The Catholic bulletin. [volume] (St. Paul, Minn.) 1911-1995, 1914-12-05

which. ross. from the 4Afmc chair by the
| IRE, hut that of, one whom she had
known from childhood. $3.50.
This Is a. pleasant surprise, Mrs.
EDesmond,':. said she, as the visitor
folded her to her heart. 'But hope
there Is nothing wrong .''
Your stepfather is dead, Miss
Mary. she answered. Ellis widow,
the new mistress, got rid OF me as
soon as possihle-I expected she.
would land so. I've come to you and
brought you some Of Your belongings,
as. you see at
So saying, she pointed to statue
of the Sacred Heart, which she had
placed on the table.
And you've brought me what OF all
my belongings / am the most pleased
to have" said Mary, as she kissed
the image which stood on her table. +
Mary Derwent was. the daughter of
g. country doctor in an English mid
land county. Her father had died
when she was quite a child, leaving
her mother and herself almost penni-
less, and after some years of a hard
struggle. with poverty, Mrs. Derwent,
more. for the child's sake than her
own, married a. wealthy gentleman of
the neiEhhorhOod named John Pick
ersgill. who. had paid her attention
ever since the commencement of her
widowhood. She did not survive the
union more than few years, but she
died with a heart. at ease, for John
Piekersgill seemed to regard Mary
with all the affection of a real father,
and her mother felt certain that he
would provide for her; and so he
fully intended to do at the time. but
later events induced him to alter his
mind. He was a Low Churchman of
the most pronounced type, hating
with a hate that was more than ha-
tired High ChurchisTn and anything
that sayored of Catholicism. He had
a. firm belief. that the Catholic Church
was the Scarlet Woman Of the Apoca-
lypse, and that the Catholic religion
itself was. but a. form 1of idolatry..
Surely strange beliefs these for an
educated man to hold in an enlight-
ened age, but. who can he surprised,
considering Ihe fact that q great Car
dinal, one of England's Intellectual
giants, had a: firm faith before his con
version. to. Catholicism that the, Pope
was anti Christ? England. has many
| like. them, so reared in prejudice, that
the Catholic Church as they see her
is. but the phantom Of their own blind
| bigotry. "a
/ Yet in spite. of all his hatred OF
4 Catholicism, Mr.. PickersgiH had a
strange liking for Catholic servants
for /. he had found them eminently
Trustworthy and his housekeeDer, ever
since he had set mp house on his own
account, had, been a Catholic Irish
woman named Mrs. Desmond.
| j On applying for the post, and before
matters were finally settled, Mrs. Des
mond informed him that she was q
| Catholic and must have time off every
Sunday morning to hear Mass. Or
hearing this it was quite evident tt
Mrs. Desmond sthat her prospective
employer was ,pnfayorably impressed
and she, quite expected to be told thai
j her services would not be required
But as she had 4been highly recon
fnended by people whom he happened
to know, and on whose word he knew
he could reply, he simply said, after Z
brief mental struggle: well, / sup
pose it will be all right, so long as
you don't let me see any of your idol
atrous images about the house.
And John Pickersgil never had rea
son to regret the day that Mrs. Des
mond took, charge OF his household
lie learned TO trust. her in everything
and so transpafghtiy honest was she
1 that he would never dream Of ques
tioning a single figure of her accounts
Whatever else they are they're
honest he would say Of the Catholics
after Mrs. Desmond's advent; "but
then all people, even the worst of all
have some virtue. or other, ~
After her mothers death Mary Der
went was thrown good deal into thu
company of the housekeeper, with thu
result that she acquired much knowl
edge of the Catholic religion. tt ap
4 pealed strongly Ito the young girls
pure, .ilnsullied soul, and ere long sht
Was received into the One True Fole
/. in, the little. Catholic church which
Mrs. Desmond, attended on Sundays.
Because of her. stepfather's preiu
dices, however, and in order to avoit
: unpleasantness, her change, of religion