The first class was under the direction of the Vicar’s wife. Proceedings commenced at three with prayer; then a hymn was sung, and the classes began.
In these Sunday classes, passages of the Bible are read and explained to the children by the teacher.
On the Sunday in question, Mrs. Goodman had chosen as the subject of her lesson the twenty-eighth chapter of Isaiah. As soon as the hymn was over she began to read:
“Woe to the crown of pride, to the drunkards of Ephraim, whose glorious beauty is a fading flower....
“Behold, the Lord hath a mighty and strong one, which as a tempest of hail and a destroying storm, as a flood of mighty waters overflowing, shall cast down to the earth with the hand.
“The crown of pride, the drunkards of Ephraim, shall be trodden under feet.”
“You have heard the marvellous words of the great prophet,” cried the worthy lady. “Well, my dear children, Isaiah meant to say, that God would punish man’s wickedness, vanity and sensuality, and all these prophecies have been fulfilled. That city of gold means Paris, the new Babylon; the crown of pride means France. The strong and mighty one is the Emperor of Germany, who, ever since the day on which he married his son to the daughter of our beloved queen, has had the blessings of the Lord showered upon him.
“This interpretation of the passage I have just read you was the one presented by the dear lamented Dr. Macleod to our gracious sovereign, and Her Majesty was pleased to consider that the words of Isaiah were quite wonderful for the way in which they seemed to describe France. What need have we of a surer authority?
“And, indeed, is it not easy to recognise at a glance that proud and perverse nation which does not even keep the Sabbath holy? Do you know, my dear children, that these Sabbath-breakers hold horse-races and go to theatres on Sundays? Yes, you can scarcely believe it—our upright, honest minds refuse to believe in such monstrous iniquity—yes, newspapers are printed, bought, and read on Sundays. I even saw once, though I could scarcely believe my eyes—I positively saw in the public gardens, on that sacred day, little boys and girls of the better classes playing with their hoops and dancing in front of their parents, who seemed to see no harm in it whatever. It is the abomination of desolation, and I do not hesitate to say it: the Jews and Mussulmans are better than such people; for, after all, if they do not worship the Saviour, at least they worship God. I prefer the savages, who worship the sun, to these infidels who worship nothing at all, and just go down on their knees before a few candles to save appearances.”
——“Please, ’m,” said one little maid timidly, “papa says that the French are Christians.”