A Dozen Ways Of Love

in this remote place during his summer holiday. The town was at once very primitive and very modern. Many log-houses still remained in it; almost all the other house

been cleared. In spite of all this, the town was very advanced, every improvement being of the newest kind because so recently achieved. Upon huge ungainly tree-trunks roughly erected along the streets, electric lamps hung, and telephone wires crossed and recrossed one anoth

od, painted in dull colours of red and brown; it had large comfortable verandahs under shingled roofs. Its garden was not old-fashioned in the least; but though it aspired to trimness the grass had not grown there long enough to make a good lawn

rts of beauty: health and good sense were written there, also flashes of humour and an habitual sweet seriousness. She had chanced to be at the gate gathering flowers. Her reception of the student was frank, and yet there was just a touch of blushing dignity about it which sugg

He sat opposite his eldest daughter and did the honours of the meal with the utmost hospitality, yet with reserve of manner caused by his evident consciousness that his g

forthcoming. Strawberries were being served with the tea; some sort of cold pudding was also on the table; and all this

tch church of which he was an elder, and Miss Torrance was ably seconding his effort by comparing the sentiments of the serm

out eighteen; she suddenly gave it as her opinion that Trilium was bewitched; there was no o

face; she frowned at her sister

have about here, Mr. Howitt,' said the mast

n face the twist that with him always expressed ideas wonderful

ome across witch tales here, there, everywhere; and the marvel

ance family fixed their eyes up

ore degrading,' continued the

ipped his tea hastily. 'The Cape Breto

ned a new resolution appeared upon t

. 'I hope'-here a timid glance, as if imploring support-'I hope we kno

the fine face and the words

of an honest man who was still made some

,' he said at last in broad accents, 'still,'-an hon

ious-'to hear some of these poor creatures talk. I never thought i

in the hearing of the poor and uneducated, of course, I mean. But if ye like to make a study o' that sort of thing, I'

'And if you go to Mistress M'Leod, Mr. Howitt, will you just be kind enough to

was still upon her face the fine glow born of a new r

e understood Mary's fun perfectly. 'I will go to-morrow,' he cried. 'When the wise woman

watched the outline of the hills on the other side of the inlet, and thought upon many things. He thought upon religion and philosophy, for he was religious and studious; he thought upon practical details of his pre

e chose to be the helpmeet of a Christian minister. He wondered whether Mary could take her sister's place in the home circle. Yet with all th

hair was drawn closely, like a thin veil, down the sides of her head and pinned at the back. Her features were small, her eyes bright; she was not unlike a squirrel in her sharp little movements and quick glances. She wore a small shawl pinned around her spare shoulders. Her skirts fell upo

dame. She left her spinning with a ce

ntreal,'

. Canada is a te

ches in this part of the land.' Whereupon

hought. 'Ay, there's many a minister believes

' sai

early one morning, and saw a

u know she

o vex them. But would you believe it? as long as we had that cow her cream gave no butter. We had to sell her

d he, look

time, there, above the milk shelves, what did they find but a bit of hair rope! Cows' and horses' h

w wh

from that time on, more, but still not so much as ought by rights to have come. Then, one day, I thought to unknot

ut the sacram

rm up over on the other hill, well, there was a poor widow with seven daughters. It was hard times then for us all, but for her, she only had a bit of fl

ul wicked to the widow and the fatherless. I'll tell you what they did. Well, the widow's butter failed. Not one bit more could she get. The milk was just the same, but not one bit of butter. "Oh," said

ne curds!" So he went away, and next day she put the rennet in the milk as usual, but not a bit would the curd come. "Oh," said she, "but I must put something in the children's mouths!" She was

, gave him some of the curd. "That's good curd," said he. Next day, when she put the rennet in the sheep's milk, not a bit would the cu

woman crouch down by one of the alder bushes, and put her tub under it, and go milking with her hands; and after a bit she lifted her tub, that seemed to have something in it, and set it over against another alder bush, and went milking with her hands again. So the girl said, "Mother, mother, wake up, and see what the neighbour woman is doing!" So the mother looked out, and there

ime the wicked old woman was high on the hill; so she ran and ran, but she could not catch her before she was in at her own door; but that second girl, she was not afraid of anything, so she runs in at the door, too. Now, in those days they used to have sailing-chests that lock up; they had iron bars over them, so you could keep anything in

the student and nodded her head with eyes tha

they know?

was an awful wicked witch, and sh

and then, 'But what became of th

oung men that went from here to the States-that's Boston, ye know. Well, pretty soon one, that was named M'Pherson, came back, looking so white-like and ill that nothing would do him any good. He drooped and he died. Well, years after, the other, whose name was McVey, came back. He was of the same wicked stock as the old folks I've been telling ye of. Well,

so I put it in the tin box; and there was just a little over, so I was forced to leave that in the paper bag. Well, that day a neighbour came in from over the hill. I knew fine she was a witch; so we sat and gossiped a bit; she was a real pleasant woman, and she sat and sat, and the time of day went by. So I made her a cup of tea, her and me; but I used the drawing that was in the paper bag. Said she, "I

o do so would be futile. The artistic soul of him was caught by the curious recital. He remembered now the bidding of Mary Torrance,

at is a great pet in the family, should suddenly cease

e moved to her spinning-wheel and gave it a

curiosity. 'What would you

tress Betty. 'Och, but I know it's To

e up with brisk dignity. 'I only asked you to see what you wou

urse. 'But I'll tell you exactly what they must do,' she sa

of pins!'

the witches. And she's to boil them in whatever milk the cow gives, and she's to pour them boiling hot into a hole in the ground; and when s

e long arm of the sea turned to red and gold in the light of the clouds which the sun had

f belief in them as an actual part of normal human experience. Insanity, or the love of making a good story out of notions which have never been serious

udent joined himself to Miss Torrance. He greeted her with the whims

would do any good,' s

f. He was too nonplussed to go on immediately. Then he supposed

d of her, and my mother was very fond of her when she was a heifer. The last summer before she died, Trilium fed out of mother's hand, and no

y strong and dignified, spoke

n old farmer to loo

has suddenly stopped givin

eally don't know anything

of relief in her voice that he wondered much what would be coming next. In a moment she said, 'I qu

ise.' He was much puzzled

ls, old people like Mistress B

ies, for, as they neared the little white-washed church, many groups were seen coming from all sides across the grassy space in which it stood. He w

ecause of their ignorance and remote ways of thought. It was a comfort to him to feel that there was at least one family among his hearers whose education would enable them to understand him clearly. He looked with satisfaction at th

public from the postmistress and her helpers. He was waiting for some information for which he had asked; he was forced to stand outside the li

e she came from school, setting herself and

of them at the store,

y she's doing it, and then pretend

th the required information. When she saw w

ance,-if you happen to be going up t

hip with Miss Torrance was a matter of public interest. He w

ll attention, it did not impress him as a thing that could be easily injured. Something, however, did soon make a sharp impression upon him; once as he caught the parcel he felt his hand deeply pricked. Looking closely, he saw that a pin was working its way through the thick paper. After t

ore undecided than ever. He was full of curiosity about the pins. He found it hard to believe that they were to be used for a base purpose, but suspicion had entered hi

stined to

lled to visit a dying man, and the mes

yet knelt beside the bed. When he was returning home alone in the darkness, he felt his soul open

d his eye was arrested by seeing a lantern twinkling in the paddock where Trilium grazed. He s

by which he could pass, and he did pass that way, looking and looking till a beam of the lantern fell fu

were not connected with each other in the common mind. One was that the young minister had ceas