’MYDEARJOHN，’IammuchobligedtoyouforgoingtoJones’s。
Isendstampsfortwoshillingsandfourpence，whichiswhatIowetoyou。Itusedonlytobetwoshillingsandtwopence，buttheysayeverythinghasgottobedearernow，andIsupposepillsaswellasotherthings。OnlythinkofPritchardcomingtome，andsayingshewantedherwagesraised，afterlivingwithmefortwentyyears！Iwasveryangry，andscoldedherroundly；butassheacknowledged，shehadbeenwrong，andcriedandbeggedmypardon，Ididgivehertwoguineasayearmore。
’IsawdearLilyjustforamomentonSunday，anduponmywordIthinkshegrowsprettiereveryyear。Shehadayoungfriendwithher——aMissCrawley——who，Ibelieve，isthecousinIhaveheardyouspeakof。Whatisthissadstoryaboutherfather，theclergyman！Mindyoutellmeaboutit。
’ItisquitetruewhatItoldyouabouttheDeCourcys。OldLadyDeCourcyisinLondon，andMrCrosbieisgoingtolawwithherabouthiswife’smoney。HehasbeenatitinonewayortheothereversincepoorLadyAlexandrinadied。Iwishshehadlived，withallmyheart。ForthoughIfeelsurethatourLilywillneverwillinglyseehimagain，yetthetidingsofherdeathdisturbedher，andsetherthinkingofthingsthatwerefadingfromhermind。I
ratedhersoundly，notmentioningyourname，however；
butsheonlykissedme，andtoldmeinherquietdrollingwaythatIdidn’tmeanawordofwhatIsaid。
’YoucancomeherewheneveryoupleaseafterthetenthofJanuary。ButifyoucomeearlyJanuaryyoumustgotoyourmotherfirst，andcometomeforthelastweekofyourholiday。GotoBlackie’sinRegentStreet，andbringmedownallthecoloursinwoolI
ordered。Isaidyouwouldcall。AndtellthematDolland’sthelastspectaclesdon’tsuitatall，andI
won’tkeepthem，theyhadbettersendmedown，byyou，oneortwomorepairstotry。AndyouhadbetterseeSmithersandSmith，inLincoln’sInnFields，No57——
butyouhavebeentherebefore——andbegthemtoletmeknowhowmypoordearbrother’smattersaretobesettledatlast。AsfarasIcanseeIshallbedeadbeforeIshallknowwhatincomeIhavetospend。Astomycousinsatthemanor，Ineverseethem；andastotalkingtothemaboutbusiness，Ishouldnotdreamofit。Shehasn’tcometomesinceshefirstcalled，andshemaybequitesureIshan’tgotohertillshedoes。IndeedIthinkweshalllikeeachotherapartquiteasmuchasweshouldtogether。Soletmeknowwhenyou’recoming，andpraydon’tforgettocallatBlackie’s；noryetatDolland’s，whichismuchmoreimportantthanthewool，becausemyeyesaregettingsoweak。ButwhatIwantyouspeciallytorememberisaboutSmithersandSmith。Howisawomantoliveifshedoesn’tknowhowmuchshehasgottospend？
’Believemetobe，mydearJohn，’Yourmostsincerefriend，’JULIADEGUEST。’
LadyJuliaalwaysdirectedherlettersforheryoungfriendtohisoffice，andtherehereceivedtheonenowgiventothereader。Whenhehadreadithemadeamemorandumastothecommissions，andthenthrewhimselfbackinhisarm—chairtothinkoverthetidingscommunicatedtohim。Allthefactsstatedhehadknownbefore；thatLadyDeCourcywasinLondon，andthatherson—in—lawMrCrosbie，whosewife——LadyAlexandrina——haddiedsometwelvemonthssinceatBadenBaden，wasatvariancewithherrespectingmoneywhichhesupposedtobeduetohim。
