0:00

Why does the Reverend Mr. Hooper

0:02

mysteriously don a black veil and

0:05

never take it off in public?

0:08

Nathaniel Hawthorne, today

0:10

on the Classic Tales Podcast. Welcome

0:24

to this vintage episode of the Classic

0:26

Tales Podcast. Thank you for listening. A

0:29

vintage episode is released every Tuesday. If

0:32

you have found value in the show, please

0:35

help us to help more people like you

0:37

by going to classictalesaudiobooks.com

0:39

and becoming a supporter.

0:42

New stories are coming your way on Friday. Dealing

0:47

with the concepts of sin, repentance,

0:49

and morality, and set in

0:51

Puritan New England, the veil

0:53

in today's story is a critique

0:55

of the Puritans' concept of original

0:57

sin. The acrimonious

0:59

reaction of the townspeople to the

1:02

minister's behavior easily lends itself

1:04

to exploring these concepts. I hope you

1:06

like it. And

1:08

now, The Minister's Black

1:10

Veil by Nathaniel Hawthorne.

1:20

The Minister's Black Veil. A Parable.

1:27

The Saxton stood in the

1:29

porch of Milford Meeting House, pulling lustily

1:31

at the bell rope. The

1:33

old people of the village came stooping along the

1:35

street. Children with

1:38

bright faces tripped merrily beside

1:40

their parents or mimicked a

1:42

graver gate in the conscious dignity of

1:44

their Sunday clothes. Spruce

1:47

bachelors looked sidelong at the

1:49

pretty maidens and fancied that

1:51

the Sabbath sunshine made

1:53

them prettier than on weekdays. When

1:56

the throng had mostly streamed into the

1:58

porch, the Saxton began to to toll

2:00

the bell, keeping his eye on

2:02

the reverend Mr. Hooper's door. The

2:05

first glimpse of the clergyman's figure was the

2:07

signal for the bell to cease its summons.

2:10

But what has good Parson Hooper got

2:13

upon his face? cried

2:15

the sexton in astonishment. All

2:18

within hearing immediately turned about and

2:20

beheld the semblance of Mr.

2:22

Hooper pacing slowly his meditative

2:25

way towards the meetinghouse. With

2:28

one accord they started, expressing

2:30

more wonder than if some strange minister

2:32

were coming to dust the cushions of

2:34

Mr. Hooper's pulpit. Are

2:37

you sure it is our Parson? inquired

2:40

Goodman Gray of the sexton. Of

2:42

a certainty it is good Mr. Hooper, replied

2:45

the sexton. He was to

2:47

have exchanged pulpits with Parson Schute of

2:49

Westbury. But Parson Schute

2:51

sent to excuse himself yesterday, being to

2:54

preach a funeral sermon. The

2:57

cause of so much amazement may appear

2:59

sufficiently slight. Mr. Hooper,

3:01

a gentlemanly person of about

3:04

thirty, though still a bachelor,

3:06

was dressed with due clerical neatness

3:08

as if a careful wife had

3:10

starched his band and rushed the

3:12

weekly dust from his Sunday's garb.

