Mrs. Vane smiled a little.

'I have noticed that that is generally said of places that have nothing
else to recommend them. But no,' she went on, 'I must not begin by
finding fault. If it proves to us a health-giving place I certainly
shall like it, whatever else it is or is not. Did you go into the church
this afternoon?'

'Just for a moment. Rough wanted to glance at it,' Mr. Vane replied, his
tone sounding rather less cheerful.

'It looked very dingy and dismal,' Randolph said. 'It's all high pews
and high-up windows, you know, mamma. Papa says it must have been built
at the very ugliest time for churches, before they began to improve at
all.'

'And there is nothing to be done to it,' said Mr. Vane. 'Even if we
could attempt it and had the money, there would be endless difficulties
in the way of prejudice and old associations to overcome.'

'And it is not as if we were really settled here,' said the children's
mother. 'You must not take the church to heart, Bernard; you could
scarcely expect anything better in a place like this.'

'No--it will be slow work to bring about any improvement in outlying
places of this kind certainly,' Mr. Vane agreed. Then he brightened up a
little. 'There is a very good organ, and I met the organist. He seems
very hearty and eager.'