The Providence news. (Providence [R.I.]) 1891-1906, 1892-03-09
ST. PIRAN.

IT'S known well enough how st. Piran
crossed the sea from Ireland on mill
stone, and how he landed and settled on
the north coast of Cornwall, where he
nightly improved the folks manners
and discovered tin for them and taught
them a pretty laziness which he called
The Rapture NV Contimplatin'. This was
fifty years before he grew old, and some
while before any big rush OF saints began
to pour into the country; for twas not
till the tin was discovered that they
sprang up thick as blackberries among us.
So that in way twas st. Piran's own
fault that his idle ways grewto be a scam
dal by comparison with-these bustling
fellows.
The old man had never n notion that
all the holy men from Rome to the Lands
End were holding up their hands over
his case. He sat in his cottage above the
sands at Perranzabul9 and dozed To the
hum of the breakers, in charity with all
his parishioners, TO whom his money was
as free as the salt wind. This sleeping
partnership in the streaming trade
brought him in a tidy sum every year, and
a growing one, for his junior partner, st.
Chynoweth, was pushing the business
wonderfully. And the folk knew that il
ever they wanted spiritual counsel, they
had only to knock and ask for it.
But one fine morning, an hour before
noon, the whole parish sprang to its feet
at the sound of horn. The sound was
twice repeated, and came from the little
cottage across the sands.
"'Tis the blessed Saints horn,"
they told each other. "Sure the dear
man must be in the article OF DEATH"
And they hurried off to the cottage, man,
woman and child; for twas thirty years
at least since the horn, had been sounded.
They found st. Piran in his arm m-chair,
looking good for another twenty years,
but considerably flustered, and with the
cow horn in his hands.
"Andrew Penhaligon," said he to the
first man that entered, "go you out and
ring the church bell"
The man ran off. Z" But, blessed father
OF u.s." said one or two, "we're all here.
There's no call TO ring the church bell,
seein' you're neither dead nor atire, bless
| | efiefey ~ -
"Oh, il you're all here, that alters the
case; for tits only proclamation l have
to give you, at present. Tomorrow
mornin'-G Glory be to God!-at ten in the
| Il
vice will take place in the parish church.
An so you'd best set to and clean out the
| edifice, for I'm thinkin'," he added, 4" it'll
be needin' that"
"You're sartin you're not feelin' poor
ly, st. Piran, dear?" asked one of the wo-
men.
"'Tisn't that at ALL" the Saint an
swered, Z" but I've had vision"
"Don't you often?"
"H'm, but this was particular vision !;
or may be bit of small bird came and
whispered it into my ear. Anyway, twas
revealed to me just now in a dream that
all the saints were sittin' together at Bod
| min and plottin' against us. There was
ST. Petroc in the chair, an st. Guron.
St. Neot, st. Udy, st. Enodar, st,
| Fimbarrus, st. Teath, st. Wen, st.
| Veryan, st. Probus, St. Keverne, st. Just
the whole passed. Of 'em. An they were
agreen' there was no holiness left in
this parish of mine. "Twas all very well,
said st. Neot, when his turn came to speak,
but this state o. things ought to be ex-
posed He's as big as bulls beef, that
fellow, ever since he performed that mira
! Gle over the fishes, and reckons he can
disparage an old man who was maxim
mill-stones to float when he was just able
to suck coral. But the upshot is that
they're goin' to pay US a visitation to-
morrow, by surprise. And, IL only for
| the parish credit, we'll be even wild um,
| by dad!'
ST. Piran lapsed into his native Irish
| when strongly excited.
/ Bat he had hardly done, when Andrew
! Penhaligon came running in
"St. Piran, dear, I've looked every
where; an be hanged to me, IL can find
| the church at all!'
"Wat's become of ut?" cried the Saint,
sitting up sharply.
"How do know? But devil trace
can see."
alt was there, I'll be sworn" said st.
| Piran "I remember it well. An elegant
tower it had, an shingle roof"
"Spake up, now," said the Saint, glar-
| ing around, "hwhich NV yes an mislaid
my parish church? For won't believe"
| he said, "that's it's any worse than care
! lussnuss-at laste, not yet-a-bit."
Some remembered the church, and
| some did not; but the faces OF ali were
clear OF guilt. They troopcd out to
search.
Now the sands by Perranzabule are
forever shifting and driving before the
| northerly and nor'westerly gales, and in
! time had heaped themselves up and COW
/ cred the building out Of sight. II did not
/ take the Saint long'to guess this; but the
pity was that nobody remembered exactly
/ where the church had stood and as there
was a score OF tall mounds along the
shore, and all OF height more or less
equal, there was no knowing where to
| dig. To uncover them all was job to
| last till doomsday.
Blur-an-agers, but it's ruined ! ami"
cried st. Piran. "And the Visitashun no
further away than to-morra at 10 a. NIL"
He wrung his hands; then caught up a
spade and began digging away at hap
| hazard, like n madman.
They searched all that day, and with
| lanterns all the night through; but came
on never a sign of the missing church.
"If it only had a spire," they said, we
might have some chance" But as far as
could be recollected, the building had
only dumpy tower.
IL was at sunrise that st. Piran, worn
| out and heartsick, spoke from one of the