3:15

There was but one thing remarkable in his

3:17

appearance, swathed about his forehead

3:19

and hanging down over his face, so

3:22

low as to be shaken by his

3:24

breath, Mr. Hooper had

3:26

on a black veil. On

3:29

a nearer view it seemed to consist of two

3:31

folds of crepe, which entirely

3:33

concealed his features except the mouth

3:36

and chin, but probably did

3:38

not intercept his sight farther than

3:40

to give a darkened aspect to

3:42

all living and inanimate things. With

3:47

this gloomy shade before him, good Mr. Hooper walked

3:49

onward at a slow and quiet pace, stooping

3:53

somewhat and looking on the ground

3:56

as if customary with abstracted men, yet nodding

3:58

kindly. to those

4:00

of his parishioners who still waited on

4:02

the meeting-house steps. But so

4:04

wonderstruck were they that his greeting

4:07

hardly met with a return. "'I

4:11

can't really feel as if good Mr. Hooper's

4:13

face was behind that piece of crepe,' said

4:16

the sexton. "'I don't like

4:18

it,' muttered an old woman as

4:20

she hobbled into the meeting-house. "'He

4:22

has changed himself into something awful

4:25

only by hiding his face.' "'Our

4:28

parson has gone mad,' cried

4:30

Goodman Gray, following him across the

4:33

threshold. A rumor

4:35

of some unaccountable phenomenon had preceded

4:37

Mr. Hooper into the meeting-house and

4:39

set all the congregation a stir.

4:42

Few could refrain from twisting their

4:44

heads towards the door. Many

4:47

stood upright and turned directly about, while

4:49

several little boys clambered upon the seats

4:52

and came down again with a terrible

4:54

racket. There was a general

4:56

bustle, a rustling of the women's gowns

4:58

and shuffling of the men's feet, greatly

5:01

at variance with that hushed repose

5:03

which should attend the entrance of

5:05

the minister. But Mr. Hooper

5:07

appeared not to notice the perturbation of

5:09

his people. He entered with

5:11

an almost noiseless step, bent

5:14

his head mildly to the pews on each side,

5:17

and bowed as he passed his oldest

5:19

parishioner, a white-haired, gray grandsire,

5:21

who occupied an armchair in the

5:23

center of the aisle. It was

5:26

strange to observe how slowly this

5:28

venerable man became conscious of something

5:30

singular in the appearance of his

5:33

pastor. He seemed not fully

5:35

to partake of the prevailing wonder, till

5:38

Mr. Hooper had ascended the stairs

5:40

and showed himself in the pulpit,

5:42

face to face with his congregation,

5:44

except for the black veil. That

5:47

mysterious emblem was never once withdrawn.

5:49

It shook with his

5:51

measured breath as he gave out the

5:53

psalm. It threw its

5:56

obscurity between him and the Holy

5:58

Page as he read the Scriptures. And

6:01

while he prayed, the veil lay

6:03

heavily on his uplifted countenance. Did

6:06

he seek to hide it from the dread

6:08

being whom he was addressing? Such

6:11

was the effect of this simple piece of

6:13

crepe that more than one

6:15

woman of delicate nerves was forced to

6:17

leave the meeting-house. Yet

6:19

perhaps the pale-faced congregation was almost as

6:21

fearful a sight to the minister as

6:24

his black veil to them. Mr.

