Chapter 12 Chapter Eight (Part 2)

Fee and May were learning to drive the new Rolls-Royce that Mary Carson had bought the week before her death.Meggie learned to use it while Fee learned to manage the ledger. Meggie would have been a very happy man if Father Ralph hadn't been around all the time.Riding out into the pastures to do shepherd's work had always been her dream.However, my heart ached for Father Ralph, and it was still the same as before.Recalling his kiss in the dream was so precious that one couldn't help reliving it thousands of times.But memory does not help reality, it is like a lingering ghost, and the feeling of reality cannot be summoned by magic; cloud.

When Ralph wrote to them with the news of Frank, she thought he would use the excuse to visit them, but that hope was dashed.His account of his visit to Frank at Goulburn Prison is carefully worded, downplaying the distress that the event caused and revealing nothing about Frank's progressive mental illness.He tried in vain to have Frank committed to the Morissett Asylum for mental illness, but no one listened to him.Therefore, he simply made up a paragraph about Frank's punishment for his mistakes from society.And told Paddy in the emphasized paragraph that Frank had no idea they had learned the truth.He assured Frank repeatedly that the story had reached him through the Sydney papers, and that it would never be known to the family.After saying this, Frank was much more stable; he said, so be it.

Paddy had talked of selling Father Ralph's sorrel mare.Meggie had mistaken the long-limbed and spindly black gelding she had ridden as a shepherd horse, because it was younger and more temperamental than the cranky mares or geldings in the yard. better.Shepherd horses are very intelligent, but very few are mild-tempered.Even the absence of those geldings does not make them very docile animals. "Oh, please, Daddy, I can ride that brown horse too!" begged Meggie. "Just imagine how bad it would be to sell his horse if he was so kind to us. The priest will come back and find us selling your horse!"

Paddy stared at her thoughtfully. "Meggie, I don't think the priest will come back." "But he might come! How can you guarantee that he won't come!" Those eyes so much like Fee's were too important to him; her feelings had been hurt, and he couldn't bring himself to hurt her any more, the poor little thing. "Well, then, Meggie, we'll keep the mare. But to be clear, you use the two mares and castrate them regularly, because I don't want to be fat in Drogheda horse, do you hear that?" Before this, she had been reluctant to use Father Ralph's own mount, but since then, she has changed her approach, and both animals in the porch have a chance to digest the oats they have eaten.

With Meggie gone to the ranch and Fee sitting at her desk in the drawing room for hours, it was left to Mrs. Smith, Minnie and Kate to spoil the twins.These two little guys had a great time.They touch everything, but since they are always happy and in high spirits, no one can get angry with them for long.Mrs. Smith, who was converted to Catholicism in Changs, knelt down at night in her cabin to pray with a feeling of gratitude she kept secret.Her own child, Rob, had never entertained her so much while he was alive, and, for many years, there had been no children in the mansion, whose occupants would not allow them to mingle with the inhabitants of the stockman's house beyond the creek. .But the Clearys were relatives of Mary Carson, and with their arrival there was finally a baby here.Especially now that Jens and Patsy would live in the mansion forever.

There is drought in winter and no rain in summer.The lush, knee-high grass has turned tea-brown under the scorching red sun, and even the heart of the leaves has wilted.One has to squint one's eyes and press one's hathole low on one's forehead to get a full view of the pasture; the whole meadow is ablaze with little whirlwinds hurrying past shimmering, blue mirages. Scenery, carrying dead stalks and broken blades of grass from one pile to another. " Ah, the drought!Even the trees are withered.The bark fell stiffly from the trunk, creaking and cracking into pieces.But the flock wasn't in danger of starving--the grass would last at least the next year, maybe longer--but no one wanted to see everything dry up like this.The odds are pretty good that it won't rain next year or the year after.Good years get ten to fifteen inches of rain, and bad years get less than five inches or nothing at all.

