Chapter 8
The family and their guests walked to church on Christmas morning in a festive mood. There had been no overnight snow to block their passage and the day was comparatively bright and mild. Mr. Hetherington mentioned to Matthew as they strolled along that one of his farmhands had prophesied there was a thaw on the way with accompanying rain. That disclosure should have prompted Matthew to start making plans for a speedy departure, but he felt uncharacteristically irresolute as if avoiding making any irrevocable decision.
The small community, young and old, rich and poor, gathered together for the celebratory service, with Mr. Grace as charismatic in the pulpit as he was in amateur theatricals, albeit with the dignity accorded to his clerical position. After the traditional car
