The Man from Glengarry: A Tale of the OttawaConnor, Ralph
History
The Man from Glengarry: A Tale of the Ottawa
Connor, Ralph
Canada -- History -- 19th century -- Fiction; Christian fiction; Glengarry (Ont.) -- Fiction
him, and for seex weeks, by day and by night, watched by him and was not
thinking of himself at all. And sure am I that the lessons he would be
hearing from his mother and in the Bible class and in the church were
not lost on him whatever. For on the river, when the water was quiet
and I would be lying in the tent reading, it is often that Mack Cameron
would come in and listen to the Word. Aye, he was a good lad”--the great
voice shook a little--“he would not be thinking of himself, and at the
last, it was for another man he gave his life.”
Macdonald stood for a few moments silent, his face working while he
struggled with himself. And then all at once he grew calm, and throwing
back his head, he looked through the door, and pointing into the
darkness, said: “And yonder is the lad, and with him a great company,
and his face is smiling, and, oh! it is a good land, a good land!” His
voice dropped to a whisper, and he sank into his seat.
“God preserve us!” Kenny Crubach ejaculated; but old Donald Ross rose
and said, “Let us call upon the name of the Lord.” From his prayer it
was quite evident that for him at least all doubts and fears as to poor
Mack's state were removed. And even Peter McRae, subdued not so much by
any argument of Macdonald Bhain's as by his rapt vision, followed old
Donald's prayer with broken words of hope and thanksgiving; and it was
Peter who was early at the manse next morning to repeat to the minister
the things he had seen and heard the night before. And all next day,
where there had been the horror of unnamable fear, hope and peace
prevailed.
The service was held under the trees, and while the mother and Bella
Peter sat softly weeping, there was no bitterness in their tears, for
the sermon breathed of the immortal hope, and the hearts of all were
comforted. There was no parade of grief, but after the sermon was over
the people filed quietly through the room to take the last look, and
then the family, with Bella and her father, were left alone a few
moments with their dead, while the Macdonald men kept guard at the door
till the time for “the lifting” would come.
After Long John passed out, followed by the family, Macdonald Bhain
entered the room, closed the lid down upon the dead face, and gave the
command to bear him forth.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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