even though it retain all its external gear4 ,this is a cardinal truth2 it is a key which will solve many a puzzle4 ,it will explain why fanatics and similar oddities are not ,saints1 though secular history sometimes honors them with the title4 ,merely concede that the ,saint possesses love for ,god in an extraordinary measure and degree1 and it is the most comprehensible thing in the world that he will not only accept all tests of his love readily1 but will go forth in search of them with eager alacrity4 ,first and last and always the only keen satisfaction of great love1 whether human or divine1 is to welcome opportunities of proving itself in some heroic form of courage and endurance4 ,danger1 suffering1 battling against odds1 discouragement1 overwork1 pain of mind and body1 failure1 want of recognition1 rebuffs1 contempt and persecution1 are no longer the subject matter of a strong-jawed stoicism or a submissive patience but rather the quickening bread and wine of an intense and high-keyed life4 ,this is why the ,saints1 be the provocation ever so great1 never develop nerves1 or experience those melancholy and humiliating reactions which are the natural ebb-tide of spiritual energies4 ,this is why ,saints can fast and keep their temper sweet1 can wear hair-shirts without cultivating wry faces1 can be passed by in the distribution of honors without being soured1 can pray all night without robbing the day of its due meed of cheerfulness1 can rise superior to frailties and weaknesses without despising those who cannot1 can be serious without being testy and morose1 can live for years in a cell or a desert or a convent-close without perishing of ennui or being devoured by restlessness1 and can mingle with life1 where all its currents meet1 without losing their heads or swerving a hairbreadth from the straight line of a most uncommon and most impressive kind of common sense4 ,unless we keep before our eyes this mainspring of a ,saint's life1 that life will be as enigmatical to us as it is to the world4 ,jesus balked at no test of the love which ,he bore towards us3 nay1 ,he devised tests passing all human imagining4 ,let ,him make trial of our love for ,him6 ,we are unhappy till ,he does6 ,and with this daring spirit in his heart every ,saint enters upon a career of ,romance in its sweetest and highest form4 ,and1 we submit1 to recur to the literary style of the following biography1 ,romance is light-hearted1 light-stepping1 cheerful1 with the starlight on its face and in its eyes4 ,james ,j4 ,daly1 ,s4,j4 ,,contents ,chapter ,i ,,on ,,the ,,road ,chapter ,,ii ,,the ,,pursuit ,chapter ,,iii ,,early ,,days ,chapter ,,iv ,,off ,,to ,,vienna ,chapter ,v ,,school ,,days ,chapter ,,vi ,,in ,,the ,,house ,,of ,,kimberker ,chapter ,,vii ,,the ,,test ,,of ,,courage ,chapter ,,viii ,,in ,,danger ,,of ,,death ,chapter ,,ix ,,vocation ,chapter ,x ,,the ,,runaway ,chapter ,,xi ,,at ,,dilligen ,chapter ,,xii ,,the ,,road ,,to ,,rome ,chapter ,,xiii ,,the ,,noviceship ,chapter ,,xiv ,,going ,,home ,chapter ,,xv ,,aftermath ,,for ,,greater ,,things ,,chapter ,i ,,on ,,the ,,road ,mid-,august in ,vienna1 the year #aefg3 when ,shakespeare was still a little boy2 twenty years before ,philip ,,ii fitted out the ,spanish ,armada2 forty years before the first ,english colony settled in ,america4 ,the sun had just well risen1 the gates of ,vienna had been opened but a few hours4 ,through the great western gate1 which cast its long shadow on the road to ,augsburg1 came a strange-looking boy4 ,he lacked but a month or two of seventeen years1 was some five feet two or three inches in height1 had an oval face of remarkable beauty and liveliness1 jet black hair1 and eyes in which merriment dwelt as in its home4 ,he was dressed as became a noble of the time1 and in apparel of unusual splendor and costliness2 plumed bonnet1 slashed velvet doublet1 tight silken hose1 jeweled dagger at his girdle4 ,but it was odd to see so brilliant a figure on foot in the dusty highway2 still more odd that be carried a rough bundle slung on a staff over his and that1 peasant fashion1 he munched at a loaf of bread as he trudged the road4 ,by no means stalwart-looking1 still he swung along with an easy stride and a confident strength that many a stouter man might envy4 ,he was bound for ,augsburg1 #djj miles to the west1 and he set himself thirty miles a day as his rate of travel4 ,he wore splendid clothes1 because he was ,stanislaus1 the son of ,john ,kostka1 ,lord of ,kostkov1 ,senator1 and ,castellan of ,zakroczym in the ,duchy of ,mazovia1 ,poland4 ,he ate his rough breakfast1 like a peasant1 on the road1 because he had just been to ,mass and received ,holy ,communion at the ,jesuit church in ,vienna4 ,he carried a bundle on his staff1 because he laughed merrily at fine clothes and had in the bundle a coarse tunic and a stout pair of brogans1 which he meant to put on as soon as he got well out of the city4 ,and his face and his eyes shone with joy1 because he loved ,god most wonderfully and was as happy a boy as ever moved through this dull world4 ,every age has its adventurers3 men who for fame1 or for place1 or for money1 cross wide seas1 fight brave battles1 endure great hardships4 ,the age in which ,stanislaus lived was filled with them4 ,all the world reads with delight the story of such men4 ,and every decent boy who reads feels himself1 if only for the moment1 their fellow in spirit1 eager to do what they did and as bravely as they did4 ,but was there ever adventure finer than this1 ever spirit more gayly daring8 ,stanislaus ,kostka1 son of a noble house1 a boy in years1 starting without a copper in his pocket to cross half of ,europe afoot6 ,and for what8 ,not to have men say what a brave chap he was2 not to win a name1 or rank1 or money3 but because ,god would be pleased by his doing it1 because ,god called him to do something which he could not do in ,vienna4 ,he felt he had a vocation to be a ,jesuit4 ,he knew his father would not consent4 ,he took six months to think it over1 to pray for light1 to make sure it was no mere whim or fancy of his own1 but the very voice of ,god4 ,and when he felt sure1 he left a letter for his brother ,paul and his tutor1 ,bilinski1 with whom he had been studying in ,vienna2 he gave his money to a couple of beggars2 he said1 ,if ,god wants me to do this1 ,he'll furnish the means2 he put on his best attire1 tied up a rough suit in a cloth1 took a stout staff in his hand1 and with ,god's blessing upon him and ,his ,eucharistic ,presence in his heart1 stepped out cheerfully on a journey that would stagger most men4 ,that is the stuff of which heroes are made4 ,if ,stanislaus had done this for the glory of the world1 we should have his praises in our histories1 we should have stories woven about him1 the whole world would cry ,bravo6 ,but he did it for ,god1 and the world cannot understand him at all3 the world is silent4 ,an hour or so of that steady1 tireless stride carried him well away from ,vienna4 ,he slipped off his velvet and silk1 put on his coarse tunic - a shirt-like garment that came below his knees - girded himself with a bit of rope1 tied his stout shoes on his feet1 and took the road again4 ,there were folk aplenty journeying from the countryside to ,vienna in the early morning4 ,stanislaus picked out one of the poorest-looking peasants and handed him the gala dress he had just taken off4 ,i can't carry these with me1 friend1 he said4 ,won't you please take them8 ,i have no use for them1 and perhaps you can sell them in the city4 ,and he was gone before the peasant1 gaping in wonder at the rich garments and dagger in his hands1 could much more than catch a glimpse of that bright face and those laughing eyes4 ,he tramped all day1 and made his thirty miles4 ,when he was hungry1 he asked some one he met for food4 ,it is not likely that any one would refuse the smiling1 handsome boy1 from whose face innocence simply shone4 ,but if any one had refused him1 it would not have annoyed ,stanislaus4 ,his good humor came from heaven1 as well as from his own cheery soul - and you cannot rebuff that kind of good humor4 ,night came down at last1 and he was tired out4 ,he came to an inn and asked for shelter4 ,i have no money1 he told the landlord1 smiling1 and ,i have no claim upon you4 ,will you take me in8 ,the landlord looked at him shrewdly a little1 then said with respect3 ,but what is your grace doing in such a garb8 ,stanislaus thought for a moment that he was recognized2 but he put on a bold front1 and laughed as he said3 ,i am not 'your grace4 ,i am what you see me1 and ,i have a long journey to make4 ,in those days it was not unusual for even nobles to go1 roughly clad1 upon pilgrimages of devotion4 ,that ,stanislaus was a noble1 the landlord was quite certain4 ,that he might be engaged on some such pious business1 was possible4 ,but who ever heard of a mere boy going upon pilgrimage8 ,the whole affair puzzled the landlord more than a little4 ,however1 the face of the boy reassured him4 ,at least there could be no evil behind that frank1 brave countenance4 ,so he shook his head1 saying3 ,i do not understand4 ,but come in4 ,you are welcome4 ,he gave ,stanislaus his supper and a bed to sleep in4 ,you shall not be the poorer for this1 said ,stanislaus1 as he thanked him4 ,you know ,god makes it up to us for even a cup of cold water given in ,his name4 ,and as the boy spoke1 the landlord saw his face glow when he spoke of ,god and he was very glad at heart that he had given shelter and food1 to this strange boy4 ,stanislaus slept soundly4 ,but he was up with the sun1 washed and dressed quickly1 and went to thank his host again before setting out4 ,but you will have something to eat before you go8 cried the man1 as ,stanislaus stood before him1 staff in hand1 ready for the road4 ,it is good of you to offer it1 the boy answered4 ,but perhaps ,i shall find a church before long1 and ,i must go fasting to ,holy ,communion4 ,then the landlord marvelled again1 for at that period even good people did not go very often to ,holy ,communion1 especially when they were traveling hard1 as ,stanislaus evidently was4 ,and his admiration and liking grew for this boy with the merry face and the heart so near heaven4 ,at least1 he said1 you must take something with you for the way4 ,and that ,stanislaus did not refuse1 but accepted gratefully1 and so parted from the kind landlord1 leaving him gazing in the doorway with wonder in his eyes4 ,his legs were a bit stiff and sore this second day4 ,but the first few miles wore that off1 and he swung on his way as bravely and gayly as before4 ,,chapter ,,ii ,,the ,,pursuit ,meanwhile1 there was a hubbub in ,vienna4 ,stanislaus had lived in that city about three years with his brother ,paul1 who was about a year older than he1 and in the care of a tutor1 a young man named ,bilinski4 ,he had left them in the early morning4 ,as the day wore on and he did not return home1 they became uneasy4 ,they went about all afternoon1 inquiring amongst their friends and acquaintance if any had seen him4 ,only one or two were in the secret1 and they kept discreet silence4 ,unable therefore to get any trace of ,stanislaus1 they soon came to the conclusion that he had fled4 ,and1 as we shall see1 they had good reason in their own hearts for guessing that from the first4 ,they returned to the house of the ,senator ,kimberker1 where they were all lodging1 and taking ,kimberker1 who was a ,lutheran1 into their confidence1 they held a council of war4 ,it was decided that ,stanislaus must have gone to ,augsburg4 ,paul recalled something that ,stanislaus had said to him only the day before1 when he had threatened plainly to run away4 ,and they had heard him say1 another time1 that at ,augsburg was ,peter ,canisius1 the ,provincial of the ,german ,jesuits4 ,of course they were going to follow him and bring him back4 ,but night had come on before their inquiries and deliberations were finished4 ,they must wait till the next day4 ,accordingly1 bright and early the following morning1 all three1 with one of the ,kostkas' servants1 drove out in a carriage over the ,augsburg road4 ,they had four good horses and they told their coachman not to spare the whip4 ,they came to the inn where ,stanislaus had spent the night4 ,they questioned the landlord4 ,have you seen a boy of seventeen1 a ,polish noble1 pass westward along this road yesterday or today8 ,but the landlord was shrewd1 and though the whole matter was beyond him1 he fancied somehow that these eager folk were no great friends of the boy who had lodged with him4 ,and as he trusted that boy and could scarcely help being loyal to him1 he shrugged his shoulders and answered3 ,how should ,i know8 ,so many travel this road4 ,then ,bilinski described ,stanislaus and his doublet of velvet and hose of silk and jeweled dagger4 ,but at that the landlord shook his head in denial4 ,i have seen no such person as your graces describe1 he said4 ,bilinski called out to the coachman3 ,drive on4 ,we have nothing to learn here4 ,but ,paul said3 ,,nq let us turn back4 ,he cannot have walked this far in one day4 ,we must have passed him on the road4 ,perhaps you could not have walked so far1 said ,bilinski1 with a sneer4 ,but ,stanislaus could4 ,drive on6 ,forty miles or more out of ,vienna1 they saw a boy trudging ahead of them1 in a rough tunic1 rope-girdled1 with a staff in his hand4 ,at the noise of the hurrying wheels the boy glanced back1 then quickly turned up a lane which there entered the road4 ,he did not look in the least like a nobleman's son1 and the carriage passed the bottom of the lane without so much as slacking speed4 ,stanislaus ran up the lane until he came to where it ended at a rough1 brawling stream4 ,without a moment's hesitation he put off his shoes1 tucked