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Answers process mysterious. I'm glad pinkfreud was around to let you
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message.
The book I referred to is "My Lady Ludlow" by Elizabeth Gaskell.
Although she is an important Victorian novelist, this is not one of
her better-known books and there is no summary on the net, only the
text of the whole novel. So I have copied and pasted excerpts to give
you an idea of the clergyman, Mr. Gray's, effect on his parishioners,
especially the poacher, Job Gregson, and his son Harry. Eventually the
poacher learns to trust the vicar:
"this rough, untamed, strong giant of a heathen" becomes his "loyal
slave".
Lady Ludlow is also gradually influenced by Mr. Gray, even though she
disagrees with him on many points.
Chapters 1-2
Lady Ludlow is used to having everything run according to her wishes
in the village of Hanbury, but the new vicar, Mr. Gray, has ideas of
his own. Although Lady Ludlow approves of his conscientious
ministering to the sick:
" the new clergyman, Mr. Gray [......] was very zealous in all his
parish work.."
she disagrees with him on the subject of education and doesn't wish to
have a Sunday-school started in 'her' village.
They disagree about the case of Job Gregson, the poacher who has been
committed for trial by the local magistrate. Mr Gray has the courage
to take his duties as clergyman seriously, and does not give in to the
opinions of the local aristocrat.
"Your ladyship must remember that it may be my duty to speak to my
parishioners on many subjects on which they do not agree with me. . .
If I, madam, as the clergyman of this parish, am not to shrink from
telling what I believe to be the truth to the poor and lowly, no more
am I to hold my peace in the presence of the rich and titled."
Her attitude is that "times are changed when the parson of a village
comes to beard the liege lady in her own house".
Lady Ludlow tells him that "Job Gregson is a notorious poacher and
evildoer." But, later, she does look further into the matter. Latham,
the local magistrate, tells her Gregson is, "a man who sets nets and
springes in long cover, and fishes wherever he takes a fancy. It is
but a short step from poaching to thieving." She visits Mrs. Gregson,
realises that the family of twelve children will starve if Job is sent
to gaol and ends up supporting Mr. Gray's point of view.
Chapters 3-4
The estate steward, a Mr. Horner, is also interested in education for
the villagers and wants to teach a boy to read and write to help with
his clerical work.
"He had his pick of the farm-lads for this purpose; and, as the
brightest and sharpest, although by far the raggedest and dirtiest,
singled out Job Gregson's son."
When Lady Ludlow finds out she makes it clear how much she
disapproves.
Chapter 5-8
The Gregson part of the story is kept in the background.
Chapter 9
Discussion between Lady Ludlow and Mr. Horner:
"I was in hopes, my lady, that you would have permitted me to bring
[Harry] up to act as a kind of clerk," said Mr. Horner, jerking out
his project abruptly.
"A what?" asked my lady, in infinite surprise.
"A kind of - of assistant, in the way of copying letters and doing up
accounts. He is already an excellent penman and very quick at
figures."
"Mr. Horner," said my lady, with dignity, "the son of a poacher and
vagabond ought never to have been able to copy letters relating to the
Hanbury estates"
Chapter 10
Mr. Gray keeps pressing the question of education.
"My lady, I cannot answer it to my conscience, if I allow the children
of this village to go on any longer the little heathens that they are.
I must do something to alter their condition."
The chapter ends with this news:
"Has your ladyship heard that Harry Gregson has fallen from a tree,
and broken his thigh-bone, and is like to be a cripple for life?"
"Harry Gregson! That black-eyed lad who read my letter? It all comes
from over-education!' "
Chapter 11
Mr. Gray rescues Harry
"But he lifted the poor lad, as if he had been a baby, I suppose, and
carried him up the great ledges that were formerly used for steps; and
laid him soft and easy on the wayside grass, and ran home and got help
and a door, and had him carried to his house, and laid on his bed."
"That poor lad, Harry Gregson, will never be able to earn his
livelihood in any active way, but will be lame for life.[..]
if Mr. Gray could but have his school, Mr. Horner and he think Harry
might be schoolmaster [..]
I wish your ladyship would fall into this plan; Mr. Gray has it so at
heart."
"As for Gregson the father, he - wild man of the woods, poacher,
tinker, jack-of-all-trades - was getting tamed by this kindness to his
child. Hitherto his hand had been against every man, as every man's
had been against him. That affair before the justice, which I told you
about, when Mr. Gray and even my lady had interested themselves to get
him released from unjust imprisonment, was the first bit of justice he
had ever met with: it attracted him to the people.."
"[Mr. Gray] had either never heard of [the Gregsons'] evil character,
or considered that it gave them all the more claims upon his Christian
care; and the end of it was, that this rough, untamed, strong giant of
a heathen was loyal slave to the weak, hectic, nervous,
self-distrustful parson.
Lady L starts to take a kindly interest in Harry; Mr. Gray becomes his
guardian.
Chapter 12
Harry pleads with Lady Ludlow:
"give Mr. Gray a school-house. Oh, father does so want Mr. Gray for to
have his wish! Father saw all the stones lying quarried and hewn on
Farmer Hale's land; Mr. Gray had paid for them all himself. And father
said he would work night and day, and little Tommy should carry
mortar, if the parson would let him, sooner than that he should be
fretted and frabbed as he was, with no one giving him a helping hand
or a kind word.""
Chapter 14
"...one day, much to my surprise, I heard that the "poaching,
tinkering vagabond," as the people used to call Gregson when I first
had come to live at Hanbury, had been appointed gamekeeper; Mr. Gray
standing godfather, as it were, to his trustworthiness.."
" they do talk of [Harry] being captain of his school [...] and going
to college after all! Harry Gregson the poacher's son! Well! to be
sure, we are living in strange times!"
Ending:
"As I dare say you know, the Reverend Henry Gregson is now vicar of
Hanbury, and his wife is the daughter of Mr. Gray and Miss Bessy."
=====
Thinking over your original question, I had a vague memory of a
nineteenth century novel with a poacher 'coming good' and helping to
build a school. I guessed it was by a writer who took social and
religious issues seriously and wondered if it might be by Gaskell, who
was an active partner in her husband's work as a Unitarian clergyman:
"Elizabeth Gaskell" poacher school
://www.google.co.uk/search?hl=en&ie=UTF-8&oe=UTF-8&q=%22elizabeth+gaskell%22+poacher+school&btnG=Google+Search&meta=
The text of the novel is online in two parts:
My Lady Ludlow Chapters 1-7
http://www.lang.nagoya-u.ac.jp/~matsuoka/EG-Ludlow-1.html
My Lady Ludlow Chapters 8-14
http://www.lang.nagoya-u.ac.jp/~matsuoka/EG-Ludlow-2.html
You can search the text by selecting 'edit', then 'find', then typing
in 'Gregson' or 'Gray' to find more of the vicar & poacher story.
There's a short biography of Gaskell here:
http://www.scholars.nus.edu.sg/landow/victorian/authors/gaskell/bio.html
I do hope this is helpful. It's been interesting for me, reminding me
of a novel I read long ago.
Please feel free to ask if anything needs further explanation, by
using the 'clarification' option.
Regards - Leli |
