It was ushered in with the chiming of bells, and the singing of bride-songs by the village children.

The village itself was turned upside down, and the house inside out.

As for the gloomy old church, it looked like a festal place, with flowers and gay clothing and smiling faces.

It was the express wish of Sophia that none of the company should wear white.

"That distinction," she said, "ought to be reserved for the bride;" and among the maids in pink and blue and primrose, she stood a very lily of womanhood.