d. "I knew you couldn't know, and
therefore we ventured to wait a few minutes. The time hasn't been
lost, as Mr Maguire has treated us to a theological argument of great
weight."

Then all the company laughed, and Miss Mackenzie perceived that Mr
Stumfold could joke in his way. She was introduced to Mr Maguire, who
also pressed her hand; and then Miss Baker came and sat by her side.
There was, however, at that moment no time for conversation. The
prayer was begun immediately, Mr Stumfold taking this duty himself.
Then Mr Maguire read half a chapter in the Bible, and after that Mr
Stumfold explained it. Two ladies asked Mr Stumfold questions with
great pertinacity, and these questions Mr Stumfold answered very
freely, walking about the room the while, and laughing often as he
submitted himself to their interrogations. And Miss Mackenzie was
much astonished at the special freedom of his manner,--how he spoke
of St Paul as Paul, declaring the saint to have been a good fellow;
how he said he liked Luke better than Matthew, and how he named
even a holier name than these with infinite ease and an accustomed
familiarity which seemed to delight the other ladies; but which at
first shocked her in her ignorance.

"But I'm not going to have anything more to say to Peter and Paul at
present," he declared at last. "You'd keep me here all night, and the
tea will be spoilt."

Then they all laughed again at the absurd idea of this great and good
man preferring his food,--his food of this world,--to that other food
which it was his special business to dispense. There is nothing which
the Stumfoldian ladies of Littlebath liked so much as these little
jokes which bordered on the profanity of the outer world, which made
them feel themselves to be almost as funny as the sinners, and gave
them a slight taste, as it were, of the pleasures of iniquity.

"Wine maketh glad the heart of woman, Mrs Jones," Mr Stumfold would
say as he filled for the second time the glass of some old lady of
his set; and the old lady would chirrup and wink, and feel that
things were going almost as jollily with her as they did with that
wicked Mrs Smith, who spent every night of her life playing cards, or
as they had done with that horrid Mrs Brown, of whom such terrible
things were occasionally whispered when two or three ladies found
themselves sufficiently private to whisper them; that things were
going almost as pleasant here in this world, although accompa