George Leatrim | Page 2

every good word and work, they were forced
to respect his character, though he did assail all their public and private
vices from the pulpit, and enforced their strict attendance at church on
the Sabbath day. This state of antagonism between the Doctor and his
parishioners did not last long. Prejudice yielded to his eloquent
preaching, numbers came from a distance to hear him, and many
careless souls awoke from a state of worldly apathy to seek the bread of
life.
'Just to give you a correct idea of what manner of man George Leatrim
was in these days, contrasted with what he is now, I will relate an
anecdote of him that I had from an eye-witness of the scene.
'A wealthy miller in the parish, a great drunkard and atheist, and a very
hard, unfeeling, immoral character, dropped down dead in a state of
intoxication, and, being a nominal member of the Church, was brought
there for burial. When the Doctor came to that portion of the service,
"We therefore commit his body to the ground, earth to earth, ashes to
ashes, dust to dust, in sure and certain hope of the resurrection to
eternal life, through our Lord Jesus Christ," he paused, and looking
round on the numerous band of relations and friends that surrounded
the grave, said in the most solemn and emphatic manner, "My friends,
the Prayer-book says this; but if there is any truth in God's word, it
cannot be applied to this man. He denied the existence of a God,
ridiculed the idea of a Saviour, was an irreligious and bad member of
the community, and died in the commission of an habitual and deadly
sin; and it is my firm conviction that such as he cannot enter into the
kingdom of God!" [Footnote: A fact.]

'The Doctor was greatly censured by the neighbouring clergy for boldly
declaring what he felt to be the truth; but it produced an electrical effect
upon those present, and the son of the deceased, who was fast
following in his father's steps, became a sincere and practical Christian.
'Mrs. Leatrim was quite a contrast to her husband--a gentle, affectionate,
simple-hearted woman. She never thwarted his wishes in word or deed,
and was ever at his side to assist him in his ministrations among the
poor, in teaching the children, and reading to the sick and inquiring.
She had been the mother of several children, but only one, and that the
youngest-born, survived the three first years of infancy. It is this son,
named after his father, George Leatrim, who forms the subject of my
present story, which, though a painful one in its general details, is
strictly true.
'If the good Doctor had an idol in the world, it was his son George. The
lad possessed the most amiable disposition, uniting to the talent and
earnestness of the father, the gentle, endearing qualities of his mother.
He was handsome, frank, and graceful; the expression of his face so
truthful and unaffected, that it created an interest in his favour at first
sight. Religious without cant, and clever without pretence, it is no
wonder that his father, who was his sole instructor, reposed in the fine
lad the utmost confidence, treating him more like an equal than a son,
over whom he held the authority of both pastor and parent.
'There was none of the nervous timidity that marked Mrs. Leatrim's
intercourse with her husband in the conduct of her son. His love for his
stern father was without fear, it almost amounted to worship; and the
hope of deserving his esteem was the motive power that influenced his
studies, and gave a colouring to every act of his life.
'The father, on his part, regarded his son as superior being--one whom
the Lord had called from his birth to be His servant.
'There was another person in the house, whom, next to his wife and son,
Doctor Leatrim held in the greatest esteem and veneration, not only on
account of his having saved him, when a boy, from drowning, at the
imminent peril of his own life, but from his having persuaded him,

when a youth, to abandon a career of reckless folly and become a
Christian. Ralph Wilson was an old and faithful servant, who had been
born in his father's house, and had nursed the Doctor when a little child
upon his knees. When his master died, Ralph was confided to the care
of his son; and as he had never married, he had grown grey in the
Doctor's service, and his love for him and his family was the sole aim
and object of his life.
'Everything about the parsonage was entrusted to Ralph's care, and he
was consulted on all business matters of importance. All