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A MERRY MEETING A SAD ONE
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Now the business I had most at heart (as every one
knows by this time) was to marry Lorna as soon as
might be, if she had no objection, and then to work
the farm so well, as to nourish all our family.
And herein I saw no difficulty; for Annie would soon
be off our hands, and somebody might come and take
a fancy to little Lizzie (who was growing up very
nicely now, though not so fine as Annie); moreover,
we were almost sure to have great store of hay and
corn after so much snow, if there be any truth in
the old saying,—
“A foot deep of rain
Will kill hay and grain;
But three feet of snow
Will make them come
mo’.”
And although it was too true that we had lost a many
cattle, yet even so we had not lost money; for the
few remaining fetched such prices as were never known
before. And though we grumbled with all our hearts,
and really believed, at one time, that starvation was
upon us, I doubt whether, on the whole, we were not
the fatter, and the richer, and the wiser for that
winter. And I might have said the happier, except
for the sorrow which we felt at the failures among
our neighbours. The Snowes lost every sheep they
had, and nine out of ten horned cattle; and poor Jasper
Kebby would have been forced to throw up the lease
of his farm, and perhaps to go to prison, but for
the help we gave him.
However, my dear mother would have it that Lorna was
too young, as yet, to think of being married:
and indeed I myself was compelled to admit that her
form was becoming more perfect and lovely; though I
had not thought it possible. And another difficulty
was, that as we had all been Protestants from the
time of Queen Elizabeth, the maiden must be converted
first, and taught to hate all Papists. Now Lorna
had not the smallest idea of ever being converted.
She said that she loved me truly, but wanted not to
convert me; and if I loved her equally, why should
I wish to convert her? With this I was tolerably
content, not seeing so very much difference between
a creed and a credo, and believing God to be our Father,
in Latin as well as English. Moreover, my darling
knew but little of the Popish ways—whether
excellent or otherwise—inasmuch as the
Doones, though they stole their houses, or at least
the joiner’s work, had never been tempted enough
by the devil to steal either church or chapel.
Lorna came to our little church, when Parson Bowden
reappeared after the snow was over; and she said that
all was very nice, and very like what she had seen
in the time of her Aunt Sabina, when they went far
away to the little chapel, with a shilling in their
gloves. It made the tears come into her eyes,
by the force of memory, when Parson Bowden did the
things, not so gracefully nor so well, yet with pleasant
imitation of her old Priest’s sacred rites.
