“Yes,” he nodded. “You d——d Pharisee!—you think you are the only one that knows anything about church, because that little gir— cousin of yours—converted you; you’re nothing but a Dissenter anyhow. But I’m a churchman, I am. I’ve got a prayer-book—somewhere—and I’ve found out all about the church here. There’s an old preacher in the county, named Longstuff or Langstuff or something, and he preaches once a month at the old church eight or ten miles above here, where they say all the pretty girls in the country congregate to pray for the salvation of Jeff Davis and the d—— nation of the Yankees—poor misguided, lovely creatures that they are!—as if we weren’t certain enough of it anyhow, without their making it a subject of their special petition. I’m going to have a look at ’em. We’ll have our trappings rubbed up, and I’ll coach your dissenting, condemned soul on the proper church tactics, and we’ll have the handsomest pair of horses in the county and show ’em as fine a pair of true-riding, pious young Yanks as ever charged into a pretty girl’s heart. We’ll dodge Leech and go in as churchmen. That’s one place he’s not likely to follow us. What do you say? Oh, I’ve got a great head on me! I’ll be a general some day!” “If you don’t get it knocked off for your impudence,” suggested Middleton. So the equipments were burnished up; the horses were carefully groomed; the uniforms were brushed and pressed afresh, and when Sunday morning came, the two young officers, having dodged Leech, who had been trying all the week to find out what was on foot, rode off, in full and dazzling panoply, like conquering young heroes, to impress, at least, the fairer portion of their “subjects,” as Thurston called them. They were, in fact, a showy pair as they rode along, for both men were capital horsemen, little Thurston looking at least a foot higher on his tall bay than when lifted only by his own short, plump legs; and on their arrival at church, which they purposely timed to occur after the services should have begun, they felt that they could not have been more effective. The contrast between them and the rest of the assemblage was striking. The grove about the church was well filled with animals and vehicles; but all having a worn and shabby appearance: thin horses and mules, and rickety wagons, with here and there an old carriage standing out among them, like old gentlemen at a county gathering. A group of men under one of the trees turned and gazed curiously at the pair as they rode up and tied their showy horses to “swinging limbs,” and then strode silently toward the church, where the sound of a chant, not badly rendered, told that the services were already begun.