“Oh, you know Mrs. Sears is our Sunday-school teacher, and she’s always hot on the trail of the higher critics and heretics.  She explained all about the—­the nefarious system to us one Sunday.  She says the higher critics try to explain away the Bible by calling it allegory.  So we were ready for Miss Allen there.  And whenever anything came up at school, we would ask Mrs. Sears about it on Sunday,—­without mentioning names of course.  She’s very much gratified that we are so much interested in such things.  She thinks we’re sure to be deaconesses, at the very least.  But Carol said she wouldn’t be a deaconess,—­she was going to be a Red Cross nurse and go to war.  That stumped Mrs. Sears for a while, and then she said we could be Red Cross Deaconess nurses.”

“I won’t,” said Carol, “because the deaconess uniforms aren’t as stylish as the Red Cross nurses’.  I think I’ll look pretty fine in a white uniform with a stiff little cap and a red cross on my arm.  Red crosses make a very pretty decoration, don’t you think they do, Lark?”

“What else did Miss Allen say at school?” Prudence demanded, leading the twins back to the subject.

“Well, one day she said,—­you know she gives uplifting little moral talks quite often, Prue.  Sometimes she tells us stories with inspiring points.  She’s really a moral person, I believe.”

“And I’m honestly sorry she’s a heretic,” said Carol, “for I do want to be friendly enough with her to ask if she uses anything on her complexion to keep it so rose-leafy.  If she does, I’ll have some of it, if it takes all my next year’s clothes!”

Lark laughed.  “A rose-leaf complexion will be a poor substitute for——­”

“Oh, for goodness’ sake, twins, come back to Miss Allen.  I am going right up to her house this minute, to ask her about it, and explain——­”

“She’s the one to do the explaining, seems to me,” said Carol belligerently.  “We’ve got to stick up for the Bible, Prue,—­it’s our business.”

“And I don’t think you should tell her,—­it may hurt her feelings,” urged Lark.

“Have heretics feelings?” queried Carol.  “I suppose it’s a feeling of——­”

“Carol!  Will you quit talking for a minute!  This is a serious matter.  If she believes all that nonsense, she’s no proper teacher and—­and she’ll have to be put out of the high school.  And if she doesn’t believe it, she’s a martyr!  I’m going to find out about it at once.  Do you want to come with me?”

“I should say not,” said the twins promptly.

“I think you’re very foolish to go at all,” added Lark.

“I wouldn’t go for a dollar,” declared Carol.  “It’d be very interesting to see how a heretic feels, but I don’t care to know how ordinary Christians feel when they fall into their hands.  I’m not aching to see Miss Allen to-night.”

So Prudence set forth, conscientiously, in the darkness.  A brave and heroic thing for Prudence to do, for she was a cowardly creature at heart.