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HAMILTON JOURNAL.
THE OFFICIAL ORGAN OF HARRIS COUNTY.
vol xm.
THE PARISH’S PLAN.
[An-ry N. Prescott in Harper's Bazar.I
Air. Lindsay was preaching in the
Lennox narish on probation; that is. he
had been engaged for the year. After
that time, if he suited Miss Rich, who
had the parish in charge, so to speak,
who canvassed for money to pa nt tho
church, looked up pool children for
Christ, iiing and Sunday school, exhorted
the young people to join the conlirma
tion class, mapped planted out work for church the
sewing society, the the parish her
Christmas tree, and made
hobby—if he suited Miss Rich, if he was
High Church enough for Mr. Grimm
end Low enough for Mrs. Phelps, u no
believed with Dr. Slow m doctrine of
elec tion-—why, then they were sure to
settle him.
*4 \\ hat capital wife Lucretia . Bliaw
a
would make Mr. Lindsay,’ vouchsafed
Mies Hi; h, shortly alter he adorned the
Lennox pulpit. ’‘She s just the person
lor a parson's wife -bustling and—
"l-m afraid .she'd take the parish t'fdJu'e off
1 1 Lie!ps, helrsXvIm who, ^lm touting iire no no desire aesiio to ao tnc
hard work which her neighbor loved,
v yet . lt grudged 0 , rnf ] 0 . a ,] r nei ml . me cieu.t .. rpf i it of 01 it. if
“Well, there’s work PliobA enough for two of
ns in Hiflmrish Laid \l i fd < I wouldn't '
be a bit but git my share.''
-To be sure,” pursued and I don’t Mrs. believe Phelpe.
% 4 Lucretia s smart, in
n pa.stoi wit’ii a do.i ot a wire wno can t
darn the children’s clothes, and is too
feebio to get along without ‘help.’
>Strt ju-tmoia in *mi Mr< Alls. r> Bmhh- nii in. _-ne a
Le no end of a stepmother to Mr. Lind*
tuveh.- sa\ s bov, v- anu ,rwl it if PVW e\er 9 a hnr toy needed noi»d^l a i
stepmother it’s him. Lucretia s power
i m 'Sri' LllVLLh rt as vrvw s<u* ond shWdmaki*
'
nim walk tpamsn.
* 4 Yes,” added Miss Rich; “a widower
somehow needs a wile morn anybody,
to sympathize with him ill his loss. 1
shouldn't wonder it Lu retui would
bring tho bov up to the ministry if she
had her me,?’’ way.
• 4 Between you and me, said . , Mrs.
Phelps, “I.think that the parson goes to
tbe Bhaws’rather more than is noees
sary for the salvation of their souls.”
4 • You can't toll. 1 erhaps Lucretia
• • And iHj*.hups, saidDr. nr QW a°w- “iw per
naps it s Miss Busau.
Everybody laiighed and cried , “Miss .
Susan!” with tine ironv in their tones.
% 4 W ho e\e heard Oibusan n/cnoon ha\mg at- f
an tion? asked Mr». 1 helps.
• 4 I’ve engaged lucretia to embroider a
m w’ altar-e.oth, t- .pla nei Aliss Rich:
“I raised the money lor it last month—
J U 11 you it’s like pulling teeth to get
money out of this parish—and her about I suppose ths
the parson has to advise
pror«r designs ana things, l ucre tu
HAMID N, ( > •H A., MAY 12. 188f
ain't well drilled in symbols ana such,
vou know."
V
in fact. everybody in Lennox had de
cided that Mr. Lindsay should marry
Lucretia, and perhaps Lucretia had de
c'ded so too, for she was an everlasting
time over that altar-e oth, and needed
no end of advice and instruction; her
ignorance and interest were quite touch
i' ng . And Mr. Lindsay seemed quite
willing to spend his leisure under the
Shaw's roof, and watch the sacred svm
bo's growing under the white and
shapely hands hand of Miss Lucretia.
“That of J mere tin’s will be sure
do the business,” somebody had said,
Lindsay’s a man of taste, if he is a.
clergyman”—if the two were not
usually found combined—“and 1 heard
him say it was tit for a duchess.”
Miss Lucre!ia’s hand was, indeed, her
loveliest features, so to speak- white as
snowy with the prettiest taper fingers,
pmk at t he ends. Once when Mr.
i indsay had mentioned them Hatter
ingiy. Miss Busan, who was doing the
week’s mending near bv, drew her own
hands hLv under her work, troubledSalter lie noticed No
ever took the Miss
USa,1: 80,18 *P. tb0 choir, id
o tnougu her voice was thin as muslin,
p^d sli*' ...i had no car - nobody ,,* v dreamed u e ‘ l ; ta ; or r
cared 4 it Busan sang like a seraph; site
pat i J n uur \ ucretia's reua ^ siiauow, shadow auu and pcopie people al- ai
SVl' thDhe hi t hole. *Mr‘ ‘'llindJa Sate v 'had
theliitar-cloth Uught clrnir Himself,
could no longer be made
a pretext to cover a multitude ot calls,
there were the chants and fugues to
\ practice >lA ,r One .A inorniipr it as.he'drilied J l
l>U cretia for - half an hour ineffectually, • n
he suddenly u turned Jt to Busan /V. ’.
