"Why," exclaimed the priest eagerly, his stutter all but disappearing in his enthusiasm; "you should come and hear Father Kenelm then, Mr. Kestern. He has been t-thirty years in South America, and is utterly devoted to our Lord and the Church's work out there. He is over here arranging for the publication of the B-Bible in one of the native tongues and is speaking in Cambridge this week."
"The Bible!" cried Paul aghast. "But the Roman Catholic Church does not allow people to read the Bible!"
Hannam grinned, and threw himself back in his chair. He anticipated enjoyment.
"Father Kenelm has himself translated, published and distributed some half-million B-Bibles in two or three l-l-languages," retorted the priest.
"But, Father," said Paul, utterly serious, copying Hannam's mode of address and scarcely noticing it in his eagerness, "you can't deny that your Church burnt Bibles openly in St. Paul's Churchyard at the Reformation."
"Never one," said Father Vassall.
Paul stiffened angrily, though his anger relaxed into bewilderment at the other's laughing face. The priest leant forward.
"Have you ever seen a copy of what we did b-burn?" asked the other.
Paul shook his head.
"Well, I could show you one at the Presbytery. We burnt P-Protestant copies of the Holy Scripture which had been mutilated by the removal of whole books and made worse than valueless by the bias of the translation and the m-marginal notes that had been added."