The Superior sometimes left the Convent, and was absent for an hour, or
several hours, at a time, but we never knew of it until she had
returned, and were not informed where she had been. I one day had
reason to presume that she had recently paid a visit to the priests'
farm, though I had no direct evidence that such was the fact. The
priests' farm is a fine tract of land belonging to the Seminary, a
little distance from the city, near the Lachine road, with a large
old-fashioned edifice upon it. I happened to be in the Superior's room
on the day alluded to, when she made some remark on the plainness and
poverty of her furniture. I replied, that she was not proud, and could
not be dissatisfied on that account; she answered--
"No; but if I was, how much superior is the furniture at the priests'
farm! the poorest room there is furnished better than the best of mine."
I was one day mending the fire in the Superior's room, when a priest
was conversing with her on the scarcity of money; and I heard him say,
that very little money was received by the priests for prayers, but
that the principal part came with penances and absolutions.
One of the most remarkable and unaccountable things that happened in
the Convent, was the disappearance of the old Superior. She had
performed her customary part during the day, and had acted and appeared
just as usual. She had shown no symptoms of ill health, met with no
particular difficulty in conducting business, and no agitation, anxiety
or gloom, had been noticed in her conduct. We had no reason to suppose
that during that day she had expected anything particular to occur, any
more than the rest of us. After the close of our customary labours, and
evening lecture, she dismissed us to retire to bed, exactly in her
usual manner. The next morning the bell rung we sprang from our bed,
hurried on our clothes as usual, and proceeded to the community-room in
double line, to commence the morning exercises. There, to our surprise,
we found Bishop Lartigue; but the Superior was nowhere to be seen. The
Bishop soon addressed us, instead of her, and informed us, that a lady
near him, whom he presented to us, was now the Superior of the Convent,
and enjoined upon us the same respect and obedience which we had paid
to her predecessor.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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