up his tunic1 and began wading in the course of the stream4 ,the water was cold1 the sharp stones in the bed of the stream bruised his feet1 at any moment he might fall into a deep hole and be drowned4 ,but he splashed and stumbled ahead1 as fast as he could go1 praying to his guardian angel to have care of him4 ,a little farther1 he knew1 the highway crossed this stream by a bridge1 and there he could leave the water and regain the road4 ,the carriage meantime kept on and came to this bridge4 ,but ,paul had been thinking of the young fellow who took to the lane when he saw the carriage approach and a shrewd suspicion came into his head4 ,did you see that boy who ran up the lane8 he cried at length to ,bilinski4 ,i believe it was ,stanislaus4 ,but he was dressed like a peasant1 said ,bilinski4 ,and ,stanislaus had on a handsome suit4 ,they debated for a time1 but ,paul prevailed4 ,round they turned and drove furiously back to the lane4 ,but as the driver tried to turn his horses into it1 the animals reared and balked and refused to enter4 ,blows and curses were showered on them2 they merely stood and trembled2 no efforts could urge them into the lane4 ,then the driver grew afraid1 and cried out3 ,my ,lord ,paul1 we cannot go into this lane4 ,and before ,god1 ,i have fear upon me6 ,never have the horses acted this way4 ,and indeed fear seized them all4 ,they saw the hand of ,god in this strange obstinancy of their beasts4 ,even ,kimberker cried the pursuit4 ,fear ,god6 he said4 ,for this is no common mishap6 ,and when they turned the horses' heads again toward ,vienna1 the animals snorted and pranced and went very willingly4 ,and so1 when ,stanislaus came to the bridge1 the highway was clear4 ,after a look about1 he put on his shoes1 gripped his staff afresh1 and took up again cheerily as ever his thirty miles a day to ,augsburg4 ,day after day1 tired and footsore1 he told off the long miles1 begging his food and lodging as he went2 fearless and happy1 praying like an angel of ,god as he walked along4 ,many were kind to him for the brave1 bright spirit that shone out in his face4 ,many remembered those words of our ,lord1 ,whatsoever you have done unto the least of these my brethren1 you have done it unto me1 and willingly sheltered the boy and gave him to eat4 ,sometimes he turned into the fields beside the road and slept through the warm ,august night beneath the open sky4 ,whenever he came to a church in the morning1 he heard ,mass and received ,holy ,communion1 for he started out each morning fasting4 ,and on the fourteenth day he reached ,augsburg4 ,what happened there1 we shall see in another chapter1 and how within three weeks this smiling boy turned his face southward and tramped another eight hundred miles on foot to ,rome4 ,but just that will show you something of the spirit of ,stanislaus1 the spirit of a hero4 ,all that a knight might do out of love for his lady1 he did out of love for ,god4 ,he really loved ,god with a sort of fierce intensity4 ,and he wanted to show his love in deeds1 just as we want to show our love for a person by doing something1 by giving something4 ,god had given him everything1 he would give ,god everything3 that was the whole of his life4 ,and with that generosity went a fine common sense4 ,he was not rash or headlong1 acting first and thinking afterward4 ,he reckoned things out calmly and sensibly1 and then went ahead with a pluck and determination that nothing in the world could stop4 ,god asked a fearfully hard thing of him2 to leave his people1 his home2 to set out afoot on an enormous journey2 to undergo no end of hardships and humiliations2 to live in a strange land1 among strange people4 ,and he did it1 did it smilingly1 joyfully1 with a simple1 quiet bravery seldom if ever matched by any other boy in the world4 ,the one thing that staggers us is his reason for doing it1 his great love for ,god4 ,and that is because we have not got1 what we could easily get1 his secret4 ,he prayed1 he kept close in thought to ,god always4 ,god and heaven and our ,lady were as familiar to his mind as the sun and the earth and the air are to our mind's4 ,the earth to him was only the antechamber of heaven4 ,he looked upon life as one looks upon a little delay at a railway station before the train leaves2 the only important thing is to catch the train4 ,,chapter ,,iii ,,early ,,days ,bilinski and ,paul ,kostka went back to ,vienna1 much troubled at heart4 ,they really loved ,stanislaus1 for one thing1 though they had been pretty rough with him4 ,and for another1 they had to face the anger of the ,lord ,john ,kostka1 when he should hear of ,stanislaus' flight4 ,shortly after they had got back1 a young friend of the runaway came to them and said3 ,if you look between the leaves of such-and-such a book1 you will find a letter which ,stanislaus left for you4 ,they looked and found the letter4 ,it was very simple and straightforward1 a genuine boy's letter4 ,he had run away1 he said1 because he had to4 ,he was called to enter the ,society of ,jesus4 ,he had to do what ,god wanted of him4 ,he knew they would prevent him if they could4 ,and so he just went4 ,he left them messages of affectionate regard1 and begged them to forward his letter to his father4 ,bilinski sent this letter on at once4 ,paul also wrote1 as did ,kimberker and even the servant who had gone with them in the carriage4 ,each tried to shift the blame from himself1 told of the strange behavior of the horses1 explained that everything possible had been done to overtake the fugitive4 ,and when their letters came1 there was high wrath in ,kostkov4 ,the ,lord ,john raved and swore4 ,he blamed everybody1 but most of all ,stanislaus and the tricky ,jesuits who1 he said1 were back of the whole scheme4 ,he wrote to ,cardinal ,osius that he would not rest until he had broken up the ,jesuit college in ,pultowa and driven every schemer of them out of ,poland4 ,as for ,stanislaus1 he would follow him across the world1 if need were1 and drag him back to ,kostkov in chains4 ,he was a great lord1 the ,lord ,john4 ,he loved his second son1 ,stanislaus1 most dearly1 and he loved dearly the honor of his house1 which he thought that son had stained by hi conduct4 ,a son of his in beggar's garb1 tramping the highways of ,europe1 begging his bread from door to door6 ,it nearly broke his heart4 ,he had princely blood in his veins1 he was a ,senator of ,poland1 he might even become a king4 ,his dearest hopes were in ,stanislaus1 his second son4 ,paul1 the eldest1 was wild and unsteady4 ,and though there were two other sons and a daughter1 none gave such promise as ,stanislaus4 ,so that the ,lord ,john looked chiefly to him to carry on the great name and make it more glorious still4 ,no wonder he raged6 ,stanislaus had figured all that out beforehand4 ,it hurt him too1 hurt terribly4 ,but what can one do when ,god calls8 ,god had made all the ,kostkas1 given them name and rank4 ,god was the ,lord of ,lords4 ,it was heart-breaking to ,stanislaus to leave his father in anger4 ,yet he trusted that since that was ,god's will - well1 ,god would find a way to bring peace out of all this trouble4 ,he put all his fears and heartache away from him1 and went out to do what ,god wanted4 ,he had always done that1 even when he was a little tad in the rough castle at ,kostkov4 ,god had taught him1 ,god had helped him wonderfully4 ,but more wonderful still to our eyes is the way the boy listened to ,god's teaching and obeyed it4 ,we think things come easy to the saints4 ,we read or hear of wonders in their lives1 which are evidently ,god's doing2 and we say3 ,of course the saint was good and holy4 ,but it was all done for him4 ,god made everything smooth4 ,the saint was never in my boots for a minute4 ,and all the time we forget the things which the saint himself did1 the superb efforts he had to make4 ,so ,stanislaus began to pray as soon as he well began to speak4 ,do you think he would not sooner have kept on with his play8 ,do you think he did not naturally hate the effort just as any boy naturally hates effort8 ,he lived amongst rough men1 men used to the ways of camps and the speech of soldiers4 ,yet he not merely kept his own lips clean1 but he shrank1 as from a blow1 from every coarse or indecent speech in others4 ,he did not go around correcting people4 ,he was too sensible for that4 ,he was not a prig or a prude4 ,but he knew1 as we know1 that vile speech is hateful to ,god2 and1 as so many of us do not do1 he set his face against it4 ,did that cost him no effort8 ,had he no human respect to fight against8 ,think of how many times you may have grinned1 cowardly1 at a gross remark or shady story of a comrade - because you were not fighter enough to resent it6 ,and then give this ,stanislaus1 who did resent1 credit for his stouter courage1 his more manly spirit4 ,his biographers tell us that he was simply' free from temptations against purity4 ,that does not mean what many may think it means3 that he was physically unlike other boys1 that he had no animal desires1 that he had nothing to fight against4 ,it means that he was such a magnificent fighter that he had won the battle almost from the start4 ,it means that he was not content1 as so many of us are1 with merely pushing a temptation a little aside1 and then looking around in surprise to find it still there4 ,he was like a skillful boxer1 who wards off every blow of his adversary1 so that he goes through the contest absolutely untouched4 ,he watched1 as we are too lazy to watch2 he kept out of danger1 where we foolishly run into it2 he did not wait until temptation had set upon him and nearly battered him down before he began to resist2 he saw it coming afar off1 just as we can if we look out1 and he met it with a rush that sent it again beyond reach or even sight4 ,,of ,,course he was the same as other boys2 ,,of ,,course he had the same inclinations1 the same promptings of the animal man2 but with them he had more daring1 more force and energy of will to cooperate with ,god's grace4 ,you always find it that way4 ,the things the saints seem to do with ease are terrifically hard things1 huge battles1 regular slugging fights4 ,the ease1 if there be any1 is not in the things they did1 but in the men who did them4 ,you have seen skilled pianists sit down at their instruments and run off into brisk flowing music what looks like a hopeless jumble of notes4 ,you may have seen an artist sketch in1 whilst chatting idly1 a swift1 striking portrait4 ,well1 all really good men are artists too2 artists in fighting4 ,and ,stanislaus was one of the cleverest and strongest artists of the lot4 ,he began early1 just as the musician ,mozart did1 just as the painter ,raffaele did2 and he studied hard at his art1 just as all great artists have done4 ,he began by saying his prayers well1 not mere lip prayers1 but heart prayers4 ,he began by getting on easy terms with ,god1 with our ,lord in the ,blessed ,sacrament1 with our ,blessed ,lady4 ,he learned to talk with them as we learn to talk with our fathers and mothers4 ,he told them his troubles1 his plans4 ,he talked everything over with them4 ,and it no more made him queer or stiff or unpleasant than talking things over with your comrades or your parents makes you queer or stiff or unpleasant4 ,if you believe in ,god1 it is the most natural thing in the world to try to take ,him into your confidence4 ,then it is easy to see how1 as ,stanislaus grew older1 he liked to pray1 he liked to talk about ,god and our ,lady4 ,you see1 he had grown to know them4 ,they were not remote1 far away4 ,they were as near to him as his own folk4 ,they were his own folk4 ,and it is easy to see how1 keeping in ,god's sight all the time1 he kept his soul clean and his heart merry4 ,,chapter ,,iv ,,off ,,to ,,vienna ,in this way ,stanislaus went on until he was nearly fourteen years old and his brother ,paul was approaching fifteen4 ,then the ,lord ,john ,kostka thought his boys had better continue their studies1 not at home1 but at a regular school4 ,he picked out ,john ,bilinski1 a young man who had lately completed his college course1 as tutor for them4 ,he gave them a couple of servants1 mounted them all on good horses1 and sent them off six hundred miles or more on horseback to ,vienna4 ,you may be sure ,stanislaus enjoyed the long ride4 ,it would be strange if he1 a nobleman of the finest cavalry nation in the world1 were not a good horseman4 ,he loved the smell of the open fields1 he loved the boisterous song of the mountain torrent4 ,the hills and the plains were his home1 for the hills and the plains were nearer to ,god than the houses of men4 ,in those days all travel was on foot or on horseback4 ,the wealthy and noble rode1 the poor footed it4 ,great highways cut ,europe from end to end2 though there were tracts in ,stanislaus' country where the roadway was only the broad steppe1 where the grasses waved and tossed like the sea1 where men were few and their dwellings scattered far apart4 ,they crossed great rivers1 they climbed the foothills of the ,carpathian mountains4 ,many a night ,paul and ,stanislaus1 with their people1 slept under the stars4 ,many a wild1 rough border town they passed4 ,many a great forest they penetrated1 the home of the wild boar and the aurochs4 ,and the tar burners in the forests looked up from under their matted brows at the fair oval face of the ,polish boy1 and said3 ,he is like a wild flower blown by the wind4 ,he is like the violets that laugh in spring at the sun4 ,and the shaggy fighting-men of the frontier villages watched him ride through their streets1 and thought3 ,this is an angel4 ,he looks toward heaven because he sees his ,brothers there4 ,they crossed themselves piously as he passed4 ,and some of the light and laughter of his face glowed 'for