The record-union., 1895-03-02
THE STORY OF Meg.
PART /.

PART L.
Meg was the daughter of the rector of
Nunthorpe, Mr.. Thirlwall, with whom
/ went to study before college, when /
was a lad of Is. He was not in the least a
typical rector, being scholar rather
than clergyman, and Meg was still less
like the typical rector's daughter. She
did not visit the poor of the parish. She
had always left all that to Mrs. Pryde,
who was the prop of the church in Nun
thorpe, aud whom Meg hated, for rea-
sons.
''She is setting her hideous cap with
primrose ribbons at my father" she
naid. But she shan't have him-Pll die
frst!" 1t was characteristic of Meg that
she mentioned Mrs. Pryde's intentions
to me on the second day of my abode
there. Most girls would have waited to
see if was to be trusted, but this did not
seem to occur to Meg. She treated me
as comrade at once-at first with little
air of good -humored patronage because l
was a year younger than she was, but
this was replaced by slight awe when
che found that L was what she called 'aW-
fully clever"
Father will enjoy having you to
COACH" she said candidly. "All the other
boys who came have been such idiots.
They came to him TO be done cheap, ana
he couldn't afford not TO take them. ou
won't be nearly so much trouble, ana
yet you're paying more. l think shall
like YOU, but you won't like me because
Pm not bit clever. Pm fonder OF nov
els than anything. Have you read
'Cometh up as a Flower?' That's what
I've got out Of the library now. Isn't 1t
lovely? And | like poetry. Pm reading
Browning's poems. There's The Cry OF
the Children; but 1 haven't got very
far"
Il like Robert Browning BEST" said L,
rather priggishly perhaps, but l was
very young at the time. do you know
any OF his?"
NO" replied Meg. "This is Eliza
beth something. Who was Robert Brown
ing? Her father? Did he write books,
tOo?"
In truth, Meg's education had been
singularly neglected, though she had
been to boarding-school somewhere or
other, which had left her mind much as
1t found 1t. But soon ceased 10 attach
any Importance to her want of lnforma-
ton, which never embarrassed her IN The
slightest degree. She seemed 10 me 10
have what was better-a touch OF genius,
or at all events a curious wild charm OF
her own that would make her remem-
bered when wiser people were forgotten.
1t betrayed Itself most, perhaps, IN nef
playing and singing. She had irish blood
in her veins, and she used 10 sing those
sad old Irish melodies IN way that
thrilled one through and through. L DO
not often think OF Meg now, put some
times L dream of her, and nearly always
she is singing one OF those eerie songs.
| may say at once that l never 1ell IN
love with Meg, nor she with me. Though
only Is, l was very much IN love al
ready, and l never could be in love with
two or three girls together, like the hero
of modern novel. Meg, for her part,
was also otherwise involved, as Will ap-
pear, and so we got on splendldIy.
l don't know whether she was hand
some. l only know that she had wonder
1ul dark eyes-the saddest l have ever
seen. \ ct she was not sad when l nrsC
knew her, but, as a rule, brlmful of life
and gayety. Occasionally, to be sure,
there were fits OF wild Representatives,
only seemed natural reaction alter her
eXuberant high spirits. And sad as her
eyes were, there was generally CLINT OF
humor in them, like sunbeam caught IN
the depths OF gray agate.
1t was not long before l learnt Meg S
secret by something in her lace when
ever Mr.. Weston was mentioned. Beng
in love myself l could tell the signs. The
Rev. Marcus Weston was Mr.. Thrill
wallis curate for the present, being man
who in the nature OF things would not be
q curate long. But he was friend of the
former CuraUe's, and had come partly to
supply his place, partly because the air
OF Nunthorpe was just beginning 10 be
celebrated, and W eston was not strong
man. There could not have been two
people more hopeleSSly disslmlIar than
Meg and he He was gentle and sympa-
thetic far beyond the majority OF them;
yet under II all there was KIND OF hard
ness that did not exist in Meg's nature
so much wilder and and morely unruly.
He did not tiirt with girls in the usual
manner, but talked to them about the in
finite spiritual possibilities that lay be-
fore them. He believed in every one
every one believed in him, more or less.
l believed in him less; but Meg-she had
never been talked to IN that way before.
He filled her brImful of aspirations TO
lead a higher lie. lie lent her Robert
sons Sermons" and made her sing
hymns TO him in the twilight. 1t was ali
very well-only Meg's ardor was little
chilled when she realized that he did the
same to other girls. She DeLIeVed IN him
ertheleSs-Indeed, Worsniped him, in
a singularly generous way. he was a
saint, hardly a man at all. II he ever
married, it must be some angelic being,
certainly no girl in Nunthorpe-not even
Celia Dooue, who was pretty and pious,
but had spice of placid wordlIness
about her that Meg keen eyes easily de-
tected.
All the same, she did not like to meet
Celia Doone SO often carrying bunches OF
grapes TO old women out OF her father 5
greenhouse. For Mr.. Doone was really
rich man, not only rich for Nunthorpe,
and Celia could take round grapes and
hothouSe flowers TO her hearts content.
Among them they were quite suppressed
M ~ r. a a
Gus Weston ii is not long before all the
girls gravitate to sIck-visiting. Meg did
not, The others did il SO much better
and she had no money to buy grapes.
And Pm not good enough said she.
Celia reads to them psalms and hymns
and spiritual songs, and | can't. l was a
good whole day together after the sermon
one Sunday night, but l was all the worse
the next day. It's three years since l was
confirmed, and l thought l was always
going to do right Ii was the loveliest old
bishop, and I'd a white India muslin, and
the tears rolled down my cheeks ali the
while it lasted. L never cried so much in
my life. And then, if you'll believe me,
as soon as l got home and it was tea time,
the tears all dried up somehow. l was
just as hungry as hunter.
Il think it's this hard, wicked heart OF
mine," she went on refectiYely, after a
pause. 1T won't break. or melt or any
thing. When l kneel down to pray II
starts me thinking about everything
else in the world. Father says my ma
ture's undsciplined. l know Pm mad
der than the raving man and dealer than
the sea- I"
Meg had way of mixing up hymns
and verses of Scripture with her conHer-
sation-often quite unconsclously. She
said, and L believed her, that it was with
going to church twice every Sunday since
- IL L l.