Despite the heat, Meggie was happy to be out in the pasture, riding the sorrel mare behind the bleating sheep.A group of dogs are lying on the ground, sticking out their tongues, making people mistakenly think that they are absent-minded. As long as a sheep rushes out of the tightly packed flock, the nearest dog will fly away like an arrow. In the past, bit the hapless escapee with sharp teeth. Meggie rode to the head of the flock and opened the pasture gate.The relief was welcome after breathing in the dust for miles.She waited patiently while the dogs, who were given the opportunity to show their talents in front of her, bit and chased the sheep through the gate of the paddock.It was much harder to get the cattle together and drive them away, as they kicked and rushed, often killing unwary dogs.Even when a shepherd does this job, he must be prepared to use a little strength and a whip.However, it is the dog who likes the adventurous work of driving cattle.She wasn't needed for the cattle drives, though, Paddy was involved in the work himself.

But dogs had always fascinated her strongly, and their intelligence was unusual.Most Drogheda dogs are long-haired Collies of the Scottish breed, with tan coats and creamy white paws, chest, and eyebrows.But there is also the Queenslander Blue, which is larger and has a bluish-gray coat with black spots.In addition, there are various long-haired Collie and Queenslander crosses.As soon as the hot weather arrives, the bitches must be bred through strict technical measures to breed and give birth; after they are weaned and grow up, they will be selected in the paddock.The good ones will be kept or sold, and the bad ones will be killed.

Meggie whistled to call the dog to her feet and shut the door behind the sheep.Turn the sorrel dumas to go home.There is a large forest nearby, all eucalyptus, and occasionally some willows on the edge of the forest.She rode gladly into the shade of the woods, and could now look about at her leisure.She looked up happily.The eucalypts were full of gulls, screeching and parodying songbirds; birds flew from branch to branch; The eyes follow her; the yellow (ridge bird) pigeons are looking for ants in the loose soil, their ridiculous tails are bouncing up and down; the crows are always so annoying and sad.Their call is the most repulsive noise of all birds and chirps, devoid of pleasure, and only bleak: somehow chilling.It was a cry that suggested carrion, filth, and green-headed rope, not the throat of a golden bellbird at all, but more like a cry.

Of course, there were flies everywhere.Meggie wore a visor over her hat.However, her bare arms suffered.The chestnut mare's tail was always waving, and her flesh was always shaking and moving.To Meggie's astonishment the horse could feel the nimble, lightness of the fly through its thick hide and fur.Flies are thirsty for sweat, which is why they make horses and people so distressed.However, people will never let them do whatever they want like on sheep, so they regard them as more familiar objects.They lay their eggs around the wool on the rump of the sheep, or wherever the wool is damp and dirty.

