four o'clock
The Whittingtonians devour as those that have eaten nothing this morning , the Wulstonites as though country air gave great keenness of appetite ; the subdued silence of awe passes off , and voices , laughing , and play begin to betray some real enjoyment and familiarity . Such as are not too perfectly happy in the revelry of tumbling on the grass are then paraded through the show , to gaze at peas , currants , and potatoes , pyramids of geraniums , and roses peeping through white paper . Thence the younger ones return to play in the field ; such of the elder ones as prefer walking are conducted through forest paths to gather flowers , and to obtain a closer view of that oft-described sight , a corn-field . Some of the elder Wulstonians get up a dance , tall girls dancing together with the utmost enjoyment ; but at four o'clock the band plays _ Dulce Domum _ , the captains of twenties count heads and hunt up stragglers , all gather together in their places , plum buns and tea are administered till even these thirsty souls can drink no more . Again the files are marshalled , the banners displayed , and the procession moves towards the little Forest church , a small , low-walled , high-roofed building , enclosed by stately beeches , making a sort of outer cathedral around the little elevation where it stood in its railed-in churchyard . Two thousand children besides spectators in a building meant for three hundred ! How came it to be devised ?