6:27

Hooper had the reputation of a good

6:29

preacher, but not an energetic one. He

6:33

strove to win his people

6:35

heavenward by mild persuasive influences

6:37

rather than to drive them hither by

6:39

the thunders of the word. The

6:42

sermon which he now delivered was

6:44

marked by the same characteristics of

6:46

style and manner as

6:48

the general series of his pulpit oratory. But

6:51

there was something, either

6:53

in the sentiment of the discourse itself or

6:56

in the imagination of the auditors, which

6:58

made it greatly the most powerful effort

7:01

they had ever heard from their pastor's

7:03

lips, it was tinged

7:05

rather more darkly than usual with

7:07

a gentle gloom of Mr. Hooper's

7:09

temperament. The subject had reference

7:12

to secret sin and those

7:14

sad mysteries which we hide from

7:16

our nearest and dearest, and would

7:18

feign conceal from our own consciousness

7:21

even forgetting that the omniscient can

7:23

detect them. A

7:26

subtle power was breathed into his words. Each

7:29

member of the congregation, the most

7:31

innocent girl, and the man of

7:33

hardened breast felt, as if

7:35

the preacher had crept upon them behind

7:37

his awful veil and discovered their

7:40

hoarded iniquity of deed or

7:42

thought. Many spread

7:44

their clasped hands on their bosoms. There

7:47

was nothing terrible in what Mr. Hooper said, at

7:50

least no violence, and

7:53

yet with every tremor of his

7:55

melancholy voice the hearers

7:57

quaked. An unsought

8:00

pathos came hand in hand with

8:03

awe. So sensible were

8:05

the audience of some unwanted attribute in

8:07

their minister that they longed for

8:09

a breath of wind to blow aside the

8:12

veil, almost believing that a

8:14

stranger's visage would be discovered, though

8:16

the form, gesture, and voice were

8:18

those of Mr. Hooper. At

8:21

the close of the services, the people

8:23

hurried out with indecorous confusion, eager

8:26

to communicate their pent-up amazement and

8:28

conscious of lighter spirits the moment

8:30

they lost sight of the

8:32

black veil. Some

8:34

gathered in little circles, huddled closely

8:37

together, with their mouths all whispering

8:39

in the center. Some

8:41

went homeward alone, wrapped in

8:43

silent meditation. Some talked

8:45

loudly and profaned the Sabbath day

8:48

with ostentatious laughter. A

8:50

few shook their sagacious heads, intimating that

8:52

they could penetrate the mystery. While

8:55

one or two affirmed that there was no mystery at

8:57

all, but only that Mr. Hooper's

8:59

eyes were so weakened by the midnight

9:01

lamp as to require a shade. After

9:05

a brief interval, forth came good Mr.

9:08

Hooper also in the rear of his

9:10

flock. Turning his veiled face

9:12

from one group to another, he

9:15

paid due reverence to the hoary

9:17

heads, saluted the middle aged with

9:19

kind dignity as their

9:21

friend and spiritual guide. Greeted

9:24

the young with mingled authority and

9:26

love, and laid his hands on

9:28

the little children's heads to bless them.

9:32

That was always his custom on the Sabbath day.

9:35

Strange and bewildered looks

9:37

repaid him for his courtesy. None,

9:40

as on former occasions, aspired to the

9:42

honor of walking by their pastor's side.

9:45

Old squire Saunders, doubtless by an

9:47

accidental lapse of memory, neglected to

9:49

invite Mr. Hooper to his table,

9:52

where the good clergyman had been wont to

9:54

bless the food almost every Sunday since

9:56

his settlement. He returned,

9:59

therefore, to the parsonage and,

10:01

at the moment of closing the door, was

10:04

observed to look back upon the people, all

10:06

of whom had their eyes fixed upon the

10:08

minister. A sad

10:10

smile gleamed faintly from

10:13

beneath the black veil and flickered

10:15

about his mouth, glimmering as

10:17

he disappeared. How

10:20

strange, said a lady, that

10:23

a simple black veil, such as

10:25

any woman might wear on her bonnet, should

10:28

become such a terrible thing on Mr.

10:30

Hooper's face. Something

10:32

must surely be amiss with Mr.

10:34

Hooper's intellects, observed her husband,

10:36

the physician of the village, but

10:38

the strangest part of the affair is

10:41

the effect of this vagary, even on

10:43

a sober-minded man like myself. The

10:45

black veil, though it covers

10:47

only our pastor's face, throws

10:49

its influence over his whole person

10:52

and makes him ghostlike from head to

10:54

foot. Do you not feel it so? Truly

10:58

do I, replied the

11:00

lady, and I would not be alone with him

11:02

for the world. I wonder he is

11:04

not afraid to be alone with himself. Men

11:07

sometimes are so, said her

11:09

husband. The

11:13

afternoon service was attended with

11:15

similar circumstances. At its

11:17

conclusion the bell told for the funeral of a

11:20

young lady. The relatives and

11:22

friends were assembled in the house, and

11:24

the more distant acquaintances stood about the

11:26

door, speaking of the good qualities of

11:29

the deceased, when their talk was

11:31

interrupted by the appearance of Mr. Hooper, still

11:33

covered, with his black veil. It

11:36

was now an appropriate emblem. The

11:38

clergyman stepped into the room where the

11:40

corpse was laid and bent over the

11:43

coffin to take a last farewell of

11:45

his deceased parishioner. As he

11:48

stopped, the veil hung straight

11:50

down from his forehead, so

11:52

that, if her eyelids had not been closed

11:54

forever, the dead maiden might

11:56

have seen his face. Could

11:59

Mr. Hooper be be fearful of her glance that

12:01

he so hastily caught back the black veil?

