Rosemary West had come into his life on that autumn evening bringing with her an atmosphere in which his spirit recognized native air . Across the gulf of strangerhood they clasped hands of friendship . He knew her better in that ten minutes by the hidden spring than he knew Emmeline Drew or Elizabeth Kirk or Amy Annetta Douglas in a year , or could know them , in a century . He had fled to her for comfort when Mrs. Alec Davis had outraged his mind and soul and had found it . Since then he had gone often to the house on the hill , slipping through the shadowy paths of night in Rainbow Valley so astutely that Glen gossip could never be absolutely certain that he DID go to see Rosemary West . Once or twice he had been caught in the West living room by other visitors ; that was all the Ladies ' Aid had to go by . But when Elizabeth Kirk heard it she put away a secret hope she had allowed herself to cherish , without a change of expression on her kind plain face , and Emmeline Drew resolved that the next time she saw a certain old bachelor of Lowbridge she would not snub him as she had done at a previous meeting . Of course , if Rosemary West was out to catch the minister she would catch him ; she looked younger than she was and MEN thought her pretty ; besides , the West girls had money ! `` It is to be hoped that he wo n't be so absent-minded as to propose to Ellen by mistake , '' was the only malicious thing she allowed herself to say to a sympathetic sister Drew . Emmeline bore no further grudge towards Rosemary . When all was said and done , an unencumbered bachelor was far better than a widower with four children . It had been only the glamour of the manse that had temporarily blinded Emmeline 's eyes to the better part . A sled with three shrieking occupants sped past Mr. Meredith to the pond . Faith 's long curls streamed in the wind and her laughter rang above that of the others . John Meredith looked after them kindly and longingly . He was glad that his children had such chums as the Blythes -- glad that they had so wise and gay and tender a friend as Mrs. Blythe . But they needed something more , and that something would be supplied when he brought Rosemary West as a bride to the old manse . There was in her a quality essentially maternal . It was Saturday night and he did not often go calling on Saturday night , which was supposed to be dedicated to a thoughtful revision of Sunday 's sermon . But he had chosen this night because he had learned that Ellen West was going to be away and Rosemary would be alone .
Often XXXXX he had spent pleasant evenings in the house on the hill he had never , since that first meeting at the spring , seen Rosemary alone .
Since above after as for of than through to towards