Cousin Phillis Read Online Free PDF Page A

on, turning straight to me, with a
kindly, frank look in his eyes.
    But I was vexed, and would take no notice. Presently, having finished
his pipe, he got up and left the room. Phillis put her work hastily
down, and went after him. In a minute or two she returned, and sate
down again. Not long after, and before I had quite recovered my good
temper, he opened the door out of which he had passed, and called to me
to come to him. I went across a narrow stone passage into a strange,
many-cornered room, not ten feet in area, part study, part counting
house, looking into the farm-yard; with a desk to sit at, a desk to
stand at, a Spittoon, a set of shelves with old divinity books upon
them; another, smaller, filled with books on farriery, farming,
manures, and such subjects, with pieces of paper containing memoranda
stuck against the whitewashed walls with wafers, nails, pins, anything
that came readiest to hand; a box of carpenter's tools on the floor,
and some manuscripts in short-hand on the desk.
    He turned round, half laughing. 'That foolish girl of mine thinks I
have vexed you'—putting his large, powerful hand on my shoulder.
'"Nay," says I, "kindly meant is kidney taken"—is it not so?'
    'It was not quite, sir,' replied I, vanquished by his manner; 'but it
shall be in future.'
    'Come, that's right. You and I shall be friends. Indeed, it's not many
a one I would bring in here. But I was reading a book this morning, and
I could not make it out; it is a book that was left here by mistake one
day; I had subscribed to Brother Robinson's sermons; and I was glad to
see this instead of them, for sermons though they be, they're . . .
well, never mind! I took 'em both, and made my old coat do a bit
longer; but all's fish that comes to my net. I have fewer books than
leisure to read them, and I have a prodigious big appetite. Here it is.'
    It was a volume of stiff mechanics, involving many technical terms, and
some rather deep mathematics. These last, which would have puzzled me,
seemed easy enough to him; all that he wanted was the explanations of
the technical words, which I could easily give.
    While he was looking through the book to find the places where he had
been puzzled, my wandering eye caught on some of the papers on the
wall, and I could not help reading one, which has stuck by me ever
since. At first, it seemed a kind of weekly diary; but then I saw that
the seven days were portioned out for special prayers and
intercessions: Monday for his family, Tuesday for enemies, Wednesday
for the Independent churches, Thursday for all other churches, Friday
for persons afflicted, Saturday for his own soul, Sunday for all
wanderers and sinners, that they might be brought home to the fold.
    We were called back into the house-place to have supper. A door opening
into the kitchen was opened; and all stood up in both rooms, while the
minister, tall, large, one hand resting on the spread table, the other
lifted up, said, in the deep voice that would have been loud had it not
been so full and rich, but without the peculiar accent or twang that I
believe is considered devout by some people, 'Whether we eat or drink,
or whatsoever we do, let us do all to the glory of God.'
    The supper was an immense meat-pie. We of the house-place were helped
first; then the minister hit the handle of his buck-horn carving-knife
on the table once, and said,—
    'Now or never,' which meant, did any of us want any more; and when we
had all declined, either by silence or by words, he knocked twice with
his knife on the table, and Betty came in through the open door, and
carried off the great dish to the kitchen, where an old man and a young
one, and a help-girl, were awaiting their meal.
    'Shut the door, if you will,' said the minister to Betty.
    'That's in honour of you,' said cousin Holman, in a tone of
satisfaction, as the door was shut. 'When we've no stranger with us,
the minister is so fond of keeping the door Open, and talking to the
men and maids, just