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Among the more popular choices at the time were embroidered book covers and cushions decorated with motifs from folklore. She chose neither but settled instead on a bookmark to be used in a Bible. She was a little unsure of how much actual service it would be to the General—she had rarely seen him with one in his hands—but she thought he might be glad of it as coming from her and keep it for use in some other book. She had difficulty finding a suitable quotation to embroider on it, so she asked Susanna for advice. With the air of cool reserve she had maintained towards Gina ever since the Bishop’s visit, the Deaconess reminded her that at the end of term there would be a competition to see who knew their Bible best. If Gina revised for it she might find something she thought particularly appropriate for her father.
Gina had been aware of the existence of this annual competition, but it had never struck her as something that might interest her personally. Compared to the other girls her knowledge of the Bible was extremely poor. She could recall a great many phrases and quotations, but had no idea where they were from, and she confused things that Jesus had said with the words of Paul the Apostle and the four evangelists. But from then on she devoted every spare moment to reading the scriptures, and one evening, in the Book of Psalms, something came up that would do for the bookmark. She had gone to ask Susanna for some fabric and some beads and the prefect had written on the bunting “Psalm 140, verse 7,” and then, without consulting the text, immediately quoted it: “Oh God the Lord, the strength of my salvation, Thou hast covered my head in the day of battle.
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