lothed beggarly man,
this perpetual curate, with his dirty broken boots, this already
half-convicted thief! Such was her idea of Mr. Crawley's conduct to
her, while she was fingering the papers,--simply because Mr. Crawley
would not speak to her.

"I forget where I was," said the bishop. "Oh, Mr. Thumble came back,
and I received your letter;--of course I received it. And I was
surprised to learn from that, that in spite of what had occurred at
Silverbridge, you were still anxious to continue the usual Sunday
ministrations in your church."

"I was determined that I would do my duty at Hogglestock, as long as
I might be left there to do it," said Mr. Crawley.

"Duty!" said Mrs. Proudie.

"Just a moment, my dear," said the bishop. "When Sunday came, I had
no alternative but to send Mr. Thumble over again to Hogglestock. It
occurred to us,--to me and Mrs. Proudie,--"

"I will tell Mr. Crawley just now what has occurred to me," said Mrs
Proudie.

"Yes;--just so. And I am sure that he will take it in good part. It
occurred to me, Mr. Crawley, that your first letter might have been
written in haste."

"It was written in haste, my lord; your messenger was waiting."

"Yes;--just so. Well; so I sent him again, hoping that he might be
accepted as a messenger of peace. It was a most disagreeable mission
for any gentleman, Mr. Crawley."

"Most disagreeable, my lord."

"And you refused him permission to obey the instructions which I had
given him! You would not let him read from your desk, or preach from
your pulpit."

"Had I been Mr. Thumble," said Mrs. Proudie, "I would have read from
that desk and I would have preached from that pulpit."

Mr. Crawley waited for a moment, thinking that the bishop might
perhaps speak again; but as he did not, but sat expectant as though
he had finished his discourse, and now expected a reply, Mr. Crawley
got up from his seat and drew near to the table. "My lord," he began,
"it has all been just as you have said. I did answer your first
letter in haste."

"The more shame for you," said Mrs. Proudie.

"And therefore, for aught I know, my letter to your lordship may be
so worded as to need some apology."

"Of course it needs an apology," said Mrs. Proudie.

"But for the matter of it, my lord, no apology can be made, nor is
any needed. I did refuse your messenger permission to perform the
services of my church, and if you send twenty more, I shall refuse
them all,--till the time