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.