Nancy McVeigh of the Monk Road by R. Henry Mainer

Page 1 of 48

NANCY MCVEIGH OF THE MONK ROAD

R. HENRY MAINER

[Frontispiece: "Tommy wus one o' the boys, an' a pal o' ours."]

Toronto William Briggs 1908

These few stories of a good old woman I dedicate to the memory of

A. R. S. M.

who sat beside me while I wrote them and offered many happy suggestions.

"Her face, deep lined; her eyes were gray, Mirrors of her heart's continuous play; Her head, crowned with a wintry sheet, Had learned naught of this world's deceit. She oft forgot her own in others' trials, And met the day's rebuffs with sweetest smiles."

CONTENTS.

I. THE WOMAN OF THE INN II. THE ANTAGONISM OF MISS PIPER III. JOHN KEENE'S EDUCATION IV. THE WRECK AT THE JUNCTION V. JENNIE VI. NANCY'S PHILOSOPHY VII. THE STRENGTH OF TEN VIII. A DESERTER FROM THE MONK ROAD IX. THE KERRY DANCERS X. THE HOMECOMING OF CORNELIUS MCVEIGH

ILLUSTRATIONS

Cover art

"Tommy wus one o' the boys, an' a pal 'o ours." . . . . _Frontispiece_

"'Give me that gun, Johnny,' she called softly."

"Ye can just pull down the cover, an' I'll do me own fixin'."

NANCY McVEIGH.

CHAPTER I.

_THE WOMAN OF THE INN._

During the _regime_ of Governor Monk, of Upper Canada, the military road was cut through the virgin pine from Lake Ontario to the waters leading into Georgian Bay. The clearings followed, then the homesteads, then the corners, where the country store and the smithy flourished in primitive dignity. The roadside hostelry soon had a place on the highway, and deep into its centre was Nancy McVeigh's.

Nancy McVeigh's tavern was famed near and far. In earliest days the name was painted in letters bold across the high gabled face, but years of weather had washed the paint off. Its owner, however, had so long and faithfully dominated its destiny that it was known only as her property, and so it was named. A hill sloped gently for half a mile, traversed by a roadway of dry, grey sand, flanked on either side by a split-rail snake fence, gradually widening into an open space in front of the tavern. The tavern

Prev - Next >>

Share this book

Table of contents (by pages)