The Wilmington daily Republican. (Wilmington, Del.) 1890-1902, 1897-02-22
THE WEE PRIEST.

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The peopis Of Bailycrook always called
him the "wee priest" He seldom spoke
to any one II he could avoid II and seemed
to care for no companionship but that Of
his pet goat. One day, however, he made
a friend.
In front Of the wee priest whitewashed
cottage was bit Of garden, containing
two fuchsia bushes and some cabbages,
and outside the garden was strip Of com
mon land. II was here that he kept his
pet and took his daily exercise 1t was
here, too, that he first met his friend.
One day he was walking on the COM
mon, with his eyes fixed on the ground
and his thoughts In heaven, as was usual
with him. Heaven Is long way from
Ballycrook, and thoughts that wander
there are loath to return; SO 1t happened
that the wee priest was quite unconscious
of q little figure that stood In his path
until he found himself on the point Of up
setting 1t. He then realized that 1t had
been waiting for him. 1t was the kind of
little figure that had not hitherto entered
very notably into his life. 1t had curly
hair and big, blue eyes, and 1t was about
years old. This was ELY, the daughter
Of the colonel.
"Tie my shoe" said Ely, lifting up a
tiny foot
The wee priest hesitated. He was al
ways slow to take in new idea.
"Tie my shoeV' repeated Ely imperious-
Iy, waving her foot in the air to draw at
tention to 1t and nearly tunbling into
whin bush. The priest looked around for
help in his extremity, but there was no
one in sight His chubby face grew Grim.
son with embarrassment, for tying the
ehoestrings of colonies daughters had not
come into the curriculum Of his college,
but he bravely knelt down and did as he
was hidden. 1t took him some time and
made him very warm, but he rose with
sense of achievement. Eily's nurse cut
the string later In the day.
Presently the wee priest found himself
walking along the common with little
pink hand olasping one Of his fingers. 1t
felt very odd, but he had heard of such
things being done, and the blue eyes that
looked up at hin, appeared quite calm, as
though there was nothing abnormal In the
situation. So he introduced her to the
goat and gave her sprig of fuchsia.
II likes Co.," said Ely when she was
going away. "Ize cumming adam"
"If you please, said the priest politely.
It was fully an hour before his thoughts
went back to heaven.
Ely came again often. The children Of
Ballycrook, whether rich or poor, are early
independent, for they are among friends,
and so the colonel's daughter left her
nurse at home, and, as we have seen, ap-
pointed to that office any one she might
happen to meet Her visits to the white
washed cottage on the common became the
chief incidents Of the wee priests life. Her
likes and dislikes were his most absorbing
interests. He had a faint "Reminiscences Of
eating sweets In his childhood and liking
them, so he bought some in the village
shop and found the experiment successful
Ely had a weakness for bright colors, SO
he dug up bis cabbages and planted gor-
geous flowers in their place. Ely watered
them and picked them. She also fed tho
goat with the wee priests dinner.
All tho autumn their friendship deepen
ed. They never spoke very much, but
whenever the priest walked on the common
Ely trotted at his side, and the pink fist
was quite at home now doubled up inside
the brown hand. But as the weather grew
colder things changed. Ely walks abroad
were confined to quick constitutional,
under supervision, and the wee priest walt
cd in vain for his friend till his face grew
wistful. When the snow came, he gave up
hoping. But he reskoned without his
guest, who was person of resource,
He was sitting alone ono day, Thought
fully stroking woolly lamb on wheels
which he and Ely used sometimes to draw
round the garden by string He heard t.
shutting noise on the doorstep, and Ely
herself walked in. She was chuckling
lie ranned away" she said, beaInins
Then she stated her business.
Make snow man."
The wee priest shuddeIed. He would
have preferred playing with the woolly
lamb by the Preside Rut he had come far
since the day that he was daunted by
shoestring, and experience had taught him
prompt obedience So he fetched his spade
meekly.
"Here," said Ely, standing in front of
the door, "We'll have him just here, 1
fink, where he can see 90 froo the win
dow For a moment the wee priest was
staggered. Public opinion is strong in
Ballycrook, and snow man in the priests
garden is unusual. "Just here, " repeated
Ely So the snow man was made Just
there,
So splendid snow man had never been
seen in Ballycrook 1t is true that the
priest had no notion how to proceed, but
Eily's experience was large, and she had
genius for giving orders. BY mixture
of obedience and inspiration the patient
workman produced triumph of art, and
Ely was satisfied. She even crowned tho
work herself by giving the snow man peb-
bic buttons
"Ize so cold, )" she murmured presently.
The wee priest did not observe that she
had put on her thin coat by mistake when
she had framed away" She was no
Judge of such things But he did hear
that her teeth were chattering, so he took
her into the firesido. She went home,
however, still shivering. When one is
years old, one catches cold so easily
The next day he heard that she was i'll.
He thought no was going to be i'll too. 1t
was really anxiety that he felt, but he had
never been anxious before, so he did not
understand. His anxiety did not last long,
however, for on the third day Ely died
When they told him about it, he was
mending the woolly lamb which had
broken leg. IIo laid it on the table silent
ly, and for long time he sat still, only
stroking the woolly lamb now and then
unconsciously When at last he looked
up, the snow man was grinning at him
through tho window. A little treble voice
Ieemed to ring in his ears:
Just here, fink, where he can see 90
froo the window"
Then the wee priest took his spade and
went into the garden, and battered and
broke the snow man till there was no sign
OF him left When he had finished, he
smoothed the snow with the spade A
,rln M flo