CHAPTER VII

THE RECTOR'S WIFE

The deliberations of boards in control of private corporations are not, as a rule, presumed to be disclosed to the public. This rule holds especially good when applied to vestries of churches. It is not, usually, either necessary or wise that the whole body of parishioners should be taken into the confidence of the vestry. There are so many things that can better be discussed and settled by a small, representative body of men, with power to act, than by the parish at large. It was, of course, tacitly understood by the members of the vestry that nothing should be said, outside their own membership, concerning the clash with the rector on the night of the vestry meeting. Nevertheless, the entire incident, with many variations and exaggerations, had become public property within twenty-four hours after its occurrence. It is a moral impossibility to keep such things hid. The very light of the next day reveals them. Moreover, most of the vestrymen were married. Their wives were as deeply interested as they in all matters pertaining to the Church. It is a man of extraordinary firmness who can hold back from an anxious and devoted wife legitimate information on a subject which is close to her heart.

At any rate, before sundown the next day, the whole parish was buzzing with the news of the conflict at the vestry meeting. Of course the people of the parish were divided in their opinions. The greater part of them, comprising nearly all of the rich and well-to-do, were strenuously opposed not only to the policy of free pews, but also to the idea of meeting the inferior classes