Page images
PDF
EPUB

-'s

gentlemen on important business, and must therefore beg to be excused a personal interview. Would Mr. Mantin name-through the butler, or by letter-the object of the wished-for interview? The rector chose the latter alternative; he wrote to say that "he was anxious to enlist Lord interest in the Dullymore Cricket Club, and would his Lordship honour their committee by accepting the post of President of the D. C. C ?" To which Menasseh replied that there was a cricket club in connection with the park, consisting of fifty members; of which he was president. "It so happened that one of the bye-laws of their Union was to the effect that the O-P.C.C.be strictly exclusive, and that no member of that association was to connect himself with another of the kind."

This cut direct” did not deter the “Reverend Adam Mantin" to make

another effort for the stake was a heavy one. The wager somehow oozed out, and began to be talked of in high places, and reached the ears of our friends here. The dernier ressort failed also. However, the Rector remained in his parish till the two years after his institution expired, and then left his charge to an ill-paid and ill-qualified curate. He left Dullymore with a self-imprecatory hope that he might never see the place again. His graceless hope was realised but too soon. At the very next hunting season he had a fall from his horse, and, after a protracted illness, he died of the concomitant circumstances which attended his fall. During his lingering on his bed of sickness, the patron, Lord Souls-aSell, staked the benefice of Dullymore, along with another in his gift, at a gaming table, which he lost. The winner was the proprietor and driver of a certain stage-coach, who is now the patron; and one of his sons is preparing for St. Bees, with a view to his ultimate rectorship of Dullymore. In the mean time, Mr. Horsman, the new patron, put in an imbecile old brother of his, by way of a "warming-pan," as quasi rector, till young Horsman shall be ready; that is, when he is "priested."

On Mr. Mantin's quitting his parish, Adamantine House was minutely described in a long advertisement, "to be sold or let." In either case the price, or the rent, proved too high; and no inquiries were made after it. Soon after the late rector's death, a new advertisement appeared. It was offered, on lease for the first seven years, at a nominal rent. It was that greatly modified advertisement which brought the Hardmans into the neighbourhood.

All I know about the present inhabitants of Adamantine House is to the following effect:-The head of the establishment is the son of a deceased army medical dispensary, a clerk in holy orders, but unattached; he is as pompous in manner as he is penurious in mind; not particularly chaste in language, nor over-clean in person. He held several unimpor tant positions, in the capacity of stipendiary friend of several good causes, during his clerical career. His better half, however, managed to make each successive appointment so much the worse for her lord and master. Mrs. Hardman is a smooth-tongued, sinister, shrewd, diplomatic woman; avaricious to a degree.

Goodness! Anglo-Saxons talk of Jewish covetousness! Would, that some truthful intrepid historian, or ethnologist, had the courage to bring the christianised Anglo-Saxons face to face with the leech-like covetous

ness amongst themselves! Pardon, Moscheleh Bargerschon, the parenthesis.

Mr. Hardman having failed to attain any eminence whatever in his profession-there are scores of amusing legends about the ingenious measures which his too clever wife took to compass that end-Mrs. Hardman, daughter of a deceased matron in a lunatic asylum, bethought herself of setting up a tri-coloured establishment; partly educational, partly boarding, and partly sanitary. Adamantine House was just the place for Mrs. Hardman's new scheme. She took the house, and lost no time to put it in order.

About the same time Benamram happened to be on a visit at Toledo Villa, during his holidays from his laborious curacy in the east end of London. We talked a good deal about the dire vicissitudes of the parish of Dullymore; he seemed irresistibly drawn toward it. He surveyed it from every point of view. One evening, whilst he seemed utterly absorbed in his thoughts, the host pulled him up with the apostrophe, "Benamram, I do not mind making you a liberal offer for the thought which is now uppermost in your mind!" "Thank you; will you accept it as a gift? I thought a good deal about the hapless condition of Dullymore, and I have come to the determination to make an attempt at changing its name into Dullynomore. I intend to offer my services, as "Curate in sole charge" of the parish, to the present rector for a period of three years, without stipend, fee, or remuneration of any kind."

