But Faith was in no danger of hearing, or caring, if she had understood; she had gone back to the chalk shells, and back still further, from them, into the world of those perfections which God had made _for himself_. A new world, now for the first time actually seen by her, and for a moment she almost lost her standing in this. Mrs. Somers watched her, smiling and curious. She drew back presently with a long breath, to give the other ladies a chance; but Miss Harrison had looked all she cared to look, and Mrs. Somers was not new to the thing. They took a view occasionally, one for form, the other for real interest; but for the most part Faith found the exhibition was for her and she and the doctor might have it all their own way. A long way they made of it; for the doctor found a good deal of talking to do, and Faith was most ready to hear. He talked well and gave her a great deal of what she liked, with a renewal every now and then of his first surprise; for in the midst of some elaborate explanation he was launching into for her benefit, most innocently and simply Faith would bring him up with a gentle "Yes, I know,"--not spoken with the faintest arrogance of knowledge, but merely to prevent him going into needless detail; and herself too rapt in the delight of the subject that occupied her to have any heed of the effect of her words. "I have kept the best for the last," said the doctor, when this exhibition had lasted a much longer time than Faith was aware of;--"I thought you would like to see the circulation;--and I have sent all over town for a frog--found one at last, by great happiness." "All over town!" said Mrs. Somers,--"do try out of town next time, and save yourself trouble." "Have you got to kill the frog, Julius?" said Miss Harrison with a disturbed face. "I hope not!" said the doctor gravely. "That would rather interfere with our purposes than otherwise, Sophy.--Aunt Ellen, I never learned the real extent of 'town' yet--when I was a boy it seemed to me to have no limits;--and now it seems to me to have no centre. Tell James to bring in that frog, Sophy." Miss Harrison retreated from the frog; but the doctor assured Faith that he was in very tolerable circumstances, shut up in a little bag; and that he was only going to be requested to exhibit a small portion of the skin of his toe, and to hold himself still for that purpose; which benevolent action the doctor would help him to perform by putting him in a slight degree of confinement. The holding still was however apparently beyond the frog's benevolent powers, and it was some little time before the doctor could persuade him to it. Then Faith saw what she had never seen nor fully imagined before. "O Sophy!--O Mrs. Somers!"--she exclaimed,--"look at this!" She stood back with a face of delighted wonder Miss Harrison looked an instant. "It is curious--" she said. "What are those little things, Julius?"