a moment in their dark lives1 as a gloomy glen in the forest is brightened up by a darting ray of sunlight4 ,he was wonderful1 but he was always a boy4 ,he was glad to feel the good horse under him1 to grip the ,tartar saddle with his knees1 to feel the air rush by his cheek4 ,sometimes they met poor people staggering wearily afoot along the road4 ,often ,stanislaus checked his horse and lightly dismounted4 ,get up1 get up1 old father6 he would cry4 ,my legs are stiff from the saddle4 ,i want to walk4 ,and though a peasant might often be afraid to accept the favor from a noble1 or be surly and churlish1 the folk never were so with ,stanislaus4 ,up climbed the old father into the saddle1 and ,stanislaus stepped out by his side4 ,god give your grace long years6 said the thankful old man4 ,long years6 cried ,stanislaus4 ,i want more than that4 ,i want eternity4 ,i was born for greater things than long years4 ,and the old man would understand2 for he was of the poor1 and the poor know more of this longing for heaven than do the rich4 ,but he looked almost with awe at this richly dressed noble boy who had learned even now to value life so justly4 ,then it was easy for ,stanislaus to talk of heaven to the old man4 ,old father1 in the barony of the ,lord ,jesus there is no poverty or old age or weariness4 ,nor is there any difference of rank there as here1 for we shall all be great lords and castellans in heaven4 ,aye1 but your grace will be a hetman surely in the army of the ,lord ,jesus1 said the old man4 ,who knows6 cried ,stanislaus4 ,i should love that dearly4 ,though the generals in ,his kingdom are not always from amongst the nobles4 ,it may be that you will be hetman1 and ,i a common soldier4 ,but it is good to be even a common soldier with ,him4 ,i went against the ,tartars in my youth1 said the old man4 ,perhaps we shall have a campaign against that dog-brother ,lucifer1 and ,saint ,michael and ,saint ,wenceslaus will lead us under the ,lord ,jesus2 and our ,lady of ,yasna ,gora will look on when we come back victorious6 ,and so they talked on until it was time to set the old man down1 and ,stanislaus mounted again to catch up with his party1 which had gone ahead4 ,with ,god6 cried the old man4 ,with ,god6 echoed ,stanislaus4 ',and if you go to heaven before me1 father1 do not forget to plead for me with the ,lord ,jesus and with ,his ,mother4 ,then he clattered along the road1 and shortly came up with ,bilinski and ,paul4 ,sometimes they came to districts infested by robbers1 and waited to join themselves to some larger party for protection4 ,sometimes they made long stretches of many hours in the saddle1 when the inns were far apart and they could get no food on the road4 ,sometimes they tarried a day or two in a little town to rest their horses4 ,but everywhere ,stanislaus thought of ,god1 and prayed1 and when occasion offered spoke of holy things as only he could speak4 ,bilinski and ,paul often laughed at him1 for they were of a different stamp4 ,but he did not mind their ridicule1 and he bore them no grudge for it4 ,and so1 after4 many days1 they came at length to ,vienna1 on ,july #bf1 #aefd4 ,,chapter ,v ,,school ,,days ,vienna ,,was a great city1 even in those days1 since for a long time it had been the residence of the ,roman ,emperors of the ,west4 ,it was a ,catholic city1 though even in #aefd1 little more than forty years after ,luther's revolt1 the ,lutherans in the city had begun to be quite numerous4 ,the ,society of ,jesus had been founded in #aedj1 only ten years before ,stanislaus was born4 ,but it had spread quickly4 ,for some years now there had been a ,jesuit house in ,vienna4 ,in i#efo1 four years before ,stanislaus came to ,vienna1 the ,emperor ,ferdinand ,i had loaned to the ,viennese ,jesuits a large house next to their own1 which they might use as a college4 ,the ,fathers built a connection between the two houses1 so that they became practically one4 ,here they received boys from the city1 from the country round about1 even from ,hungary and far ,poland4 ,here ,stanislaus took up his residence4 ,it was a simpler1 less formal sort of school than we perhaps are accustomed to4 ,the ,fathers and the boys lived together1 almost as one big family4 ,they ate together in one large dining hall4 ,there were always some of the ,fathers with the boys in their games1 as well as in their studies4 ,it was a very pleasant place1 and a very good place4 ,in those early days of ,protestantism1 ,catholics1 even ,catholic boys1 felt that they were in a fighting situation4 ,the attacks upon the old faith woke new courage and devotion in those who remained faithful to the ,church of the ages4 ,and so1 filled with that spirit of loyalty1 that new earnestness which the times called forth1 and living under the example of the simple manly piety of their ,jesuit teachers1 it is no wonder that the boys in the ,college of ,vienna were an unusually good set of boys4 ,they had their regular classes1 in languages1 mathematics1 and such science as the age knew4 ,latin was then the language of all educated people in ,europe1 the language of courts1 the common meeting ground of all nations4 ,many a time1 both in those days and later2 a noble proved his rank and saved himself from mischance by the mere fact that he spoke ,latin4 ,it was not a dead language then1 as it is now4 ,it was in current use4 ,greek was comparatively new in ,western schools4 ,and though from their beginnings the ,jesuits were famous teachers1 we can hardly suppose that in their new and small college at ,vienna the boys were much troubled by the speech of ,plato and ,demosthenes4 ,of their games it is hard to know much at this late day4 ,sword-play and bouts of a soldierly sort were common enough4 ,these boys were almost all of noble birth2 most of them perhaps looked for-ward to the army for their profession4 ,so they held mimic tournaments and played games in which they hurled lances through suspended rings2 they shot with bows and arrows2 and of course they had matches in running1 jumping and wrestling4 ,we know that ,stanislaus did uncommonly well in the schools4 ,he was quick1 had a good memory1 and was too sensible to be lazy4 ,and though the writers of his life say nothing about it1 we are quite sure that he excelled in games and sports also4 ,for one thing1 he as a general favorite1 esteemed by all his fellows2 and that must mean that he was one with them in their play4 ,for another1 he was naturally no dreamer or moper1 but the jolliest1 cheeriest sort of boy4 ,and finally1 the boy who walked twelve hundred miles in a few weeks must have been well accustomed to using his legs4 ,try thirty miles a day on foot1 day after day1 you football players and baseball players1 you trained athletes1 and say whether it is the work of a weakling or of a boy who never played4 ,but it takes more than success in studies and in games to account for his great popularity with the other college boys4 ,such success may win a certain admiration and respect1 but it does not of itself win friends4 ,and ,stanislaus had pretty nearly every one for his friend4 ,to do that requires other gifts1 gifts of character4 ,everybody liked him1 because he had such gifts4 ,he was pious1 but not merely pious2 much more than pious1 he was good4 ,that means he was unselfish4 ,there is only one way to make people really love you1 and that is to love them4 ,that is what ,stanislaus did2 he loved the people he lived with4 ,he was naturally good hearted1 and big hearted4 ,he had kept away from petty meannesses4 ,he had fought down his natural selfishness4 ,he had learned not to be always seeking his own little advantage1 not to put himself forward for praise1 not to insist on his rights1 not to boast and carry a high hand with his comrades1 not to talk a lot about himself4 ,he had learned to forgive little offenses1 and big ones1 too1 for that matter4 ,he knew all about how our ,lord had suffered and put up with things and forgiven those who hurt ,him4 ,and he loved our ,lord so much1 was so much at home with ,him1 that almost without effort he acted as our ,lord would want him to act4 ,he had plenty of spirit1 and a whole world of pluck and daring2 but he was not quarrelsome4 ,then he was as cheerful as sunshine1 and he made every one else cheerful4 ,why1 the boys could not help loving a boy like him4 ,sodalities were rare in those days2 but the college boys of ,vienna had a sodality1 devoted to the honor of our ,lady1 and under the patronage of ,saint ,barbara4 ,at their meetings2 the sodalists in turn had to address their companions1 give a little talk about the ,blessed ,virgin1 or on some virtue1 or the like4 ,whenever ,stanislaus' turn came1 the boys were all expectation4 ,he was no older than most of them2 indeed1 younger perhaps4 ,but he had an older head4 ,he had done more thinking than they1 and a deal more praying4 ,he had no false shame or babyish timidity4 ,if he had anything to say1 he was not afraid to say it4 ,and he certainly had something to say4 ,it had come to be as easy for him to talk about our ,lady and heaven as for other boys to talk about their mothers at home4 ,he had treasured up stories of the ,blessed ,virgin's help1 with which ,catholic ,poland was filled4 ,he spoke simply1 unaffectedly1 of our ,lady's love for us1 of her power1 her willingness to aid us4 ,and from him1 though simply their school mate1 the boys heard these things eagerly4 ,he seemed well privileged to speak1 as indeed he was4 ,to talk about pious things1 and do it acceptably1 is a mighty hard matter4 ,you have to know how4 ,and the first part of knowing how is to be at home with pious things1 to have thought about them1 often and long1 to have woven them into your life as ,stanislaus had done4 ,the trouble with us is that we live so far removed from thoughts of ,god1 of ,his ,mother1 that they never cease to be strange to us4 ,we go blunderingly about mention of them1 or we lack the courage to speak at all4 ,but why should they be strange or remote8 ,we are destined to live forever in heaven1 we are the daily recipients of ,god's favors1 we are sheltered1 protected1 every way by our ,lady's loving care4 ,the things that touch us most nearly are the things of the spiritual world2 they are the most thrillingly important2 they are the only really important things4 ,we are not afraid to talk baseball1 or politics1 or business4 ,why be afraid to talk of ,god's power1 ,his dominion over us1 ,his love for us1 our duties to ,him1 the helps ,he gives us1 the reward ,he holds out to us8 ,there is only one answer3 we don't think enough about these things4 ,there is only one remedy3 do thing about them1 as ,saint ,stanislaus did4 ,,chapter ,,vi ,,in ,,the ,,house ,,of ,,kimberker ,the house which the ,jesuits in ,vienna used for their boarding college was not theirs4 ,it belonged to the ,emperor ,ferdinand ,i1 who had merely loaned it to them4 ,now the ,emperor ,ferdinand had died on ,july #be1 #aefd1 the day before ,paul and ,stanislaus came to ,vienna4 ,the new ,emperor1 ,maximilian ,,ii1 left the house with the ,jesuits for a time2 but in ,march1 #aefe1 withdrew it from their use4 ,of course1 that meant the breaking up of the boarding-school4 ,the ,fathers still had their own residence1 and they could teach a small number of day scholars4 ,many of their pupils went to their homes when they could no longer live with the ,jesuits4 ,those who remained had to take lodgings elsewhere in the city4 ,it was decided that ,paul and ,stanislaus should be amongst the latter number4 ,at once ,bilinski set out with the two to get a house4 ,in the ,platz ,kiemark1 a fashionable quarter of the town1 there was a splendid mansion1 belonging to a ,lutheran noble1 the ,senator ,kimberker4 ,it took ,paul's fancy immensely4 ,on inquiry1 they found that ,kimberker used less than half of the house1 for it was a huge building with many rooms1 and that he was more than willing to rent the unused rooms to the young ,poles4 ,stanislaus felt a little ill at ease over living with a ,lutheran4 ,but ,bilinski and ,paul pooh- poohed at his fears1 and had their own way in the matter4 ,so in a few days they moved in1 and fitted up a couple of the vacant rooms4 ,stanislaus was to live more than two years in this house1 two years filled with a great deal of annoyance and pain1 and yet blessed in wonderful ways4 ,his difficulties began almost at once1 and they were no slight difficulties4 ,of course1 he and ,paul went daily for classes to the ,jesuits' house1 and met daily the few boys who continued their studies in ,vienna4 ,but the old companionship1 the old life of the boys in common1 was gone4 ,only two or three of his best friends remained1 and these were scattered through the city4 ,he saw them for a little while after classes1 he might now and then go out with them on a holiday4 ,but for the most part he was thrown back upon the company of his tutor and his elder brother4 ,both ,paul and ,bilinski liked a good time4 ,they were far removed from the authority of home4 ,bilinski1 who was in charge1 was only a few years older than ,paul2 and whilst a good fellow in the main1 was little able1 or perhaps little willing1 to put much check upon him4 ,and ,paul was a pretty gay blade4 ,rough1 boisterous1 wild in manner1 he picked companions like himself4 ,kimberker' #e house soon became a noisy place4 ,there were dinners at which the wine went round very freely1 plenty of cards and dice1 now and then brawling quarrels4 ,it did not suit ,stanislaus at all4 ,he was too much of a gentleman1 and too good1 to act unpleasantly or resent the rough company that ,paul brought home4 ,but he could not mix freely with them1 he did not like their talk or their manners1 and he slipped quietly away from their noisy gatherings as soon as he