,a ,,lost ,,cause ,,by ,,guy ,,thorne ,,author ,,of ,,when ,,it ,,was ,,dark1 ,,etc4 ,g4 ,p4 ,,putnam',s ,,sons ,,new ,,york ,,and ,,london ,the ,knickerbocker ,press #aije ,the ,knickerbocker ,press1 ,new ,york ,,preface ,a few words are necessary in preface to this story4 ,after ,when ,it ,was ,dark made its appearance1 the writer received a great number of letters from his readers1 and up to the present moment he still continues to receive them4 ,out of nearly two hundred communications1 a large proportion are concerned not so much with the main issue of the tale1 as with controversial matters in the ,church of ,england arising from it4 ,the definitely ,catholic#a tone of the first book aroused1 as might be expected1 vigorous protest1 and no less vigorous commendation4 ,the five or six ,bishops--and many other dignitaries--who preached or lectured about the story avoided the controversial sides of it4 ,but the writer has received innumerable letters from the clergy and others to the following effect4 ,footnote #a3 ,the term ,catholic is here1 and throughout the book1 used in the sense in which it is employed by a certain division of the ,church of ,england and of the ,episcopal ,church of ,america4--,the ,,publishers4 ,it was pointed out to him that while the extreme ,protestant party was constantly employing fiction as a method of propaganda1 churchmen were almost unrepresented in this way4 ,the ,catholic ,faith has been bitterly assailed over and over again in books which are well enough written1 and have sufficient general interest to appeal to the man of the world1 who is often indifferent to the points debated4 ,after considerable discussion1 the writing of ,a ,lost ,cause was resolved upon4 ,the author desires to thank those priests who have assisted him with their counsel and experience1 and begs leave to explain here something of his aims in publishing the tale4 ,at no period in modern ,church history has the ,church been assailed with such malignance1 slander1 and untruth as at the present4 ,protestantism within the ,church is a lost cause1 it is dying1 and for just this reason the clamour is loudest1 the misrepresentation more furious and envenomed4 ,shrewd opportunists are taking their last chance of emerging from obscurity by an appeal to the ignorance of the general public on ,church matters4 ,looking round us1 we see dozens of uneducated and noisy nobodies who have elected themselves into a sort of irregular prelacy and dubbed themselves ,defenders of the ,faith1 with about as much right as ,napoleon crowned himself emperor4 ,church people do not take them very seriously4 ,their voices are like the cries of hedge-birds by the road1 on which the stately procession of the ,church is passing4 ,but the man in the street is more attentive and he enjoys the colour and movement of iconoclasm4 ,he believes also that the brawlers have right on their side4 ,but there is an inherent fairness in the man in the street1 and1 if this story reaches him1 he will have his opportunity to hear the ,catholic side of the argument4 ,the author begs to state that no single character in this tale is a portrait of any living person1 or of any real person whatever4 ,the imaginary folk are designed to be merely typical1 their methods are analogous to much that is going on to-day under the pretences of patriotism and love for religious liberty1 but that is all4 ,there will probably be the usual nonsense written1 and the braves of ,protestantism will give the usual war-whoops4 ,whether this is to be so or not1 the author is profoundly indifferent4 ,he attacks those of the extreme ,protestants whom he believes to be insincere and who rebel against the ,truth for their own ends4 ,he does not say or think that all ,protestants--even the extremists--are insincere4 ,he has endeavoured to point out that there is as much difference between the street-corner ,protestants and the pious ,evangelical ,party within the ,church as there is between ,trinitarians and ,unitarians4 ,the incident in the tale where the ,archbishop of ,canterbury compels a ,protestant publicist to give up the ,blessed ,sacrament1 which he has stolen from a church for purposes of propaganda1 is founded on fact4 ,it has not before been made public1 except in a short letter to the ,church ,times a few months ago1 which was written with the design of preparing ,church readers for the detailed publication of such a painful incident4 ,the facts1 however1 have been supplied to the writer to make such use of in the story as he thinks fit4 ,the authors of this disgraceful profanation have1 naturally1 been silent on the matter4 ,it is not an isolated instance4 ,but it is not to be thought that the imaginary characters concerned in the affair in the story1 are intended to represent1 or do in any way1 the real heroes of this great blow struck for ,protestant truth4 ,finally1 the noisiest ,protestants are hitting the ,church as hard as they can4 ,the author has endeavoured to hit back as hard as he can--of course1 in that spirit of ,christian love in which the ,protestants themselves tell us these controversies are always conducted4 ,the brawlers have enjoyed an astonishing immunity hitherto1 and it is only fair that battle should be joined now4 ,and1 however inadequate his forces and generalship1 that is the writer's aim4 ,he is1 of course1 a franc-tireur1 but he fires his musket on the right side1 and with a perfect assurance of the justice of his ,cause4 ,g4 ,t4 ,,contents ,,chapter ,,page ,i4--,,the ,,interrupted ,,eucharist #a ,,ii4--,,mr4 ,,hamlyn ,,and ,,son ,,at ,,home #ai ,,iii4--,,lord ,,huddersfield ,,and ,,the ,,guests ,,at ,,scarning ,,court #ch ,,iv4--,,lucy ,,blantyre ,,at ,,the ,,clergy-,,house #fi ,v4--,,wealthy ,,miss ,,pritchett ,,and ,,poor ,,gussie ,,davies ,,enter ,,the ,,vicarage ,,garden #ajh ,,vi4--,,boadicea1 ,,joan ,,of ,,arc1 ,,charlotte ,,corday1 ,,jael1 ,,and ,,miss ,,pritchett ,,of ,,hornham #abg ,,vii4--,,the ,,offices ,,of ,,the ,,luther ,,league--,,an ,,interior #adf ,,viii4--,a ,,private ,,conference ,,at ,,midnight ,a ,,year ,,later #aff ,,ix4--,a ,,union ,,of ,,forces #ahb ,x4--,,low ,,water ,,and ,,great ,,expectations #bad ,,xi4--,,the ,,news ,,that ,,carr ,,brought #bda ,,xii4--,,the ,,reparation ,,of ,,jane ,,pritchett ,,ex-,,protestant #bha ,,xiii4--,,the ,,archbishop ,,and ,,the ,,hamlyns #cjb ,a ,,lost ,,cause ,,chapter ,i ,,the ,,interrupted ,,eucharist ,the ,church of ,st4 ,elwyn was a building of brick that went up to a great height4 ,in the crowded district between ,hornsey and ,wood ,green1 it was one of the largest buildings1 and1 though not externally beautiful1 acquired dignity and impressiveness from its setting of small villa houses1 which made an interminable brick wilderness all round it4 ,it was nearing the time of the ,high ,celebration on a ,sunday morning in summer4 ,matins had been said in a side chapel1 to a scanty congregation1 at half-past nine1 and now the central act of the day was to take place4 ,the interior of ,st4 ,elwyn's was severe but beautiful1 save for one or two minor blemishes here and there4 ,the eye was caught and carried away down the aisles till it found its focus on the high altar which was set like a throne1 above many marble steps1 in the curve of the distant apse4 ,the sanctuary was lighted from the sides and so the eye was not disturbed and distracted by hideous windows of stained glass with their clamorous coal-tar colours1 but could rest quietly upon the altar with its green and gold1 its flowers and central cross4 ,the organ was hidden away in a side gallery and the pulpit was a stone bracket high in the sweep of the chancel arch1 to which it clung like the nest of a bird on a cliff side4 ,all this was as it should be4 ,in so many ,english churches the object of the builders appears to have been to destroy all the dignity and beauty possible in a service4 ,the organ and the pulpit are elevated to the importance of shrines1 and dominate everything like ,gog and ,magog in the ,guildhall4 ,everything is done to minimise the place and office of the altar1 to exalt the less important functions of worship1 and to prevent comfortable consciences from being uneasy in the realisation of the presence of ,god4 ,only one tawdry note could be detected in this beautiful church4 ,the pictures which hung on the walls round the aisles1 and represented the stations of the cross1 were ill-drawn1 and stiff in colour and design4 ,these pictures1 which were said by the ignorant and unimaginative to be idolatrous1 or at least ,roman--a little understood but very efficacious term of reproach in the parish--were sufficiently like the hideous stained-glass figures in the ,evangelical ,church of ,st4 ,luke hard by to have satisfied the most pious lover of ugliness4 ,but those folk1 who so vehemently preferred the medallion portraits of their respectable ancestors on the walls of a church to any other form of symbol or decoration1 did not see this4 ,they spoke bitterly of the pictures as being high1 suggesting to outsiders unfamiliar with the parrot cry of the partisan that they had been kept too long in a warm place4 ,since ,father ,blantyre had been appointed vicar of ,st4 ,elwyn's1 the congregation had increased until few of the rush-bottomed chairs were empty1 and on days of great festivals1 people would be found kneeling in the aisles4 ,the opposition party in the parish frequently commented on this custom1 which was thought to savour of heathenism or worse4 ,one or two people who had spent holidays in continental towns1 and had made excursions into foreign cathedrals in much the same spirit as they went into the chamber of horrors in the wax-work exhibition1 had brought back news that this habit was in vogue among the ,catholics4 ,it was felt that real salvation could only be found in a pew1 with one's name legibly written on an ivory tablet at the end and the vestry-clerk calling for the rent once a quarter in the decent old-fashioned way4 ,any one who knelt on the uncushioned stone showed an anxiety to worship and a superstitious abasement quite unworthy of a bluff1 honest1 ,british ,christian2 and his doings must be displeasing to a ,deity who1 the objectors were persuaded1 was--though they did not say so in actual words--a great ,english ,god4 ,the single bell that summoned the people to ,mass--that word which church-people are becoming less afraid to use in this century--had ceased4 ,the server was lighting the ,eucharistic candles with a long taper4 ,as the people came in1 it was noticeable that they proceeded to their places without side-looks at each other1 or muttered social greetings4 ,they went to their seats1 young and old1 men and women1 and began to kneel and pray4 ,no one1 apparently1 had come there to be seen by his fellows4 ,since the ,catholic ,revival in the ,english ,church1 no fact has been more obvious and easily determined than this4 ,it is one which the bitterest opponent of churchmanship has never been able to deny and has never attempted to deny4 ,the most prejudiced observer paying an alternate visit to a church where the ,faith is taught and to another which is confessedly ,protestant cannot fail to observe the difference4 ,at the celebration of the ,eucharist in a church of the former type1 there is an absolute stillness and reverence4 ,the congregation kneels1 it worships4 ,in the latter1 there is an unrest4 ,people do not show marked consciousness of being in the presence of mysteries4 ,whatever they may think1 they do not give the observer the impression that they think ,god is there4 ,they sit rather than kneel1 they notice the clothes of other people1 there is a certain sense that they are doing the right thing in patronising the church1 and the ,sunday dinner looms large over all4 ,the man lit the candles4 ,a moment afterwards ,father ,blantyre entered with the servers and the service began4 ,the singing was simple but harmonious4 ,there was nothing especially noticeable in the hymn or the chanting of the ,kyries after the commandments4 ,the priest went into the pulpit1 kissed the white stole1 and placed it1 as a yoke1 upon his shoulders4 ,over his head was a crucifix4 ,he was a small man1 dark of hair1 and swarthy of complexion4 ,the nose was prominent and aquiline1 the eyes bright1 with a net-work of fine wrinkles round them1 the mouth large and mobile4 ,there was almost a suggestion of the comedian in his face1 that is1 in its extreme mobility and good-humour4 ,one could imagine him as a merry man in his private life4 ,but mingled with this1 one saw at once the lines of an unalterable purpose1 and of conviction4 ,any strong belief stamps itself upon a man's face in an unmistakable way4 ,when that belief is purely holy and good1 then we say that the man has the face of a saint4 ,for a moment or two1 ,mr4 ,blantyre looked round the church4 ,the eyes1 so puckered at the corners1 very much resembled the eyes of a sailor1 who is ever gazing out towards a vast horizon and through furious winds4 ,men who are much occupied with the ,unseen and ,invisible sometimes have this look1 which is the look of a man who is striving to see ,god4 ,the subject-matter of the sermon itself was not very remarkable4 ,it was a sermon dealing with the aids to worship that symbol gives1 showing how a proper use of material objects may focus the brain upon the reality behind them4 ,during the last week or two1 the local paper had been printing some violent attacks upon the services at ,st4 ,elwyn's1 for there was a by-election in progress and one of the candidates was seizing the opportunity afforded by a ,no ,popery cry4 ,the local writer1 the vicar pointed out1 was obviously alarmed lest people should worship too much4 ,he spoke of the attacks with sincere good humour and more than once his words provoked a smile4 ,the journalist1 with the sublime ignorance of lesser local scribes1 had spoken of ,queen ,elizabeth and expressed a fervent desire that the times of good ,queen ,bess would come again and that the ,royal ,spinster could descend on the purlieus of ,hornsey and sternly order all ,romish toys to be removed4 ,father ,blantyre quoted ,elizabeth's letter to ,sandys3 ,the queen's majesty considered it not contrary to the ,word of ,god--nay1 rather for the advantage of the church--that the image of ,christ crucified1--together with ,mary and ,john1 should be placed as heretofore in some conspicuous part of the church1 where they may the more readily be seen by all the people4 ,the last few words of the sermon were preparatory for the mystery that was about to begin1 an earnest exhortation to all there to make themselves ready to receive the ,lord1 who was presently coming among them4 ,there was nothing in the short discourse that was remarkable1 but its delivery was extraordinary4 ,the words were uttered with a great tenderness and solemnity1 but quite without any formal note4 ,there was almost a gaiety in them now and then1 a spiritual gaiety that was very impressive4 ,father ,blantyre leaned over the rail and talked to his people4 ,the voice1 which sank into a whisper at times1 and at others rang out with a sharpness that echoed up in the lofty roof1 never once lost its suggestion of confidential intimacy with those to whom it spoke4 ,in the entire absence of the usual preaching note1 the sermon gained immensely in value with this particular audience4 ,anything academic would have been endured1 but it would not have gone home4 ,while the offertory sentences were being sung1 the congregation saw that a small group of people had entered the church1 presumably to hear ,mass4 ,one of the churchwardens was able to find seats for the party about half-way down the central aisle4 ,the new-comers were four in number4 ,all of them were men4 ,it is perhaps strange to speak of one of their number as being the leader of the party1 but that was the impression he gave to those members of the congregation immediately around him4 ,at the close of the service1 moreover1 several worshippers agreed with each other that this person had suggested that to them4 ,he was a shortish1 thick-set man of some five and forty years of age4 ,his large1 intelligent face was clean-shaved4 ,the eyes were small and very bright1 shifting hither and thither in a constant flicker of observation4 ,the mouth was large1 and though the lips were thick and loose1 there was nevertheless a certain resolution in them4 ,they were frequently curved into a half-smile which had something indescribably sinister and impudent about it4 ,one saw that1 in whatever situation he might find himself1 this person would not easily be abashed or unready4 ,he wore a frock-coat of shining broadcloth4 ,the waistcoat was cut low1 not as well-dressed people would wear it1 showing a large expanse of imitation shirt-front through which a black stud was thrust4 ,a small bow of black ribbon served as necktie4 ,in some nameless way1 he suggested a peculiarly unpleasing type of irregular dissenting minister in his appearance1 and this was enhanced by the fact that under one arm he carried a large ,bible of limp leather1 secured by an india-rubber band4 ,yet1 with all this1 the new-comer had a remarkable and even arresting personality4 ,wherever he went1 he would not easily escape notice4 ,by his side sat a tallish youth with sufficient likeness to him to proclaim a near relationship4 ,the young fellow's complexion was somewhat muddy1 his hair was smooth and mouse-coloured1 his mouth resembled his father's1 except that it had not the impudent good-humour of the elder man's1 and was altogether more furtive and sly4 ,the two remaining members of the party were men apparently of the prosperous small-tradesman type1 pursy1 flabby with good living1 who had added mutton-chop whiskers to their obvious self-esteem4 ,to one or two members of the congregation there1 the father and son were not unknown4 ,the thick-set1 clean-shaved man was ,mr4 ,samuel ,hamlyn1 the editor and proprietor of a small local journal1--the ,hornham ,observer1--and the youth was his son1 who acted as reporter to the paper and signed himself ,s4 ,hamlyn1 ,junior4 ,both were well known in local affairs2 ,hamlyn was a member of the school-board and held one or two kindred positions4 ,his religious sympathies had hitherto been supposed to lie with the numerous dissenting sects in the parish1 all of whom had their bills and other announcements printed at his office4 ,the momentary interest and stir created by the entrance of the party died away almost immediately and ,mass continued4 ,certainly no one in the church realised that in a few short weeks the fat man with the smile would be notorious all over ,england1 and that they were to be present at the very first step in the career of one of the shrewdest of vulgar opportunists the country had ever known4 ,the seats reserved for the churchwardens were on the opposite side of the aisle1 but almost upon a level with those in which the new-comers were seated--perhaps some two rows of chairs behind4 ,accordingly ,doctor ,hibbert1 the vicar's warden1 had a clear view of the four men just in front4 ,hibbert was an upright1 soldierly-looking man1 who had1 in fact1 been an army surgeon1 and had now bought a practice in the parish4 ,he was a skilful doctor1 and a man of considerable mental strength1 who had made himself indispensable in the district and was in the way of becoming a wealthy man4 ,his earnest churchmanship had not militated against his success1 even among the most extreme ,protestants and ,dissenters of ,hornham4 ,he was known to be a first-class doctor1 and he was too strong a man for any one to take a liberty with1 and of such superior power and mould to the mass of lower-class people whom he attended that his opinions were respected4 ,but going about as he did1 among every one in the parish1 the ,doctor knew far more of its internal state than any one else4 ,nothing is concealed from a medical man in general practice4 ,confession is compulsory to him2 he sees the secrets of men's lives1 knows the tarnished story of the respectable person1 as sometimes the heroism of the outcast4 ,hibbert had his finger on the public pulse of ,hornham in a measure that ,father ,blantyre himself could hardly achieve4 ,it was therefore with some little uneasiness and a good deal of conjecture that the doctor had noticed the advent of ,hamlyn and his party4 ,the disturbances to public worship which are so familiar to-day were quite unknown at that time4 ,hibbert anticipated nothing of what actually occurred1 but his eye was watchful nevertheless4 ,the ,mass went on4 ,the servers knelt on the altar steps in cotta and cassock1 the priest moved above them in his stiff1 flowered chasuble1 robed in the garments of the ,passion of our ,lord4 ,the ,comfortable ,words were said1 and the ,sursum ,corda began4 ,a deep throbbing sound came from the organ1 and1 in one great outburst of solemn avowal1 the congregation lifted up their hearts to ,god4 ,,sursum ,,corda6 ,,habemus ,,ad ,,dominum ,,gratias ,,agamus ,,domino ,,deo ,,nostro6 ,ever since the days of the ,apostles1 the ,mass had been said thus1 the most solemn part of the service had begun with these profound words of adoration4 ,the doctor forgot all else as he worshipped4 ,let it be remembered1 in the light of what follows1 that the vast majority of the people there believed this1 were waiting for this--they believed that when the priest said the ,prayer of ,consecration1 our ,lord ,himself had come suddenly among them4 ,throughout the rite there was a growing sense and assurance of ,one coming4 ,most of them were quite sure of it4 ,human hearts1 worn with the troubles of the week1 sick to death1 it may be1 of a hard material lot1 now bowed in contrition and repentance1 or were filled with a certain ,hope4 ,everything in this world was as nothing1 because1 upon the altar before which the priest was bending so low1 they believed that ,god had come4 ,in what way1 or how1 they did not know and could not have explained4 ,did they imagine it week after week as they knelt in church8 ,most of them knew that it was no imagination or delusion that caught at their hearts1 that changed the air of the building in a swift moment1 that caught up heart and soul and spirit in one great outpouring of love and faith and adoration4 ,was this a fable1 as folks sometimes told them8 ,this which dissolved and broke the chains of bodily sense1 banished the world1 and enfolded them with its awful sweetness1 its immeasurable joy8 ,what else in life had power to do this1 power to hurry away clogging1 material things as in a mighty spiritual wind1 to show them once more the stupendous sacrifice of the ,saviour--what else but the indubitable presence of our ,lord8 ,the priest held up the ,host4 ,at that supreme moment1 ,doctor ,hibbert1 whose state of mind may be taken as typical of many others there1 bent in humble adoration and contrition4 ,an absolute silence lay over the church2 there was not the slightest sound or movement in it4 ,a chair was pushed harshly over the tiles1 there was a heavy shuffling of feet4 ,such sounds in that holy moment affected some of the worshippers as a physical blow might have done4 ,but few people looked up4 ,many of them did not hear the sound1 their ears being tuned to harmonies that were not of this world4 ,the doctor heard the noise with his ears1 but for a merciful moment it did not penetrate to his brain4 ,and then with a horrid clangour the visible things of the world came rushing back to him4 ,he looked up4 ,the four men just in front of him had risen in their places4 ,the two tradesmen were red in the face and manifestly uneasy4 ,they breathed hard1 a breath of ostentatious defiance4 ,young ,hamlyn was glancing round the church with swift1 malevolent movements of his head4 ,his eyes flickered hither and thither until they finally settled on the motionless figure at the altar1 the figure with the upstretched arm4 ,the elder ,hamlyn held a paper in his hand1 from which he began to read in a loud1 unsteady voice3 ,i1 ,samuel ,hamlyn1 a lawful parishioner of ,st4 ,elwyn's parish1 ,hornham1 do hereby rise and protest against the illegal and blasphemous fable of the ,mass as performed in this church4 ,and as a member of the ,protestant ,church of ,england ,i give notice---- ,every one had risen to his feet4 ,in a distant corner of the church1 a woman began to shriek4 ,a murmur broke into shouts1 there was a crash of some heavy body falling4 ,a horrid tumult seemed broken loose1 as if it had been confined till now and had broken its bars with one great effort4 ,in a second1 the four men were surrounded by a pushing crowd of men1 beside themselves with horror and anger4 ,sticks began to quiver in the air1 the crash of the chairs as they were overturned was like the dropping rattle of musketry fire4 ,the hard voice of the brawler had gone up a full tone4 ,in its excitement1 it dominated an abominable chorus of shouting4 ,in half a minute1 the doctor and other members of the congregation had ,hamlyn and his son gripped by the arms and were hurrying them towards the west door without any answer to their frantic threats and menaces4 ,the other two men followed stolidly4 ,nearly every face was turned away from the altar4 ,the one or two people who had fallen trembling upon their knees when the riot was at its height saw that the vicar was also kneeling in adoration of the ,blessed ,sacrament4 ,a loud metallic clang resounded through the church4 ,the door was barred1 the brawlers were shut out4 ,when the maimed1 polluted rite was at last concluded1 amid deep sobs from men and women alike1 ,father ,blantyre gave the blessing4 ,they saw with deep sympathy that the tears were rolling down his cheeks also4 ,but the doctor saw1 with a sudden quickening of the pulses1 that the first finger and the thumb were joined still4 ,it is the custom of the priest1 after he has broken the bread1 that the finger and thumb are never parted till ,mass is said4 ,they were not parted now4 ,the fact comforted and cheered the doctor4 ,he had been on battle-fields and had not known the fear and horror he had known to-day4 ,,chapter ,,ii ,,mr4 ,,hamlyn ,,and ,,son ,,at ,,home ,mr4 ,hamlyn lived in ,alexandra ,road1 ,hornham4 ,the actual name of his house was ,balmoral1 and it was one of seven or eight other residences gathered together under the generic title of ,beatrice ,villas4 ,the father and son turned into the little path which led up to the imitation satin-wood door some twenty minutes after the gate of ,st4 ,elwyn's had been barred to them4 ,their companions1 ,mr4 ,burgoyne and ,mr4 ,moffatt1 had left them at the corner of the street1 very flustered at what they had done1 and with a dull remorse flitting about their thick skulls1 that they had joined in ,hamlyn's little game4 ,nor did the repeated assurances of the journalist1 that ,mr4 ,herbert--the ,liberal candidate--would see them through it1 help them to recover their peace of mind4 ,visions of police-court proceedings and an unenviable notoriety in the daily papers were very vivid1 and they parted with their chief in mingled sorrow and anger4 ,mr4 ,hamlyn let himself and his son into the little hall of his villa4 ,a smell of roast meat gave evidence that dinner would soon be ready4 ,both men turned into the parlour on the left of the passage4 ,it was a room which showed signs of fugitive rather than regular use4 ,two or three long boxes bearing the name of a local draper stood upon the round table in the centre4 ,the contents showed that ,miss ,hamlyn1 the agitator's only daughter1 had been occupied in the choice of corsets4 ,the walls of the parlour were covered with a rich mauve and gold paper1 which gave a dignity to the cut-glass lustres of the chandelier4 ,the pictures1 heavily framed in gold1 were spirited representations of scenes from the ,old ,testament4 ,on the rack of the rosewood piano--which stood open--was a song called ,roses that ,bloomed in my ,heart4 ,the chairs1 arranged around the wall with commendable regularity1 were upholstered in plum-coloured plush4 ,on one of them was a card-box of a vivid green1 containing several clean collars of the particular sort ,hamlyn ,junior wore2 on another stood the wooden box where his father's silk hat was kept when not in use on ,sundays and other important days4 ,mr4 ,hamlyn took off his frock coat and removed the reversible cuffs that were attached to the sleeves of his flannel shirt by means of an ingeniously contrived clip4 ,he then put on a loose coat of black alpaca4 ,his son1 having gone through something of the same process1 followed his father to the sitting-room next the little kitchen4 ,as the parlour was not often used for ceremonial occasions1 the ,hamlyns not being very hospitable people1 it served as an occasional dressing-room also1 and saved running up-stairs4 ,the sitting-room window looked out into the backyard1 immediately by the kitchen door1 which led into it4 ,as the ,hamlyns came in1 they were able to see their servant throwing some hot liquid--the water in which the cabbage had been boiled1 as a matter of fact--into the grid in the centre of the yard4 ,the table was already laid for the meal4 ,as1 however1 it was rather a long table and the ,hamlyns were only three in family1--,hamlyn being a widower1--the white cloth was laid only on half of it4 ,one or two volumes of the ,heartsease ,novelettes and some artificial flowers1 with which a hat was to be trimmed by ,miss ,hamlyn1 were thus left undisturbed4 ,dinner didn't ought to be long1 ,mr4 ,hamlyn remarked4 ',ope not1 said his son shortly4 ,i'll holler to ,maud4 ,miss ,hamlyn came in soon afterwards1 followed by the maid with a joint of roast beef4 ,the editor's daughter was a tall girl with sulky lips1 bold eyes1 and a profusion of dark hair4 ,this last was now screwed round her forehead in curling-pins4 ,the two men attacked their dinner in silence4 ,both of them had tucked a handkerchief round their necks1 in order to preserve the ,sunday waistcoat from droppings of food1 a somewhat wise precaution1 as both of them ate very rapidly4 ,maud1 said ,hamlyn at length1 can you do a bit of typing for me this afternoon8 ,no1 then1 ,i can't1 ,pa1 she replied resentfully1 and it's like you to ask it4 ,on the ,sabbath1 too6 ,i'm going out with ,gussie ,davies for a walk4 ,touch the 'arp lightly1 my dear1 he replied1 no need to get your feathers up4 ,well1 ,pa1 she answered1 ,i'm sure ,i'm ready to spank the beastly machine for you all the week1 you know ,i am4 ,but ,sundays is different4 ,hamlyn made no reply4 ,both he and his son were thinking deeply1 and as yet no reference had escaped them as to the doings of the morning4 ,although the girl knew there was something special afoot1 she was not much interested in the details1 being at all times a person much occupied with her own affairs4 ,during the pudding1 she had a short and slangy conversation with her brother1 and directly the meal was over she went up-stairs to dress4 ,the servant removed the plates and dishes1 and ,hamlyn and his son sat down at the table4 ,the father drew a large portfolio of papers towards him4 ,the son lighted a cheap cigarette4 ,both of the ,hamlyns spoke fairly correctly in public1 though with the usual cockney twang4 ,in the seclusion of ,balmoral1 neither of them thought it necessary to be very particular about the aspirates which they emphasised so carefully elsewhere4 ,when will ,mr4 ,herbert pay up8 said ,sam4 ,to-morrow4 ,i shall see him in the committee room during the afternoon1 and it's five and twenty pound earned as easy as ,i ever earned anything in my life4 ,it'll come in very 'andy too4 ,there's the rent on the linotype machine just due4 ,the money's all right1 answered the younger man1 and1 of course1 we're guaranteed against fines and anything of that sort4 ,but do you think the game's worth the candle8 ,how will opinion in the parish go8 ,like a house on fire4 ,wait till you see my leader in ,wednesday's issue4 ,mr4 ,herbert has put me up to the whole thing4 ,we're carrying out a patriotic ,henglish duty4 ,public sympathy will all be with us4 ,rome is creeping in among us6 ,sam grinned4 ,well1 you know best1 ,father1 of course4 ,and we're bound to support ,mr4 ,herbert4 ,i've been thinking a great deal1 ,hamlyn answered slowly4 ,i've always been an ambitious man and ,i've always meant to come out on top somehow or other4 ,but ,i've never had a big chance yet4 ,i think1--,i'm not sure1--but ,i think ,i see that chance waiting now4 ,his shrewd face was lighted up with a curious excitement4 ,the eyes glowed and the impudent merriment on the lips became more pronounced than before4 ,what is it then8 ,listen quietly to me for a few minutes4 ,the idea came gradual to me4 ,i got on the track six months ago4 ,first of all1 it was the ten gross of religious books ,i had down in the shop4 ,they were of all sorts4 ,which was the one that went best8 ,why1 it was ,the ,adventures of ,susan ,lefever1 the ,captive ,nun4 ,i sold 'em all out in no time4 ,the next best seller was ,the ,revelations of ,pastor ,coucherrousset1 the ,converted ,catholic ,priest4 ,anything against ,rome6 ,mr4 ,leatherbarrow1 of the ,new ,connection ,methodists1 preached three times on those books4 ,he had all the congregation fair shaking with indignation against the ,scarlet ,woman4 ,you see it's like this4 ,people want a cock-shy4 ,they don't much care about what it is1 as long as they've got it--see the way they're down on the ,sheenies in ,france4 ,now a religious cock-shy is the best of all4 ,it gives people a feeling that they're in real earnest1 and they can kid themselves and other people that it's more disinterested than politics1 for instance4 ,they've nothing to get by it--except the fun of doing it--and that flatters 'em because they're always on the grab in every other way4 ,see8 ,sam nodded4 ,he was not one of those youths who despise the words of parental wisdom4 ,he was not himself a fool1 and so he did not fall into the mistake of underrating his father's capacity and knowledge of life4 ,the small and vulgar triumphs of ,hamlyn's career were all appreciated and noted by his son1 who had a sincere respect for him4 ,very well1 then1 ,hamlyn continued4 ,it's a sure draw1 all over ,england1 to raise the anti-popery cry4 ,the wholesale trade tell me that the business done in ,fox's ,book of ,martyrs is a perfect knock-out year by year1 and there's a sure sale for the smaller books about the priests larking with the girls in the confessional and so forth4 ,anything with ',secret ,history' or ',jesuit' on the title-page 'll sell like the ,evening ,news on ,derby ,day4 ,now1 ,i've been reading all the publications of the regular ,protestant societies during the last few weeks4 ,plenty of cuts at the ,ritualists1 lots of little sixpennies bound in cloth to prove as there isn't no such thing as apostolic succession1 that wafers is illegal1 and the ,eastern position rather worse than arson4 ,they're all very well in their way1 but they're written by ,d4,d4's and ,m4,a4's and such like1 who don't care to go too far4 ,i have a list in my portfolio here of the regular ,protestant writers--nearly all class1 my boy4 ,listen here3 ,transubstantiation and the ,invocation of ,saints4 ,rev4 ,j4 ,cummer1 ,canon ,residentiary of ,ironpool4 ,popery the ,work of 'the ,adversary1'--the ,roman ,clergy under ,satanic ,influence4 ,rev4 ,r4 ,s4 ,blanken1 ,,ll4,d41 incumbent of ,christ ,church1 ,oxton4 ,ritualism in the ,english ,church3 ,a ,word of ,warning4 ,rev4 ,joshua ,cafe1 ,d4,d41 prebendary of ,bath and ,wells4 ,there's dozens of others like this4 ,they're all very well in their way1 but they don't strike the really popular note4 ,they've broken the ground and sowed the seed1 but they're not going to reap the harvest4 ,who is1 then1 ,father8 ,and what'll it be worth when it is reaped8 ,us1 my boy4 ,as to the worth of it1 go on listening to me and you'll see things gradually getting clearer4 ,i want you to see how ,i've worked it all out4 ,if we do strike oil1 all ,i'm telling you now will be valuable4 ,during my local work for the ,protestant cause down here1 ,i've been brought in touch with members of the old-established societies and ,i've taken the length of their foot4 ,they're too dignified altogether4 ,real live methods don't appeal to them4 ,financially they don't do badly1 but nothing like what they might do if they adopted the right methods4 ,all their subscriptions come from the upper classes1 and there's a whole goldmine lying at their doors which is quite untouched6 abso-lute-ly unworked1 ,sam6 ,the middle classes and the lower classes haven't begun to give to the ,protestant cause4 ,why8 ,because it hasn't been put prominently before them in the way they'll understand4 ,bang the field-piece6 twang the lyre6 thump the tub6 rattle the tambourine6 ,that's the way4 ,look at the ,salvation ,army6 ,the time is ripe for new methods and for a new man who isn't a canon residentiary or a ,d4,d4 ,i've got all the ritualistic statistics4 ,day by day the ,ritualists are trying it on1 getting nearer and nearer to ,rome4 ,everything is ready4 ,i see all that1 ,father4 ,all you say is clear enough4 ,what ,i don't see yet is what you mean to do4 ,i'm coming to that4 ,for several years now1 ,i've been prominent in ,hornham affairs4 ,i'm known as a platform speaker in all the denominations4 ,what do you suppose ,i did this for six months ago8 he touched the lapel of his coat1 looking down on it as he did so4 ,oh6 he said1 ,i forgot ,i'd changed into my old jacket4 ,i was alluding to the temperance non-smoking ribbon4 ,it's in my frock-coat4 ,well1 ,i mentioned it just to point out that ,i'm known as a man associated with all good causes4 ,but only locally1 ,pa4 ,exactly4 ,that is all ,i need to start with4 ,now1 to-day ,i began3 ',mr4 ,hamlyn1 a prominent resident in ,hornham and a staunch supporter of the ,henglish ,protestant ,church1 has at last felt it his duty to protest against the illegal practices at ,st4 ,elwyn's in as public a manner as possible4' ,i've struck a new note1 see8 ,what ,i've done to-day has hardly ever been done before4 ,now1 why shouldn't this inaugurate a big public movement all over the country8 ,why shouldn't offices be taken in the ,strand and a new ,league started1 ',hamlyn's ,protestant ,crusade' or something of that sort8 ,to begin with1 subscriptions are invited for the circulation of real fighting ,protestant literature1 hot stuff1 giving accounts of the illegal and ,romish doings all over the country4 ,i know where to get the pamphlets written for a mere song1 and startlers1 too4 ,of course1 we have all the printing done at the works here in ,hornham1--that'll be worth something considerable4 ,meanwhile1 mark what happens4 ,the 'silly season' comes on and the newspapers haven't got much to write about4 ,our little ,london concern is established and then we begin touring round to all the ,ritualistic churches and protesting against their aims4 ,if ,i know what ,i'm talking about1 in a fortnight or three weeks one of the biggest booms of the century will begin6 ,everything we do will be in the papers1 rows in the churches1 police-court proceedings--everything4 ,whenever ,i write a letter of protest to the ,bishop of ,london or the ,archbishop of ,canterbury it will appear in all the papers4 ,it don't matter what they say as long as they mention the ,crusade6 ,then'll come the moment when we really launch out and become a national ,institution4 ,we'll get half a dozen parsons and fifth-rate ,m4,p4's to form a committee1 and some one to be a treasurer3 he's easy found4 ,then ,i become secretary and you assistant-secretary3 we are salaried officials1 of course1 and we start a little magazine as the ,society's official organ--to be printed at the works4 ,i've many more ideas for the extension of the plan1--brilliant ideas some of them1 too4 ,but ,i won't go into them now4 ,i've only given you the roughest outline of the scheme as yet4 ,meanwhile1 as a preliminary1 ,i'm going to flimsy out a dozen short reports of to-day's proceedings at ,st4 ,elwyn's1 and ,i want you to run up to ,fleet ,street with them1 about five this evening4 ,all the dailies will print it4 ,he chuckled4 ,that's the chief beauty of the scheme1 he continued2 you get the majority of your advertisements free1 and in the best papers1 too6 ,it's about the only scheme ,i ever heard of that could4 ,he stopped at last and sank back in his chair1 exhausted4 ,he had spoken long and with great animation1 with all the tricks and mannerisms of rough-and-tumble platform oratory1 in which he was a master4 ,the pantomime of his expressive gestures1 the indescribable impudence of the smile as he sought to prove some depth of folly in the public1 the quick inflections of the voice1 gave great force to his words4 ,they sounded convincing to the younger ,hamlyn1 into whose muddy pallor a deep red flush had gradually come4 ,it's a big thing1 ,pa1 he said at length1 a very big thing4 ,i see that1 and you're the one to make it go4 ,but there's a lot to be done first4 ',ave we the ready money to start it8 ,even in a small way1 to get it once before the public will cost four or five hundred pounds4 ,that's the difficulty1 ,sam1 ,i admit it4 ,we are pretty low down at present4 ,the business just keeps its head above water1 that's all4 ,the money from ,mr4 ,herbert is a help1 but it's all gone as soon as we get it4 ,i was thinking that if to-day's little protest makes a stir and we can do ditto round-abouts during the next week or two1 we could get ,moffatt and ,burgoyne to advance a hundred each1 p'r'aps4 ,as a personal loan4 ,mr4 ,herbert would be good for fifty now1 but as soon as he's elected you'll see he won't bother any more4 ,when we've made the whole thing hum1 he'll come to us and offer to be our ,parliamentary representative4 ,i'm reserving him for that4 ,he'll be useful to ask questions and help the fizz-up generally4 ,it'll suit him because he'll have a chance of getting his name in the papers1 and it's about the only chance he will have of getting prominent in the ,house4 ,but1 as far as the preliminary stages are concerned1 my opinion is that he's ,n4,g4 ,the worst of it is that with a scheme of this sort one can't very well put it on the market4 ,that's the one drawback of a religious scheme4 ,there's lots of men who'd see the money in it1 but who'd see that if they joined they couldn't touch a cent4 ,there can't be more than one or two salaried officials4 ,no1 we must depend upon ourselves entirely4 ,i'm not afraid4 ,it's what ,napoleon did1 and ,i'm going to be the ,protestant ,napoleon6 ,there's a lot in catchwords--speaking on a side issue--',the ,luther ,league6' ',smithfield ,soldiers6' or ,bunyan's ',holy ,war' might be revived4 ,no1 ,pa1 that wouldn't do now4 ',holy' is a regular ,ritualistic word4 ,well1 so it is1 ,sam4 ,i hadn't thought of it4 ,i'm glad to see that you've got a good grip of the thing4 ,there was a silence in the mean little room4 ,in the adjacent kitchen1 the servant could be heard singing1 ,ower lod geris anoice yeng men1 ow dear1 ow dear naow6 ,a big green-bellied fly sung and drummed on the window-pane in the afternoon sunlight4 ,hamlyn1 replete with enthusiasm and beef1 had taken off his alpaca coat and unloosed his collar4 ,the air was heavy with the odour of food and the acrid smell of ,sam's ten-for-threepence cigarettes1 while a penetrating smell of new calico1 proceeding from some of ,maud's dressmaking operations1 dominated it all4 ,a church bell1 ringing for afternoon service1 was heard not far away4 ,suddenly ,hamlyn struck the table a sounding blow with his fist4 ,it is a good thing1 he shouted in a wild burst of enthusiasm4 ,the voice was so full1 and confident1 that it rang out in the place like a trumpet4 ,it had the true accent of an