The Longer He Sits There."
Chapter 25 Pg 163
The Newly Married Couple Got In, And The Carriage Rolled Off Through The
Town. Mrs. Worse Laughed Boisterously With Tears In Her Eyes The Whole
Way; She Kept Bowing In all Directions, And Her Face Was Radiant With
Smiles. As They Turned Into The Yard, The New Bonnet Had Slipped So Far
Over To One Side That It Fell Off When The Carriage Stopped At The Door;
And As The Worthy Mr. Samuelsen Jumped Down, In His Great Anxiety To
Help The Ladies To Alight, He Came With Both Feet Right On Top Of The
Bonnet, Notwithstanding That He Had Seen The Danger When He Was Making
His Spring.
It Was Quite A Business To Get Mrs. Worse "Balanced" Upstairs, She
Laughed So Immoderately. They All Laughed; The Coachman Laughed; The
Maids Laughed; The Newly Married Couple Laughed; Every One Laughed
Except The Unfortunate Mr. Samuelsen, Who Followed The Others Upstairs,
Carrying, With Averted Eyes, His Mistress'S Bonnet By One String, And
Dragging The Other After Him Up The Staircase. The Lovely New Bonnet,
Which Was Scarcely Recognizable As A Bonnet Any Longer!
They Had Dinner In The Young People'S Apartments, Where Mrs. Worse Did
The Fine Lady To Her Own Intense Satisfaction, And Persisted In Talking
Something Which She Called French. In The Evening, When Rachel And Her
Husband Returned From A Visit From Sandsgaard, The Whole Party Moved
Over To Mrs. Worse'S Room At The Back Of The House.
And There, There Was Laughing, Story-Telling, Drinking Of Healths, And
Rejoicing, Until Pitter Nilken Was Quite Overcome, And Offered Of His
Own Accord To Sing "The Knife-Grinder'S Courtship"--A Song Which Had
Been A Great Favourite In The Days Of His Youth. He Sang Amidst Rounds
Of Applause, In a Curious Thin Voice, Which Sounded As If He Had All At
Once Recovered His Boy'S Treble, And Which Was High, Squeaky, And
Cracked. He, However, Rendered The Air With A Great Deal Of Feeling, And
His Eye Rested On Mrs. Worse As He Sang--
"Maiden, Oh List! With Those Sweet Winning Glances,
Thy Looks Nought But Goodness And Kindness Betide!
Oh, Couldst Thou But Smile On My Timid Advances!
Say, Wilt Thou Be Thine Own Knife-Grinder'S Bride?"
Mrs. Worse Beat Time With Her Knitting As She Joined In The Chorus--
"Whirr! Whirr!
Blithely We Go. Never Say No!
My Foot'S On The Treadle,
Which Rocks To And Fro!"
Chapter 26 Pg 164
In The Bright Sunshine The Yellow Sand, Dotted Here And There With
Patches Of Bent Grass, Stretched Away To The Northward As Far As The Eye
Could Reach. The Coast-Line, With Its Succession Of Bays And
Promontories, Was Here And There Enlivened By A Cluster Of Boats, Or A
Flock Of Gulls, Or Wild Geese, Busily At Work On The Shore, While The
Sea Came Curling In With Its Small Crested Ripples, Which Sparkled In
The Clear Sunshine. Over The Heather-Covered Heights, Which Rolled Away
Far Inland, Came A Carriage, In Which Were Sitting A Lady And A
Gentleman. They Had Left The Post-Road, And Were Making Their Way Along
The Narrow Sandy Track Which Led Down Towards The Village Of Bratvold.
It Had Been Much Against Madeleine'S Wish, But As Her Husband Happened
To Hear From The Coachman, That The _Detour_ Only Made A Difference Of
About An Hour, The Order Was Given To Drive Down To Bratvold, Where They
Would Be Able To Rest For A Little Time On The Road.
The Pastor And His Wife Were On Their Way Westward, On A Visit To The
New Living, Although They Would Not Come Into Actual Residence Till
August. They Wished To Take A House, And Visit Their Relations And Old
Acquaintances In The Town. Pleased As Madeleine Was At The Prospect Of
Again Seeing Her Father, She Was Still Far From Glad When She Heard That
Her Husband Was Endeavouring To Obtain The Living. He Did So, However,
In Accordance With The Express Wish Of Bishop Sparre, And It Was
Moreover Looked Upon As A Great Piece Of Advancement. Madeleine Had, As
Usual, Made But Little Opposition To The Project. Pastor Martens Had At
Length Succeeded In educating Her Into A Wife After His Own Heart.
As She Sat There, Somewhat Crowded In One Corner Of The Carriage, For
Her Husband Had Grown Rather Stout With The Lapse Of Time, She Resembled
But Little That Madeleine Whose Home Had Once Been Among The
Surroundings They Were Now Approaching. She Was Not Ill, But Her Look
Suggested Weariness--Great Weariness. In a Large Country Rectory There
Is Much Work To Be Done, And Three Children Are Pretty Well To Begin
With.
For The First Few Years She Was Almost In a State Of Despair, And
Several Times Her Old Violent Temper Broke Out. But Her Husband Had His
Own Particular Method Of Dealing With Her. He Never Lost His Temper, And
The More Madeleine Flared Up, The More Gentle His Answers Became, As
With A Quiet Smile He Gently Placed His Hand Upon Her Shoulder.
But When Madeleine Began To Calm Down, He Would Speak To Her In an
Admonishing Tone, And By Degrees He Succeeded Wonderfully In Getting Her
Into The Groove He Desired, Until At Last She Got Accustomed To The
Method.
Pastor Martens'S Genial And Open Countenance Did Not Look Its Best That
Day. He Had, To Tell The Truth, Been Dreadfully Sea-Sick, And So For
That Reason They Had Left The Steamer, Preferring To Travel The Last
Part Of The Journey By Land. His Sleek Face Wore A Decidedly Green Hue,
And He Made A Grimace Ever And Anon, As He Looked Out Of The Carriage
Window Towards The Element They Had Quitted.
He Was, However, A Fortunate Man, And He Was Thankful For It. Madeleine
Had Improved Beyond All Expectation Under His Hands. Her Violent Temper
Now Seldom Appeared, And If It Did, He Was Perfectly Certain Of His
Chapter 26 Pg 165
Method Of Dealing With It. Many A Time He Remembered With Thankfulness
His Dear Bishop Sparre, From Whom He Had Learnt So Much, And Whose
Fatherly Kindness Seemed To Follow Him Wherever He Went.
The Nearer They Approached The Sea-Shore, The Broader Grew The Dark-Blue
Line Out To The Westward, Where The Sea Lay Glittering In The Sunshine.
Madeleine Gazed And Gazed, And Thoughts Of The Past Came Surging Up In
Her Heart.
The Plovers Had Their Young, And Followed After The Carriage, Swooping
Down