decently could4 ,and so he was left alone2 and lonesomeness for a boy of fourteen is a very unpleasant thing4 ,he still did well in his classes1 but he was no book-worm4 ,when he had done his duty in study1 the books had no further claim upon him1 and no attraction in themselves4 ,and yet he kept up his wonderful brightness and cheeriness all the time2 so that ,bilinski often wondered at him4 ,and it was worth wondering at1 for there is nothing1 as everybody knows1 which sooner breaks down one's spirits and brings on the blue devils than being left alone1 without friends and companionship4 ,how did he do it8 ,the fact is1 he refused to be alone4 ,as his friends in ,vienna left him1 he simply turned more to his friends in heaven4 ,and heaven came down to him4 ,any old vacant room in the big1 half-empty house was his chapel4 ,and through the long1 lonely days1 often through great part of the night1 he prayed4 ,if you could have seen him pray6 ,imagine any good-hearted boy who has been away from home for a long stretch1 say a couple of years1 and who comes back and meets father1 mother1 brothers1 sisters4 ,he may not say much1 but he ,,looks a good deal1 and he feels more than any words can say4 ,that is the way ,stanislaus prayed4 ,he just turned to ,god and his ,mother in heaven1 with all his love in his eyes and immense happiness in his heart4 ,and if he spoke1 or said things to them in his mind1 he could speak simply1 like a little child1 because no one else would hear him and he would not need be shy or bashful4 ,if you could have seen him pray1 you would never think1 as so many do1 that praying is a gloomy business4 ,his face was lit up1 his eyes bright1 his whole body spoke of peace and courage and joy4 ,he kept thinking so much about heaven that he seemed to live there in advance4 ,everybody knows how1 when the school year is nearly over and vacations are at hand1 there is a joyful atmosphere about the days4 ,lessons do not seem so hard1 though they really are just the same old lessons4 ,classes seem to have more life and spirit in them4 ,boys are in better temper4 ,every detail of work and play is colored by expectation1 as if the relief of vacation were already foretasted4 ,stanislaus looked forward just that way to the ,great ,vacation1 to going ,home forever4 ,he knew that even the longest life4 ends soon1 that all its difficulties and troubles pass away and eternity begins2 and he felt so light-hearted looking ahead to that eternity that nothing happening here could sadden him - except sin1 and he kept away from that4 ,paul and his boisterous fellows thought that ,paul's younger brother was a queer chap4 ,but they liked him1 just the same1 because he was always pleasant and smiling4 ,he never said a word to them about their conduct4 ,but when they talked to him1 he naturally spoke of the things he was always thinking about4 ,and they did not like that4 ,such talk tended to stir up their consciences1 even to frighten them4 ,and they did not want their con-sciences stirred up4 ,you can often see that4 ,you may have noticed in yourself that1 if you are not living as you ought to live1 any word about ,god or death or heaven or our ,blessed ,lady irritates you1 makes you feel horribly uncomfortable4 ,and so ,stanislaus became a puzzle to them1 because they would not see4 ,and little by little they left him alone1 or only spoke to him to tease him or make fun of him4 ,,chapter ,,vii ,,the ,,test ,,of ,,courage ,paul was the worst at this teasing2 nor did it stop at mere teasing4 ,he was not a really bad fellow1 but he was selfish1 set upon having his own will in everything1 and had a very quick and fierce temper4 ,stanislaus' quiet refusal to join in the noisy revels of himself and his companions1 his unaffected piety1 his long hours of prayer1 were things he could not understand4 ,they seemed a sort of standing rebuke to him1 and they constantly nettled him4 ,of course he sought reasons to justify himself1 as we all do when we are in the wrong4 ,when they were alone1 he and ,bilinski fell to scolding ,stanislaus4 ,you shame us6 ,paul would cry4 ,you do not act like a nobleman1 but like some boorish peasant4 ,then ,stanislaus would be troubled4 ,he knew he was in the right4 ,he simply could not stand the free ways and freer speech of ,paul and his companions4 ,but how could he justify himself8 ,how could he defend his own position without at least seeming to attack his brother's8 ,and that last he would never do4 ,s#fmetimes he tried to smooth matters over by saying3 ,we take different ways1 ,paul4 ,i do not condemn yours4 ,why not let me alone in mine8 ,but oftenest he could only smile and say nothing4 ,and whether he answered or kept silence1 ,paul was sure to grow more irritated4 ,then ,bilinski tried to exert his authority4 ,your father gave you into my charge1 he would say4 ,i order you to act like the rest of us and not make yourself odd and shame us by your conduct4 ,but ,stanislaus knew well enough what were the limits of ,bilinski's authority and he was not at all the sort of boy to be easily bullied by a mere assumption of authority that did not exist4 ,the result always was that ,stanislaus continued to do what his own conscience urged him to do1 and that ,bilinski and ,paul felt helpless in the face of his quiet1 fearless persistence4 ,and that made them the more vexed with him4 ,they nicknamed him ,the ,jesuit1 they mimicked him1 they sneered at him4 ,he had a pretty hot temper himself1 but he kept himself well in hand1 and was always kind and pleasant with these cross-grained comrades4 ,he was not the least bit afraid4 ,whenever he thought that speaking would do any good1 he spoke up without hesitation4 ,many a time1 when ,paul taunted him with acting in a way to bring discredit upon his name1 he answered3 ,no man shames his name by trying to please ,god4 ,as for what men may think or say1 that does not matter much4 ,do you think we shall bother much about that in eternity8 ,there were two cousins of theirs who often stayed with the ,kostkas2 one of them was also called ,stanislaus1 the other1 who afterwards rose to high rank in his native country1 was named ,rozrarewski4 ,these sided with ,paul and did their best to help him in making ,stanislaus' life miserable4 ,it was not long before ,paul went on from words to blows4 ,one day ,stanislaus quietly tried to answer some of ,paul's sneers4 ,paul sprang at him in a rage and1 striking out savagely1 knocked him down4 ,bilinski interfered1 and when he had drawn off ,paul1 proceeded to scold ,stanislaus as being the cause of all the trouble4 ,such meanness and injustice must have made the boy's blood boil4 ,but he mastered himself and said nothing4 ,that afternoon ,paul was going out riding4 ,he could not find his spurs4 ,take mine1 said ,stanislaus1 pleasantly1 as if nothing had happened4 ,and ,paul took them1 a little ashamed1 saying to himself3 ,he's a decent little beggar1 after all - if only he weren't so insufferably pious6 ,but ,paul1 though he might be touched for the moment by his brother's readiness to forgive1 continued to grow even more irritated with him4 ,many and many a time he struck ,stanislaus2 and often1 after knocking him down1 kicked him and then tramped on him4 ,and ,bilinski always took the same line1 trying to make peace by blaming everything on ,stanislaus4 ,now ,stanislaus was very nearly ,paul's equal in size1 and easily his match in strength4 ,he lived simply and frugally1 kept himself in condition1 did not over-eat and over-drink as ,paul did4 ,he could1 without much difficulty1 have met ,paul's brutality in kind1 and very likely have given him a good beating4 ,and he knew well enough that if he did so1 ,paul would let him alone4 ,for when was there ever a bully who was not also a coward8 ,and you may be sure he felt like doing it4 ,he was in the right1 and knew he was4 ,he was high-spirited and utterly without fear4 ,and yet he never even defended himself4 lie let ,paul bully him and beat him4 ,he endured to have himself looked upon as a coward - although you may observe that all the time he did not budge an inch from the line of conduct he had chosen4 ,and why8 ,well1 for a lot of reasons4 ,in the first place1 he kept saying to himself1 ,what difference does it make for eternity8 ,then1 he knew his own high temper and he would not let himself go1 for fear he should commit a sin - and he hated sin with all his soul4 ,and then he recalled what our ,lord had suffered for him1 and he said3 ,if you will give me the courage to stand it1 ,i'll be glad1 ,lord1 to suffer this much for ,you4 ,and that last was the reason why1 in the midst of this real persecution1 he never lost his cheerfulness4 ,more than that1 he never missed a chance to do ,paul and his friends a good turn4 ,he said3 ,when men were treating our ,lord worst1 even killing ,him1 that was when ,he was opening heaven for them4 ,and ,i'm sure ,he would like me to be kind as ,he was kind to those who treated ,him meanly4 ,he did what he could to avoid annoying ,paul4 ,he kept out of everybody's way when he wanted to pray4 ,he used to wait at night till the others were asleep1 for they all slept in one great room together1 and then slip out of bed and on to his knees4 ,sometimes his cousins1 thinking it a great joke1 would pretend to stumble over him in the half-dark1 and kick him as hard as they could4 ,and this went on for two years4 ,he could have stopped the whole matter with no trouble at all1 by simply writing to his father4 ,but he never so much as hinted to any one at home of the way ,paul and ,bilinski and his cousins treated him4 ,he was as plucky as he was gentle and forgiving4 ,although1 for good reasons1 he would not quarrel1 he had the tenacity of a bull-dog1 he held on to the hard purpose he had formed and nothing could beat him off4 ,and that is the very highest sort of courage1 the courage that endures1 that has no show or heroics about it4 ,again ,i say1 if he had done all this1 put up with all this1 to gain riches1 to make a name for himself1 the world would understand and would praise him tremendously4 ,it is his motive that leaves the world cold1 it is the source and reason of his courage that the world cannot understand4 ,yet he was not obstinate and pig-headed1 bound to do as he wished just because he wished it4 ,no1 he was very sensible and did everything with reason4 ,he would not stop saying his prayers when ,bilinski and ,paul objected1 he would not join in gay dinners and drinking-bouts and gambling1 he would not sit and smile at shady stories or smutty wit4 ,he would no8 do anything his conscience forbade4 ,but he was most ready to do anything else they wanted4 ,for instance1 he had been used to give his rich clothes away to the poor1 and dress very simply4 ,bilinski and ,paul insisted on his dressing as became his rank1 and he yielded readily4 ,bilinski wanted him to take dancing lessons1 and he took them1 and learned to dance very well4 ,he was not keen about any of these things1 because he reckoned they would not count for much in eternity4 ,but neither was he foolish1 nor a fanatic1 nor one who saw evil where no evil was4 ,he was simply a level-headed boy1 who figured out the business of life clearly and convincingly1 and who had the courage of a hero in living up to his convictions4 ,,chapter ,,viii ,,in ,,danger ,,of ,,death ,two years of loneliness2 when his brother and his cousins and his tutor1 who should have been his comrades1 were his persecutors2 two years in which he was always under a strain1 always having to control his anger1 to be patient and sweet-tempered amidst a thousand vexations2 two years1 moreover1 in which the bodily exercise he was used to1 and which he needed as every growing boy needs it1 was cut down to a minimum2 two such years would have broken the health even of a grown1 strong man4 ,and ,stanislaus was not a grown1 strong man1 but a boy of sixteen4 ,it is remarkable that he should have held out so long4 ,it shows what courage and goodness and trust in ,god can do4 ,but finally1 towards the end of ,november1 #aeff1 his body and brain could stand it no longer4 ,he fell sick1 with fever4 ,he was not a baby4 ,he did not complain1 or even tell any one that he felt unwell4 ,he kept to his feet for weeks1 trying to go on as usual with his work and his prayers4 ,the feast of ,saint ,barbara1 who had been the patroness of the boys' sodality in ,vienna1 was drawing near4 ,stanislaus prepared for it with particular care and devotion4 ,saint ,barbara was the patroness of a happy death and her clients always besought of her the special grace of receiving the ,holy ,viaticum when dying4 ,december #dth1 the feast of the ,saint1 came and passed4 ,stanislaus grew weaker1 his fever increased4 ,about the middle of the month he had to keep his bed1 and his condition quickly became serious4 ,then ,bilinski and ,paul forgot their anger against the boy4 ,they called in the best physicians of the city1 they spared no pains or expense4 ,the servants1 who had always loved this gentle master1 were all kindness and attention4 ,but despite the efforts of all1 ,stanislaus became steadily worse4 ,he was entirely at peace1 not at all afraid4 ,yet he felt that death was coming near4 ,he prayed whole hours1 smiling gladly in talk with our ,lord1 with the ,blessed ,virgin1 with his guardian angel4 ,he was ready1 even eager1 to go home4 ,the evil spirit wondered at this boy of sixteen1 who had fought him off so bravely through his life and who was dying now so fearlessly4 ,one day1 when his people and even the servants had left him for a little while1 ,stanislaus saw an enormous black dog with glaring eyes and hideous foaming jaws rush across the room toward his bed4 ,the door was closed4 ,it was impossible for the beast to have entered