enthusiast1 of a leader4 ,there was mesmerism in it4 ,hearing it1 one would have said that this man would succeed4 ,he could influence others1 he had energy1 resource1 and temperamental force4 ,it was true4 ,the man was gifted4 ,he had power1 and to whatever end that might be directed it would not lose its efficacy4 ,the conviction of success1 its trumpet note1 was to become familiar in vast hysterical assemblies4 ,it was to be mistaken for a deep and earnest wish to purify the ,church1 to scatter the wolves from the environs of the fold4 ,greed can be sonorous4 ,tartuffe can always find his ,orgon1 and to hawk a battle-cry among the ignorant and dull has ever been a profitable game4 ,i've a word to say1 ,pa1 the son echoed2 ,i've an idea where the first cash is to come from4 ,good1 my boy4 ,let's have it4 ,what about ,miss ,pritchett8 ,hamlyn looked reproachfully at his son4 ,what about the monument6 he answered with a sneer4 ,she's got the cash1 she's got tons of it4 ,but she's a red-hot ,ritualist and ,romaniser4 ,ask me another1 ,sam4 ,samuel smiled slyly4 ,wait a mo1 ,pa1 he said4 ,i know a good deal more about ,miss ,pritchett than you do4 ,i've been walkin' out with ,augusta ,davis lately4 ,she's a friend of ,maud's4 ,the companion1 you mean8 ,miss ,pritchett's companion8 ,oh1 you've been smelling round in that quarter1 have you8 ,and ,i've learnt a bit4 ,i know all that goes on4 ,gussie tells me and ,maud everything4 ,miss ,pritchett's getting tired of ,st4 ,elwyn's4 ,she can't boss the new vicar like she used the old one4 ,as for the ,roman business1 she doesn't really care for it4 ,she's nothing to amuse herself with except that and her ailments4 ,it's the old cat's vanity1 that's all4 ,she likes to be a patroness4 ,that's the sort of woman we want1 answered ,mr4 ,hamlyn1 obviously struck by the the word4 ,there are a lot of rich1 single old judies only fit to be patronesses4 ,they're cut out for it4 ,do you really think anything could be done4 ,i do most certainly1 ,pa4 ,i 'appen to know that ,miss ,pritchett is getting on very bad terms with ,blantyre4 ,he won't stand her meddling4 ,i've one or two ideas in my head to help it along4 ,gussie'll do anything ,i tell her4 ,well1 ,sam1 you do all you can4 ,we won't talk about the matter any more now4 ,i've got a lot of strings to pull1 and ,i've got a lot of matters in my mind4 ,we shall get a summons for brawling to-morrow1 ,i expect4 ,i'm done up now1 and ,i'm going to have a nap4 ,wake me up in an hour if ,i'm asleep1 and ,i'll get out the flimsies for to-morrow's papers4 ,hamlyn possessed that faculty of sleeping at any moment1 and of waking when it suited him1 that so often goes with any marked executive capacity4 ,he stretched himself upon the little horsehair sofa and covered his face with his handkerchief4 ,samuel picked up one of the ,heartsease novelettes and tried to read in it4 ,but his brain was alight with the splendour of the new project1 and he could not concentrate his thought upon ,joyce ,heathcote's ,lover4 ,it was thus that the seeds of the new movement were sown1 in the back parlour at ,balmoral1 ,beatrice ,villas1 ,alexandra ,road4 ,historians tell us that even greater and more epoch-making movements than ,mr4 ,hamlyn's was destined to be1 have originated in even less pretentious dwellings4 ,many of us have seen the little house in the ,brede ,kirk ,street of the old ,dutch town1 on which is written1 ,haec est parva domus natus qua magnus ,erasmus4 ,mr4 ,hamlyn1 ,junior1 had never heard of ,erasmus1 but he saw visions of greatness on that afternoon4 ,,chapter ,,iii ,,lord ,,huddersfield ,,and ,,the ,,guests ,,at ,,scarning ,,court ,from ,april until the beginning of ,august1 ,lord ,huddersfield generally lived at his house at ,scarning1 the famous old ,tudor mansion on the river1 below ,pangbourne4 ,peers who are something more than merely in society are generally known to the public at large by reason of some cause which they benefit1 defend1 or are associated with4 ,when it is not a cause1 it is a business that gives such an one his label for the man in the street4 ,lord ,so-and-so is1 of course1 the great banker or brewer2 ,lord ,this is the famous picture collector1 who has all the ,holbeins2 ,lord ,that is known to be the best amateur actor1 billiard player1 or breeder of bloodhounds in ,england4 ,in an age when all celebrities are easily distinguished thus1 ,lord ,huddersfield1 was perfectly familiar to everyone as the great organising churchman4 ,the ordinary person would say1 ,lord ,huddersfield8 ,oh1 yes1 the great ,ritualistic ,johnny1 imagining that he had summed up his man with completeness4 ,yet1 saving only to churchmen and their antagonists--a very small proportion of the public to-day--,lord ,huddersfield was personally quite unknown4 ,he was hardly ever caricatured in the comic papers or pictured in the more serious illustrated journals4 ,his face was wholly unfamiliar2 the details of his private life formed no portion of the gossip papers4 ,to the vast army of ,english folk1 who are utterly indifferent to religious questions1 he was nothing more than a name4 ,he had only once excited a really general flicker of interest4 ,on the occasion of a visit to ,italy1 like many other distinguished visitors to the capital1 he had been received in audience by the ,bishop of ,rome4 ,as usual1 the evening papers had published rumours4 ,,lord ,,huddersfield ,,and ,,the ,,pope4 ,,will ,,he ,,become ,a ,,catholic8 had appeared as a scare head-line in one enterprising sheet1 and the peer's telegram1 stating that he had been one for many years had been hastily printed as a startling revelation--until some charitable person had stepped round to the office and explained the joke to a bewildered ,scotch editor1 and the paragraph was excised from later editions4 ,this much for the figure he cut to the outside world4 ,in the ,english ,church1 he was looked upon as one of the leading laymen1 if not the chief of all of them4 ,he was the proprietor of the great weekly paper known as the ,church ,standard4 ,he was the chairman of many church societies1 the friend and patron of all ,anglican movements and institutions1 and a man whose word carried enormous weight and power4 ,in private life1 his two children and his intimate friends found him true1 devout1 diligent1 winning all hearts by opening his own1 where one found a singular freshness and simplicity4 ,he went as little into general society as he could1 for all his thoughts and aims were occupied in one endeavour4 ,on the ,monday after the events in ,hornham1 ,agatha ,poyntz and her brother ,james were in the lovely private backwater of ,scarning4 ,their punt was moored to the side of a tiny island1 set like a gem in the clear brown water1 the red silk cushions of the boat making a vivid splash of colour on the bank4 ,with these two was ,miss ,poyntz's great friend and confidante1 ,lucy ,blantyre1 the only sister of the vicar of ,st4 ,elwyn's4 ,lucy was a girl of medium height1 not at all the willowy modern heroine of pictures and romance4 ,her hair was of a deep1 dead black1 coiled on a small ,greek head4 ,her complexion was dark1 like that of her brother1 the priest1 but quite without a certain sallowness that was noticeable in him4 ,it had the dusky paleness1 the pearl-like morbidezza of some southern types1 and1 despite the lack of colour1 showed a perfect and happy health4 ,the mouth was rather large4 ,mockery lurked there1 and in the dark eyes a lambent and somewhat scornful humour was wont to play4 ,agatha ,poyntz was a tall and merry girl--a nut-brown maid her father called her4 ,her round1 plump face showed a sheer light-heartedness and joy in life that was always refreshing to people who found this life rather a drab and ordinary affair4 ,the care-worn priests and churchmen who were her father's friends1 men who were always too painfully aware of the great stream of human tears which is for ever falling through the shadows of the world1 were all fond of her freshness and sparkle4 ,and1 so the wisest of them thought that since she took nothing seriously1 and was quite untouched by the vexing problems in which they were submerged1 it was perhaps a good thing that so gay and bright a creature should come into their lives for a space1 realising that1 after all1 ,god made the butterflies which hovered so daintily over the ,scarning water-flowers upon their painted fans4 ,james ,poyntz1 ,lord ,huddersfield's only son1 was a very different type4 ,he resembled his dead mother1 a daughter of the ,duke of ,st4 ,just4 ,he was tall1 slender1 and muscular4 ,his face was clean-shaved1 lean1 and with a heavy jaw1 not the heaviness that signals sensuality and dulness1 but purpose and resolution4 ,his eyes were grey1 and glittered when he became animated1 and his clear1 cold voice grew emphatic4 ,not long before1 he had come down from ,oxford1 where he had distinguished himself in the history schools1 and also by availing himself of the little-used permission to absent himself from chapel and the examination known as ,divinity ,moderations1 granted to men who have come of age1 and who sign a declaration of their absolute and sincere disbelief in the supernatural4 ,it had been a piquant spectacle to the sceptic undergraduates and younger dons1 to see the son and heir of ,lord ,huddersfield openly scornful and protesting against all that his father held so dear1 and quietly taking the much severer tests that the ,university statutes impose upon those who would dispense with the puerile divinity examination4 ,james ,poyntz was on rather bad terms with his father4 ,there was no confidence between them1 and perhaps but little love--though that had never been tested4 ,the young man had a sufficient fortune from his mother1 and his father was prepared to supplement his income in any way he might wish1 being far too sensible and just a man to endeavour to make his son suffer financially for his opinions4 ,but ,james ,poyntz refused money which1 as he said1 would have been purely superfluous to him1 and was occupied in carving a career for himself at the common-law bar1 where he was already a not inconspicuous figure among the junior men4 ,his knowledge of ecclesiastical law was good1 and in the wrangles between diocesan chancellors and recalcitrant clergy which were becoming more and more frequent1 he was frequently retained4 ,he was a very familiar figure in ,dr4 ,tristram's ,consistory ,court1 and his familiarity with ecclesiastical litigation only increased a contempt for those who professed and called themselves ,christians1 which was as profound as it was sincere1 and as fundamentally the result of ignorance as it was both4 ,for1 brilliant as he was1 the young man had not the slightest acquaintance with modern religious thought4 ,he saw everything through the spectacles of temperamental distaste1 and still believed that ,professor ,huxley had dealt the final blow to ,christianity in #ahgf6 ,lord ,huddersfield had often pressed his son to read the question as it at present stood1 to see what ,gore and the philosophic apologists were saying1 or even to note the cautious but inevitable conclusions that prominent scientists like ,lord ,kelvin and ,sir ,oliver ,lodge were arriving at4 ,but the young man always refused4 ,the ancient indictment of the ,gadarene swine represented the last word in the controversy for him1 and a brain keen and finely furnished with facts on all other questions1 on this was not only content to be forty years behind the conclusions of theological science1 but imagined that it was in the van of contemporary thought4 ,of late1 ,lord ,huddersfield had given up the attempt to influence his son's opinions4 ,it is impossible1 he had said1 to explain that the sky is blue to a man who has blindfolded himself all his life1 and one cannot build a basis in a vacuum4 ,so1 while both men respected each other's attainments on all subjects but religious ones1 on these ,james thought his father a fool1 and ,lord ,huddersfield knew that his son was4 ,despite all this difference1 the younger man was a frequent and welcome visitor at his father's various houses1 and between him and his sister ,agatha there was a real and deep affection4 ,agatha was conventionally indifferent to religious things1 ,james was profoundly antagonistic to them1 and thus1 if they did not meet quite on common ground1 they were never likely to disagree4 ,and ,lucy ,blantyre1 the third member of that gay young trio on the summer morning1 was a combination of both of them4 ,she was very well off in the affairs of this world1 as indeed was her brother1 ,bernard ,blantyre of ,st4 ,elwyn's4 ,but1 while he had early devoted his life and money to the service of ,god1 ,lucy had refused to identify herself with his interests4 ,she lived with her aunt1 ,lady ,linquest1 a gay old dame of ,mayfair1 and it was only at rare intervals that she paid a duty visit to her brother4 ,yet1 though she was1 from a surface point of view1 purely a society girl1 popular1 and happy in a bright and vivid life1 there were temperamental depths in her1 unsounded as yet1 which showed her sometimes--to her own wonder and discomfort--that she was a true blood-sister to the priest in north-east ,london4 ,at times1 a wave of scorn for the ,church possessed her4 ,she saw the worst side of religious externals and poured bitter fun upon their anomalies4 ,this is1 of course1 a very easy thing to do4 ,any one can ridicule the unseen and its ministers3 it requires no special talent to be rude to ,god6 ,at other times1 the girl saw this very clearly and was ashamed4 ,she had a good brain and despised all that was cheap and vulgar at the bottom2 and when her moods of wilfulness had passed1 she stood upon the brink of devotion and belief4 ,nothing serious animated any of the three4 ,the day was wonderful4 ,in a sky like a hard1 hollow sapphire the sun burned like a white-hot disc of platinum4 ,the island was deliciously cool2 the murmur of a near river mingled with the bourdon of the bees4 ,the smooth turf on which they lay was starred with chaste and simple flowers4 ,isn't it perfect to-day6 ,agatha said4 ,bee1 go away from my face6 ',pleasant it is when the woods are green and the winds are soft and low1 to lie amid some sylvan scene'--,lucy1 dear1 what are you thinking about8 ,i was wondering if we were really reclining in what the poets of last century called 'bosky shade4' ,is this bosky1 ,mr4 ,poyntz8 ,decidedly bosky1 ,i should say4 ,but surely both of you can put the island to a better use than merely to illustrate quotations from the poets8 ,it's far too fine for that4 ,oh1 do let me have 'bosky'1 ,lucy replied4 ,it's such a dear1 comic word4 ,i've always loved it4 ,it always seems a fat word to me4 ,i'm sure it's fat and it waddles--in the word world6 ,then what does ,agatha's 'sylvan' do8 ,oh1 sylvan8--well1 ,i should think it was a slim1 graceful1 and very young-ladyish kind of word4 ,it wears a neat grey tailor-made coat and skirt1 and says1 ',papa is of opinion that1' or1 ',mamma has frequently told me4' ,they all laughed1 pleased with themselves1 the hour1 and the charm that perfectly absurd talk has for young and happy people4 ,oh1 don't talk of words1 ,miss ,blantyre1 ,poyntz said1 ,i'm tired of them4 ,the long vacation draws near1 when ,i want to forget all about them4 ,my words1 the words ,i live by1 or for1 are beasts4 ,quote1 dearest1 ,agatha said4 ,well1 this is the sort of thing ,i see more often than anything else at present1 he replied3 ',the humble petition of the vicar and churchwardens of ,st4 ,somebody sheweth that1 it being considered desirable to make certain alterations and improvements in the church of the said ,parish1 a meeting in ,vestry duly convened for considering the same1 was held on the first of ,june1 at which it was resolved that the alterations shown in the plan annexed hereto and there produced1 should be carried out1 a copy of which resolution is also hereto annexed4' ,both the girls cried out to him to stop4 ,what musty words1 dry and rusty words6 ,lucy said4 ,and1 please1 what are they all about1 and what do they mean8 ,they mean this--some worthy parson has badgered his congregation for money4 ,it is the desire of his soul to have a rood-screen in his chancel1 with a gilt and splendid crucifix upon the top4 ,so1 armed with a mouthful of words like that1 he gets him to a sort of cellar near ,st4 ,paul's1 where a dear old gentleman1 named the ,right ,worshipful ,t4 ,h4 ,tristram1 ,k4 ,c41 ,d4,c4,l41 sits1 in a big wig and a red robe4 ,the parson eloquently explains his wishes1 and the ,right ,worshipful tells him to go and be hanged--or polite words to that effect4 ,then ,i and other young legal 'gents' get up and talk and argue1 and the ,right ,worshipful listens until he's tired1 and then says no again4 ,the parson goes back to his roodless temple and preaches against ,erastianism1 and ,i and the other young legal 'gents' pouch a few guineas1 and go and play pool at the ,oxford and ,cambridge ,club4 ,and then1 ,agatha went on1--then father makes a speech and writes a letter to the ,times and gets fearfully excited and worried for about a week1 neglects his meals1 passes sleepless nights1 and behaves in a perfectly foolish manner generally4 ,then he goes down to the parish and has a convivial meat tea with the poor parson1 and before he goes gives him a cheque for fifty pounds to go and have a holiday with after all the strain6 ,exactly1 said ,lucy1 ,i will take up the parable4 ,i have seen our friend1 the parson1 in the unutterable north ,london slum1 where my poor dear brother ,bernard spends all his time and money4 ,he goes1 as you say1 for a holiday1 to recover from the scene in the cellar near ,st4 ,paul's4 ,he goes to ,dieppe or ,boulogne1 where he attends the cathedral three times a day1 and tries to fraternise with the priests1 who regard him as a layman masquerading in borrowed plumes4 ,in revenge1 he goes and makes things uncomfortable for the local ,english chaplain1 who1 in most continental towns1 is an undersized person with a red nose and an enormous red moustache and a strong flavour of ,chadband at home4 ,so 'all's well that ends well4' ,but1 really1 what fearful nonsense it all is6 ,isn't it wonderful that people should waste their energies so6 ,if it amuses them it doesn't matter in the least1 ,agatha said4 ,look how happy it makes poor dear father4 ,and ,i daresay he does good in his way1 don't you know4 ,it's far better than racing or anything like that4 ,poor dear ,hermione ,blackbourne was staying here not long ago1 and she was telling me what a wretched time they have at home4 ,lord ,saltire hardly ever pays the girls' allowances unless he's won a race1 and the poor dears have to study the sporting papers to know if they'll be able to afford new frocks for ,goodwood4 ,father's fads are at least harmless1 or1 at any rate1 no one has to suffer for what he gives away4 ,the old type of clergyman seems to have quite died out1 ,lucy said4 ,when ,i was a little girl1 the rector at home was a dear old man1 who dressed just like an ordinary person1 and went otter-hunting three days a week4 ,yet ,i'm sure he was just as earnest as any of these new faddy people4 ,we had a delightful old pew1 with a fireplace and chairs1 and poor dear father used to get his nap4 ,and as for altar lights and copes and incense1 ,i don't suppose dear old ,mr4 ,jenkyns had ever heard of such things4 ,the amount of money that ,bernard spends on his church in that way is ridiculous4 ,the only good ,i can see in it1 ,james ,poyntz said1 is that it brings a certain colour element into drab and dull lives4 ,the people in your brother's parish1 who never see any thing artistic1 must gain in that way1 ,i suppose4 ,after all1 ,miss ,blantyre1 'it's an ill wind that blows nobody any good4' ,all this ,church nonsense gives pleasure1 however much we may laugh at it4 ,take myself1 for example4 ,i'm intensely amused at all the squabbles that go on between ,christians4 ,more evil passions are stirred up and let loose over half a yard of green silk or the precise manner in which half an ounce of flour and water is baked than the politics of a century excite6 ,it's perfectly true4 ,there's a spirit of bitter hatred in it all that is intensely interesting to the student of character4 ,there are hundreds of thousands of people in ,england who would burn my poor father in front of ,st4 ,paul's to-morrow if they could--good1 respectable1 honest ,british folk6 ,well1 ,lucy said1 with affected gloom1 all this only reminds me of my coming penance4 ,in a day or so now1 ,i must dive into ,hornham for my yearly stay with ,bernard4 ,i shall emerge quite thin and crushed4 ,i always do4 ,the 'clergy-house1' as they call the vicarage1 is a lugubrious place that suggests a rather superior workhouse4 ,when ,i go1 the drawing-room is solemnly opened by the housekeeper4 ,bernard gives a couple of dinner parties and a garden party to a set of the most extraordinary people you ever saw in your life4 ,i have to be hostess and chatter to weird people1 with whom ,i haven't a single idea in common4 ,lady ,linquest drove down from ,park ,lane to the garden party last year4 ,i shall never forget it4 ,she gave ,bernard such a talking to1 told him to 'dress like a gentleman1' and exchange to a nice country parish with some county people close by1 and marry4 ,i wish he would1 too6 ,he's wasting his life1 his money1 and his health in that awful place4 ,i don't wonder at aunt's being angry4 ,why can't he do as she says8 ,he could have high jinks in a nice little country church in one of the home counties just as well as where he is now4 ,beastly life1 ,i should think1 ,james ,poyntz said4 ,does he live all alone8 ,oh1 the two curates live with him1 ,father ,stephens and ,father ,king--they're all 'fathers1' it seems4 ,these are two intense youths1 who dress in cassocks and tippets all day long1 and wear their berrettas everywhere4 ,i think it's positively indecent to sit down to a meal dressed like that4 ,but the worst of it is1 that there's always some fast day or other1 and ,i feel an awful pig to be having chicken and claret while the other three have oatmeal and apples4 ,but ,i insisted on proper meals last year1 much to the disgust of a gaunt old cat of a housekeeper1 whom ,bernard thinks the whole world of4 ,she stopped1 laughing at her own volubility1 and lay back upon the cushions1 staring up at the green-leaf canopy above her head4 ,all these questions seemed very trivial and unreal at that moment1 in that pleasant place of sunshine1 soft breezes1 and the murmur of falling water4 ,she thought of the long1 mean1 suburban streets of ,hornham with humorous dismay4 ,thank goodness that she was only going to spend a fortnight there1 and then would be away in a gay continental watering-place with ,lady ,linquest4 ,but the few days were imperative4 ,she was fond of her brother and knew how bitterly disappointed he would be if she were to withdraw from her promise to stay at ,st4 ,elwyn's4 ,it was a duty which must be done1 and it was an unkind fate indeed that had placed her brother in surroundings which were so uncongenial to her1 and endowed him with opinions so alien to her own4 ,james ,poyntz had lighted a cigarette4 ,the smoke curled upwards in delicate grey spirals1 and he could see his sister's friend through them1 surrounded by a shifting frame which cut off the striking and clever face from its immediate surroundings1 giving it a vivid and independent individuality4 ,he could survey it more completely so4 ,there was something in ,lucy ,blantyre that had begun to appeal to the young man with great and greater strength as the days went on4 ,she was close upon beauty1 and she had all the charm of a high-spirited and well-bred girl in perfect health1 and knowing no trouble in life4 ,but in the life to which he had been born1 girls like her were not uncommon4 ,despite the fiction-mongers who fulminate against the vices of society1 and would have their readers believe that the flower of ,english girlhood is to be found in the middle class alone1 ,poyntz knew many gracious girls who were worthy to stand by any man's side throughout life4 ,but in ,lucy ,blantyre he was beginning to discern something deeper and stronger4 ,he thought that he saw in her a wonderful capacity for companionship1 a real talent for wifehood4 ,he could imagine that she would be more to her husband than an ordinary wife1 identified with his hopes and career with all her soul's power1 one for whom ,milton's epithalamium itself would not be unworthy1 with its splendid ,hail1 wedded love6 ,but1 though such thoughts had been in and out of his mind for some time1 he was hardly in love with her as yet4 ,his temperament was honest and sincere1 but cool and judicial also4 ,he was the last man to take any definite step without a full weighing of the chances and results4 ,but the two had become great friends4 ,agatha ,poyntz had her own thoughts about the matter1 and they were very pleasant ones4 ,nothing would have pleased her more than the marriage of her brother and her friend1 and she had made tte--ttes for them in the adroit1 unobtrusive manner that girls know4 ,in all his conversations with ,lucy1 ,poyntz had found a keen1 resilient brain that answered to his thoughts in precisely the way he wished4 ,the tinge of cynicism in her corresponded to the flavour of it in him1 and there was sometimes real wit and understanding in her mockery4 ,she suited him--that is how he would have put it--and he was now beginning to ask and examine himself if love were not being born1 a love which might make their union a perfect and lasting thing upon his way through life4 ,of her sentiments towards him he knew no more than that she sincerely liked him and that they were friends4 ,the regular throbbing pant of a steam launch on the silver ,thames outside was heard1 and ,lucy turned suddenly in ,poyntz's direction4 ,she saw that he was looking at her gravely and steadily4 ,a very faint flush came into her cheeks1 almost imperceptible indeed1 and then she smiled frankly at him4 ,he smiled also1 pleased with himself and her1 and with a sense that a new intimacy was suddenly established between them1 an odd sense of which he was quite certain4 ,agatha looked at the little watch in a leather bracelet on her wrist4 ,it's nearly lunch time6 she said2 ,i don't know how you people feel1 but the word has a very welcome sound to me4 ,jim1 get up and punt us home4 ,you'll be able to argue with ,father ,saltus2 ,i've asked him to lunch with us to-day4 ,i didn't know you were coming down4 ,she spoke of ,lord ,huddersfield's domestic chaplain1 a wise and courtly elderly man1 whom they all liked1 without in the least realising the part he played in ,church affairs1 regarding him1 indeed1 as a harmless student and a pleasant companion1 but no more4 ,in fact1 as the light and careless conversation of all of them showed1 not one of the three young people had the remotest idea of what they were discussing4 ,and though each one of them had a sense of humour1 they were not able to see the humorous side of their airy patronage of the ,catholic ,church6 ,this ,mr4 ,saltus was known as one of the most profound metaphysicians of the day4 ,the greatest modern brains were influenced by his writings in ,christian apologetics2 bishops1 statesmen1 great scientists knew of him as one to whom it was given to show how all thought and all philosophy were daily proving the truth of the ,incarnation4 ,his work in the life of the ,church was this1 and he was ,lord ,huddersfield's chaplain because that position gave him leisure and freedom for his work1 and kept him in touch with the very centre of things4 ,james ,poyntz had arrived from ,london by an early train1 and had joined the girls at once4 ,in a moment or two1 the young man was propelling the long mahogany punt with easy strokes towards the artificial cutting which led to the ,seaming boathouse4 ,then1 laughing and talking together1 the three strolled over the wonderful lawns1 pneumatic to the tread1 brilliant as emerald to the eye1 towards the old house with its encircling oaks and elms4 ,the tall red chimneys rose up between the leaves1 that triumph of the ,tudor style1 which alone of all architectural systems has shown how chimneys may aid and complete the beauty of a building4 ,the house rested upon the lawns as if it might float away at any moment1 as they passed round an ancient grey dove-cot and some formal box-trees1 and came in sight of the beautiful place4 ,james ,poyntz gave a quick breath of pleasure as he saw it1 the old riverside palace of his ancestors4 ,there were other houses which would one day be his--a great1 grim ,yorkshire fortress1 the gay villa at ,nice by the old citadel of ,mont-,albano1 where the ,paglion sings its song of the mountain torrent1 the decorous ,london mansion in ,berkeley ,square4 ,but of all1 he loved the old ,tudor house by the river best4 ,how well ,lucy walked6 her carriage was a pleasure to watch4 ,yes6 she harmonised with her background1 she was in correspondence with her environment1 she would be a fit mistress of ,scarning in some dim future day4 ,they sat down to lunch in an ancient1 mellow room1 panelled in oak1 with ,tudor roses everywhere4 ,it was beautifully cool and fresh after the glare outside4 ,father ,saltus was a tall and very portly elderly man4 ,his head was large1 formed on a grand scale1 and his mouth powerful but good-humoured4 ,his eyebrows were very bushy and extremely white1 and they overhung eyes which were of a dark grey1 deep but not sombre1 with much that was latent there4 ,the meal was progressing merrily when the butler entered and spoke to the footman who had been waiting on them4 ,then he went up to ,agatha4 ,his ,lordship has returned1 ,miss1 he said1 and will be down to lunch in a moment4 ,lord ,huddersfield had been away for several days4 ,the family house in ,london was let1 as the ,baron did not entertain largely since his wife's death4 ,agatha's season was spent under the wing of the ,st4 ,justs1 her mother's people4 ,but ,lord ,huddersfield had chambers in ,piccadilly1 and no one ever quite knew whether or not he would be at ,scarning at any given time4 ,he entered in a moment1 a slim1 spectacled man1 with a short beard1 very quietly dressed1 a man who did not1 at first glance1 in any way suggest the power he wielded or the strenuous personality he was4 ,he kissed his daughter1 shook hands with his son1 ,lucy1 and the chaplain1 and sat down4 ,they noticed that he was pale and worried4 ,have any of you seen the papers8 he said in a strong1 resonant voice1 which came oddly from a man so ordinary and undistinguished in appearance4 ,i saw the ,times this morning1 ,father1 ,poyntz said1 but that is all4 ,the girls confessed that they had not touched the pile of journals in the library1 and ,mr4 ,saltus said he had been writing letters all the morning and so had not yet been able to see the news4 ,i am sorry1 said ,lord ,huddersfield sadly4 ,i had hoped that you would have seen the thing that has happened4 ,i had hoped that ,i should not have had to tell you1 ,miss ,blantyre4 ,his voice was so charged with meaning that ,lucy shivered4 ,her eyes became full of apprehension4 ,why me1 ,lord ,huddersfield8 she said1 what has happened8 ,agatha1 who was thoroughly frightened1 laid a sympathetic hand upon her friend's arm4 ,james1 who was gazing anxiously at the girl1 suddenly turned to his father4 ,i think you had better tell your news right out1 he said quietly4 ,don't keep ,miss ,blantyre in suspense1 ,father2 it is mistaken kindness4 ,i am sure that she will be brave4 ,every one looked at ,lord ,huddersfield2 the air was tense with expectation4 ,your good brother1 ,miss ,blantyre1 the peer began--,lucy gave a quick gasp and the colour faded from her lips--your good brother1 yesterday in church1 was saying ,mass when suddenly some local residents rose in their places and made an open protest1 shouting and brawling at the very moment of the ,prayer of ,consecration6 ,lucy gazed steadfastly at him1 waiting4 ,he said nothing more4 ,go on1 please1 she managed to whisper at last4 ,they were at once ejected1 of course1 ,lord ,huddersfield said4 ,and ,bernard8 ,although his state of mind must have been terrible1 despite his pain1 ,i learn from a private telegram that he continued the service to the end4 ,the three young people stared incredulously2 only ,father ,saltus suddenly looked very grave4 ,but--why--is that all1 ,lord ,huddersfield8 ,lucy said with a gasp of half-relief4 ,i thought you meant that something dreadful had happened to ,bernard4 ,yes1 he said1 very surprised1 ,i have told you4 ,james picked up his knife and fork1 and continued his lunch without a word4 ,he was very angry with his father4 ,agatha shrugged her shoulders slightly4 ,oh1 that wasn't quite fair1 ,lord ,huddersfield1 ,lucy said tremulously4 ,you really made me think some awful thing had happened4 ,only a brawl in church8 ,i am very sorry1 my dear1 he answered quickly2 ,i fear ,i have shown a great want of tact4 ,i did not know4 ,i forgot1 that is1 that you don't quite see these things as we do4 ,you don't realise what it means4 ,shall ,i give you some chicken1 ,father8 ,agatha said1 looking at a dish of mayonnaise before her4 ,she thought that there had been quite a fuss made about nothing4 ,lord ,huddersfield sighed4 ,he felt that he was in a thoroughly uncongenial atmosphere1 though he was sorry for the alarm he had caused4 ,once his eye fell in mild wonder upon his guest4 ,how unlike her brother she was1 he thought4 ,there was an awkward silence1 which ,james broke at length4 ,i always thought1 he said1 that there would be trouble soon4 ,the days for locking clergymen up have passed by1 but ,protestant feeling is bound to have its outlet4 ,his quick brain had seized upon the main point at once4 ,well1 there will be more work for the lawyers1 he continued4 ,lord ,huddersfield frowned a little4 ,of course1 ,i can't expect you to see the thing as ,i do1 ,james1 he said4 ,to me such a public insult to our ,lord is terrible4 ,it almost frightens one4 ,what poor ,blantyre must have felt1 what every ,catholic there must have felt1 is most painful to imagine4 ,i'm sure ,mr4 ,poyntz has sympathy with any body of people whose most sacred moment has been roughly disturbed1 the chaplain said4 ,whatever a man's convictions may be1 he must feel that4 ,but the thing is over and nothing can put it right4 ,what ,i fear is1 that this is only the beginning of a series of sacrilegious acts which may do the ,church incalculable harm4 ,the newspaper report1 which appeared everywhere but in the ,times1 ,lord ,huddersfield replied1 stated that it was only the beginning of a campaign4 ,all the reports were identical and apparently supplied to the papers by the same person1 probably the brawlers themselves--who appear to be people of no consequence whatever4 ,there will be a service of reparation8 asked the chaplain4 ,yes1 to-morrow1 answered ,lord ,huddersfield4 ,i am going down to ,hornham and shall be present4 ,we must discuss everything with ,blantyre and settle exactly what lines the ,church ,standard will take up4 ,of course1 ,mr4 ,blantyre will prosecute8 ,james said4 ,oh1 yes4 ,my telegram told me that the summons had already been issued4 ,the law is quite clear1 ,i suppose1 on the point1 ,james8 ,quite4 ,brawling in church is a grave offence4 ,but these people will1 of course1 pose as martyrs4 ,public opinion will be with them1 a nominal fine will be inflicted1 and they'll find themselves heroes4 ,i'm afraid the ,ritualists are going to have a bad time4 ,in '#fh1 the ,martin v4 ,mackonochie judgment was very plain1 and in '#ga the judicial committee of the ,privy ,council was plainer still in the case of ,herbert v4 ,punchas4 ,then1 after the ,public ,worship ,regulation ,act1 the ,risdale judgment clinched the whole thing4 ,that was at the beginning of it all4 ,now1 though prosecutions have been almost discontinued1 the few cases that have been heard before the ecclesiastical courts are all the same4 ,so far as ,i can see1 if this pleasant little habit of getting up and brawling protests in church becomes popular1 a big fire will be lighted and the advanced men will have to draw in their horns4 ,lord ,huddersfield smiled4 ,he attempted no argument or explanation4 ,he had thrashed out these questions with his son long ago4 ,father ,saltus spoke instead4 ,if this really spreads into a movement1 as it may1 he said1 ignorant public opinion will be with the protestors for a month or two4 ,but that is all4 ,the man in the street will say that every one has a right to hold whatever religious opinions he pleases1 and to convert others to his views--if he can--by the ordinary methods of propagandism4 ,but he will also say that no one has a right to air his opinions by disturbing the devotions of those who don't happen to agree with him4 ,and what is more1 no religious cause was ever advanced by these means4 ,i have no doubt that these people will boast and brag that they are vindicating the cause of law in the ,church of ,england4 ,but if they knew anything of the history of that ,protestantism they champion--which1 of course1 they don't1 for they know nothing whatever--they would know that the law is the most impotent of all weapons to crush a religious movement4 ,james nodded4 ,it is a truism of history1 he agreed4 ,exactly4 ,to call in the aid of the law to counteract the spread of any religious doctrine or ceremonial is to adopt the precise means that sent the ,oxford martyrs to the stake and lighted the ,smithfield fires4 ,from the days when the ,high ,priests called in the law's aid to nip ,christianity in the bud1 the appeal to the law has never been anything but an appeal to the spirit of intolerance and persecution against the freedom of religious belief and worship4 ,agatha rose from the table4 ,come along1 ,lucy dear1 she said2 'all's well that ends well1' and your brother's not going to have a bomb thrown at him just yet4 ,you will be in the thick of the disturbance in a few days2 meanwhile1 make the most of the river and the sunshine6 ,jim1 come and punt us to the ,eyot4 ,she kissed her father and fluttered away singing happily a snatch of an old song1 ,green ,grow the ,rushes ,o6 ,the others followed her4 ,the two elder men were left alone1 and for a minute or two neither spoke4 ,then ,saltus said3 ,they are all young1 they have made no contact with real life yet4 ,god does not always call in early life4 ,to some people1 the cross that is set so high over the world is like a great star1--it is not seen until the surrounding sky is darkened and the sun grows dim4 ,i am going into the chapel1 ,lord ,huddersfield said1 to be alone for an hour4 ,there must be many prayers going up to-day to ,god for the wrong these poor ignorant men have done4 ,pray that they may be forgiven4 ,and then1 my dear ,lord1 he continued1 suppose we have a talk over the situation that has been created--if any situation beyond the purely local one has been created4 ,a fighting look came into his face4 ,we shall be wise to be prepared1 to have our guns loaded4 ,yes1 ,father1 ,lord ,huddersfield said rather grimly1 we are not without power and influence1 ,i am happy to think4 ,,chapter ,,iv ,,lucy ,,blantyre ,,at ,,the ,,clergy-,,house ,lucy ,blantyre left ,scarning ,court on ,thursday morning4 ,james ,poyntz travelled up to town with her4 ,she was to go home to ,park ,lane for an hour or two1 make one of the guests at a lunch party with ,lady ,linquest1 and then1 in the afternoon1 drive down to ,hornham4 ,she was alone in a first-class carriage with ,james during the whole of the journey to ,london4 ,the last three days had marked a stage in their intercourse4 ,both of them were perfectly aware of that4 ,intimacy between a young man and a girl is very rarely a stationary thing4 ,it progresses in one direction or another4 ,james began to talk much of his ambitions4 ,he told her how he meant to carve his way in the world1 the place he meant to take4 ,the ,poyntz family was a long-lived one2 ,lord ,huddersfield himself was only middle-aged1 and might live another thirty years4 ,james hoped that it would be so4 ,i want to win my own way by myself1 he said4 ,i hope the title will not come for many years4 ,it would mean extinction if it came now4 ,you sympathise with that1 don't you8 ,she was very kind to him4 ,her answers showed a real interest in his confidences1 but more than that4 ,there was acumen and shrewdness in them4 ,you know1 he said1 ,i do hate and detest the way the ordinary young man in my position lives4 ,it is so futile and silly4 ,i recognised it even at ,oxford4 ,because of one's father1 one was expected to be a silly fool and do no work4 ,of course1 there were some decent fellows1--,dover1 the ,duke of ,dover1 was quiet and thought about things4 ,but all my friends were drawn from the social class which people suppose to be just below our own1 the upper middle class4 ,it's the backbone of ,england4 ,men in it take life seriously4 ,he stopped after a time1 and gazed out of the window at the flying landscape4 ,suddenly he turned to her4 ,i'm so glad you are my sister's great friend1 ,lucy1 he said4 ,it was the first time that he had spoken her first name to her4 ,his tone was charged with meaning4 ,she looked up quickly1 and saw that his eyes were fixed upon her4 ,you are all very kind to me1 she said4 ,every one would be kind to you4 ,i have been very happy since you have let me be your friend4 ,do you know that my work and my hopes seem dearer than ever to me now that ,i have told you so much of them4 ,we have got to know each other very well1 haven't we8 ,very well4 ,we shall know each other better4 ,it is my hope4 ,i wonder if ,i might write to you now and then1 and tell you some of my thoughts and how things are with me8 ,would such letters bore you8 ,i should value them1 and think them a privilege4 ,a woman is always gratified when a man confides his thoughts to her4 ,so many men never allow a woman friend to see below the surface1 and so many men--at any rate1 men that ,i am in the way of meeting--have no thoughts to tell one even if they would4 ,the train began to go more slowly as it rumbled through the dingy environs1 and shook over the myriad points of ,waterloo ,station4 ,neither of them spoke again4 ,there was no doubt in the mind of either as to the meaning of the situation4 ,the girl had gathered all his thoughts from his tone4 ,it was very pleasant to be with him1 this sane and brilliant young man with a great name and such powers4 ,it made her happy to know how he regarded her--that out of all the girls he knew he had chosen her for a friend4 ,he would some day ask her to be something more2 that also she knew1 and knew that he was conveying it to her4 ,she did not love him1 love was a word not very real to her as yet4 ,her mental eyes had never visualised it1 it was an abstraction4 ,but she liked and admired him more than any other man of her set3 he was a man4 ,well1 there was time enough yet to think of all that4 ,meanwhile his deference was sweet2 her heart warmed to him as his1 she knew1 was warm to her at that moment4 ,he saw her to the door of the waiting victoria1 and stood chatting for a moment in the hurry of the station1 making the footman mount his box again4 ,then he gave the signal to start1 and stood upon the platform by his hansom as she was driven rapidly away4 ,once she turned and waved a hand to him4 ,lucy lay back in the carriage1 pleased with herself and all the world4 ,she had come on to ,victoria1 instead of getting out at ,vauxhall1 specially to enjoy the longer drive4 ,it was a brilliant day1 and as the carriage came upon ,waterloo ,bridge1 the wonderful panorama of riverside ,london was uplifting4 ,away to her right1 the purple dome of ,st4 ,paul's shone white-grey in the sun4 ,the great river glittered in the morning air1 and busy craft moved up and down the tide4 ,the mammoth buildings of the embankment1 ,somerset ,house with its noble faade1 the ,savoy1 the monster ,cecil1 the tiled roofs of ,scotland ,yard all came to the eye in one majestic sweep of form and colour4 ,and far away to the left1 dim in a haze of light1 the towers of ,westminster rose like a fairy palace1 tipped with flame as the sun caught the gold upon the vanes and spires4 ,london6 yes6 it was1 after all1 the most beautiful city in the world1 seen thus1 at this hour1 from this place4 ,how the heart quickened and warmed to it4 ,suddenly the thought of ,hornham came to her4 ,she made a little involuntary movement of disgust4 ,for a whole fortnight she would be there4 ,it would be intolerable4 ,why could not ,bernard come to ,park ,lane for a fortnight8 ,how much more sensible that would be4 ,well1 it was no good thinking of it4 ,the thing must be done4 ,yet1 from one point of view how curious it was4 ,how strange that a drive of two hours would plunge her into a world entirely foreign and alien in every way to her world4 ,she was driving up ,grosvenor ,place now1 by the long walls of the ,king's ,palace ,garden1 over which the trees showed fresh and green4 ,the stately street1 with the ,park gates at the end of its vista1 only accentuated the contrast4 ,she utterly failed to understand how any one could do what her brother did4 ,there was not the slightest reason for the endurance of these horrors4 ,his personal income was large1 his family connections were influential4 ,he could obtain a fashionable ,west ,end living without any trouble4 ,she was still scornfully wondering as the carriage stopped at ,lady ,linquest's house in ,park ,lane4 ,lucy found her aunt in a little room of china-blue and canary-yellow which looked out over the ,park4 ,she was a tall woman1 of full figure4 ,the face was bright and animated1 though somewhat sensual1 inasmuch as it showed that its owner appreciated the good material things that life has to offer4 ,at sixty-two1 when dames of the middle classes have silver hair and are beginning to assume the gentle manners of age1 ,lady ,linquest wore the high curled fringe of the fashion1 a mass of dark red hair that had started life upon the head of a ,brton peasant girl4 ,art had been at work upon her face and she was pleasant to look on1 an artificial product indeed1 but with all the charm that a perfect work of art has4 ,she made no secret of it to her intimate friends1 and no one thought any the worse of her in a society where nearly every one who has need of aids to good looks buys them in ,bond ,street4 ,indeed1 she was quite unable to understand what she called the middle class horror of paint4 ,why on earth1 she would say1 any one can possibly object to an old woman making herself look as pleasant as possible for the last few years of her life1 ,i can't make out4 ,it's a duty one owes to one's friends4 ,it sweetens life4 ,at any rate1 ,i don't intend to go about like old ,mother ,hubbard or the witch in whatshername4 ,lucy1 my dear1 said this vivacious dame as her niece entered1 you're looking your best this morning4 ,and when you look your best my experience generally tells me that you've been up to some wickedness or other6 ,how's ,agatha1 and has ,james ,poyntz been at ,scarning1 and how's that poor dear man1 ,huddersfield1 who always reminds me of a churchwarden8 ,he is the king of all the churchwardens in ,england1 ,i think4 ,lucy sat down and endeavoured to answer the flood of questions as satisfactorily as might be1 while ,lady ,linquest took her mid-morning pick-me-up of ,liebig and cognac4 ,the good lady gave her niece a rapid prcis of the news of their set during the few days she had been away4 ,so that you'll know1 she said1 what to talk about at ,general ,pompe's lunch--your last decent meal1 by the way1 for a fortnight6 ,i shall give orders to the cook to put a hamper in the carriage for you to take with you to ,bernard's4 ,all those poor young men starve themselves4 ,she rattled away thus while ,lucy went to her own room to dress4 ,for some reason or other1 why she could not exactly divine1 she was dissatisfied and ill at ease4 ,the exhilaration of the railway journey1 of the wonderful drive through sunlit ,london1 had gone4 ,her aunt1 kind creature as she was1 jarred upon her this morning4 ,how terribly shallow the good lady seemed1 after all6 ,she was like some gaudy fly dancing over a sunlit brook--or even circling round malodorous farmyard stuff--brilliant1 useless1 and with nothing inside but the mere muscles of its activity4 ,james ,poyntz's words recurred to her1 his deep scorn of a purely frivolous1 pleasure-loving life was present in her brain4 ,lucy was genuinely fond of ,lady ,linquest1 but somehow on this bright morning to hear a woman with one foot in the grave talking nothing but scandal and empty catchwords of ,vanity ,fair1 struck with a certain chill to her heart4 ,to see her sitting there1 curled1 painted1 scented1 sipping her tonic drink1 ready for a smart party of people as empty and useless as herself1 was to see a thing that hurt1 after the experiences of the morning4 ,lucy had not taken her maid to ,scarning4 ,she had wanted to live as simply as possible there1 to live the outdoors riverside life4 ,and she was not going to take ,angelique to ,hornham either--where the girl would be miserable and a nuisance to the grave little community there4 ,she felt very glad1 as the chattering little ,french woman helped her to dress1 that she was not coming with her4 ,the maid's voluble boulevard ,french got on her nerves2 the powder on her face1 which showed violet in the sunlight1 the strong scent of verbena she wore1 the expression of being abnormally aware--all these were foreign to ,lucy's mood1 and she noticed them with an almost physical sense of disapproval that she had never before felt so strongly4 ,the drive to the smart hotel near ,piccadilly only took five or six minutes1 and the two ladies were soon shaking hands with old ,general ,pompe1 their host4 ,general the ,hon4 ,reginald ,pompe was an old creature who was only kept from senile decay by his stays4 ,he was unmarried1 extremely wealthy1 and the fashion4 ,in his younger days1 his life had been abominable2 now1 his age allowed him to do nothing but lick the chops of vicious memories and prick his ears for scandals in which he could not share4 ,people said1 ,old ,general ,pompe is really too bad1 but where one sees the ,duke of ---- and the ,prince of ---- we may be sure that people like ourselves cannot be far wrong4 ,the other guests comprised ,lord ,rollington1 of whom there was nothing to be said save that he was twenty-four and a fool2 ,gerald ,duveen1 who was a fat man of good family1 and more or less of a success upon the stage2 and his beautiful1 bold-looking wife1 a judge's daughter1 who played under the name of ,miss ,mary ,horne1 and of whom much scandal was whispered4 ,after a moment or two in the palm room1 waiting for the ,duveens1 who were a minute or two late1 the six people went in to lunch4 ,the special table ,general ,pompe always used was reserved for them1 decorated with a triumphant scheme of orchids and violets4 ,lumps of ice were hidden among the masses of flowers1 diffusing an admirable coolness round the table4 ,the host drew attention to the menu1 which he had composed4 ,he mumbled over it1 and as he bent his head ,lucy saw that his ears were quite pointed1 and that the skin upon his neck lay in pachydermatous folds1 dry and yellowish4 ,baked red snapper1 red wine sauce1 said ,mr4 ,duveen1 with the purring and very distinct voice of high comedy4 ,hm--turtle steaks miroton--sweetbreads--,tadema1 quite the best way to do sweetbreads4 ,mrs4 ,duveen was talking in a low1 rapid voice to ,lady ,linquest4 ,her eyes were very bright1 and malice lurked in the curves of a lovely mouth as she retailed some story of iniquity in high places1 one of these private and intimate scandals in which the half-life of the stage is so rich--actors and actresses more than most people being able to see humanity with the mask off4 ,how greedy the three men looked1 ,lucy thought1 as they devoured the lunch in prospect4 ,pigs6 she said to herself with a little inward shudder4 ,why was this8 ,she had been at dozens of these functions before now and had thought none of these thoughts4 ,to-day a veil seemed removed from her eyes3 she saw things as they really were4 ,and as they really were1 these people were abominable4 ,any of them would ,buy a minute's mirth to wail a week1 ,and sell eternity to gain a toy4 ,they had the manners of organ-grinders and the morals of monkeys4 ,she caught some words of what ,mrs4 ,duveen was saying now and again4 ,lord ,rollington began to tell her1 with affected disgust1 how he had been at a burlesque theatre the night before1 and the musical-comedy heroine of the hour had been so intoxicated that she could hardly sing her song4 ,too bad1 you know1 ,miss ,blantyre4 ,i spotted it at once4 ,it's always disgustin' to see a girl take too much to drink1 but when she's caperin' about the stage like that one really has a right to complain4 ,don't you think so8 ,now1 if it had been a poor little chorus girl1 she'd have been fired out of the theatre in a second4 ,for my part1 ,i-- and so on for an interminable five minutes4 ,general ,pompe began to flirt with ,lucy in that elderly you-are-only-a-little-girl sort of manner1 that is so difficult to repel and which is so offensive4 ,she saw his horny eyes roving over her person with appreciation4 ,a great many of ,lady ,linquest's particular set were like this4 ,not all of them1 thank goodness1 but so very many6 ,and the worst of it was that society mingled and overlapped so strangely4 ,the sheep and the goats were not separated in any way4 ,people like the ,huddersfields stood almost alone1 and even ,agatha1 when she was with the ,st4 ,justs--her mother's family--constantly met this sort of people4 ,but1 then1 ,agatha didn't seem to care1 she didn't realise4 ,she laughed at everything and thought it awfully good fun4 ,in fact1 ,lucy realised ,agatha was exactly the same as she herself had always been--with the very slightest intervals--until this moment4 ,it was startling to think that the words of ,lord ,huddersfield's son had worked this revolution in her point of view4 ,for she was quite persuaded that they were the reason of it4 ,she could find no other reason4 ,she did not realise then1 as she was to realise with humble thankfulness and awe in the future1 the august influence that was at work within her4 ,she was not gay at lunch4 ,usually she was a most welcome member of any such gathering as this4 ,her sayings were pointed1 she entered fully into the spirit of the hour1 her wit adorned the charm of her personality1 and she was universally popular and voted good fun in the comprehensive epitome of her associates4 ,this was the highest praise they knew1 and they gave it her without stint4 ,to-day the party fell flat--there was no doubt about it4 ,the radiance of the early morning had given place to a heat which became terribly oppressive1 and the sky was overclouded4 ,thunder was in the air1 and ,london awaited a storm4 ,the electric lights began to glow in the restaurant4 ,lady ,linquest did her best to rouse her niece to gaiety1 but her efforts were futile4 ,the old man who was entertaining them grew sulky1 and ,lord ,rollington drank glass after glass of champagne4 ,the beautiful actress was frankly bored1 and became more cynical and bitter with every scandalous story she told4 ,only ,mr4 ,duveen preserved his equanimity4 ,he ate and drank and purred with secure complaisance4 ,it was his rle in life4 ,ever since he had been a little lick-trencher fag at ,eton he had been thus4 ,it was said by his friends in society--after his back was turned--that on one occasion1 having discovered the ,earl of ---- kissing his wife1 he had murmured an apology1 saying that he had come to find his cigarette case1 and hurriedly retired from the room4 ,this1 no doubt1 was scandal and untrue1 but it showed the estimation in which he was generally held4 ,lucy knew this unpleasant story--,lady ,linquest had told her4 ,she thought of it as she watched the man pouring mandarin into his coffee4 ,once more she felt the shrinking and repulsion that had come over her more than three hours ago4 ,she knew1 or once had known1 her ,dante4 ,she had had but little time for anything but frothy reading during the last year or two1 but once she had kept up her ,italian4 ,a passage from the ,inferno came into her brain now1--a long-forgotten passage3 ,quest i non hanno speranza di morte1 ,e la lor cicca vita tanto bassa ,che invidiosi son d'ogni altra sorte4 ,she saw the people of whom the ,florentine spoke before her now1 the people for whom the bitterest fate of all had been reserved1--these who have no hope of death1 and whose blind life so meanly drags that they are envious of every other fate4 ,before she left ,park ,lane1 it had been arranged that the small brougham should call for her at the restaurant1 and take her on to ,hornham4 ,her luggage was small4 ,this smart society girl was going to take her plunge into the great ,london ,hinterland with a single trunk1 like any little governess driving to her new situation1 where she would learn how bitter the bread of another may taste1 and how steep are the stairs in the house of a stranger4 ,the carriage arrived just as lunch was over1 and she left all of them with immeasurable relief4 ,driving up ,shaftesbury ,avenue to find her northward route was like driving into a black curtain4 ,it was terribly hot and dark1 the horses were uneasy1 and the people moving on the pavements seemed like phantoms in some city of dreadful night4 ,london began to grip and hold her then as it had never done before4 ,seen under this pall1 its immensity and the dignity it gained by that was revealed in a new aspect4 ,her ,london1 her corner of the town1 the mere pleasure-city1 became of no consequence1 its luxury1 its parks and palaces1 shrank and dwindled to nothing in her consciousness4 ,she was attuned to thoughts more solemn than were wont to have their way with her4 ,her eyes and ears were opened to the reality of life4 ,she had lost her dislike for the visit she was going to pay4 ,below her frequent irritation at her brother's way of life there had always been a strong affection for him4 ,and more than that1 she had always respected him1 though often enough she would not admit it even to herself4 ,as the brougham turned into the surging arcana at ,islington her curiosity about the next few days was quickened3 the thought of personal discomfort--discomfort of a physical kind--had quite gone4 ,she felt that she was about to have experience of something new1 her pulses quickened to it4 ,the vicarage of ,st4 ,elwyn's was one of those stately old red-brick houses1 enclosed in a walled garden of not inconsiderable extent1 that are still to be found here and there in north ,london4 ,they date from the florid ,georgian times1 when that part was a spacious countryside where wealthy merchants withdrew from commerce in the evening of their days and lived a decorous life among the fields and trees4 ,here and there1 in the vast overgrown and congested districts1 one or another of these old freeholds has been preserved inviolate--as may be seen in the ride from ,hackney to ,edmonton--and becomes an alien in a wilderness of mean little houses and vulgar streets4 ,father ,blantyre had bought one of these few remaining mansions in ,hornham1 at a high price1 and had presented it to the parish of ,st4 ,elwyn's as its vicarage4 ,here he lived with his two curates and a staff of four servants1--a housekeeper1 two maids1 and a man-of-all-work4 ,the personal wants of the three clergymen were very simple1 but the servants were useful in many parochial affairs4 ,in times when work was scarce1 the vicarage staff boiled soup1 like any cheap restaurant-keeper4 ,the house was open at all times of the day or night to people who wanted to be quiet and alone for a time2 social clubs and guilds had their headquarters there4 ,indeed1 the place was the centre of a diversified and complex life--how complex1 neither ,lucy1 nor any outsider1 had the least conception4 ,the carriage stopped at the heavy square porch with its flight of steps1 and the footman ran up them and rang the bell4 ,lucy noticed with amusement that the man's face expressed a mild wonder at the neighbourhood in which he found himself1 and that he winked solemnly at the coachman on his box4 ,lucy stood on the steps for a moment4 ,the sky was quite dark1 and the little side street in which she was1 showed in a dim and sulphurous half-light--like the light round the ,house of ,usher4 ,a piano-organ close by was beating out its vibrant mechanical music with an incongruous and almost vulgar disregard of the menace of the heavens4 ,the housekeeper opened the front door1 and ,lucy entered a big panelled hall1 now in a gloom that was almost profound1 and with a tiled floor that clicked and echoed as the high heels of her shoes struck upon it4 ,the vicar is in his study1 ,miss1 the housekeeper said4 ,she was a tall1 gaunt1 elderly woman1 with a face that always reminded ,lucy of a horse1 and her voice was dry and hesitating4 ,lucy crossed the hall1 opened a door of oak and another of green baize1 and entered her brother's room4 ,it was a large1 lofty place4 ,the walls were covered with books in sober bindings1--there must have been several thousands there4 ,a soft carpet covered the floor1 in the centre of which stood an enormous writing-table crowded with books and papers4 ,hardly any light came into the place through the long window1 and two candles in massive silver holders stood upon the writing-table1 throwing a soft radiance around4 ,the light fell upon a tall crucifix of silver that stood upon the table1 a beautiful specimen of ,english ,pre-,reformation work4 ,a small couch had been drawn up close to the table1 and on it the priest lay asleep4 ,the face was lined and drawn with worry and with work1 and all its secrets were told as the man slept4 ,one hand lay hanging from the side of the sofa--a lean1 strong hand1 with a coil of muscle upon the back4 ,seen thus in an abandonment of repose1 ,lucy's brother showed as a man worn and weary with battle1 scarred and battered1 bruised1 but how irrevocably rich6 ,a rush of tenderness came over the girl as she looked at him4 ,here was the man who had not winced or cried aloud1 whose spirit was unbowed beneath the bludgeonings of life4 ,a high serenity lay over the pain upon the face4 ,it was a face vowed1 a saint's face1 and even as he slept the great soul which shone like a monstrance within him1 irradiated the mask that hid it4 ,lucy saw all this1 received some such impressions as those in two or three moments4 ,some attraction drew her eyes from the sleeper to the shining symbol of ,god's pain upon the table4 ,then they went back to ,bernard ,blantyre4 ,to her excited fancy there seemed some subtle sympathy between them1 an invisible shuttle that was flying to and fro4 ,then ,blantyre awoke and saw her4 ,he did not come from the kingdom of sleep gradually1 as most people do1 loath to leave those silent halls4 ,he sprang suddenly into full consciousness1 as soldiers upon fields of battle1 as old veterans used to sudden drums and tramplings are known to do4 ,his eyes lighted up with merriment and triumph1 his mobile face was one great smile4 ,he caught her by the arms and kissed her repeatedly4 ,it's splendid to have you again1 me darling1 he said1 with a slight ,irish accent that came to both of them when they were excited4 ,ye little wretch1 staying away so long6 ,why1 ye're prettier than ever6 ,ye'll have all the ,hornham boys waiting for ye outside the church door after ,mass1 for we don't see your sort down our humble way--the rale ,west ,end product6 ,laughing and chattering1 putting on the most exaggerated brogue1 the brother and sister moved out into the hall4 ,father ,blantyre called loudly1 ,king6 ,stephens6 where are ye8 she's come6--,i don't know where my boys are at all1 mavourneen--,we'll dress um down for not being in to welcome the new clergywoman4 ,now1 come up to your room1 sweetheart1 and ,bob'll bring your box up4 ,bob6 bring me sister's trunk up-stairs4 ,the little man ran up the wide stairway1 an odd1 active figure in his black cassock1 laughing and shouting in an ecstasy of pleasure and excitement4 ,no schoolboy could have been more merry1 more full of simple joy4 ,lucy followed him1 half laughing1 half inclined to sob at this happy welcome4 ,she was carried off her feet by it all1 by this strange arrival under lurid skies at the dingy old house which suddenly seemed so home-like4 ,reproach filled her heart at her long neglect as she heard her brother's joy4 ,simplicity6--yes1 that was it4 ,he was utterly simple4 ,the thought of the people she had left so short a time ago was more odious than ever4 ,she found herself alone in her bedroom1 a big1 gloomy place with solid mahogany furniture in the old style4 ,there was nothing modern there save a little prie-dieu of oak by the bedside4 ,but the sober colours and outmoded massiveness of it all no longer troubled her4 ,she did not give a single thought to her own luxurious nest in ,park ,lane--as she had done so often during her first visit to ,st4 ,elwyn's a year ago4 ,when she went down-stairs once more1 both the assistant priests had come in and were waiting with the vicar in the study1 where some tea was presently brought4 ,stephens was a tall1 youthful-looking man1 rather slangy perhaps1 with a good deal of the undergraduate about him still1 but obviously in earnest4 ,king was square-faced2 the clean-shaved jaw showed powerful and had a flavour of the prize-fighter about it1 while his general expression was grim and somewhat forbidding4 ,he was much the elder of the two4 ,his expression1 the outward shell1 was no index to the man within4 ,a tenderer heart never beat in a man2 a person more temperamentally kind never lived4 ,but he had more capacity for anger1 righteous anger1 than either the vicar or ,stephens4 ,there were moments when he could be terrible1 and some savage strain in him leaped to the surface and was only curbed by a will which had long been sanctified to good4 ,the two men seemed glad to see ,lucy again4 ,she had seen little of them on her first visit2 neither of them had made any impression on her4 ,now they interested her at once4 ,now1 then1 ,bernard1 ,lucy said as she began to pour out the tea1 what is all this ,i hear about a scene in church8 ,lord ,huddersfield was full of it4 ,he was most distressed4 ,he has been awfully good about it1 ,blantyre said4 ,he was down here on ,tuesday morning going into the matter4 ,a man named ,hamlyn1 the editor of a little local paper1 threw the church into a miserable state of confusion during ,mass last ,sunday1 just after ,i had said the ,prayer of ,consecration4 ,he read a document protesting against the ,blessed ,sacrament4 ,we had him ejected1 and yesterday he was fined ten shillings in the local police court4 ,the magistrate1 who is a pronounced ,protestant in his sympathies1 said that though the defendant had doubtless acted with the best intentions1 one must not combat one illegality with another1 and that the law provided methods for the regulation of worship other than protests during its process6 ,pompous old ass6 said ,stephens4 ,well1 ,i'm glad they fined him1 ,lucy said4 ',all's well that ends well6' ,you won't have the services disturbed again4 ,on the contrary1 dear1 we are all very much afraid that this is the first spark of a big fire4 ,we hear rumours of an organised movement which may be widely taken up by the enemies of the ,church4 ,all through the ranks there's a feeling of uneasiness4 ,lord ,huddersfield is working night and day to warn the clergy and prepare them4 ,we cannot say how it will end4 ,he spoke with gravity and seriousness4 ,lucy1 who privately thought the whole thing a ridiculous storm in a teacup1 and was utterly ignorant of the points at issue1 looked sympathetic1 but said nothing4 ,she was not in a flippant mood2 she realised she was quite an outsider in the matter1 which seemed so momentous to the three intelligent men she was with1 and1 unwilling to betray her lack of comprehension or to say anything that would jar1 she kept a discreet silence4 ,we all get shouted after already1 when we go into the worst parts of the parish1 said ,stephens cheerfully4 ,they've been rousing the hooligan element4 ,it's an old trick4 ,lazy bounders1 who don't know a ,christian from a ,jew and have never been in a church in their lives1 shout 'papist' after us as we go into the houses4 ,just before ,i came in1 ,i was walking up the street when a small and very filthy urchin put his head round the corner of a house and squeaked out1 ',oo kissed ve ,pope's toe8' ,then he turned and ran for dear life4 ,as yet1 ,i haven't been assaulted1 but ,king has6 ,haven't you1 ,king8 ,mr4 ,king looked rather like a bashful bulldog1 and endeavoured to change the subject4 ,do you mean any one actually struck you1 ,mr4 ,king8 ,lucy said1 absolutely bewildered4 ,how awful6 ,but why should any one want to do that8 ,the vicar broke in with a broad grin that made his likeness to a comedian more apparent than ever4 ,oh1 ,king was splendid6 he said with a chuckle4 ,that ended very well4 ,a big navvy chap was coming out of a public-house just as ,king was passing4 ,he looked round at his friends and called out something to the effect that here was another monkey in petticoats--we wear our cassocks in the streets--and see how he'd do for um6 ,so he gave poor ,king a clout on the side of the head4 ,oh1 ,i am sorry1 ,lucy said1 looking with interest upon the priest1 and realising dimly that to be a clergyman in ,hornham apparently ranked as one of the dangerous trades4 ,what did you do1 ,mr4 ,king8 ,king flushed a little and looked singularly foolish4 ,he was a bashful man with ladies1--they did not come much into his pastoral way4 ,lucy thought that the poor fellow had probably run away and wished that she had not asked such an awkward question4 ,oh1 he won't tell ye1 my dear6 ,blantyre said1 but ,i will4 ,when the gentleman smacked um on the cheek1 he turned the other to him and kept's hands behind's back4 ,then the hero smacked that cheek too4 ',hurroo6' says ,king1 or words to that effect1 'now ,i've fulfilled me duty to me religion and kept to the words of ,scripture4 ,and now1 me friend1 ,i'm going to do me duty to me neighbour and thrash ye till ye can't see out of your eyes4' ,with that he stepped up to um and knocked um down1 and when he got up1 he knocked um down again6 ,mr4 ,king fidgeted uneasily in his seat4 ,i thought it was the wisest thing to do1 he said1 apologetically4 ,you see1 it would stop anything of the sort for the future6 ,and the fun of the whole thing1 ,miss ,blantyre1 ,stephens broke in1 was that ,i came along soon after and found the poor wretch senseless--,king's got a fist like a hammer4 ,so we got him up and refused to charge him to the policeman who turned up after it was all over1 and we brought him here4 ,we sponged him and mended him and fed him1 and he turned out no end of a good sort when the drink was out of him4 ,poor chap gets work when he can1 hasn't a friend in the world2 hadn't any clothes or possessions but what he stood up in1 and was utterly a waster and uncared for4 ,we asked him if he knew what a papist was1 and found he hadn't an idea1 only he thought that they made love to workingmen's wives when their husbands were at work6 ,he'd been listening to our friend1 ,mr4 ,hamlyn1 who called a mass-meeting after the police-court proceedings and lectured on the three men of sin at the vicarage6 ,a flood of strange and startling ideas poured into the girl's brain4 ,a new side of life1 a fourth dimension1 was beginning to be revealed to her4 ,she looked wonderingly at the three men in their long cassocks2 she felt she was in the presence of power4 ,she had felt that when ,james ,poyntz was talking to her in the train1 in the fresh1 sunlit morning1 which seemed a thing of the remotest past now4 ,yet this afternoon she felt it more poignantly than before4 ,things were going on down here1 in this odd corner of ,london1 that were startling in their newness4 ,and what happened to the poor man8 she said at length4 ,oh1 answered the vicar1 very fortunately we are without a man of all work just now1 so we took him on4 ,he carried your trunk up-stairs4 ,he's wearing ,stephen's trousers1 which are much too tight for um6 and an old flannel tennis coat of ,king's--till we can get his new clothes made4 ,he was in rags6 ,but surely that's rather risky1 ,lucy said in some alarm4 ,and what about the other servants8 ,i shouldn't think ,miss ,cass liked it much6 ,miss ,cass was the housekeeper1 the woman with the face like a horse4 ,she always repelled ,lucy1 who1 for no reason than the old1 stupid ,dr4 ,fell reason1 disliked her heartily4 ,to her great surprise1 she saw three faces turned towards her suddenly4 ,on each was an expression of blank surprise1 exactly the same expression4 ,lucy wanted to laugh2 the three men were as alike as children are when a conjuror has just made the pudding in the hat or triumphantly demonstrated the disappearing egg4 ,the taciturn ,king spoke first4 ,i forgot1 he said2 of course you don't know anything about ,miss ,cass4 ,how should you1 indeed6 ,miss ,cass is a saint4 ,he said it quite simply1 with a little pride1 possibly1 that the vicarage which housed him housed a saint1 too1 but that was all4 ,yes1 the vicar said1 his brogue dropping away from him1 as it always did when he was serious1 ,miss ,cass is a saint4 ,i'll tell you her story some time while you're here1 dear4 ,it is a noble story4 ,but don't you be alarmed about our new importation4 ,bob will be all right4 ,we know what we are doing here4 ,it's wonderful1 ,miss ,blantyre1 ,stephens broke out1 his boyish face all lighted up with enthusiasm4 ,you know1 ,bob'd actually never been in church before yesterday morning1 when he came to ,mass4 ,he stopped for a moment1 out of breath in his eagerness4 ,lucy saw that he--indeed1 all of them--took it quite for granted that these things they spoke of had supreme interest for her as for them4 ,there was such absolute conviction that these things were the only important things1 that no excuse or apology was necessary in speaking of them4 ,she found she liked that1 she liked it already4 ,there was a magnetism in these men that drew her within their circle4 ,she saw that1 whatever else they were1 they were absolutely consistent4 ,they did not have one eye on convention and the world1 like the ,west ,end clergymen she knew1--some of them at least4 ,these men lived for one aim1 one end1 with tremendous force and purpose4 ,they simply disregarded everything else4 ,nothing else occurred6 ,yes1 this was a fourth dimension indeed4 ,she bent herself to listen to the boy's story1 marking1 with a pleasure that had something maternal in it1 the vividness and reality of his interest and hopes4 ,before he went1 the young man said1 ,i explained the ,church's teaching exactly to him4 ,don't forget that the poor chap hadn't the slightest idea of anything of the sort4 ,he was astounded4 ,a mystery that ,i could not explain to him1 a mystery for which there were no material evidences at all1 came home to him at once4 ,i saw faith born4 ,and they say this is not an age of miracles6 ,think of the tremendous revolution in the man's mind4 ,he talked to me after the service4 ,it was all wonderfully real to him4 ,he was absolutely convinced of the coming of our ,lord4 ,there isn't a rationalist in ,london that could shake the man's belief4 ,i asked him why he was so sure--was it merely because ,i had told him1 because ,i believed in it8 ,his answer was singularly touching4 ',nah1' he said1 scratching his head1--they all do when they try to think1--',it wasn't wot you said1 guvnor1 it was wot ,i felt4 ,i knowed as ',e wos there4 ,why1 ,i ses to myself1 ,it's true6' ,it is very wonderful1 ,lucy said4 ,it's more wonderful by far than a man at a ,salvation ,army meeting or a revival4 ,one can understand that the sudden shouts and the trumpets and banners and things would influence any one4 ,but that a service which is inexplicable even to the people who conduct it should influence this poor uneducated man is strange4 ,now1 ,i don't think it strange1 ,lucy1 dear1 the vicar said2 it's far more natural to me than the other4 ,the wonderful power of the ,church lies in this1 that her mysteries appeal to quite simple people whose minds are a blank on religious questions4 ,they appeal to the simple instantly and triumphantly4 ,they feel the power of the ,blessed ,sacrament4 ,and only ,catholicism can do this in full and satisfying measure4 ,we find that over and over again4 ,the jam-and-glory teas1 the kiss-in-the-ring revivals1 have a momentary and hysterical influence with the irreligious4 ,but it doesn't last1 there is no system or discipline1 and above all1 there is no dignity4 ,only priests realise thoroughly how the poorer and less-educated classes crave for the proper dignity and beauty of worship4 ,it has always been so4 ,it is the secret of the power that the ,roman ,church has over the minds of men4 ,then why are there so many ,salvationists and ,dissenters8 ,lucy asked4 ,for a multitude of reasons4 ,a dislike to discipline chiefly4 ,people don't go to church because the novelties of thirty or forty years ago have filtered down into the omnibuses and people who are naturally irreligious prefer to make a comfortable little code for themselves4 ,the ,church says you must not do this or that2 its rules are thoroughly well defined4 ,folk are afraid to come as near to ,god as the ,church brings them4 ,their cry is always that the ,church comes between them and ,god4 ,often that is a malevolent cry1 and more often still it's pure ignorance4 ,the silly people haven't an idea what they're talking about4 ,it would be just as reasonable for me to say1 ',i hate and abominate ,nicaragua1 which is a pernicious and soul-destroying place1' when ,i've never been nearer to ,nicaragua than ,penzance4 ,there is one thing that we do see1 ,king continued in his slow1 powerful way4 ,whenever we have open-minded men or women come to church to pray and find help1 they find it4 ,dozens and dozens of people have come to me after they have become members of the ,church and said that they could not understand the anti-,church nonsense they themselves had joined in before4 ',we never knew1' that is the cry always4 ,the thunder's beginning6 ,father ,blantyre said suddenly1 realising apparently that the talk was straying into channels somewhat alien to a young society lady presiding at afternoon tea4 ,lucy1 me dear1 it's tired you'll be of sitting with three blathering old priests talking shop in a thunderstorm--there's a flash for ye6 ,a sheet of brilliant steel-blue had flashed into the room as he spoke1 showing every detail of it clear and distinct as in some lurid day of the underworld4 ,the books1 the writing table1 the faces of the three clergymen1 and the tall silver crucifix between the candles1 which had momentarily faded to a dull and muddy yellow1 all made a sudden tableau which burned itself upon the retina4 ,then came darkness once more and the giant stammer of the thunder far overhead4 ,the thunder ceased and they waited1 expectant of the next explosion1 when the penetrating and regular beating of an adjacent bell was heard4 ,there's the bell for evensong6 ,blantyre said2 ,i did not know it was so late4 ,he put on his berretta and left the room1 the other men following him4 ,lucy rose also4 ,she felt that she would make one of them1 and going up-stairs to get a hat1 she presently found herself in the long1 covered passage that connected the vicarage with the church4 ,the idea of a house which was but an appanage of the church was new to her4 ,the passage had been built since her last visit4 ,and as she entered the huge1 dim building1 she saw clearly how powerful in the minds of her brother and his friends its nearness must be4 ,all their life1 their whole life1 centred in this church4 ,its services were as frequent and natural as their daily food4 ,how strangely different it all was to the life of the outside world6 ,she herself had not been to church for six weeks or more4 ,even people who called themselves ,christians only entered a pew and enjoyed a hebdomadal siesta in church4 ,but these men could not get on without it4 ,every thought and action was in communion with the ,unseen4 ,and she was forced to acknowledge it to herself1--if one actually did believe in a future life1 in eternity1 then this was the only logical way in which to prepare for it4 ,if life was really like a sojourn of one night in an inn1 then the traveller who made no preparation for the journey1 and spent the night in careless disregard of the day1 was an utter fool4 ,but no one called worldly people fools6--it was all very puzzling and worrying1 and common-sense did not seem like common-sense in ,hornham4 ,and was ,james ,poyntz a fool8 ,it was the last question she asked herself as she turned into the side chapel where evensong was to be said4 ,some twenty kneeling figures were there4 ,the place was dimly lighted save for the tall gas standards by the priests' seats in front of the altar4 ,high up before the painted reredos hung a single lamp that burned with a dull red glow4 ,there were many sick folk in the parish of ,st4 ,elwyn's3 at all hours of the day and night1 the clergy were sent for to help a departing soul upon its way hence1 and the ,blessed ,sacrament was reserved upon this altar in the side chapel4 99 99 99 99 99 ,the simple and stately service was nearly over4 ,the girl had listened to the sonorous words as if she heard them now for the first time4 ,as she knelt1 her heart seemed empty of the hopes1 fears1 and interests of daily life4 ,it seemed as a vessel into which something was steadily flowing4 ,and the fancy came to her that all she experienced was flowing to her from the dim tabernacle upon the altar4 ,it was almost a physical sense1 it was full of awe and sweetness4 ,she trembled exceedingly as the service ended and her brother prayed for the fellowship of the ,holy ,ghost4 ,for a time after the echoing footsteps of the clergy had died away1 she remained upon her knees4 ,she was praying1 but without words2 all her thoughts were caught up into one voiceless1 wordless1 passionate ejaculation4 ,when at length she bowed low1--it was the first time she had ever done such a thing1--before the altar1 and left the church1 it was by the west door4 ,she had a fancy for the street1 and she found that the thunder had all passed away and that a painted summer's evening sky hung over the garish town4 ,as she finally turned into the vicarage1 she cast one look back at the church4 ,it rose among the houses high into the air4 ,the sunset fired the wet tiles of the roof and gilded the cross upon the lantern4 ,she thought of ,that which was within4 ,,chapter ,v ,,wealthy ,,miss ,,pritchett ,,and ,,poor ,,gussie ,,davies ,,enter ,,the ,,vicarage ,,garden ,todgers1 ,mr4 ,stephens remarked to ,lucy1 as they went down into the garden after lunch on ,saturday1 could do it when it chose4 ,the last preparations for the garden party were being made4 ,the big marquee was erected1 the tennis lawns were newly marked1 there was a small stand for the string band4 ,waiters1 looking oddly out of their element in the brilliant sunshine1 which showed dress-coats1 serviceable enough at night1 tinged with a metallic green like a magpie's wing1 were moving about with baskets of strawberries and zinc boxes of ice4 ,the old-fashioned garden1 an oasis in the wilderness of brick all around1 was brilliant with sunflowers1 stocks1 and geraniums2 the lawns were fresh and green4 ,the curate was in tennis flannels and an ,oxford blazer1 and ,lucy meditated upon the influence of clothes1 as her betters had done before her4 ,stephens seemed to have put off his priesthood with his tippet and cassock1 and the jaunty cap covered a head which seemed as if it had never worn a berretta4 ,lucy found1 to her own surprise1 that she liked the man less so4 ,it was a total inversion of her ordinary ideas4 ,she began to think that a priest should be robed always4 ,miss ,cass1 the housekeeper1 in a new cap1 came up to them4 ,lucy had talked to the woman for more than an hour on ,friday afternoon1 and the prejudice caused by her appearance was removed4 ,i hope everything is satisfactory1 ,miss1 she said4 ,it all seems to be going on well4 ,the men from ,whiteley's know their business4 ,it all seems splendid1 ,miss ,cass1 ,lucy said4 ,i'm sure it couldn't be better4 ,have the band people come8 ,yes1 ,miss1 and the piano-entertainer too4 ,they're having some refreshment in the library4 ,his ,reverence is telling them funny stories1 ,miss4 ,she hurried away to superintend further arrangements4 ,the vicar is always so fine1 the young man said1 with a delighted enthusiasm in his chief that was always pleasant for ,lucy to hear4 ,he gets on with men so well2 such a lot of parsons don't4 ,there's nothing effeminate about the vicar4 ,he's a man's man4 ,i'll bet every one of those fellows in there will go away feeling they've made a friend1 and that parsons aren't such scalawags after all4 ,a burst of laughter came from the door leading into the garden1 as if to confirm his words1 and ,father ,blantyre descended the steps with a little knot of men dressed in something between livery and uniform1 carrying oddly shaped cases of black waterproof in their hands4 ,laughing and joking1 the men made their way towards the music stands4 ,the vicar came up to ,lucy4 ,how will it do8 he said4 ,it seems all right4 ,just walk round with me1 my dear1 and ,i'll give ye a few tips how to play hostess in ,hornham4 ,they strolled away together4 ,now1 ye'll be careful1 won't ye1 mavourneen8 he said rather anxiously4 ,the folk coming this afternoon require more management and tact than any ,i've ever met4 ,they'll all have what they think is the high society manner--and ye mustn't laugh at um1 poor dears4 ,i love 'em all1 and ,i won't have you making fun of them4 ,i like them better in church than in society1 ,i'm quite free to admit to you1 and their souls are more interesting than their bodies6 ,perhaps half a dozen people here this afternoon will be what you'd call gentlefolk--the doctor1 ,dr4 ,hibbert1 and a few others4 ,the rest of them will be fearfully genteel4 ,the young gentlemen will be back early from the city1 and they'll come in flannels and wear public-school ribbons round their hats1 roses in their button-holes and crimson silk cummerbunds6 ,good heavens6 ,lucy said4 ,yes1 and they'll all want to flirt with ye1 in a very superfine1 polite sort of way1 and mind ye let um6 ,they'll ask if they might 'assist you to a little claret cup1' and say all sorts of strange things4 ,but they're good enough at heart1 only they will be so polite6 ,and the women8 ,father ,blantyre shrugged his shoulders4 ,you'll find them rather difficult1 he said4 ,you bet they see your name in the papers--they all read the ',fashionable ,intelligence'--confound um6--and the attitude will be a little hostile4 ,but be civil for my sake1 dear4 ,i hate all this just as much as you do4 ,i can get in touch with them spiritually1 but socially ,i find it hard4 ,but ,i think it's the right thing to do1 to entertain them all once or twice a year1 and they do enjoy themselves6 ,and ,i owe them a deep1 