"A valuable thought!" emphatically rejoined the host. "Salvation is of the Jews,' the great Lord declared. Perhaps He intends our poor neighbours to experience the riches of that truth in a practical manner. You have my heartiest good wishes for your noble enterprise." The wonderful change which has come over the parish since Benamram's ministration in it you know; for you have often said yourself, "Benamram at Dullymore seems a sort of earnest of our Brother Paul's statement: If the casting away of them be the reconciling of the world, what shall the receiving of them be but life from the dead ?'"*

But to return to the Hardmans. Soon after they established themselves in Adamantine House, three several eloquent advertisements began to figure in three different classes of publications. The Times, and Morning Post contained most tempting offers of a most tempting home to such young ladies and gentlemen whose parents or guardians were abroad, or about to travel. The offered home was in the family of an eminent clergyman, highly connected, who move in the most refined society, &c. &c. &c. The scholastic prints contained educational offers to a few select pupils, children or wards, belonging to either the nobility or gentry. The head of the house was a clergyman of gentle birth, who took the highest. academical honours. He was very fond of teaching and training the youthful mind; he attended to the education of the young gentlemen. The young ladies were under the maternal care, educationally and otherwise, of Mrs. Hardman, one of the best bred ladies in the United Kingdom, &c. &c. &c. The Lancet, and Medical Times had repeated announcements to the following effect :-An affectionate home-school offered to children or

* Rom. xi. 15.

grown-up persons whose education, or whose health, or whose intellect, or whose nervous system may have been impaired, &c. &c. &c. The proprietors and managers are a clergyman and his wife. The former is the son of a famous physician, and himself attained a distinguished eminence in the Church of England; but, being profoundly impressed that he may prove useful to the various ills above described, he relinquished. clerical work, in order to be able to devote himself entirely to what he considers his proper calling. The latter is the daughter of a lady who had devoted the best part of her life in ministering to the exigencies of divers afflictions. She feels a sort of hereditary sympathy for every sufferer mentally or corporeally. Parents, friends, and guardians are invited to put themselves into communication, under the seal of strict confidence, with the Rev. Robert Hardman, &c. &c. &c. The master-stroke was the concoction of the three different sets of testimonials-to suit each particular advertisement. Benamram, being the clergyman of the parish, had, and still has sent to him, copies of the respective brochures for verification.

It was not long after Adamantine House was re-inhabited, that several young persons of both sexes, evidently labouring under various defects and mental maladies, some of them of divers colours, and features to match, were to be seen in the neighbouring lanes, sometimes accompanied by the pompous Mr. Hardman and his milksop son-who imagines himself a protégé of the muses, and writes and spouts diluted verses—and at other times chaperoned by the sharp-witted Mrs. Hardman and her attenuated daughter, who seems to have studied ogling to perfection. An unhappy and pitiable crew did the Adamantine inmates appear; it was positively painful to meet them in one's walks.

About twelve months ago, an evidently superior, though very demure, inmate was to be observed amongst the boarders of Adamantine House, in the person of the now excitable Miss Ignota, who was closely followed behind by her maid. Mrs. Hardman evidently thought, at first, a great deal of her new boarder. The Machiavellian woman was not only attentive, but particularly deferential to the young lady. A new feature appeared in their walks; Dick, the milksop bard, son and heir of the Hardmans, appeared amongst the tenders of the little heterogeneous flock, even when mother Hardman acted as shepherdess. Mother and son had Miss Ignota between them, whom the former tried to amuse in prose, and the latter in verse. Benamram, Asher, and myself have met them, now and then, whilst that sort of entertainment was going on; and we could not help observing the profound indifference with which the new stranger received their assiduous attentions. The rest of the inmates were left to the tender care and small talk of the attenuated Dinah.

One fine day, when Asher and myself were taking a walk, we again came face to face with the inmates of the Adamantine House establishment. But they were minus the mysterious stranger, her maid, and Dick. Mrs. Hardman had the charge of her boarders. We could not help thinking that her usual diplomacy was at fault. When she caught sight of us, she began to talk loud and angrily, abusing some one in very coarse language. We could not but shrewdly suspect that the absent young lady was the theme of her voluble tongue's invective.

That afternoon Benamram called here, and told us of a visit he had at

[ocr errors]

the parish school from Miss Ignota, the latest arrival at Adamantine House. He informed us that she was anxious to make herself generally useful in the parish-amongst the poor, as well as in the schools.

"How delightful !" exclaimed Miss Paltiel. "Is she capable of such work as the poor and the schools stand in need of ?" asked the lady of the mansion. "Should you trust her? I should hardly venture to expect anything discreet or judicious from the unhappy boarders in that melancholy asylum."

Upon which, Benamram startled us by firing off a sparkling volley of praises in honour of his new acquaintance. She was one of the most accomplished, best read-most richly endowed with sterling common sense, of all the learned ladies that he had ever met with. He wound up by saying that Miss Ignota would be again in the school the following morning, at eleven o'clock; and, as it was Miss Paltiel's morning for teaching the girls to sing, he would have an opportunity of introducing the young ladies to each other.

