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The Bourgeois had finished the reading of his packet of letters, and sat musing in silence. He too was intently thinking of his son. His face was filled with the satisfaction of old Simeon when he cried, out of the fulness of his heart, "Domine! nunc dimittis!" "Dame Rochelle," said he. She turned promptly to the voice of her master, as she ever insisted on calling him.
And after that prayer there was still the canticle of Simeon, who, as soon as he had seen the Messiah, desired to die. This "Nunc dimittis," which the Church has incorporated in Compline to stimulate us at eventide to self-examination for none can tell whether he shall wake on the morrow was raised by the whole choir, which alternated with the responses of the organ.
Each consists of confession and absolution, a short Scriptural lesson, psalms, a canticle, a hymn and collects. The canticle for vespers is the Magnificat; for compline is the Nunc Dimittis. Now as the two services were practically united, what our Reformers did was to weld them together.
But I hardly believed that I should have been spared for this transcendent day, and, when it is consummated, I will gratefully exclaim, 'Nunc me dimittis!" "You, allude, sir, to some important matter which Lady St. Jerome a few days ago intimated to me, but it was only an intimation, and purposely very vague."
Sir Toby Mathews tried hard to speak to his flock, but broke down, and had to yield the attempt. When the services were over, the marquis rose and said, 'Master Delaware, once more play thy Nunc dimittis, and so meet me every one in the hall.
His face wore a glad smile, and afterward, when Aladdin found him and took the gold locket from his pocket, and read the inscription written, a great wonder seized men: July 3, 1863. Nunc dimittis. Te Deum laudamus. Thus in one battle fell the three strong hostages which an old man had given to fortune.
I hope also to republish a revised edition of my book on Orchids, and hereafter my papers on dimorphic and trimorphic plants, together with some additional observations on allied points which I never have had time to arrange. My strength will then probably be exhausted, and I shall be ready to exclaim "Nunc dimittis."
Francis had preached to the lower forms of life he too became imbued with the spirit of homily and prophecy, though it did not actually find its way into words. "You and I, little brothers" so might we loosely interpret the meditations of his heart "you and I are much of a muchness, and can sing our 'Te Deum' or our 'Nunc Dimittis' in almost the same words.
And he was fearful of having a fit of coughing and waking Christophe. He was full of gratitude to God, and began to compose verses to the song of old Simeon: "Nunc dimittis ..." He got up in a sweat to write the verses down and sat at his desk until he had carefully copied them out with an affectionate dedication, and his signature, and the date and hour.
Then he opened his pen-knife, and scratched a deep line of erasure through the "Carpe diem" in his locket, and underneath, cutting with great pains, he inserted a date, "July 3, 1863," and the words "Nunc dimittis." Below that he cut "Te Deum laudamus."
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