The air is filled with the clamor of bees, and here and there are glittering, darting dragonflies looking for gutters where their eggs have been laid.Delicate and colorful butterflies and moths flutter up and down.Meggie's horse's hooves knocked over a rotten log; she stared intently at the back of the rotten log, and her skin crawled.The backside of the rotten log was full of horrible grubs, fat white, disgusting tree parasites and slugs, giant centipedes and spiders.Rabbits hopped out of their holes, then retracted like lightning, kicking up a puff of white earthy smoke; then they turned and looked out again, their noses twitching rapidly.Farther on, an echidna stopped hunting for ants, panicked around her.stunned.It burrowed so fast that its powerful claws were out of sight for a few seconds as it disappeared beneath a large log.When it digs holes, its antics make people laugh.The needles all over its body fell down.In order to be able to get in and out smoothly, the raised mounds became a pile. She came out of the woods on the road leading to the manor.In the dust was a speck of dark gray, a flock of parrots with pink breasts and gray backs, looking for insects and grubs; but when they heard her approach, they flew together.They were like a blanketing wave of pale magenta, with breasts and wingbacks sweeping over her head, changing inexplicably from gray to pink.She thought, if I had to leave Drogheda tomorrow and never come back, I would also like to live in Drogheda in my dreams amidst the flapping of red-winged parrots... The drought must be getting worse; Running in, more and more... There is a large group of kangaroos here, about 2000 or so.The parrots fly away, startling them from their peaceful gaze, and galloping gracefully with long strides, they run off into the distance as fast as they fly.Except for the emus, there is no one who can hold a candle to them among animals, and even horses can't catch up with them. Whenever she reveled in this crude study of nature, she thought of Ralph.Privately Meggie had never given much thought to her schoolgirl crush on him, or simply called it love, as it was written about in books.Her performance is no different than Ethel Dell's leading lady.It seemed unfair that there should be an insurmountable barrier between his artificial priesthood and her hopes for him--for him to be her husband.If he could live with him like his father and mother did, he would definitely adore her like his father did to his mother; all this was so logical.Meggie never seemed to think that there was anything in her mother worthy of her father's admiration, yet he adored her immensely.So, Ralph would soon learn that it was better to live with her than to be alone with him.However, she did not yet understand that under no circumstances would Father Ralph abandon his priesthood.Yes, she knew that taking a priest as husband or lover was forbidden, but she was used to thinking about it out of Ralph's teaching.Her formal Catholic education had not gone so far as to discuss the nature of the priestly oath, and she herself had no religious need to delve into it voluntarily.Meggie couldn't be satisfied in his prayers, he just obeyed the Catholic scriptures, because not doing so would mean burning forever in hell. Right now, in her daydreams, she had the joy of living and sleeping with him, just like Mom and Dad.At this time, the thought of being with him made her let go of her mind, and she kept thinking wildly in the saddle.She imagined this closeness as a kiss, and could think of nothing else.Her sex-education would not have been furthered by her galloping through the paddocks, as the snort of a dog in the distance silenced the desire to mate in the minds of all animals.The same goes for other pastures, indiscriminate mating is not allowed.When the rams are sent to the ewes in a particular paddock, Meggie is sent elsewhere; She whipped the pair of dogs to keep them from "playing around". Perhaps humans are incapable of judging which is worse: Is it worse to be accompanied by fidgety restlessness and agitated nascent cravings?Or is it worse to pursue one's unique desires with a dogged drive?Poor Meggie longed for something she knew little of: a fundamental pull of reality drawing her irresistibly toward Ralph de Bricassart.So she dreamed of him, longed for him hungrily, needed him; she grieved that, in spite of his professed love for her, she was so insignificant to him that he did not even look at her. Her thoughts were interrupted by Paddy's horse; he was going in the same direction as she was, and she reined in the chestnut mare, smiling, and waited for him to catch up. "What an accidental meeting," said Paddy, as his old piney and his daughter's middle-aged mare rode side by side. "Yes, I was surprised," she said. "Is the drought even worse?" "Earlier, I think. Good God, I never saw so many kangaroos! It must be a dry place, except at Millborough. Martin King talks of a big game hunt, but I don't understand, How can an army of soldiers with machine guns reduce the number of kangaroos appreciably." He was so kind, so thoughtful, understanding, so loving, and she was rarely with him without a boy present.Before Meggie had time to change her mind, she blurted out an uncertain question. Although she had been reassuring all kinds of doubts in her heart, this question still frustrated and distressed her. "Father, why doesn't Father Ralph come to see us?" "He's busy, Meggie," Paddy replied, but his voice became cautious. "Priests have holidays, though, don't they? He used to love Drogheda so much, and