the room in any ordinary way4 ,stanislaus had no notion how it could have come there4 ,but if he was frightened for the moment1 he did not lose his wits4 ,with an effort1 he sat up in bed and made the sign of the cross4 ,in the name of the ,father1 ,son and ,holy ,ghost6 he cried aloud4 ,instantly the huge1 snarling dog fell to the floor with a thud as if struck by a sword4 ,but after a few moments he sprang up again1 and first circling the room1 came crouching to the bed1 howling as no mortal dog could howl1 making ready to spring at the sick boy4 ,again ,stanislaus made the sign of the cross4 ,again the terrible dog was stricken to the floor4 ,a third time he came1 only to be beaten back in the same way4 ,and then1 standing with bristling hair and horrible cries in the middle of the room1 he vanished from sight4 ,stanislaus fell back on the bed1 fearfully exhausted1 and with tears in his eyes thanked ,god for his deliverance4 ,the shock of this dreadful incident prostrated him4 ,he failed more and more4 ,the doctors1 coming several times a day1 shook their heads in despair4 ,we can do no more1 they said1 the end is now only a question of time4 ,for seven days and nights ,bilinski sat by his bed1 snatching only a few hours' sleep now and then1 for he feared that ,stanislaus might die any moment4 ,yet in all this long time they had brought no priest to the dying boy4 ,every day he begged them earnestly that he might receive the ,holy ,viaticum4 ,but they lied to him4 ,bilinski said3 ,you will soon be well4 ,the doctors will cure you4 ,don't think of death or go frightening yourself4 ,i am not afraid1 said ,stanislaus4 ,but ,i know ,i am dying4 ,do not let me die without ,holy ,communion4 ,but ,bilinski still put him off1 and tried to tease him jokingly with charges of cowardice4 ,the fact was1 ,bilinski and ,paul were afraid of their ,lutheran landlord1 the ,senator ,kimberker4 ,his anti-,catholic prejudice was intense4 ,they feared he might put them1 sick boy and all1 out of his house1 if they dared to bring a priest and the ,blessed ,sacrament into it4 ,that was a hard trial for ,stanislaus4 ,but he met it as he had met every difficulty1 bravely1 hopefully1 cheerfully4 ,he remembered ,saint ,barbara1 of whom he had asked 'the grace of not dying without the ,holy ,viaticum4 ,he renewed his prayers for her intercession4 ,he laid his whole case with confidence before ,god1 and with confidence waited4 ,bilinski still sat by his bed1 watching anxiously4 ,the day passed1 the light failed1 darkness and night came on4 ,stanislaus all the time had lain quiet1 his face smiling as ever1 his lips moving in prayer4 ,suddenly he turned to ,bilinski1 radiant1 glowing with joy4 ,kneel down1 kneel down6 he said1 in a clear but low voice4 ,two angels of ,god are bringing the ,blessed ,sacrament1 and with them comes ,saint ,barbara6 ,then1 worn out though he was by his long sickness1 ,stanislaus raised himself1 knelt on the bed1 and struck his breast as he three times repeated3 ,lord1 ,i am not worthy6 ,then he raised his face1 and opening his lips received his sacramental ,lord4 ,bilinski looked on with awe and almost terror1 unable to say a word4 ,stanislaus1 when he had received the ,blessed ,sacrament1 lay down again in bed and began his thanksgiving4 ,he was more than ever ready for death now4 ,but still death held off4 ,all the next day he passed in quiet4 ,the doctors said3 ,now is the end4 ,he may die at any moment4 ,but he was not to die yet4 ,toward evening our ,lady herself came to him1 carrying in her arms the ,infant ,jesus4 ,the sick boy looked up in wonder and delight4 ,there was his ,mother1 smiling at him1 and in her arms the laughing ,infant4 ,the divine ,child stretched out ,his little hands to ,stanislaus1 and ,stanislaus1 sitting up in his bed1 took ,him into his arms4 ,what passed in his soul then1 what joy filled his heart1 we cannot know until we shall come to heaven and taste for ourselves of that joy4 ,and the ,blessed ,virgin and the ,child ,jesus spoke to him and comforted him4 ,but ,stanislaus was too overcome to say anything4 ,only tears streamed down from his eyes as he pressed the ,infant ,savior to his breast4 ,our ,lady said to him3 ,you must end your days in the ,society that bears my ,son's name4 ,you must be a ,jesuit4 ,but so soon as he had taken the ,infant into his arms1 ,stanislaus felt that the fever left him1 his strength came back1 the blood coursed through his body with a new sense of vigor and vitality4 ,then our ,lady received her ,child back from his hands1 smiled at him and blessed him1 and so vanished from his sight4 ,stanislaus called for his clothes1 dressed and got up4 ,bilinski and ,paul and the doctors were astounded4 ,it cannot be6 they cried4 ,but you see that it is1 said ,stanislaus4 ,i am as well as ever4 ,our ,lady and the little ,jesus came and cured me4 ,and now ,i must go to the church and thank them4 ,nor did the fever return4 ,he was entirely recovered4 ,the house in which this occurred is now a sanctuary1 and in the room in which ,stanislaus had received such favors from ,god an altar stands1 and above it a statue of the ,saint4 ,,chapter ,,ix ,,vocation ,when our ,lady came to cure ,stanislaus1 she told him absolutely that he must become a ,jesuit4 ,that was not the first idea ,stanislaus had had of his vocation4 ,even some months before his illness he had felt himself drawn to enter the ,society of ,jesus4 ,but now1 all doubts removed1 he made a vow in thanksgiving to obey our ,lady's command4 ,he went to his confessor1 the ,jesuit ,father ,doni1 and told him of the vision of the ,blessed ,virgin and her order to become a ,jesuit4 ,father ,doni believed him readily enough1 but he said3 ,i can do nothing myself in the matter4 ,you must go to the ,provincial1 for only he can admit you4 ,but ,i am afraid there will be difficulties4 ,stanislaus was not merely afraid1 he was quite certain1 there would be difficulties4 ,however1 he assured ,father ,doni3 ,even if there be no end of difficulties1 still ,i shall be a ,jesuit4 ,since our ,lady has commanded me1 she will find a way4 ,the ,provincial1 ,father ,laurence ,maggi1 received ,stanislaus kindly1 of course1 yet with anything but encouragement4 ,there had been trouble for the ,society shortly before1 though in another place1 because of some novices admitted without their parents' consent4 ,the ,provincial did not wish to risk having a like disturbance brought about his own ears4 ,but the ,blessed ,virgin will take care of the whole business1 ,father1 said ,stanislaus4 ,she will quiet any opposition my father may make4 ,well1 the ,provincial was willing to believe that too4 ,but he knew that ,god wants us to use our own common sense and not to act rashly and then rely upon ,him1 or upon our ,lady's intercession with ,him1 to get us out of scrapes4 ,so he had to give the only answer which prudence could give1 to all ,stanislaus' petitions4 ,you must either get your father's permission1 or you must wait until you are of age and your own master4 ,now1 ,stanislaus was quite certain his father would not hear for a moment of his becoming a ,jesuit4 ,on the other hand1 he did not want to wait four or five years until he should come of age4 ,he had that peculiar courage1 which many people cannot understand at all1 the courage to be afraid4 ,he was very much afraid1 afraid to trifle with ,god's grace1 afraid lest if he did not take the favor now when it was offered him1 it might not be offered another time4 ,he thought of another means of persuading the ,provincial4 ,the ,apostolic ,legate of ,pope ,saint ,pius ,v to the court of the ,emperor at ,vienna was ,cardinal ,commendoni4 ,this ,cardinal had been ,nuncio1 and afterwards ,legate1 to ,poland1 and had come from ,poland only a year or so before4 ,he was well acquainted with the ,lord ,john ,kostka and with ,stanislaus4 ,when he came to ,vienna1 ,paul and ,stanislaus had visited him1 and ,stanislaus had made the ,cardinal1 as he did most people1 his friend4 ,so he went to ,cardinal ,commendoni4 ,he figured hopefully that1 as the ,cardinal was the ,pope's representative1 he could easily impose his will on the ,jesuit ,provincial2 and of course he would do so as his friend4 ,commendoni welcomed the boy1 listened to him attentively1 marvelled at his unaffected goodness and at the heavenly favors shown him4 ,stanislaus told him of the distressing obstinacy of the ,provincial4 ,but how about your father8 the ,cardinal asked4 ,oh1 my father is more hopeless than the ,provincial1 ,stanislaus answered4 ,if ,i so much as mentioned the matter to him1 he would bring me back to ,poland1 and ,i should have no chance at all4 ,as ,commendoni knew the ,lord ,john pretty well1 he said nothing to that4 ,but he thought to himself that ,stanislaus was fairly accurate in his forecast4 ,after a moment's thought1 he said3 ,you certainly have a right to follow your vocation4 ,god's will comes before even your father's4 ,but it is not going to be easy4 ,however1 ,i shall speak to the ,father ,provincial1 and do what ,i can4 ,stanislaus went away with good hopes4 ,he was to return in a few days to hear the result of ,commendoni's plea4 ,but when he came back to the ,cardinal1 he found only another disappointment4 ,the ,provincial not merely was as stubborn as ever1 he had even won the ,cardinal to his way of thinking4 ,it was too risky to admit him1 it was altogether unwise4 ,most boys might have given up after that4 ,stanislaus did not give up4 ,he was quite sure of what ,god wanted1 and difficulties simply did not count4 lie was called to be a ,jesuit1 and a ,jesuit he would be4 ,if he could not gain admission into the ,society in ,vienna1 well1 he would try elsewhere4 ,but even with his mind fairly made up1 he sought more guidance4 ,a young ,portuguese ,jesuit1 ,father ,antoni1 had lately come to ,vienna as preacher to the ,empress ,maria4 ,every one was talking about his ability1 his prudence1 his zeal4 ,stanislaus went to him1 and laid his troubles before him4 ,father ,antoni took some little time to think it all over1 then decided very definitely4 ,he called ,stanislaus to him4 ,do you understand1 he asked1 what it will mean to go away1 to leave your people1 to live in a strange country8 ,stanislaus said1 yes1 he understood perfectly4 ,and that you are closing the door on your return1 that in no case will you ever be received again at ,kostkov8 ,yes1 ,stanislaus knew that too4 ,and that you will have to go an immense journey on foot1 with plenty of hardships2 to find at the end of it a life that is not easy1 to live at the beck and call of another1 to do menial work1 to endure humiliations1 to sacrifice everything that the world holds4 dear8 ,stanislaus smiled at him4 ,he had reckoned it all out1 he had counted the cost long before1 he was ready4 ,then1 in ,god's name1 go6 said ,father ,antonie ,and may ,god be with you in all4 ,i'll give you letters to ,father ,canisius1 the ,provincial in ,augsburg1 and to ,father ,francis ,borgia1 the ,general1 who is in ,rome4 ,then ,stanislaus was happy4 ,at last he was in a fair way to obey the command of ,god1 which our ,lady herself had brought him4 ,father ,antoni spoke with him longer1 pointed out in detail many of the difficulties that awaited him1 gave him counsel for the road4 ,then he went to write the letters of introduction1 and ,stanislaus went back to ,paul and ,bilinski and their blows and sneers1 to get ready for his tramp4 ,,chapter ,x ,,the ,,runaway ,he was going to run away4 ,but he was not going to sneak away4 ,he was just as kind and forgiving to ,paul as he had always been4 ,he bore him no ill-will for his three years of abuse1 now that he had determined upon a course of action1 which would free him from a continuance of it4 ,he had often felt angry over ,paul's treatment of him1 but he had kept down his anger under his vigorous will4 ,but now he made up his mind that ,paul would receive something of a shock the next time he had resort to his now almost habitual amusement of beating his younger brother4 ,meantime1 he bought a peasant's tunic and a pair of rough shoes that would be serviceable for his long march4 ,it was not long before something or other ,stanislaus did or said woke ,paul's easily aroused rage4 ,he began with oaths1 of which he seemed to possess a pretty stock4 ,he worked himself up into greater and greater heat of temper - a substitute for courage with many people4 ,finally he sprang at ,stanislaus4 ,formerly1 on such occasions ,stanislaus was so busy holding his own temper in check that he could do little else1 he stood almost like a statue4 ,but this time ,paul felt there was something wrong4 ,stanislaus was looking straight at him4 ,when he leaped to strike him1 ,stanislaus quietly and skillfully thrust him aside4 ,paul stumbled1 staggered1 recovered himself4 ,but when he looked again1 fear took hold of him4 ,he was afraid of what he saw in ,stanislaus' eyes4 ,the younger boy spoke quietly1 coolly4 ,that will be about enough1 he said2 ,i've put up with your cowardice and brutality for three years4 ,i'll stand it no longer4 ,since ,i cannot have peace here1 well14 ,i'll look for it somewhere else4 ,you can answer to our father1 and tell him how it happened4 ,paul was still frightened4 ,the situation was extremely novel to him4 ,the turning of the worm6 ,what would happen next6 ,he was afraid at first that ,stanislaus was going to give him his long-due payment1 and he had no stomach to face the reckoning4 ,he had not noticed before how wiry and strong ,stanislaus looked4 ,but when he saw that the boy made no movement1 only spoke in that quiet voice1 he plucked up a little courage4 ,he began to bluster and swear4 ,you'll go away1 will you8 he cried4 ,what the devil do ,i care8 ,go1 and be hanged to you6 - that