` This is a hospital for soldiers wounded in life 's battle ; here are sick souls , weak wills , insane passions , blind consciences , all the ills that come from broken laws , bringing their inevitable pain and punishment with them , There is hope and help for every one , for God 's mercy is infinite and man 's charity is great ; but penitence and submission must come before the cure is possible . Pay the forfeit manfully , for it is just ; but from the suffering and shame wring new strength for a nobler life . The scar will remain , but it is better for a man to lose both arms than his soul ; and these hard years , instead of being lost , may be made the most precious of your lives , if they teach you to rule yourselves . O friends , try to outlive the bitter past , to wash the sin away , and begin anew . If not for your own sakes , for that of the dear mothers , wives , and children , who wait and hope so patiently for you . Remember them , and do not let them love and long in vain . And if there be any here so forlorn that they have no friend to care for them , never forget the Father whose arms are always open to receive , forgive , and comfort His prodigal sons , even at the eleventh hour . ' There the little sermon ended ; but the preacher of it felt that her few hearty words had not been uttered in vain , for one boy 's head was down , and several faces wore the softened look which told that a tender memory was touched . Dan was forced to set his lips to keep them steady , and drop his eyes to hide the sudden dew that dimmed them when waiting , hoping friends were spoken of . He was glad to be alone in his cell again , and sat thinking deeply , instead of trying to forget himself in sleep . It seemed as if those words were just what he needed to show him where he stood and how fateful the next few days might be to him . Should he join the ` bad lot ' , and perhaps add another crime to the one already committed , lengthen the sentence already so terrible to bear , deliberately turn his back on all that was good , and mar the future that might yet be redeemed ? Or should he , like the wiser man in the story , submit , bear the just punishment , try to be better for it ; and though the scar would remain , it might serve as a reminder of a battle not wholly lost , since he had saved his soul though innocence was gone ? Then he would dare go home , perhaps , confess , and find fresh strength in the pity and consolation of those who never gave him up . Good and evil fought for Dan that night as did the angel and the devil for Sintram , and it was hard to tell whether lawless nature or loving heart would conquer . Remorse and resentment , shame and sorrow , pride and passion , made a battle-field of that narrow cell , and the poor fellow felt as if he had fiercer enemies to fight now than any he had met in all his wanderings . A little thing turned the scale , as it so often does in these mysterious hearts of ours , and a touch of sympathy helped Dan decide the course which would bless or ban his life . In the dark hour before the dawn , as he lay wakeful on his bed , a ray of light shone through the bars , the bolts turned softly , and a man came in . It was the good chaplain , led by the same instinct that brings a mother to her sick child 's pillow ; for long experience as nurse of souls had taught him to see the signs of hope in the hard faces about him , and to know when the moment came for a helpful word and the cordial of sincere prayer that brings such comfort and healing to tried and troubled hearts . He had been to Dan before at unexpected hours , but always found him sullen , indifferent , or rebellious , and had gone away to patiently bide his time .
Now it had come ; a look of relief was in the prisoner 's face as the light shone on it , and the sound of a human voice was strangely comfortable after listening to the whispers of the passions , doubts , and fears which had haunted the cell for XXXXX , dismaying Dan by their power , and showing him how much he needed help to fight the good fight , since he had no armour of his own .
Dan Father Sintram battle-field days hours night penitence sakes years