deep debt of gratitude for their loyalty during this trying week4 ,i have had dozens and dozens of letters and calls4 ,every one has rallied to the church in a wonderful and touching way since the ,sunday affair4 ,god bless them all6 ,lucy squeezed his arm with sympathy4 ,in an hour1 the guests began to arrive4 ,lucy and her brother met them by the garden door of the house4 ,it was a gay scene enough4 ,a brilliant flood of afternoon sunshine irradiated everything2 the women were well and fashionably dressed1 the band played1 and every one seemed happy4 ,lucy found it much easier than she expected4 ,the guests were suburban1 of course1 and not of the classic suburbs at that4 ,but1 she reflected1 there was hardly a man there who had not better manners than ,lord ,rollington or ,general ,pompe4 ,and if they wore ,carthusian or ,zingari ribbons1 that meant no more than that they were blessed with a colour-sense2 while a slight admixture of i in the pronunciation of the first vowel was certainly preferable to the admixture of looseness and innuendo that she was sometimes forced to hear in much more exalted circles4 ,so she received tea and strawberries at the hands of gallant and debonair young gentlemen engaged in the minor walks of commerce2 she chatted merrily with fluffy young ladies who1 when they had gotten over their first distrust of a girl who went to the drawing-room and stayed with lords1 finding that she wasn't the nasty1 stuck-up thing they expected1 were somewhat effusively affectionate4 ,she talked gravely about the dear vicar and those dreadful men to ample matrons who for a moment had forgotten the cares of a small suburban villa and a smaller income1 in the luxury of fashion1 the latest waltz tunes1 the champagne cup1 and a real social event4 ,indeed1 everything went with a snap1 as one young gentleman remarked to ,lucy4 ,she became popular almost at once1 and was surrounded by assiduous young bloods of the city meccas4 ,father ,blantyre1 as he went about from group to group1 was in a state of extreme happiness1 despite his somewhat gloomy anticipations4 ,it was an hour of triumph for him4 ,his people1 for whom he prayed and laboured and gave his life and fortune1 were one and all engaged to show him how they would stand by him in the anticipated trouble4 ,everywhere he was greeted with real warmth and affection1 and before long the quick ,celtic temperament was bringing a mist before the merry grey eyes and a riot and tumult of thankfulness within4 ,on all sides1 he heard praises of his sister4 ,the pretty dear1 one good lady1 the wife of a cashier in a small ,mincing ,lane firm1 said to him4 ,i had quite a long talk with her1 ,father ,blantyre4 ,and a sweet girl she is4 ,we're not in the way of meeting with society folk1 though we read of all the gay goings-on in the ,mail2 but ,i said to ,pa1 ',pa1' ,i said1 'if all the society girls are like that1 then there's nothing much the matter with the aristocracy1 and ,modern ,society is a catchpenny rag4' ,and ,pa quite agreed4 ,he was as much struck by her as ,i was4 ,and so on4 ,every one seemed pleased with ,lucy4 ,the guests began to arrive less and less frequently1 until at length the gardens were crowded and no one else appeared to be coming4 ,all the various games and entertainments were in full swing1 and ,lucy was about to accept the invitation of a tall boy in a frock coat and a silk hat to sit down and watch a set of tennis with him1 when there was a slight stir and commotion at the garden door of the house4 ,miss ,cass came hurriedly down the steps1 as a sort of advance guard for two ladies who were ushered into the garden by a waiter4 ,the housekeeper dived into the crowd and found the vicar1 who turned and went with her at once to meet the late-comers4 ,there's ,miss ,pritchett and ,gussie ,davies1 said the young man to ,lucy in rather an awed voice1 and then1 as if to banish some unwelcome impression1 relieved his feelings by the enigmatic remark of ,pip1 pip1 which made ,lucy stare at him1 wondering what on earth he meant4 ,she noticed that nearly every one at this end of the garden was watching1 more or less openly1 the meeting between the vicar and his guests4 ,she did not quite understand why1 but guessed that some local magnate had arrived1 and looked with the rest4 ,the elder of the two women was expensively dressed in mauve silk1 and wore a small bonnet with a white aigrette over a coffee-coloured fringe of hair that suggested art4 ,her face was plump and pompous1 a parrot-like nose curved over pursy lips that wore an expression of arrogant ill-temper1 and the small eyes glanced rapidly hither and thither4 ,in one white-gloved hand1 the lady held a long-handled lorgnette of tortoise-shell and gold4 ,every now and then she raised these glasses and surveyed the scene before her1 in exactly the manner in which countesses and duchesses do upon the stage4 ,her companion was young1 a large1 blonde girl1 not ill-looking1 but without character or decision in her face or walk4 ,she was dressed very simply4 ,lucy turned to her companion4 ,do you know them1 then8 she said4 ,rather1 he replied4 ,i should think ,i did4 ,that's ,miss ,pritchett1 old ,joseph ,pritchett's daughter1 old ,joseph1 the brewer4 ,he left her all his money1 she's tons of stuff--awfully wealthy1 ,i mean1 ,miss ,blantyre4 ,does she live here1 then8 ,oh1 yes4 ,in spite of all her money she's always been an unappropriated blessing4 ,she's part of ,hornham1 drives a pair in a landau4 ,the girl is ,gussie ,davies1 her companion4 ,she's not half a bad sort4 ,all the ,hornham boys know ,gussie4 ,nothing the matter with ,gussie ,davis6 ,the old cat sits on her fearfully1 though4 ,she can't call her soul her own4 ,it's bally awful1 sometimes1 ,gussie says4 ,lucy gasped4 ,these revelations were startling indeed4 ,she was moving in the queerest possible set of people4 ,she hadn't realised that such folk existed4 ,it took her breath away1 like the first plunge into a bath of cold water4 ,the artless youth prattled on1 and ,lucy gathered that the lady with the false front was a sort of female arbiter elegantarium to ,hornham1 indubitably the richest person there1 a leading light4 ,she saw her brother talking to the woman in an eager way4 ,he seemed afraid of her1--as1 indeed1 the poor man was1 under the present circumstances1--and ,lucy resented it4 ,with a quick feminine eye1 she saw that ,miss ,pritchett was assuming an air of tolerance1 of patronage even1 to the vicar4 ,at last1 ,bernard caught sight of her4 ,his face became relieved at once and he led the spinster to the place where she was sitting4 ,every instinct of the girl rose up in dislike and rebellion as the woman drew near4 ,she had felt nothing of the sort with the other people4 ,in this case1 it was quite different4 ,she prepared to repel cavalry1 to use the language of the military text-books4 ,on the surface1 the incident was simple and commonplace enough4 ,a well-bred girl felt a repulsion for an obviously unpleasant and patronising woman of inferior social rank4 ,that was all4 ,it is a trite and well-worn aphorism that no event is trivial1 yet it is extraordinarily true4 ,who could have said that this casual meeting was to be fraught with storm and danger for the ,church in ,england2 that out of a hostile handshake between two women a mighty scandal and tumult was to rise8 ,miss ,pritchett came up to ,lucy1 and ,father ,blantyre introduced her4 ,then1 with an apologetic murmur1 he hurried away to another part of the garden4 ,won't you sit down8 ,lucy said1 looking at the chair that had been left vacant by her late companion4 ,thank you1 ,miss ,blantyre1 but ,i've been sitting in my carriage4 ,i should prefer to stand1 if it's the same to you1 said ,miss ,pritchett4 ,lucy rose4 ,perhaps you would like to walk round the grounds8 she asked4 ,probably ,i know the grounds better than you1 the elder woman answered with a patronage which was bordering on the purely ludicrous4 ,this residence was one of my dear father's houses1 as were many of the ,hornham houses4 ,when the vicar acquired the property1 the brewery trustees sold it to him1 though ,i think it far from suitable for a parish clergyman4 ,well1 yes1 ,lucy answered4 ,it certainly is a dingy1 gloomy old place1 but what else can you expect down here8 ,miss ,pritchett flushed and tossed her head till the aigrette in her smart little bonnet shook like a leaf4 ,one is liable to be misunderstood1 she said4 ,your brother's small private means enable him to live in a house which the next vicar or any ordinary clergyman could hardly hope for4 ,it is very good of ,bernard to come down here and spend his life in such an impossible place1 ,lucy said4 ,she was thoroughly angry now and quite determined to give the woman a lesson4 ,her impertinence was insufferable4 ,to hear this creature speak of ,bernard's income of three thousand a year--every penny of which he gave away or spent for good--in this way was unendurable4 ,miss ,pritchett grew redder than ever4 ,she was utterly incapable of bearing rebuff or contradiction4 ,her local eminence was unquestioned4 ,she had never moved from ,hornham1 where her wealth and large interests secured for her that slavish subserviency that a vain and petty spirit loves4 ,for months past1 she had been gradually gathering up cause for quarrel and bitterness with the clergy of ,st4 ,elwyn's4 ,she had found that once within the portals of the church she was just as anyone else4 ,she could not lord it over the priests as she wished to do4 ,for once1 she was beginning to find that her money was powerless1 there was no high seat in the synagogue that it could buy4 ,the place has been good enough for me1 she said angrily1 never doubting that this was final4 ,ah1 yes1 ,lucy answered4 ,that1 ,miss ,pritchett1 ,i can quite understand4 ,the ,hornham celebrity was a stupid woman4 ,her brain was as empty as a hen's1 and she was not adroit enough to seize upon the real meaning of this remark4 ,she had an uneasy suspicion that it was offensive1 and that was all4 ,what you may mean by 'impossible' ,i am not aware1 she continued4 ,i speak plain ,english myself4 ,but those that don't know of a place didn't ought to speak unfavourable of it4 ,as for your brother1 ,i've always said that he was a worthy person and acted as well as he might1 until late months1 when ,i've felt it my duty to say a word or two in season as to some of the church matters4 ,i hope he profited1 ,miss ,pritchett4 ,i fear that he did not receive my words as he should1 coming from a lady of standing in the place--and him only here three years4 ,i'm beginning to think that there's something in the popular agitation4 ,upon my word6 ,priests do take a good deal on themselves nowadays4 ,it wouldn't have been allowed when ,i was a girl4 ,things have altered very much for the better during the last fifty years1 ,lucy said pointedly4 ,this the lady did immediately apprehend4 ,she lifted the lorgnette and stared at her companion in speechless anger4 ,the movement was meant to be crushing4 ,it was thus1 ,miss ,pritchett knew from her reading1 that women of the aristocracy crushed inferiors4 ,it was too much for ,lucy4 ,she endeavoured to control her feelings1 but they were irresistible4 ,she had not seen anything so funny as this vulgar and pompous old thing for years4 ,a smile broadened out upon her face1 and then1 without further ado1 she burst out into peal after peal of laughter4 ,the flush on ,miss ,pritchett's face died away4 ,it grew perfectly white with passion4 ,she turned round4 ,her companion had been walking some three yards behind them in a listless and dejected fashion1 looking with greedy eyes at the allurements on every side1 and answering the furtive greetings of various male friends with a pantomime1 expressive of contempt1 irritation1 and hopeless bondage in equal parts4 ,miss ,pritchett stepped up to her1 and caught hold of her arm4 ,her fingers went so deep into the flesh that the girl gasped and gave a half-smothered cry4 ,take me to the carriage1 ,miss ,pritchett said4 ,let me leave this place of ,popery and light women6 ,the obedient ,gussie ,davies turned and1 in a moment or two1 both women had disappeared4 ,lucy sought her brother4 ,she found him eating a large pink ice in company with a florid1 good-humoured matron in maroon1 with an avalanche of lace falling from the edges of her parasol4 ,hallo1 dear6 he said4 ,let me introduce you to ,mrs4 ,stiffe1 ,dr4 ,hibbert's sister4 ,and where's ,miss ,pritchett8 ,she's gone1 ,lucy answered4 ,and1 ,i'm very much afraid1 in a towering rage4 ,but really she was so insolent that ,i could not stand it4 ,i would do most things for you1 ,ber1 but1 really1 that woman6 ,well1 it can't be helped1 ,i suppose1 the vicar said with humorous resignation4 ,it was bound to come sooner or later1 and ,i'm selfish enough to be glad it's you've given me lady the cong and not me4 ,mrs4 ,stiffe here knows her1 don't you1 ,mrs4 ,stiffe8 ,i do1 ,mr4 ,blantyre1 the stout lady said4 ,i've met the woman several times when ,i've been staying down here with my brother4 ,a fearful old cat ,i call her6 ,i wonder that you put up with her so long6 ,policy1 ,mrs4 ,stiffe--ye know we're all ,jesuits here1 the local paper says so in yesterday's issue--policy6 ,you see1 when ,i first came here ,miss ,pritchett came to church4 ,she's a leading person here and ,i made no doubt others would follow her4 ,indeed1 they did1 too6 and when they saw what the ,catholic ,church really was they stayed with us4 ,and then1 again1 ,miss ,pritchett was always ready to give us a cheque for any good work1 and we want all the money we can get6 ,oh1 there's a lot of good in ,miss ,pritchett6 ,i fail to see it on a short acquaintance1 ,lucy remarked2 if she gave generously1 it was only to flatter her vanity4 ,i'm sure of that4 ,it's a great mistake to attribute unworthy motives to worthy deeds1 the vicar said4 ,we've no right to do it1 and it's only giving ourselves away when we do1 after all6 ,oh1 it's all very well1 ,vicar1 said good ,mrs4 ,stiffe2 we know you never say anything against any one4 ,but if ,miss ,pritchett is such an angel1 what's the reason of her behaviour now8 ,my brother told me that things were getting very strained4 ,ah1 that's a different matter entirely1 ,blantyre said4 ,she began to interfere in important things4 ,and1 of course1 we couldn't have that4 ,i'd have let her manage the soup-kitchens and boss the ladies' guilds till the sky fell4 ,but she wanted to do more than that4 ,poor dear ,king offended her in some way--he's not what ye'd call a ladies' man--and she wrote to me to send him away at once6 ,and there were other incidents4 ,i've been doing my best to meet her views and to keep in with her1 but it's been very difficult and ,i felt the storm would burst soon4 ,i wanted to keep her in the ,faith for her own silly sake6 ,she's not a very strong-minded person beneath her manner1 and she's just the sort of woman some spiritualistic quack or ,christian ,science gentleman would get hold of and ruin her health and happiness4 ,i did hope she'd find peace in the ,church4 ,well1 it can't be helped1 he ended with a rather sad smile1 for his heart was tender for all his flock and he saw far down into the human soul and loved it4 ,then he changed suddenly4 ,what am ,i doing6 he cried1 talking parochial politics at a garden party6 ,shame on me6 ,come on1 ,mrs4 ,stiffe1 come on1 ,lucy1 ,mr4 ,chaff1 the piano-entertainer1 is going to give his happy half-hour at ,earl's ,court4 ,they went merrily away with him4 ,as they approached the rows of chairs in front of the piano1 he turned suddenly to his sister4 ,why didn't ye knock her down8 he said suddenly1 with an exaggerated brogue and real comic force4 ,both ladies burst out laughing4 ,you ought to have been on the music-hall stage1 ,vicar1 ,mrs4 ,stiffe said1 you're wasted in ,hornham4 ,so ,i've been told1 he said4 ,i shall think seriously of it4 ,it's a pity to waste a talent4 ,,chapter ,,vi ,,boadicea1 ,,joan ,,of ,,arc1 ,,charlotte ,,corday1 ,,jael1 ,,and ,,miss ,,pritchett ,,of ,,hornham ,people of taste are never without wonder at the extraordinary lack of it that many well-to-do folk display4 ,it was but rarely that a person of taste entered ,malakoff ,lodge1 where ,miss ,pritchett dwelt1 but when such an event did happen1 the impression was simply that of enormous surprise4 ,the drawing-room into which visitors were shown was an immense place and full of furniture4 ,in each of the corners stood a life-sized piece of statuary painted in natural colours4 ,here one saw an immense negro1 some six feet high1 with coffee-coloured skin1 gleaming red lips1 and a gaudy robe of blue and yellow4 ,this monster supported a large earthenware basket on his back1 painted1 of course1 in correct straw-colour1 from which sprang a tall palm that reached to the ceiling4 ,in other corners of the room were an ,egyptian dancing-girl1 a ,turk1 and an ,indian fakir1 all of which supported ferns1 which it was part of ,miss ,gussie ,davies' duty to water every morning4 ,the many tables1 chiefly of circular or octagonal form1 which stood about the room1 bore a multitude of costly and hideous articles which should have been relegated to a museum1 to illustrate the deplorable taste of the middle classes during the early and mid-,victorian era4 ,here1 for example1 was a model of the leaning tower of ,pisa done in white alabaster1 some two feet in height1 and shielded from harm by a thick glass case4 ,there1 the eye fell upon a bunch of very purple grapes and a nectarine or two1 made of wax1 with a waxen bee settling upon them1 all covered with glass also4 ,literary tastes were not forgotten4 ,immense volumes of ,moore's poems1 the works of ,southey or ,robert ,montgomery lay about on the tables4 ,these were bound in heavy leather boards1 elaborately tooled in gold representations of ,greek lyres and golden laurel crowns4 ,the shining gilt edges were preserved from the profanation of a casual opening by two or three immense brass clasps which imprisoned the poet's thoughts within4 ,the time in which these things were made was a sentimental age1 and it was well reflected in its bijouterie4 ,innumerable nymphs and shepherdesses stood about offering each other hearts1 madrigals1 and other dainties4 ,but they had none of the piquant grace that ,watteau would have given them1 or the charm the white-hot fires of ,dresden might have burnt into them4 ,they were solid1 very ,british nymphs1 whose drapery was most decorously arranged that one thick ankle might be visible1 but no more2--nymphs and shepherdesses who1 one might imagine1 sat happily by the bank of some canal1 singing the pious ditties of ,dr4 ,watts as the sun went down1--nymphs1 in short1 with a moral purpose4 ,the hangings of ,miss ,pritchett's room1 the heavy window curtains that descended from baldachinos of gleaming gold1 were all of a rich crimson1 an extraordinary colour that is not made now1 and the wall-paper was a heavy pattern in dark ultramarine and gold4 ,indeed1 there was enough gold in this mausoleum to have satisfied ,miss ,killmansegg herself4 ,one merit the place had in summer1 it was cool1 and when the barouche that was the envy of ,hornham drove up at ,malakoff gates1 ,miss ,pritchett rushed into the drawing-room1 and1 sinking into an arm-chair of purple plush1 fanned a red and angry face with her handkerchief4 ,the companion followed her meekly4 ,wait there1 ,miss ,davies1 said the spinster sharply2 stand there for a moment1 please1 till ,i can get my breath4 ,miss ,davies remained standing before her patroness in meek obedience4 ,after a minute or two1 ,miss ,pritchett motioned with her hand towards an adjacent chair4 ,gussie ,davies sat down4 ,it was part of the spinster's life to subject her companion to a kind of drill in this way4 ,the unfortunate girl's movements were regulated mathematically1 and in her more genial and expansive moments ,miss ,pritchett would explain that her nerves required that this should be so--that she should have absolute control over the movements of any one who was in the room with her4 ,there had been spirited contests between ,miss ,pritchett and a long succession of girls who had refused to play the part of automaton1 but in ,gussie ,davies1 the lady had found a willing slave4 ,she paid her well1 and in return was served with diligence and thorough obsequiousness4 ,gussie was adroit1 more adroit than her somewhat lymphatic appearance would have led the casual observer to suppose4 ,properly trained1 she might almost have made a psychologist1 but her opportunities had been limited4 ,however1 for several years1 she had directed a sharp brain to the study of one person1 and she knew ,miss ,pritchett as ,mr4 ,sponge knew his ,mogg4 ,her influence with that lady was enormous1 the more so in that it was not at all suspected by the object1 who imagined that the girl was hers1 body and soul4 ,but1 nevertheless1 ,miss ,davies1 who hailed from ,wales and had a large share of the true ,cymric cunning1 could play upon her mistress with sure fingers1 and1 while submitting to every form of petty tyranny1 and occasionally open insult1 she ruled the foolish woman she was with4 ,gussie sat down4 ,miss ,pritchett did not speak at once1 and the girl judged1 correctly enough1 that she was meant to open the ball4 ,o ,miss ,pritchett6 she said with a little shudder1 what a relief it must be to you to be back in your own mansion6 ,nothing pleased the spinster more than the word mansion as applied to her house4 ,gussie used the term with discretion1 employing it only on special occasions1 unwilling to be prodigal of so sure a card4 ,you may well say that1 child1 ,miss ,pritchett answered faintly4 ,now you must let me ring for a glass of port for you1 the young lady continued4 ,you need it1 indeed you do4 ,i'll take the responsibility on myself4 ,she rose and rang the bell4 ,two glasses1 said ,miss ,pritchett when the answering maid had received her order4 ,you shall have a glass1 ,gussie1 for ,i feel ,i am to blame in taking you to such a place4 ,i have seen the world1 and ,i have met women of that class before1 ,i am sorry to say4 ,but hitherto ,i have managed to shield you from such contamination4 ,gussie sighed the sigh of innocence1 a sigh which the young men with whom she larked about in ,alexandra ,gardens never heard4 ,i wish ,i had your knowledge of the world1 she said4 ,but1 of course1 ,i've never mixed in society1 not like you4 ,the port arrived and in a minute or two the experienced damsel saw that her patroness was settling down for a long and confidential chat4 ,the moment promised a golden opportunity1 of which she meant to take advantage if she possibly could4 ,she had a big scheme in hand2 she was primed with it by minds more subtle than her own4 ,the image of ,sam ,hamlyn was before her and she burned to deserve that gentleman's commendation4 ,yes1 said ,miss ,pritchett1 as a girl1 when ,i used to go to the ,lord ,mayor's balls at the ,mansion ,house with papa and mamma1 ,i saw what society really was4 ,and it's worse now6 ,that abandoned hussy at the vicarage is an example of what ,i mean4 ,i must not go into details before you1 child1 but ,i know what ,i know6 ,how awful1 ,miss ,pritchett6 ,i saw her making eyes at all the gentlemen before you went up to her4 ,all's fish that comes to the net of such1 replied ,miss ,pritchett4 ,an earl's toy1 the giddy bubble floating on the open sewer of a ,london season1 or the sly allurer of an honest young city gentleman4 ,anything in trousers1 child1 is like herrings to a cat6 ,how awful6 ,miss ,pritchett1 repeated ,gussie1 wondering what it would be like to be an earl's toy1 and rather thinking she would enjoy it4 ,i suppose you'll go to the vicarage just as usual1 though1--on parish business1 ,i mean4 ,this1 as the girl expected1 provoked a storm1 which she patiently endured1 certain that she was in a way to gain her ends4 ,at length1 the flow of voluble and angry words grew less4 ,miss ,pritchett was enjoying herself too much to risk the girl's non-compliance with her mood4 ,there1 there1 she said eventually1 it's only your ignorance ,i know1 ,gussie1 but you do aggravate me4 ,you don't understand society4 ,never shall ,i set foot in that man's house again6 ,gussie gasped4 ,her face expressed fervent admiration at such a daring resolve1 but slight incredulity as well4 ,the bait took again4 ,never1 as ,i'm a living lady6 said ,miss ,pritchett1 and ,i don't know as ,i shall ever drive up to the church doors in my carriage on a ,sunday morning more6 ,opinions may change4 ,i may have been--,i don't say ,i have been1 yet1 mind you--,i may have been led away by the false glitter of ,roman doctrine and goings on4 ,the idea seemed to please the lady4 ,she saw herself picturesque in such a situation4 ,gussie started suddenly4 ,what's the matter1 child8 she was asked tartly2 do you think no one's got any nerves8 ,keep still1 do6 ,i'm very sorry1 ,miss ,pritchett1 but when you said that1 ,i remembered something ,i was reading last night in the ,hornham ,observer4 ,i was keeping it for ,sunday afternoon1 said ,miss ,pritchett4 ,i did mean to go to morning service and then read ,mr4 ,hamlyn's side of last ,sunday's proceedings at home1 comfortable like4 ,but what's in the paper8 ,a great deal that will interest you1 dear ,miss ,pritchett1 though ,i do not know if you will be pleased4 ,pleased8 ,what do you mean8 ,your name is mentioned several times4 ,is it1 indeed6 ,we'll soon see about that6 ,fetch the paper at once and read what it says4 ,if ,mr4 ,hamlyn's been foolish enough to talk about his betters1 ,i'll very soon have him turned neck and crop out of the place4 ,he's a man ,i've never spoken to more than twice1 and he must be taught his place in ,hornham4 ,gussie went out to fetch the paper4 ,she smiled triumphantly as she came into the hall4 ,all was going well and1 moreover1 her quick ear had caught the slight trace of wavering and alarm in the concluding words of her mistress4 ,miss ,pritchett1 like many other people1 was never able to rid herself of a superstitious reverence for print4 ,she devoutly believed the cheap romances that formed her literary food1 and even a small local newspaper was not without a strong influence on one whose whole sympathies and interests were local4 ,gussie came back with the paper4 ,there's two whole pages about the ,st4 ,elwyn's business1 she said1 column after column1 with great big letters at the top4 ,shall ,i begin at the beginning8 ,no1 no2 read the bits about me1 of course4 ,read what it was that made you jump like a cat in an oven just now4 ,that particular bit did not mention your name1 ,miss ,pritchett1 but it chimed in so with what you said just now4 ,i wonder if ,i can find it8--ah1 here it is-- ',and so ,i think ,i have accounted for the reason of the popularity of such services as go on at ,st4 ,elwyn's among the poorer classes4 ,a wealthy clergyman can buy attendance at any idolatry1 and who would blame a starving brother1 desperate for food1 perhaps1 for attendance at a mummery which is nothing to him but the price of a much-needed meal8 ,not ,i4 ,tolerance has ever been the watch-word of the ,observer1 and1 however much ,i may regret that even the poorest man may be forced to witness the blasphemous and hideous mockery of ,truth that takes place at ,st4 ,elwyn's1 ,i blame not the man1 but the cunning of a priesthood that buys his attendance and then points to him as a convert to thinly veiled ,romanism4' ,gussie stopped for a moment to take breath4 ,miss ,pritchett's face was composed to pleasure4 ,this was hot and strong indeed6 ,she wondered how ,father ,blantyre liked this6 ,worthy ,mr4 ,hamlyn1 indeed1 had heard of the little incident of the navvy and ,father ,king1 and knew that the erstwhile antagonist was now housed in the vicarage4 ,hence the preceding paragraph4 ,gussie went on3 ',but what shall we say when we find rank and fashion1 acute intelligence and honoured names bowing down in the ,house of ,rimmon8 ,how shall we in ,hornham regard such a strange and--so it seems to us--unnatural state of affairs8 ',the ,scarlet ,woman is powerful indeed6 ,it would be idle to attempt to deny it4 ,the drowsy magic of ,rome has permeated with its subtle influence homes where we should have hoped it would never enter4 ,and why is this8 ,i think we can understand the reason in some measure4 ,let us take an imaginary case4 ,let us suppose that there is among us a woman of high station1 of intellect1 wealth1 and charm4 ,she sees a struggling priesthood establish itself in a ,protestant neighbourhood4 ,the sympathy that woman will ever have for the weak is enlisted2 she visits a church1 not realising what its sham and ceremony leads to1 under what ,malign ,influence it is carried on4 ,and then a gracious nature is attracted by the cunning amenities of worship4 ,the music1 the lights1 the flowers1 the gorgeous robes1 appeal to a high and delicate nature4 ,for a time1 it passes under the sway of an arrogant priesthood1 and1 with that sweet submission which is one of the most alluring of feminine charms1 bows before a ,baal which it does not realise1 a golden calf that it would abhor and repudiate were it not blinded by its own charity and unsuspicious trust6 ,have ,i drawn a picture that is too strong8 ,i think not4 ,it is only by analogy that we can best present the ,truth4 ',nevertheless we do not hesitate to assert1 and assert with absolute conviction1 that1 if such a clouding of a fine nature were temporarily possible1 it would be but transient4 ,truth will prevail4 ,in the end1 we shall see all those who are now the puppets and subjects of a ,romanising attempt come back to the clear sunlight of ,protestantism1 away from the stink-pots and candles1 the toys of ritual1 the poison of a painted lie4' ,gussie read the paragraphs with unction4 ,she read them rather well4 ,as she made an end1 her guilty conscience gave her a fear that the unusual emphasis might have awakened some suspicion in ,miss ,pritchett's mind4 ,but with great relief she saw that it was not so4 ,that lady was manifestly excited4 ,her eyes were bright and there was a high flush on the cheek-bones4 ,truth to tell1 ,miss ,pritchett had always suspected that there were depths of hidden gold in her nature4 ,but they had never been so vividly revealed to her before4 ,give me the paper1 she said in a tremulous voice2 let me read it for myself6 ,her unguarded words showed ,miss ,davies how completely the fortress was undermined4 ,the spinster read the words through her glasses and then handed the paper back to her companion4 ,the man that wrote that1 she said1 is a good and sincere man4 ,he knows how the kind heart can be imposed upon and deceived6 ,i shall take an early opportunity of meeting ,mr4 ,hamlyn4 ,he will be a great man some day1 if ,i am any judge4 ,he must have had his eye on the ,malakoff1 ,gussie said4 ,why1 dear ,miss ,pritchett1 he has described you to a ,t4 ,there is no one else in ,hornham to whom it could apply4 ,hush1 child6 ,it may be as you say4 ,this worthy man may have been casting his eye over the parish and thought that he saw in me something of which he writes4 ,it is not for me to deny it4 ,i can only say that in his zeal he has much exaggerated the humble merits of one who1 whatever her faults1 has merely tried to do her duty in the station to which she has been called4 ,and if ,providence has placed that station high1 it is ,providence's will1 and we must not complain6 ,how beautifully you put it1 ,miss ,pritchett6 ,the chatelaine of ,malakoff wiped a tear from her eye4 ,the excitement of the afternoon1 the glass of port1 the periods of ,mr4 ,hamlyn's prose1 had all acted upon nerves pampered by indulgence and tightened with self-irritation4 ,i believe you care for me1 child1 said ,miss ,pritchett with a sob4 ,how it rejoices me to hear you say so1 ,miss ,pritchett1 ,gussie replied1 seeing that her opportunity had now come4 ,but your generous nature gives way too easily4 ,you are unstrung by the wanton insults of that woman6 ,let me read you the concluding portion of ,mr4 ,hamlyn's article4 ,it may soothe you4 ,read it1 murmured the spinster1 now lost in an ecstasy of luxurious grief1 though she would have been puzzled to give a reason for it4 ,gussie took up the paper once more4 ,now that her battle was so nearly won1 she allowed herself more freedom in the reading4 ,the ,celtic love of drama stirred within her and she gave the pompous balderdash ore rotundo4 ',and in conclusion1 what is our crying need in ,england to-day8 ,it is this3 ,it is the establishment of a great crusade for the crushing of the disguised ,popery in our midst4 ,one protest has been made in ,hornham1 protests should be made all over ,england4 ,a mighty organisation should be called into existence which should make every priest tremble in his cope and cassock1 tremble for the avalanche of public reprobation which will descend upon him and his4 ',i may be a visionary and no such idea as ,i have in my mind may be possible4 ,but ,i think not4 ,who can say that our borough of ,hornham may not become famous in history as the spot in which the second ,reformation was born6 ',much needs to be done before such a glorious movement can be inaugurated2 that it will be inaugurated a band of earnest and determined men and women live in the liveliest hope4 ',i am confident that a movement having its seed in the borough1 if widely published and made known to patriotic ,english people1 would be supported with swift and overwhelming generosity by the country at large4 ,the public response would appal the ,ritualists and even astonish loyal sons of the ,church of ,england4 ,but1 in order to start this crusade1 help is required4 ,some noble soul must come forward to start the machine1 to raise the ,protestant ,flag4 ',where shall we find him or her8 ,is there no one in our midst willing to become the patron of ,truth and to earn the praise of thousands and a place in history8 ',once ,joan of ,arc led the forces of her country to victory4 ,a ,charlotte ,corday slew the monster ,marat1 a ,boadicea hurled herself against the legions of ,rome6 ,who will be our ,boadicea to-day1 who will come forward to crush the tyranny of ,rome in our own ,england8 ,for such a noble lady1 who will revive in her own person the undying deeds of antiquity1 ,i can promise a fame worth more than all the laurels of the old ,british queen1 the heartfelt thanks and love of her countrymen1 and above all of her country-women--over whose more kindly and unsuspicious natures the deadly ,upas-tree of ,romanism has cast its poisonous shade4 ,where is the ,jael who will destroy this ,sisera8' ,miss ,davies ceased4 ,her voice sank4 ,no sound was heard but the snuffle that came from the plush arm-chair opposite1 where ,miss ,pritchett was audibly weeping4 ,mr4 ,hamlyn's purple prose had been skilfully introduced at the psychological moment4 ,the woman's ill-balanced temperament was awry and smarting4 ,her egregious vanity was wounded as it had rarely been wounded before4 ,she had been treated as of no account1 and she was burning with spite and the longing for revenge4 ,gussie said nothing more4 ,she let the words of the newspaper do their work without assistance4 ,presently ,miss ,pritchett looked up4 ,she wiped her eyes and a grim expression of determination came out upon her face4 ,i see it all6 she said suddenly4 ,my trusting nature has been terribly deceived2 ,i have been led into error by evil counsellors2 the power of the ,jesuits has been secretly brought to bear upon one who1 whatever her failings1 has scorned suspicion6 ,oh1 ,miss ,pritchett1 how awful6 said ,gussie4 ,yes1 continued the lady with a delighted shudder1 the net has been thrown over me and ,i was nigh to perish4 ,but ,providence intervenes6 ,i see how ,i am to be the 'umble instrument of crushing error in the ,church4 ,i shall step into the breach6 ,oh1 ,miss ,pritchett1 how noble6 ,miss ,davies1 you will kindly put on your jacket and walk round to ,mr4 ,hamlyn's house4 ,see ,mr4 ,hamlyn and tell him that ,miss ,pritchett is too agitated by recent events to write personally1 but she begs he will favour her with his company at supper to discuss matters of great public importance4 ,tell ,jones to send up some sweetbreads at once1 and inform cook as a gentleman will be here to supper1 and to serve the cold salmon4 ,gussie rose quickly4 ,oh1 ,miss ,pritchett1 she cried1 what a great day for ,england this will be6 ,,chapter ,,vii ,,the ,,offices ,,of ,,the ,,luther ,,league--,,an ,,interior ,on the first floor of a building in the ,strand1 wedged in between a little theatre and a famous restaurant1 the offices of the ,luther ,league were established1 and by late autumn were in the full swing of their activity4 ,visitors to this stronghold of ,protestantism mounted a short flight of stairs and arrived in a wide passage4 ,four or five doors opening into it all bore the name of the association in large letters of white enamel4 ,the first door bore the legend3 ,,publishing ,,and ,,general ,,office ,,inquiries ,this room1 the one by which the general public were admitted to the inner sanctuaries1 was a large place fitted up with desks and glass compartments in much the same way as the ordinary clerks' office of a business house4 ,a long counter divided the room1 and upon it were stacked piles of the newly published pamphlet literature of the ,league4 ,here could be seen that stirring narrative1 ,cowed by the ,confessional2 or1 ,the ,story of an ,english ,girl in the ,power of the ,priests4 ,this publication1 probably the cheapest piece of pornography in print at the moment1 was published1 with an illustration1 at three pence4 ,upon the cover a priest--for some unexplained reason in full eucharistic vestments--was pointing sternly to the armour-plated door of a grim confessional1 while a trembling lady in a large picture hat shrunk within4 ,this little book was flanked by what appeared to be a semi-jocular work called ,who ,said ,reredos8 and bore upon its cover the already distinguished name of ,samuel ,hamlyn1 ,jr4 ,the eye fell upon that popular pamphlet in a wrapper of vivid scarlet--now in its sixtieth thousand--known as ,bow to the ,altar and ,light ,bloody ,mary's ,torture ,fires ,again4 ,as ,soon ,pay the ,devil as the ,priest lay by the side of a more elaborately bound volume on which was the portrait of a lady4 ,beneath the picture appeared the words of the title1 ,my ,escape2 or1 ,how ,i ,became a ,protestant1 by ,jane ,pritchett4 ,two clerks wrote in the ledgers on the desks1 attended to visitors1 and looked after what was known in the office as the counter trade--to distinguish it from the sale of ,protestant literature in bulk1 which was managed direct from the ,luther ,league ,printing ,works1 ,hornham1 ,n4 ,a second room opening into the general office was tenanted by the assistant secretary of the ,league1 ,mr4 ,samuel ,hamlyn1 ,junior4 ,here the walls were decorated with scourges1 horribly knotted and thonged2 ,disciplines1 which were belts and armlets of sharp iron prickles1 designed to wear the skin of the toughest ,ritualist into an open sore after three days' wear4 ,there were also two hair shirts1 apparently the worse for wear1 and a locked bookcase of ,ritualistic literature with a little index expurgatorius in the neat1 clerkly writing of ,sam ,hamlyn1 and compiled by that gentleman himself4 ,in this chamber of horrors1 the assistant secretary delighted to move and have his being1 and three or four times a day it was his pleasing duty to show friends of the ,league and its yearly subscribers1 the penitential machinery by which the priest-ridden public was secretly invited to hoist itself to heaven4 ,the innermost room of all was where ,mr4 ,hamlyn1 ,senior1 himself transacted the multifarious and growing business of his organisation4 ,the secretary sat at a large roll-top desk1 and a substantial safe stood at his right hand4 ,an air of brisk business pervaded this sanctum4 ,the directories1 almanacs1 and account-books all contributed to it1 and the end of a speaking-tube1 which led to the outer office1 was clipped to the arm of the revolving chair4 ,three portraits adorned the wall4 ,from a massive gold frame the features of that fiery ,protestant virgin1 ,miss ,pritchett1 stared blandly down into the room4 ,opposite it was a large photograph of ,mr4 ,hamlyn himself1 with upraised hand and parted lips--in the very act and attitude of making one of his now familiar protests4 ,the third in this trio of ,protestant champions was a drawing of ,martin ,luther himself1 representing the ,reformer1 as ,mr4 ,hamlyn was wont to say1 singing for joy at the waning power of ,rome4 ,the artist of this picture1 however1 being a young gentleman of convivial tastes1 had portrayed the ,nightingale of ,wittemberg in a merry mood1 remembering1 perhaps1 ,carlyle's remark1 there is laughter in this ,luther1 or perhaps--as is indeed most probable--remembering little of the great man but his authorship of the ditty that concludes3 ,who loves not women1 wine1 and song ,will be a fool his whole life long4 ,fortunately1 ,mr4 ,hamlyn1 whose historical studies had been extremely restricted1 did not know of this effort--just as he did not know that to the end of his life the student of ,erfurt steadily proclaimed his belief in the ,real ,presence in the ,eucharist4 ,about ten o'clock on a grey1 cold ,november morning1 the two ,hamlyns arrived at the offices of the ,luther ,league together1 walked briskly up the stairs1 and1 with a curt good morning to the clerks1 entered the innermost room together4 ,people who had known the father and son six months ago1 seeing them now1 would have found a marked1 though subtle1 difference in both of them4 ,they were much better dressed1 for one thing4 ,the frock-coats were not made in ,hornham1 the silk hats were glossy and with the curly brims of the fashion4 ,both still suggested a more than nodding acquaintance with religious affairs in their costume1 some forms of ,christianity always preferring to evince themselves by the style of a cravat or the texture of a cloth4 ,confidence had never been lacking in either of the two1 but now the sense of power and success had increased it1 and had also imposed a certain quietness and gravity which impressed people4 ,here1 at any rate1 were two men of affairs1 men whose names were beginning to be known throughout the land1 and ,mr4 ,hamlyn's manner of preoccupation and thought was only natural after all in one who 7as his son would remark to ,protestant visitors7 practically held the fortunes of the ,church in his hands1 and was destroying the ,catholic wolves with the sword of ,protestant ,truth4 ,the two men took off their overcoats and hung them up4 ,then ,mr4 ,hamlyn1 from mere force of old habit1 pulled at his cuffs--in order to lay them aside during business hours4 ,finding that he could not withdraw them1 for increasing position and emolument had seemed to necessitate the wearing of a white shirt1 he sat down with a half sigh for the freedom and comfort of an earlier day and began to open the large pile of correspondence on the table before him4 ,we'll take the cash first1 ,sam1 he said1 pulling a small paper-knife from a drawer4 ,sam opened a note-book in which the first rough draughts of matter relating to this most important subject were entered1 preparatory to being copied out into one of the ledgers in the outer office4 ,hamlyn began to slit up the letters with a practised hand4 ,those that contained the sinews of war he read with a running comment1 others were placed in a basket for further consideration4 ',well-wisher1' five shillings2 ',well-wisher1' #b #j #j1 by cheque1 ,sam4 ',ethel and her sisters1' ten and six--small family that1 ,i should think6 ',protestant1' five pounds--a note1 ,sam1 take the number4 ,it's curious that ',protestant' always gives most4 ,yesterday seven ',protestants' totalled up to fourteen1 twelve1 six1 while five ',well-wishers' worked out at slightly under three shillings a head4 ,what's this8 ,ah6 cheque for a guinea and a letter on crested paper6 ,enter up the address and make a note to send half a dozen ,bloody ,marys1 one ,miss ,pritchett's ,escape1 and a few ,pay the ,devils4 ,during the last week or two1 the upper classes have been rallying to the flag4 ,they're the people4 ,i'll send this woman the ten-guinea subscription form and ask her to be one of the vice-presidents4 ,listen here3 ,,margravine ,,house1 ,,leicester ,lady ,johnson begs to enclose a cheque for one guinea to aid ,mr4 ,hamlyn in his splendid ,crusade against the ,ritualists4 ,she would be glad to hear full details of the ,luther ,league and its objects4 ,she wonders why ,mr4 ,hamlyn has confined his protests against ,romanism in the guise of ,english ,churchmanship to the ,london district1 and would point out that in her own neighbourhood there is a hot-bed of ,ritualism which should be exposed4 ,sam went to the book shelf and took down a ,peerage4 ,she's the wife of a knight1 he said1 one of the city knights4 ,probably very well off1 said ,mr4 ,hamlyn4 ,we'll nail her for the ,cause6 ,see that the books go off at once1 and ,i'll write her a personal letter during the day4 ,he rubbed his hands together with a movement of inexpressible satisfaction4 ,his keen face was lighted up with the pleasures of power and success4 ,she's got her own axe to grind1 remarked ,sam4 ,had a flare-up with the local parson1 ,i expect4 ,shouldn't wonder1 replied his father indifferently4 ,here's two p4o4's1 one for seven bob and one for three4 ,from a ,wesleyan minister at ,camborne in ,cornwall4 ,i'll put him down to be written to under the local helpers' scheme4 ,his prayers'll be with us1 he says6 ,mr4 ,sam sniffed impatiently as he wrote down the sum in his book4 ,in a few more minutes1 the contributions were all booked up and the ,church of ,england--as represented by these two eminent laymen--was bulwarked against the enemies to the extent of some seventeen pounds4 ,now1 said ,mr4 ,hamlyn1 let's take the press-cuttings next4 ,he opened a large envelope4 ,a day or two before ,mr4 ,hamlyn had varied his pleasant little habit of turning up during the most solemn moments of a church service and brawling until he was ejected with more or less force1 being brought up at a police-court a day or two afterwards and paying the fine imposed upon him with a cheque from ,miss ,pritchett4 ,during the blessing of a new peal of bells in a provincial cathedral1 he had risen and read a paper of protest4 ,he had read the paper in a low1 hurried voice1 and the disturbance had been purely local and attracted but little attention in the huge building4 ,in a moment1 almost1 the secretary of the ,luther ,league had been conducted to the door of the building by vigilant vergers4 ,but the commotion in the press next morning had been enormous4 ,lurid reports of this great protest appeared in leaded type1 comment of every kind filled the papers1 and their editors were inundated with letters on the subject4 ,as an editor himself1 ,mr4 ,hamlyn well understood the interior machinery of a newspaper office1 and was perfectly well acquainted with the various methods by which things get into print4 ,he began to examine the cuttings from the weekly papers that ,durrant's had sent him4 ,all goes on well1 he said at length4 ,it really is astonishing the space they give us6 ,who'd have thought it six months ago6 ,don't they go for the ,league in some of them6 ,just listen to this1 it's the finish of a column in ,vigilance3 '444 and ,i shall therefore await the publication of the promised balance-sheet of this precious ,league with more than usual interest4 ,such an indecent and futile campaign as this deserves to be thoroughly scrutinised4' ,that's nasty1 ,pa1 said ,sam4 ,it don't matter in the least4 ,our ,league is perfectly honest and above-board1 thank goodness6 ,we shall publish the balance-sheet1 of course4 ,we are doing a great and glorious work for ,hengland1 and the labourer is worthy of his hire4 ,we are perfectly justified in taking our salaries4 ,what does a parson do8 ,and1 besides no one reads ,vigilance that's likely to give ,protestant campaigns a penny4 ,it's a society paper4 ,religious people don't see it4 ,quite so4 ,and all the ,protestant papers are with us2 that's the great thing4 ,exactly1 even the old established evangelical papers like the ,church ,recorder daren't say anything against us4 ,you see our advertisements are worth such a lot to 'em6 ,half the ,low ,church papers can't pay their way1 the big advertisers won't look at them4 ,all the money goes to the ,church ,standard and the other ,ritualistic rags4 ,the ,standard's one of the best paying properties in ,london4 ,so the ,low ,church papers can't do without us4 ,wait a year1 ,sam1 and we'll have our own paper1 put in some ,fleet ,street hack as editor1 publish at a separate office1 and charge the account what we like for our own articles4 ,our position is practically unassailable1 as far as ,i can see4 ,it's just that1 my boy--as long as people send in the money4 ,but gradually we shall find ,london getting dry4 ,it's all right now that the boom's on1 but the novelty of the thing will wear off after a bit4 ,and what we want is to get ourselves so strong that the ,league will go on for ever6 ,now1 ,i look on it in this way3 ,much as ,i 'ate the ,ritualists and love true ,henglish ,protestantism--,mr4 ,hamlyn's face grew full of fervour as he said this--much as ,i 'ate ,romanising tricks and such1 ,i'm jolly well certain that neither we nor any one else is going to make much difference to them6 ,they're too strong1 ,sam4 ,you'll find a red-hot ,ritualist would give up his arms and legs for his carryings-on4 ,ritualism's getting stronger and stronger4 ,they've got the best men for parsons1 and you see those chaps aren't in it for their own game1 as a rule4 ,they live like paupers and give all they've got away4 ,well1 that gives 'em grip4 ,silly fools1 said ,sam contemptuously4 ,poor deluded tools of ,rome1 said ,mr4 ,hamlyn1 who1 now that his great mission was an accomplished fact1 was really beginning to believe in it himself4 ,well1 my point is this3 ,ritualism will never stop4 ,it's too well organised1 and the clergy are too well educated4 ,and most of 'em are 'class' too4 ,it all tells4 ,well1 then1 if our efforts aren't going to do any good1 in a year or so the public will notice that1 and the public will stop subscribing4 ,not a bit of it1 ,sam1 you don't see as deep as ,i do4 ,as long as we keep the question prominent1 it will be all right4 ,first of all1 we shall always get the ,nonconformist contribution4 ,in every town1 the ,nonconformist minister can be trusted to stir up people against a ,ritualistic 'priest1' especially if he's vowed to celibacy4 ,married ones get on better4 ,but what ,i'm coming to is this3 ,all over ,hengland there are parishes where the vicar is more or less of a ,romaniser4 ,but he's personally liked1 perhaps1 or no one makes the protest4 ,but in every parish1 experience shows there's two or three prominent folk who hate the vicar4 ,now1 where there's a spark a flame can be got4 ,it's all very well to go and protest in a parish where there's a strong feeling against ,ritualism--like ,st4 ,elwyn's1 for example4 ,but think of the hundreds of parishes where people jog along quite content1 not knowing the darkness in which they're groping6 ,now1 we'll stir these places up1 we'll raise the flag of the ,league in places which have been going along quiet and peaceable for years4 ,there won't be a church from which we can't get some people away4 ,the ,luther ,league shall become a household word from ,john o' ,groat's to ,land's ,end4 ,good scheme1 ,father1 if you can do it4 ,but think of the work1 and think of the risks of letting any one else into the ,league4 ,we might find ourselves in the second place some day4 ,not at all1 ,sam4 ,not as ,i've worked it out4 ,you ought to know that ,i never start anything without going careful into the details4 ,sorry1 ,father4 ,let's have the plan4 ,i'm going to start a band of ',luther ,lecturers' to carry ,protestant ,truth into the 'idden places4 ,i'm beginning with six young fellows ,i've got4 ,they'll travel all over the country1 holding open-air meetings of agitation1 with a collection for the ,league--making public protests in such churches as ,i give the order to be gone for1 and lecturing on what ,ritualism really is4 ,now1 these chaps will have two lectures4 ,i've had 'em written already4 ,one's on the ,mass1 another's on the confessional1--hot ,protestant stuff4 ,they'll go like wild fire4 ,the young men'll learn these lectures off by heart and deliver 'em with local allusions to the vicars of the parishes as they come to4 ,i've got a supply of the illegal wafers as the ,ritualists use for the ,lord's ,supper4 ,each lecture'll have one or two to show in the meetings4 ,he'll pull it out and show the poor deluded people the god of flour and water their priests tell 'em to worship4 ,there's lots of real humour in the lectures4 ,they'll fire the popular imagination4 ,every crowd likes to hear a parson abused4 ,i got the idea of humour and fun in the lectures from the ,salvation ,army4 ,you see1 we want to reach the class of folk as don't mind standing round a street-corner meeting and listening4 ,the ,army makes it pay wonderfully6 ,but they only attack sin4 ,they don't bother what a man does as long as he's good4 ,we're attacking ,rome in the ,henglish ,church1 and it's remarkable what a lot of ridiculous things and points ,i've got into these lectures4 ,there's one thing1 for instance1 that'll keep all a crowd on the grin--,i mean the directions to a 'priest' if an insect gets into the 'consecrated' wine4 ,it has to be burnt4 ,can't you see the lecturer with his ',now1 my friends1 ,i ask you what a poor little spider's done to be used like that8' ,it's all an unworked mine6 ,and you see there's no answer to it6 ,a ,ritualist 'priest' who comes to argue--of course1 discussion will be invited--is bound to get left4 ,he'll be so solemn and that1 that the ordinary man in the street won't understand a word he's driving at4 ,my men'll win every time4 ,you'll see4 ,as usual1 ,pa1 said ,sam1 you've hit on a good thing4 ,it'll extend the ,league wonderful4 ,but what about your men--where'll you get 'em8 and what guarantee will you have that they won't rob the ,league8 ,oh1 that's all thought out4 ,i shall have quite young chaps and pay them about eighteen shillings a week and travelling expenses4 ,each two or three days they'll have to send in reports as to the work1 and each week forward the collection4 ,i shall try1 eventually1 to get real earnest young men who believe in our glorious ,henglish ,protestant 'eritage4 ,they won't rob us4 ,i shall get smart young chaps with plenty of bounce and go1 but not much education4 ,it's not wanted for popular street-corner work4 ,you get a ,ritualist parson coming to try and answer one of my chaps--take the crucifix question1 now4 ,my man will talk about ,popish idols and that--it's all in the lecture--and all the parson will say is that a crucifix is legal in the ,church of ,hengland--,i believe1 as a strict matter of fact1 it is4 ,then my man turns round and tells the crowd that a crucifix is nothing but a dolly on a stick--he gets the laugh1 see8 ,the 'priest' can't explain all his humbugging reverence and that in an open-air meeting1 with one of my chaps ready with a joke every time he speaks4 ,i've got four out of my six men already1 and if the thing hums as ,i expect1 ,i'll put twenty or thirty in the field at once4 ,they're easy found6 ,there's lots of young chaps connected with chapels that would far rather tour the country attracting attention wherever they go1 and do nothing but agitate1 than work hard6 ,there's young ,moffatt1 ,peter ,moffatt's son4 ,he's a plumber1 but he 'ates work4 ,he's got cheek for twenty1 and he'll do no end of good4 ,as for the cost1 why1 the men will pay for themselves over and over again4 ,they'll be well supplied from the central office--extracts from the papers and so on--they'll take local halls and advertise in local papers4 ,i shall expect that each man1 if he's any good at all1 will pay all his own expenses each week and forward a clear two pounds to me6 ,a man that can't do that1 at least1 with such backing as we can give him and such a splendid war-cry--well1 ,i wouldn't give twopence for him4 ,i see it all clear now1 answered ,sam1 a flush of excitement coming into his face4 ,and besides the money and extension of the ,league there will be splendid opportunities for you and me to run down now and then to support our men and get an 'oliday--take ,brighton1 for instance6 ,it's full of ,ritualists4 ,a couple of men could spend a month there4 ,and take from two to three hundred pounds1 ,i should think1 said the secretary1 thoughtfully1 besides dealing an 'orrid blow to the wolves in the fold of the ,protestant ,henglish ,church4 ,we'll have some good protests in ,brighton6 ,then1 when our lecturers are fined for brawling1 we'll instruct them not to pay the fine1 but to go to prison for a fortnight instead6 ,of course1 it'll be considered 'andsomely in their salaries4 ,then we'll send them round the country with a magic lantern and a rousing lecture4 ',imprisoned by the ,romanisers1' ',in ,gaol for the ,protestant ,faith6' or something like that4 ,that's fine1 said ,sam1 in an ecstasy of enjoyment4 ,why1 ,father1 the whole thing grows like a snowball6 ,it must grow4 ,didn't ,i tell you1 six months ago8 said ,mr4 ,hamlyn4 ,look at us then and now6 ,what were we then8 ,nothing1 'ardly4 ,what are we now8 ,directors of a big concern1 becoming known all over ,hengland1 drawing good salaries1 and with all the pleasure of bossing a big show4 ,look at the printing account the works have against the ,league1 look at our expenses when we've got thirty or more ,luther lecturers all over the country6 ,and yet there's nothing risky in it4 ,nothing at all4 ,no bogus-company promoting1 no snide article to sell4 ,we've no limited-liability company act to fear1 no treasury investigations4 ,we stand upon solid rock and nobody can't touch us6 ,and why8 ,because we are championing the freedom of the people's religion1 we are fighting for glorious ,protestantism6 ,fancy no one thinking of it before6 said ,sam4 ,mr4 ,hamlyn's shrewd1 able face beamed with merriment4 ,providence1 he said1 chooses its own instruments4 ,now1 then1 send me in the shorthand clerk2 ,i shall be at work all day4 ,to-night ,i address a public meeting in the ',olborn ,town ,hall1 and before ten ,i'm due to sup with ,miss ,pritchett4 ,she wants something definite done in ,st4 ,elwyn's1 and ,i must think out a slap in the face for ,blantyre4 ,i'll run round to the bank1 said ,sam1 and pay this morning's little lot into the general fund1 and post the statement to the treasurer4 ,right1 my son4 ,what was it8 ,seventeen pounds odd1 ,pa4 ,protestants are waking up1 said ,mr4 ,hamlyn1 our work for the ,cause has a blessing upon it4 ,,chapter ,,viii ,a ,,private ,,conference ,,at ,,midnight ,a ,,year ,,later ,it was late at night in ,father ,blantyre's study at ,hornham4 ,king and ,stephens had gone to bed1 but the vicar sat with ,dr4 ,hibbert1 his churchwarden4 ,both men were smoking4 ,by the side of the doctor stood a modest peg of whiskey2 the priest contented himself with a glass of soda-water4 ,the candles by which the room was lighted showed that ,mr4 ,blantyre's face was very worn and weary4 ,he seemed a man who was passing through a time of stress and storm4 ,the bronzed countenance of the doctor wore its usual aspect of serenity and strength4 ,both men had been talking together earnestly for a great part of the night4 ,a true and intimate friendship obtained between them1 and it was a plan that fortnightly they should meet thus and make confidences to each other about that which they held so dear4 ,it is just a year1 ,blantyre said1 since ,hamlyn committed his first sacrilege in our own church4 ,the time goes very fast1 ,hibbert answered1 yet look at the changes6 ,the man has become almost a power in the land1 or at least he seems to be4 ,it is his talent for organisation4 ,it's supreme4 ,look how this wretched ',league' has grown4 ,it has its spies and agents everywhere1 its committee has names of importance among its members1 the amount of money that rolls into ,hamlyn's coffers must be very large4 ,i'm afraid so4 ,but think of the turmoil and unrest one man can create--the misery and pain churchmen feel every day now as they see the jocose blasphemies of these people and see the holiest things held up to an utterly vulgar and soulless ridicule4 ,it's a wrong thought1 ,hibbert1 perhaps1 but ,i do sometimes long to be out of it all1 to start afresh on such new work as ,god may give one in another life6 ,such a thought comes to all of us at times1 of course4 ,but it's physical mainly4 ,it's merely a languor of overstrain and a weak nervous state4 ,you know yourself how such thoughts come chiefly at night1 and how after your tub1 in the morning light and air they all go4 ,materialist6 ,but you're right1 ,hibbert1 quite right4 ,you go on taking the physic ,i've sent you and you'll pick up soon4 ,but1 of course1 this is a very trying time4 ,the parish is in a constant turmoil4 ,these ,sunday evening ,protestant meetings when folk are coming out of church are a bad nuisance4 ,that's a new move1 too4 ,yes4 ,they found that the hooligan riot-provoking business was very simply dealt with1 and so they are trying this4 ,it is that poor1 silly old creature1 ,miss ,pritchett4 ,the ,hamlyns are hand and glove with her4 ,i suppose she is sincere1 poor old lady6 ,i hope so4 ,she was an ardent ,catholic1 and ,i hope she does honestly believe in the new substitute for the ,faith4 ,i am very sorry for her4 ,i'm less charitable1 ,blantyre2 she's a spiteful old cat4 ,i am not violating any professional confidence in telling you that she won't live long if she goes on living in the thick of this noisy ,protestant agitation4 ,i do my best for her1 of course1 but she won't do as she's told4 ,she's a nuisance1 the vicar said1 but ,i hope she won't go yet4 ,i should like to make friends with her before she dies4 ,and ,i should like her to die in the ,faith4 ,she won't do that1 ,i'm afraid1 ,blantyre4 ,she has gone too far away from the ,church4 ,but1 now1 what do you honestly think the effect of this ,luther crusading business has been on the ,church4 ,well1 ,i think there can be no doubt of that4 ,i was talking it over with ,lord ,huddersfield last week and we both agreed4 ,the ,church has gained enormously4 ,people who were simply attracted by ceremonial and what was novel to them have gone out1 in a restless endeavour to find some new thing4 ,but that is all4 ,our congregations here1 our communicants1 have grown very much4 ,there is a deeper spiritual fervour among us1 ,i am sure of it4 ,no churchman has taken ,hamlyn seriously for a moment4 ,he has failed in every attempt he has made to interfere with our teaching or our ceremonial1 failed absolutely4 ,all his legal cases have fallen through1 or proved abortive1 or are dragging on towards extinction4 ,the days of ritual prosecutions are utterly dead4 ,all the harm ,hamlyn has done the ,church itself is to weary our ears and hearts with a great noise and tumult1 with floods of empty talk4 ,he has stung our nerves1 he hasn't penetrated to any vital part4 ,yes1 that is so4 ,it needs more than the bellowings of such a man1 more than the hostility of people who are not members of the ,church1 to hurt her in any serious degree4 ,the man and his friends have a large rabble behind them1 but they can only parade through the streets of ,england beating their drums and rattling their collecting boxes4 ,the ,church is safe4 ,it is4 ,and yet in another way1 all this business is doing fearful harm to the morale of the country1 limited though it may be4 ,the mass of non-,christian people who might be gathered into the ,church are looking down upon these unseemly contests with a sneer4 ,they feel that there can be little good or truth in a system of philosophy which seems to them to be nothing but an arena of brawling fools4 ,therein comes the harm4 ,hamlyn isn't injuring church people1 he is giving contraband of war to infidelity4 ,and just at this particular moment in the world's history this is extremely dangerous4 ,in thirty years1 the danger will have passed away2 to-day1 it is great4 ,and why particularly at this moment8 ,why1 because the world is utterly changing with extraordinary rapidity4 ,that world which once adjusted itself so sweetly to our faith is vanishing1 is gone4 ,the new world which is arriving is unassimilated1 unsorted1 unexplained4 ,the light hasn't entered it yet1 it doesn't know how to correspond4 ,the trouble lies in that4 ,the new politics1 science1 philosophy1 art1 are only social habits4 ,and these will not talk our language yet1 or confess ,christ4 ,and this squabble and turmoil will retard the new adjustment for years1 because outsiders won't even trouble to examine our claims or make experience of our system4 ,and people are glad of any excuse to ignore or at least avoid ,christianity4 ,you see1 a new religion has sprung up4 ,yes--go on4 ,it is the religion of pleasure1 excitement1 nervous thrill bought at any cost4 ,renan1 who had eyes and used them1 saw that4 ,he has given us the hint in his ,abbess of ,jouarre4 ',were the human race quite certain1' he says1 'that in two or three days the world would come to an end1 the instinct of pleasure'--l'amour is his word--'would break out into a sort of frenzy2 in the presence of death1 sure and sudden1 nature alone would speak1 and very strange scenes would follow4 ,the social order is preserved by restraint2 but restraint depends upon a belief in a hereafter4' ,and already1 ',if a man dies1 shall he live again8' is the burden of a new soliloquy on the lips of a new ,hamlet4 ,faith is becoming more and more an act1 a habit1 of heroism4 ,so you see the harm ,hamlyn and his gang are indirectly doing4 ,but do you know where it seems to me the great counteracting influence to his work lies at the moment8 ,where8 ,you will wonder to hear me say so1 but ,i firmly think for the moment it lies in the ranks1 and true love of our ,lord1 of the pious ,evangelical ,party in the ,church6 ,they are ,catholic without knowing it4 ,they think1 and think sincerely1 that the forms the ,church has appointed1 some of her ,sacraments even1 obscure the soul's direct communion with ,god4 ,they are not in line with us yet4 ,but there is a sterling and vivid ,christianity among them4 ,there is a personal adoration of ,jesus which is strong and sweet1 a living1 wonderful thing4 ,and1 you see1 all this section of the ,church is exempt from the attacks of the extreme ,protestants--who seem themselves to have hardly any ,christianity at all4 ,nor do the really pious ,evangelicals approve of this civil war4 ,they won't be mixed up in it4 ,they are far too busy doing good works and preparing themselves for the next world to join in these rowdy processions of the shallow1 the ill-informed1 or the malevolent4 ,they don't approve of us1 of course1 but they have no public quarrel with what they see is substantially powerful for good4 ,since ,hamlyn's brigade has been throwing mud at us1 and we1 of course1 have defended ourselves to the best of our ability1 the minds of those who are eager to justify their adhesion to the religion of pleasure cannot1 at least if they have any logic or sincerity1 avoid a consideration of the quiet ,evangelicals4 ,it is a new idea to me1 said the doctor1 refilling his pipe1 but ,i suppose you are right4 ,they despise the whole business of agitation1 and yet don't make it a pretext as the rationalists are glad to do4 ,the whole thing is a miserable business6 ,what annoys me1 ,vicar1 is the facility with which a rowdy1 ignorant man of the lower classes has been able to make himself a force4 ,it is hard4 ,but one must remember that however sincere he is--and ,i know nothing against his personal character--he only appeals to the ignorant and rowdy4 ,have you seen his new leaflet8 ,no1 ,i think not4 ,what is it8 ,it came by post last night2 apparently the whole district is being circularised4 ,really1 the thing is quite a curiosity4 ,i will read you a few paragraphs4 ,he opened a drawer and took a small pamphlet from it1 which was headed ,,the ,,hornham ,,scandal4 ,listen to this3 ',at ,st4 ,elwyn's1 ,hornham1' writes a lady member of the ,luther ,league1 ',i recently attended the so-called ,high ,mass4 ,there were three priests in vestments2 there were eight candles burning at eleven o'clock on the altar2 there was incense and all the appurtenances of a ,roman ,mass2 the men bore that ignorant and unwashed appearance which is commonly to be seen at any time in an ,italian church4 ,at times they crossed themselves1 but often they seemed to forget1 and then suddenly to remember4 ,i stayed as long as ,i could1 but it was not long1 for ,i was sick at heart at the thought of what our country is being mercilessly dragged into1 and that it is for services of this description that we hear from time to time our foolish girls exclaim1 ,how ,i hate the name of ,protestant4' ,elegant style1 said the doctor dryly1 but to call our congregation 'unwashed' is not only perfectly untrue1 but a little touch of feminine spite that shows the spirit in which these crusades are carried on4 ,i wonder how many of the five thousand were unwashed when our ,lord fed them6 ,that is a quotation1 said the vicar1 now hear the robuster prose of the great ,hamlyn himself3 ',it appears that there are literally no lengths of lawlessness1 ecclesiastical insubordination1 blasphemous poperies1 or unscriptural profanation of places of worship to which ,ritualistic innovators will not proceed4 ,among other ,romanising acts of the vicar of ,st4 ,elwyn's1 the notorious ,father ,blantyre1 is a direction to some of his congregation who attend the ,lord's ,supper4 ,these members have taken the bread from him--or rather the superstitious wafer which is substituted for bread--with the thumb and finger4 ,oh1 no1 says our priest1 you must hold out your hand for it4 ,these are the instructions of ,father ,blantyre to those about to attend the ,lord's ,supper for the first time after confirmation3 ',as soon as the priest comes up to you1 hold up your hands as high as the chin1 so that he may place the ,blessed ,sacrament in your hand while he says the words1 ,the ,body of our ,lord4 ',but we ask our ,protestant brethren how1 if the minister--falsely called priest--places the bread in the hand of the communicant1 how the latter can comply with the direction take this8 ,let ,england awake to this priestly and insidious ,popish plan4' ,well6 said the doctor1 of all the-- ,words failed him4 ,isn't it vulgar and childish6 said the vicar1 but how admirably adapted to suit the ignorant folk who will read it4 ,the adroit substitution of a colloquial use of the word 'take' for its real meaning of 'receive'6 ,and then the continual effort to degrade the ,mass1 to rob it of its mystery and holy character--it's clever1 it's subtle4 ,hamlyn is a man of parts6 ,is there any more8 ,oh1 yes1 plenty4 ,so far ,i have only read the mildest parts4 ,here is a distorted simile which ,i should hardly have thought even ,hamlyn would have printed4 ,it is painful to read3 ',one of our ,luther ,lecturers recently asked a poor1 deluded young female who is in the habit of attending the pantomime at ,st4 ,elwyn's why she went there4 ,the poor1 deluded creature replied--doubtless with words put into her mouth by her ,father ,confessor--that its spirituality and devotion attracted her4 ,ah6 ,rome and ,ritualism have ever known how to appear as a pure and modest virgin1 even when rotting 7to use the image of the ,holy ,spirit in the ,word7 with fornication4 ,o foolish young woman6 ,how have you been bewitched with these sorceries8 ,a clean thing is to be got of an unclean thing6' ,the doctor ground his teeth4 ,i wish we'd had the man in the regiment6 he said4 ,unclean6 ,i'd have cleaned the brute6 ,the vicar sighed4 ,of course it doesn't really matter1 he said4 ,this sort of stuff carries its own condemnation with it4 ,still it is most distressing4 ,it does wound one deeply to hear the highest and holiest things spoken of in this way4 ,all my people feel it4 ,some of them--poor things--have come to me weeping to hear such words--weeping for shame and sorrow4 ,here is the last paragraph4 ,the pamphlet concludes with a fine flow of rhetoric1 and an invitation to me3 ',the late ,dr4 ,parker said3 ,popery is the vilest blasphemy out of hell4 ,it is the enemy of liberty2 it is the enemy of intelligence2 it is the enemy of individuality1 of conscience1 and responsibility2 it is the supreme wickedness of the world1 the master effort of the devil4 ',and so say we4 ,therefore1 honest1 ,english1 ,protestant people of ,hornham1 look to it that these doings in your midst are put down with a stern hand4 ,a great meeting of ratepayers will shortly be held in the ,victoria ,hall under the auspices of the ,luther ,league4 ,a lecture1 with lime-light views1 will be delivered on the cloaked and hooded ,popery that stalks in our midst4 ,an invitation will be extended to ,fathers ,blantyre1 ,king1 and ,stephens1 the ,priests of ,st4 ,elwyn's church1 who will be accommodated with seats upon the platform if they care to come4 ,we of the ,luther ,league invite them to public controversy1 to an open debate upon the great questions at issue4 ,will they be present8 ,time will show4' ,hibbert rose4 ,well1 it's time we were in bed1 he said4 ,good-night4 ,i should think over that sporting offer of ,hamlyn's if ,i were you4 ,a public appearance might do good4 ,i like a fight4 ,i doubt it1 the vicar answered2 still1 it may be worth considering4 ,one never knows4 ,one doesn't want people to say that one is afraid4 ,good-night1 ,vicar4 ,good-night1 ,hibbert4 ,forget all about these surface worries and sleep well4 ,the vicar was left alone4 ,he took a letter from his pocket4 ,it was from ,lucy1 who wrote from ,park ,lane4 ,in the letter1 she said that she purposed--if he would care to have her--to come down to ,hornham at once and spend some months at the clergy-house4 ,if you can put up with a girl for a time in your bachelor stronghold6 ,i'm sick to death of this life2 it has lost all its attractions for me4 ,i want to live1 not play1 and you1 my dear old boy1 will show me the way4 ,a letter is no way--for me--to tell you of my thoughts4 ,but higher things than of old are working in me4 ,st4 ,elwyn's calls me1 it seems home2 ,i so often think of the big quiet church and the ceaseless activity that centres round it4 ,i long for the peace there6 ,i have much to tell you1 much to consult you about1 and ,i am beginning to wonder why ,i have left you alone so long4 ,good-night1 dear4 ,putting down the letter1 he looked at the clock4 ,it was now far after midnight1 and he stayed the hand that was about to raise the glass that stood on the table beside him4 ,in a few hours it would be dawn1 the dawn when in the dim hour he daily went to meet the ,lord in the ,eucharist4 ,how wonderful that was6 ,what unending joy the break of day had for this good man1 as he began the ancient and mysterious rite of the ,church6 ,there1 there1 beside the altar1 there was peace6 ,in this desert world1 that was so far from ,home1 there was always that daily glimpse into the ,unseen1 that ,communion in which dead friends and great angels joined1 when the ,paraclete came to the weary1 sinful hearts of men like fire1 when our ,lord in his risen majesty came to the world to hearten his soldiers1 to fill his toiling saints with power to continue to the end4 ,if only the whole world knew and realised this6 ,sometimes the priest thought with simple wonder1 that if only men knew1 all trouble and sorrow would be over4 ,to him the material world was the unreal place1 the dream1 the fable4 ,daily he knew that the ,unseen was ever near1 close1 close6--how blind and sorrowful the world was1 that did not know or care for ,jesus4 ,he knelt down now to say his prayers4 ,he prayed for the ,church1 his congregation1 for his sister1 and his friends4 ,then he prayed that he might be worthy to receive the ,blessed ,sacrament at dawn4 ,and then1 happy1 comforted1 and at peace1 with the certainty of an unseen glory all round him1 with august watchers to shield him through the night1 he sought his couch and slept a deep1 dreamless sleep with crossed hands4 ,from henceforth let no man trouble me3 for ,i bear in my body the marks of the ,lord ,jesus4 ,,chapter ,,ix ,a ,,union ,,of ,,forces ,in ,hornham1 the vast majority of a poor and teeming population was quite without interest in any religious matter4 ,the chapels of the various sects were attended by the residuum1 the congregations at ,st4 ,elwyn's were large--to the full holding capacity of the mother church and the smaller mission building--and a fair proportion of people worshipped at ,st4 ,luke's1 the only other church in the neighbourhood4 ,mr4 ,carr1 the vicar of ,st4 ,luke's1 was a man of about thirty-five4 ,he had taken a good degree at ,cambridge1 spent a few years in various curacies1 and had been appointed vicar of ,st4 ,luke's1 ,hornham1 which was in the gift of an ,evangelical body known as ,simon's ,trustees1 about four years before ,mr4 ,hamlyn had thrown ,hornham into its present state of religious war4 ,the vicar of ,st4 ,luke's was a man of considerable mental power4 ,he was unmarried1 had no private means1 and lived a lonely1 though active1 life in his small and ill-built vicarage4 ,in appearance1 he was tall1 somewhat thin1 and he wore a pointed1 close-cropped beard and moustache4 ,his face was somewhat melancholy1 but when he was moved or interested1 the smile that came upon it was singularly sweet4 ,in the ordinary business of life1 he was reserved and shy4 ,he had none of the genial ,irish bonhomie of ,blantyre1 the wholesome breezy boyishness of ,stephens1 or the grim force of ,king4 ,he had a personality--to the eye--but he failed to sustain the impression his appearance made in talk4 ,he was of no use in a drawing-room and very nearly a failure in any social gathering4 ,those few members of his flock with whom1 now and again1 he had to enter into purely social relations1 said of him3 ,mr4 ,carr is a thorough gentleman1 but the poor fellow is dreadfully shy4 ,he wants a wife2 perhaps she'd liven him up a bit4 ,such was the man in private life4 ,in his clerical duties1 as a priest--or1 as he would have put it1 a pastor--his personal character was sunk and merged in his office as completely as that of ,father ,blantyre himself4 ,his sermons were full of earnest exhortation1 his private ministrations were fervent and helpful1 and there was a power in his ministry that was felt by all with whom he came in contact4 ,he was distinctly and entirely what is known as an ,evangelical1 using that fine word in the best and noblest sense4 ,he belonged to a school of thought which is rapidly becoming merged in and overlapped by others1 sometimes to its betterment1 but more frequently to its destruction1 but which standing by itself is a powerful force4 ,he did not realise the state of transition in which he and other men of his school must necessarily stand to-day4 ,their position1 admirable as it often is1 is but a compromise4 ,he did not as yet realise this4 ,of ,blantyre and the people at ,st4 ,elwyn's he knew little or nothing4 ,he had met the clergy there once or twice upon official occasions1 but that was all4 ,he was too busy with his own work to have much time to attend to that of other people1 but he had the natural distaste of his school and bringing-up for ceremonial and teaching of which he had no experience1 and merely regarded as foreign1 anti-,english1 and on the whole dangerous4 ,he was not a bigot1 and the leading feature in his religion was this3 ,he assigned an absolute supremacy to ,holy ,scripture as the only rule of faith and practice1 the only test of truth1 the only judge of controversy4 ,he did not think that there was any guide for man's soul co-equal or co-ordinate with the ,bible4 ,he did not care to accept such statements as the ,church says so1 primitive antiquity says so1 or the ,councils and the ,fathers also say so1--unless it could be shown to his satisfaction that what is said is in harmony with ,scripture4 ,disregarding as superfluous all external and vicarious form in religion1 he attached paramount importance to the work and office of our ,lord1 and the highest place to the inward work of the ,holy ,spirit in the heart of man4 ,and he attached tremendous importance to the outward and visible work of the ,holy ,ghost in the heart of man4 ,his supreme belief was that the true grace of ,god is a thing that will always make itself manifest in the behaviour1 tastes1 ways1 and choices1 of him who has it4 ,he thought1 therefore1 that it was illogical to tell men that they are children of ,god1 and members of ,christ1 and heirs of the kingdom of ,heaven unless they had really overcome the world1 the flesh1 and the devil4 ,but he could not be stern or menacing in his dealings with souls4 ,the mercy of ,god was more in his thoughts1 always and at all times1 than the wrath and judgment of ,god4 ,his attitude toward the pressing questions that were agitating the ,church of ,england1 all over ,england1 was in logical correspondence with his beliefs4 ,there was much within the ,church that he had not understood or realised as yet1 but he was no ,hamlyn1 to break down and destroy all that has made the ,church of ,england what it is4 ,he neither undervalued the ,church nor thought lightly of her privileges4 ,in sincere and loyal attachment to her1 he would give place to none4 ,his apprehension of churchmanship was limited1 that was all4 ,nor did he--as far as he knew--under-value the ,christian ministry4 ,he looked upon it as a high and honourable office instituted by ,christ ,himself1 and on priests as ,god's ambassadors1 ,god's messengers1 ,god's stewards and overseers4 ,nevertheless he looked upon what he knew as sacerdotalism and priestcraft with unfeigned dislike and uneasiness4 ,he believed in baptism as the appointed means of regeneration and that it conveyed grace ex opere operato2 a position in which he was a little in advance of some of his school4 ,his views on the ,eucharist were hardly so sound1 though there was nothing in them absolutely antagonistic to the truths which he had not yet realised4 ,he certainly did not regard ,holy ,communion as the chief service in the ,church1 its central point4 ,on outward things1 he was sane enough4 ,he liked handsome churches1 good ecclesiastical architecture1 a well-ordered ceremonial1 and a well-conducted service4 ,if any one had told ,mr4 ,carr that he was as nearly as possible ,catholic in his views1 that if they were logically pushed forward to their proper development he would be practically one with the ,st4 ,elwyn's people1 he would first have been startled somewhat unpleasantly1 and then he would have laughed incredulously4 ,and if some one had gone to ,blantyre and told him that ,carr was thus1 he would have smiled rather sadly to think that his informant had realised the truths taught by the ,anglican ,church in a very limited way4 ,this mutual misunderstanding between the only two schools of thought in the ,church of ,england that have enduring value is very common4 ,the extreme ,protestants are not church-people at all in any right sense of the word4 ,the ,broad party are confused with their own shifting surmises from day to day1 and make too many discoveries to have real and lasting influence4 ,but the ,high ,church people and the pious ,evangelicals are extraordinarily close to one another1 and neither party realises the fact1 while both would repudiate it4 ,yet both schools of opinion are1 after all1 occupied with one end and aim to the exclusion of all others--the attaining of personal holiness4 ,it was on a bright morning that ,mr4 ,carr came down-stairs and breakfasted1 after he had read prayers with his two servants4 ,there was no daily service in ,st4 ,luke's1 though evensong was said on ,wednesdays and ,saturdays4 ,he read his morning paper for a few moments1 then put it down and pushed his plate away4 ,he was unable to eat1 this morning4 ,he got up and walked uneasily about the room4 ,his face was troubled and sad4 ,then he pulled a letter from his pocket and read it with a doubtful sigh4 ,this was the letter3 ,,luther ,,lodge1 ,,hornham1 ,n4 ,,dear ,,sir3 ,your letter duly to hand4 ,i note that you are desirous of having a private conversation with me1 and shall be pleased to grant facilities for same4 ,i shall not be leaving for the ,strand till mid-day1 and can therefore see you at eleven4 ,faithfully yours1 ,,samuel ,,hamlyn4 ,secretary of the ,luther ,league1 ,chairman of ,the ,new ,reformation ,association4 ,the clergyman read and reread the letter1 hardly knowing what to make of it4 ,he had done so many times4 ,the infinite condescension of it annoyed him2 the recapitulation of the writer's position seemed a piece of impudent bravado1 and reminded the vicar of ,st4 ,luke's of the unhappy state that religious life was in at ,hornham4 ,some days before1 shocked and distressed beyond measure at the growing turmoil in ,hornham1 startled by the continued evidences of it that he met with in his pastoral life1 he had written to ,mr4 ,hamlyn asking for a private interview4 ,he had shrunk from doing anything of the sort for weeks4 ,his whole nature revolted against it4 ,but he had dimly recognised that in some measure he might be said to be in a middle position between the two conflicting parties1 and thought that his mediation might be of some avail4 ,repugnant as it was to him1 he resolved that he must do what he thought to be his duty1 and after he had made it the subject of anxious and fervent prayer he had made up his mind to see if he could not prevail with the leader of the ,new ,reformation to cease his agitation1 in ,hornham at any rate4 ,he imagined that ,hamlyn could hardly realise the harm he was doing to the true religious life in the place4 ,it was not his business to argue with the reformer about his work elsewhere4 ,he knew nothing of that4 ,but in ,hornham1 at any rate1 he did see that the civil war provoked nothing but the evil passions of hatred and malice1 had no effect upon either party1 and prevented the steady preparation for heaven which he thought was the supreme business of ,christians4 ,hamlyn's letter certainly didn't seem at all conciliatory4 ,it disturbed him4 ,he had hardly ever spoken to the man in the past1 but he had known of him1 as he necessarily knew of every tradesman in the borough4 ,social considerations hardly ever entered his mind1 but he had not thought of ,hamlyn as a potentate in any way when he had written to him4 ,he knew him for a plump1 shrewd1 vulgar man1 who dropped his aspirates and said paiper for paper1 and1 indeed1 had thought none the worse of him for that4 ,but the letter surprised him4 ,it was almost offensive1 and he was as near anger as a gentle-minded man may be4 ,at half-past ten o'clock1 he sighed1 realising that a most distasteful duty had to be done1 and prepared to leave the house4 ,before he left his study1 he knelt down and prayed for a blessing in his mission4 ,he always prayed before any event of any importance in life4 ,an enormous number of people still