His mind was occupied first with accidental things, such as the women's hair in front of him, the light on the faces, then with the words which seemed to him magnificent, and then more vaguely with the characters of the other worshippers.

But when he suddenly perceived Rachel, all these thoughts were driven out of his head, and he thought only of her.

The psalms, the prayers, the Litany, and the sermon were all reduced to one chanting sound which paused, and then renewed itself, a little higher or a little lower.

He stared alternately at Rachel and at the ceiling, but his expression was now produced not by what he saw but by something in his mind.

He was almost as painfully disturbed by his thoughts as she was by hers.
Early in the service Mrs.Flushing had discovered that she had taken up a Bible instead of a prayer-book, and, as she was sitting next to Hirst, she stole a glance over his shoulder.