This stretched practically to the horizon on all sides; the light toned down at the edges into a misty luminosity, but as the bewildered watcher stared in front of him, he saw how directly in their course there slid toward them two great patches of dark, divided by a luminous stream in the middle.
"What is it?
What is it ?" he stammered.
The priest seemed not to notice his agitation; he just passed his hand quietly into the trembling man's elbow.
"Yes," he said, "there are houses all the way to Brighton now, of course, and we go straight down the track.

We shall take in passengers at Brighton, I think." There was a step behind them.
"Good evening, Monsignor," said a voice.

"It's a lovely night." The prelate turned round, covered with confusion, and saw a man in uniform saluting him deferentially.
"Ah! captain," slipped in the priest.

"So we're crossing with you, are we ?" "That's it, father.

The _Michael_ line's running this week." "It's a wonderful thing to me----" began Monsignor, but a sharp pressure on his arm checked him--"how you keep the whole organization going," he ended lamely.
The captain smiled.
"It's pretty straightforward," he said.