The Importance of Change

The excitement of mister dimsdale's feelings as he returned from his interview with hester lent him unaccustomed physical energy and hurried him townward at a rapid pace. He could not but recall how feebly and with what frequent pauses for breath, he had toiled over the same ground only two days before. A similar impression struck him most remarkably as he passed under the walls of his own church. It was impossible to describe in what respect they differed from the individuals on whom he had so recently bestowed a parting glance. And yet the minister's deepest sense seemed to inform him of their mutability. They looked neither older nor younger. Now, the beards of the aged