The Altar Steps

rrents of darkness that went rolling by. He dared not open his mouth to scream lest he should be suffocated; he dared not put out his arm to search for the bell-rope lest h

he apprehended that what he had so often feared had finally come to pass. An earthquake had swallowed up London in spite of everybody's assurance that London could not be swallowed up

Angel!" he

door. The little boy prepared an attitude to greet his Angel that was a compound of the suspicion and courtesy with which he

k?" he heard his mo

a cry of exulta

soft sleeves of her dressing-gown. "I t

u think that,

s the Day of Judgment." He suddenly began to chuckle to himself. "How silly of me, Mother. Of course it couldn't be the Day of

e had no wish to add another to that long list of nightly fears and fantasie

e safe now, doesn't

ite safe,

have the gas lighted w

ittle bit

A very small illumination was in its eerie

ep with a great deal of

t for once not a crocus, but a tu

ollowed by the crocus, the tulip, and the water-lily; the last a brilliant affair wi

s much as that. And now snuggle down and go t

plendid excuse to detai

"Because I was awake. And I heard a terrible plump and I s

eart, you must tell M

up to his crisis and desperately he sought for somet

s beside me all the time, bec

t she would pretend to accept his suggestio

know perfectly that is only a feather whi

hy

s time; but even as he fell back upon this

hy' now; but if you try to

le while, and stroke my forehead where I bumped it on the knob of the bed? I really did bump it quite har

boy and turn over and go to sleep. Father is very worr

the Bishop who came last

's coming, because you wouldn't understand; but we're all very anxious,

thrilled by a sudden desire to sacrifice himsel

ime the protecting candle-light wavered out along the passage and the soft closing of his

go to sleep before I

e prelate escaped to a castle on an island in the middle of the Rhine, and that the rats swam after him and swarmed in by every window until his castle was-ugh!-Mark tried to banish from his mind the picture of the wicked Bishop Hatto and the rats, millions of them, just going to eat him up. Suppose a lot of rats came swarming up Notting Hill and unanimously turn

e day

s drawi

of the

cross t

shadows right across a golden field, and spotted cows in the foreground. It was a blissful and completely soothing picture while it lasted; but

darkness

begin

beasts a

ill be

were at their worst and wak

give t

d sweet

tenderest

e eyeli

he need not finish the hymn; but when he found th

little

bright

e sailor

deep bl

ied the

every

g late

he sufferers would be able to do much for him; but the consciousness that all round him in the great city they were lying awake at this moment was most hel

o plan s

ir sin r

mmediately. For instance he was still awake

e long nig

ne Ange

te wings

g round

ore delicious was the pictur

morning

may I

fresh, a

y Hol

to the

to t

hee, ble

ll ages

e hope that by doing so he should obtain a speedy grantin

mother put out Sund

coming to-day,"

inquired anxiously. An extra Sunday on top

want you to

y with my

can play with

I'll only have

ishop comes to lunch I want you not to a

like to be as

ling. Th

his memory beside other facts such as tha