The History of Margaret Catchpole, a Suffolk GirlCobbold, Richard
General
The History of Margaret Catchpole, a Suffolk Girl
Cobbold, Richard
Catchpole, Margaret, 1762-1819 -- Fiction
John Barry was also the first to propose, and to assist with his wealth,
the building of the first church, that of St. John's, at Sydney. He
often lamented that government would not make a noble grant of land for
church purposes, and in that early day he tried hard for a public grant
for the Church of England, and mourned over the supineness of colonial
legislation upon such a vital subject. Had this good man lived but to
see the arrival of a British Bishop of Australia, it would have added
one more joy to the many which his good conduct provided for him;
indeed, he always said that such would be the case. Mr. Barry had a very
handsome house at Windsor, on the green hills of Hawkesbury; also a fine
estate, consisting of the most extensive pastures and the finest corn
district in the whole region.
John Barry had kept his solemn word with Margaret, and had never entered
into any matrimonial alliance, though he was looked upon as the most
eligible match in the whole colony.
And this was the person formerly known to the reader as Jack Barry, the
young farming lad, the son of the miller at Levington Creek, on the
River Orwell. With small means, good introductions, steady conduct, and
active habits, this youth rose from the day he purchased his first
hundred acres in the colony until the day of his death. Two of his
sisters had gone out to him before Margaret's committal to prison for
any offence, and all that they could tell him of her was that she was at
service at the Cliff at Ipswich, and that Laud was in the British navy.
This gave him unfeigned pleasure, though it did not permit him to hope
that he should ever see Margaret.
Had he been certified of Laud's death, there is little doubt that he
would have returned to England. But his own family, in their
correspondence with him, never mentioned either one or the other person.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
Reviews
Reviews
No reviews yet
Be the first to share your thoughts on this work.
Elsewhere in the archive
Join the Discussion
Join the discussion
Sign in to leave a comment or review.
Sign InorCreate an account