登陆注册
5287900000011

第11章 CHAPTER III(3)

The "little Indian," as Malachi called her, was an awkward accession to the family. Silence Withers knew no more about children and their ways and wants than if she had been a female ostrich. Thus it was that she found it necessary to send for a woman well known in the place as the first friend whose acquaintance many of the little people of the town had made in this vale of tears.

Thirty years of practice had taught Nurse Byloe the art of handling the young of her species with the soft firmness which one may notice in cats with their kittens,--more grandly in a tawny lioness mouthing her cubs. Myrtle did not know she was held; she only felt she was lifted, and borne up, as a cherub may feel upon a white-woolly cloud, and smiled accordingly at the nurse, as if quite at home in her arms.

"As fine a child as ever breathed the breath of life. But where did them black eyes come from? Born in Injy,--that 's it, ain't it? No, it's her poor mother's eyes to be sure. Does n't it seem as if there was a kind of Injin look to 'em? She'll be a lively one to manage, if I know anything about childun. See her clinchin' them little fists!"This was when Miss Silence came near her and brought her rather severe countenance close to the child for inspection of its features.

The ungracious aspect of the woman and the defiant attitude of the child prefigured in one brief instant the history of many long coming years.

It was not a great while before the two parties in that wearing conflict of alien lives, which is often called education, began to measure their strength against each other. The child was bright, observing, of restless activity, inquisitively curious, very hard to frighten, and with a will which seemed made for mastery, not submission.

The stern spinster to whose care this vigorous life was committed was disposed to discharge her duty to the girl faithfully and conscientiously; but there were two points in her character and belief which had a most important bearing on the manner in which she carried out her laudable intentions. First, she was one of that class of human beings whose one single engrossing thought is their own welfare,--in the next world, it is true, but still their own personal welfare. The Roman Church recognizes this class, and provides every form of specific to meet their spiritual condition.

But in so far as Protestantism has thrown out works as a means of insuring future safety, these unfortunates are as badly off as nervous patients who have no drops, pills, potions, no doctors' rules, to follow. Only tell a poor creature what to do, and he or she will do it, and be made easy, were it a pilgrimage of a thousand miles, with shoes full of split peas instead of boiled ones; but if once assured that doing does no good, the drooping Little-faiths are left at leisure to worry about their souls, as the other class of weaklings worry about their bodies. The effect on character does not seem to be very different in the two classes. Metaphysicians may discuss the nature of selfishness at their leisure; if to have all her thoughts centring on the one point of her own well-being by and by was selfishness, then Silence Withers was supremely selfish; and if we are offended with that form of egotism, it is no more than ten of the twelve Apostles were, as the reader may see by turning to the Gospel of St. Matthew, the twentieth chapter and the twenty-fourth verse.

The next practical difficulty was, that she attempted to carry out a theory which, whatever might be its success in other cases, did not work kindly in the case of Myrtle Hazard, but, on the contrary, developed a mighty spirit of antagonism in her nature, which threatened to end in utter lawlessness. Miss Silence started from the approved doctrine, that all children are radically and utterly wrong in all their motives, feelings, thoughts, and deeds, so long as they remain subject to their natural instincts. It was by the eradication, and not the education, of these instincts, that the character of the human being she was moulding was to be determined.

The first great preliminary process, so soon as the child manifested any evidence of intelligent and persistent self-determination, was to break her will.

There is no doubt that this was a legitimate conclusion from the teaching of Priest Pemberton, but it required a colder and harder nature than his own to carry out many of his dogmas to their practical application. He wrought in the pure mathematics, so to speak, of theology, and left the working rules to the good sense and good feeling of his people.

Miss Silence had been waiting for her opportunity to apply the great doctrine, and it came at last in a very trivial way.

"Myrtle does n't want brown bread. Myrtle won't have brown bread.

Myrtle will have white bread."

"Myrtle is a wicked child. She will have what Aunt Silence says she shall have. She won't have anything but brown bread."Thereupon the bright red lip protruded, the hot blood mounted to her face, the child untied her little "tire," got down from the table, took up her one forlorn, featureless doll, and went to bed without her supper. The next morning the worthy woman thought that hunger and reflection would have subdued the rebellious spirit. So there stood yesterday's untouched supper waiting for her breakfast. She would not taste it, and it became necessary to enforce that extreme penalty of the law which had been threatened, but never yet put in execution. Miss Silence, in obedience to what she felt to be a painful duty, without any passion, but filled with high, inexorable purpose, carried the child up to the garret, and, fastening her so that she could not wander about and hurt herself, left her to her repentant thoughts, awaiting the moment when a plaintive entreaty for liberty and food should announce that the evil nature had yielded and the obdurate will was broken.

同类推荐
  • The Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse

    The Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse

    本书为公版书,为不受著作权法限制的作家、艺术家及其它人士发布的作品,供广大读者阅读交流。汇聚授权电子版权。
  • 溪山卧游录

    溪山卧游录

    本书为公版书,为不受著作权法限制的作家、艺术家及其它人士发布的作品,供广大读者阅读交流。汇聚授权电子版权。
  • On Sleep and Sleeplessness

    On Sleep and Sleeplessness

    本书为公版书,为不受著作权法限制的作家、艺术家及其它人士发布的作品,供广大读者阅读交流。汇聚授权电子版权。
  • 频吉祥禅师语录

    频吉祥禅师语录

    本书为公版书,为不受著作权法限制的作家、艺术家及其它人士发布的作品,供广大读者阅读交流。汇聚授权电子版权。
  • 袖中锦

    袖中锦

    本书为公版书,为不受著作权法限制的作家、艺术家及其它人士发布的作品,供广大读者阅读交流。汇聚授权电子版权。
热门推荐
  • 砂隐之最强技师

    砂隐之最强技师

    新书雾隐之最狂剑士已上传,大家多多支持 少年白石本为普通的一位砂隐村下忍,却在一次意外中获得一件特殊道具以及大量零碎记忆片段,不断摸索推演过程中,成功将异世界初始技能高速移动,转化为第一个属于自己的忍术,从此少年白石开启一场砂隐村的最强技师之路。本书群号:632892377
  • 我靠吃就能变强

