ng that Beryl had been one of the
offenders. She, catching my eye, was thoroughly enjoying the situation.

"All right, Mr Trask," she answered. "We'll do what we can. Only you
mustn't try and make us do what we can't."

The little plain, whitewashed building--which Stacey had erected on his
farm, and was inordinately proud of, and fond of alluding to as "my
church"--was nearly full, a thoroughly representative congregation of
stock farmers, and their families. Many, like ourselves, had ridden
over, and there was a sprinkling of habits among the feminine section of
the gathering, eke a proportion of pretty faces. But, great Hercules!
there was nothing here to come near Beryl. Looking round, I realised
with a glow of pride that, compared with these, she was as a lily among
daisies and--she was with me, standing by me, sitting by me, kneeling by
me. It seemed--or I wanted it to seem--as though I had a kind of
proprietary interest in her.

Frankly, I own to not being much of a church-goer; far indeed be it from
me to cast a slight on those who are. It is sad, though a fact, but the
process--especially in the morning--has a soporific effect. Yet here,
in this little whitewashed building, with the blue sky glimpsed through
the open windows, the hum of bees and the strange call of birds in the
bush without, wafting in to mingle with the parson's voice and the
murmurs of the congregation, I did not feel drowsy in the least. The
graceful habit-clad figure beside me, the profile at which I stole more
than one side glance, the sweet true voice, the mere delight of
listening to which constituted, I fear, the sole assistance on my part
towards Trask's choral aspirations--there was no room for boredom or
drowsiness in such proximity; and if this be objected to as a
substituting of the creature for the Creator, well, still in my
blundering untheological mind I have an idea, which I couldn't express
intelligibly to save my life, that on this occasion the influence was
something more than a mere earthly one. But let that pass.

After the service we streamed out into the sunlight, and tongues began
to wag on all sides.

"Do persuade your brother to stay and have dinner with us, Miss
Matterson," said a voice on the other side of Beryl. "We can't; and
it's much too long for poor little Iris to wait if he persists in taking
her back at once. Of course you'll stay--and Mr Holt."

The speaker was one of the two girls who ha