12:03

A person, who watched

12:06

the interview between the dead and

12:08

living, scrupled not to affirm that,

12:10

at the instant when the clergyman's

12:13

features were disclosed, the corpse had

12:15

slightly shuddered, rustling the

12:17

shroud and muslin cap, though

12:19

the countenance retained the composure of

12:21

death. A superstitious old

12:23

woman was the only witness of this prodigy.

12:26

From the coffin Mr. Hooper passed into the

12:28

chamber of the mourners and thence

12:31

to the head of the staircase to

12:33

make the funeral prayer. It

12:36

was a tender and heart-dissolving

12:38

prayer full of sorrow, yet

12:41

so imbued with celestial hopes that

12:43

the music of a heavenly harp swept

12:46

by the fingers of the dead seemed

12:48

faintly to be heard among the

12:51

saddest accents of the minister. The

12:53

people trembled, though they

12:55

but darkly understood him when he prayed

12:57

that they and himself and all

12:59

of mortal race might be ready,

13:02

as he trusted this young maiden had been, for

13:05

the dreadful hour that should snatch the

13:07

veil from their faces. The

13:10

bearers went heavily forth, and

13:12

the mourners followed, saddening all the

13:14

street with the dead before them,

13:17

and Mr. Hooper, in his black veil,

13:20

behind. Why

13:22

do you look back? said one

13:24

in the procession to his partner. I

13:27

had a fancy, replied she, that

13:30

the minister and the maiden spirit

13:33

were walking hand in hand. And

13:35

so had I at the same moment, said

13:38

the other. At

13:40

night, the handsomest couple in

13:42

Milford village were to be joined

13:44

in wedlock. Though reckoned

13:47

a melancholy man, Mr. Hooper had

13:49

a placid cheerfulness for such

13:51

occasions, which often excited

13:53

a sympathetic smile, where livelier merriment

13:56

would have been thrown away. There

13:58

was no quality of his disservice. disposition which

14:00

made him more beloved than this. The

14:03

whole company at the wedding awaited his

14:05

arrival with impatience, trusting that

14:07

the strange awe which had gathered over

14:10

him throughout the day would now be

14:12

dispelled. But such was

14:14

not the result. When

14:16

Mr. Hooper came, the first thing

14:19

that their eyes rested on was

14:21

the same horrible black veil which

14:23

had added deeper gloom to the funeral

14:26

and could pretend nothing but evil to the

14:28

wedding. Which was

14:30

its immediate effect on the guests

14:32

that a cloud seemed to have

14:34

rolled duskily from behind the black

14:36

crepe and dimmed the light of

14:38

the candles. The bridal

14:40

pair stood up before the minister, but

14:43

the bride's cold fingers quivered in

14:45

the tremulous hand of the bridegroom,

14:47

and her deathlike paleness caused

14:50

a whisper that the maiden

14:52

who had been buried a few hours before

14:54

was come from her grave to be married.

14:58

If ever another wedding were so dismal, it

15:00

was that famous one where they told the

15:03

wedding knell. After

15:05

performing the ceremony, Mr.

