Le, mounted on the young horse given him by his uncle, escorted the whole party, and made himself very useful in opening gates or taking down bars for the caravan.
They all reached the church in good time. The party entered their pews without feeling any annoyance. If they were stared at, they did not know it.
The Christmas service was always a grand jubilee, deeply interesting, highly exalting, and Dr. Peters’ sermon was sure to be good, cheerful and appropriate.
After the benediction, when the congregation began to disperse, the usual neighborly greetings took place in the yard.
Friends came up to wish merry Christmas and happy New Year to the Forces, and to receive the like courtesies from them. Happily, every one had the good taste to ignore the unseemly events of the previous Tuesday.
And the Force family left the churchyard more at ease than they had entered it.
The journey home was, therefore, very pleasant.
The subsequent Christmas dinner was a festival, and the dessert was prolonged with cracking nuts, making “philopena” bargains, opening sugar kisses and exchanging “verses.”
It was not until after dinner that Le got a chance to speak to Odalite.
“Will you come out for a walk with me? It is not cold,” he whispered, as they all left the dining room.