temperament and the distances always furthest from the enlightened control and guidance of its founders. The great Wesley himself while still alive had scarcely ever dared to leave his Cornish converts alone for more than a year at a time. Although there were strong and earnest groups in some of the towns and villages who never wavered in their faith and their prayer; there was constant backsliding in other parts and a falling from grace. Sawle with Grambler had long since fallen from grace, as indeed, had all the surrounding district as far as St Michael one way and St Ann's the other.
Sam found it a sad and a barren sight. There was a s mall meeting house at Grambler which had been put up by subscription and by the miners themselves in the prosperous sixties, but since the mine closed and the people had drifted away the meeting house was neglected and in bad repair. Some still kept to the old principles, withou t however meeting together or renewing t heir faith in communal prayer.
Sam met with resentment here and there, for a stranger from as far afield as Illuggan was no better than a foreigner; and the general feeling was that the only way such an intruder, coul d be tolerated was by his being seen and not heard. Sam was not content to be quiet, and sour looks came his way but his relationship with the Poldarks saved him from worse trouble. So the little nucleus of the converted who in the years of neglect had not lost grace altogether began to meet each Sunday evening in Reath Cottage; Sunday morning or afternoon Sam led them to church, proper.
T here were four churches within walking distance. St Sawle, Grambler-with-Saw le, was the nearest, then came St Miner; Marasanvose. A little further off were St Ann's, at St Ann's, and St Paul's on the way to St Michael. But in the bad storm of May, '88, the roof of St Paul's had fallen in, and no one had had money to repair it, so services had been indefinitely suspended. At St Ann's, the vicar lived in London and had never yet visited the church, so that services were held there at rare intervals, when a locum could be found. Parishioners wishing to get married cou ld seldom have the banns called , so they had to afford to buy licences or do without the blessings of the church, and parents had to carry their children to Sawle for christening.
St Sawle, Gramble-with-Sawle, with its two chancels, its leaky roofs, its side-slanting tower and over-filled graveyard, was looked after by the Reverend Clarence Odgers, a cleric who received £40 a year from the incumbent, who lived in Penzance. Odgers, having a wife and a brood of children to keep, eked out his living by growing vegetables and fruit. The church was neglected but had a fair congregation, a noisy rather than tuneful choir and of course, the patronage of Trenwith House.
The nearest big house to St Minter, Marasanvose, was Werry House, but the Bodrugans only went to chur ch twice a year, and the vicar, Mr Faber, doubled with another church near Ladock and was a fox-hunting man. St Miner was a small church, and the first time Sam and Drakes went there were only five others in the congregation. Of these, two were men who talked all through about the price of corn; of the three women, two were mending shirts and the third, who was the caretaker, was asleep. After the service, there was a christening to be done, and the caretaker had forgotten to get water for the font, so the vicar spat in his hand and anointed the child with his spittle in the nam e of Christ. Sam and Drake came out in-time to see him mount his broad old mare and clatter off down the rocky track.
So when the little nucleus of Methodists began to accept him as their leader, Sam took them to Sawle Church as the best of the four. Besides, Drake always seemed to want to go there.
For two weeks the brothers had been, foraging for a new central beam to, support their repaired roof and to carry the extra weight of slate, put on in place of thatch., Possibly
Sam found it a sad and a barren sight. There was a s mall meeting house at Grambler which had been put up by subscription and by the miners themselves in the prosperous sixties, but since the mine closed and the people had drifted away the meeting house was neglected and in bad repair. Some still kept to the old principles, withou t however meeting together or renewing t heir faith in communal prayer.
Sam met with resentment here and there, for a stranger from as far afield as Illuggan was no better than a foreigner; and the general feeling was that the only way such an intruder, coul d be tolerated was by his being seen and not heard. Sam was not content to be quiet, and sour looks came his way but his relationship with the Poldarks saved him from worse trouble. So the little nucleus of the converted who in the years of neglect had not lost grace altogether began to meet each Sunday evening in Reath Cottage; Sunday morning or afternoon Sam led them to church, proper.
T here were four churches within walking distance. St Sawle, Grambler-with-Saw le, was the nearest, then came St Miner; Marasanvose. A little further off were St Ann's, at St Ann's, and St Paul's on the way to St Michael. But in the bad storm of May, '88, the roof of St Paul's had fallen in, and no one had had money to repair it, so services had been indefinitely suspended. At St Ann's, the vicar lived in London and had never yet visited the church, so that services were held there at rare intervals, when a locum could be found. Parishioners wishing to get married cou ld seldom have the banns called , so they had to afford to buy licences or do without the blessings of the church, and parents had to carry their children to Sawle for christening.
St Sawle, Gramble-with-Sawle, with its two chancels, its leaky roofs, its side-slanting tower and over-filled graveyard, was looked after by the Reverend Clarence Odgers, a cleric who received £40 a year from the incumbent, who lived in Penzance. Odgers, having a wife and a brood of children to keep, eked out his living by growing vegetables and fruit. The church was neglected but had a fair congregation, a noisy rather than tuneful choir and of course, the patronage of Trenwith House.
The nearest big house to St Minter, Marasanvose, was Werry House, but the Bodrugans only went to chur ch twice a year, and the vicar, Mr Faber, doubled with another church near Ladock and was a fox-hunting man. St Miner was a small church, and the first time Sam and Drakes went there were only five others in the congregation. Of these, two were men who talked all through about the price of corn; of the three women, two were mending shirts and the third, who was the caretaker, was asleep. After the service, there was a christening to be done, and the caretaker had forgotten to get water for the font, so the vicar spat in his hand and anointed the child with his spittle in the nam e of Christ. Sam and Drake came out in-time to see him mount his broad old mare and clatter off down the rocky track.
So when the little nucleus of Methodists began to accept him as their leader, Sam took them to Sawle Church as the best of the four. Besides, Drake always seemed to want to go there.
For two weeks the brothers had been, foraging for a new central beam to, support their repaired roof and to carry the extra weight of slate, put on in place of thatch., Possibly
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