The Washington herald., 1907-11-06
CHAPTER VIII.
The kirktonn Minister,

! kiykt0wu was quiet place till YOU
knew II. Most DAYS the CORN Water.
4 purling along the valley. made the only
I noise-except, that Is. the tongues OF the
gossips. 1t was a terrible place foc gos-
sip. Il lived upon it. having dearth OF
other ailment
Nothing was sacred from the tongues
Of the Hlrktown. neither great houses
nor small. neither high nor low. soldier
nor sailor. tinker nor tailor But. FOR
choice, the Kirktown talked about min
isters. These We're. as usual. three-and
an Episcopalian-the latter smiling
pariah among the true blue Presbyte-
rians. who stayed himself with jumble
comminatory clauses OF the Athanasian
Greed
The minister Of the Scottish establish
ment was an high man. dry as high. and
for a while, at least comes not greatly
into this story. He abode planted in his
four-square roOmy house under the i'm
memorial parish elms. one eve on the
temporalities in the shape Of a manse
glebe capable OF being feued out into
eligible building lots" and the other
fixed on the eteTnities. as suggested by
the gravestones close under his study
window
The other two We're the Rev John Fow-
ler of the Free Kirk. and the Rev. Ben
jamin Irongray. Of tie Kirk Of the Mar
tyrs. These were friends and consorted
much together The elder. John Fowler
was married man with growing fam
lily. Mr.. Irongray was still a bachelor.
They abused each other frankly and
thecl0cically baudying such names as
Brownist and CaNinist: but they loved
each other dearly.
They met for choice in the manse Of
the bachelor. a still and untroubled place
far from the scuffie OF the nursery, and
with no smell, either of cooking or wash
ing. in the coEridors and staircases. The
Cameronian Church of Kirktown was
almost as solitary rs the EpiscopaIian.
but historically there was difference in
the tradition
The Rev. John Foster was a tall.
dreany-eyed enthusiast. crowned with
fun OF silken blond hair. through which
he swept his fingers with a quick. nerv-
Gus movement He spoke slowly. ! tn an
intOnation sweet and little moL1nful.
quickening now to unexpected enthusi-
asms and anon dropping unfinished into
quaint and pensive silences.
This day the Free Kirk minister's
daughter, Janet, went steadily UP the brae
Miss Fowler had a basket in one hand in
which something snuggled. carefully COW
cred with white napkin. II you had been
able 20 touch the basket. you would have
found 1t pleasantly warm. In fact the
basket contained hook soup in a little
aluminium saucepan. together with a good
ration of cold beef. potatoes. and veg
etables
Merely a parsons daughter PLAYING
Lady Bountful cheaply." the uninstruct
ed might have Said-that is, If they had
not belonged 70 Ilirktown. But the VII
lage and the Pits knew better. 1t was a
rough, reckless place, with the tall
chimneys and whirling cage-wheeIs held
up barrenly against the sky, and its
double shift of pitmen night and dav
pouring fp from the bowels Of the earth. |
and dropping Sullenly down. But Kirk |
town knew the value OF its minister's
and OF their daughters Not all these |
merits were patent. however For II did |
not guess, as the blinds We're drawn aside |
TO watch the progress Of Minister Fowl |
ers lass" that in order to carry that
supply TO Widow McTurl5, Janet Fowler |
had had 10 go hungry herself. to skimp |
her hungry. growing, growing brothers. |
and even pare regretfully at the portion /
Of her father as it went on the plate for
him TO say grace over.
Such, however. was the case
Janet Fowler was not beautiful, though /
she was young. She had plain. kindly. /
pleasant face in which a pair of steady /
gray eyes shOne with 3 consistent out /
looking firmness on all the world-On her
father, who needed looking after quite |
as much as the childTen-that is. her /
three brothers. Raif ALI. and Tim These !
chiefly needed bullying, while her small /
sister. Violet, got mostly what she want
ed Last Of all. Janet's face looked kind
ly and tolerantly out upon the hopelessIy
niprovident but humanity likable pit-folk
Of KirktOwn.
Janet was eighteen, but. having borne /