When the Bishop had arrived and gone into the chancel, and blown his

nose, the congregation were sufficiently impressed by his presence to

leave off looking at one another.

The Right Reverend Cuthbert Helmsdale, D.D., ninety-fourth occupant of

the episcopal throne of the diocese, revealed himself to be a personage

of dark complexion, whose darkness was thrown still further into

prominence by the lawn protuberances that now rose upon his two shoulders

like the Eastern and Western hemispheres. In stature he seemed to be

tall and imposing, but something of this aspect may have been derived

from his robes.

The service was, as usual, of a length which severely tried the tarrying

powers of the young people assembled; and it was not till the youth of

all the other parishes had gone up that the turn came for the Welland

bevy. Swithin and some older ones were nearly the last. When, at the

heels of Mr. Torkingham, he passed Lady Constantine's pew, he lifted his

eyes from the red lining of that gentleman's hood sufficiently high to

catch hers. She was abstracted, tearful, regarding him with all the rapt

mingling of religion, love, fervour, and hope which such women can feel

at such times, and which men know nothing of. How fervidly she watched

the Bishop place his hand on her beloved youth's head; how she saw the

great episcopal ring glistening in the sun among Swithin's brown curls;

how she waited to hear if Dr. Helmsdale uttered the form 'this thy child'

which he used for the younger ones, or 'this thy servant' which he used

for those older; and how, when he said, 'this thy _child_,' she felt a

prick of conscience, like a person who had entrapped an innocent youth

into marriage for her own gratification, till she remembered that she had

raised his social position thereby,--all this could only have been told

in its entirety by herself.

As for Swithin, he felt ashamed of his own utter lack of the high

enthusiasm which beamed so eloquently from her eyes. When he passed her

again, on the return journey from the Bishop to his seat, her face was

warm with a blush which her brother might have observed had he regarded

her.

Whether he had observed it or not, as soon as St. Cleeve had sat himself

down again Louis Glanville turned and looked hard at the young

astronomer. This was the first time that St. Cleeve and Viviette's

brother had been face to face in a distinct light, their first meeting

having occurred in the dusk of a railway-station. Swithin was not in the

habit of noticing people's features; he scarcely ever observed any detail

of physiognomy in his friends, a generalization from their whole aspect

forming his idea of them; and he now only noted a young man of perhaps

thirty, who lolled a good deal, and in whose small dark eyes seemed to be

concentrated the activity that the rest of his frame decidedly lacked.

This gentleman's eyes were henceforward, to the end of the service,

continually fixed upon Swithin; but as this was their natural direction,

from the position of his seat, there was no great strangeness in the

circumstance.




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