15:07

Hooper raised a glass of wine to

15:09

his lips, wishing happiness to the new

15:11

married couple in a strain of mild

15:13

pleasantry that ought to have brightened the

15:15

features of the guests like a cheerful

15:17

gleam from the hearth. At

15:20

that instant, catching a glimpse

15:22

of his figure in the looking glass, the

15:24

black veil involved his own spirit

15:26

in the horror which had overwhelmed

15:28

all others. His frame

15:31

shuddered, his lips grew white, he

15:33

spilt the untasted wine upon the carpet

15:35

and rushed forth into the darkness, for

15:38

the earth, too, had on her

15:40

black veil. The

15:43

next day, the whole village of

15:46

Milford talked of little else than

15:48

Parson Hooper's black veil. That

15:51

and the mystery concealed behind it

15:53

supplied a topic for discussion between

15:55

acquaintances meeting in the street and

15:57

good women gossiping at their own

15:59

open windows. It

16:02

was the first item of news that the

16:04

tavern-keeper told to his guests. The

16:06

children babbled of it on their way to

16:08

school. One imitative little

16:10

imp covered his face with an old

16:12

black handkerchief, thereby so affrighting as playmates,

16:14

that the panic seized himself and he

16:17

well nigh lost his wits by his

16:19

own waggery. It was

16:21

remarkable that, of all

16:23

the busybodies and impertinent people in

16:26

the parish, no one ventured to

16:28

put the plain question to Mr.

16:30

Hooper, wherefore he did this thing.

16:32

Either too, whenever there

16:34

appeared the slightest call for such

16:36

interference, he had never lacked advisors,

16:39

nor shown himself averse to be guided

16:41

by their judgment. If he erred

16:43

at all, it was by so

16:45

painful a degree of self-distrust that even

16:48

the mildest censure would lead

16:50

him to consider an indifferent action

16:53

as a crime. Yet, though so

16:55

well acquainted with this amiable weakness,

16:58

no individual among his

17:00

parishioners chose to make

17:02

the black veil a subject of

17:04

friendly remonstrance. There

17:07

was a feeling of dread, neither

17:09

plainly confessed nor carefully concealed,

17:11

which caused each to shift

17:14

the responsibility upon another. Till

17:17

at length it was found expedient to

17:19

send a deputation of the church in

17:21

order to deal with Mr. Hooper about

17:23

the mystery before it should grow into

17:26

a scandal. Never did

17:28

an embassy so ill discharge

17:30

its duties. The

17:32

minister received them with friendly courtesy, but

17:34

it became silent after they were seated,

17:37

leaving to his visitors the whole

17:40

burden of introducing their important business.

17:43

The topic, it might be supposed, was obvious

17:45

enough. There was the black

17:48

veil, swathed around Mr. Hooper's

17:50

forehead and concealing every feature

17:52

above his placid mouth, on

17:54

which at times they could perceive the glimmering

17:56

of a melancholy smile. But that

17:59

piece of shape, to their

18:01

imagination, seemed to hang down before

18:03

his heart, the symbol

18:05

of a fearful secret between him

18:08

and them. Were

18:10

the veil but cast aside, they might speak

18:12

freely of it, but not till then. Thus

18:16

they sat, a considerable

18:18

time, speechless, confused, and

18:20

shrinking uneasily from Mr.

