The Virginia enterprise. [volume] (Virginia, St. Louis County, Minn.) 1893-19??, 1899-06-09
friar Withdrew the shntter from tbe r ,,,.


ing and saw for himself that it was my
grandfather aud no other. Even then
there was II parley, for it was against the
discipline to open the doors to any ut that
hour of the night unless justified by eX-
IRENE necessity, and my grandfather was
forced to explain that he had come on IN
errand Of life and death before Il bolt
WAS withdrawn.
1.-THE prior was reading in his cell. 1t
was hot summers evening. The case
ment was open, and the noise OF the river
came through It. and one could see the
stars twinkling down in the black waters
below. My grandfather saw all this in II
CLINT OF the eye, and / have heard him
tell, how, in the moment he stood there
facing the prior, he heard all the noises
one hears Oh such night as if his eurs
had become sllarpened-the crcaking of
the branc hes Of the almond tree which
stood against the easement, the cracking
Of the, dried grass us snake glidet
mond blossoms fall us Il great heavy
winged bat few into the cell and out
again.
"When'the prior read the message he
stood for Il moment like one stunned. He
did not speak, but my grandfather heard
him whisper softly, as if to himself
three words, 'Fiat voluntas Tua" They
were Latin words, it seems, for my
grandfather never rested afterwar,l until
he got them translated to him by the
Cura of Ajatafc.
Then in a moment it seemed to my
grandfather that the whole convent was
in commotion. The changing of bells
drowned the noise of the waters. Friurs
were hurrying hthc- and thithcr. The
peaceful cloistcrs were alive with mo.
tion' although he rather felt than heard
it. \ lay brother came in and laid be-
fore him winr and food in the PRIOR
one i'll IL dream, what with his long ride
and terror of the strange things that
seemed to be menacing his friends and
masters, he found hims;ii--hc knew not
how-in the chapter house Of the con.
vent.
''You. stood today OH the precise spot
where he stood that night If he thought
he was dreaming before he was sure
he dreamed now. The stone seats which
with double file of monks. There they
sat, motionless and silent, each in his
order Of priority, in the great vaultcd
chamber, and the red light of the cres-
sets, us it tlickercd here and there into
the darkness, seemed to make it more
terrifying, and the chapter house vastcr
and stranger than he had ever seen it
before. At the farther end the prior sat
in his canopied stall, under the image of
San Juan de III Cruz. 1t, too, seemed to
have grown larger, and my grandfather
sworc to his dying day that the wooden
figure was gigantic and awful, as if it,
too, felt the horror of what was about to
happen. There they all sat. their white
cowls drawn over their faces, and as the
lights from the cressets burnt very dim
ly and uncertainty. it was an uncanny
sight-you would have said they were
ghosts.
echoed through the vaulted roof NV
grandfather could have told you what he
said. word for word-as for me, my mem
DRY is short for these things; but when
he had finished there was great silence
which terrified my grandfather more than
if they had broken out into weeping and
when the prior left his seat, and,
kneeling before the image of San Juan
dc la Cruz, took up some earth from the
pavement and scattered it on his head,
the silence was so profound that you
could have heard the breathing of every
monk there.
Then he beckoned to my grandfather
to come near Beside his stall lay sack
which my grandfather had not noticed
before because of the darkness.
Ramon Buendia, said the prior. our
good and faithful servant, in this sack
are all the ornaments and sacred vessels
of this our Church of Our Lady of Bo-
larque. BY full consent of the commune
ty here in chapter assembled, we entrust
them to you. 1t is the wish of the chap
ter, and we charge it to you on your soul,
that tomorrow, before daybreak they be
deposited with our good friend, the Cura
of Ajatafe, in whose care and fidelity we
have every trust. He will guard and take
charge of them. until we ourselves re-
turn to claim them. My son, your work
is not yet done! 1t is long nights ride
to Ajatafe! 1t is the last service you can
do for the prior and monks of Bolaruue,
for tomorrow they will be gone!'
When my grandfather heard this he
fell ;l-weeping, and knelt aud kissed the
prior's hands and the cord of his habit.
and SO indeed he wa EAe ;91iot raised rails I'd
down the chapter house. passing between
the rows of stricken monks, each brother
rose and gave him his silent benediction.
If it was the most grievous, so it was
the proudest moment of my grand Tiers
life.
"A lay brother helped him to load the
sack on the mule. and with heavy
heart. but resOlutc ono. my grand
father started on his ride. When he got
past the mill he took path in the hills
that few knew except himself, for the
lay brother had warned him that the au-
thorities were already on the way to the
and might arrive at any mo-
ncnt. The path was rough and stony,
and the mule was tired, and stumbled at
every step under the heavy load Of the
sack. My grandfather Swallowed drops
Of blood that night, the longest onc he
bush. my grandfathcr's heart leapt Into
his mouth. Once he could have sworn
that black objects We're moving toward
him on the road that looked like men.
but they were only donkeys belonging to
some charcoal burners, who had fallen
asleep beside their fire. However,, the
last star was still twinklng in the >ky
and the dawn was just breaking clear
and cold over the hills when he found
himself safe in the curate's house of
Ajatafc, and the treasures III safe keep
ing.
when he returned on the morrow the
friars were gone. All his life he waited
for them to come back. but they have
not returned yet. And I, his grandson.
am still waiting, and when they come
almost intact, as YOU see-and the
church ornaments, which are still held
in trust for them at Ajatafe.'
And the river Tapped the piles on which
stood the kitchen, as it hurried on to
past the mill and the deserted
convent still waiting for it's owners
Chambers Journal.
Fighting Jimmy.
Admiral Jouett-now on the retired list
Of the navy and Familiarity known us
''Fighting Jimmy"-was acting secretary
of the navy once when the commandment
of the academy at Annapolis came over
and reported that he had been compelled
to discipline cadet who had behaved in
4 most unaccountable manner and had
disgraccd the academy. the department,
the government and all civilization. He
then proceeded to relate how this cadet,
when passing through the lower regions
of the town of Annapolis. had somehow
or another become involved iii hostilties
with /; tough citizen and proceeded to
polish him off, The friends of the tough
came to his rescue, the cadet hacked IN
against a wall and whipped five of them
in succession, and then nearly hammered
the life out of two policemen who at
tempted to arrest him. He was in the
.s..s1