thighs--confessed that she had laid her trouble before Our Lady.

"A miracle, then!" exclaimed his Reverence. "What height! What
depth!"

"That's of it," agreed Lovey. "Aw, b'lieve me, your Reverence, we
mothers understand wan another."



PILOT MATTHEY'S CHRISTMAS.


Pilot Matthey came down to the little fishing-quay at five p.m. or
thereabouts. He is an elderly man, tall and sizable, with a grizzled
beard and eyes innocent-tender as a child's, but set in deep
crow's-feet at the corners, as all seamen's eyes are. It comes of
facing the wind.

Pilot Matthey spent the fore-half of his life at the fishing.
Thence he won his way to be a Trinity pilot, and wears such portions
of an old uniform as he remembers to don. He has six sons and four
daughters, all brought up in the fear of the Lord, and is very much
of a prophet in our Israel. One of the sons works with him as
apprentice, the other five follow the fishing.

He came down to the quay soon after tea-time, about half an hour
before the luggers were due to put out. Some twenty-five or thirty
men were already gathered, dandering to and fro with hands in
pockets, or seated on the bench under the sea wall, waiting for the