Newman protested, and Kingsley
rejoined in an irate pamphlet. Newman's reply was the Apologia
pro Vita Sua, which he wrote in seven weeks, sometimes working
twenty-two hours at a stretch, 'constantly in tears, and
constantly crying out with distress'. The success of the book,
with its transparent candour, its controversial brilliance, the
sweep and passion of its rhetoric, the depth of its personal
feeling, was immediate and overwhelming; it was recognised at
once as a classic, not only by Catholics, but by the whole
English world. From every side expressions of admiration,
gratitude, and devotion poured in. It was impossible for one so
sensitive as Newman to the opinions of other people to resist the
happy influence of such an unlooked-for, such an enormous
triumph. The cloud of his dejection began to lift; et l'espoir
malgre lui s'est glisse dans son coeur.
It was only natural that at such a moment his thoughts should
return to Oxford. For some years past proposals had been on foot
for establishing there a Hall, under Newman's leadership, for
Catholic undergraduates. The scheme had been looked upon with
disfavour in Rome, and it had been abandoned; but now a new
opportunity presented itself-- some land in a suitable position
came into the market. Newman, with his reviving spirits, felt
that he could not let this chance go by, and bought the land.
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