eby going to be
deprived of two services. Accordingly, after the morning service--which
usually lasted until one o'clock--was over, a recess of one hour for
lunch and fresh air followed, and at two o'clock a second service,
precisely similar in character, was entered upon, which occupied two
hours more. And then, having thus laid in a supply of sound theology for
the rest of the week, the good people of Calvin church, after indulging
in a little harmless gossiping at the church door--of which indulgence,
by the way, Squire Stewart strongly disapproved, and would have
prohibited, had he been able--harnessed up their horses and drove away
home.

Four hours of church service of so unattractive a character, and that in
mid-summer! Poor little Bert! He did not want to shock his grandfather,
or bring his mother's discipline into condemnation; but really, how
could he be all that the Squire, who, if he ever had been a boy himself,
must have quite forgotten about it, expected him to be? If he went to
sleep, Aunt Sarah or Aunt Martha, in obedience to signals from
grandfather, shook or pinched him awake again. If he stayed awake, he
felt that he must wriggle or die. Sometimes the temptation to scream out
loud was so strong that it seemed little short of a miracle he did not
yield to it. Mrs. Lloyd fully sympathised with her son's troubles, but
accustomed from infancy to obey her father unquestioningly, she would
not venture to do more than softly plead for Bert, now and then, when he
was more restless than usual. Her pleadings were not altogether vain,
and frequently they had the result of securing for Bert a boon that he
highly appreciated.

Squire Stewart was bothered by a troublesome chronic cough. He did not
mind it very much when at home, but at church he felt it to be a
nuisance both to himself and his neighbours. To ease it somewhat he
always carried to church with him a number of black currant lozenges, a
supply of which he kept in his big mahogany desk at home. Occasionally,
either as encouragement to him to try and be a better boy, or as a token
of relenting for being over severe, he would pass Bert one of these
lozenges, and Bert thought them the most delicious and desirable
sweetmeat ever invented. Not that they were really anything wonderful,
though they were very expensive; but the circumstances under which he
received them gave them a peculiar relish; and it was in regard to them
that Bert fought and won the shar