This idea of his transitory stay
on earth gave the last emphasis to the effect which the preacher
had produced; it was as if an angel, in his passage to the skies,
had shaken his bright wings over the people for an instant--at
once a shadow and a splendour--and had shed down a shower of
golden truths upon them.
Thus, there had come to the Reverend Mr. Dimmesdale--as to most
men, in their various spheres, though seldom recognised until
they see it far behind them--an epoch of life more brilliant and
full of triumph than any previous one, or than any which could
hereafter be. He stood, at this moment, on the very proudest
eminence of superiority, to which the gifts or intellect, rich
lore, prevailing eloquence, and a reputation of whitest
sanctity, could exalt a clergyman in New England's earliest
days, when the professional character was of itself a lofty
pedestal. Such was the position which the minister occupied, as
he bowed his head forward on the cushions of the pulpit at the
close of his Election Sermon. Meanwhile Hester Prynne was
standing beside the scaffold of the pillory, with the scarlet
letter still burning on her breast!
Now was heard again the clamour of the music, and the measured
tramp of the military escort issuing from the church door.
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