do1 and it is a very great pity that some people do not believe or realise the fact4 ,prayer is not the anachronism many publicists would have us believe4 ,if among all classes1 ,christians by open profession1 and people who make no profession at all1 save only contempt for ,christianity1 a census of prayers prayed during one day could be taken1 the result would be very remarkable indeed4 ,it would certainly startle the rationalists4 ,statistics show that every second a child is born and a person dies4 ,it is during the approach of such occasions that even people who call themselves atheists generally pray4 ,ask hospital nurses1 doctors1 or parish priests6 ,there is no greater humbug than the pretence that prayer as a general necessity and practice is dead4 ,there is more irreligion visible to-day than at any other time in ,english history1 perhaps4 ,but that does not mean that people do not pray4 ,the majority live a jolly1 godless life till they are frightened4 ,then they pray4 ,the minority pray always4 ,mr4 ,carr left his house with a more vigorous step after his petition4 ,as so many folk know1 the help that comes from prayer is only self-hypnotism--of course4 ,but it is certainly odd what power some of the least gifted and most ordinary people have of this self-hypnotism4 ,one had always thought it rather a cryptic science1 the literature of ,india1 for example1 regarding it as a supreme achievement4 ,but it must be very simple after all6 ,and if the help that comes to the human heart after prayer is a result of this magnetic power1 all we can say is that in the depths of a ,whitechapel slum1 the outcast1 forgotten1 and oppressed have each and all the most remarkable1 delicate1 and cultured temperaments1 not in the least seared or spoilt by privation and want4 ,the only point that one quite fails to understand is1 why are the leading reviews and scientific publications still discussing this art1 or talent1 as something rare1 abnormal1 and as yet little understood8 ,mr4 ,carr drew near to ,luther ,lodge4 ,balmoral had been deserted for some time by the ,hamlyn family1 who very properly felt that it was beneath the dignity of its celebrated head1 and would also be harmful to the glorious ,protestant cause1 if they remained among the undistinguished inhabitants of ,beatrice ,villas4 ,about the time that this decision had been arrived at1 a substantial square house1 unornamental but sound--like ,protestantism itself--was vacated by its former inhabitant1 the ,mayor of ,hornham1 a leather-dresser in a large way1 who had sold his business to a company and was retiring to the country4 ,mr4 ,hamlyn looked over the place--then known as ,hide-side ,house--and saw that it would exactly suit him and his altered fortunes4 ,he changed the name to ,luther ,lodge1 made some extensive purchases of furniture1 and established himself there with his son and daughter4 ,carr drew near to the iron gates before the circular sweep of gravel known to the past and present inhabitants of the house as the drive4 ,the gates were hung from two stone pilasters1 each surmounted by a small but extremely rampant lion1 fiercely ,protestant of aspect and painted a dull purple4 ,the whole aspect of the place was chilling1 as the clergyman walked up to the door4 ,the formal lace curtains in the windows1 the brilliant black-leaded boot-scraper which reflected the sunlight in a dozen facets of vicious leaden fire1 the great apple of shining brass which was the bell-pull--all these affected him in an unpleasant manner4 ,he was supremely unconscious of any artistic likings or knowledge1 but the seeds of them were latent in him nevertheless1 and the place hurt his senses in a strange way4 ,a trim maid came to the door1 the extreme antithesis of the filibustering general of a year ago1 and showed him into the hall4 ,i'll see if master's disengaged1 she said2 are you the gentleman as has an appointment with master for eleven8 ,mr4 ,carr confessed to being that gentleman and the girl left him standing there4 ,from some room in the upper part of the house1 so it seemed1 the tinkling notes of a piano came down to him4 ,some one--it was ,miss ,hamlyn herself--was singing fervently of violets1 violets1 ,i will wear for thee4 ,after a considerable interval1 the maid came back4 ,master will see you now1 sir1 she said1 and ushered the visitor into ,mr4 ,hamlyn's study4 ,it was a fair-sized room with a long ,french window opening upon a lawn in the centre of a small1 walled garden4 ,many book-shelves filled with grave and portly tomes lined the walls1 a large writing-table stood in the middle of the carpet4 ,some months before1 a struggling firm of religious publishers had failed1 and their stock of theology was thrown upon a flooded market as ,remainders4 ,mr4 ,hamlyn1 as being in the trade himself1 was enabled to acquire a library suited to his position at remarkably cheap rates4 ,mr4 ,hamlyn rose from his chair4 ,glad to see you1 he said hastily1 and with great condescension and good humour4 ,fortunate ,i happened to have a morning free4 ,now1 what can ,i do for you8 ,no spiritual trouble1 ,i hope8 ,ritualists been prowling round ,st4 ,luke's8 ,if so1 say the word1 give me the facts1 and ,i'll see you are protected6 ,it is on a question connected with the state of affairs in the district that ,i called to see you1 ,mr4 ,hamlyn4 ,quite so1 ,mr4 ,carr1 just what ,i expected4 ,well1 ,i've always heard good accounts of you as a loyal ,protestant minister--though ,i can't approve of your using that pestilential book1 ,hymns ,ancient and ,modern1 in your church--and ,i will do what ,i can for you4 ,providence has placed a scourge in my hand to drive the idolaters from the ,temple1 so tell me your trouble4 ,carr had listened to this1 which was delivered in a loud1 confident voice1 with growing amazement4 ,he hardly knew how to take the man4 ,i deplore very much1 he said1 making a great effort1 the state into which ,hornham has been thrown4 ,i cannot1 of course1 approve of much that ,i understand takes place at ,st4 ,elwyn's4 ,yet ,i am beginning to fear that the remedy is worse than the disease4 ,i am sure1 ,mr4 ,hamlyn1 that your great desire must be to see the people led to love the ,lord ,jesus and to live godly1 sober lives4 ,well1 ,i find that the crusade of the ,luther ,league is unsettling the minds of weaker brethren4 ,they are becoming excited1 forgetful of duty1 carried away by the flood of a popular movement4 ,all this is hurtful to souls4 ,men should have peace to make themselves right with ,god4 ,strife and anger hurt the soul and wound it4 ,now ,i have no concern with any other place but this1 in which my ministry is set4 ,but in ,hornham1 at least1 ,i have come to ask you to moderate your attacks upon the ,high ,church party1 to extend to them the same tolerance they extend to us4 ,hamlyn stared at the speaker4 ,to moderate ,,my methods8 he shouted in a coarse voice4 ,do you know what you're asking8 ,do you realise who ,i am8 ,perfectly1 ,mr4 ,hamlyn1 the clergyman answered with considerable dignity4 ,i am speaking1 ,i hope1 to a brother ,christian1 and as such1 in the name of our dear ,lord1 ,i ask you to cease this strife and discord among us4 ,god will show his desires in his own way2 prayer is a more powerful weapon than public invective4 ,and it is idle to deny that the vicar of ,st4 ,elwyn's and his curates are doing good4 ,i believe their teaching on fundamental truths is wrong1 ,i deprecate the ceremonial with which they veil and cover the simple beauties of the ,christian faith4 ,but ,mr4 ,blantyre is a good and noble-hearted man4 ,he gives his life and his large income--it is a matter of common knowledge--to the service of the poor and needy4 ,he is utterly unselfish1 he loves ,jesus4 ,let him work in his own way in peace4 ,mr4 ,hamlyn's face grew very red4 ,the man was mentally bloated by prosperity and success4 ,daily he was hailed by fools as the saviour of his country1 his name was on many lips1 and his sense of proportion was utterly gone4 ,really6 he said1 of all the mad requests as was ever made me this is the maddest6 ,are you in your senses1 ,mr4 ,carr--you a ,protestant minister of the ,word8 ,you can't be4 ,you come to me1 me1 who ,providence has set at the head of ,henglish ,protestantism1 and ask me to join a base conspiracy to silence the clarion of ,truth6 to leave my 'igh ground of ,principle and grovel before a petticoated 'priest'6 ,why1 you're asking me to let the ,pope and the devil into ,hornham4 ,have you ever cast your eye upon the works of the immortal ,john ,bunyan8 ,what about ,mr4 ,facing-both-ways8 ,mr4 ,carr kept his temper4 ,he was there upon an important issue4 ,what did it matter if the man was rude8 ,but don't you think1 as a ,christian1 he said mildly1 that it is hard enough to fight the devil1 the world1 and the flesh without private differences in the ,christian camp8 ,who's speaking of ,christians8 ,hamlyn cried2 not ,i4 ,blantyre is no ,christian2 he is doing the devil's work1 which is the work of ,rome4 ,he gives away his money because the devil showed him that it was a good move1 to win souls to ,rome4 ,as for his goodness1 how do we know what goes on in the confessional8 ,i've heard---- ,carr stood up4 ,let me tell you at once1 sir1 he said in a hard voice and with flashing eyes1 that any scandal and slander you make before me about a man ,i know to be pure and good ,i will at once repeat to him1 and you will have to take the consequences4 ,ah6 said the agitator sharply and suddenly and with his impudent smile flashing over his face1 mingled with a sneer1 ,i see now6 ,i ought to have seen it before4 ,you are a wolf in sheep's clothing6 ,while we all thought you a faithful ,protestant1 you have secretly joined causes with the enemy4 ,the cloven 'oof 'as peeped out6 ,you come as a sneaking ambassador of ,rome in the garb of a ,protestant4 ,the ,jesuits have been having a go at you1 ,mr4 ,carr1 and they've got you6 ,i shouldn't wonder if you've got your 'air-shirt on now6 ,go back to them as sent you and say that ,i've scourged 'em with whips in the past and ,i'll give 'em scorpions now4 ,this will make a fine story at our next meeting in the public 'all6 ,carr turned on his heel without a word and left the room4 ,he crossed the hall in a couple of strides1 opened the door1 and walked quickly over the gravel sweep4 ,as his hand was on the latch of the gate1 the reformer's voice hailed him4 ,mr4 ,hamlyn was looking round the corner of the door2 a genial grin--a clown's grin--lay upon his face4 ,mr4 ,carr6 he bawled with unabashed and merry impudence1 been to ,mass yet8 ,then1 with a final chuckle1 he closed the door4 ,the peacemaker walked sadly away4 ,he saw at once the sort of man he had been dealing with1 and recognised how futile any protest would be in the case4 ,he saw clearly how unassailable ,hamlyn's position was1 while the country was full of people who would pay him to keep them in a state of pleasurable excitement4 ,it was better than the theatre to which ,hamlyn's subscribers loudly protested that their consciences would not allow them to go6 ,it was a sort of bull-baiting revived2 the lust of the public at seeing some one hunted was satisfied4 ,how infinitely better the sober methods of the old-established ,protestant societies were6 ,legitimate propaganda1 a dignified and scholarly controversy1 these were right and sane4 ,but this clown's business1 this noise and venom1 was utterly disgusting4 ,he had caught a glimpse into the machinery of the whole movement that sickened him4 ,he went home to his lonely house and made a frugal lunch4 ,something ought to be done1 but what8 ,he was not a man to fail in any efforts he made in a good cause4 ,he did not propose to cease his attempts to restore ,hornham to decent calm1 even now4 ,but he could not see1 at the moment1 what was the next move he should make4 ,during the afternoon he set out on a round of parochial visiting4 ,he sat by the bedsides of the sick1 the querulous1 the ungrateful1 and told his message of comfort4 ,he heard much of ,hamlyn's campaign4 ,the new leaflet with its violent language was thrust into his hand4 ,every one wondered what would happen next4 ,would ,mr4 ,blantyre face the ,luther ,lecturers in the public hall8 ,one old bedridden dame ,carr found all agog with excitement and spite4 ,it'd come to a fight1 she expected1 and wot an awful thing it was to have them wicked monsters the ,papists so close4 ,she could 'ardly sleep o' nights thinking of it all4 ,carr found that the poor old creature had not the remotest idea of what ,papist meant1 of what anything meant1 indeed2 but she would hardly listen to his prayers and ,bible-reading nevertheless1 so eager was she to discuss the goings on4 ,about four1 as he left the last house he purposed to visit just then1 a strange thought came to him suddenly4 ,he was at the extreme end of his parish1 not far from ,st4 ,elwyn's4 ,would it not be a good thing to go and visit ,blantyre1 to express his sympathy and to discuss whether some way out of the present trouble could not be found8 ,the idea strengthened and grew4 ,he knew ,blantyre was a decent fellow--every one said so4 ,but1 nevertheless1 he had the sense of venturing into the lion's den6 ,he should feel strange among these priests with their foreign ways1 their cassocks and berrettas2 there would be discomfort in the visit4 ,it is curious how1 in the minds of the least prejudiced1 the dislike to the definite and outward symbols that a priest wears still lingers4 ,in another generation1 it will have been swept away1 but it still survives as a relic of the dark1 secularising influences of the eighteenth century4 ,and1 again1 the man in the street does not like to be reminded that there is a ,god and a class of men vowed to ,his service1 and the complete distinction of a priest's costume is too explicit a reminder4 ,carr thought the matter out for a minute or two and then made up his mind4 ,he would go and talk over the situation with ,blantyre4 ,with a vivid sense of how his host of the morning would call his action bowing down in the house of ,rimmon1 a sense that only quickened his steps and sent a contemptuous curl to his lip1 he turned and walked towards the clergy-house4 ,he rang the bell1 and a tall and rather hulking man in livery showed him into a large drawing-room4 ,this was the navvy1 ,mr4 ,king's former assailant1 who had been promoted1 at his own request1 to a distinctive costume1 which he wore with pride and diligence4 ,his only grief was that he was not allowed to wipe the floor with that there ,hamlyn1 but he lived in hope that some fresh outrage would provide him with the necessary permission4 ,carr looked round the room4 ,there was nothing ecclesiastical about it1 no flavour of the monk at home4 ,it had been newly papered2 the walls were covered with pictures so fresh and new in treatment that they might have come from the ,academy of that year4 ,the vicar of ,st4 ,luke's suddenly awoke to the fact that he was in a very charming room indeed4 ,there was a ,steinway grand piano there1 a beautiful instrument2 he saw that the ,twelfth ,nocturne of ,chopin stood open upon it4 ,everywhere he saw a multitude of photographs in frames of silver1 copper1 ivory1 peacock leather--every imaginable sort of frame4 ,a great many of these photographs were signed in the corner1 and looking at some of them he was surprised to see that they were of very well-known people4 ,here was a well-known general1 there a judge1 again the conscious features of a society actor beamed out at him4 ,his eye1 unobservant at first1 began to take in the details of the room more rapidly4 ,there were a hundred luxurious little trifles scattered about1 numerous contrivances for comfort4 ,he was wondering to whom this room could belong1 when the door opened and his doubts were resolved4 ,a girl came in1 a girl with a beautifully modelled face1 healthy and yet without crimson in it4 ,a pair of frank1 dark eyes looked at him from beneath an overshadowing mass of dead black hair4 ,how do you do1 ,mr4 ,carr1 she said1--he had given the man his card1--,i am ,mr4 ,blantyre's sister2 ,i've only just pitched my tent in ,hornham4 ,bernard will be in for tea in half an hour4 ,rather nervously1 ,carr explained that he had called on a matter of parochial business4 ,he remained standing1 a little at a loss4 ,this girl was not like the young ladies of ,hornham4 ,well1 you must have some tea1 ,lucy said with decision as she rang the bell4 ,carr sat down4 ,he anticipated a somewhat trying half hour until the vicar should arrive4 ,he was a gentleman1 well bred in every way1 but his life1 from the time of his school days1 had been lonely and without much feminine companionship4 ,in five minutes he found1 to his own great surprise1 that he was talking vividly and well1 that he was quite pleased to be where he was4 ,and the girl seemed to be interested and pleased with him4 ,it was a very new sensation1 this feeling of mutual liking1 to the lonely man4 ,the conversation turned naturally to the unrest around them4 ,carr said nothing as yet of his morning's experience4 ,well1 ,i must confess1 frankly1 ,mr4 ,carr1 ,lucy said1 that until lately ,i never took any interest at all in these things4 ,they seemed humbug to me4 ,now1 of course1 ,i know better4 ,it's a shame6 a black shame1 that ,bernard and the others should be treated so by this disgusting man4 ,if he only knew what their life was6 how self-denying1 how full of unceasing labour and worry1 how devoted4 ,take ,mr4 ,stephens1 for instance3 he's only a boy1 yet he's killing himself with work and enthusiasm4 ,he was up all last night with a man that has delirium tremens1 yet he said ,mass at half-past seven1 came to breakfast as merry as a sand-boy1 and was teaching in the national schools at nine4 ,and he'll be on his feet to-day until nearly midnight without a word of complaint4 ,he'll spend nearly the whole evening in the boys' club1 boxing and playing billiards with them--oh1 you can't think how the three of them work6 ,she went on with a series of anecdotes and explanations1 told with great vividness and power1 in her new enthusiasm for the men among whom she had come4 ,and throughout all her talk1 the clergyman heard frequent references to the services that went on almost unceasingly in the great church hard by4 ,he heard names1 strange and yet familiar1 startling to his ear1 and yet which seemed quite natural and fitting in the place where he was4 ,one thing he began to see clearly1 and with interest3 whatever these men were in opinion1 a life of real and active holiness went on among them4 ,and he noticed also1 with wonder1 how everything seemed to draw its inspiration from the church1 how constantly the clergy were there1 hearing confessions1 saying services1 praying1 and preaching4 ,the whole thing was new to him4 ,they were the best of friends1 talking brightly together1 when the door burst open and the impetuous priest rushed in4 ,well1 ,i'm glad to see you6 he said with a broad grin of welcome4 ,had tea8--that's right4 ,i see you've made friends with my clergywoman6 ,i've been in church hearing confessions1 or ,i'd have been in sooner4 ,his manner was extremely genial4 ,he seemed genuinely glad to see his brother vicar and not in the least surprised or puzzled4 ,carr looked attentively at him4 ,so this merry ,irishman1 with the lined1 powerful face1 the grey hair1 and eyes which sometimes blazed out like lamps--this was the great ,ritualist1 the ,jesuit1 the thief of ,english liberty6 ,he had a wonderful magnetic power1 that was evident at once4 ,his sympathy for everything and everybody poured from him2 he was big1 big in every way4 ,he chatted merrily away on a variety of topics while taking his tea4 ,asking his sister for another cup1 he suddenly turned to ,carr4 ,that reminds me1 he said1 of a good story ,i heard yesterday4 ,father ,cartwright was here to lunch1 he is one of the ,st4 ,clement ,fathers at the ,oxford monastery4 ,not long ago a young nobleman--rather a bon vivant1 by the way--went down to spend a few days with the ,fathers4 ,he made his arrival1 very unfortunately for him1 poor fellow6 on a ,friday1 when the fare's very frugal indeed4 ,he had very little to eat1 poor chap1 and went to bed as hungry as a hunter1 quite unable to sleep he was4 ,now1 it's the custom for one of the ,fathers to go round in the night with a benediction1 ',the ,lord be with you4' ,they always say it in ,latin1 ,dominus tecum4 ,the young man heard some one rapping at the door4 ',who's there8' says he4 ',dominus tecum1' was the answer4 ',thanks1 very much1' said the nobleman1 'please put it down outside'6 ,while they were laughing at the story1 ,lucy rose and1 shaking hands with ,carr1 went away4 ,the two clergymen were left alone4 ,you'll not mind talking in here8 ,father ,blantyre said4 ,i've got a poor chap in me study ,i don't want to disturb4 ,i found um after lunch making a row in the street with a crowd round him1 a poor half-clothed scarecrow1 beastly drunk--never saw a man in such a state4 ,i asked one of the crowd who he was and he said he was a stranger1 a ship's fireman1 who'd been about the place for a day or two1 spending all his money in drinks1 and he hadn't a friend in the world4 ,a policeman came along and wanted to lock um up1 but ,i managed to get him in here and he's sleeping it off4 ,i shall give um egg in milk when he comes round3 his poor stomach's half poisoned with bad liquor and no food4 ,i always find egg and milk the best thing in these cases4 ,i wish he wasn't so dirty6 ,we shall have to give 'm a hot tub before he can go to bed4 ,what will you do with him8 ,oh1 keep him here for a day or two to pull round1 give um some clothes1 and pack 'm off to sea again where he can't get any drink4 ,don't such men ever rob you8 ,hardly ever4 ,it's not your real outcast who steals much4 ,they're generally so astonished to find a parson isn't as black as he's painted that they don't think of anything else4 ,they go away feeling they've got a pal1 made a friend6 ,that's the awful want in their lives4 ,a lot of them come back1 and write to me while they're away1 too1 queer letters full of gratitude and bad language6 ,but ye came to see me1 my friend4 ,i'm so glad you've found your way here4 ,now1 what can ,i do for you1 or are ye going to do anything for me8 ,his manner had changed4 ,his tone was indescribably sympathetic and gentle4 ,if ever the wisdom of charity and the light of holiness shone out on a man's face1 ,carr thought that he saw it now4 ,he was entirely dominated by the man4 ,in a burst of nervous words1 he poured out his thoughts4 ,he told of his futile visit to ,hamlyn1 his keen distress at the result1 the misery the agitation gave him1 and the harm he believed it to be doing4 ,blantyre listened with few words4 ,now and then he made a warm and penetrating remark4 ,it will pass1 he said at length2 ,god will give us peace again4 ,he is trying the faith of the poor and ignorant among us4 ,our prayers will avail4 ,but we will concert together that we may take such measures to stop the local evil as we properly can4 ,i have been loath to move in the matter1 but now that you have come to me we will join forces and take action4 ,there are ways and means4 ,i hate pulling wires and using influence1 but one must sometimes4 ,i had hoped it wouldn't be necessary4 ,but something must be done4 ,lord ,huddersfield will take action for us4 ,the street meetings can be stopped at once4 ,then we can inaugurate a real press campaign and let the leader-writers loose4 ,hitherto it's been our policy to say nothing much1 except in the religious papers1 of course4 ,but the time has come when we must fight1 too4 ,i was talking to ,sir ,michael ,manicho about it the other day4 ,a word or two from him and the country will be ringing with warnings4 ,we can rob this ,luther ,league of its powers in a week4 ,it will go on1 of course1 but with its fangs drawn4 ,the people who support it will1 many of them1 cease their subscriptions4 ,and there is the law also4 ,the magistrates of ,london are quite ready to take a strong stand4 ,that is settled4 ,and a word from the ,archbishop1 perhaps1 would be a help4 ,public opinion is very easily turned4 ,he spoke calmly1 but with conviction and a quiet sense of power4 ,carr began to see dimly what great forces were behind this man and others of his kind4 ,the tremendous organising machinery of the ,catholic ,church was laid bare for a moment4 ,a most confidential talk followed4 ,blantyre gave the other details and names4 ,he made it plain to ,carr's astonished ears that those in high places were waiting to act1 waiting to see if the ,church needed them4 ,the depth and force of it all astonished him4 ,a bell began to ring4 ,there's evensong1 said ,blantyre1 ,i must be off4 ,it's my turn to say it to-night4 ,i will come1 too1 ,carr answered4 ,do1 do6 and take some food with us all afterwards1 and we'll have a longer talk4 ,you can't think how happy ,i am that we have come together4 ,what8 ,you've never seen our church8 ,why1 then1 you've a treat in front of ye6 ,every one says it's beautiful4 ,we all love it1 we're all proud of it6 ,he took him by the arm and led him away4 ,not a word of the differences that separated them1 no suspicion1 or distrust1 nothing but welcome and brotherhood6 ,the tall1 bearded man and the quick1 shaven ,celt in his cassock went into the church together to pray-- ,give peace in our time1 ,o ,lord4 ,,chapter ,x ,,low ,,water ,,and ,,great ,,expectations ,in a couple of months after the meeting between ,carr and ,blantyre1 public opinion had spoken in no uncertain way about the ,luther ,league4 ,public opinion in these days is very easily led in this or that direction--but only for a time4 ,there is a vast stratum of common-sense1 of love of justice1 of wholesome sanity1 in ,england1 and it can always be reached by a little boring4 ,in the end1 especially upon any question which is in its essence sociological1 a proper balance is found and the truth of a matter firmly established4 ,and ,hamlyn's agitation was treated as a social question rather than a religious one1 at any rate by a secular press4 ,whether the doings of the ,high ,church party were legal or illegal according to the prayer-book 7such was the line the papers took7 was a question to be decided by experts in history and the authorities of the ,church2 a question1 in fact1 that ought to be decided in a legitimate way4 ,what was1 however1 quite certain1 was that the proceedings of ,hamlyn and his party were improper1 vulgar1 and indecent4 ,it was simply misleading nonsense to cover the ,ritualistic party1 a body of high-minded and earnest men1 with the noisy and venomous vituperation of the streets4 ,freedom of thought was the heritage of every ,englishman1 and ,hamlyn had simply elected himself a grand inquisitor of matters that did not concern him and which he was unable to understand4 ,no dishonesty on the man's part was alleged4 ,but his history was unearthed by one or two enterprising journalists1 following the popular lead4 ,it was shown that while nothing had ever been said against his personal character--and nothing was said now--he had risen from the position of a struggling local newspaper man to comparative affluence and the control of a large and costly organisation4 ,the cash accounts of the ,league were scrutinised1 and unkind remarks were made upon the constant advertisements of the ,league1 with their cry for increased income and fresh subscribers4 ,it was pointed out that people who supported a crusade made without authority by a self-constituted ,peter the ,hermit1 over whom no proper control could be exercised and whose methods of prosecuting it were a mixture of buffoonery1 uncharitable malice1 and untruth1 were incurring a serious responsibility4 ,in short1 public opinion was told in plain language exactly how it ought to regard the campaign4 ,great newspapers spoke out during one fortnight with singular unanimity4 ,street meetings were promptly broken up by the police1 and after some of the ,luther ,lecturers had been to prison1 finding that public interest in their martyrdom was languishing1 they subsided into quiet1 devotional meetings on the sands at popular watering-places4 ,whenever ,mr4 ,hamlyn hired a hall and lectured on the iniquities of the local clergy1 he was confronted by the spectacle of a sharp-faced man who took down every word of his utterances with scrupulous fidelity4 ,it was always the same machine-like man1 in ,liverpool or in ,plymouth1 in ,bath or ,dundee--there he was4 ,the agitator's eloquence was considerably checked4 ,he was in no condition to sustain an action for slander or libel in which1 he well knew1 some poor clergyman would somehow be able to brief all the great hawk-faced leaders of the bar1 gentlemen with whom ,mr4 ,hamlyn wished to have as little as possible to do4 ,at such open-air meetings as were permitted1 some unobtrusive stranger was generally to be found distributing leaflets among the crowd1 which resembled nothing so much as the literature of the ,luther ,league itself in its general get-up and appearance4 ,on perusal1 however1 it proved to be of quite a different tenor1 being nothing else than extracts from the best-known ,english newspapers on ,mr4 ,hamlyn and his mission4 ,this was very trying and disturbed the harmony of many meetings4 ,in the assemblies convened at halls hired for the occasion1--admission by ticket only1--it frequently happened that some well-known local resident1 who could not be denied1 made his appearance1 and with a few weighty words entirely changed the character of the meeting4 ,the reports from his myrmidons all over the country1 which reached ,mr4 ,hamlyn in the ,strand1 showed a series of counter-moves which alarmed him in their neatness and ingenuity4 ,it had been for months a pleasing habit of the peripatetic ,protestants under the ,hamlyn banner to visit churches and make notes of the ornaments therein1 afterwards lecturing on them in their own inimitable and humorous manner to crowds in back streets4 ,mr4 ,moffatt1 indeed--the young gentleman who had forsaken the plumbing and gas-fitting industry to become incandescent and watery on the ,protestant war-path--had more than once broken a small crucifix with an umbrella4 ,the lecturers found1 however1 that1 as if by some concerted action1 church doors were locked wherever they might go4 ,the poor fellows' hunger for the sight of candlesticks and sanctuary lamps was hardly ever gratified now1 and they were compelled to the somewhat ignominious expedient of nailing the bulls of ,mr4 ,hamlyn to the doors of sacred buildings and going gloomily away4 ,on one occasion1 ,mr4 ,moffatt1 who was a young fellow of considerable hardihood1 arrived at a well-known sink of ritual during the week1 where the incense used in church cost1 it was reported1 as much as eight shillings a pound6 ,failing in every effort to penetrate the building1 one ,sunday morning he mingled with a group of worshippers and made an attempt to enter the church4 ,being a somewhat tubby youth of no great height1 he followed closely on the footsteps of a ponderous gentleman quite six feet high1 and congratulated himself he was escaping observation1 just as one has seen a small dog slink nearer and nearer to the tempting joint upon the dinner-table4 ,his hopes were doomed to failure4 ,he was almost inside the porch when two stalwart church wardens barred the way and read him a paper1 which stated that1 as he was a known brawler who had been convicted of other illegal disturbances in ,god's house1 entry was refused him4 ,at the moment1 in his chagrin and surprise1 ,mr4 ,moffatt could think of no better retort than an injunction to the reader of the document to keep his hair on4 ,then1 gathering his faculties together1 he commenced a vigorous protest as to his rights as a baptized1 confirmed communicant member of the ,church of ,england to make one of the congregation4 ,no answer whatever was vouchsafed him1 and he was compelled to stand meekly by while the usual members of the congregation were admitted4 ,he bethought himself of an appeal to the majesty of the law6 ,very well1 then1 he said1 ,i shall go and fetch a policeman4 ,that's all4 ,one of the church wardens opened the inner door of the church and beckoned to some one4 ,a sergeant of police1 in his uniform1 emerged quietly4 ,mr4 ,moffatt started1 muttered something about writing to the ,bishop1 and left the vicinity of the church without further ado4 ,and it was thus all over the country4 ,hamlyn and his son realised that a strong and powerful organisation was arrayed against them4 ,their tactics were counter-checked at every turn4 ,as a natural consequence of all this1 the subscriptions to the ,league fell away at a most alarming rate4 ,the street and public hall collections of the lecturers dwindled until they could hardly pay themselves their own modest emoluments4 ,the general subscriptions and special donations to the head office were in a no less unsatisfactory condition4 ,a very great number of people1 with an honest dislike and distrust of practices which seemed to them against the law of the ,church of ,england 7as they understood it71 had hitherto sent ,hamlyn considerable sums of money4 ,his campaign seemed to them a real and efficacious method of dealing with the question1 and his methods had not been very clear to them in their actual detail4 ,but when the most influential part of the press began to speak with no uncertain voice1 these people began to hurriedly repudiate any connection with the ,luther ,league and to tie their purse-strings in a very tight knot indeed4 ,then1 again1 there was a second not inconsiderable class of people whose support was withdrawn4 ,these were more or less of the ,miss ,pritchett order4 ,they had some real or fancied grievance against the vicar of the parish in which they lived1 and the machinery of ,hamlyn's ,league was found to be at their service for the purposes of revenge4 ,under the cover of religious truth they were able to gratify a private spite--a method of campaign as old as history itself4 ,the aims of these people had been achieved4 ,that is to say1 ,mr4 ,hamlyn or his friends had made themselves more or less a thorn in the sides of the local clergy1 had banged the field-piece1 twanged the lyre1 and departed with as much money as they were able to collect in the cause of ,protestant ,truth4 ,and those people who had first moved in the matter saw that1 after all1 the status ante quo had not been altered in the least1 that nothing had happened at all6 ,one or two people of no importance whatever might have left the ,church1 but the general result was1 as a rule1 an increase of the attacked congregation and1 inevitably1 an enormous increase of personal popularity of the priest and of loyalty to him and his teachings4 ,so this second class of worthies also became hard-hearted to the perfervid advertisements of the ,league1 buttoned up their pockets1 and tried to behave as though the names of those twin greatnesses1 ,martin ,luther and ,samuel ,hamlyn1 had never crossed their lips4 ,in the offices in the ,strand1 all these causes were thoroughly appreciated and understood4 ,the prosperity1 or rather the consciousness of it1 which had seemed to ooze from ,mr4 ,hamlyn's features1 was no more to be seen4 ,the countenance of the ,protestant ,pope wore an anxious and harassed expression when he was alone with his son1 and their talks together were frequent and of long duration4 ,one disastrous morning the post brought nothing in the way of fuel for the ,protestant fire except a single miserable little post-office order for seven shillings and sixpence1 a donation from ,a ,baptist ,friend4 ,protestant ,truth was in a bad way4 ,both the ,hamlyns thought so as they sat down gloomily for a private conference in the inner room4 ,there's a good balance in the bank1 of course1 ,hamlyn said4 ,we've got staying power for some time yet1 and the salaries are safe4 ,but it's the future we've got to look to4 ,the righteous cause can't go on nothing4 ,don't you worry1 ,father1 said ,sam1 that ,exeter ,hall speaking has pulled you down a bit4 ,you're not your real self4 ,i haven't a doubt that you'll think of something to wake things up in a day or two4 ,hope so1 ,i'm sure1 though ,i can't think of anything at present4 ,but seven and six6 ,it's the first day ,protestantism's dropped below a matter of two pound odd4 ,there's plenty of other posts during the day1 ,pa4 ,that's true4 ,one day or three days don't matter4 ,but it shows how things are going4 ,the ,romans have been too cunning for us1 ,sam4 ,the wiles of the ,scarlet ,woman are prevailing2 honest1 straightforward ,protestants are being undermined4 ,but think of the letters of sympathy we've 'ad since the great ,ritualistic conspiracy has come up4 ,the real hearty ,protestants are as faithful as they ever were4 ,yes1 they are1 said ,mr4 ,hamlyn reflectively2 we can always fall back on them1 and we've got some thousands of names and addresses on the books4 ,the ,league'll go on safe enough1 there'll always be labourers in the vineyard and them as will pay the overseer his just dues4 ,but it's 'ard1 after the splendid success we've had1 to sink down into a small commonplace affair with just a bare living4 ,the real red-hot ,protestants1 who are really afraid of ,rome and that1 are so few6 ,these disgusting newspapers been showing up everything and the lukewarm people have been falling away4 ,all the real money is flowing back into ,roman channels4 ,if there were more really earnest ,protestants we might keep on as good as ever4 ,but there's not4 ,we haven't sold a gross of ,bloody ,marys during the month4 ,it's a pity we had to suppress the ,confessional2 that was a real seller--and did a lot of good1 ,mr4 ,hamlyn added as an afterthought4 ,we couldn't well do no other after the 'int we got from the ,vigilance people1 said ,sam4 ,i suppose not4 ,but it was a great pity4 ,you're due at ,malakoff ,house to-night1 aren't you1 ,pa8 ,yes1 at seven4 ,i'm very uneasy in my mind about ,miss ,p41 ,sam4 ,gussie says she's worse than she knows herself4 ,she hasn't been out of bed for a fortnight now4 ,she's not long for this world1 ,i'm afraid1 ,hamlyn answered4 ,while she's alive we are fairly safe4 ,but when she's in ,glory where shall we be8 ,that's the question1 ,father4 ,gussie knows nothing and can't find out anything1 neither4 ,a really handsome legacy invested in some good stock would put us right again whatever might happen4 ,it would4 ,but just at present the old lady's awful to deal with4 ,you see1 ,i'm in an awkward position1 ,sam4 ,i'm not such a fool as to tell her how we've been bested lately--that's to say1 ,i can't bring myself to wound a faithful ,protestant heart by stories of persecution of them as is doing the ,lord's work against ,rome4 ,miss ,p4 don't know anything about the checks we've received of late4 ,well1 then1 she's always bothering me to know why we aren't keeping it up in ,hornham1 why we aren't going for ,blantyre and that lot4 ,she hears everything that goes on in the parish1 though ,gussie ,davies does her best to stop it4 ,but she don't seem to trust ,gussie as she did1 which is a pity4 ,miss ,p4 quite sees that1 for some reason or other1 things have gone quiet in the parish1 and she's getting restive4 ,something must be done soon1 that's quite evident4 ,some big thing to wake her up--and everyone else1 too4 ,it doesn't matter much how far we go now4 ,not a bit4 ,the further the better1 as a matter of fact4 ,the lecturers' hands are so tied now1 what with all these cunning moves of the ,romanists1 that they can't do anything4 ,it seems we've alienated all the moderate people and we've only the extreme ones to rely on4 ,well1 then1 we must wake them up1 that's all4 ,the papers can't well say worse of us than they do already1 so it really is the best policy to give the whole country a regular startler4 ,i can't think of anything new at present1 but ,i shall4 ,i expect a bit of inspiration'll come before long4 ,anyway1 ,i shall tell ,miss ,pritchett to-night to wait and have patience a little longer1 as there's something in the wind that will do all she wants4 ,it's her illness4 ,she must have continual bits of excitement to keep her going1 it's a regular disease with her now4 ,if ,i can think of a good scheme to liven up things generally1 in the first flush of it she'll be so pleased that we might venture a word or two upon her testamentary dispositions4 ,i should feel so much happier about the ,cause if ,i knew the ,league was down in her will for a thumping sum4 ,of course1 anything of the sort would have to be said most careful4 ,she'd get up and be healthy again in a week if she thought we thought she was going to peg out6 ,mr4 ,hamlyn concluded his remarks with a somewhat resentful sigh1 and1 whistling down the speaking-tube for the correspondence clerk1 began to dictate his morning's letters4 ,it was about seven o'clock when the secretary arrived at ,malakoff ,house1 tired and dispirited4 ,the whole day had gone unsatisfactorily4 ,an evening paper had come out with a leaded column about the ,league which was far from complimentary4 ,the various callers at the office were all more or less disagreeable1 and even the volatile ,samuel had been plunged into a state of furtive gloom that radiated mis-ease upon all who came near him4 ,mr4 ,hamlyn was shown into the drawing-room and in a minute or two1 ,gussie ,davies came to him4 ,the girl was white and tired of feature4 ,dark semicircles were under her eyes1 but her manner had a nervous excitement that was infectious4 ,both of them spoke in that agitated whisper that some people affect in the neighbourhood of those who are seriously ill and whom they think like to die4 ,it is a whisper in which there is a not unpleasurable note1 a self-congratulation at being near to the ,great ,mystery1 as spectators merely4 ,how is she8 whispered ,hamlyn4 ,bad1 answered ,gussie4 ,dr4 ,hibbert's been and ,i had a chat with him afterwards4 ,he daren't speak as plain as he'd like1 for fear of frightening her4 ,but he says she must not keep on exciting herself4 ,it will be fatal if she does4 ,another two months of this ,st4 ,elwyn's excitement will kill her1 ,mr4 ,hamlyn4 ,i'm sure of that4 ,what's she been saying8 ,oh1 the same old thing3 ,why doesn't ,mr4 ,hamlyn do something decisive8 ,why doesn't he strike these proud priests some crushing blow8 ,you know she's heard that ,miss ,blantyre has come to live at the vicarage1 and that makes her keener than ever4 ,well1 ,i must think of something1 that's all1 said the secretary in a decisive whisper4 ,i'll promise her a new move almost at once4 ,i suppose you've had no chance to get in a word about the will8 ,not a chance4 ,i can't find out anything either4 ,all ,i know is that her solicitor hasn't been here since she joined the ,league4 ,so that looks as if there isn't anything done yet4 ,i don't suppose there is1 my dear4 ,but if ,i can keep her quiet now1 and do something big in the parish in a few days1 then ,i suppose we might broach it8 ,certainly1 ,mr4 ,hamlyn1 ,i should say so4 ,good4 ,one more question1 ,gussie1 before ,i go up4 ,do you think it wise to mention a contribution to the working fund just now8 ,one can never be too zealous in the cause of ,protestant ,truth1 but ,i want to deal wisely with her4 ,oh1 ,i think you'll be safe enough for a hundred or two1 ,gussie said1 as long as you promise her a good rumpus soon6 ,she ain't mean1 ,i will say that for her4 ,mr4 ,hamlyn nodded in a brisk1 business-like way1 rang for the maid1 and was shown up to the sick-room4 ,gussie remained in the drawing-room4 ,she wondered how successful her friend and lover's father would be4 ,she had immense