ButtherewasthatLadyJulia’sletterthatwaswormwoodtohim。LilyDalewasagainthinkingofthisman，whomshehadlovedintheolddays，andwhohadtreatedherwithmonstrousperfidy！ItwasallverywellforLadyJuliatobesurethatLilyDalewouldneverdesiretoseeMrCrosbieagain；butJohnEameswasbynomeansequallycertainthatitwouldbeso。’Thetidingsofherdeathdisturbedher’！saidJohnny，repeatingcertainwordsoutoftheoldlady’sletter。’Iknowtheydisturbedme。Iwishshecouldhavelivedforever。IfheeverventurestoshowhimselfwithintenmilesofAllington，I’llseeifIcannotdobetterthanIdidthelasttimeImethim！’Thentherecameaknockatthedoor，andtheprivatesecretary，findinghimselftobesomewhatannoyedbythedisturbanceatsuchamoment，badetheintruderenterinanangryvoice。’Oh，it’syou，Cradell，isit？WhatcanIdoforyou？’
MrCradell，whonowentered，andwho，asbeforesaid，wasanoldallyofJohnEames，wasaclerkoflongerstandinginthedepartmentthanhisfriend。Inagehelookedmucholder，andhehadleftwithhimnoneofthatappearanceoftheglossofyouthwhichwillstickformanyyearstomenwhoarefortunateintheirworldaffairs。IndeeditmaybesaidthatMrCradellwasalmostshabbyinoutwardappearance，andhisbrowseemedtobeladenwithcare，andhiseyesweredullandheavy。
’IthoughtI’djustcomeinandaskyouhowyouare，’saidCradell。
’I’mprettywell，thankyou；andhowareyou？’
’Oh，I’mprettywell——inhealth，thatis。Youseeonehassomanythingstothinkofwhenonehasalargefamily。Uponmyword，Johnny，I
thinkyou’vebeenluckytokeepoutofit。’
’Ihavekeptoutofit，atanyrate；haven’tI？’
’Ofcourse；livingwithyouasmuchasIusedto，Iknowthewholestoryofwhatkeptyousingle。’
’Don’tmindaboutthat，Cradell；whatisityouwant？’
’Imustn’tletyousuppose，Johnny，thatI’mgrumblingaboutmylot。
NobodyknowsbetterthanyoudowhatatrumpIgotinmywife。’
’Ofcourseyoudid；——anexcellentwoman。’
’AndifIcutyououtalittlethere，I’msureyouneverfeltmaliceagainstmeforthat。’
’Neverforamoment，oldfellow。’
’Weallhaveourluck，youknow。’
’Yourluckhasbeenawifeandfamily。Myluckhasbeentobeabachelor。’
’Youmaysayafamily，’saidCradell。’I’msurethatAmeliadoesthebestshecan；butweadesperatelypushedsometimes——desperatelypushed。Ineverhaditsobad，Johnny，asIamnow。’
’Soyousaidlasttime。’
’DidI？Idon’trememberit。Ididn’tthinkIwassobadthen。But，Johnny，ifyoucanletmehaveonemorefivernowIhavemadearrangementswithAmeliahowI’mtopayyouoffbythirtyshillingsamonth——asIgetmysalary。IndeedIhave。Askherelse。’
’I’llbeshotifIdo。’
’Don’tsaythat，Johnny。’
’It’snogoodyourJohnnyingme，forIwon’tbeJohnnyedoutofanothershilling。Itcomestoooften，andthere’snoreasonwhyIshoulddoit。
Andwhat’smore，Ican’taffordit。I’vepeopleofmyowntohelp。’
’Butoh，Johnny，weallknowhowcomfortableyouare。AndI’msurenoonerejoicedasIdidwhenthemoneywaslefttoyou。IfithadbeenmyselfIcouldhardlyhavethoughtmoreofit。Uponmysolemnwordandhonourifyou’llletmehaveitthistime，itshallbethelast。’
’Uponmywordandhonourthen，Iwon’t。Theremustbeanendtoeverything。’
AlthoughMrCradellwouldprobably，ifpressed，haveadmittedthetruthofthislastassertion，hedidnotseemtothinkthattheendhadasyetcometohisfriend’sbenevolence。Itcertainlyhadnotcometohisownimportunity。’Don’tsaythat，Johnny；praydon’t。’
’ButIdosayit。’
