of state. Affairs of
state. But you'll allow me to send you to church in my car. My private
secretary is in it, and I shall tell him to see you safely to church,
to secure a seat for you--"

"The Dean has reserved seats for us," I said.

"Capital, capital. We can regard that as settled then. My private
secretary--an excellent young fellow whom I picked up at Toynbee
Hall--a student of our social problems--a man whom I'm sure you'll
like."

He conducted Marion to the door and handed her over to the private
secretary from Toynbee Hall. I resigned myself and led Clithering to a
deserted smoking-room.

"I never saw so much church-going anywhere," he said. "It's most
remarkable. I don't think the Government quite appreciates--"

As a matter of fact the percentage of church-going men on that
particular Sunday was considerably over the average. On the other hand
there were much fewer women than usual. Every church of every
Protestant denomination was holding a "Parade Service" for volunteers,
and most of the women who tried to get in had to be turned away from
the doors. I thought it well to rub the facts in a little.

"Rack-renting landlords," I said. "Sweating capitalists, and clergymen
whose churches are empty because their congregations are tired of
hearing them curse the Pope!"

"Eh?" said Clithering, "what's that? what's that?"

"Only a quotation," I said. "I forget if it was a Cabinet Minister--"

"Not at all," said Clithering. "I recollect the words now. It was one
of the Irish Members. No Cabinet Minister would dream of saying such
things. We have a high sense of the importance of the Ulster problem.
Nothing, I assure you, is further from our minds than the desire to
minimize or treat with undue flippancy the conscientious objections,
even the somewhat unreasonable fears of men whom we recognize as--"

Clithering paused. I had not anything particular to say, so I waited
for him to begin again.

"I understand," he said, "that a meeting of the Unionist Defence
Committee is to be held this afternoon."

"Yes," I said. "I'm going to it. I'm not really a member of the
committee, at least I wasn't until yesterday; but--"

"I quite understand, quite understand. In fact--speaking now in the
strictest confidence--I may say that the suggestion to add your name
to the committee was made--well it was made to Lady Moyne by a very
important person. It was generally recognized that a man of your
well-known moderatio