FREE BOOKS

Author's List




PREV.   NEXT  
|<   92   93   94   95   96   97   98   99   100   101   102   103   104   105   106   107   108   109   110   111   112   113   114   115   116  
117   118   119   120   121   122   123   124   125   126   127   128   129   130   131   132   133   134   135   136   137   138   139   140   141   >>   >|  
me," the priest went on, in a low, pained voice. "I did everything in my power to stop her, but I could do nothing--she had given her word!" "Given her word?" repeated Agnes wonderingly. "Yes," said Father Ferguson; "she had given that wretched, that wickedly selfish man her promise. She believed that if she broke her word he would kill himself. I begged her to go and see some woman--some kind, pitiful, understanding woman--but I suppose she feared lest such a one would dissuade her to more purpose than I was able to do." Agnes looked at him with troubled eyes. "She was very dear to my heart," the priest went on. "She was always a generous, unselfish child, and she was very, very fond of you, Agnes." Agnes's throat tightened. What Father Ferguson said was only too true. Teresa had always been a very generous and unselfish girl, and very, very fond of her. She wondered remorsefully if she had omitted to do or say anything she could have done or said on the day that poor Teresa had come and spoken such strange, wild words----? "It seems so awful," she said in a low voice, "so very, very awful to think that we may not even pray for her soul, Father Ferguson." "Not pray for her soul?" the priest repeated. "Why should we not pray for the poor child's soul? I shall certainly pray for Teresa's soul every day till I die." "But--but how can you do that, when she killed herself?" He looked at her surprised. "And do you really so far doubt God's mercy? Surely we may hope--nay, trust--that Teresa had time to make an act of contrition?" And then he muttered something--it sounded like a line or two of poetry--which Agnes did not quite catch; but she felt, as she often did feel when with Father Ferguson, at once rebuked and rebellious. Of course there _might_ have been time for Teresa to make an act of contrition. But every one knows that to take one's life is a deadly sin. Agnes felt quite sure that if it ever occurred to herself to do such a thing she would go straight to hell. Still, she was used to obey this old priest, and that even when she did not agree with him. So she followed him into the church, and side by side they knelt down and each said a separate prayer for the soul of Teresa Maldo. As Agnes Barlow walked slowly and soberly home, this time by the high road, she tried to remember the words, the lines of poetry, that Father Ferguson had muttered. They at once haunted and eluded her memory. Surel
PREV.   NEXT  
|<   92   93   94   95   96   97   98   99   100   101   102   103   104   105   106   107   108   109   110   111   112   113   114   115   116  
117   118   119   120   121   122   123   124   125   126   127   128   129   130   131   132   133   134   135   136   137   138   139   140   141   >>   >|  



Top keywords:

Teresa

 

Ferguson

 

Father

 
priest
 
unselfish
 

generous

 
muttered
 

contrition

 

poetry

 

repeated


looked
 

church

 

memory

 

soberly

 

Barlow

 
slowly
 

separate

 

sounded

 

prayer

 
occurred

straight

 
walked
 

haunted

 

remember

 

deadly

 

rebellious

 

rebuked

 
eluded
 

feared

 

dissuade


suppose

 

understanding

 

pitiful

 

purpose

 

throat

 

troubled

 

begged

 

wonderingly

 

pained

 

wretched


believed

 

promise

 

wickedly

 

selfish

 

tightened

 

killed

 
surprised
 

Surely

 

remorsefully

 

omitted