, women ran out and
scattered rose-leaves before it, and one young mother set her blooming
baby on a heap of greenery in the middle of the street, leaving it
there, that the Holy Ghost under its canopy might pass over it. A pretty
sight, the rosy little creature smiling in the sunshine as it sat
playing with its own blue shoes, while the golden pageant went by; the
chanting priests stepping carefully, and looking down with sudden
benignity in their tired faces as the holy shadow fell on the bright
head, making baby blessed, and saved for ever in its pious mother's
eyes.

A great band played finely, scarlet soldiers followed, then the banners
of patron saints were borne by children. Saint Agnes and her lamb led a
troop of pretty little girls carrying tall white lilies, filling the air
with their sweetness. Mary, Our Mother, was followed by many orphans
with black ribbons crossed over the young hearts that had lost so much.
Saint Martin led the charity boys in purple suits of just the colour of
the mantle he was dividing with the beggar on the banner. A pleasant
emblem of the charitable cloak that covers so many.

Priests in full splendour paced solemnly along with censers swinging,
candles flickering, sweet-voiced boys singing, and hundreds kneeling as
they passed. Most impressive figures, unless one caught a glimpse of
something comically human to disturb the effect of the heavenly pageant.
Lavinia had an eye for the ludicrous and though she dropped a tear over
the orphans, and with difficulty resisted a strong desire to catch and
kiss the pretty baby, she scandalized her neighbours by laughing
outright the next minute. A particularly portly, pious-looking priest,
who was marching with superb dignity, and chanting like a devout
bumble-bee, suddenly mislaid his temper, and injured the effect by
boxing a charity boy's ears with his gilded missal, and then capped the
climax by taking a pinch of snuff with a sonorous satisfaction that
convulsed the heretic.

The afternoon was spent in the church, wandering to and fro, each alone
to study and enjoy in her own way. Matilda lost her head entirely, and
had silent raptures over the old pictures. Amanda said her prayers,
looked up her dates, and imparted her facts in a proper and decorous
manner, while Lavinia went up and down, finding for herself little
pictures not painted by hands, and reading histories more interesting to
her than those of saints and martyrs.

In one dim