’WhenItoldAmeliayesterdayeveningthatIdidn’tliketogottoyouagain，becauseofcourseamanhasfeelings，shetoldmetomentionhername。\"I’msurehe’ddoitformysake，\"’shesaid。
’Idon’tbelieveshesaidanythingofthekind。’
’Uponmywordshedid。Youaskher。’
’Andifshedid，sheoughtn’ttohavesaidit。’
’Oh，Johnny，don’tspeakinthatwayofher。She’smywife，andyouknowwhatyourownfeelingswereonce。Butlookhere——weareinthatstateathomeatthismoment，thatImustgetmoneysomewherebeforeI
gohome。Imust，indeed。Ifyou’llletmehavethreepoundsthisonce，I’llneveraskyouagain。I’llgiveyouawrittenpromiseifyoulike，andI’llpledgemyselftopayitbackbythirtyshillingsatimeoutofthenexttwomonths’salary。Iwill，indeed。’AndthenMrCradellbegantocry。ButwhenJohnnyatlasttookouthischeque—bookandwroteachequeforthreepounds，MrCradell’seyesglistenedwithjoy。’UponmywordIamsomuchobligedtoyou！Youarethebestfellowthateverlived。AndAmeliawillsaythesamewhenshehearsofit。’
’Idon’tbelieveshe’llsayanythingofthekind，Cradell。IfI
rememberanythingofher，shehasastouterheartthanthat。’Cradelladmittedthathiswifehadastouterheartthanhimself，andthenmadehiswaybacktohisownpartoftheoffice。
ThislittleinterruptiontothecurrentofMrEames’sthoughtswas，I
think，goodfortheservice，asimmediatelyonhisfriend’sdeparturehewenttohiswork；whereas，hadnothebeencalledawayfromhisreflectionsaboutMissDale，hewouldhavesatthinkingaboutheraffairsprobablyfortherestofthemorning。Asitwas，hereallydidwriteadozennotesinanswertoasmanyprivatelettersaddressedtohischief，SirRaffleBuffle，inallofwhichhemadeexcellently—wordedfalseexcusesforthenon—performanceofvariousrequestsmadetoSirRafflebythewriters。’He’saboutthebesthandatitthatIknow，’
saidSirRaffle，oneday，tothesecretary；’otherwiseyoumaybesureI
shouldn’tkeephimhere。’’Iwillallowthathe’sclever，’saidthesecretary。’Itisn’tcleverness，somuchastact。It’swhatIcalltact。
Ihadn’tbeenlongintheservicebeforeImastereditmyself；andnowthatI’vebeenatthetroubletoteachhimIdon’twanttohavethetroubletoteachanother。Butuponmywordhemustmindhisp’sandq’s；
uponmyword，hemust；andyouhadbettertellhimso。’’Thefactis，MrKissing，’saidtheprivatesecretarythenextdaytothesecretary——MrKissingwasatthattimesecretarytotheboardofcommissionersforthereceiptofincometax——’thefactis，MrKissing，SirRaffleshouldneverattempttowritealetterhimself。Hedoesn’tknowhowtodoit。Healwayssaystwicetoomuch，andyetnothalfenough。Iwishyou’dtellhimso。Hewon’tbelieveme。’FromwhichitwillbeseenMrEameswasproudofhisspecialaccomplishment，butdidnotfeelanygratitudetothemasterwhoassumedtohimselfthegloryofhavingtaughthim。OnthepresentoccasionJohnEameswroteallhislettersbeforehethoughtagainofLilyDale，andwasabletowritethemwithoutinterruption，asthechairmanwasabsentforthedayattheTreasury——orperhapsathisclub。Then，whenhehadfinished，heranghisbell，andorderedsomesherryandsoda—water，andstretchedhimselfbeforethefire——asthoughhisexertionsinthepublicservicehadbeenverygreat——andseatedhimselfcomfortablyinhisarm—chair，andlitacigar，andagaintookoutLadyJulia’sletter。