was the gist of it1 only a trifle more ornamental4 ,don't forget6 said ,stanislaus4 ,send word to father4 ,i'm certainly going away4 ,paul was waxing eloquent again1 but ,stanislaus turned on his heel and walked away4 ,nor did the bullying big brother venture to follow him4 ,he contented himself with calling him hard names which he could not hear1 and muttering savagely to himself for some time4 ,but1 naturally1 he did not believe at all that ,stanislaus was really going to run away#i ,he looked upon the words as an empty threat4 ,and so it was all over4 ,stanislaus sighed a sigh of relief4 ,there was nothing ahead of him now save the road to ,augsburg4 ,he said his prayers tranquilly and went to bed4 ,morning came1 or the dawn that precedes the morning4 ,stanislaus got up1 selected his finest suit of clothes1 and dressed4 ,his first care was to write the letter for ,paul and his father4 ,this he put between the leaves of a book4 ,the servants1 of course1 even in the primitive housekeeping of the ,kostkas1 slept in another room than the big common apartment of their masters4 ,stanislaus went to the bed of one of them1 named ,pacifici1 who was rather particularly devoted to him1 and who afterwards became a ,franciscan4 ,he shook ,pacifici and woke him4 ,the servant rubbed his eyes sleepily1 then gazed in astonishment at the brilliant figure standing in the half-light beside his bed4 ,what was the ,lord ,stanislaus doing1 dressed in this unusual finery1 at such an unearthly hour6 ,listen1 said ,stanislaus1 ,i am going out for the day4 ,i have received an invitation which ,i must accept4 ,i am going now4 ,if ,bilinski or the ,lord ,paul ask for me1 tell them that4 ,i will1 your grace1 ,i will1 said ,pacifici4 ,but he was almost too astonished to speak4 ,stanislaus left the room and the house4 ,he walked quickly to the ,jesuit church1 where he heard ,mass and received ,holy ,communion4 ,at ,mass he met a young ,hungarian1 with whom he had been very intimate4 ,he beckoned him aside and whispered3 ,wait for me a minute4 ,i just want to say a word to ,father ,antoni4 ,then he hurried away1 but was back shortly at his friend's side1 eyes dancing1 lips smiling1 hand outstretched4 ,i have just bid ,father ,antoni good-by1 he said1 with a little excitement4 ,i am running away4 ,i am going to ,augsburg' to ask admission into the ,society of ,jesus4 ,i told ,paul yesterday that ,i should not stay with him1 and ,i have written a letter and put it in a book4 ,do not tell any one what ,i tell you now4 ,but after a few days1 please go and point out the letter to ,paul4 ,his friend listened with wonder4 ,going away6' ,going to ,augsburg6 ,but how8 he asked4 ,not on foot8 ,on foot1 to be sure1 answered ,stanislaus gayly4 ,do you think ,i have a horse secreted about me8 ,or could ,i take one of ours and wake the house8 ,and you will be a ,jesuit1 and teach1 and never ride a good horse again1 and give up your people and your place in the world6 ,i shall be a ,jesuit1 if ,i can1 said ,stanislaus4 ,as for what ,i shall give up1 well1 ,i'd have to give it up when death came1 wouldn't ,i8 ,and since ,god wants it1 ,i'd sooner give it up now4 ,but he had not much time for talk4 ,day was growing2 he must be off4 ,he got his friend's promise about the letter1 bade him good-by heartily and cheerily1 and turned his face towards the ,augsburg road4 ,what happened else that day we have already seen1 and how ,paul and ,bilinski followed him1 and how he got away1 and how he did walk1 bravely1 gayly1 in less than two weeks the four hundred miles to ,augsburg4 ,,chapter ,,xi ,,at ,,dilligen ,it was well on in the afternoon of ,august #cjth or #cast when ,stanislaus arrived at ,augsburg4 ,the town was strange to him4 ,he had to ask his way to the ,jesuit house4 ,i want to see ,father ,canisius1 he told the porter at the door4 ,i have a letter of introduction to him4 ,the porter was very sorry1 but ,father ,canisius was not in ,augsburg4 ,stanislaus' heart fell4 ,not in ,augsburg6 ,his four hundred miles on foot for nothing6 ,it was a terrible disappointment4 ,wait a moment1 said the porter1 until ,i call one of the ,fathers4 ,as ,stanislaus waited1 he kept asking himself1 ,what shall ,i do8 ,what shall ,i do now8 ,and for a little while he could not think clearly4 ,he felt almost sick4 ,but he was not the kind to be discouraged long1 and before the porter returned with the ,father he had made up his mind4 ,since ,canisius is not in ,augsburg1 well1 ,i'll go to whatever place he is in4 ,the ,father who came was all regrets4 ,canisius had gone to ,dillingen4 ,but would not ,stanislaus come in1 and at least rest a few days before seeking him further8 ,no1 ,stanislaus was going on - at once4 ,how far is it8 he asked4 ,and can you point me out the road8 ,it is about thirty-five miles1 the ,father answered4 ,but you can't go on this evening4 ,you must be dreadfully tired4 ,yes1 he was tired1 but not so tired that he could not go to ,dillingen4 ,it is only a little way1 after all1 he said1 smiling as he always smiled4 ,but he stopped to eat something with the ,jesuits1 both because he was hungry1 and because it would be discourteous to refuse all their kind offers4 ,one of the lay-brothers had to go on business to ,dillingen1 so he hastened to accompany ,stanislaus4 ,it is from his testimony that we know what happened on the way4 ,before the sun had quite set1 he was on the road once more4 ,he slept in a field that night4 ,he was up early the next morning1 and stepped out bravely1 fasting1 and hoping for a chance to go to ,holy ,communion4 ,the evening before1 he had left ,augsburg a good many miles behind4 ,a few miles more in the early morning brought him to a little village4 ,from some distance he saw the spire of its church4 ,he hastened his steps1 lest ,mass should be over before he reached the place4 ,when he came to the church1 he saw through its open door a scattered little congregation at their prayers4 ,he entered quickly1 sank to his knees1 and dropping his face between his hands began to pray4 ,but somehow the place felt strange4 ,after a bit he looked about him1 and saw with astonishment that he was in a ,lutheran church4 ,the ,lutheran heresy was still young and kept up many ,catholic practices4 ,it was easy to be deceived4 ,he felt a little shocked4 ,he had been preparing to receive ,holy ,communion1 and now he should have to go without4 ,but as he looked about1 the church to his eyes glowed with light4 ,out of the light came a troop of blessed angels and drew near to him4 ,he was frightened1 delighted1 all at once4 ,then he saw that one of the angels bore with deep reverence the ,blessed ,sacrament1 and that ,god had granted his desire for ,holy ,communion4 ,he received ,it with quiet joy1 but simply1 humbly1 for he knew that this miracle of ,its coming to him was as nothing to the miracle that there should be any ,blessed ,sacrament at all4 ,since ,god had stooped to leave us ,his ,flesh and ,blood1 the manner in which ,he gave ,it was of quite secondary importance4 ,it would have astounded us to be in his place in the little ,lutheran church that morning4 ,we try to fancy how we should feel1 if we too saw a host of angels approach us4 ,yet every day we may avail ourselves of that more wonderful miracle1 before which even visions of angels pale - the miracle of having ,god ,himself for our ,meat and ,drink4 ,that day brought him to ,dillingen and ,peter ,canisius1 the ,watch-dog of ,germany1 as he was called1 for his vigilance against heresy4 ,canisius read the letter of ,father ,antoni1 and listened to ,stanislaus' story4 ,it was all quite wonderful4 ,as the boy talked1 ,canisius looked at him and studied him3 not quite seventeen1 lively1 handsome1 full of spirit and daring1 quick in speech1 eager1 affectionate1 pious4 ,you might call ,canisius a man of war1 an old veteran4 ,his hair had grown gray in battles of the soul1 in fighting back heresy1 in strengthening weak hearts through that age of trial4 ,he knew the value of enthusiasm1 but he knew its weakness1 too4 ,a very taking lad1 he thought to himself4 ,he flashes like a rapier4 ,but will his metal stand hard use8 ,it was the thought of common sense4 ,he did not mistrust ,stanislaus4 ,but1 on the other hand1 what did he know about him8 ,he had not much to go by as yet2 only ,antoni's letter1 and the boy's engaging presence4 ,he would take no definite step about admitting ,stanislaus into the ,society until he did know more4 ,yon want to be a ,jesuit8 he said1 with thoughtful brows4 ,when8 ,it was on ,stanislaus' tongue to say1 ,now1 at once4 ,but he hesitated a moment1 and said instead1 ,as soon as you think fit4 ,you are a stranger to us1 you know1 ,canisius went on1 smiling a little1 but pleasantly4 ,and before we admit men amongst us1 we need to know that they have something more than a mere desire to join us44 ,that takes time to find out4 ,are you willing to stop in the college here for a while8 ,stanislaus answered promptly1 ,of course ,i am4 ,not as a student1 said ,canisius4 ,but as a servant8 ,as anything you want1 ,stanislaus agreed4 ,well1 come with me1 ,canisius said1 and he led the way to the kitchen4 ,here's a new cook1 he said to the brother in charge4 ,at least1 he may have in him the makings of a cook4 ,can you give him something to do8 ,it was not a very encouraging reception1 although it was not so bad as it may sound1 condensed as it is in these pages4 ,neither was it meant to be encouraging4 ,it was meant to test4 ,stanislaus was as cheerful as a lark4 ,he rolled up his sleeves1 smiled at the brother1 and waited orders4 ,the brother smiled back1 and said3 ,first1 ,i think you will have something to eat4 ,then we shall see about work4 ,the ,jesuit college at ,dillingen1 ,saint ,jerome's1 was a big place and numbered many students4 ,many students mean many cooks and servers at table and servants about the house4 ,stanislaus took his place amongst a score of such4 ,he washed dishes1 helped prepare food1 swept1 scrubbed -whatever he was told to do4 ,he ate with the servants1 took his recreations with them4 ,and he went about it all as simply and naturally as if he had been doing nothing else all his life4 ,his jolliness and kindness won him friends on all sides1 as they had always done4 ,he kept up his prayers1 you may be sure2 ran in to visit our ,lord in the ,blessed ,sacrament whenever he was free to do so2 made all he did into a prayer4 ,and of course that irritated some of the other servants1 just as it had irritated his brother ,paul4 ,and so he had no lack of teasing and petty insults4 ,but he just smiled his way through them and kept on4 ,he was perfectly happy1 entirely confident that he was doing ,god's will4 ,as for the work1 he chuckled to himself at the idea that ,canisius thought this a test6 ,he would willingly do a thousand times harder things than that for ,almighty ,god4 ,and after all1 he said1 it really was not so hard4 ,many a better man than he had to work much harder1 at much more unpleasant tasks4 ,and what would it matter in eternity1 if he scrubbed pots and pans and floors and windows all his life8 ,the only thing that mattered was to please ,god1 and just now this sort of work was what pleased ,god4 ,,chapter ,,xii ,,the ,,road ,,to ,,rome ,canisius kept ,stanislaus at his work in the kitchen and about the house for a couple of weeks4 ,he noted his cheerfulness1 his love of prayer1 his readiness to do any sort of work1 and best of all1 his simplicity1 his entire lack of pose4 ,he saw that this ,senator's son made no virtue of taking on himself such lowly tasks1 and he knew1 therefore1 that he was really humble4 ,then he called the boy to him4 ,he said3 ,if ,i admit you into the ,society here1 your father may still annoy you4 ,it is better you should go to ,rome and become a novice there4 ,i shall give you a letter to the ,father ,general1 ,francis ,borgia4 ,in a few days two of ours are to go to ,rome4 ,you can go with them4 ,stanislaus was delighted4 ,he was come into quiet waters at last4 ,but ,canisius spoke further3 ,first1 however1 you must get some decent clothes4 ,your old tunic1 he said1 with a twinkle in his eye1 might do well enough for a noble1 but not for a future ,jesuit4 ,so the college tailor made ,stanislaus a simple1 neat suit of clothes4 ,and about ,september #bjth he set out for ,rome4 ,he went on foot1 of course2 in the company of ,jacopo ,levanzio1 a ,genoese1 and ,fabricius ,reiner1 of ,lige4 ,they struck south through ,bavaria to the ,tyrolese ,alps4 ,by what pass they crossed the ,alps we do not know4 ,but ,stanislaus saw first from afar the white peaks1 with their everlasting snows1 shining in the sun4 ,then he went up and up1 into cooler and rarer air1 where one's lungs expand and one's step is light and buoyant1 but where one gets tired more easily than in the plains4 ,high up in the passes he felt the cold of ,winter1 although it was as yet early ,autumn4 ,then he came down the southern slopes of the great mountain-wall that locks in ,italy1 and with him came the headwaters of great rivers4 ,he came down through bare rocks1 then through twisted mountain-pines1 then through green and lovely valleys1 and so into the plains of northern ,italy4 ,he saw the mountain torrents leap and flash1 and grow always bigger and stronger4 ,he saw them slack their speed and widen their beds in the upland valleys4 ,he saw them grow sluggish1 tawny with mud1 in the plain4 ,he saw the many spires of ,milan's wonderful cathedral as they drew near the city4 ,and when they tarried there a little while for rest1 he saw the famous armor made there1 hung up for show in little shop- windows4 ,he passed great cavalcades of nobles and soldiers1 and marvelled at their straight1 slim rapiers1 so different from the heavy ,polish saber4 ,he