The Young Pilgrim, by A.L.O.E (Paperback)

Purchase of this book includes free trial access to www.million-books.com where you can read more than a million books for free. This is an OCR edition with typos. Excerpt from book: "Do you know Mr. Ewart?" cried the farmer; and on Mark's shaking his head, continued, "why, he was talking to me about you yesterday?a clergyman, a tall man with a stoop?he who is tutor to Lord Fontonore." " Oh, yes !" cried Mark, springing up, " but I did not know his name. What could he be saying of me ?" " He stopped at my farm on his drive home yesterday, and asked me if I knew a lad called Mark Dowley, and what sort of character he bore. Says I," continued the farmer, with a broad smile on his jovial face, " I know nothing against that boy in particular, but he comes of a precious bad lot!" "And what did he reply?" cried Mark, eagerly. " Oh, a great deal that I can't undertake to repeat, about taking you out of temptation, and putting you in an honest way; so the upshot of it is that I agreed to give you a chance, and employ you myself to take care of my sheep, to see if anything respectable can be made of you." " How good in him?how kind !" exclaimed Mark. " It seems that you got round him?that you found his weak side, young rogue ! You had been talking to him of piety and repentance, and wanting to get to heaven. But I'll give you a word of advice, my man, better than twenty sermons. You see I'm thriving and prosperous enough, and well respected, though I should not say so, and I never wronged a man in my life. Ifyou would be the same, just mind what I say, keep the commandments, do your duty, work hard, owe nothing, and steer clear of the gin-shop, and depend upon it you'll be happy now, and be sure of heaven at the last." " Mr. Ewart said that by faith?" " Faith !" exclaimed the farmer, not very reverently; "don't trouble yourself with things quite above you? things which you cannot understand. It is all very well for a parson like him?a very wort...