18:22

Hooper's eye, which they

18:24

felt to be fixed upon them with an

18:26

invisible glance. Finally,

18:29

the deputies returned abashed to their

18:31

constituents, pronouncing the matter too weighty

18:33

to be handled, except

18:35

by a council of the churches, if

18:37

indeed it might not require a general

18:40

synod. But there was one person

18:42

in the village, unappalled by the

18:44

awe with which the black veil had

18:46

impressed all beside herself. When

18:49

the deputies returned without an explanation, or

18:51

even venturing to demand one, she, with

18:55

the calm energy of her character,

18:57

determined to chase away the strange

18:59

cloud that appeared to be settling

19:01

round Mr. Hooper every moment more

19:04

darkly than before. As

19:06

his plighted wife, it should

19:08

be her privilege to know what the

19:11

black veil concealed. At

19:13

the minister's first visit, therefore, she

19:15

entered upon the subject with a

19:18

direct simplicity which made the task

19:20

easier both for him and her. Whenever

19:23

he had seated himself, she fixed

19:25

her eyes steadfastly upon the veil, but

19:28

could discern nothing of the dreadful

19:30

gloom that had so overawed the

19:32

multitude. It was

19:34

but a double fold of crepe, hanging

19:36

down from the forehead to his mouth

19:38

and slightly stirring with his breath. No,

19:43

she said aloud and smiling. There

19:45

is nothing terrible in this piece of crepe, except

19:48

that it hides a face which I am

19:50

always glad to look upon. Good

19:53

sir. Let the sun shine from

19:55

behind the cloud. First lay

19:57

aside your black veil and then tell me

19:59

why you put it on. Mr.

20:02

Hooper's smile glimmered faintly. "'There

20:05

is an hour to come,' said

20:07

he. "'When all of us shall

20:09

cast aside our veils, take

20:11

it not amiss, beloved friend, if

20:14

I wear this piece of crepe till

20:16

then.' "'Your words are

20:19

a mystery, too,' returned the young

20:21

lady. "'Take away the veil

20:23

from them, at least.' "'Elizabeth,

20:25

I will,' said he. "'So

20:28

far as my vow may suffer me. Know,

20:31

then, this veil is a type

20:33

and a symbol, and I

20:35

am bound to wear it ever, both in

20:37

light and darkness, in solitude

20:39

and before the gaze of multitudes,

20:42

and as with strangers, so with

20:45

my familiar friends. No

20:47

mortal eye will see it withdrawn.

20:50

This dismal shade must separate

20:52

me from the world. Even

20:54

you, Elizabeth, can never

20:56

come behind it.' "'What

20:59

grievous affliction has befallen you,' she

21:02

earnestly inquired, "'that you should

21:04

thus darken your eyes forever.' "'It

21:08

would be a sign of mourning,' replied

21:11

Mr. Hooper. "'I,

21:13

perhaps, like most other

21:15

mortals, have sorrows dark enough to

21:17

be typified by a black veil.'

21:20

"'But what if the world will not believe

21:23

that it is the type of an

21:25

innocent sorrow?' urged Elizabeth.

21:27

"'Beloved and respected as you are,

21:29

there may be whispers, that you hide

21:31

your face under the consciousness of secret

21:34

sin. For the sake

21:36

of your holy office, do away this

21:38

scandal.' The color rose

21:40

into her cheeks as she intimated the nature

21:42

of the rumors that were already abroad in

21:44

the village, but Mr. Hooper's mildness

21:46

did not forsake him. He even

21:49

smiled again, that same sad

21:51

smile, which always appeared like

21:53

a faint glimmering of light proceeding

21:56

from the obscurity beneath the veil. "'If

21:59

I hide my face for sorrow, there

22:02

is cause enough," he merely

22:04

replied, and if I cover

22:06

it for secret sin, what mortal

22:09

might not do the same? And

22:12

with this gentle but unconquerable

22:14

obstinacy did he resist all

22:16

her entreaties. At

22:19

length Elizabeth sat silent.

22:22

For a few moments she appeared

22:25

lost in thought, considering probably

22:27

what new methods might be tried to

22:30

withdraw her lover from so dark a

22:32

fantasy, which, if it had

22:34

no other meaning, was perhaps a symptom

22:36

of mental disease. Though

22:39

a firmer character than his own, the

22:41

tears rolled down her cheeks. But

22:44

in an instant, as it were, a new

22:46

feeling took the place of sorrow. Her

22:49

eyes were fixed insensibly on the

22:51

black veil, when, like a sudden

22:53

twilight in the air, its terrors

22:55

fell around her, she rose and

22:57

stood trembling before him. And

23:00

do you feel it then at last? he

23:03

said mournfully. She

23:06

made no reply, but covered

23:08

her eyes with her hand, and turned

23:10

to leave the room. He rushed forward

23:12

and caught her arm. Have patience with

23:14

me, Elizabeth? cried he passionately.

