which brought the whole school round her.

"Oh, my darlings! my darlings!" cried she at last, looking up, and
clasping them to her by twos and threes; "Is there no way of saving you?
No way! Then we must make the more haste to be good, and be all ready
when Jesus comes to take us." And shaking off her passion with one
strong effort, she began teaching those children as she had never taught
them before, with a voice, a look, as of Stephen himself when he saw the
heavens opened.

For that burst of weeping was the one single overflow of long pent
passion, disappointment, and shame.

She had tried, indeed. Ever since Tom's conversation and Frank's sermon
had poured in a flood of new light on the meaning of epidemics, and
bodily misery, and death itself, she had been working as only she could
work; exhorting, explaining, coaxing, warning, entreating with tears,
offering to perform with her own hands the most sickening offices; to
become, if no one else would, the common scavenger of the town. There
was no depth to which, in her noble enthusiasm, she would not have gone
down. And behold, it had been utterly in vain! Ah! the bitter
disappointment of finding her influence fail her utterly, the first time
that it was required for a great practical work! They would let her talk
to them about their souls, then!--They would even amend a few sins here
and there, of which they had been all along as well aware as she. But to
be convinced of a new sin; to have their laziness, pride, covetousness,
touched; that, she found, was what they would not bear; and where she
had expected, if not thanks, at least a fair hearing, she had been met
with peevishness, ridicule, even anger and insult.