Asregardedthecigar，itmaybesaidthatbothSirRaffleandMrKissinghadgivenordersthatonnoaccountshouldcigarsbelitwithintheprecinctsoftheIncome—TaxOffice。MrEameshadtakenuponhimselftounderstandthatsuchordersdidnotapplytoaprivatesecretary，andwaswellawarethatSirRaffleknewhishabit。ToMrKissing，Iregrettosay，heputhimselfinoppositionwheneverandwhereveroppositionwaspossible；sothatmenintheofficesaidthatoneofthetwomustgoatlast。’ButJohnnycandoanything，youknow，becausehehasgotmoney。’Thatwastoofrequentlytheopinionfinallyexpressedamongthemen。
SoJohnEamessatdown，anddrankhissoda—water，andsmokedhiscigar，andreadhisletter；or，rather，simplythatparagraphoftheletterwhichreferredtoMissDale。’Thetidingsofherdeathhavedisturbedher，andsetherthinkingagainofthingsthatwerefadingfromhermind。’Heunderstooditall。Andyethowcoulditpossiblybeso？Howcoulditbethatsheshouldnotdespiseaman——despisehimifshedidnothatehim——whohadbehavedasthismanhadbehavedtoher？ItwasnowfouryearssincethisCrosbiehadbeenengagedtoMissDale，andhadjiltedhersoheartlesslyastoincurthedisgustofeverymaninLondonwhohadheardthestory。Hehadmarriedanearl’sdaughter，whohadlefthimwithinafewmonthsoftheirmarriage，andnowMrCrosbie’snoblewifewasdead。Thewifewasdead，andsimplybecausethemanwasfreeagain，he，JohnEames，wastobetoldthatMissDale’smindwas’disturbed’，andthatherthoughtsweregoingbacktothingswhichhadfadedfromhermemory，andwhichshouldhavebeenlongsincebanishedaltogetherfromsuchholyground。
IfLilyDalewerenowtomarryMrCrosbie，anythingsoperverselycruelasthefateofJohnEameswouldneverhaveyetbeentoldinromance。
Thatwashisownideaonthematterashesatsmokinghiscigar。Ihavesaidthatwasproudofhisconstancy，andyet，insomesort，hewasalsoashamedofit。Heacknowledgedthefactofhislove，andbelievedhimselftohaveout—JacobedJacob；buthefeltthatitwashardforamanwhohadrisenintheworldashehaddonetobemadeaplaythingofbyafoolishpassion。Itwasnotfouryearsago——thataffairofCrosbie——andMissDaleshouldhaveacceptedhimlongsince。Half—a—dozentimeshehadmadeuphismindtobeverysternwithher；andhehadwrittensomewhatsternly——butthefirstmomentthathesawherhewasconqueredagain。’Andnowthatbrutewillreappearandeverythingwillbewrongagain，’hesaidtohimself。Ifthebrutedidreappear，somethingshouldhappenofwhichtheworldwouldhearthetidings。Sohelitanothercigar，andbegantothinkwhatthatsomethingshouldbe。
Ashedidsoheheardaloudnoise，asofharsh，rattlingwindsinthenextroom，andheknewthatSirRafflehadcomebackfromtheTreasury。
Therewasacreakingofboots，andaknockingofchairs，andaringingofbells，andthenaloudangryvoice——avoicethatwasveryharsh，andonthisoccasionveryangry。Whyhadnothistwelveo’clocklettersbeensentuptohimtotheWestEnd？Whynot？MrEamesknewallaboutit。WhydidMrEamesknowallaboutit？WhyhadnotMrEamesnotsentthemup？
WherewasMrEames？LetMrEamesbesenttohim。AllwhichMrEamesheardstandingwiththecigarinhismouthandhisbacktothefire。
’SomebodyhasbeenbullyingoldBuffle，Isuppose。AfterallheasbeenupattheTreasuretoday，’saidEamestohimself。Buthedidnotstirtillthemessengerhadbeentohim，noreventhenatonce。’Allright，Rafferty，’hesaid；’I’llgojustnow。’Thenhetookhalf—a—dozenmorewhiffsfromthecigar，threwtheremainderintothefire，andopenedthedoorwhichcommunicatedbetweenhisroomandSirRaffle’s。
