tting with their backs to the light,
and, casting their shadows over the white cloth, sparkled in the
polished decanters. Morten held up his glass to the light, and enjoyed
its brilliancy.

"See how lovely your sister-in-law looks in the sunlight!" whispered
Delphin to Fanny.

"Oh! do you really think so?" she answered.

Shortly after she told one of the maid-servants, who was waiting, to
pull down the blind a little, as she did not like the glare in her eyes.

The conversation now became lively at the upper end of the table. The
subject on which it turned was education. Aalbom held forth on his
hobby, which was, that it was quite impossible for young people to get a
proper insight into learning without the use of corporal punishment, and
maintained that there would be an end of all intellectual cultivation if
a limit were not placed to modern humanitarianism, which he preferred to
call indulgence. His wife took the same side from conviction, and
Richard Garman from mischief, while the Consul was impartial. He set the
greatest store by the good old times, but still he could not help
thinking that they might get on with a little less of the stick than he
had experienced. Johnsen was very strong on the importance of religious
instruction and home influence.

"As to home influence," broke in Mrs. Aalbom, "school and home ought to
go hand-in-hand."

"Of course they ought," rejoined her husband. "If a boy is punished at
school, he ought to be punished also at home."

"But then, homes are so different," said Johnsen. This was the first
time he had made a remark that Rachel found rather feeble.

"Well, I don't know," cried Mrs. Aalbom, putting her head on one side
and looking up to the ceiling. "It is possible to have too much of
natural affection, mother's influence, home feeling, and that sort of
thing."

"It entirely depends what sort of home it is, Mrs. Aalbom," broke in
Jacob Worse, suddenly.

Every eye was turned upon him. He had drawn himself up, and his face was
red and his eyes gleaming.

There came a slight pause in the conversation, of which the Consul
availed himself, and, taking up his glass, he said, with a smile, "Now
we must mind what we are about. This is not the first time I have seen
Jacob Worse join in a conversation like this; and if we do not want him
to make it too warm for us, we had better change the scene of action to
another room, where we can carry on the conflict in the shade. So if t