    我靠吃就能变强

    书友群925414474(任何书友都可以加,没有限制) 吃掉兔妖后腿——速度+1吃掉巨猿肱二头肌——力量+1吃掉普通家猪——脂肪+1吃啥补啥,越吃越强!什么?你问我会不会发胖?
  • 前世咒-姐妹争皇后

    前世咒-姐妹争皇后

    第一卷:(完结)她每日梦见自己出现在不同的年代。下场都是一样,身怀有孕的她被各种酷刑折磨至死。她怨气很重,很重。不甘心面前的男人温柔的抱着另一个女人,怒目看着她。女儿依偎在男人怀里,诡异的笑容看着她,那是胜利的笑容,那是嘲笑。她,琏,每次都从噩梦里惊醒,她害怕那梦里的九世诅咒,“我要九生九世纠缠在你们中间”。那胜利的女人今世居然是妹妹。还好妹妹被选秀进宫了,她松口气。妹妹母凭子贵被封贵人,可以见家人一面。她被御招进宫见贵人妹妹。那皇帝妹夫不是别人,是那梦里的男人。琏惊的说不出话,直觉告诉她,逃…。第二卷:她水伊琏来到了蛇界,她见到了云妃,了解到了一切。她最后被存封了所有的记忆;来到了九世前,发咒的那一世;她仙琏儿是清水湾卖艺不卖身的舞妓;她陆紫菱是清水湾卖艺不卖身的琴妓;她们都很特别;仙琏儿的舞优如飞蝶,能让百兽共舞;陆紫菱的琴优如甘泉,能让百花争艳;她们姐妹相称,她们情同姐妹;直到他的出现;他贵为王爷;更是无出的帝王哥哥的百年之后的继承人;他喜欢收集特殊的东西和甚至是人;于是她们都成了他的收集;她们开始了…………………………她仙琏儿是否能够扭转乾坤,改变九世纠缠的命运;她陆紫菱是否能够寻到真爱,改变九世被缠的命运;骏王爷、琴魔、歇门门主,谁才是她们的归宿?------------------------------------------------------------------------------视频:http://m.wkkk.net/p_m.wkkk.net(第一卷)视频:http://m.wkkk.net/p_m.wkkk.net(第二卷)-------------------------------------------------------------------------------饫儿其他的文:堡主的外来妻:对总裁下手:弃妃泪:妃媚:恶魔老公,拜拜:夜欲:公子嫁到:
  • 民国有个绍兴帮

    民国有个绍兴帮

    民国时期的浙江绍兴,思想激越,人才辈出。蔡元培、许寿裳、周氏兄弟、孙氏兄弟、经亨颐、夏丏尊,这就是出自绍兴的思想家、文学家和教育家。秋瑾、徐锡麟、陶成章、王金发,这些又都是辛亥英烈。俞秀松、宣中华、叶天底、梁柏台,又都是献身革命的红色战士。再加上沈定一、刘大白、邵力子等在各个政治舞台上的活跃分子。这些先进的知识分子为我们勾勒出了一幅波澜壮阔的民国画卷,更具体地说,就是民国有个绍兴帮。
  • 中国楼市何处去

    中国楼市何处去

    2010,中国楼市面临前所未有的空前大震荡,通州房价在三个月内暴涨三倍,海南楼市在第一季度暴涨三月,上海房价在打压中逆势上扬,北京一日之内连爆三个地王……4月17日,国十条横空出世,新政风暴雷厉风行,调控之下,中国楼市何去何从?我们将拭目以待。
  • 魂咒

    魂咒

    纳尼,纳尼?七爷、八爷开公司啦?七爷是谁?八爷是哪个?闻名三界之黑白无常是也,黑白无常都出来开公司了,这世道,有种混乱的赶脚……啥啥?我有女娲的血脉?女娲是我老祖宗?开么子玩笑?那不是人族的圣母吗?咋成我吴畅的老祖宗了?
  • 末世斩魄刀

    末世斩魄刀

    其实我不想穿越,我就想宅在家里。而你居然让一个死宅去拯救世界!你确定不是要害死我么? 希望我能在这个危险的末世活的更久一点吧。
  • 王者荣耀之源界觉醒

    王者荣耀之源界觉醒

    【2018王者荣耀文学大赛·征文参赛作品】全真虚拟游戏《王者荣耀源界觉醒》正式开服,这是一个融合了无数顶尖科技、具有划时代意义的杰作,参与内测的玩家,有人力量大增,有人断肢重生,也有人焕发青春…开服当日,数十亿玩家蜂拥而入,华夏某个老屋内,吴孤颤巍巍地伸出干瘦的右手,激活了游戏手环,恰逢千年一遇的流星雨,数道耀眼的火光刺破苍穹,如辉煌破碎星陨大地,一道微光脱离流星群,融入了吴孤胸前的黑色半球形挂饰,受到星陨的影响,游戏内似乎也发生了某种未知的异变!
  • 恋爱中的小浪花

    恋爱中的小浪花

    小浪站在海边,凝望着奔腾的浪花,那是吕云翔和李亮站在海的中央,她不知道要飞向谁的怀抱,掀起浪花你的手,她只能有一次,也仅能有一次选择。
  • 辩中边论

    辩中边论

    本书为公版书,为不受著作权法限制的作家、艺术家及其它人士发布的作品,供广大读者阅读交流。汇聚授权电子版权。