how her brother was,
and Hugh sent his servant to inquire. As all loitered aft, the bishop
held them together a moment more.

"You don't object to such a meeting?" he asked Hugh.

"Not if you don't alarm or distress any one. The doctor forbids that."
While Hugh so replied, the circle was joined by the commodore. The
bishop flared:

"Doctors always forbid! How can we exhort sinners without alarming or
distressing them?"

Hugh's answer was overprompt: "I don't know, sir."

But Ramsey, drawing the Gilmores with her, came between. "Just a bit
ago," she said to the bishop, "didn't you say yes, we must all be as gay
and happy as we can?"

"I did, verily. But surely that shouldn't prevent this."

"Oh, surely not!" exclaimed both the players.

"It needn't," said Ramsey. "But if we five"--Gilmores, Courteneys, and
herself--"and some others--help you with your meeting to-day will you
help us with ours to-morrow?"

"If I can, assuredly! But how will you help me to-day, my young sister?"

On three fingers the young sister--so lately his daughter--counted:
"First, we'll get the people to come; we'll tell them you're not going
to alarm or distress anybody. Second, if you forget and begin to do it
we'll remind you! And, third, we'll take up the collection!"

The senator laughed so much above the rest that the bishop colored as he
said: "I never exhort and collect at the same time."

"Oh-h!" sighed Ramsey. "We must collect, you know, to pay our share,
each of us, for the care of the sick. And we can't collect to-morrow;
we'll all be so busy getting up our own meeting." Her eyes wandered to
the senator, so fervently was he urging some matter upon the commodore.

"What," asked the bishop, turning to the players, "is to-morrow's
meeting to be for?"

"Why," brightly said the wife, "just to keep every one as gay and happy
as we can." But Ramsey added: "And to raise money for the not-sick
emigrants, to get them the right food."

"Ho, ho! Another collection!"

"No, only admission fees. Six bits for the play, four bits for the
dance."

Half offended, half amused, the bishop swelled. "And you ask me"--he
laughed, but she had turned away and he reverted to the players--"on top
of our prayers for God's mercy upon our bodies and souls you ask me to
help get up a play and a dance!"

Eagerly, amid a general merriment that was not quite merry, the Gilmores
answered with amused disclaimers for themselves and copious excuses for