Thegreatmanwasstandingwithtwounopenedepistlesinhishand。
’Eames，’saidhe，’hereareletters——’Thenhestoppedhimself，andbeganuponanothersubject。’DidInotgiveexpressordersthatIwouldhavenosmokingintheoffice？’
’IthinkMrKissingsaidsomethingaboutit。’
’MrKissing！ItwasnotMrKissingatall。ItwasI。Igavetheordermyself。’
’You’llfinditbeganwithMrKissing。’
’ItdidnotbeginwithMrKissing；itbeganandendedwithme。Whatareyougoingtodo，sir？’JohnEamessteppedtowardsthebell，andhishandwasalreadyonthebell—pull。
’Iwasgoingtoringforthepapers，sir。’
’Andwhotoldyoutoringforthepapers？Idon’twantthepapers。Thepaperswon’tshowanything。Isupposemywordmaybetakenwithoutthepapers。SinceyouaresofondofMrKissing——’
’I’mnotfondofMrKissingatall。’
’You’llhavetogobacktohim，andletsomebodycomeherewhowillnotbetooindependenttoobeymyorders。Herearetwomostimportantlettersthathavebeenlyinghereallday，insteadofbeingsentuptomeattheTreasury。’
’Ofcoursetheyhavebeenlyingthere。Ithoughtyouwenttotheclub。’
’ItoldyouthatIshouldgototheTreasury。Ihavebeenthereallmorningwiththechancellor’——whenSirRafflespokeofficiallyofthechancellorhewasnotsupposedtomeantheLordChancellor——’andhereI
findletterswhichIparticularlywantedlyinguponmydesknow。Imustputanendtothiskindofthing。Imust，indeed。Ifyouliketheouterofficebettersaysoatonce，andyoucango。’
’I’llthinkaboutit，SirRaffle。’
’Thinkaboutit！Whatdoyoumeanbythinkingaboutit？ButIcan’ttalkaboutthatnow。I’mverybusy，andshallbeheretillpastseven。I
supposeyoucanstay？’
’Allnight，ifyouwishit，sir。’
’Verywell。Thatwilldoforthepresent——Iwouldn’thavehadtheselettersdelayedfortwentypounds。’
’Idon’tsupposeitwouldhavematteredonestrawifbothofthemremainedunopenedtillnextweek。’Thislastlittlespeech，however，wasnotmadealoudtoSirRaffle，butbyJohnnytohimselfinthesolitudeofhisownroom。
Verysoonafterthathewentaway，SirRafflehavingdiscoveredthatoneofthelettersinquestionrequiredimmediatereturntotheWestEnd。
’I’vechangedmymindaboutstaying。Ishan’tstaynow。Ishouldhavedoneiftheselettershadreachedmeastheyought。’
’ThenIsupposeIcango？’
’Youcandoasyoulikeaboutthat，’saidSirRaffle。
Eamesdiddoasheliked，andwenthome，ortohisclub；andashewentheresolvedthathewouldputanend，andatonce，tothepresenttroubleofhislife。LilyDaleshouldaccepthimorrejecthim；and，takingeithertheoneorotheralternative，sheshouldhearabitofhismindplainlyspoken。
CHAPTERXVI
DOWNATALLINGTON
ItwasChristmas—timedownatAllington，andatthreeo’clockonChristmasEve，justasthedarknessoftheearlywintereveningwascomingon，LilyDaleandGraceCrawleywereseatedtogether，oneabovetheother，onthestepsleadinguptothepulpitatAllingtonChurch。