"I should have vetoed the formation of the proposed acquaintance," observed the lord of the mansion, "if I had not unbounded confidence in your judgment, Benamram !"

"And your confidence shall not be abused," rejoined the curate of Dullynomore.

The proposed meeting between the two young ladies took place the following morning. Ever since then Miss Ignota became a frequent visitor at Toledo Villa; Miss Paltiel's particular friend and companion; constant fellow critic, in art and literature, with the head of the household; an object of fervent admiration to the lady of the establishment; and a saddening idol of cold adoration to Asher. The son and heir of the Paltiels often comes in here and exclaims-after having listened to her faultless conversation on multifarious subjects-"I wonder, is that beautiful statue of ice ever capable of a smile? I cannot help adoring her talents and beauty; but she makes my whole frame shiver with cold, whilst she makes my spirit kneel on the dazzling snow which seems always to lie deep round about her, wherever she happens to be or move. I do not know what I should not give for a smile from her lips. Even Salome never saw her smile!"

As for myself, I repeat to you what I have often said to Asher, when he indulged me with his ebullition of his vexatious disappointments at being sent away by his icy deity without a smile :-" Well, I frankly confess that I do not sympathise in your rhapsodies about that young lady. She strikes me as about the most uninteresting, most unimpressionable talking-machine that I have heard or read of. The exalted notions which you have all formed of that insipid young lady is as enig

matical to me as she herself is unaccountable

Here I was interrupted, as I have stated in the last chapter of the first book of this tale, by Asher's announcement, that his sister was "about to repeat Miss Ignota's autobioennaratio."

22

HAÏM SIMON ABARBANEL:

A NARRATIVE OF FACTS GLEANED FROM HIS MISSIONARY CAREER.
RUTH.

BY

[THESE interesting memoirs, the first instalment of which we now publish, were accompanied with the following note:

[ocr errors]

TO THE EDITOR OF THE HEBREW
CHRISTIAN WITNESS."

SIR,-In compliance with your request that I would now reclaim from the oblivion of nearly half a century some facts characteristic and illustrative of the daily walk of one so unreservedly devoted to the will of our Heavenly Father in the exercise of a self-sacrificing, world-overcoming trust in His Word, I now proceed to narrate such incidents and occurrences as serve to illustrate at once the uncompromising loyalty and singular simplicity of that trust, not only in the written WORD as the inner life of regenerate souls, but in the same life-giving WORD embodied in the person of man's Redeemerthe Exampler of perfect obedience to His Father's will.

To you, dear Sir, who have had the same difficulty to encounter, the same educational errors and prejudices to surmount, the same stumbling-blocks to remove, and the same high duty to perform as a witness to truth, the many conflicts and trials of such a faithful follower of the Holy One of Israel cannot fail to have for you a special significance and interest; while, let us hope that such an example of fearless and truthful love may prove an incitement to irresolute inquirers, who have yet to know TRUTH as a power to make them free, not only from inherent and contracted evil, but from all harassing doubts and fears; for although the much dreaded cherem [Jewish anathema] cuts them off from the condition of grovelling, self-seeking "Jacob," it can in no wise prevent them rising to that of regenerate "Israel."

RUTH.]

Nor

HAPPILY for the subject of this memoir, his early years had been carefully tended by a father, who trained his sons in the way they should go, setting before them a continual example of uprightness, integrity, and rectitude - qualities so essentially good as to make a lasting impression on the hearts of his children. Of this singularly unworldly character it might well have been said, "He was a just man, walking in all the commandments and ordinances of the Lord blameless." was this sedulous performance of duty degraded by any expectation of reward, having taught his children that if he, as their earthly father, claimed as his right not only their obedience, but the loyal love from which it should spring, how much more is their loving obedience due to the Heavenly Father. How, then, can any "merit" be assumed or any "reward" expected for such imperfect service as we can render to our supreme Father, who demands as His right the devotion of our whole being? And yet such is the effect of delusion, that many of our people live and die under its deadly spell.

Thus was the moral soil prepared for the reception of the good seed to be afterwards sown by the Divine Husbandman; and thus was the "honest and good heart" prepared to receive and in due time render those grateful returns which reward the long patient waiting of the cultivator. At the age of sixteen HAïм was sent to Posen, in order to study the Oriental languages, cognate as these are with that original form of speech which, giving to all, borrows from none-that in which the ten commandments were uttered, and moreover recorded by the hand of God, as Messenger of the Covenant. And so anxious was he to attain proficiency in it, that he allowed himself only a few hours of sleep upon a hard board, lest he might otherwise be indisposed

1

« PreviousContinue »