e trembling
shoulder, and whispered: "Steady, old friend. It is all right."

There was no pause whatever after the solemn charge to the couple; so
if Garth and Jane had any secrets to disclose, they had perforce to
keep them for after discussion.

Then Jane found her right hand firmly clasped in Garth's; and no
inadequacy of the Church's mouth-piece could destroy the exquisite
beauty of the Church's words, in which Garth was asked if he would take
her to be his own.

To this, Garth, and old Margery, said they would; with considerable
display of emotion.

Then the all-comprehensive question was put to Jane; the Church seeming
to remind her gently, that she took him in his blindness, with all
which that might entail.

Jane said: "I will"; and the deep, tender voice, was the voice of The
Rosary.

When the words were uttered, Garth lifted the hand he held, and
reverently kissed it.

This was not in the rubric, and proved disconcerting to the clergyman.
He threw up his head suddenly, and inquired: "Who giveth this woman to
be married to this man?" And as, for the moment, there was no response,
he repeated, the question wildly; gazing into distant corners of the
church.

Then the duchess, who up to that time had been feeling a little bored,
realised that her moment had come, and rejoiced. She sailed out of her
pew, and advanced to the chancel step. "My dear good man," she said;
"_I_ give my niece away; having come north at considerable
inconvenience for that express purpose. Now, go on. What do we do next?"

Dr. Rob broke into an uncontrollable chuckle. The duchess lifted her
lorgnette, and surveyed him. Margery searched her prayer-book in vain
for the duchess's response. It did not appear to be there.

Flower looked in distressed appeal at the doctor. But the doctor was
studying, with grave intentness, a stencilled pattern on the chancel
roof; and paid no attention to Flower's nudge.

The only people completely unconscious of anything unusual in the order
of proceedings appeared to be the bride and bridegroom. They were
taking each other "in the sight of God, and in the face of this
congregation." They were altogether absorbed in each other, standing
together in the sight of God; and the deportment of "this congregation"
was a matter they scarcely noticed. "People always behave grotesquely
at weddings," Jane had said to Garth, beforehand; "and ours will be no
exception to the general rule. But we can close our