I'm sure he wanted to come here." "In one way, Meggie, priests have holidays, but in another they are never off duty. For example, they have to say Mass every day of their lives, even when they are alone. I think Father de Bricassart is a very wise man, and he understands that there is no way in life to turn back. For him, little Meggie, Drogheda is a thing of the past. If he comes back Otherwise, here will not give him the pleasure he used to have." "You mean, you've forgotten about us," she said dryly. "No, not actually. If he had, he wouldn't be writing so often and asking about each of us." He turned in the saddle, blue eyes full of mercy. "I thought it would be best if he never came back, so I didn't invite him to make him come back." "father!" Paddy insisted on taking a risk. "Well, Meggie, it's wrong for you to dream of a priest, and it's time for you to realize that, your secret is pretty good, and I don't think anyone else understands your feelings for him. But, you tell me The question raises a question, doesn't it? It's not a deep question, but it's enough to illustrate the point. Now listen to my answer. You have to stop thinking like that, do you hear me? Father de Bricassart said Holy oath, I know he never meant to break it, and you misunderstood his affection for you. He was a grown man when he met you, and you were just a little girl. Hey, Meggie, it's time That's how he sees you today." She didn't answer, and her expression didn't change.Yes, he thought, yes, she was Fee's daughter. After a while she said sullenly, "But he can stop being a priest. That's what I never had the chance to say to him." Paddy was so shocked that he couldn't believe it.Although his words were very intense, Mei Yu believed that his expression was even more intense than his words. "Meggie! Oh, good God, those are the worst words in hell! You should be at school, boy, and if Aunt Mary had died sooner, I'd have gotten you to Sydney in time, or at least kept you there." Two or three years. But you're a wife now, aren't you? Poor little Meggie, I don't want them to make fun of your age." He softened a little, and went on.He stuttered his words, making his words sharp and extremely severe, though he didn't mean to be harsh, just to dispel the illusion completely. "Meggie, Father de Eriksarte is a priest. He must not be half way out of the world, let's make that clear. He took the oath with awe, solemnity, and inviolability. Once a man becomes a priest, he cannot go away." Backtracked; his overseer at the seminary absolutely guaranteed to make him understand the oath before he took it. A man who has taken an oath is very sure that once he has taken an oath, he can never break it again. The Abbe de Bricassart has He has made an oath, and he will never break it." He sighed. "You see now, Meggie, don't you? From now on you'll be unforgivable to daydream about Father de Bricassart." They entered from the front of the estate, for the stables were closer than the paddocks.Without a word, Meggie turned the chestnut mare and headed for the stable, leaving her father behind alone.For a while, he kept turning his head to look at her back.But when she had disappeared into the fence around the stables, he took the pinto horse by the side and walked the horse slowly, complaining to himself and whether what he had just said was necessary.Things between men and women are so damn hateful!It seems that everyone has their own set of standards, which are far from each other. Father Ralph de Bricassart's voice was very cold, but compared with his eyes, the voice was more enthusiastic.His eyes never left the pale face of the young priest as he uttered those rigid and carefully studied phrases. "You have not behaved as my Lord Jesus Christ requires of his priests. I think you know this much better than we who accuse you, but nevertheless I accuse you on behalf of your bishop; you Your bishop is not your church colleague, but your superior. You are to obey him completely, and your position does not allow you to haggle over his opinions or decisions. "Do you really understand the disgrace you have brought upon yourself, your diocese, and above all the Curia which you claim to be most beloved? The oath you have taken to chastity is as solemn and valid as any other oath you have taken Binding force, breaking it is a great seal. Of course, you will never see a woman again, but we have a duty to help you in your struggle with temptation. Therefore, we have arranged for you to leave immediately. To Bit Diocese of Darwin in Ritoli. Tonight, you will take the express train to Brisbane and the train to Longridge. At Longridge you will take the Quintus to Darwin. For now, your luggage It is being packed and delivered before the express train leaves, so there is no need for you to return to your present parish. "Now, please go to the chapel with Father John to pray. You will remain in the chapel until you board the train. For your comfort, Father John will accompany you to Darwin. You are dismissed." The priests of the church administration were wise and sober, and they did not allow this religious and moral sinner to have any further contact with the young girl who was his lover.It has become a scandal in his present diocese, and he is in a bad place.As for the girl--let her wait and watch and wonder.From now until his arrival in Darwin he would be under the watchful eye of the able and commanded Father John. "After that, every letter he sends from Daljang will be opened and he will not be allowed to make long distance calls. She will never know where he is and