),
in which the patient's mother set forth her offspring's symptoms with
embarrassing frankness, Henry was compelled, as a last resort, to pay
one more visit to the mountain-top. The indulgent fairy kindly agreed to
put things right, but only under penalty of an improving homily on
contentment with one's lot and the fatuity of asking for what you do not
really want. This was only half finished when the party returned from
church, and Phillis, realising that the absolute despotism of the last
few hours would now be watered down by an unsentimental mother into a
limited monarchy at the best, retired within her shell and declared the
revels at an end.

II.

"What was the church like?" I inquired at lunch.

"I have witnessed more snappy entertainments," remarked Miss Buncle, the
American girl, through her pretty nose. "Still, we smiled some. Mr
Standish here got quite delirious when the minister prayed for 'the
adjacent country of England, which, as Thou knowest, O Lord, lies some
twa hundred miles to the sooth of us,'--I'm sorry I can't talk Scotch,
Mr Fordyce,--as if he was afraid that Providence might mail the blessing
to the wrong address and Iceland would get it."

Kitty broke in upon Miss Buncle's reminiscences.

"Who do you think we saw in church?" she said. "I nearly forgot to tell
you. Your uncle, Robin--Sir James Fordyce!"

Robin nodded his head in a confirmatory way.

"He is often up here at this time of year," he said.

"He has friends here, perhaps?" said I.

"Oh yes; he has friends."

I could tell from Robin's voice that he was nursing some immense joke,
but he betrayed no inclination to share it with us. Kitty went on.

"He was sitting in a pew with some farmery-looking people. There was a
patriarchal old man, very stately and imposing, rather like--like----"

"Moses?" I suggested.

"No. I don't _think_ Moses was like that."

I had got as far as 'Aar'--when Lady Rubislaw said--

"Elijah?"

"That's it," replied Kitty. "_Just_ like Elijah." (All things
considered, I cannot imagine why Moses would not have done as well.)
"Then beside him was a perfectly dear old lady. Not so very old either;
say sixty. Of course they may not have belonged to Sir James at all: he
may just have been put in their pew. Still, they kept handing him
Bibles, and looking up places for him at singing time."

"That means nothing," said I. "It's the merest courtesy here."

"True," said our hostess. "I was havin