The morning star and Catholic messenger. [volume] (New Orleans [La.]) 1868-1881, 1877-06-17

and then, perhaps, be might casually OBTAIN
| hint from somebody at the rectory that
! might help him to solve this most perplexng
question.
doctor walked to W ards tho housa; but just as
| be reached the door click at the garden gate
made him turn his head. At first he only
perceived q little ragged urcbin fnmbiing
With the lock but when, the next minute,
| Bob set the said gate open to its very widest
extent, and began touching his caP-or rather
| as much as remained of cep-wlth great
marks of respect, to somebody stiil ont OF
sight, he plainly saw he was to expect an
| arrival. Nor was he mistaken for tho mo-
| ment afterwards the portly form OF Father
Donovan appeared in the gateway. mounted
ON his chu bbiest of ponie s-Mlster Rory-aud
! trotted briskIy up the path. Never in his life
before had the arrival OF Guv guest brought n
| shadow across Richard O'Meara's face, and
| certainly never before, since he had known
| him. had he seen Father Donovan approach
| him without smile. But this evening o
shadow for once certainly did overcast his
oou ntensncs when he perceived his visitor.
| But it WAS q very transient one after all for
before Master Rory had trotted half way up
| the path it had vanished, and by the time he
had reached the door the smile had come in it's
stead, and with 1t welcome to bis reverend
guest that came from the very bottom of the
doctors heart.
Before many minutes had elapsed Master
Rory was quietly ohamplng bis corn in the
stable greatly to the RstoBishment of the
doctors PIT q BE- who eyed the new conner very
suspioonsly over the side of her own stall.
We need not tell how IL Jared meantime with
bis master-how the old housek eeper hustled
about, and served up late dinner in quarter
of an hourktha Father Donovan declared was
the best that he had ever tasted. Nor need
we tell how the doctor fetched out dessert
sfterwardr, that Okeefe's own hands bad
gathered that very morning ut Neville Court !;
nor how happy the doctor looked as he dis
charged the sweet duties Of hospitality, only
regretting that his visitor could not eat ten
times more, and that he had not something ten
times better To place before him.
As Father Donovan had Only returned the
preceding evening from his summer trip, a.
may be imagiaed, he and his host found plenty
TO talk over and plenty to laugh over too.
Bot after a while they looked very serious
and their voices grew low and hushed for
their conversation tnrned to n subject-that
most distressing of all sad subjects to q loyal
Catholic beart-the state of affairs in Rome
Amongst other friends, the priest had been
visiting gentleman, whose son, fine manly
young fellow of hve-and-twenty, had, with mis-
full permission, joined the Pspal ,usves the
preceding winter. Father Donovan had been
very much interested in reading some letters
written home by the young hero especially by
! one that had arrived the very morning he had
! Left, and which had given an account of the
| outbreak of cholera in Rome and lite vicinity.
The town of AlbRno, it said, had nfered very
severely from Its ravages and there during
| two days and nights, small band of forty
Zonaves had been the sole purses of the sick
| and grave-diggers for the dead. After expsti-
ating on the heroic self. devotion of these his
| companions in arms, the letter of Stephen
| OHafioran had thus concluded: eff, dear
mother, they had left the ties and comfort of
! homo only to perform these offices of love to
their suffering fellow creatures, II would have
| been q great happiness; but how does even
such happiness IS this pale before the ex-
qnisite satisfaction we experience. when we
| rememb Der that God is deigniug to use even our
| poor weak arms of flesh an d blood for the de-
| fence of the Holy See !"
The season of which we are writing was one
| of comparative quiet in the States of the
hnFn oh hs1 Il s 4 Ia
| do and Anoons were becoming things of the
| past. temporary calm, at least. had suo
| ceeded the revolutionary tumult. The FIRE. CT
J bsyonets were flashing round the Papal
| throne, while the noble army of ZDuaves
| asked for nothing greater, nohler. or higher
than to die for the Pontiff king And get the
sons of the Church trembled. Coming events
cast their shadows before;" aud there was
something portentous in the very stiffness
of Garibaldi and his thy rmidons that the chill
dren of Pho Mono, with the instructive fore
bodings of flial love and veneration, felt there
was mischief brewing against their Father in
the depths of that saoriiegioua host.
No wonder, therefore, as Father Donovan
related all he had heard and cleaned in Do blin
and other places relative to the Italian insur
rectiop, that, as he listened, Richard O'Meara'e
heart grew heavy with dreary forebodiugs
though HIS eye flashed and bis cheek kindled
with uuwonted indignation. So engrossed
indeed did they both become in discussing the
probable issue of events that the August twi
light had faded almost into darkness before
tuo pEleS1 d"Ok0 u JD0 IBCb IL "Ouju soon De
night, and that he was expected ut gentle
mans house quito three miles off, where ht
had arranged to say Mass the following morn
ing. At that very moment, however, the ole
, housekeeper appeared with the candles, anC
Informing the priest that it was beginning t.
rain heavily, Joined her master in begging hin
! to remain eli night. As she spoke, q sof
, murmuring rustic among the trees outsid,
correlated the fact, aud I've minutes later thu
; long threatening storm had broken into q per
; feot deluRe of rain. A tempest at night In
\ mountain region is no trifn, with the light
. ming flashing above, around, below you, and
1 the thunder booming round you like a battery
of guns. After the priest had looked ont for
few minutes upon the storm, he felt more thar
sRtia6ed that he and Master Rory were in suct
, comfortable quarters for the night. Nor wa
l old Betty one whit less content, as abe bustleC
3 about in her domain, airing and re-airip(
I sheets and pillow cases only pausing to blesl
l herself whenever a brighter fash than usua
! set her poor old heart pi,-a-pat The benefi
l of clergy" in such storm as that more thar
= com pensRted fer any amount Of extra troubl
in Betty Is humble opinion.
Oar friends resumed their seats, bat tn
thread of their conversation was broken.
was 10 longer uitramo ntaue," but respecting
! tho sayings and dongs of the people of b ~ y
: cross during Father Donovan's absence, ant