Mrs. Grail turned presently to a different topic.

‘Would you believe, Gilbert!’ she murmured.  ’Those two girls have saved up more than a pound to buy that poor old Mr. Boddy a top-coat for Christmas.  When I went up with the jelly, Thyrza had the money out on the table; she told me as a great secret what it was for.  Kind-hearted things they are, both of them.’

Gilbert assented silently.  His mother seldom elicited a word from him on the subject of the sisters.

On the following afternoon, Gilbert and Egremont met at the appointed place just as three was striking.  Already night had begun to close in, a sad wind moaned about the streets, and the cold grey of the sky was patched about with dim shifting black clouds.  Egremont was full of cheeriness as he shook hands.

‘What a wonderful people we are,’ he exclaimed, ’to have developed even so much civilisation in a climate such as this!’

The school building which they were about to inspect stood at the junction of two streets, which consisted chiefly of dwellings.  In the nature of things it was ugly.  Three steps led up to the narrow entrance, which, as well as the windows on the ground floor, was surrounded with a wholly inappropriate pointed arch.  Iron railings ran along the two sides which abutted upon pavements, and by the door was a tall iron support for a lamp; probably it had never been put to its use.  There was only one upper storey, and the roof was crowned with a small stack of hideous metal chimneys.

‘We must go round to the caretaker’s house,’ said Egremont, when they had cast their eyes over the face of the edifice.

The way was by a narrow passage between the school itself and the whitewashed side of an adjacent house; this led them into a small paved yard, upon which looked the windows of the caretaker’s dwelling, which was the rear portion of the school building.  A knock at the door brought a very dirty and very asthmatical old woman, who appeared to resent their visit.  When Egremont expressed his desire to go over the school, she muttered querulously what was understood to be an invitation to enter.  Followed by Gilbert, Egremont was conducted along a pitch-dark passage.

‘Mind the steps!’ snarled their guide.

Egremont had already stumbled over an ascent of two when the warning was given, but at the same moment a door was thrown open, giving a view of the main schoolroom.

‘’Tain’t swep’ out yet,’ remarked the old woman.  ’I couldn’t tell as nobody was a-comin’.  You can complain to them if you like; I’m used to it from all sorts, an’ ’taint for much longer, praise goodness!  Though there’s nothink before me but the parish when the time does come.’

Egremont glanced at the strange creature in surprise, but it seemed better to say nothing.  He began to speak of the aspects of the room with his companion.