Clergy -- Fiction; Love stories; Scotland -- Fiction
Gavin was in the Caddam of past days, where the beautiful maiden
wanders ever, waiting for him who is so pure that he may find her. He
will wander over the tree-tops looking for her, with the moon for his
lamp, and some night he will hear her singing. The little minister
drew a deep breath, and his foot snapped a brittle twig. Then he
remembered who and where he was, and stooped to pick up his staff. But
he did not pick it up, for as his fingers were closing on it the lady
began to sing.
For perhaps a minute Gavin stood stock still, like an intruder. Then
he ran towards the singing, which seemed to come from Windyghoul, a
straight road through Caddam that farmers use in summer, but leave in
the back end of the year to leaves and pools. In Windyghoul there is
either no wind or so much that it rushes down the sieve like an army,
entering with a shriek of terror, and escaping with a derisive howl.
The moon was crossing the avenue. But Gavin only saw the singer.
She was still fifty yards away, sometimes singing gleefully, and again
letting her body sway lightly as she came dancing up Windyghoul. Soon
she was within a few feet of the little minister, to whom singing,
except when out of tune, was a suspicious thing, and dancing a device
of the devil. His arm went out wrathfully, and his intention was to
pronounce sentence on this woman.
But she passed, unconscious of his presence, and he had not moved nor
spoken. Though really of the average height, she was a little thing to
the eyes of Gavin, who always felt tall and stout except when he
looked down. The grace of her swaying figure was a new thing in the
world to him. Only while she passed did he see her as a gleam of
colour, a gypsy elf poorly clad, her bare feet flashing beneath a
short green skirt, a twig of rowan berries stuck carelessly into her
black hair. Her face was pale. She had an angel's loveliness. Gavin
shook.
Still she danced onwards, but she was very human, for when she came to
muddy water she let her feet linger in it, and flung up her arms,
dancing more wantonly than before. A diamond on her finger shot a
thread of fire over the pool. Undoubtedly she was the devil.
Gavin leaped into the avenue, and she heard him and looked behind. He
tried to cry "Woman!" sternly, but lost the word, for now she saw him,
and laughed with her shoulders, and beckoned to him, so that he shook
his fist at her. She tripped on, but often turning her head beckoned
and mocked him, and he forgot his dignity and his pulpit and all other
things, and ran after her. Up Windyghoul did he pursue her, and it was
well that the precentor was not there to see. She reached the mouth of
the avenue, and kissing her hand to Gavin, so that the ring gleamed
again, was gone.
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.
Join the Discussion
Join the discussion
Sign in to leave a comment or review.
Sign InorCreate an account