heard ,italian speech for the first time1 and tried to get at its meaning through his ,latin4 ,but he and his companions had not over-much time for observing4 ,they were traveling pretty swiftly4 ,from ,dillingen to ,rome is a matter of about eight hundred miles4 ,they left ,dillingen ,september #bjth2 they reached ,rome ,october #beth4 ,that figures out to an average of about twenty-two miles each day4 ,then1 if you remember that they had to climb mountains the first part of the way1 that there were delays entering towns1 delays of devotion when they came to great churches1 you can see that many a day they must have equaled or surpassed ,stanislaus' thirty miles a day from ,vienna4 ,but it was pleasanter4 for ,stanislaus than his first great tramp4 ,now he had two good companions1 with whom he could speak easily and familiarly of the things nearest his heart4 ,he had none of the uncertainty about the result of this journey which he had had about his former journey4 ,he found shelter and friendship in many ,jesuit houses on the way4 ,as the three went on they lightened the road with pious songs1 they heard ,mass and received ,holy ,communion whenever occasion offered1 they knelt by many a wayside shrine1 a crucifix1 or statue of our ,lady1 scattered everywhere through ,catholic ,italy4 ,it did not take the two ,jesuits long to appreciate ,stanislaus and delight in his company4 ,he was so light-hearted1 so merry in all the discomforts and hardships of the long road1 so thoroughly and simply good4 ,they wondered at his physical endurance1 at the ease and buoyancy with which the lad of seventeen kept up that hard march1 day after day4 ,the grasses of the ,campagna were brown and brittle1 the trees sere and yellow in the ,autumn1 when they came to the ,eternal ,city1 the center of the world then as now4 ,the saintly ,general ,francis ,borgia1 busy as he was with the cares of the widespread ,society1 found time to welcome the three travelers1 and to hear ,stanislaus' wonderful story in full4 ,and this time there was no hesitation or delay4 ,stanislaus entered his name in the book containing the register of the novices1 on ,october #be1 #aefg4 ,three days later he received his cassock and entered at once upon his noviceship4 ,there were so many novices in ,rome then that no single house of the ,jesuits there could hold them all4 ,so they were scattered through three houses1 each one spending a part of his two years' noviceship successively in each house4 ,stanislaus went first to the ,professed ,house1 then called ,santa ,maria della ,strada1 and afterward the site of the famous ,gesu1 one of the notable churches of ,rome4 ,from there he passed in time to the ,roman ,college1 then to the ,noviciate proper at ,sant' ,andrea4 ,the ,society of ,jesus was then in its early youth1 in the midst of that first brilliant charge against the ranks of heresy without1 and against the huge sluggish inertia so striking within the ,church itself4 ,he was fellow-novice with ,claude ,acquaviva1 son of the ,duke of ,atri1 and afterwards one of the greatest ,generals of the ,society1 which he ruled for thirty years4 ,with him were also ,claude's nephew1 ,rudolph ,acquaviva1 who died a martyr2 ,torres1 a great theologian2 ,prando1 the first philosopher at the ,university of ,bologna2 ,fabio de' ,fabii1 who traced his descent from the great ,roman family of that name2 the ,pole1 ,warscewiski1 formerly ambassador to the ,sultan and ,secretary of ,state in ,poland1 who first wrote a life of ,stanislaus2 and many more1 distinguished for birth1 learning1 holiness4 ,most of these were a great deal older1 too1 than ,stanislaus4 ,many of them had already made their names familiar to men4 ,yet the boy of seventeen1 who came quietly and modestly amongst them1 was somehow soon looked up to by all4 ,they felt the force of something in him which made him their superior4 ,heaven was wonderfully near him4 ,he was not old-fashioned2 he was always a boy1 unconscious of anything unusual in himself2 not solemn nor impressive nor austere in manner4 ,all that he did1 he did with perfect naturalness2 for to him the supernatural had become almost natural4 ,,chapter ,,xiii ,,the ,,noviceship ,most of us1 perhaps1 think of the saints as men and women who accomplished visibly great things4 ,saint ,paul1 ,saint ,augustine1 ,saint ,patrick1 ,saint ,theresa1 ,saint ,philip ,neri1 ,saint ,francis ,xavier3 such names as these come first to our minds when we think of a saint4 ,yet the fact is that the greater number of saints are men and women who never did anything that the world would consider great or striking4 ,saint ,joseph was of that sort4 ,even the ,blessed ,virgin lived and died in obscurity1 made no stir in the world4 ,sanctity is measured not so much by what one does as by how one does all things4 ,externally a saint may not differ at all from other people4 ,it is his soul that is different4 ,and so1 a visitor to the ,professed ,house in ,rome in #aefg1 meeting ,stanislaus ,kostka1 would see a handsome1 pleasant-looking ,polish boy of seventeen1 with his sleeves rolled up above his elbows1 with an apron over his cassock1 carrying wood for the kitchen fires1 washing dishes1 serving at table1 sweeping corridors and rooms4 ,he got up at half past four1 or five o'clock1 every morning4 ,he spent half an hour in meditation1 in thinking over some incident in our ,lord's life or some great truth1 as that death is near to each of us1 that this life is only the vestibule of eternity1 that our whole business in life is to do what ,god wants us to do1 or the like4 ,after that came ,mass and1 once or twice a week1 ,holy ,communion and his thanksgiving4 ,then breakfast1 taken in silence4 ,he read in a spiritual book for half an hour or so after breakfast1 then went to the kitchen or the dining hall or the scullery1 where he set to work under the orders of the cook4 ,in the course of the morning there might be a talk or instruction from the priest in charge of the novices4 ,there surely would be one or more visits to the chapel4 ,when the hour for dinner came1 ,stanislaus probably served at table1 taking his own meal later4 ,after dinner there was an hour for recreation1 when the novices walked and chatted in the garden or about the house4 ,the afternoon1 like the morning1 was taken up with lowly work1 with prayer1 and a little reading or instruction4 ,toward evening1 he again spent half an hour in meditation4 ,then came the evening meal1 another hour of recreation1 a little reading in preparation for next morning's meditation1 and examination of conscience as to how the day had been spent1 and then bed4 ,two or three days a week1 this routine was broken4 ,sometimes the novices walked out into the country to a villa1 where they had games and ate their dinner4 ,at other times they left their work to go with one of the ,fathers to some church or other1 upon business4 ,it was a quiet1 humble life1 full of peace1 near to ,god1 hidden away from men4 ,in this life the novices had to continue for two years1 before they took upon themselves the obligation of vows1 and before they began the long studies that prepare a ,jesuit for his work4 ,during those two years they tested their vocation1 making sure that ,god really called them to that life2 and they tested their own wills to see if they were ready to endure what such a life demanded of them4 ,stanislaus did just what the other novices did1 did nothing out of the ordinary4 ,yet1 of course1 he was different from the others2 he was a saint4 ,what was the difference8 ,just this3 they did things more or less well2 he did things perfectly4 ,if he prayed1 he put his whole mind and soul into his prayer4 ,if he worked1 he obeyed orders absolutely1 because in doing so he was obeying ,god4 ,there is in the ,jesuit noviciate at ,angers a series of paintings portraying incidents in the life of ,stanislaus4 ,in one he is shown carrying on his arm two or three bits of wood towards the kitchen4 ,underneath is written1 ,he will err if he carry more4 ,the painting commemorates an occasion when ,stanislaus and ,claude ,acquaviva were put by the cook to carry wood and told to carry only two or three pieces at a time4 ,acquaviva1 when the two came to the wood-pile1 said laughingly3 ,does the cook think we are babies8 ,why1 we can each carry twenty or thirty of such little pieces of wood4 ,to be sure we can1 ,stanislaus answered4 ,but do you think ,god wants us to carry twenty or thirty pieces now8 ,the cook said two or three1 and the cook just at present takes the place of ,god to command us4 ,and so it was in everything4 ,he studied singly to see what would please ,god most1 and no matter how trifling seemed the command he did just that1 with all his heart4 ,no one ever heard a sharp word from him1 or saw him take offense at anything1 or act in the least way out of vanity or selfishness4 ,and1 of course1 he was entirely unconscious that he was different from the rest4 ,he knew he was trying to do his best in everything1 but he supposed every one else was doing the same4 ,and with all his earnestness and exactness1 he was as simple and boyish as he had ever been4 ,one day ,cardinal ,commendoni1 the ,legate to ,vienna1 and a great friend of ,stanislaus1 came to ,rome and hurried over to the ,roman ,college to call upon ,stanislaus4 ,stanislaus1 as soon as he heard of his arrival1 ran off to meet him just as he was1 sleeves rolled up1 apron on1 straight from the scullery - just as any boy would do4 ,he was in everything perfectly at ease2 content in his little round of little tasks2 going ahead toward heaven without any show or heroics4 ,he was doing just exactly the little things that ,god wants us to do1 and he was entirely happy in so doing4 ,it is true he had never been really unhappy in his whole life4 ,people who keep close to ,god never are4 ,they have hard things to put up with2 they may be poor1 or fall sick1 or lose their relatives or friends by death2 they may have to fight very strong temptations4 ,they feel all these things as keenly as others feel them4 ,but they do not become unhappy4 ,we may say they have a world of their own to live in1 that their inmost lives are spent in that world1 very little touched by the changes and accidents of the outer world4 ,they see that there is an outer world1 but they choose deliberately to ignore it2 they will not go into it4 ,you know that if you go down deep into the sea1 as men go in submarines1 you find calm there always1 even though a storm be raging up above and the waves toss with angry violence4 ,so if you once get inside your life1 under the surface1 in the heart of life where ,god is1 you will find calm there also and a certain peace which is as near as we can come to entire happiness in this world4 ,but though ,stanislaus had learned this secret1 and had therefore always kept his soul merry1 he was happiest of all during the time of his noviceship4 ,the very air around him breathed of ,god and heaven4 ,his life there was really an unbroken prayer4 ,he was like a swimmer who has been fighting his way through nasty1 choppy1 little waves1 going ahead surely1 but with great difficulty1 and who comes at last into long1 quiet1 rolling swells1 where his progress is delightful1 where he can make long1 easy strokes and feel pleasure in the very effort4 ,and as he was young and ardent1 he was in danger of overdoing things4 ,prayer1 even when it is a joy1 is always hard work for us poor mortals4 ,stanislaus gave himself so heartily now to praying that he ran risk of losing his strength and health4 ,so his superiors1 being sensible men1 stepped in and moderated his energy4 ,he was made to work more and pray less1 told to be prudent1 to husband his strength for future work4 ,and1 of course1 he did as he was told4 ,but ,god had special designs on ,stanislaus4 ,he was never to use his health and energy in work as a priest or teacher4 ,indeed1 his work was nearly over1 though it had been so brief4 ,he had no long career before him on this earth2 he was going home1 and going soon4 ,,chapter ,,xiv ,,going ,,home ,when ,stanislaus had been a novice nine months1 ,peter ,canisius came one day to ,rome on business4 ,at this time ,stanislaus was living in the noviciate proper1 ,sant' ,andrea on the ,quirinal4 ,of course the novices were all keen to see and hear the great ,canisius1 the man who had done such superb work in ,germany4 ,and whatever curiosity they had was satisfied1 for ,canisius came to the community at ,sant' ,andrea and gave a little sermon or talk4 ,it was the first of ,august1 the month always most dangerous to health in ,rome4 ,just for that reason1 perhaps1 the old ,romans had made the beginning of that month a time of feasting and boisterous holiday4 ,and an old proverb had come down1 ,ferrare ,agosto - ,give ,august a jolly welcome ,canisius took this proverb for his text1 but turned it to say1 ,give every month a jolly welcome1 for it may be your last4 ,after the talk1 the novices1 according to custom1 discussed amongst themselves what had been said4 ,it came ,stanislaus' turn to speak4 ,he said3 ,what ,father ,canisius has just told us is a holy warning for all1 of course4 ,but for me it is something more1 because this month of ,august is to be really my last month 'upon earth4 ,to be sure1 no one paid special attention to this strange remark4 ,novices often say things that will not bear too much analysis4 ,particularly no one would look seriously upon what ,stanislaus had said1 since he was at the time in perfect health4 ,four days later1 the feast of our ,lady of the ,snows1 ,stanislaus had occasion to go with the great theologian1 ,father ,emmanuel de ,sa1 to the church of ,santa ,maria ,maggiore4 ,for there the beautiful feast is kept with singular ceremony1 as that church is the one