English fiction -- 19th century; Inheritance and succession -- Fiction; Mystery fiction; Smugglers -- Fiction
The first object to be seen on drawing near to Greylands from
Stilborough, was the small church; an old stone building on the left
hand, with its graveyard around it. On the opposite side of the road
the cliffs rose high, and the sea could not be seen for them. The
Reverend John Marston held the living of Greylands in conjunction with
St. Mark's at Stilborough: the two had always gone together, and the
combined income was but poor. Mr. Marston was fond of fox-hunting in
winter, and of good dinners at all seasons: as many other parsons
were. Greylands did not get much benefit from him. He was non-resident,
as the parsons there had always been, for he lived at St. Mark's. Of
course, with two churches and only one parson to serve both, the
services could but clash, for nobody can be doing duty in two places at
once. Once a month, on the third Sunday, Mr. Marston scuffled over to
Greylands to hold morning service, beginning at twelve, he having
scuffled through the prayers (no sermon that day) at St. Mark's first.
On the three other Sundays he held the Greylands service at three in
the afternoon. So that, except for this Sunday service, held at
somewhat uncertain hours--for the easy-going parson did not always keep
his time, and on occasion had been known to fail altogether--Greylands
was absolutely without pastoral care.
Descending onwards--an abrupt descent--past the church, the cliffs on
the right soon ended abruptly; and the whole village, lying in its
hollow, seemed to burst upon you all at once. It was very open, very
wide just there. The beach lay flat and bare to the sea, sundry
fishing-boats being high and dry there: others would be out at sea,
catching fish. Huts and cottages were built on the side of the rocks;
and some few on the beach. On the left stood the Dolphin Inn, looking
straight across the wide road to the beach and the sea; past which inn
the coach-road branched off inland again.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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