real interest she had ever had in
school-work, and inspired her with some slight confidence in herself.
She felt the dignity of the position of teacher too, and the
responsibility. She never betrayed her own ignorance, nor did anything
to shake Emily's touching belief in her superiority; and she never
shook Emily. She knew she could have done better herself if there had
been less thumping and shaking, and she had the wisdom to profit by
her mother's errors of judgment already--not that Emily ever provoked
her. The child was apt and docile, and the lessons were a sort of
improving game.

How to impart religious instruction was the thing that troubled Beth
most: she used to lie awake at night thinking out the problem. She
found that Emily had learnt many texts and hymns in the Sunday-school
to which she went regularly, and Beth made her repeat them, and soon
knew them all by heart herself; but she did not think that she taught
Emily enough. One day in church, however, she thought of a way to
extend her teaching. Bernadine had joined her class for fun, and was
playing at learning too; and now Beth proposed that they should fit up
a chapel in the acting-room, and resolve themselves occasionally into
a clergyman and congregation. A chair with the bottom knocked out was
the pulpit, and a long narrow box stood on end was the reading-desk.
Beth was the parson, of course, in a white sheet filched from the
soiled-clothes bag, and changed for a black shawl for the sermon. She
read portions of Scripture standing, she read prayers on her knees,
she led a hymn; and then she got into the black shawl and preached.
What these discourses were about, she could not remember in after
years; but they must have been fascinating, for the congregation
listened unwearied so long as she chose to go on.

Emily was a disappointment in one way: she had no imagination. Beth
pretended to take her photograph one day, after the manner of the
photographers on the sands.

"Now, this is the picture," she said, showing her a piece of glass.

"But there isn't no picture on it," said Emily, staring hard at the
glass.

"How stupid you are," said Beth, disgusted. "Look again."

"There isn't," Emily protested. "Just you show it to Bernadine."

"You should say _Miss_ Bernadine," that young lady admonished her.

A few minutes afterwards Emily corrected Bernadine for not saying miss
to Beth and herself. Beth tried to explain, but Emily could not see
why s