connected with the origin of the feast4 ,each year1 during ,vespers on ,august #eth1 a shower of jasmin leaves sifts down from the high dome of a chapel in ,santa ,maria ,maggiore1 to commemorate the miraculous snow in ,august which marked out the spot where the church was to be built4 ,as they went along1 de ,sa turned the talk to the coming feast of the ,assumption of our ,blessed ,lady4 ,stanislaus spoke with delight1 as he always spoke of our ,lady4 ,when our ,lady entered paradise1 he said1 ,i think ,god made a new glory for ,his ,mother1 and all the saints made a court about her and did reverence to her as we do to a king4 ,and ,i hope1 he added2 that ,i shall be up there myself to enjoy this coming feast4 ,again his words were not taken at their face value4 ,father de ,sa thought he spoke of being in heaven in spirit for the feast4 ,the practice1 now common1 was new then1 of alloting to each in the community as special patron some particular saint whose feast occurred during the month4 ,stanislaus had drawn ,saint ,lawrence for his patron4 ,the feast of the ,saint is celebrated on ,august #ajth4 ,stanislaus1 who had clear intimations of his quickly approaching death1 and was eager to go to heaven1 asked ,saint ,lawrence to intercede for him that his home-going might be on the ,feast of the ,assumption4 ,he got permission to practice some penances in honor of the ,saint4 ,he prepared for the feast with unusual devotion4 ,on the morning of the #ajth when he went to ,holy ,communion1 he carried on his breast a letter he had written to our ,lady4 ,it was such a letter as a boy1 away from home1 and homesick1 might write to his mother1 asking her to bring him home4 ,after breakfast1 ,stanislaus1 still in entire health1 was sent to work in the kitchen1 where he spent the rest of the morning1 washing dishes1 carrying wood for the fire1 helping the cook generally4 ,but by evening he was decidedly unwell4 ,to the fellow-novice who helped him to bed he said quietly1 ,i am going to die1 you know1 in a few days4 ,claude ,acquaviva hurried to him as soon as he learned he was ailing4 ,father ,fazio1 the novice-master1 also came4 ,stanislaus told each of the favor he had begged from our ,lady1 and that he hoped strongly his request would be granted4 ,that was on the evening of ,wednesday1 the #ajth4 ,he appeared to be no better or worse on ,thursday and ,friday4 ,but ,friday evening he was moved from his ordinary room to a quieter place in a higher story of the house4 ,those who went with him noted that before he lay down1 he knelt on the floor and prayed a while and made the sign of the cross over the bed1 saying1 ,this is my deathbed4 ,now they began to believe him and were frightened a little4 ,so ,stanislaus added1 with a smile1 ,i mean1 of course1 if it so please ,god4 ,he continued in about the same condition until ,sunday1 ,august #adth4 ,that day he said to the laybrother who was taking care of him3 ,brother1 ,i'm going to die to-night4 ,the brother laughed at him1 and said3 ,nonsense1 man6 ,why1 it would take a greater miracle to die of so trifling a matter than to be cured of it4 ,but by noon of that day ,stanislaus became unconscious4 ,father ,fazio was with him at once and administered restoratives4 ,very soon ,stanislaus was himself again1 bright and smiling as ever4 ,father ,fazio began to joke with him4 ,o man of little heart6 he said4 ,to give up courage in so slight a sickness6 ,stanislaus answered1 ,a man of little heart ,i admit ,i am4 ,but the sickness1 ,father1 is not so very slight1 since ,i'm going to die of it4 ,and1 indeed1 he began to fail rapidly4 ,by evening the death-sweat stood out upon him1 the vital warmth little by little withdrew from hands and feet to the citadel of his heart4 ,when the last light of day was gone from the sky1 he made his confession and received the ,holy ,viaticum4 ,a great many of his fellow-novices were present1 and some wept4 ,he was a good comrade1 they did not want to see him depart from them4 ,then he received ,extreme ,unction4 ,he made the answers to the prayers himself4 ,afterward he confessed again1 in order to receive the plenary indulgence granted for the hour of death4 ,and after that he talked for a little time1 kindly and cheerfully1 to those about him1 and bidding them good-by1 turned his mind and his heart to heaven4 ,three ,fathers stayed with him through the silence of the night1 when the rest had gone to bed4 ,most of the time he prayed1 either aloud with his watchers1 or silently by himself4 ,he left messages to his more intimate friends1 and asked the ,fathers to beg pardon for any offense he had given4 ,during the evening he had begged to be laid on the bare ground1 that he might die as a penitent4 ,toward midnight1 as he still asked it1 they lifted him on the little mattress of his bed and placed him on it upon the floor4 ,there he lay1 very quiet1 whilst midnight tolled from the great churches of the city4 ,the ,fathers knelt beside him1 praying silently with him1 or giving him from time to time the crucifix to kiss4 ,at length1 about three o'clock in the morning1 he stopped praying1 and a great joy shone in his face4 ,he looked about him from side to side1 and seemed with his eyes to ask his companions to join him in reverencing some one who was present4 ,father ,ruiz bent over and asked him3 ,what is it1 ,stanislaus8 ,our ,lady6 he whispered4 ,our ,lady has come1 just as in ,vienna4 ,then he seemed to listen to voices they could not hear4 ,his lips moved silently1 forming inaudible words4 ,his eyes were bright and joyful4 ,he stretched out his arms1 fell back1 and died with a smile upon his lips4 ,our ,lady had come for him1 and with her he went home4 ,dawn was breaking on the ,feast of the ,assumption1 #aefh4 ,,chapter ,,xv ,,aftermath ,stanislaus lacked six or eight weeks of being eighteen years old when he died4 ,he had not been a preacher or writer or engaged in any public work4 ,only a handful of people in ,rome so much as knew of his existence4 ,yet no sooner was he dead than crowds flocked about him as about a dead saint4 ,the ,general1 ,francis ,borgia1 ordered the body to be put into a coffin1 which was an unusual thing at that time1 and to be buried at the right hand of the high altar in the church4 ,meantime the ,lord ,john ,kostka still raged in ,poland4 ,he had written a most severe letter to ,stanislaus shortly after ,stanislaus arrived in ,rome3 a letter full of threats and anger1 to which ,stanislaus had replied kindly and affectionately1 explaining to his father that he had to follow ,god's call at any cost ,but the ,lord ,john was not to be so easily put off4 ,he ordered his eldest son1 ,paul1 on to ,rome1 with power to bring back ,stanislaus to his home at ,kostkov4 ,paul traveled in some state and with no great haste4 ,he reached ,rome in the middle of ,september1 #aefh1 to find that ,god had been beforehand with him1 and that ,stanislaus had indeed already gone home1 to heaven4 ,he had been greatly impressed at the time of ,stanislaus' flight from ,vienna1 by the incidents which seemed to show ,god's direct guidance and protection in regard to his brother4 ,now1 when the ,fathers led him to the still new tomb of ,stanislaus1 he broke down utterly and cried like a child4 ,he stayed a time beside the tomb1 and when he came forth he was a different ,paul4 ,every one was talking with admiration of ,stanislaus and of the marvels that had surrounded his life and death4 ,paul hurried back to ,poland with his story1 at once sad and joyful4 ,the heart of the old ,castellan was moved4 ,he had lost a son1 but he had gained a saint4 ,a year later appeared two short ,lives of ,stanislaus1 one in ,polish by ,father ,warscewiski1 his fellow-novice1 another in ,latin4 ,all through ,poland the devotion to the young novice spread rapidly4 ,soon authoritative processes toward his beatification were drawn up under the care of the bishops of various places in which ,stanislaus had spent his short years4 ,thirty-six years after his death1 ,pope ,clement ,,viii issued a brief 7,february #ah1 #afjd7 in which he declared ,stanislaus ,blessed and granted indulgences on the anniversary of his death4 ,but long before this the ,lord ,john had died1 and his youngest son1 ,albert1 struck by sudden congestion of the lungs before his father's body was laid to rest1 died also1 and was buried in the same grave with him4 ,of the four sons only ,paul was left4 ,from the day he stood by the tomb of ,stanislaus1 he had changed entirely4 ,bitter remembrance of his harshness and brutality to the dead saint was with him always and urged him to a life of penance and prayer4 ,he never married1 but passed his days largely at the castle of ,kostkov in retirement with his widowed mother4 ,he busied himself in constant works of charity1 spending his great fortune in helping the poor and in establishing hospitals and building churches4 ,he wore himself out in prayer and labor and fasting4 ,men marveled at him1 and many sneered at him1 as he had once sneered at ,stanislaus4 ,but those long1 hard years were not unhappy for him4 ,he and his mother1 ,margaret ,kostka1 had learned ,stanislaus' secret of happiness1 and lived in spirit in that bright home to which ,stanislaus had gone4 ,then ,margaret died1 and ,paul was alone4 ,he had wished to withdraw from the world altogether4 ,but he felt unworthy to ask admission into a religious order4 ,however1 realizing at length that his death could not be far distant1 and that he could at worst be a burden for only a very short time1 he wrote to ,claude ,acquaviva1 who was then ,general of the ,society of ,jesus1 and begged that he might at least die in the ,society to which ,stanislaus had belonged4 ,acquaviva readily dispensed with the impediment of age and ordered the ,provincial of ,poland1 ,father ,strinieno1 to receive him4 ,paul hastened to the royal court1 then at ,pietscop1 to settle his worldly affairs before taking up his residence in the noviceship4 ,but scarcely had he completed his arrangements1 when fever seized him1 and he died after a few days' illness4 ,he died ,november #ac1 #afjg3 the very day of the month afterwards fixed as the feast of ,saint ,stanislaus4 ,bilinski1 too1 the tutor of ,stanislaus1 showed in after life the fruit of ,stanislaus' prayers4 ,he became ,canon of ,pultowa and ,plock and lived holily4 ,it was his privilege to bear testimony to many events in the life of ,stanislaus1 and he was a very valuable witness in the processes for his pupil's beatification4 ,when death came1 ,stanislaus appeared to him in vision1 consoling and encouraging him1 and he died in great peace4 ,all this time the people of ,poland had been eager in their devotion to the ,blessed ,stanislaus4 ,many cures and miracles had been wrought through his intercession4 ,in #afba1 under the ,polish king1 ,sigismund ,,iii1 and again in #afgf1 under ,yan ,sobieski1 the ,poles won pronounced victories over ,turkish armies which far outnumbered their own1 and attributed these preternatural successes to the prayers of ,stanislaus4 ,the whole nation1 through its kings1 repeatedly petitioned that ,stanislaus might be declared their ,patron4 ,this was at first refused1 as only canonized saints were given the title of ,patron of a nation4 ,but ,clement x granted the request in #afga1 setting aside the decree which forbade it4 ,the ,church is slow in declaring any one a saint4 ,it was not until ,december #ac1 #agbf1 one hundred and fifty-eight years after the death of ,stanislaus1 that ,benedict ,,xiii solemnly celebrated his canonization in the ,basilica of ,st4 ,peter4 ,it was a double ceremony1 for it was also the occasion of the canonization of ,saint ,aloysius1 who had been born in ,march of the same year in which ,stanislaus died4 99 99 99 99 99 99 99 99 99 ,this little account has not done justice to the life of ,stanislaus ,kostka2 and1 indeed1 it is very hard to do justice to it4 ,he was a most human and lovable boy1 but he was besides a wonderful1 bright being that eludes the grip of our common minds4 ,he was a citizen of heaven1 who lived here amongst us1 kindly and companionable indeed1 during eighteen years of exile4 ,to try to describe him is like trying to describe a star in the far sky of night4 ,that love for ,god1 of which we speak so brokenly1 which at its best in us is so small and cold1 was the soul of his soul1 the inner core and substance of his life4 ,here1 in the misty country of faith1 he had something of that radiant and rapturous union with ,god which all of us1 as we hope1 shall one day have in heaven4 ,all the sweet and strong twining of our hearts about father and mother and relatives and dear friends1 all that binds us in affection to those we love in life1 was multiplied and made many times stronger in his rare nature and lifted up by ,god's grace to fix itself upon ,god1 the infinite ,goodness1 the supreme ,beauty4 ,god was not a mere ,name or a ,power to him1 not even the mere ,lord and ,master of all3 ,god was his friend1 his dearest intimate1 his sure1 strong1 patient1 loving counselor2 whose presence was with him1 waking and sleeping2 whose interests were nearest his heart2 whose commands it was a delight to obey2 whose slightest wish and beckoning was eagerly watched for and joyously followed4 ,to catch the secret and true meaning of his life1 one must feel how that love for ,god thrilled through him1 was his4 courage in action1 his endurance in suffering1 his sweetness and kindness in all dealings with other men4 ,it was his life4 ,and when we have said and realized that1 we have come nearest to knowing who and what really was ,stanislaus ,kostka4 ,the ,project ,gutenberg ,etext of ,for ,greater ,things3 ,the story of ,saint ,stanislaus ,kostka by ,william ,t4 ,kane1 ,s4,j4 999999 x-header 999999