All shops except those dealing in
refreshments were closed, and the town was gaily decorated with flags and
flowers, often festooned into words or emblems proper for the occasion.
My father, it being now a quarter to eleven, made his way towards the
temple, and his heart was clouded with care as he walked along. Not only
was his heart clouded, but his brain also was oppressed, and he reeled so
much on leaving the confectioner's shop, that he had to catch hold of
some railings till the faintness and giddiness left him. He knew the
feeling to be the same as what he had felt on the Friday evening, but he
had no idea of the cause, and as soon as the giddiness left him he
thought there was nothing the matter with him.
Turning down a side street that led into the main square of the town, he
found himself opposite the south end of the temple, with its two lofty
towers that flanked the richly decorated main entrance. I will not
attempt to describe the architecture, for my father could give me little
information on this point. He only saw the south front for two or three
minutes, and was not impressed by it, save in so far as it was richly
ornamented--evidently at great expense--and very large. Even if he had
had a longer look, I doubt whether I should have got more out of him, for
he knew nothing of architecture, and I fear his test whether a building
was good or bad, was whether it looked old and weather-beaten or no.
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