23:16

Do not desert me, though

23:19

this veil must be between us here

23:21

on earth, be mine, and

23:24

hereafter shall be no veil over

23:26

my face, no darkness between our

23:28

souls. It is but a

23:30

mortal veil. It is not for eternity. Oh,

23:33

you know not how lonely I am, and

23:36

how frightened to be alone behind my black

23:38

veil. Do not leave me

23:41

in this miserable obscurity forever.

23:45

Lift the veil but once, and

23:47

look me in the face, said she.

23:49

Never, it cannot be, replied

23:52

Mr. Hooper. Then

23:54

farewell, said

23:56

Elizabeth. She withdrew her arm

23:58

from his grasp. and slowly

24:01

departed, pausing at the door to

24:03

give one long, shuddering gaze

24:06

that seemed almost to penetrate the mystery of

24:09

the black veil. But

24:11

even amid his grief, Mr.

24:14

Hooper smiled to think that only

24:16

a material emblem had separated

24:19

him from happiness, though

24:21

the horrors which it shadowed forth must

24:24

be drawn darkly between the fondest of

24:26

lovers. From

24:29

that time no attempts were made to

24:31

remove Mr. Hooper's black veil or

24:33

by a direct appeal to discover the

24:35

secret which it was supposed to hide.

24:39

By persons who claimed a superiority

24:41

to popular prejudice, it was reckoned

24:43

merely an eccentric whim, such

24:46

as often mingles with the sober

24:48

actions of men otherwise rational, and

24:50

tinges them with all its own

24:52

semblance of insanity. But

24:55

with the multitude, good

24:57

Mr. Hooper was irreparably a bug-bear.

25:01

He could not walk the street with

25:03

any peace of mind, so conscious was

25:05

he that the gentle and timid would

25:07

turn aside and avoid him, and

25:11

that others would make it a point of

25:13

hardyhood to throw themselves in his way. The

25:15

impertinence of the latter class compelled him

25:18

to give up his customary walk at

25:20

sunset to the burial ground, for

25:23

when he leaned pensively over the gate there

25:26

would always be faces behind the gravestones

25:28

peeping at his black veil. A

25:30

fable went the rounds that the

25:33

stare of the dead people drove him thence.

25:36

It grieved him to the very

25:38

depth of his kind heart to

25:40

observe how children fled from his

25:42

approach, breaking up their

25:44

merriest sports, while his

25:46

melancholy figure was yet afar off. Their

25:50

instinctive dread caused him to feel,

25:53

more strongly than ought else, that

25:55

a preternatural horror was interwoven with

25:57

the threads of the black crepe.

26:00

In truth, his only antipathy

26:03

to the veil was known to be

26:05

so great that he never willingly passed

26:07

before a mirror nor stooped to drink

26:10

at a still fountain lest, in

26:12

his peaceful bosom,

26:15

he should be affrighted by himself. This

26:19

was what gave plausibility to the whispers

26:22

that Mr. Hooper's conscience tortured

26:24

him for some great crime

26:26

too horrible to be entirely

26:28

concealed or otherwise than so

26:30

obscurely intimated. Thus,

26:33

from beneath the black veil there rolled

26:35

a cloud into the sunshine, an

26:38

ambiguity of sin or sorrow, which

26:41

enveloped the poor minister so that love

26:43

or sympathy could never reach him. It

26:46

was said that Ghost and Fiend consorted

26:49

with him there. With

26:51

self-shutterings and outward terrors, he

26:53

walked continually in its shadow,

26:56

groping darkly within his own soul

26:59

or gazing through a medium that saddened

27:02

the whole world. Even

27:04

the lawless wind, it was believed,

27:06

respected his dreadful secret and

27:09

never blew aside the veil. But

27:12

still good Mr. Hooper sadly smiled

27:14

at the pale visages of the

27:16

worldly throng as he passed

27:19

by. Among

27:22

all its bad influences, the

27:24

black veil had the one desirable

27:27

effect of making its wearer a

27:29

very efficient clergyman. By

27:31

the aid of his mysterious emblem, for

27:33

there was no other apparent cause, he

27:36

became a man of awful power over

27:39

souls that were in agony for sin.

