before, at the afternoon's school which he had
set up in Prickett's Lane for the young bargemen, who between the
intervals of their voyages had a little leisure at that hour of the day.
It is true there was a master provided, and the presence of the
Perpetual Curate was not indispensable; but the lads, among whom,
indeed, there were some men, were so much used to his presence as to get
restless at their work on this unprecedented emergency. The master knew
no other resource than to send for Miss Lucy Wodehouse, who was known to
be on the other side of Prickett's Lane at the moment, superintending a
similar educational undertaking for the benefit of the girls. It was, as
may be supposed, embarrassing to Lucy to be called upon to render an
account of Mr Wentworth's absence, and invited to take his place in this
public and open manner; but then the conventional reticences were
unknown in Wharfside, and nobody thought it necessary to conceal his
certainty that the Curate's movements were better known to Lucy than to
anybody else. She had to make answer with as much composure as possible
in the full gaze of so many pairs of curious eyes, that she did not know
why Mr Wentworth was absent--"Somebody is sick, perhaps," said Lucy,
repeating an excuse which had been made before for the Perpetual Curate;
"but I hope it does not make any difference," she went on, turning round
upon all the upturned heads which were neglecting their work to stare at
her. "Mr Wentworth would be grieved to think that his absence did his
scholars any injury." Lucy looked one of the ringleaders in the eyes as
she spoke, and brought him to his senses--all the more effectually, to
be sure, because she knew all about him, and was a familiar figure to
the boy, suggesting various little comforts, for which, in Prickett's
Lane, people were not ungrateful. But when she went back again to her
girls, the young lady found herself in a state of excitement which was
half annoyance and half a kind of shy pleasure. To be sure, it was quite
true that they did belong to each other; but at the same time, so long
as she was Lucy Wodehouse, she had no right to be called upon to
represent "the clergyman," even in "the district" which was so important
to both. And then it occurred to her to remember that if she remained
Lucy Wodehouse that was not the Curate's fault--from which thought she
went on to reflect that going away with Mr and Mrs Proctor when they
were married was