Orleans County monitor. [volume] (Barton, Vt.) 1872-1953, 1881-10-03

tin"-and, truly, | know nothing like
it, except what it most resembles
sweet, peaceful, contented old age. So
Cousin Eva decided to take the children
to a place which she herself had once
seen and never forgotten-the little
church on a hilltop, called Notre Dame
de Bon Secours.
sis that the same which Alice sings
about in the opera of Robert lie Dia-
BILE 2" and Cherry struck up, in her
clear, young voice:
"Quand je quittais ma Normandie.
Rouen is in Normandy, SO of course it
was the same
Diagne proteger nos amours,
Notre-Dame de Bon Secours."
"Please don't sing quite SO loud, or
the hotel people will hear you," said
timid Ruth, and was quite relieved when
they started off. l need not relate how
extremely the children enjoyed the stiff
climb up the hill, and admired the love-
ly building, all ablaze with brilliant
but harmonious coloring, and the little
side chapels, filed with innumerable
votive inscriptions: "a Marie" "Graces
a Marie, "Elle exauce mes voeux,"
etc. Curious, simple, almost childish,
it all was, yet touching to those who
feel, as Cousin Eva did, that to believe
earnestly in anything is better than be-
lieving in nothing.
Afterwards they all sat and rested in
one of the prettiest resting-places |
know for those that live and move, or
for "them that sleep" graveyard
on the hilltop, close behind the church
of Notre-Dame de Bon Secours. From
this high point they could see the whole
country for miles and miles, the Seine
winding through it in picturesque curves
Rouen, with its bridges and streets, dis
tinct as in map, lay at their right,
and, rising out of the mass of houses,
etherealized by the yellow sunset were
the two spires Of the Cathedral and the
Church Of st. Ouen.
"Can you see the market-place, Cous-
in Eva ? If so, poor Jeanne dare, when
she was brought out to die. must have
seen this hill. with the church on the
top Of it; that is. supposing there was a
church."
There might have been, though not
this one, which is modern, you see"
II wonder" continued Cherry, who
was always wondering, "if she looked
up at it, and thought it hard that No
tre-Dame de Ben Secours should not
have succored her. Perhaps because,
to escape from the hereto English, she
had told a lie."
"And that reminds me" added Ruth,
who was not given to ethical questions,
"that while we sit and rest, we might
hear from Cousin Eva about the lie she
told"
Eyes, yes. Please say, Cousin Eva,
was it a big or little one? Why did
you tell it? And was it ever found
out 2"
81 don't quite see the difference be-
tween big or little, my child. A lie is
a lie, though sometimes there are ex-
tenuating circumstances in the reason
for telling it. And once told. the ques-
tion whether it is ever found out does
not matter. My lie was never found
out but it grieved me all the same"
"Will it grieve you to tell me about
it? I should not like that" said Ruth
softly.
mo dear because l have long since
forgiven myself. l was such a small
child, much younger than either of you
aud, unlike you, | had no parents, only
an aunt and uncle and lot of rough
cousins, who domineered over me anc
made me afraid. That was the cause
The sure way to make child untruth
full is to make it afraid. I remember
as If it were only yesterday, the shud
der of terror that came over me whel
my eldest cousin clutched me by tn,
shoulder saying, "Did you do that %
"And what had you done 2" asket
Cherry.
Nothing, but Will thought I had
We were all digging in our gardens
and he had just found his favorite jes
samine plant lying up-rooted on tn
ground. IT had been my favorite toe
but Will took it from my garden an
planted it in his own, where | watche
it anxiously, for l was afraid it woul
i die.
| "'You did it on purpose, Will pei
$ sisted; 'or if not out of pure Stiffness
0 Girls are always SO silly. Didn't yo
propose yesterday to dig it up just t
see if it had got root p
(Which was quite true. | was
o very silly little girl, but | meant n
d harm. [ wouldn't for the world hav
d harmed either Will OF his jessamin,
q I told him so, but he refused to beliey
it me. So did they all. They stood roun
II me, and declared must have done i
l. Nobody else had been in the gardel
% except indeed a dog. who was in Il