faith in his abilities and already looked forward to the time when1 released for ever from her duties at ,malakoff ,house1 she would1 as ,mrs4 ,hamlyn1 ,junior1 become a leading lady of ,true ,protestantism4 ,not that the girl hated her employer4 ,she had no affection for ,miss ,pritchett--and it would have been wonderful if she had--but her feeling was not stronger than that4 ,as for the money question1 the money that the rich old lady was giving to the ,luther ,league1 ,gussie saw no harm in that4 ,the money was for a good cause1 so she believed1 and the ,hamlyns1 pre et fils1 had much better have the handling of it than any one else6 ,mr4 ,hamlyn was a considerable time4 ,the girl wandered about the room1 agog to hear his news1 thinking with a certain terror of the grim old woman up-stairs4 ,for what had been tartness and acerbity had become grimness now1 in the pompous old-fashioned bed-chamber1 where she lay waiting the beating of those great black wings which all1 save she1 knew were drawing near4 ,although ,gussie ,davis knew all the foibles of her mistress and could play upon them with adroitness and success1 she felt1 nevertheless1 a fear of the old woman4 ,miss ,pritchett1 with all her absurdities1 her petty jealousies1 her greed for flattery1 was a woman with a personality4 ,she was very rich1 and she had chosen to remain among the surroundings of her youth and be great among the small4 ,yet even a petty supremacy awes the petty1 and the sly ,welsh girl was indubitably awed4 ,she was not wholly bad1 not unfeeling in her way1 but she was weak4 ,in the hands of the ,hamlyns1 she had been as putty from the very first4 ,they were strong men4 ,there was no doubt about that4 ,with all the temperamental vulgarity and greed of both father and son1 there was indubitable strength--and1 in the case of the elder1 considerable magnetic power4 ,they had been kind to her also4 ,she was genuinely fond of ,sam1 and he was fond of her4 ,the accident of her position1 that she was able to help and forward their plans1 made no difference as to that4 ,hamlyn1 ,senior1 liked her4 ,he would1 she knew1 be kind and fatherly to her when she was married to ,sam4 ,he was that now4 ,for1 if ,hamlyn had been able to employ his cleverness to good advantage in the exploitation of any other thing save of religion1 he would have been counted as a shrewd business man and nothing more4 ,nothing worse than that at any rate4 ,he had no personal vices4 ,he did not in the least realise that he was living a life that was shameful4 ,religion meant no more to him than any other way of making money would have meant4 ,that was all4 ,and1 oddly enough1 ,blantyre himself shrewdly suspected this1 while ,carr looked upon the agitator as infamous4 ,hamlyn was perfectly aware that he was a humbug1 but he thought that his humbug was perfectly legitimate in the war of life4 ,the priest at ,st4 ,elwyn's whom he had so bitterly attacked and wounded was a psychologist4 ,most priests are4 ,men who sit in churches and hear the true story of men's lives learn an infinite tenderness4 ,men come to them for comfort1 to hear the comfortable words that our ,lord has spoken for the sinful who are penitent1 to receive from them that absolution which is nothing more than the confirmation1 in a concrete and certain way1 of the promise of ,god4 ,it is only the people who have never confessed their sins1 not to a priest1 but to ,god through a priest1 who speak against the ,sacrament of ,penance4 ,they do not know they are tilting at windmills4 ,and the bitter shame that sometimes comes to a man as he tells another man the true story of his life is in itself the truest evidence that he means to amend it4 ,no one would do that without penitence4 ,there is a motive for every action2 the motive would be wanting if confession were made without a resolve to lead a new life4 ,if those who fulminate against the ,church's method1 and sneer at the members of the ,church who follow it1 as dupes and fools1 could understand that it is discipline that purifies and exalts1 they would sneer no longer4 ,it is all very well to be a franc-tireur1 no doubt4 ,but it is better to be a member of the regular forces4 ,it is not so jolly for a time1 perhaps1 but in event of capture1 the former is shot at sight1 the latter becomes a prisoner of war with all the rights and traditions of his lot4 ,simile was one of ,mr4 ,hamlyn's pet weapons1 but in his noisy syllogisms1 he left out the first two premises and confined himself to the conclusion--generally an emphatic epithet4 ,mr4 ,hamlyn came down-stairs at last4 ,his face was grave1 but peaceful4 ,perspiration showed upon it4 ,he had been having a hard time4 ,i say1 my dear1 he whispered1 ,i wonder if you've got a cup of tea handy4 ,i've had a thick time6 ,it is better to take the stimulant of tea than the more usual brandy and soda4 ,hamlyn was a strong teetotaller1 and that counted to his credit at a moment like this4 ,for the man had obviously been through an unnerving experience4 ,he was not his ready and impudent self4 ,the tea was brought4 ,it revived him4 ,well6 he said in a low voice1 ,i don't want to go through many scenes like that again1 ,gussie6 ,she's getting worse and worse4 ,her brain can't last much longer if she goes on like this6 ,however1 ,i managed to calm her down4 ,she's going off to sleep now4 ,i told her ,i'd wake ,hornham up in a few days--and ,i'll have to do it1 what's more6 ,did you get a cheque8 said the practical ,gussie4 ,yes1 said ,mr4 ,hamlyn in a slightly more relieved voice4 ,she gave me a couple of hundred in the end4 ,at heart1 she's devoted to the cause of ,protestant ,truth4 ,but she's getting horribly restive1 my dear4 ,i'm sorry for her4 ,she's a wreck of what she used to be--but she's a wreck that wants a lot of salvage6 ,the colour came back into the plump1 clean-shaven face as the tea did its work4 ,i forgot1 my dear1 he said2 ,i brought you a box of chocolates4 ,it clean went out of my 'ead1 he waved an exhausted hand towards his small brown leather bag1 which stood on the table between a plaster model of the leaning tower of ,pisa and a massive volume entitled ,every ,young ,lady's ,vade ,mecum4 ,gussie smiled her thanks and opened the bag1 while ,mr4 ,hamlyn poured out another cup of tea4 ,gussie felt in the bag4 ,it was full of papers1 but there were two parcels there4 ,she took them out4 ,they were of much the same size4 ,each was neatly tied up in white paper4 ,she pulled the string from one of them4 ,a number of thin semi-transparent white wafers fell out upon the table4 ,oh1 ,i'm sorry6 she cried1 ,i thought this was the box of chocolates4 ,hamlyn looked up wearily4 ,to his immeasurable surprise1 he saw that the girl's face had grown very pale4 ,she shrunk away from the table4 ,what's the matter1 my dear8 he said1 thoroughly alarmed4 ,she suddenly flushed a deep scarlet4 ,what are these8 she said1 pointing with a shaking finger to the things on the table4 ,them8 said ,mr4 ,hamlyn in cheerful surprise4 ,mass wafers1 my dear4 ,i buy them in a shop in ,covent ,garden4 ,we distribute them among the ,luther ,lecturers1 for object lessons to the poor deluded ,ritualists4 ,the girl had crouched to the wall of the room4 ,hamlyn was seriously alarmed4 ,her face was almost purple1 her eyes started out of her head4 ,they're not con--consecrated8 she gasped4 ,hamlyn could not understand her emotion4 ,no1 he said2 why1 ,gussie1 what a superstitious little thing you are4 ,and if they were1 what then8 ,frank amazement showed on his face4 ,oh1 nothing1 ,mr4 ,hamlyn1 the girl said at length1 becoming more normal in her manner4 ,in a few minutes1 ,hamlyn left the house1 leaving the girl in her ordinary manner1 eating the chocolates that he had brought her4 ,his able mind was busily at work4 ,he knew that during ,miss ,pritchett's adhesion to ,st4 ,elwyn's ,gussie had1 perforce1 been one of the congregation there and had been taught and trained by the clergy4 ,no wonder1 he thought bitterly to himself2 no wonder that they can win along the line1 when they can sow seeds like that in a girl's mind4 ,why1 she's a thorough little ,protestant at heart4 ,to think that those things should have startled her so6 ,it's a lingering prejudice1 ,i suppose4 ,they are a queer lot--the ,romanists6 ,as he communed thus with himself1 a swift thought came to him4 ,at the moment of its arrival in his brain1 he almost staggered4 ,then1 pulling himself together1 he walked rapidly to his own house4 ,he thought he saw his way to a coup that would make all his previous efforts as nothing4 ,how wonderfully simple it was6 ,why had he never thought of it before--what a fool he had been6 ,here was the solution of all the difficulties he was in4 ,the answer seemed to have come to his conversation with ,samuel in the morning4 ,he went to his study and fortunately found that ,sam was already there4 ,miss ,maud ,hamlyn sat in the room also1 but when she saw her father's face1 she left the room at once4 ,it wore the business look she knew well1 and1 though she but dimly understood what her brother and father were engaged in1 she knew it had brought great prosperity and honour to all of them1 and was loath to intrude upon any profitable confabulation4 ,have you got it1 ,pa8 said ,samuel1 eagerly4 ,yes1 ,i 'ave1 answered the secretary1 and very fine it is too6 ,how much8 asked ,sam4 ,what do you mean8 ,the cheque1 ,miss ,pritchett's latest4 ,oh1 that1 said ,hamlyn4 ,two hundred1 what we expected4 ,i meant something else4 ,i've got the new scheme to wake things up6 ,the best thing we've done yet1 my boy6 ,sam rubbed his hands4 ,what did ,i say this morning8 ,i knew you'd do it1 ,pa4 ,well1 let's have it4 ,mr4 ,hamlyn sat back in his chair1 willing to dally a moment with his triumph and enjoy the full savour of it4 ,why we never thought of it before1 he said1 beats me entirely6 ,something suggested it to me to-night1 and ,i've been wondering at our neglecting such a move4 ,what is it then8 ,what about one of us going to the ,mass and bringing away the consecrated wafer8 ,then a big public meeting's called and ,i show the people what we've got6 ,the 'flour-and-water god' of the ,romanists6 ,not the usual plan of producing a wafer we've bought from a shop1 but the real thing1 ,sam6 ,then they'll all be able to see that there's no difference between before and after6 ,it'll explode the whole thing and give the ,league an advertisement better than anything that's gone before6 ,sam looked very grave indeed4 ,it's a little bit too much1 ,i'm afraid1 ,father1 he said4 ,what do you mean1 my son8 answered the secretary in extreme and real surprise4 ,well1 ,i don't know1 ,sam said doubtfully1 but ,i shouldn't like to meddle with it myself4 ,mr4 ,hamlyn leaned forward4 ,sam1 he said1 you're a fool4 ,you're as bad as ,gussie ,davies6 ,leave the matter to me4 ,who's awakened ,protestantism in ,hengland8 ,,me6 ,who knows how to work a popular cause8 ,,me6 ,who's going to boom the ,luther ,league up to the top again8 ,,me6 ,have it your own way1 ,father1 ,sam said1 you generally do come out on top4 ,ring the bell for some tea1 said ,mr4 ,hamlyn1 and let's talk out the details4 ,we'll 'ave to get it where we aren't known by sight4 ,,chapter ,,xi ,,the ,,news ,,that ,,carr ,,brought ,as the days wore on1 and ,lucy ,blantyre became accustomed to her surroundings1 she found that she was in thorough tune with them4 ,during the year she had been away from ,st4 ,elwyn's1 she had spent most of the time abroad1 at first with ,lady ,linquest1 afterwards with friends4 ,the old life of fashionable people and smart doings palled horribly4 ,travelling was a diversion from that1 and1 in some sense1 a preparation for the more useful life that she determined to live in the future4 ,she had quite made up her mind to that4 ,nothing would induce her to go back to live in ,park ,lane once more4 ,life offered far more than the ,west ,end of ,london could offer2 so much was plain4 ,she kept up a regular correspondence with her brother and was fully informed of all that took place in ,hornham4 ,her thoughts turned more and more affectionately towards the dingy old house1 centre of such ceaseless activities1 the old house with the great church watching over it4 ,down there it seemed as if provision was made for all one's needs of the mind4 ,stress and storm beat upon it in vain1 and it combined the joys of both the cloister and the hearth4 ,in her limited experience1 there had been nothing like it4 ,a year or two ago1 she would have smiled incredulously if any one had told her that she would like going to church twice or three times on a week-day4 ,but during her stay at ,st4 ,elwyn's how natural and helpful it had seemed1 how much a part of the proper order of things4 ,the morning ,eucharist while day in the outside world was beginning1 the stately and beautiful evensong as men ceased their toil1 these coloured all the day1 were woven into its warp and woof4 ,she knew that the abnormal life was the life of the majority1 the life of those who lived in a purely secular way1 who never worshipped or prayed4 ,when any mind1 in its settling of its attitude towards the ,unseen1 gets as far as this2 when it realises that1 despite the laughter of fools and the indifference of most people1 the logical use of life is to make it in constant touch with ,god1 then1 as a rule1 the personal religious conviction will come in due time4 ,it had not come to ,lucy yet in full and satisfying measure1 it had not come even when she determined to make her home with her brother for a time and help in any way she could4 ,during the year of travel1 she was also in regular communication with ,james ,poyntz4 ,insensibly his letters to her had become the letters of a lover4 ,he told her all his thoughts and the details of his work and hopes1 and1 mingling with what were in fact a series of brilliant personal confessions1 there began to be a high note of personal devotion to her4 ,one does not need the simple alphabet of lover's words to write love letters4 ,poyntz used no terms of endearment1 and as yet had made her no definite proposal of marriage4 ,but the girl knew1 quite certainly1 exactly how he felt towards her4 ,there was no disguise in his letters1 and the time was drawing near when he would definitely ask her to share his life4 ,she had not yet definitely summed up her attitude towards him4 ,she was at the crossing of the roads2 new influences1 new ideas were pouring into her brain from every side4 ,it was necessary to readjust herself to life completely before she could settle upon any course4 ,she knew that to be ,lady ,huddersfield was to take a high seat in ,vanity ,fair4 ,the ,huddersfields belonged to the old order of society1 to that inner circle of the great who never open their door indiscriminately to the ,jew and the mining millionaire4 ,people laughed at them and called them pompous and dull1 but there was a high serenity among them nevertheless4 ,she might have married half a dozen times had she so chosen4 ,her income was large enough to make her a small heiress1 at any rate to be an appreciable factor in the case1 besides which her birth was unexceptionable4 ,it was known that when ,lady ,linquest fluttered away to another world1 the old lady's money would come to her niece4 ,but position merely1 rank rather1 did not attract a girl who already went wherever she chose4 ,and among the men in society who had offered her marriage1 or were prepared to do so1 she found no one capable of satisfying her brain4 ,poyntz did this4 ,she found power in him1 strength1 purpose4 ,she knew that1 in whatever station of life he was1 the man was finely tempered1 high in that aristocracy of intellect which some people say is the only aristocracy there is4 ,she was conscious of all this1 but1 especially since she had been settled in the vicarage as a home1 she was becoming conscious of many other influences at work upon her4 ,religion1 the personal giving of one's self to ,god1 was tinging all her life and actions now4 ,hour by hour1 she found herself drawing nearer to the ,cross4 ,her progress had become a matter of practical experience4 ,it was impossible to live with the people she was among1 to watch every detail of their lives1 to find exactly where the motive power and the sustaining power came from1 without casting in her lot with them in greater or less degree4 ,every day she found some hold upon the outside world was loosened1 something she had imagined had great value in her eyes suddenly seemed quite worthless6 ,looked at in the light that was beginning to shine upon her1 she was frequently surprised beyond measure to find how worthless most things were6 ,her brain was keen1 cool1 and logical4 ,hitherto she had refused to draw an inference--no proof1 by the way1 of any want of logical skill2--now she was drawing it4 ,she was great and intimate friends with the two assistant priests1 ,stephens and ,king4 ,stephens was engaged to a girl in the country1 ,king belonged to some confraternity of celibates4 ,both were high-minded men1 who appreciated to the full the charm of cultured feminine society and found her drawing-room a most pleasant oasis now and then4 ,and every one at the clergy-house began to see a great deal of ,mr4 ,carr4 ,the lonely man found companionship and sympathy there4 ,he found intellectual men1 university men like himself1 with whom he could talk4 ,he had been intellectually starving in ,hornham1 and good brains rust unless they have some measure of intercourse with their kind4 ,he was constantly with his new friends4 ,one ,sunday ,father ,blantyre preached at ,st4 ,luke's4 ,the church was crowded1 to hear a man whom a great many there believed capable of almost any form of casuistry and sly dealing4 ,but when the little ,irishman got into the pulpit he gave them a simple1 forcible discourse on some points of conduct1 delivered with all his personal charm1 his native raciness and wit2 many wagging tongues were silenced in the parish4 ,carr's experiment was a bold one1 but it succeeded4 ,an ounce of fact is worth a pound of hearsay4 ,blantyre was so transparently honest1 so obviously incapable of any of the things imputed to him by the ,luther ,leaguers1 that the most prejudiced folk at ,st4 ,luke's said no more than that it was a pity such a decent fellow1 who could preach such a good sermon1 wasted so much of his time over unnecessary fads6 ,for some reason or other1--she could not quite explain it to herself1--,lucy looked on ,carr with different eyes from those with which she viewed ,stephens or ,king4 ,he seemed less set apart from the ordinary lot of men than they were4 ,his ordinary clerical costume may have had something to do with it1 the contrast between his clothes and those of the laymen not being so marked as in the case of the ,high ,church clergy4 ,and his manner also was different in a subtle way4 ,lucy liked the manner of ,king and she liked the manner of ,carr1 but they were markedly unlike each other4 ,the former spoke of everything from the ,church's point of view1 the latter more from the point of view of an ordinary layman who loves and serves our ,lord4 ,lucy had no fault to find with the ecclesiastical attitude4 ,she had long before realised what were the spiritual results of rebellion and schism2 they were too patent in ,hornham4 ,she was definitely ,catholic4 ,therefore she approved of ,king as a priest and liked him as a man4 ,but ,carr seemed to be more upon her own level1 not set apart in any way4 ,she knew he was just as much a priest as the other1 but he came into her consciousness from a purely human standpoint1 while the other did not4 ,viewing him thus1 she had come to find she liked him very much indeed4 ,he was a very manly man1 she found1 with a virile intellect which had had too little play of late years4 ,she came to know of his life and found it as full of good works as her brother's4 ,the methods differed1 the ,church and its services took an altogether secondary place in these ministrations2 the charities of a poor man were necessarily more circumscribed than those of his rich neighbour1 but the spiritual fervour was as great4 ,lucy could not help wondering why a man who had such abundant means to his hand of holding and influencing his people used so few of them4 ,why was his church not beautiful8 ,how did he exist spiritually without the sacramental grace so abundantly vouchsafed at ,st4 ,elwyn's8 ,she had a glimpse deep down into the man once4 ,one evening at ,st4 ,elwyn's1 when ,carr had come to supper1 the conversation turned upon a rather serious epidemic of typhoid fever that had only just been overcome in ,hornham and which had caused a widespread distress among the poorer classes4 ,i'm getting up a fund1 ,father ,blantyre said1 to relieve some of the worst cases and to send as many as possible of the convalescents off to the seaside4 ,now1 ,lucy1 my dear1 what will you stump up8 ,this girl's rolling in money1 ,carr6 ,she's more than she knows what to do with6 ,lucy noticed--no one else did--that ,mr4 ,carr flushed a little and started as ,blantyre finished speaking4 ,she turned to her brother4 ,i'll give you a hundred pounds1 dear1 she said4 ,good girl6 he shouted in high good humour4 ,lucy turned to ,carr4 ,i suppose you've a great many destitute cases in ,st4 ,luke's8 she asked4 ,very many1 ,i'm sorry to say1 he answered sadly4 ,i've done what ,i could1 but ,i've hardly any money myself until next quarter-day1 and our people are nearly all of them poor4 ,he thought with gentle envy of these wealthy folk who were able to do so much1 while he1 alas6 could do so little4 ,i'll subscribe something to ,st4 ,luke's1 too1 ,lucy said4 ,i'll give you the same1 ,mr4 ,carr4 ,i'll write you a cheque after supper4 ,that's a sportswoman6 said ,father ,blantyre2 good for you1 ,lucy6 ,carr flushed up4 ,the destitution in his parish had been a constant grief to him during the last few weeks4 ,he had not known where to turn to relieve it4 ,he had prayed constantly that help might be forthcoming4 ,he broke out into a nervous torrent of thanks which came from his very heart1 becoming eloquent as he went on and revealing1 unconsciously enough1 much of his inward self to them4 ,they were all touched and charmed by the man's simplicity and earnestness4 ,he showed a great love for the poor as he talked4 ,sympathy for suffering and kindness towards it are not rare things in ,england4 ,we are a charitable folk1 take us in the mass4 ,but this quality of personal love for the outcast and down-trodden is not so often met with4 ,it is a talent1 and ,carr possessed it in a high degree4 ,a step in their intimacy was marked that night2 all felt drawn more closely to the ,evangelical vicar4 ,he stood alone2 his life seemed cheerless to them all and their sympathy was his--though he had never made the least parade of his troubles4 ,moreover1 the three clergy of ,st4 ,elwyn's were beginning to find out1 with pleased surprise1 how near he was to them in the great essentials1 how ,catholic his views were4 ,already much of ,carr's dislike to the ceremonial of ,st4 ,elwyn's was fading away4 ,he had witnessed it1 found that there was absolutely no harm in it1 that it did not stand between the soul and ,god1 but even sometimes assisted in the journey upwards4 ,he did not endorse it as yet1 he did not contemplate anything of the sort for himself or his people1 but he saw the good there and found nothing to disgust or harm4 ,later on that evening1 ,dr4 ,hibbert came in1 and there was music4 ,lucy played and sang to them1 and ,carr1 who had a fine baritone1 sang an old favourite or two1 college songs1 ,gaudeamus ,igitur1 ,john ,peel1 and the like4 ,then1 while the four other men took a hand at whist--if only ,mr4 ,hamlyn could have seen the devil's picture books upon the table6--,carr had a long1 quiet talk with ,lucy ,blantyre4 ,he found himself telling her much of his work and hopes1 of his early life in a bleak ,northumberland vicarage1 of ,cambridge1 and the joyous days when he rowed three in the ,king's boat and all the skies were fair4 ,now and then1 when he would have withdrawn into himself again1 fearing that he was boring her1 she encouraged him to go on4 ,with her cheque in his pocket1 he went home in a glow that night4 ,he thought constantly of her1 and when he went to bed1 he looked curiously in the mirror1 turning away from it with a sigh1 a shake of the head1 and the chilling memory that the girl was rich1 allied to great families1 a personage in ,london society1 and that a poor gentleman toiling in ,hornham could never be a mate for such as she was4 ,three or four days after the incident of the subscription1 ,lucy received a letter from ,agatha ,poyntz1 who was staying with the ,st4 ,justs in ,berkeley ,square4 ,the letter begged ,lucy to come up to town for an afternoon4 ,a theatre party had been formed1 which was to consist of ,agatha herself1 ,lady ,lelant1 a young married cousin of hers1 and ,james ,poyntz4 ,lucy was begged to come and complete the party4 ,they were to go to tea afterwards at the ,savoy or somewhere1 and ,lucy could drive home in the evening4 ,the letter was quite imperative in its demand for ,lucy's presence1 and the girl had a shrewd suspicion who it was that had inspired it4 ,her last few letters from ,poyntz had been almost1 so she fancied1 leading up to just some such occasion as this which was now proposed4 ,she thought it all over during the morning of that day4 ,her mind wavered4 ,a few weeks ago she knew that she would not have hesitated for a moment4 ,whatever her answer might eventually be to what ,james ,poyntz had to say1 she would have gone to the tryst and listened to him4 ,to hear him pleading1 to see this scion of an ancient and honourable house1 this big-brained man1 pleading for her1 would be sweet4 ,every woman would feel that4 ,but now she hesitated very much4 ,she hardly owned it to herself1 but a very different figure was coming to have a continual place in her thoughts4 ,a graver figure1 a less complex figure1 and one invested with a dignity that was not of this world1 a dignity that the peer's son had not4 ,for now1 most indubitably1 a new element was coming into her life1 one that had not been there before4 ,and there was yet another cause for her hesitation4 ,she had come to see that the supremely important thing in life was religion2 she knew that it was going to be so for her4 ,she wasn't bigoted1 she realised the blameless life that many people who did not believe in our ,lord appeared to live4 ,but that was not the point4 ,works were good1 they were a necessary concomitant of any life that was to be bound up with hers4 ,but faith was a paramount necessity also4 ,she had no illusions about ,james ,poyntz4 ,she did not think1 as less keen-sighted girls have thought of atheist lovers1 that she could ever bring him to the ,faith4 ,she knew quite well that it would be impossible1 that he was one of those folk to whom the talent of faith does not seem to have been given1 and who will have to begin all over again in the next world1 learning the truths of ,christianity like children4 ,while she was thinking out the question of acceptance or refusal1 her eye caught a date on her tablets4 ,it was the date of the theatre party and also of a meeting to be held during the afternoon in the public hall at ,hornham1 at which ,father ,blantyre had consented to hold public argument upon the legalities of ritual and the truth of ,catholic dogma with some of the ,luther ,lecturers4 ,hamlyn had intended that this meeting should take place in the evening1 for two reasons4 ,in the first place1 during the afternoon he was himself to address a great meeting in ,london1 to which all the red-hot ,protestants on the lists of the ,league had been specially invited by ticket1 and at which a great sensation was hinted at1 in much the same way as music-hall managers announce the forthcoming appearance of some entirely new spectacle1 trick1 or performer4 ,mr4 ,hamlyn had hoped to arrive in ,hornham from the ,strand flushed with a great victory1 the news of which would have preceded him during the afternoon4 ,moreover1 in the evening an audience would assemble with which the ,luther ,lecturers would be thoroughly at home--,mr4 ,sam ,hamlyn would have seen to that--and the place would be packed by rowdy non-churchgoers who would come with the intention of witnessing a row1 even if they themselves had to create it4 ,thus a great ,protestant demonstration of ,north ,london would be absolutely assured4 ,unfortunately1 ,mr4 ,hamlyn received the plainest of plain hints from the local chief of police that he would get himself into particularly hot water if he proceeded with his little scheme1 and that the words of one of his men--the ingenuous ,mr4 ,moffatt indeed1 who1 locked out of every church in ,england1 had lately returned to his parental roof for a holiday--to a certain rough section of the community1 in connection with this very meeting1 would be brought up against him4 ,the police had no objection to a meeting during the afternoon4 ,the dangerous element would still be pushing their barrows of plums and pears through the city streets1 and though the meeting would1 no doubt1 be skilfully packed with partisans1 many women would be present and nothing more than a wordy war would be likely to result4 ,lucy saw the date and considered that the question of the matine was decided for her4 ,she mentioned the invitation at lunch1 and was very much surprised to find that her brother strongly deprecated her intention of being present at the discussion and welcomed this invitation4 ,i don't want you to go1 dear1 he said2 ,i beg of you not4 ,it will be rough and bitter4 ,i know it4 ,i shrink from it myself1 but ,i must show them that we are not afraid to meet them openly4 ,but it would do nothing but distress you4 ,write to ,miss ,poyntz this afternoon and say you'll go4 ,then you can hear all about the meeting in the evening when you get back4 ,he was so obviously in earnest that ,lucy could not but agree4 ,it seemed fate sent her to meet ,james4 ,well1 it must be1 that was all4 ,circumstances must be faced1 and if she did not know her own mind now1 it was possible that the event itself would decide it for her4 ,but she addressed the letter with marked nervous excitement1 and the ,hon4 ,agatha ,poyntz was more tremulous than her writing was wont to be4 ,there were two days more to wait1 a ,sunday intervened1 and she hardly left the church during the whole day1 seeking counsel and help where only they are to be found4 ,on ,monday1 she arrived at the theatre at about two4 ,she had refused to lunch with her friends and drove from ,hornham in a hansom cab1 meeting them at the door of the building4 ,they went at once to their box and found that there were some five minutes to wait before the rise of the curtain4 ,the theatre was curious after the glare of the sun outside1 fantastic and unreal4 ,hardly anybody talked1 though there was a good house1 and the strange quiet of a matine audience seemed to pervade the four people in the box also4 ,lucy leaned back in her chair with the sensation of dreaming4 ,this morning she had knelt in the side chapel at ,st4 ,elwyn's6 ,a moment before she had been alone in the cab1 among the roar and bustle of ,trafalgar ,square4 ,now she was in a dream4 ,agatha and ,adelaide ,lelant smiled at her without speaking--just like odd dream people4 ,james ,poyntz sat just behind her4 ,she was acutely conscious of his presence4 ,now and then he bent forward and made some remark or other in a low voice4 ,that also seemed to come from a distance4 ,she seemed to have left all the real things behind in ,hornham4 ,the scents1 the dresses of the fashionable people in the stalls1 the dim1 apricot light1 seemed alien to her life now1 a reminder of experiences and days long since put away and forgotten4 ,the little band below had been playing a waltz of ,weber's1 a regret which was strangled into a sob as the curtain rose suddenly upon the first act of the play4 ,how acutely conscious one was at first of the artificial light6 ,the big frame of the proscenium enclosed a rich garden scene1 beautifully painted4 ,but it was full of hot yellow light1 until the eye forgot the outside day it had lately quitted4 ,lucy thought that for the sake of illusion it was a mistake to come to the play in the afternoon4 ,she said so to ,james4 ,well1 he whispered1 for my part1 there is never any illusion in the stage for me4 ,it is a way of passing an idle hour now and then4 ,that is all4 ,i came here not to see the play1 but to see you4 ,she turned towards the stage again with a slight flush4 ,behind the footlights the perfectly dressed men and women went through their parts4 ,all appeared as if they had put on for the first time the clothes they wore2 both men and women had the complexion of young children--peaches and cream--unless the light fell on the face at an awkward angle4 ,then it glistened4 ,and all the people on the stage talked alike1 too4 ,they did not speak quite like ladies or gentlemen1 but imitated the speech of ladies and gentlemen wonderfully6 ,the play did not interest ,lucy4 ,it was a successful play1 it was played by people who were celebrated actors1 but she was out of tune with the whole thing4 ,it wasn't amusing4 ,between the acts1 ,lady ,lelant chatted merrily1 of such news as there was to be gleaned during a passage through town4 ,she spoke of the movements of this or that acquaintance1 whom this girl was engaged to1 why ,lord ,dawlish had quarrelled with the ,duke of ,dover4 ,lucy had no interest in these matters any more4 ,she realised that with astonished certainty4 ,she didn't care a bit4 ,after all1 these smart people and their doings were not1 as she had thought in the past1 any more interesting than the group of church people at ,st4 ,elwyn's4 ,indeed they were less so4 ,dr4 ,hibbert1 one or two of the nursing sisters1 some of the choir men1 ,king1 ,stephens1 ,carr--all these people had more individuality1 lived1 thought1 felt1 prayed more intensely than ,lady ,lelant's set1 ,lady ,linquest's set1 any purely fashionable set4 ,there was not a doubt that in the mere worldly economy of things1 in the state politic1 every one of these ,hornham people mattered more than those others4 ,and1 where hearts and wills are weighed1 to the critical ,unseen eyes1 their value was greater still4 ,lucy was glad when the play began again1 and she was relieved of the necessity for a simulated interest in things she had long since put away from her4 ,the last act of the mimic story dragged on4 ,agatha and ,lady ,lelant were absorbed in it4 ,lucy withdrew a little from the front of the box4 ,she cared nothing for the play1 nor did her companion4 ,both of them knew of things imminent in their twin lives greater than any mimic business could suggest to them4 ,he began to tell her in a low voice of his joy in seeing her again4 ,it thrilled her to hear the lover-like tones creeping into a voice so clear1 cold1 and self-contained in all the ordinary affairs of life4 ,it was an experience that disturbed and swayed all the instincts of her sex4 ,for she knew that this was no ordinary conquest that she had made1 no ordinary tribute to her mind and person4 ,she might have received the highest compliment that he was about to pay her from many a man as highly placed and socially fortunate as he4 ,there was no exhilaration1 no subtle flattery of her pride and the consciousness of her womanhood in that4 ,but she knew him for what he was4 ,she had learned of the intellect and power of the man--herein lay an exquisite pleasure in his surrender4 ,and she liked him immensely4 ,physically1 he pleased her eye1 and her sense of what was fitting in a man4 ,mentally he compelled her4 ,and now and again in their intimacy1 an intimacy that had grown enormously during the last year1 fostered on their mutual epistolary confidences1 she had found a sudden surrender1 a boyish leaning on her1 a waiting for her approving or helpful word1 that was sweet to her4 ,at last the curtain fell4 ,now1 then1 ,poyntz said1 we'll go and have tea on the terrace at the ,sardinia4 ,there will be a band1 a really good band1 and the embankment will look beautiful just now4 ,come along1 young ladies2 we'll walk1 shall we8 ,it won't take us five minutes4 ,they left the theatre4 ,ah6 ,lucy said with a sudden gasp of relief1 how good the air is after that dark place and the stage4 ,my eyes feel as if they had been actually burnt4 ,the long lights of the summer afternoon irradiated everything4 ,there are moments in summer when the busiest ,london street seems like a street in fairy-land4 ,it was so now as they walked to the great riverside hotel2 a tender haze of gold lay over all the vast buildings1 the sky began to be as if it were hung with banners4 ,they passed from the roar of the street to the great courtyard1 with its gay awnings of white and red1 its palms and tree-ferns in green tubs1 its little tables like the tables of a continental caf4 ,little groups of people of all nationalities sat about there4 ,the party heard the twanging accent of the ,united ,states1 the guttural ,german1 the purring1 spitting ,russian4 ,they entered the hotel1 walked down a corridor1 descended some steps1 and came out upon the terrace4 ,lucy had a finely developed social instinct4 ,she knew what was going on instinctively1 and it was plain to her at once that the moment had come4 ,agatha ,poyntz and her cousin had disappeared as she sat down at a small table with ,james1 hidden by shrubs from the rest of the terrace4 ,below and beyond were gardens in which children were playing1 the wide embankment1 and the silver ,thames itself1 all glowing under the lengthening sun rays4 ,what did she feel at that moment8 ,she found that she was calm1 her pulses were quiet1 her breathing untroubled and slow4 ,he leaned forward and took her hands strongly in both of his4 ,at first1 his words came haltingly to him1 but then1 gathering courage1 he made her a passionate declaration4 ,her heart cried out vaguely to some outside power for guidance2 her inarticulate appeal was hardly a prayer1 it was the supreme expression of perplexity and doubt4 ,for months1 all my work and life have been coloured by thoughts of you1 have had reference to you4 ,i can conceive1 since ,i have been writing to you1 and you to me1 ,i have had hopes and dreams that have become part of my life6 ,if you could accept this1 this devotion1 this strong feeling of love which has grown up in me1 ,i feel that our companionship would be a beautiful thing4 ,lucy1 ,i am not eloquent in love as some men are said to be1 ,i can only tell you that ,i love and admire you dearly and have no greater hope than to share everything with you1 my lady1 my love6 ,the strong1 self-contained young man was deeply moved4 ,he continued1 in a monologue of singular delicacy and high feeling1 to pour out the repressed feelings of the past year1 to offer her a life that was more stainless--she knew it well--than that of most young men4 ,she was deeply touched1 interested1 and rather overawed4 ,but there was no thrill of passion in her that could answer to the notes of it that were coming into his voice and shaking it from its firmness1 sending tremulous waves quivering through it4 ,her hand shook in his hold1 but it was passive4 ,emotion rushed over her1 but it was a cool emotion1 so to say2 she was touched1 but her blood did not race and leap at his touch1 she felt no wish to rest in his arms1 to find her home there6 ,at last she was able to speak4 ,there was a pause in his pleading1 his eyes remained fixed upon her face in anxious scrutiny4 ,she withdrew her hand gently4 ,you have touched me very deeply1 she said4 ,but ,i can't1 oh1 ,i can't answer you now4 ,this is such a great thing4 ,there is so much to think over1 so much self-examination4 ,it might all look quite different to one to-morrow6 ,let me wait1 give me time4 ,i will write to you4 ,his ear found the lack of what he sought in her voice4 ,even to herself her tones sounded cold and conventional after his impassioned pleading4 ,but she found herself mistress neither of reason nor of feeling as she spoke4 ,she was bewildered1 though not taken by surprise4 ,he seemed to understand something of her state of mind4 ,if his disappointment was keen1 he showed nothing of it1 realising with the pertinacity of a strong1 vigorous nature that nothing really worth having was won easily1 thankful1 perhaps1 that he had won as much as he had--her consideration4 ,you know how great a thing this is to me1 he said4 ,you would never be unkind or hard to me and it would be an unkindness to prolong my suspense4 ,when will you give me my answer8 ,oh1 soon1 soon6 ,but ,i must have time4 ,i will write to you soon1 in a fortnight ,i will write4 ,that is so long a time6 ,it will pass very swiftly4 ,then ,i accept your decree4 ,but ,i shall write to you1 even if you don't answer me until ,i get the letter1 oh1 happy day6 on which you tell me what my whole heart longs to hear4 ,you will read my letters during the time of waiting8 ,promise me that1 ,lucy4 ,yes1 yes1 ,i promise1 she said hastily1 seeing that ,agatha and ,adelaide ,lelant were coming towards them4 ,her brain was whirling2 ,james himself was agitated and unstrung by the vehemence of feeling1 the nerve storm1 that he had just passed through4 ,and in the minds of ,miss ,poyntz and ,lady ,lelant the liveliest curiosity and interest reigned1 as it naturally would reign1 under such circumstances1 in the minds of any normal young women1 gentle or simple1 with blue blood or crimson4 ,but the four people had learned the lessons their life-long environment had taught4 ,their faces were masks1 their talk was trivial4 ,when at length ,lucy rose to go1 declining to drive home with ,lady ,lelant1 they all came into the big1 quiet courtyard of the hotel1 to help her choose her hansom4 ,every unit of the little party felt her departure would be a relief1 she felt it herself4 ,the two girls did not know what had happened and were eager to know4 ,james wanted to be alone1 to go through the interview step by step in his brain1 reconstructing it for the better surveyal of his chances1 and to plan an epistolary campaign1 or bombardment rather4 ,lucy felt the desire1 a great and pressing desire1 for home and rest4 ,she arrived at the vicarage an hour or so after4 ,as the cab had turned into the familiar1 sordid streets she had felt glad6 ,she smiled at her own sensations1 but they were very real4 ,this place1 this unutterable ,north ,london slum1 as she used to call it1 was more like home than ,park ,lane had ever been4 ,how tired she felt as she went up-stairs to her room6 ,her face was pale1 dark circles had come out under her eyes1 she bore every evidence of having passed through some mental strain4 ,after a bath she felt better1 more herself1 after these experiences of the afternoon4 ,and to change every article of clothing was in itself a restorative and a tonic4 ,it was an old trick of hers1 and she had always found it answer4 ,when she went down-stairs again she was still pale1 but had that freshness and dainty completeness that have such enormous charm1 that she always had1 and that her poorer sisters are so unable to achieve in the va et vient of a hard1 work-a-day life4 ,she wanted to see ,bernard1 she hungered for her brother4 ,with a pang of self-reproach1 she remembered1 as she came down-stairs1 that this had been the afternoon of the public debate with ,hamlyn's people4 ,it was an important event in the parish4 ,and from her start from the clergy-house to her arrival back at its doors1 she had quite forgotten the whole thing6 ,in the absorption with her own affairs1 it had passed completely from her brain and she was sorry4 ,of late1 she had identified herself so