“Come,” he saio, . , ‘ try this chant . with ...
ug ’ Miss IV Susan*” and . i.u Susan uusau opened quiiu her w
r utl ; ‘V i la S ?1 V 0,,od v 1,1 rhe
had conuted before. -
choir ever
“Bravo!” he cried. “When did ymi
learn it?”
“Why, I have heard it all my life;
w j iv Lt” shouldn't I know’ it? I couldn't
e L
**Wo must , have , you m . tho choir, . . ... he
“Busan Bhaw in the choir:” gasped
everybody on the wav out of church,
-Mr. Lind;av is bringing her oijt.”
“She's Lucretia s sister, you know,”
Miss Lieu.
“ And her vo.ee rather drowns Lucre
tia, said Dr. Slow.
M r . Lindsay was giving great satisfac
tion Tim k parishioners 1 V] talked of re
model , i- mg the old rectory, adding , a wing
and a bay-window, and eveu spoke of
taking ia an adjoining field, so that
“Lucretia might have a fiower garden.”
They even meditated an increase of sal
ary as soon as he should be settled in
the parish, and Mr. Grimm thought he
ghould add a codicil to his will in favor
of the ucw pastor and l ucretia s bus-
NO. U).
“When they’re married,” reckono 1
Miss Rich, with unchristian thrift, “wo
shall have all our church trappings em¬
broidered for nothing, I suppose.”
“Do you think Busan will live with
'em?” asked Airs. Phelps. “P'raps ho
won't care about marrying the whole
familv. y'
• 4 He’s powerful kind to Busau,
though.” her,”
’‘He takes a sight of notice of
“You kinder forget she is Lucretia's
sister,” put in Miss Rich, ‘‘an'all she's
got.” r
It was surely plain that Mr. Lindsay
took pleasure in the society at the Shaw
homestead. At picnic, at prayer meet
ings or choir meetings he was always at
hand to take Lucretia and Busan home;
he lent them his books and directed
their reading; he brought them flowers
from town when he happened to go up.
*T shall he so glad to give up tho
presidency of the Bethel society and the
Dakota league to Lucretia,” said Miss
Rich. “It’s only proper for the clergy*
1 a V ^ to h« 1)6 at at ihr» ho head ha^d _ot of tu^rn »
i <• * W
“
••The parisli is a large field. J think
» * them to I X noivtD V * Ln ' mu /
*
mow, the other » night • < as I was going to
** tcl1 u * ,th Tr. irt Tt whor wll( * stu v 1 in
l ” *
*
formation of the , lungs, I came acrost
“ Ucr et ia “A 8 “^ n ‘ Mr i Lindsay ' ,)
hau , ]I ] 0H ta ™ ttn T , to foUo^" A u
, ,
] T1 t u n hA.n'lw^vi'inph har-i-amiiTPi' 1 ’
" s ,/ n .’ in V D hor Uni u '
Rewind , all her hie, said . , ur. Blow,
;.p \!R pvl n ,„ n P , ^ a . \T • , , fh feltua '"° . 1K m
‘
.But . ought vo have consul- .,
sue more
pr at „ t : nn i, 1 K\ ] r, *' i io\ets OVPM ( d j on n r r imnd Tn ; n a
her. ,' 1 here they were, all three of cm
H’atfhina !hr i-oimi ..mi studying r lb.,
’* U\\^, ••!,; ri0r 4*. " s t*idv 1 for a * l eleu^vnan C ” an ’ ”
^ MU *.» v°w-lc , v
-\ r > ,V }* j noint?rtr >. iK.r s out out a.i all t.L t. t- con a
ttm-natmns, * and n suemed to we the ?
was looking at 1 um ms*cad of the stars,”
D17rq P ,, e d Miss Ri< bi! b
“Jt would comnlicat’on ^vbih'heL ” «m
rested mi Mrs Phelps <\win “if court.-
1 ncret's should hi love
vbh in ”
.<j t be no use,” said Mrs.
(irimm. “Luoretia’s that; smart she’d
make him believe it was her” he ww
rtvm* lor ”
‘“But V what's Vvt the tJle use use of ot talk'n- aukin^ aDout about
c Busan i NV ho ever expects mm to marrr
Susan shaw . p eop le usually do wired
f . vnfr f P( ] n f >m . itl <l the narish px xv-t#
‘ to mairv Lucretia.”
“They want to settle Lucretia eb ”
Dr Blow.
j be shaws ^ i had Pf ho
wo if f roI be but BO thi ^ to
Kp are; thev owned their hotter but
kept no servant. ‘‘Halo would be .iread-