"Miss Pardie is very religious--the cross thing," said Theresa, "and so is Fanny Green. But she listens to the girl's conversation while she says her prayers. And Mattie Holt tells tales, and is very disagreeable. I don't admire religious people." "But then their religion cannot be of the right kind. There must be some good in the right religion, if we only could be sure what the right is." "Oh, I daresay they are all good after a fashion. One kind is good for one, and another kind for another." "But, Tessie, that is nonsense. How can things be equally good that are exactly opposite? And I know that Mrs Ascot thinks papa and the rest of us all wrong. And you should have seen her scornful look, when I told her once that Miss Baines was a religious woman. And I know that Mrs Glencairn and Miss Robina, among themselves, call Mrs Ascot `a poor benighted creature.' They cannot all be right." "Oh! well! what does it matter?" said her sister, impatiently. "Why should you care what Mrs Ascot thinks, or Mrs Glencairn either?" "Still, one would like to know. Mr St. Cyr is good, but then Mrs Ascot is not; and they have just the same religion, though I don't suppose Mr St. Cyr goes so often to church, or to confession, as she does. And Miss Baines was good, and her religion was quite different. As for papa and the rest of us, I don't think we have any at all." "Well, that shows that it doesn't matter about religion. I am sure mama is much nicer than Madame Ascot, and she has no religion at all you say, and Madame says the same." "Mama is a Jewess, at least her mother was," said Frederica; "but she is certainly not religious in her way. One ought to have a religion of some kind, only how is one to know when one has that which is right?" "There is the Bible," said Tessie, hesitating. "Yes, Miss Baines says it is the book of books, and mama approves of it too. She has one, you know, only it is in Hebrew. I shall ask some one about it,--which is the right kind I mean." "Papa, for instance, or Mr St. Cyr. But one would tell you one thing, and the other another, and you would be just in the same place. Only I think papa would just laugh at you." "I suppose so. But there must be some way of finding out the truth." "Better go and ask the bishop," said Tessie, laughing. "But then there are two bishops, and which is the right? Don't be a goose, Fred." "I am quite serious, I assure you, for the moment," added she. "And indeed, it is a thing to be quite serious about." "If we had gone to the convent, as Mr St. Cyr and Madame Ascot wished, instead of to Mrs Glencairn's, we should have known all about it. But then it is quite right that we should be of the same religion as papa. Still I think he did not care himself, only he wished to vex Mr St. Cyr." Frederica said nothing for a minute, and her sister added-- "We ought to learn about it in church: that is what we go to church for, I suppose."