they had "begun to be
friends" and would be different the next time they met. It was her own
fault. What had made her speak to her? She was like that.... Eve had
told her. She got excited and interested in people and then wanted to
throw them up. It was not true. She did not want to throw them up.
She wanted them to leave her alone.... She had not been excited about
Millie. It was Ulrica... Ulrica... Ulrica... Ulrica... sitting up at
breakfast with her lovely head and her great eyes--her thin fingers
peeling an egg.... She had made them all look so "common." Ulrica was
different. Was she? Yes, Ulrica was different... Ulrica peeling an egg
and she, afterwards like a mad thing had gone into the saal and talked
to Millie in a vulgar, familiar way, no doubt.

And that had led to that dreadful talk with Gertrude. Gertrude's voice
sounding suddenly behind her as she stood looking out of the saal window
and their talk. She wished Gertrude had not told her about Hugo Wieland
and the skating. She was sure she would not have liked Erica Wieland.
She was glad she had left. "She was my chum," Gertrude had said, "and he
taught us all the outside edge and taught me figure-skating."

It was funny--improper--that these schoolgirls should go skating with
other girls' brothers. She had been so afraid of Gertrude that she had
pretended to be interested and had joked with her--she, Miss Henderson,
the governess had said--knowingly, "Let's see, he's the clean-shaven
one, isn't he?"

"_Rather_," Gertrude had said with a sort of winking grimace....

5

They were singing a hymn. The people near her had not moved. Nobody had
moved. The whole church was sitting down, singing a hymn. What wonderful
people.... Like a sort of tea-party... everybody sitting about--not
sitting up to the table... happy and comfortable.

Emma had found her place and handed her a big hymn-book with the score.

There was time for Miriam to read the first line and recognise the
original of "Now thank we all our God", before the singing
had reached the third syllable. She hung over the book.
"Nun--dank--et--Al--le--Gott." Now--thank--all--God. She read that first
line again and felt how much better the thing was without the "we"
and the "our." What a perfect phrase.... The hymn rolled on and she
recognised that it was the tune she knew--the hard square tune she and
Eve had called it--and Harriett used to mark time to it in jerks, a jerk
to each syllable, wit