FREE BOOKS

Author's List




PREV.   NEXT  
|<   56   57   58   59   60   61   62   63   64   65   66   67   68   69   70   71   72   73   74   75   76   77   78   79   80  
81   82   83   84   85   86   87   88   89   90   91   92   93   94   95   96   97   98   99   100   101   102   103   104   105   >>   >|  
of one of the Fates reviewing her flax before she commenced the spinning of some new web of destiny. "Good morning to you, sister!" said Jocunda. "I heard you were off tomorrow, and I came to see what I could do to help you." "There's nothing to be done for me, but to kill me," said Elsie. "I am weary of living." "Oh, never say that! Shake the dice again, my old man used to say,--God rest his soul! Please Saint Agnes, you'll have a brave pilgrimage." "Saint Agnes be hanged!" said Elsie, gruffly. "I'm out with her. It was she put all these notions into my girl's head. Because she didn't get married herself, she don't want any one else to. She has no consideration. I've done with her: I told her so this morning. The candles I've burned and the prayers I've gone through with, that she might prosper me in this one thing! and it's all gone against me. She's a baggage, and shall never see another penny of mine,--that's flat!" Such vituperation of saints and sacred images may be heard to this day in Italy, and is a common feature of idol-worship in all lands; for, however the invocation of the saints could be vitalized in the hearts of the few spiritual, there is no doubt that in the mass of the common people it had all the well-defined symptoms of the grossest idolatry, among which fits of passionate irreverence are one. That feeling, which tempts the enlightened Christian in sore disappointment and vexation to rise in rebellion against a wise Providence, in the childish twilight of uncultured natures finds its full expression unawed by reverence or fear. "Oh, hush, now!" said Jocunda. "What is the use of making her angry just as you are going to Rome, where she has the most power? All sorts of ill luck will befall you. Make up with her before you start, or you may get the fever in the marshes and die, and then who will take care of poor Agnes?" "Let Saint Agnes look after her; the girl loves her better than she does me or anybody else," said Elsie. "If she cared anything about me, she'd marry and settle down, as I want her to." "Oh, there you are wrong," said Jocunda. "Marrying is like your dinner: one is not always in stomach for it, and one's meat is another's poison. Now who knows but this pilgrimage may be the very thing to bring the girl round? I've seen people cured of too much religion by going to Rome. You know things a'n't there as our little saint fancies. Why, between you and me, the priests them
PREV.   NEXT  
|<   56   57   58   59   60   61   62   63   64   65   66   67   68   69   70   71   72   73   74   75   76   77   78   79   80  
81   82   83   84   85   86   87   88   89   90   91   92   93   94   95   96   97   98   99   100   101   102   103   104   105   >>   >|  



Top keywords:

Jocunda

 

common

 

morning

 
saints
 

pilgrimage

 
people
 

befall

 
Providence
 

childish

 

twilight


uncultured

 

rebellion

 

Christian

 

enlightened

 
disappointment
 
vexation
 
natures
 

making

 

expression

 

unawed


reverence
 

stomach

 

poison

 
religion
 

fancies

 

priests

 

things

 

dinner

 
tempts
 
marshes

settle
 

Marrying

 
invocation
 

Please

 
hanged
 

notions

 

Because

 

gruffly

 

commenced

 

tomorrow


sister

 

spinning

 

destiny

 

living

 

reviewing

 

married

 

hearts

 
vitalized
 

spiritual

 

feature