Willy Burke, or, The Irish orphan in America - Digital Repository ...

120 WILLY BURKE; OR,
The six working days passed away, and Sunday came
again. There had fallen some heavy rains during the
night, so that the streets were wet and muddy, and Willy
Burke, when he went to see his sisters, did not ask them
to go to walk on that account. But in the evening, Peter
and he walked towards the churchyard wherein their"
mother lay. They were just saying, as they reached the
gate, that it was too wet for them to go in through the
long grass ; but as they could see their mother's grave
from the gate, they stopped to look in. What was their
astonishment (for Willy had told his brother, as we have
seen, that they must put it off for some time) when they
saw standing, at the head of the grave, a handsome white
cross, with an inscription in black ; but at the distance
they could not see what it was.
" Why, then, Willy", cried his brother, " isn't that
mother's grave where that beautiful cross is ?"
" It is, indeed", said Willy, " an' I think some one
must have mistaken it for another ; let us see if the stone
I stuck into the ground is still there". And in they
went, but they had no need to look for the stone, which
was, however, there ; for, as they approached near enough,
the inscription caught their eye. It was : " Here lies
the body of Mrs. Margaret Burke, a native of the county
Tipperary, Ireland. While here on earth, she served the
Lord in spirit and in truth. May her soul rest in peace".
" Well, thanks be to God, any how, that we have lived
to see that sight !" was Willy's exclamation, when they
had for some minutes gazed in silent amazement on the
handsome monumental cross. " Whoever did it, may the
Lord reward them— an' he will". Can you guess who it
was, Peter?"