e possible, Mrs. Garthorne," Vane replied in something like
the same tone, "that you might be more interested than pleased."

"Indeed," said Enid, "and may I ask why?"

There was an immediate silence round the table, everybody wondering what
his answer would be.

"Because," he replied, with a change of tone so swift as to be almost
startling, "as soon as I take full Orders, it is my purpose, with God's
help and under Father Philip's advice, to become a missionary, not a
missionary to the heathen, as we are pleased to call them, or to the
infinitely more degraded heathen of our own country, but to such people
as you, you who are really living in sin without knowing it. Has it ever
struck you, Canon, how great a work the Church has left undone in what
are called the upper ranks of Society? You know the vast majority of
them really and honestly believe themselves to be good Christians, and
yet, as far as practical obedience to the teaching of Christ goes, they
are no more Christians than an unconverted Hottentot is."

"Oh--er--ah--yes," replied the Canon rather awkwardly, and in the midst
of a long silence. "Of course, I quite understand you and--er--by the
way, do you intend to apply for any preferment?"

"I shall get a curacy with Ernshaw if I can in the East End to begin
with, or, perhaps, with Father Baldwin in Kensington," said Vane,
unable, like Enid and her husband and one or two others, to repress a
faint smile at the Canon's not very skilful change of subject. "But I
shall not attempt to get a living or anything of that sort. You see, I
have some private means, and so I shall be in the happy position of
being able to do my work without pay. Besides, while there is such an
amount of poverty in the lower ranks of the Church, I think it is little
less than sinful for a man who can live without it to take a stipend
which, at least, might be bread and butter to a man who has nothing."

There was a rather awkward pause after this speech, as everyone at the
table save Vane knew perfectly well that both the Vicar and the Canon
had considerable private means in addition to the substantial stipends
they drew from their clerical offices. At length Enid looked across at
her husband with a wicked twinkle in her eye, and put an end to the
situation by rising. As soon as the ladies were gone, Garthorne sent the
wine round and adroitly turned the conversation back again to general
subjects. When they went into the drawing-ro