The Hawaiian star. [volume] (Honolulu [Oahu]) 1893-1912, 1897-03-30
THE WEE PRIEST.

W ullN bllb IL Dt Cbulu uNOlu ~ anu SCbillsu
to care for DO companionship but that of
his pet goat. One day, however, he made
% fried.
III front Of tie woo priests whitewashed |
cottage was bit of garden, containing
two fuchsia bushes and some cabbnges,
and outside the garden was a strip of COM
mon land. 1t was here that he kept his
| pct 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 lonth to return; so 1t happened
that the wee priest was quite unconscious
| of little figure that stood in his path
until he found himself on the point of up
setting it. He then realized that it had
been waiting for him. 1t was the kind of
little figure qlat had not hitherto entered
very notably into his life 1t had curly
hair and big, blue eyes, and it 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 IO Wake Ill " neW eueu
"Tie my shoel repeated Ely imperious-
ly, waving her foot in the air to draw at
tention to it and nearly tumbling 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
shoestrings of colonels' daughters had not
come into the curriculum of his college,
but he bravely knelt down and did as he
was bidden 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 claspng 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 him 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
81 likes Co., said Ely when she was
going away. "I'ze tumming adam. u
eff you please" said the priest politely.
1t was fully an hour before his thoughts
went back to heaven.
6 Ely came again often. The children of
3 Ballycrook, whether rich or poor, are early
Z independent, for they are among friends,
and so the colonels daughter left her
nurse at home, and as we have seen, APP
+ pointed to that office any one she might
c happen to meet. Her visits to the white
i washed cottage on the common became the
i chief incidents of the wee priests life. Her
likes and dslikes were his most absorbing
I interests. He had faint reminiscenco Of
4 eating sweets in his childhood and liking
l. them, so he bought some in the village
y cbpp and fonn1 the q Y Dpritppnt SnpppSsfnl
ELY had weakness for bright colors, so
he dug up his cabbages and planted COR
geous flowers in their place Ely watered
s them and picked them. She also fed the
II goat with the wee priests dinner
: All the autumn their friendship deepen
u ed. They never spoke very much, but
}! whenever the priest walked on the common
: Ely trotted at his side, and the pink fist
u was quite at home now doubled up inside
u the brown hand. But as the weather grew
y colder things changed. Eily's walks abroad
+ were confined to a quick constitutional,
e under supervision, and the wee priest wait
ed in vain for his friend till his face grew
> wistful. When the snow came, he gave up
II hoping But he reckoned without his
guest, who was person of resource.
!, He was sitting alone one day thought.
II fully stroking a woolly lamb on wheels
i, which he and ELY used sometimes to draw
u round the garden by string He heard q
shuiiling noise on the doorstep, and Ely
l. herself walked in. She was chuckling
l. "I'ze ranned away" she said, beaming.
II Then she stated her business.
5, mako snow man.
q The wee priest shuddei ed. He would
q have preferred playing with the wooly
le lamb by the'freside. But he had come fan
r since the day that he was daunted by 4
T. shoestring, and experience had taught him
s prompt obedience. So he fetched his spade
"a meekly.
Here" said Ely, standing in front OF
the door. "We'll have him just here,
DC fink, where lie can see 90 froo the win
g dow" For moment the wee priest was
l. staggered. Public opinion is strong il
Is Ballycrook, and snow man in the priest
Q, garden is unusual. "Just here, :" repeated
Ely. So the snow man was made JUS
g. there.
r. So splendid snow man had never beer
seen in Ballycrook. 1t is true that thu
~ priest had no notion how to proceed, bu
lie Eily's experience was large, and she had {
g. genius for giving orders. BY mixtur,
id of obedience and inspiration the patton
workman produced triumph of art, ant
as Ely was satisfied. She even crowned tn,
1t work herself by giving the snow man peb
, BILE buttons.
''Ize so cold, " she murmured presently
d The wee priest did not observe that she
le had put on her thin coat by mistake wheI
Q. she had framed away She was NJ
judge of such things. But he did heal
&c that her teeth were ohattering, so he tool
ner into tine tireside. She went home
y however, still shivering. When one is
is years old, one catches cold SO easily.
lie The next day he heard that she was i'll
id He thought he was going to be i'll too. i
was really anxiety that he felt but he hat
" never been anxious before, so he did no
a understand. His anxiety did not last long
however, for on the third day Ely died.
When they told him about it, he wa
re mending the woolly lamb, which had
a broken leg. He laid it on tho table silent
l. ly, and for long time he sat still, onl,
a stroking the woolly lamb now and theI
AZ unconsciously. When mt last he LOOKED