Lalage’s letter went on:
“I was glad, that it wasn’t me, who was just as bad, that he didn’t what he calls ‘make an example of.’ Even that didn’t calm the excited class and he said, ‘Next person who laughs will be reported to Miss Pettigrew.’ It was not me, but the girl next me, Eileen Fraser. I was the innocent cause of the offence. (A mere wink at Hilda when I had my belt round her neck.) She was not, however, reported, even to Carpy.”
“By the way,” I said, “who is Carpy? She comes into my letter too.”
The Canon did not know and seemed uninterested in the point. He went on reading:
“Another day he committed an unforgivable offence. He said to us, ‘You must stand up when quoting the words of the Bible.’”
“Isn’t that always considered essential?” I asked. “The unforgivable offence,” said the Canon, “is in the next sentence.”
“But he sat with his feet on the fender, the pig. I do hate that sort. Even when Hilda said that Ananias told a lie and was turned into a pillar of salt he did not laugh. He said he’d turn one girl out of the room to-day for nothing but dropping her pen.”
“The Archdeacon,” I said, “could of course sympathize with that curate.”
“It wasn’t that which made him really angry,” said the Canon, “although he didn’t like it.”
“There must be something pretty bad coming, if it’s worse than that.”