124 My Little Farm 



In the circumstances, at the time, the popular 

 estimate of my spiritual perspective was reasonable 

 enough, the people knowing my instinctive 

 reverence for religion. The older among them 

 could remember how I had been brought up as a 

 pagan, and the more intelligent could explain to 

 the others how my early escape from Irish educa- 

 tion must have preserved the mind quite free to 

 value the Christian virtues. They could see no 

 unfitness of things in a holy place put up by me, 

 and I could see nothing abnormal in their view 

 of the intention. Since my time, the moral 

 freedom afforded by Paganism has been dimin- 

 ished, making Christianity practically impossible. 



The building rose and the roof went on, but the 

 postulants proved to be neither numerous enough 

 nor rich enough to start me respectably in that 

 line, and my convent became an admirable 

 Cow-house, the cells for Stalls, the calefactorium 

 for Nursery, the oratory as a centre of distribution 

 for Provender, and every detail fitting as if 

 specially designed for Cows and Calves, 



This building has meant much to me, and it has 

 been " lucky " (as one should expect), but I 

 reinforce the luck with three or four whitewashings 

 every year ; for though I am the last man to deny 

 anything rationally supernatural, I believe also in 

 newly burnt lime, which has an effect on microbes, 

 and is much cheaper in our district than prayers. 

 After ten years' practice, I can hardly see how I 

 could improve on the system of government for 

 my community of calves, 



