Maude was worth all the eight put together with whom she was called on
to be familiar. She found herself standing in a court, rather grass-
grown, where Gillian, with little Primrose by her side, was flinging
peas to a number of pigeons, grey, white, and brown, who fluttered
round her. Valetta and Fergus were on the granary steps, throwing meal
and sop mixed together to a host of cackling, struggling fowls, who
tried to leap over each other's backs. Wilfred seemed busy at some
hutches where some rabbits twitched their noses at cabbage leaves.
Mysie proceeded to minister to some black and rust-coloured guinea-
pigs, which Dolores thought very ugly, uninteresting, and odorous.

Then there were dogs jumping about everywhere, and cats and kittens
parading before people's feet, so that Dolores felt as if she had been
turned into a den of wild beasts, and resolved against ever again
venturing into the court at 'feeding-time.' A big bell gathered all
the children up together into a race to the house. There was another
scurry to change shoes and wash hands, and then Mysie conducted her
cousin into a large, cheerful, wainscoted room on the ground floor,
with deep windows, and numerous little, solid-looking deal tables.
There were Lady Merrifield and a young lady in spectacles, to whom
Dolores was presented as 'your new pupil,' and every one sat down at
one of the little tables, on which there were Bibles and Prayer-books.

Lady Merrifield took the two youngest on each side of her. Dolores
found a table ready for her with the books. A passage in the New
Testament was given out and read verse by verse, to the end of the
subject, which was the Parable of the Tares, and then Lady Merrifield
gave a short lesson on it, asking questions, and causing references to
be found, according to a book of notes, she had ready at hand.