“To be sure, my dears, if you have had enough to eat,” said Mistress Harpham.
The children ran to their places, and found the Coopers’ play going on.
This pageant, they noticed, had three rooms or stages one beneath the other. On the highest, or Heaven stage, sat God Almighty; beneath it, in the Garden of Eden, were Adam and Eve; and the third, still lower stage, represented Earth.
But the children’s attention was riveted on the second stage, round which branches of trees and flowers were placed to represent a garden. In the midst was the Tree of Life, with golden fruit upon it, and in the shadow of the tree there was a strange group. Adam and Eve, both of whom were played by tall boys dressed in close-fitting skins dyed flesh-colour, were talking to a huge serpent who, coiled round the trunk of the tree, was tempting them.
“There must be some one speaking inside him,” exclaimed Margery. “He’s big enough to hide a boy at least—isn’t he?”
“Hush!” said Colin; “listen to what he’s saying.”
The serpent’s great head was turned towards Eve, and his voice was full of persuasion. “Ye shall not surely die!” he told her; “for God doth know that in the day ye eat thereof then your eyes shall be opened, and ye shall be as gods, knowing good and evil.”
Then Eve looked longingly at the golden fruit, and hesitated.
“She’s going to pick it!” whispered Margery.
“Yes! look! She has broken off a branch, and she’s giving the fruit to Adam. Now she’s talking to him.”