greatly with the affairs and hopes of the little ,st4 ,elwyn's community1 that she felt selfish and ashamed as she knocked at the door of the study4 ,she waited for a moment to hear the invitation to enter4 ,it was never safe to go into ,bernard's room without that precaution4 ,some tragic history might be in the very article of relation1 some weary soul might be there seeking ghostly guidance in its abyss of sorrow and despair4 ,some one bade her enter4 ,she did so4 ,the room was dark1 filled with the evening shadows4 ,for a moment or two1 she could distinguish nothing4 ,are you here1 ,ber8 she said4 ,the vicar is up-stairs1 ,miss ,blantyre1 came the answer in ,king's voice1 as he rose from his seat4 ,i'm here with ,stephens4 ,well1 let me sit down for a little while and talk1 ,lucy said4 ,may ,i8--please go on smoking4 ,i can stand ,bob's pipe1 so ,i can certainly stand yours4 ,i want to hear all about the meeting in the ,victoria ,hall4 ,they found a chair for her2 she refused to have lights brought1 saying that she preferred this soft gloom that enveloped them4 ,her question about the meeting was not immediately responded to4 ,the men seemed collecting their thoughts4 ,by this time1 she was really upon something that resembled a true sisterly footing with these two4 ,both were well-bred men1 incapable of any slackening of the cords of courtesy1 but there was a mutual understanding between them and her which allowed deliberation in talk1 which1 in fact1 dispensed with the necessity of conventional chatter4 ,king spoke at length4 ,go on1 young 'un1 he said to ,stephens1 waving his pipe at him1 as ,lucy could see by the red glow in the bowl4 ,you tell her4 ,no1 you tell her1 old chap4 ,lucy wanted to laugh at the odd pair with whom she was in such sympathy4 ,they were just like two boys4 ,king sighed4 ,conversation of any sort1 unless it was actually in the course of his priestly ministrations1 was always painful to him4 ,he was a man who thought4 ,but he could be eloquent and incisive enough when he chose4 ,well1 look here1 ,miss ,blantyre1 he said1 to begin with1 the whole thing has been an unqualified success for the other side6 ,that is to say that the people in the hall--and it was crammed--have gone away in the firm conviction and belief that the ,luther ,lecturers have got the best of the priests1 that1 in short1 the ,protestants have won all along the line4 ,good gracious6 ,mr4 ,king1 do you really mean to say that one of these vulgar1 half-educated men was able to beat ,bernard in argument1 to enlist the sympathies of the audience against ,bernard8 ,that's exactly what has happened1 ,king answered4 ,the vicar is up-stairs now1 utterly dejected and worn out1 trying to get some sleep4 ,but ,i don't understand how it could be so4 ,it is difficult to understand for a moment1 ,miss ,blantyre4 ,but it's easily explained4 ,one good thing has happened3 ,every priest in the kingdom will have his warning now---- ,of what8 ,never to engage in public controversy with any man of the type sent out to advertise the ,luther ,league4 ,i'll try and explain4 ,you'll know what ,i mean4 ,the controversy upon any sacred and religious subjects1 subjects that are very dear to and deeply felt by their defender1 is only possible if their attacker pursues legitimate methods4 ,what happened to day is this3 ,the audience was mostly ,protestant1 with a strong sprinkling of people who cared nothing one way or the other1 but had come to be amused1 or in the expectation of a row4 ,and even if the meeting wasn't 'packed1'--and ,i've my doubts of that1--you see ,catholics don't like to come much to anything of the sort4 ,it is so terribly painful to a man or woman whose whole life is bound up in the ,sacraments1 who draws his or her 'grace of going on' and hope of heaven from them1 to sit and hear them mocked and derided by the coarse1 the vulgar1 the irreligious4 ,it's an ordeal one can hardly expect any one to go through without a burning indignation and a holy wrath1 which may1 in its turn1 give place to action and words that our ,lord has expressly forbidden4 ,one remembers ,peter1 who cut off the ear of the ,high ,priest's servant1 and how he was rebuked4 ,that's why there were not many ,catholics present1 and besides1 the chief had asked many of the congregation to stay away4 ,he wouldn't let ,dr4 ,hibbert go2 he knew that he'd lose his temper and that there would be a row4 ,lucy listened eagerly4 ,and what did happen8 she cried4 ,tell ,miss ,blantyre1 ,stephens1 ,king answered4 ,i'm not lazy1 but ,stephens has got colour in his descriptions6 ,it's like his sermons1 all poetry and fervour and no sound discipline6 ,and besides1 he's got the 'varsity slang of the day4 ,it's nasty1 but it's expressive4 ,when ,i was up1 we talked ,english--go on1 young 'un4 ,his voice sank1 his pipe glowed in the gloom4 ,stephens took up the parable4 ,well1 ,i can't go into all the details1 he said4 ,but the first thing that happened was that the lecturer stood upon the platform1 shut his eyes1 and prayed that ,hornham might be delivered from the curse of priesthood and the blasphemy of the ,mass6--this while the vicar was on the platform4 ,the man was going to begin right away1 after this1 when ,mr4 ,carr stopped him and said that he wished to offer up a prayer also4 ,the fellow frowned1 but he dare not stop him4 ,so ,carr prayed for a quiet and temperate conduct of the meeting6 ,then the man began4 ,it was the usual thing1 mocking blasphemy delivered in the voice of a cheap-jack1 with a flavour of the clown4 ,the man had two sacramental wafers and he kept producing them out of a ,bible1 like a conjuring trick6 ,they were of different sizes1 and he said3 ',now1 here you see what the ,ritualists worship1 a biscuit god6 ,and you'll notice there's a little one for the people and a big one for the priest--priests always want the biggest share6' ,roars of laughter from every one1 of course4 ,then the fellow went on to speak of the fasting communion4 ',for my part1' he said1 with a great grin1 ',i like to have my breakfast comfortable in the morning before ,i go to church1 and ,i honestly pity the poor priests who have to starve themselves till mid-day4 ,i shouldn't wonder if the ,reverend ,blantyre'--with a wink towards the vicar--'often has visions of a nice bit of fried bacon or an 'addock1 say1 about eleven o'clock in the morning4' ,lucy gasped4 ,how utterly revolting1 she said1 and people really take that sort of thing seriously8 ,oh1 yes1 the sort of people to whom these ,luther ,leaguers appeal4 ,you see it's their only weapon4 ,they can't argue properly1 because they are utterly without education1 and they only supplement the parrot lectures they've been taught with their own native low comedy4 ,our friend this afternoon wound up his oration by inviting the vicar to ask questions--he didn't want him to speak at length1 of course4 ',now1' he said1 ',i call upon the ,reverend ,blantyre to ask me any questions he chooses4 ,and ,i'll just ask him one myself--if ,god had meant him to wear petticoats1 wouldn't ,he have made him a woman8' ,this was rather too much1 and there were some hisses4 ,the vicar was in his cassock4 ,but the vicar laughed himself1 and so every one else did4 ,it seemed to restore the good humour of the meeting1 which was just what the lecturer didn't want4 ,well1 to cut a long story short1 every question the vicar put was the question of a cultured man1 that is to say1 it assumed some knowledge of the point at issue4 ,each time he was answered with buffooneries and a blatant ignorance that gave the whole thing away at once to any one that knew4 ,but there was hardly any one there that did1 that was the point4 ,the whole audience imagined that we were being scored off tremendously4 ,they got noisy1 cheered every apish witticism of the lecturer--oh6 it was a disgusting scene4 ,i'll give you an instance of what was said towards the end4 ,the vicar was appealing to the actual words of the ,gospel in one instance4 ',the ,greek text says1' he was beginning1 when the man jumps up--',greek6' he shouted1 'will ,greek save a man's soul8 ,do you suppose ,jesus of ,nazareth understood foreign tongues8' ,there was a tremendous roar of applause from the people at this4 ,they thought the lecturer had made a great point6 ,they actually did6 ,well1 of course1 there was hardly any answer to that4 ,in the face of such black depths of ignorance1 what could any one do8 ,it would be as easy to explain the theory of gravity to a hog as to explain the ,faith to a grinning1 hostile mob like that4 ,the vicar sat down4 ,the clown always has the last word in argument before an audience of fools or children4 ,it must be so4 ,how did it all end up8 ,oh1 the lecturer got upon his hind legs again and made a speech in which he claimed to have triumphantly refuted the sophistry of the vicar and to have shown what ,ritualism really was4 ,then1 encouraged by the general applause1 he was beginning to be very personal and rude1 when there was a startling interruption4 ,bob got up from the back of the hall--we didn't know he was there--and began to push his way towards the platform1 with a loudly expressed intention of wringing the lecturer's neck there and then4 ,i got hold of him1 but he shook me off like a fly4 ',let me be1 sir6' he said1 'let me get at the varmin1 ,i'll give him a thick ear1 ,i will6' ,then ,king saw what was going on and rushed up4 ,bob remembered what ,king gave him last year and he tried to dodge4 ,by this time1 the whole place was in an uproar1 sticks were flying about1 people were struggling1 shouting1 swearing1 and it looked like being as nasty a little riot as one could wish to see4 ,how horrible6 ,lucy said with a shudder4 ,i wish ,bernard had never been near the place4 ,well1 then1 all of a sudden1 the curate continued1 a mighty voice was heard from the platform4 ,it was ,carr6 ,i never heard a man with such a big1 arresting voice4 ,he was in a white rage1 his eyes flashed1 he looked most impressive4 ,he frightened every one1 he really did1 and in a minute or two he got every one to leave the hall quietly and in order4 ,how splendid6 ,lucy said4 ,she thought that she could see the whole scene1 the squalid struggle1 the strong man dominating it all4 ,her hands were clenched in sympathy4 ,her teeth were locked4 ,he's a big man1 the young fellow replied1 a bigger man than any one knows4 ,he'll be round here this evening1 ,i expect4 ,you must get him to tell you all about it1 ,miss ,blantyre4 ,a few minutes afterwards every one went to church4 ,it was a choral evensong that night1 and sung somewhat later than the usual service was4 ,blantyre did not appear4 ,lucy would not have him wakened4 ,she knew that sleep was the best thing for over-tired nerves1 that he would view the futile occurrences of the afternoon less unhappily after sleep4 ,it was after nine o'clock when the vicar eventually made his appearance4 ,he was worn and sad in face1 his smile had lost its merriment4 ,lucy had made them all come into her room for music4 ,they wanted playing out of their depression1 and in ministering to them she forgot her own quandary and perplexities4 ,at last the light1 melodious numbers of ,faust and ,carmen had some influence with them1 and about ten the three men were visibly brighter4 ,they were in the habit of taking a cup of tea before going to bed2 to-night ,lucy made them have soup instead4 ,it was a few minutes after the hour1 when the bell rang2 in a moment or two1 ,bob--extremely anxious to efface himself as much as possible after the event of the afternoon--showed ,mr4 ,carr into the drawing-room4 ,his face was very white and set4 ,i am extremely sorry1 he said1 to call on you so late1 but have you seen the evening papers1 any of you8 ,no one had seen them4 ,i'm afraid there is something that will give you great pain1 a great shock4 ,it has grieved me deeply1 it must be worse for you1 my friend--thinking as you do of the ,eucharist4 ,what is it8 ,father ,blantyre said4 ,carr held out an evening paper4 ,briefly1 he said1 while we were at the meeting down here1 ,hamlyn1 ,senior1 had a special gathering of extreme ,protestants in ,exeter ,hall4 ,he produced a consecrated wafer and exhibited it1 stating that he had purloined it from the ,holy ,communion service the day before4 ,this was corroborated by two men who went with him and were witnesses of the act4 ,every vestige of colour left the faces of the three priests of ,st4 ,elwyn's4 ,suddenly ,blantyre gave a little moan and fainted1 sinking on to a couch behind him4 ,they brought him round without much trouble1 and ,king helped him up-stairs to bed1 refusing to let him go into the church as he wished4 ,lucy saw that tears were falling silently over the grim1 heavy face of ,king4 ,when the vicar was safely bestowed in his room1 ,stephens and ,king1 saying nothing to each other1 but acting with a common impulse1 went into the church4 ,in the side chapel1 where the dim red glow of the sanctuary-lamp was the only light1 they remained on their knees all night1 praying before the ,blessed ,sacrament4 ,,chapter ,,xii ,,the ,,reparation ,,of ,,jane ,,pritchett1 ,,ex-,,protestant ,on the following morning1 ,blantyre went away4 ,he was absent from ,hornham for two days1 and it was understood that he had gone to visit ,lord ,huddersfield4 ,hamlyn and his doings were not in any way mentioned by the two other clergy4 ,the days of his absence were a time of great unrest and mental debate for ,lucy4 ,she was at a crisis in her life4 ,she had definitely come to a moment when she must choose between one thing or another4 ,it is a commonplace of some preachers to say that this moment of definite choice comes to every one at least once in their lives4 ,but the truth of the assertion is at least doubtful4 ,many people are spared the pain of what is more or less an instantaneous decision4 ,they merge themselves gradually1 in this or that direction1 the right or the wrong4 ,and they are the more fortunate4 ,for ,lucy1 however1 the tide was at the flood4 ,she must push out upon it and hoist her sail1 but whether she should go east or west1 run before the wind or beat up into the heart of it--that she must now decide4 ,she had no illusions about her position4 ,to marry ,james ,poyntz meant one thing1 to refuse him meant another4 ,in the first place1 she wanted to be married4 ,physically1 socially1 mentally1 she was perfectly aware that she would be happier4 ,her nature needed the complement of a husband4 ,she was pure1 but not virginal1 in temperament4 ,she put it to herself that--as she believed--she had a talent for wifehood4 ,here was a young man who satisfied all her instincts of what was fitting in a man she could marry4 ,she did not love him1 but she admired1 liked1 and respected him4 ,something of the not unhealthy cynicism--the sane cynicism--of a woman of the world had entered into her4 ,she wasn't a sentimentalist1 she didn't think that the love of the poet and story-teller was the only thing in the relation of a wife to a husband4 ,she had seen many marriages1 she had watched the firm1 strong affection that came after marriage1 and she saw that it was a good1 worthy1 and constant thing4 ,she had been much in ,france4 ,lady ,linquest had friends and relatives among the stately families of the ,faubourg ,st4 ,germain4 ,those weddings in ,france that were decorously arranged by papa and mamma1 how did they turn out8 ,on the whole well enough1 happily enough4 ,it was only the ignorant lower middle-class of ,england that thought ,france was a mighty lupanar and adultery a joke4 ,and in marrying ,poyntz she would marry a man whom she was worthy of intellectually4 ,he would satisfy every instinct she possessed--every instinct but one4 ,and here1 she knew1 here lay the root of the whole question4 ,the very strongest influence that can direct and urge any soul towards a holy life is the society and companionship1 even the distant contemplation1 of a saintly man or woman4 ,the force of example acts as a lens4 ,it focuses all the impulses towards good and concentrates them4 ,in making clear the beauty of holiness1 it shows that it is not a vague beauty1 but an ideal which may be realised by the observer4 ,lucy had been living with saintly folk4 ,bernard was saintly--if ever a man was2 the bulldog1 ,king1 was a saint and walked with ,god4 ,stephens was a schoolboy1 full of slang and enthusiasm1 blunders and love of humanity1 but he was saintly too4 ,miss ,cass1 the housekeeper with the face of a horse1 who called day dy and the ,mass ,mess1 she was a holy woman4 ,before the ugly1 unlettered spinster1 the society girl1 with all her power and charm1 had learned to bow in her mind4 ,that was ,lucy's great virtue4 ,she was frank with herself4 ,she glossed over nothing1 she pretended nothing4 ,it is the person who postures and poses before himself who is in the chiefest danger4 ,and ,carr1 well1 ,carr was a saintly man also4 ,he hadn't got the more picturesque trimmings that the others had4 ,his spiritual life was not so vividly expressed in1 and witnessed to1 by his clothes and daily habit of life4 ,but he was a saintly man4 ,as she thought of him ,lucy thought of him as man and saint4 ,all these people lived for one thing1 had one aim1 believed one thing4 ,they lived to serve our ,lord1 to do ,his work1 to adore ,him4 ,why1 even ,bob1 the navvy1 whom ,father ,king had knocked down as a beery blackguard and set up again as a butler1 even ,bob was feeling a slow and ponderous way towards sainthood6 ,he could not boast a first-rate intelligence1 but1 he loved our ,lord4 ,yes6--ah1 that was the most beautiful thing of all4 ,to love ,him4 ,do ,i love ,him8 ,lucy asked herself during those two days4 ,and the answer that came to her was a very strange one4 ,it was this4 ,she loved our ,lord1 but she could not make up her mind to give up everything earthly and material for ,him4 ,she wanted a compromise4 ,in fact1 she was near the gates of the spiritual life1 but she had not entered them4 ,she did not disguise one fact from herself4 ,if she married ,poyntz she would immediately be withdrawn1 and withdrawn for ever1 from the new influences which were beginning to permeate her1 to draw her towards the state of a ,christian who is vowed and militant4 ,she knew the influence that as her husband ,james would have4 ,his ideals were noble and high1 his life was pure and worthy4 ,but it was not the life that ,christ had made so plain and clear4 ,the path the ,church showed was not the path ,james would follow1 or one which as his wife she could well follow4 ,she believed sincerely1 as her brother himself would have told her1 that a man like ,poyntz was only uneducated in spiritual things1 not lost to them for ever4 ,but she was also sure that he would make no spiritual discoveries in this world4 ,marriage with him meant going back4 ,it meant turning away from the ,light4 ,the struggle with the training of years1 the earthly ideals of nearly all her life1 was acute4 ,but hour by hour1 she began to draw nearer and nearer to the inevitable solution4 ,now and again1 she went into the silent church4 ,then1 kneeling before the ,blessed ,sacrament1 she saw the path quite clear4 ,afterwards1 back in her room again1 the voices of the material world were heard4 ,but they became weaker and more weak as the hours went on4 ,on the day that ,bernard was to return1 she received a long and passionate letter from her lover4 ,he had the wonderful gift of prose4 ,he understood1 as hardly any of us understand1 how to treat words 7on certain occasions of using them7 as if they were almost notes in some musical composition4 ,his letter was beautiful4 ,she read it page by page1 with a heart that had begun to beat with quickened interest1 until she came to a passage which jarred and hurt4 ,james had made an end of his most impassioned and intimate passages1 and was making his keen satiric comment upon general affairs--quite as he had done in his letters before his actual avowal4 ,i saw my father to-day in ,st4 ,james1 and we went to his club and lunched together4 ,i respect him more and more1 for his consistency1 every time ,i meet him4 ,and ,i wonder more and more at his childishness at the same time4 ,it seems he had just left your brother4 ,as you are in the thick of all the mumbo-jumbo1 perhaps you will have heard of the business that seems to be agitating my poor dear sire into a fever4 ,it seems that1 a day or two ago1 an opposition hero who has consecrated his life to the ,protestant cause--none other than the notorious ,hamlyn himself--purloined a consecrated wafer from some church and has been exhibiting it at public meetings to show that it is just as it ever was--a pinch of flour and no more4 ,my father has made himself utterly miserable over the proceedings of this merry-andrew4 ,as you know1 ,i take but little interest in the squabbles of the creeds1 but the spectacle of a sane and able man caught up in the centre of these phantasies makes me pause and makes my contempt sweeten into pity4 ,as ,lucy read the letter1 she thought of the scene on the night when ,carr had brought the news4 ,she thought of her own quick pain as she heard it1 of how her brother was struck down as with a sword4 ,and especially there came to her the vision of the two priests1 ,king and ,stephens1 praying all night long before the ,host4 ,she pushed the letter away from her1 nor did she read it again4 ,it seemed alien1 out of tune with her life4 ,she went into the church to pray4 ,when she came away1 her resolution was nearly taken4 ,bernard came home about three in the afternoon4 ,his manner was quiet4 ,he was sad1 but he seemed relieved also4 ,lucy was walking in the garden with him1 soon after his return1 when ,stephens and ,dr4 ,hibbert came down from the house and walked quickly up to them4 ,vicar1 the doctor said1 ,miss ,pritchett is dying4 ,blantyre started4 ,oh1 ,i didn't know it was as bad as that1 he said4 ,is it imminent8 ,a matter of twenty hours ,i should say1 the doctor replied2 ,i bring you a message from her4 ,blantyre's face lighted up4 ,great tenderness came over it as he heard that the woman who had injured him and sought to harm the ,church had sent him a message4 ,poor woman1 he said2 what is it--,god bless her6 ,she has asked for you and the other clergy to come to her4 ,she wishes me to bring you and such other members of the congregation as will come4 ,she wishes to make a profession of ,faith4 ,but when1 how-- the vicar asked1 bewildered4 ,the doctor explained4 ,the ,hamlyns are with her2 she is frightened by them1 but not only that1 she bitterly repents what she has done4 ,poor soul6 ,blantyre1 she is very penitent1 she remembers the ,faith4 ,she asks-- ,he drew the vicar aside4 ,lucy could hear no more4 ,but she saw deep sympathy come out upon her brother's face4 ,the three men--,stephens had remained with the doctor--came near her again4 ,my motor is outside1 the doctor said hurriedly4 ,how long would it take8 asked the vicar4 ----if the ,bishop is in--back in an hour and a half---- ,the vicar took ,stephens aside and spoke earnestly with him for a few moments4 ,the young man listened gravely and then hurried away4 ,before the vicar and the doctor joined ,lucy again--they stood in private talk a moment--she heard the toot of the motor-car hum on the other side of the garden wall4 ,wondering what all this might mean1 she was about to cross the lawn towards the two men1 when she saw ,father ,king and ,mr4 ,carr coming out of the house4 ,these two joined the vicar and ,dr4 ,hibbert4 ,the four men stood in a ring4 ,blantyre seemed to be explaining something to the new-comers4 ,now and then the doctor broke in with a burst of rapid explanation4 ,lucy began to be full of wonder4 ,she felt ignored1 she tried not to feel that4 ,something was afoot that she did not quite understand4 ,in the middle of her wonder the men came towards her4 ,bernard took her arm4 ,mavourneen1 he said1 will you come with us to poor ,miss ,pritchett8 ,she's been asking if you'll come and forgive her and part good friends4 ,she may die to-night1 the doctor says4 ,you'll come8 ,of course ,i'll come1 dear4 ,she has repented of her hostility to the ,church1 and desires to make a public statement of her faith before she dies4 ,and she has asked for the ,sacrament of ,unction4444 ,stephens has gone to the ,bishop of ,stepney on the doctor's motor-car4 ,in an hour we will go to ,malakoff4 ,the doctor took ,king by the arm and led him away4 ,they talked earnestly together4 ,blantyre turned to ,carr4 ,will ye come with us all to the poor soul's bedside8 he asked4 ,yes1 ,carr answered4 ,i don't know what you purpose exactly--and ,i don't care6 ,i trust you as a brother now1 ,blantyre1 ,i am learning every day4 ,i'm a conservative1 you know1 new things are distasteful to me4 ,but ,i am learning that there are medicines1 pro salute anim4 ,new things6 ,blantyre said2 ye're an old ,protestant at heart still4 ,did they teach ye no history at ,cambridge except that the ,church of ,england began at the ,reformation8 ,now1 listen while ,i tell you what the service is4 ,you remember ,st4 ,james v4 #ad1 #ae8 ,carr nodded4 ,he began to quote from memory1 for his knowledge of the ,scriptures was profound1 a knowledge even more accurate and full than perhaps any of the three priests of ,st4 ,elwyn's could claim1 though they were scholars and students one and all4 ,is any sick among you8 let him call for the elders of the church2 and let them pray over him1 anointing him with oil in the name of our ,lord2 and the prayer of faith shall save the sick1 and the ,lord shall raise him up1 and if he have committed sins1 they shall be forgiven him4 ,well1 ,i suppose that is fairly explicit8 ,blantyre said4 ,mr4 ,hamlyn would tell us that ,unction is a conjuring trick invented by the ,jesuits4 ,and you have always thought it ,popish and superstitious4 ,now1 haven't you1 ,carr1 be honest6 ,yes4 ,well1 you will see the service to-day4 ,we follow the ancient order of the ,church of ,england4 ,why did you object1 ,carr8 ,i'd like to get at your mental attitude4 ,what is there unscriptural1 bad1 or unseemly about ,unction8 ,here's a poor woman who has strayed from the fold4 ,she wishes to die at peace with every one1 she wishes that the inward unction of the ,holy ,spirit may be poured into the wounds of her soul1 she wants to be forgiven for the sake of our ,lord's most meritorious ,cross and ,passion6 ,if it is ,god's will1 she may be cured4 ,he spoke with great fervour and earnestness4 ,carr bowed his head and thought4 ,yes1 he said1 ,i have been very prejudiced and hard1 sometimes4 ,it is so easy to condemn what one does not know about1 so hard to have sympathy with what one has not appreciated4 ,blantyre caught him by the arm and they walked the lawn for a long time in fraternal intercourse4 ,lucy sat down with the doctor1 but her eyes often turned to the tall1 grave figure1 whose lengthening shadow sometimes reached to her feet and touched them4 ,at last they heard the panting of the returning motor-car4 ,stephens had arrived with the oil that the ,bishop had blessed4 ,the whole party got into the car1 which was a large one1 and they set off rapidly through the streets towards ,malakoff ,house4 ,how strange it was1 ,lucy thought1 this swift career of moderns in the wonderful machine of their age1 this rush to the bedside of a dying woman with the last consolation of the ,church6 ,it was full of awe1 but full of sweetness also4 ,it seemed to show--and how plainly--the divine continuity of the ,faith1 the harmonic welding of the order and traditions of our ,lord's own time with the full vivid life of the nineteenth century4 ,they were shown into the grim house4 ,truly the shadow of death seemed to lie there1 was exhaled from the massive funereal furniture of a bygone generation1 with all its faded pomp and circumstance4 ,the mistress of it all was going away from it for ever1 would never hold her tawdry court in that grim drawing-room any more4 ,dr4 ,coxe1 ,hibbert's assistant1 came down-stairs and met them4 ,i have got the two ,hamlyns out of the house at last1 he whispered4 ,they were distressing the patient greatly4 ,i insisted1 however4 ,we had a row on the stairs--fortunately1 ,i don't think the patient could hear it4 ,i'm sorry1 doctor1 but ,i had to use a little physical persuasion to the young one4 ,never mind1 ,coxe1 ,hibbert answered4 ,i'll see that nothing comes of it4 ,they won't dare to do anything4 ,i will see to that4 ,is ,miss ,pritchett ready8 ,can we go up8 ,yes1 the young man answered1 looking curiously at the four priests and the grave girl who was with them in her gay summer frock4 ,miss ,davies is there4 ,he was a big1 young ,scotsman1 with a profound contempt for religion1 but skilled and tender in his work1 nevertheless4 ,will you come up8 ,hibbert whispered1 taking him a little apart from the others4 ,i'd rather be excused1 old man1 he answered4 ,call me if ,i'm wanted4 ,i can't stand this mumbo-jumbo1 you know6 ,hibbert nodded curtly4 ,he understood the lad very well4 ,will you follow me1 ,father8 he said to ,blantyre4 ,blantyre put on his surplice and stole4 ,then they all went silently up the wide stairs1 with their soft carpet and carved balusters1 into the darkened chamber of death4 ,the dying woman was propped up by pillows4 ,her face was the colour of grey linen1 the fringes of hair she wore in health were gone4 ,a faint smile came to her lips4 ,then1 as she saw ,lucy1 she called to her in a clear1 thin voice that seemed as if it came from very far away4 ,kiss me1 my dear1 she said2 forgive me4 ,lucy kissed the old1 wrinkled face tenderly4 ,her tears fell upon it in a sacrament of forgiveness and holy amity4 ,i want just to say to all of you1 ,miss ,pritchett said1 that ,i have been untrue to what ,i really believed1 and ,i have helped the enemies of the ,faith4 ,i never forgot your teaching1 ,father1 ,i knew all the time ,i was doing wrong4 ,i ask all of you to forgive me as ,i believe ,jesus has forgiven me4 ,a murmur of kindliness came from them all4 ,then ,i can go in peace1 she gasped4 ,then with a faint and pathetic shadow of her old manner she turned to ,gussie4 ,hush6 she said4 ,stop sniffling1 ,miss ,davies6 ,i am very happy4 ,now1 ,father---- ,her eyes closed and her hands remained still4 ,they saw all earthly thoughts die out of the wrinkled old face1 now turned wholly to ,god4 ,they all knelt save the vicar1 who had placed the oil in an ampulla upon a table4 ,then he began the #gast ,psalm4 ,in ,thee1 ,o ,lord1 have ,i put my trust1 let me never be put to confusion3 but rid me1 and deliver me1 in ,thy righteousness1 incline ,thine ear unto me1 and save me4 ,there was no sound in the chamber save that of the ancient ,hebrew song4 ,forsake me not1 ,o ,god1 in mine old age1 when ,i am grey-headed3 until ,i have showed ,thy strength unto this generation1 and ,thy power to all them that are yet for to come4 ,thy righteousness1 ,o ,god1 is very high3 and great things are they that ,thou hast done2 ,o ,god1 who is like unto ,thee8 ,then1 all together1 they said the antiphon3 ,o ,saviour of the world1 who by ,thy ,cross and precious ,blood hast redeemed us1 save us and help us1 we humbly beseech ,thee1 ,o ,lord4 ,the central figure in the huge four-post bed lay still and waxen4 ,but when the priest came up to it with the oil1 the eyes opened and looked steadfastly into his face4 ,he dipped his thumb into the silver vessel and made the sign of the ,cross on the eyes1 the ears1 the lips1 the nostrils1 and the hands1 saying each time as he did so3 ,through this unction1 and of ,his most tender mercy1 may the ,lord pardon thee whatever sins thou hast committed4 ,the whispering words that brought renewal of lost innocence to the dying woman sank into ,lucy's heart1 never to leave it4 ,in the presence of these wondrous mysteries1 death1 and death vanquished by ,christ1 sin purged and forgiven in the ,sacrament1 her resolution was made4 ,she knew that she would fix her eyes upon the ,cross1 never to take them from it more4 ,she saw her brother bending over the still figure1 his white surplice ghostlike in the gloom of the hangings1 as he wiped the anointed parts with wool4 ,then ,stephens brought him a basin of clear water and he washed his hands4 ,raising his arm1 he said3 ,in the name of the ,father1 and of the ,son1 and of the ,holy ,ghost1 may this anointing with oil be to thee for the purification of thy mind and body1 and may it fortify and defend thee against the darts of evil spirits4 ,amen4 ,two more prayers were said and then came the ,blessing4 ,all rose from their knees4 ,as ,lucy slipped from the room1 she saw the doctor was bending over the waxen figure in the bed4 ,she heard her brother and his two assistant priests beginning other prayers1 in a louder voice1 a sort of litany1 it seemed4 ,she found ,carr was beside her descending the stairs4 ,what is that8 she whispered4 ,the prayers for the commendation of a departing soul2 she is going4 ,god rest her and give her peace4 ,amen1 said ,lucy4 ,they came down into the hall1 where they stood for a moment quite alone4 ,both were greatly agitated1 both felt drawn together by some great power4 ,how beautiful it is6 ,carr said at length4 ,our ,lord is with her4 ,may we all die so4 ,poor1 dear woman6 ,in a few moments she will be in the supreme and ineffable glory of ,paradise4 ,i want to see trees and flowers1 to think happily of the wonderful mercy and goodness of ,god among the things ,he has made4 ,i should like to walk in the park for an hour1 to hear the birds and see the children play4 ,will you come with me8 ,yes1 ,i will come4 ,he took her hand and bowed low over it4 ,i have a great thing to ask of you1 he said4 ,they walked soberly together until they came to the railed-in open space4 ,to each the air seemed thick with unspoken thoughts4 ,the park was a poor place enough4 ,but flowers grew there1 the grass was green1 it was not quite ,hornham4 ,they sat upon a bench and for a minute or two both were silent4 ,lucy knew a serenity at this moment such as she had hardly ever known4 ,she was as some mariner who1 at the close of a long and tempestuous voyage1 comes at even-tide towards harbour over a still sea4 ,the coastwise lights begin to glimmer1 the haven is near4 ,in her mind and heart1 at that moment1 she was reconciled to and in tune with all that is beautiful in human and ,divine4 ,she sat there1 this well-known society girl1 who1 all her life1 had lived with the great and wealthy of the world1 in great content4 ,in the park of ,hornham1 with the poor clergyman1 she knew supreme content4 ,in a low voice that shook with the intensity of his feeling and yet was resolute and informed with strength1 ,carr asked ,lucy to be his wife4 ,she gave him her hand very simply and happily4 ,a river that had long been weary had at last wound safe to sea4 ,that she should be the wife of this man was1 she knew1 one of the gladdest and most merciful ordinances of ,god4 ,,chapter ,,xiii ,,the ,,archbishop ,,and ,,the ,,hamlyns ,gussie ,davies says that she's sure that ,miss ,pritchett hasn't added a codicil1 said ,mr4 ,sam ,hamlyn1 coming into the inner room at the offices of the ,luther ,league4 ,mr4 ,hamlyn1 ,senior1 had been at work for some hours1 but his son had only just arrived in the ,strand4 ,it was the day after ,miss ,pritchett's death1 and ,sam had remained in ,north ,london to make a few inquiries4 ,what a blessing of ,providence1 said the secretary4 ,there's something to be said for a ritualistic way of dying1 after all6 ,if it 'adn't been for her messing about with the oil and that1 she'd have sent for her solicitor and cut the ,league out of her will6 ,the priests have been 'oist with their own petard this time4 ,i wonder how much it'll be1 ,sam said reflectively4 ,i don't anticipate a penny less than two thousand pound1 said ,mr4 ,hamlyn1 triumphantly4 ,p'raps a good bit over4 ,you see1 we got 'er just at the last moment4 ,it was me taking the consecrated wafer did it4 ,she woke up as pleased as ,punch1 it gave her strength for the afternoon1 and had the lawyer round at once4 ,i never thought she'd go off so sudden1 though4 ,nor did ,i1 ,pa4 ,well1 it's a blessing that she was able to contribute her mite towards ,protestant ,truth before she went4 ,what8 said ,mr4 ,hamlyn sharply2 mite8--has ,gussie ,davies any idea of 'ow much the legacy is1 then8 ,i only spoke figuratively like1 ,father4 ,how you startled me1 ,sam6 said the secretary1 his face resuming its wonted expression of impudent good humour4 ,how's the cash list to-day8 ,sam asked4 ,pretty fair1 answered his father1 matter of five pound odd4 ,it's me getting hold of that wafer1 it's sent the subscriptions up wonderful4 ,i wouldn't part---- ,sam1 who was sitting with his back to the door of the room1 saw his father's jaw drop suddenly4 ,his voice died away with a murmur1 his face went pale1 his eyes protruded4 ,the younger man wheeled round his chair4 ,then he started up1 with an exclamation of surprise and fear4 ,both the ,protestant champions1 indeed1 behaved as if they had been discovered in some fraud by an agent of the law4 ,two people had come suddenly into the room1 without knocking or being announced4 ,the secretaries saw the blanched face of a clerk behind them4 ,during its existence1 the ,luther ,league had welcomed some fairly well-known folk within its doors4 ,this afternoon1 however1 a most unexpected honour had been paid to it--probably the reason of ,hamlyn's extreme uneasiness4 ,a broad1 square man of considerable height1 with a stern1 furrowed face1 wearing an apron and gaiters1 stood there1 with a thunder-cloud of anger on his face4 ,it was ,his ,grace1 the ,archbishop of ,canterbury4 ,lord ,huddersfield was with him4 ,the ,archbishop looked steadfastly at ,hamlyn for a few seconds4 ,his face was terrible4 ,in the presence of the great spiritual lord who is next to the royal family in the precedence of the realm1 the famous scholar1 the caustic wit1 the utter force and power of intellect1 the two champions were dumb4 ,hamlyn had never known anything like it before4 ,the fellow's bounce and impudence utterly deserted him4 ,the ,archbishop spoke4 ,his naturally rather harsh and strident voice was rendered tenfold more penetrating and terrifying by his wrath4 ,sir1 he said1 in a torrent of menacing sound1 you have profaned the ,eucharist1 you have mocked the holy things of ,god1 you have made the most sacred ordinance of our ,lord a mountebank show4 ,you boast that you have purloined the ,consecrated ,bread from church1 you have exhibited it4 ,restore it to me1 wretched man that you are4 ,by the authority of ,god1 ,i demand you to restore it2 by my authority as head of the ,english ,church1 ,i order you4 ,hamlyn shrank from the terrible old man clothed in the power of his great office and the majesty of his holy anger1 shrank as a man shrinks from a flame4 ,with shaking hands he took a bunch of keys from his pocket4 ,he dropped them upon the floor1 unable to open the lock of the safe4 ,young ,hamlyn picked them up4 ,he turned the key in the wards with a loud click and pulled at the massive door until it slowly swung open4 ,lord ,huddersfield knelt down4 ,hamlyn took from a shelf a little box that had held elastic bands4 ,the ,archbishop started and flushed a deep crimson4 ,he took a pyx from his pocket and reverently took out the desecrated ,host from the box1 placing it in the pyx4 ,then1 with a face that was suffused to a deep purple1 he touched the kneeling peer upon the shoulder4 ,lord ,huddersfield rose with a deep sob of relief4 ,the ,archbishop looked once at ,hamlyn1 a look the man never forgot4 ,then the two visitors turned and went away as swiftly and silently as they had come4 ,it was a long time before either father or son spoke a word4 ,at last ,hamlyn cleared his throat and mouthed a sentence4 ,it would not come4 ,all that ,sam could catch were the words ,,protestant ,,truth6 99 99 99 99 99 ,a ,selection from the ,catalogue of ,g4 ,p4 ,,putnam',s ,,sons ,complete ,catalogues sent on application 99 99 99 99 99 ,when ,it ,was ,dark ,the ,story of a ,great ,conspiracy ,by ,,guy ,,thorne ,author of ,a ,lost ,cause ,the most enthralling and interest-compelling work of fiction this reviewer has ever encountered4--,the ,american1 ,nashville4 ,it is in its wonderful tonic effect upon ,christianity in ,england that the book is showing its most remarkable effects4 ,it has become the theme of hundreds of sermons1 and long extracts are being printed in the secular press as well as in the religious publications4 ,it is known to have been the cause of a number of revivals throughout ,england1 and its strange effect is increasing daily4--,n4 ,y4 ,american4 ,,the ,,bishop ,,of ,,london preaching at ,westminster ,abbey said3 ,i wonder if any of my hearers have read that remarkable work of fiction ',when ,it ,was ,dark4' ,the author paints in wonderful colors what would be the condition of the world if 7as in the story is supposed to be the case7 a conviction had come upon the people that the resurrection had never occurred4 ,a critical handling of current journalism1 ecclesiasticalism1 and liberalism4 ,a novel written from the inside as well as from observation2 and from the heart as well as from the head4--,congregationalist4 99 99 99 99 99 ,the ,scarlet ,pimpernel ,by ,baroness ,orczy ,author of ,the ,emperor's ,candlesticks1 etc4 ,a dramatic romance of the ,french ,revolution and the migr ,nobles4 ,the ,scarlet ,pimpernel was the chief of a daring band of young ,englishmen leagued together to rescue members of the ,french nobility from the ,terrorists of ,france4 ,the identity of the brilliant and resourceful leader is sacredly guarded by his followers and eagerly sought by the agents of the ,french ,revolutionary ,government4 ,scenes of intrigue1 danger1 and devotion1 follow close one upon another4 ,the heroine is a charming1 fearless woman who in the end shares the honors with the ,scarlet ,pimpernel4 ,in a stage version prepared by the author ,the ,scarlet ,pimpernel was one of the dramatic successes of the last ,london season1 ,mr4 ,fred ,terry and ,miss ,julia ,neilson acting the leading rles4 ,something distinctly out of the common1 well conceived1 vividly told1 and stirring from start to finish4--,london ,telegraph4 99 99 99 99 99 ,at the ,sign of ,the ,jack o' ,lantern ,by ,,myrtle ,,reed ,author of ,lavender and ,old ,lace1 ,the ,master's ,violin1 etc4 ,a genial story of the adventures of a ,new ,york newspaper man and his young wife1 who1 at the end of their honeymoon1 go to an unexplored heirloom in the shape of a peculiar old house1 where many strange and amusing things happen4 ,there is a mystery in the house1 as well as a significant portrait of an uncanny cat4 ,a vein of delicate humor1 and a homely philosophy runs through the story4 ,miss ,reed is delightfully witty1 delightfully humorous1 delightfully cynical1 delightfully sane1 and above all1 delightfully spontaneous4--,philadelphia ,telegraph4 99 99 99 99 99 ,love ,alone is ,lord ,by ,f4 ,frankfort ,moore ,author of ,the ,jessamy ,bride1 etc4 ,this latest story by the author of ,the ,jessamy ,bride has for its theme the only really ideal love affair in the romantic life of ,lord ,byron4 ,the story opens during the poet's boyhood and tells of his early devotion to his cousin1 ,mary ,chaworth4 ,mr4 ,moore has followed history very closely1 and his descriptions of ,london society when ,byron was the rage are as accurate as they are dramatic4 ,lady ,caroline ,lamb figures prominently in the story1 but the heroine continues to be ,byron's early love1 ,mary ,chaworth4 ,his attachment for his cousin was the strongest and most enduring of his life1 and it failed of realization only by the narrowest of chances4 ,a ,fascinating ,romance