The Argosy — page 208: what you’re looking at

Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.

—— a —_—-- The Village Blacksmith. IQ right, you'll see. Just telegraph for Mr. Rex, and let me see Mr, Deedes the next time he comes.” “Indeed I will, Norah ; he'll be here this evening. And by the way, I hope you can manage to stay till next Tuesday, when the case comes before the Bench.” “Tuesday is washing day at Marling, sir, but if it was the judg- ment day I’d come; washing or no washing, I will be here if you want me,” replied Mrs. Canter as she rose to leave. The Archdeacon, however, detained her some while longer to tell her of Mark’s declaration: that he had seen Reuben and Vera down by the canal at midnight, and that he was trying to get up a case against the blacksmith for being an accomplice. At last Mrs. Canter left the study, but instead of leaving the house also she went straight to the drawing-room, where as she expected she found Mrs. Ryot-Tempest. Mrs. Canter was not a religious woman. Her temperament did not admit of deep religious feeling, and the circumstances of her life militated against the development of any spark of devotion which might be latent within her. Her creed was simple, and contained but few articles. She believed in God, in heaven for the good and in hell for the wicked, and as for the rest you must trust in Providence. Her creed was also liberal, for the ‘‘ good” in her opinion, in this sense, embraced by far the greater portion of mankind: fools would be saved, she supposed, because they knew no better; knaves would not, but then the proportion of knaves to fools was as one in ten. Beyond these elementary articles of faith, she thought creed of very little consequence. She preferred the Established Church herself, because she was accustomed to it, but if others preferred to be either Catholics or Dissenters, she had nothing to say against them. “Tt is of no more consequence what Church you belong to than _ what shape your bonnet is, as long as your head is covered,” she was wont to declare. ‘‘A bonnet is a covering for the head and religion a covering for the heart ; the shape of both is a matter of taste.” Reuben considered his sister one of the unconverted, and frequently ‘‘ wrestled in prayer’ for her, to use his own formula. Mrs. Canter would have smiled a superior smile had she been aware of these vigils on her behalf and would have shown no sign of repentance, but would have fallen back on her favourite theological axiom, “ trust in Providence ;” though it is doubtful if this phrase conveyed more real meaning to her mind than “that blessed word Mesopotamia ” did to the historical old woman. Though liberal in her wide application of her scheme of salva- tion, her liberality was somewhat cynical, for she was occasionally heard to remark ‘So-and-so was not clever enough to be lost, for the devil was so clever he did not care to have any stupid people in his kingdom.” Nevertheless she was very decided in her condem- nation of certain persons. For instance, she had not a shadow of a CORNICLIOO© <S (SO) im