Stray Leaves from a Border Garden 
Now she has taken a notion that £ his magic,’ as she puts 
it, is stronger than hers, and she thinks the ‘ Zombi,’ who 
has laid his evil finger on her and is crushing the life out 
of her, may succumb before the White Padre. But it’s not 
unlikely she may think to propitiate the Zombi with the 
Padre rather than herself. I would not go nigh her if I 
were him ! ” But the priest only smiled, a curious in- 
scrutable smile, when Dr. Gordon, waxing warm and 
talking very broad Scotch in his unusual excitement, tried 
to dissuade him from going. He mounted his big white 
mule, looking a queer figure with his cassock tucked up 
and ending in hide gaiters and heavy boots, armed himself 
with his machete , a very ugly-looking cutlass, to use, however, 
on nothing more dangerous, we hoped, than the firmly 
twisted Hanes of the “ Grands Bois,” or the Patate bolanme 
or Sea-vine, and rode away from us, past the big wooden 
crucifix with its life-size figure, painted flesh colour, with 
painfully realistic blood-drops and gilt crown of thorns, 
away into the high woods, bound on an errand by the side 
of which facing the royal soldiers on Spanish mountain 
slopes had been a trifle. For there’s many a man will 
stand up and face a rain of bullets who would hesitate to go 
where death may lurk in a glass of water, and he may never 
return from his errand of mercy. But of such dauntless 
hearts the Church Militant here on earth counts many 
among her soldiers. “ Yon’s a good man if ever there was 
one,” remarked Dr. Gordon as, having seen the last of our 
friend, we prepared to return home. “ Do you belong to 
his persuasion?” I asked hesitatingly. “No, no, lad; 
I’m no Roman. But I will say that for them, they would 
win more influence over the nigger than any other set of 
devil-dodgers I know. Reason why, let wiser folk than 
George Gordon tell.” 
334 