he will never be able to notify her. He will never get Chances of meeting other girls. Darwin is a remote town with few women. His vows are absolute, he can never be freed from them, and if he is too weak to control himself, the church must treat him exercise control. After watching the young priest and his assigned guardian leave the room, Father Ralph got up from his desk and walked into an inner room.Bishop Cluny Darke was sitting in his usual chair.At right angles to him sat silently a man in a purple belt and a cap.The bishop was a tall man, with thick, handsome white hair, and passionate blue eyes; he was a lively man, with a great sense of humour, and a fondness for good food.His visitor, on the contrary, was short and thin, with a bony, ascetic face under a fringe of thin black hair under a beanie; Beard, big dark eyes.In terms of age, from 30 to 50, you can say how old he is, but in fact he is 39 years old, 3 years older than Ralph de Brixarte. "Sit down, Father, and have a cup of tea," said the Archbishop sincerely. "I was just about to send for a new pot of tea. In dismissing the young man, did you mention his conduct with proper exhortation?" "Yes, sir," said Father Ralph succinctly.He sat down in the third chair at the tea table, on which lay thin cucumber sandwiches, delicate pink and white cakes with frosting, a silver tea service set with delicate gold leaf Ironsley magnetic mug. "My dear Eminence, such a thing is unfortunate. But even I ask these men who ordain the priests of God are weak--and mortal. I find myself deeply sorry for him in my heart. Tonight, I want to pray for him to become stronger in the future," said the visitor. He has a distinctly foreign accent, with a soft, sibilant voice on the "S."His nationality is Italian, his title is Pope Nadia of the Catholic Church in Australia, and his name is Vittorio Scarbanza di Contini-Verches.His office is a delicate link between the Australian clergy and the nerve center of the Vatican, which means he is the most powerful priest in this part of the world. He had of course hoped to go to the United States of America before he got the appointment, but on second thought he decided that Australia would be pretty good too.If you don't count the area and only look at the population, this is a small country, but it is also quite Catholic.Unlike other English-speaking countries, Catholicism is not in decline in society.For the ambitious statesman, businessman or clergyman, it was a rich country with strong support for the Holy See.There is no need to fear that he will be forgotten by Rome while he is in Australia. His Excellency the Ambassador, too, was a very elusive man, whose eyes gleaming on the gold rim of his teacup were not on the Archbishop of Cluny Darke, but on Ralph de Father Brixarte.It is well known that Bishop Duck is extremely fond of the priest, but the envoy does not know how much he himself would like such a man.The two Irish-Australian clergymen were so tall, so much taller than he was, that he had to look up to see their faces, and he was impatient.Father de Bricassart's demeanor was more flawless than that of his superior: deft, uninhibited, respectful, yet frank and honest, with a great sense of humour.How would he adjust to working for a completely different master?It was the usual practice to appoint envoys from among the ecclesiastical personnel in Italy, but Father Ralph de Brixarte was of great interest to the Vatican.Not only was he famous because of his own wealth (contrary to popular belief, his superiors were neither authorized to take money from him nor did he hand it over automatically), but he single-handedly made a name for himself in the Earn a cotton future in the Holy See.It was therefore decided by the Vatican that the ambassador should appoint the Abbe de Bricassart as his secretary, to examine the young man carefully, and to determine his character with certainty. Someday the Pope will have to give Australia a fake cardinal's bonnet, but that's not a sure thing yet.He was therefore obliged to make an examination among priests of de Bricassart's age, among whom the Abbe de Bricassart was clearly the leading candidate.That's the way it is.Shall Father de Bricassart's mettle be tested for a moment before an Italian.This might be interesting.But why couldn't this man be a little shorter? Father Ralph sipped his tea politely and seemed strangely silent.His Excellency noticed that he ate only a small sandwich and didn't touch the other delicacies, but he drank four cups of tea with no sugar or milk, thirsty.Well, that's exactly what his report says: In terms of personal habits, the clergyman eats moderately, his only weakness being a luxurious car (and it's fast as hell). "Father, your name is French," said the envoy mildly. "But I've heard you're Irish. What's the matter? So your family is French?" Father Ralph smiled and shook his head. "My lord, it is a Norman surname, a very old and respected surname. I am a descendant of a descendant of Lanolf de Bricassart, who was the king of William the Conqueror. In 1066 he accompanied William in the invasion of England, where one of his sons acquired fiefdoms, and the family prospered in England under the King of Normandy. Later, in the time of Henry IV, among them Some crossed the Irish Sea and settled on English territory on the Isle of Ireland. When Henry VIII took the Church of England out of Roman power, we remained loyal to William, that is to say, we felt that we The allegiance should be first to Rome, not to London. But we lost our lands and titles in Cromwell's