the
others, the chorus. I stood still in amazement and challenged them:--

"I am happy to see my little children so well employed. How long since
you commenced to say the Rosary thus in common?"

In a twinkling the solemnity vanished and I was surrounded by a
chattering group.

"Just a week, Fader; and Fader Letheby, Fader, he tould us of a place
where they do be going to work in the morning, Fader, and dey all saying
de Rosary togeder, Fader; and den, Fader, we do be saying to ourselves,
why shouldn't we, Fader, say de Rosary coming to school, de same as
dese Germans, Fader?"

"That's excellent," I said, running my eyes over the excited group; "and
have you all got beads?"

"I have, Fader," said one of the coryphaei, "and de oders do be saying it
on their fingers."

"I must get beads for every one of you," I said; "and to commence, here,
Anstie, is my own."

I gave a little brown-eyed child my own mother-of-pearl beads, mounted
in silver, and was glad I had it to give. The children moved away,
murmuring the Rosary as before.

Now, here clearly was an innovation. Wasn't this intolerable? Who ever
heard the like? Where would all this stop? Why, the parish is already
going to the dogs! He has played right into my hands. Yes? Stop the
Rosary? Prevent the little children from singing the praises of their
Mother and Queen? I thought I saw the face of the Queen Mother looking
at me from the skies; and I heard a voice saying, prophetically: "Ex ore
infantium et lactantium perfecisti laudem propter inimicos tuos, ut
destruas inimicum et ultorem." Clearly, the fates are against me.

"Father Letheby was not at home, but would be back presently. Would I
take a chair and wait for a few moments?"

I sat down in a comfortable arm-chair lined with the soft rug that first
elicited my housekeeper's admiration. I looked around. Books were strewn
here and there, but there was no slovenliness or untidiness; and, ha!
there were the first signs of work on the white sheets of manuscript
paper. I wonder what is he writing about. It is not quite honorable, but
as I am on the war path, perhaps I could get here a pretext for scalping
him. Notes!

"November 1. Dipped into several numbers of _Cornhill Magazine_.
Specially pleased with an article on 'Wordsworth's Ethics,' in the
August number, 1876.

"November 2. Read over Sir J. Taylor's poems, principally 'Philip
van Artevelde,' 'Isaac Comnenus,' 'Edwin the