It began to penetrate his obfuscated mind that perhaps he had been rash, that this forcible rape of a convent was a serious matter.

Therefore he attempted this peaceful explanation.
From that huddled group a figure rose, and advanced with a solemn, stately grace.

There was a faint swish of robes, the faint rattle of rosary beads.

Something about that figure caught the lieutenant's attention sharply.

He craned forward, half sobered by the sudden fear that clutched him, his eyes bulging in his face.
"I had thought," said a gentle, melancholy woman's voice, "that the seals of a nunnery were sacred to British soldiers." For a moment Mr.Butler seemed to be labouring for breath.