hope
for some chance opening. The stranger who came was dependent upon
hospitality; but there were soft-footed and tactful ushers, who would
find one a seat, if one were a presentable person. The contingency of
an unpresentable person seldom arose, for the proletariat did not swarm
at the gates of St. Cecilia's. Out of its liberal income the church
maintained a "mission" upon the East Side, where young curates wrestled
with the natural depravity of the lower classes--meantime cultivating a
soul-stirring tone, and waiting until they should be promoted to a real
church. Society was becoming deferential to its religious guides, and
would have been quite shocked at the idea that it exerted any pressure
upon them; but the young curates were painfully aware of a process of
unnatural selection, whereby those whose manner and cut of coat were
not pleasing were left a long time in the slums.--On one occasion there
had been an amusing blunder; a beautiful new church was built at
Newport, and an eloquent young minister was installed, and all Society
attended the opening service--and sat and listened in consternation to
an arraignment of its own follies and vices! The next Sunday, needless
to say, Society was not present; and within half a year the church was
stranded, and had to be dismantled and sold!

They had elaborate music at St. Cecilia's, so beautiful that Alice felt
uncomfortable, and thought that it was perilously "high." At this Mrs.
Winnie laughed, offering to take her to an afternoon service around the
corner, where they had a full orchestra, and a harp, and opera music,
and incense and genuflexions and confessionals. There were people, it
seemed, who like to thrill themselves by dallying with the wickedness
of "Romanism"; somewhat as a small boy tries to see how near he can
walk to the edge of a cliff. The "father" at this church had a jewelled
robe with a train so many yards long, and which had cost some
incredible number of thousands of dollars; and every now and then he
marched in a stately procession through the aisles, so that all the
spectators might have a good look at it. There was a fierce controversy
about these things in the church, and libraries of pamphlets were
written, and intrigues and social wars were fought over them.

But Montague and Alice did not attend this service--they had promised
themselves the very plebeian diversion of a ride in the subway; for so
far they had not seen this feature of the