Theyhadbeenworkingalldayatthedecorationsofthechurch，andtheywerenowlookingroundthemattheresultoftheirhandiwork。Toaneyeunusedtothegloomtheplacewouldhavebeennearlydark；buttheycouldseeeverycornerturnedbytheivysprigs，andeverylineonwhichtheholly—leaveswereshining。Andthegreeneriesofthewinterhadnotbeenstuckupintheold—fashioned，idleway，aboughjustfasteneduphereandatwiginsertedthere；buteverythinghadbeendonewithsomemeaning，withsomethoughttowardstheoriginalarchitectureofthebuilding。TheGothiclineshadbeenfollowed，andallthelowerarcheswhichithadbeenpossibletoreachwithanordinaryladderhadbeenturnedastrulywiththelaurelcuttingsastheyhadbeenturnedoriginallywiththestone。
’Iwouldn’ttieanothertwig，’saidtheeldergirl，’foralltheChristmaspuddingsthatwaseverboiled。’
’It’sluckythenthatthereisn’tanothertwigtotie。’
’Idon’tknowaboutthat。Iseeascoreofplaceswheretheworkhasbeenscamped。ThisisthesixthtimeIhavedonethechurch，andIdon’tthinkI’lleverdoitagain。Whenwefirstbeganit，BellandI，youknow——beforeBellwasmarried——MrsBoyce，andtheBoycianestablishmentgenerally，usedtocomeandhelp。Orratherweusedtohelpher。Nowshehardlyeverlooksafteritatall。’
’Sheisolder，Isuppose。’
’She’salittleolder，andadealidler。Howidlepeopledoget！Lookathim。Sincehehashadacuratehehardlyeverstirsroundtheparish。
Andheisgettingsofatthat——H——sh！Heresheisherself——cometogiveherjudgmentuponus。’Thenastoutlady，thewifeofthevicar，walkedslowlyuptheaisle。’Well，girls，’shesaid，’youhaveworkedhard，andIamsureMrBoycewillbeverymuchobligedtoyou。’
’MrBoyce，indeed！’saidLilyDale。’Weshallexpectthewholeparishtorisefromtheirseatsandthankus。Whydidn’tJaneandBetsycomeandhelpus？’
’Theyweresotiredwhentheycameinfromthecoalclub。Besides，theydon’tcareforthiskindofthing——notasyoudo。’
’Janeisutilitariantothebackbone，Iknow，’saidLily，’andBetsydoesn’tlikegettingupladders。’
’Asforladders，’saidMrsBoyce，defendingherdaughter，’IamnotquitesurethatBetsyisn’tright。Youdon’tmeantosaythatyoudidallthosecapitalsyourself？’
’Everytwig，withHopkinstoholdtheladderandcutthesticks；andasHopkinsisjustahundredandoneyearsold，wecouldhavedoneitprettynearlyaswellalone。’
’Idonotthinkthat，’saidGrace。
’Hehasbeengrumblingallthetime，’saidLily，’andswearsheneverwillhavethelaurelsrobbedagain。FiveorsixyearsagoheusedtodeclarethatdeathwouldcertainlysavehimfromthepainofsuchanotherdesecrationbeforenextChristmas；buthehasgivenupthatfoolishnotionnow，andtalksasthoughhemeanttoprotecttheAllingtonshrubsatanyratetotheendofthiscentury。’
’Iamsurewegaveoursharefromtheparsonage，’saidMrsBoyce，whoneverunderstoodajoke。
’Allthebestcamefromtheparsonage，asofcoursetheyought，’saidLily。’ButHopkinshadtomakeupthedeficiency。Andasmyuncletoldhimtotakethehaycartfortheminsteadofthehand—barrow，heisbroken—hearted。’
’Iamsurehewasverygood—natured，’saidGrace。
’Neverthelessheisbroken—hearted；andIamverygood—naturedtoo，andIambroken—backed。Whoisgoingtopreachtomorrowmorning，MrsBoyce？’
’MrSwantonwillpreachinthemorning。’
’Tellhimnottobetoolongbecauseofthechildren’spudding。TellMrBoyceifheislong，wewon’tanyofuscomenextSunday。’
’Mydear，howcanyousaysuchwickedthings！Ishallnottellhimanythingofthekind。’
’That’snotwicked，MrsBoyce。IfIweretosayIhadeatensomuchlunchthatIdidn’twantanydinner，you’dunderstandthat。IfMrSwantonwillpreachforthree—quartersofanhour——’
