"There must be teachers," he said at length, looking round at the open
landscape; "and there aren't many about."
"You are a fine teacher!" the Captain sneered.
Mr. Gillat rubbed his finger along the edge of the Bible he carried.
"I was wild," he confessed; "yes, I was, I don't think--but then the
rector said--and Julia--"
His meaning was rather obscure, but possibly the Captain followed it
although he did cut him short by saying, "I should never have expected
it of you; if any one had told me that you, one of us, would take to
this sort of thing, I would not have believed it. I mean, if they had
told me in the old days, before things were changed and broken up,
when we were still alive and things moved at a pace--when a man knew
if he were alive or dead and whether it was night or morning."
"Yes, yes," Johnny said, but not altogether as if he regretted the
passing of those golden days; "things were different then; we didn't
think of it then."
"Teaching in the Sunday school?" the Captain asked. "Not quite! And if
we had, we shouldn't have thought of coming to it even when we had got
old and foolish."
Johnny looked uncomfortable and unhappy; then a bright idea occurred
to him. "There wasn't a Sunday school there," he said. "You remember
the hill station?"
Just then Julia called from the house, "Father, I believe we might
have a dish of turnip tops if you would get them.
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