'My preserver!' said the bishop.
'Don't give it another thought,' said Augustine, cheerily. 'Always glad to do a pal a good turn. We clergymen must stick together.'
'I thought he had me for a minute.'
'Quite a nasty customer. Full of rude energy.'
The bishop nodded.
'His eye was not dim, nor his natural force abated. Deuteronomy xxxiv, 7,' he agreed. 'I wonder if you can direct me to the vicarage? I fear I have come a little out of my way.'
'I'll take you there.'
'Thank you. Perhaps it would be as well if you did not come in. I have a serious matter to discuss with old Pieface—I mean, with the Rev. Stanley Brandon.'
'I have a serious matter to discuss with his daughter. I'll just hang about the garden.'
'You are a very excellent young man,' said the bishop, as they walked along. 'You are a curate, eh?'