’Heonlypreachedforthree—quartersofanhouronce，Lily。’
’Hehasbeenoverthehalf—houreverySundaysincehehasbeenhere。
Hisaverageisoverfortyminutes，andIsayit’sashame。’
’Itisnotashameatall，Lily，’saidMrsBoyce，becomingveryserious。
’Lookatmyuncle；hedoesn’tliketogotosleep，andhehastosufferapurgatoryinkeepinghimselfawake。’
’Ifyouruncleisheavynow，howcanMrSwantonhelpit？IfMrDale’smindwereonthesubjecthewouldnotsleep。’
’Come，MrsBoyce；there’ssomebodyelseasleepsometimesbesidesmyuncle。WhenMrBoyceputsuphisfingerandjusttoucheshisnose，I
knowaswellaspossiblewhyhedoesit。’
’LilyDale，youhavenobusinesstosayso。Itisnottrue。Idon’tknowhowyoucanbringyourselftotalkinthatwayofyourownclergyman。IfIweretotellyourmamma，shewouldbeshocked。’
’Youwon’tbesoill—natured，MrsBoyce——afterallthatI’vedoneforthechurch。’
’Ifyouthinkmoreabouttheclergymen，Lily，andlessaboutthechurch，’saidMrsBoyceverysententiously，’moreaboutthematterandlessaboutthemanner，moreoftherealityandlessoftheform，Ithinkyouwouldfindthatyourreligionwouldgofurtherwithyou。MissCrawleyisthedaughterofaclergyman，andIamsureshewillagreewithme。’
’IfsheagreeswithanybodyinscoldingmeI’llquarrelwithher。’
’Ididn’tmeantoscoldyou，Lily。’
’Idon’tminditfromyou，MrsBoyce。Indeed，Iratherlikeit。Itisasortofpastoralvisitation；andasMrBoyceneverscoldsmehimselfI
takeitfromhimbyattorney。’Thentherewassilenceforaminuteortwo，duringwhichMrsBoycewasendeavouringtodiscoverwhetherMissDalewaslaughingatherornot。Asshewasnotquitecertain，shethoughtatlastshewouldletthesuspectedfaultpassunobserved。
’Don’twaitforus，MrsBoyce，’saidLily。’WemustremaintillHopkinshassentGregorytosweepthechurchoutandtakeawaytherubbish。
We’llseethatthekeyisleftatMrsGiles’s。’
’Thankyou，mydear。ThenImayaswellgo。IthoughtI’dcomeinandseethatitwasallright。I’msureMrBoycewillbeverymuchobligedtoyouandMissCrawley。Good—night，mydear。’
’Good—night，MrsBoyce；andbesureyoudon’tletMrSwantonbelongtomorrow。’TothispartingshotMrsBoycemadenorejoinder；butshehurriedoutofthechurchsomewhatthequickerforit，andclosedthedoorafterherwithsomethingofaslam。
Ofallpersonsclergymenarethemostirreverentinthehandlingofthingssupposedtobesacred，andnexttothemclergyman’swives，andafterthemthoseotherladies，oldoryoung，whotakeuponthemselvessemi—clericalduties。Anditisnaturalthatitshouldbeso；forisitnotsaidthatfamiliaritydoesbreedcontempt？Whenaparsontakeshislayfriendoverhischurchonaweekday，howmuchlessofthespiritofgenuflexionandhead—uncoveringtheclergymanwilldisplaytothelayman！Theparsonpullsaboutthewoodworkandknocksaboutthestonework，asthoughitweremerewoodandstone；andtalksaloudintheaisle，andtreatseventhereading—deskasacommonthing；whereasthevisitorwhispersgently，andcarrieshimselfasthougheveninlookingatachurchhewasboundtoregardhimselfasperformingsomeservicethatwashalfdivine。NowLilyDaleandGraceCrawleywerebothaccustomedtochurches，andhadbeensolongatworkinthischurchforthelasttwodays，thatthebuildinghadlosttothemmuchofitssacredness，andtheywerealmostasirreverentasthoughtheyweretwocurates。