republic, and we have never recovered them. Charles made England The people are especially willing to take Irish land as a reward. You know, the Irish hate the English for good reason." ①A group of Normans and their descendants who settled at the mouth of the Seine River in France in the tenth century and accepted French culture. -- Annotation. ② Refers to King William I of England. -- Annotation ③Henry IV (1367-1413), King of England, reigned from 1399-1413. -- Annotation ④Henry VIII (1491-1547), King of England, reigned from 1509-1547.An Annotation ⑤ Oliver Cromwell (1599-1658), a famous British bourgeois revolutionist. -- Annotation ⑥ Refers to the republic during the period from 1649, when Cromwell executed the King of England, to 1660, when the Stuart dynasty was restored. -- Annotation ⑦ Refers to Charles II, who reigned from 166O to 1685 and was the king of England after the restoration of the Stuart dynasty. -- Annotation "But, comparatively speaking, we have descended to lowly men, and yet we remain loyal to the Holy See, and to Rome. My brother has a thriving stud farm in County Mean, and hopes to have a horse that will be able to win at the Debye Jockey Club." ②And the winning horse at the Liverpool Showjumping. I'm the second son, and it's always been a tradition in our family that the second son enter the church if he wishes to serve in it. is extremely proud." The de Bricassart family has a history of 150 years. " ①In the island of Ireland. -- Annotation ②The Jockey Club is held every year in Epsom, England. -- Annotation Ah, wonderful!An ancient aristocratic name, an irreproachable record of integrity and integrity through the hardships of ruin and persecution. "And what's the matter with Ralph?" "An abbreviation for Ranov, my lord." "Understood." "Father, I will miss you very much," Bishop Cluny Dark said.He smeared jam and milk stains on half a scone and stuffed them whole in his mouth. Father Ralph smiled at him. "My lord, you have put me in a dilemma! Here I sit between our master and our new master, and if my answer pleases one, it dismays the other. But may I Let me tell you, while I long to serve this lord, I am also reluctant to part with another lord." It was a well-spoken, diplomatic answer.Bishop Cantini-Verches began to think that he might do well with such a secretary.But look at his handsome face, that man's surprised complexion, that fit body.He is too beautiful. Father Ralph fell silent again, staring blindly at the tea table.He was dreaming of the young priest he had just punished.The look in the priest's eyes was very painful when he realized that they would not let him say goodbye to his girl.Dear God, what if it's him and the girl is Meggie?A man could get away with it for a short time if he behaved discreetly; but he could get away with it forever if he could keep the women from seeing each other only on annual holidays, so as not to be seen by the parishioners.However, when you meet a crazy woman, people will always find out. There were times when it was only the physical pain that made it difficult for him to run so long over the marble floor of the chapel that stopped him from catching the next train back to Gilly and Drogheda.He had said to himself once that he was a total victim of loneliness and that he missed the love of humanity he had learned on Drogheda.He had told himself; nothing had changed after he succumbed to the momentary weakness and stroked Meggie's back lightly; People are restless, and longing does not disturb the whole body and mind.Because he can't admit that anything has changed.In his own mind he regarded Meggie as a little girl, excluding any illusions that might contradict it. He was wrong.The pain did not fade away, it seemed to grow stronger and more relentless and ominous in its onset.Before, his loneliness was just an impersonal thing, and there was no one in his life who could make up for it.But now, out of this solitude, a name emerged: Meggie, Meggie, Meggie, Meggie... He awoke from his contemplation, and found that the eyes of Bishop di Contini-Verches were looking at him without blinking. Big, dark eyes are far more dangerous.There was no reason to pretend such brooding, and Father Ralph had more than enough tact.He glanced at his future master with the same keen eyes, then smiled lightly and shrugged his shoulders, as if to say that everyone has a difficult scripture to recite, and it is not a big mistake to think about it occasionally. "Tell me, Father, has the sudden downturn in the economy affected your finances?" the Italian prelate asked tactfully. "So far, there is nothing to worry about, sir. The ups and downs of the market will not easily affect Michal & Co. I can imagine that those who invest their property less prudently than Mrs. Carson will lose their Most of the interests. Of course, the Drogheda ranch is not doing very well, and the price of wool is bearish. However, Mrs. Carson is very cautious about investing her money in agriculture. She would rather invest her money in a reliable For the metal industry. Although in my opinion this is a great opportunity to buy land, we're not just buying ranches in the countryside but houses and buildings in the major cities as well. Prices are ridiculously low, but it won't be like this forever .If we buy now, I don't see any loss in real estate over the next few years. The depression will end someday." "It makes sense." Your Excellency the envoy said. "It seems that Father de Bricassart is not only a very good diplomat, but also a very good businessman!" Indeed, Rome is not wrong to favor him.