"The children looked through eagerly, and Cicely spelled out: '"There shall in no wise enter into it anything that defileth."'
"'What does that mean?' she asked.
"'It means that no dust or dirt of any kind is allowed inside.'
"Rufus looked down at his boots and clothes, then at his sister's.
"'We are very muddy,' he said; 'how can we make ourselves clean?'
"'By plunging into this river and being washed,' the old man said. 'The King's Son made this river. It cost Him His life, but it was the only way travellers could be cleansed. Look up at that sign-post and read what it says.'
"Rufus read: '"Wash and be clean." "If I wash thee not, thou hast no part with Me."'
"'The river is the only true way to the Golden City,' the old man said. 'You will only be turned away at the gates if you arrive there without washing in the river. That boy you see building a bridge is very eager and earnest, but his clothes will be too travel-stained and dusty to allow him to enter the gates when he gets there. He has made a wrong start, and is trying to reach the Golden City in the wrong way.'
"'And the boy in the boat?' asked Rufus.