cked Protestant praste;" but as she heard him speaking to Pat, who
had come in of an errand, with such a pleasant voice, she ventured a
peep out, and the form of her thoughts just at that moment, might have
been a little, a very little, savoring of heresy. Suffice it to say,
when the old gentleman took his departure, there was a peculiar twinkle
in Biddy's eye, and she had so far overcome her aversion to the
"imposther" as to have had a few private words with him, which had by no
means decreased her usual flow of good spirits. It was evident that
Biddy "had on her high heels," for the rest of that evening. As Winnie
strolled over the farm, enjoying the evening breeze, reflecting upon her
good pastor's words, her attention was suddenly attracted toward the
enclosure where the cows were being milked, by hearing the voice of
Biddy, who, as she "stripped" the patient animal again, for the dozenth
time, was very much engaged with Pat, whose round, smiling face, as he
glanced at her from the opposite side of the creature, shone with
delight; and as the white foam rose higher and higher in Biddy's pail,
so did the warmth of her feelings get the better of her, and those
tell-tale eyes of Winnie's danced with mischief, as she overheard the
following conversation:

"Ah, Pathrick dear, does ye think there is the laste sin in it? And
indade, it's mesilf that's thinking the blissid St. Pathrick would be
afther misthaking him for a good Catholic!"

"And what did he say, honey dear? did he think he could be afther
comforting the likes of us?"

"Thrath, and he did; it was himsilf that said niver a word when I was
spaking to him about it, but was afther showering a blissing upon us,
the dear sowl!"

"But what will the praste say? Biddy, sure he'll be very angry,
intirely."

"Faith, and it's no longer ago than the day afther yesterday, that the
misthress was saying if we confissed our sins with a right spirit, we
should be afther being forgiven; and now, Pathrick, I'm thinking we 'll
be afther getting married, and then there will be a plinty of time for
confissing."

"Och, honey, and that's the thruth for ye," said the assenting Pat, and
together they walked towards the cabin.

Winnie, putting that and that together, made up her mind that Patrick
and Biddy had become tired of a life of single blessedness, and were
seriously contemplating matrimony, which was, indeed the case; and
Biddy, having made known her desires to her mistr