The Project Gutenberg EBook of The Untilled Field, by George Moore
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Title: The Untilled Field
Author: George Moore
Posting Date: June 7, 2009 [EBook #4034]
Release Date: May, 2003
First Posted: October 17, 2001
Language: English
Character set encoding: ASCII
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THE UNTILLED FIELD
by
George Moore
CONTENTS
I. IN THE CLAY
II. SOME PARISHIONERS
III. THE EXILE
IV. HOME SICKNESS
V. A LETTER TO ROME
VI. JULIA CAHILL'S CURSE
VII. A PLAYHOUSE IN THE WASTE
VIII. THE WEDDING-GOWN
IX. THE CLERK'S QUEST
X. "ALMS-GIVING"
XI. SO ON HE FARES
XII. THE WILD GOOSE
XIII. THE WAY BACK
CHAPTER I
IN THE CLAY
It was a beautiful summer morning, and Rodney was out of his bed at six
o'clock. He usually went for a walk before going to his studio, and
this morning his walk had been a very pleasant one, for yesterday's
work had gone well with him. But as he turned into the mews in which
his studio was situated he saw the woman whom he employed to light his
fire standing in the middle of the roadway. He had never seen her
standing in the middle of the roadway before and his doors wide open,
and he instantly divined a misfortune, and thought of the Virgin and
Child he had just finished. There was nothing else in his studio that
he, cared much about. A few busts, done long ago, and a few sketches;
no work of importance, nothing that he cared about or that could not be
replaced if it were broken.
He hastened his steps and he would have run if he had not been ashamed
to betray his fears to the char-woman.
"I'm afraid someone has been into the studio last night. The hasp was
off the door when I came this morning. Some of the things are broken."
Rodney heard no more. He stood on the threshold looking round the
wrecked studio. Three or four casts had been smashed, the floor was
covered with broken plaster, and the lay figure was overthrown, Rodney
saw none of these things, he only saw that his Virgin and Chil
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