27:42

His converts always regarded him

27:44

with a dread peculiar to

27:46

themselves, affirming, though but figuratively,

27:49

that before he brought them to celestial

27:51

light, they had been with him behind

27:54

the black veil. Its

27:56

gloom, indeed, enabled him to

27:58

sympathize with all dark. architections.

28:03

Dying sinners cried aloud for Mr. Hooper

28:05

and would not yield their breath till he

28:07

appeared. Though ever, as

28:10

he stooped to whisper consolation, they

28:12

shuddered at the veiled face so near their

28:15

own. Such were the terrors

28:17

of the black veil. Even

28:19

when death had bared his visage,

28:22

strangers came long distances to attend

28:24

service at his church with the

28:26

mere idle purpose of gazing at

28:29

his figure, because it

28:31

was forbidden them to behold his face.

28:35

But many were made to quake ere they departed.

28:38

Once during Governor Belcher's administration, Mr.

28:40

Hooper was appointed to preach the

28:42

election sermon. Covered

28:45

with his black veil, he stood

28:47

before the chief magistrate, the council

28:49

and the representatives, and wrought so

28:51

deep an impression that the

28:53

legislative measures of that year were

28:55

characterized by all the gloom and

28:58

piety of our earliest ancestral sway.

29:02

In this manner, Mr. Hooper

29:04

spent a long life, irreproachable

29:06

in outward act, yet shrouded

29:08

in dismal suspicions, kind

29:11

and loving, though unloved and

29:13

dimly feared, a man apart

29:15

from men, shunned in their

29:18

health and joy, but ever

29:20

summoned to their aid in moral

29:22

anguish. As

29:24

years wore on, shedding their

29:26

snows above his sable veil, he

29:28

acquired a name throughout the New England churches,

29:31

and they called him Father Hooper. Nearly

29:35

all his parishioners, who were of

29:37

mature age when he was settled, had

29:39

been born away by many a

29:41

funeral. He had one

29:43

congregation in the church and a

29:45

more crowded one in the churchyard, and

29:48

having wrought so late into the evening and

29:50

done his work well, it

29:52

was now good Father Hooper's turn to

29:54

rest. Several

29:56

persons were visible in the shaded candlelight in the

29:59

death of a man. chamber of the old

30:01

clergyman, natural connections he

30:03

had none. But there

30:05

was the decorously grave, though

30:07

unmoved physician, seeking only

30:09

to mitigate the last pangs of the

30:12

patient whom he could not save. There

30:16

were the deacons and other eminently

30:18

pious members of his church. There

30:21

also was the Reverend Mr. Clark of

30:23

Westbury, a young and zealous

30:25

divine who had ridden in

30:27

haste to pray by the bedside of

30:29

the expiring minister. There

30:32

was the nurse, no hired

30:34

handmaiden of death, but one

30:36

whose calm affection had endured

30:38

thus long in secrecy, in

30:40

solitude, amid the chill of age,

30:43

and would not perish even at the dying

30:45

hour. Who but

30:48

Elizabeth? And there

30:50

lay the hoary head of good Father Hooper

30:53

upon the death-pillow, with

30:55

the black veil still swathed about his

30:57

brow and reaching down over

31:00

his face, so

31:02

that each more difficult gasp of his

31:04

faint breath caused it to stir. All

31:07

through life that piece of crepe had

31:09

hung between him and the world.

31:13

It had separated him from cheerful

31:15

brotherhood and woman's love, and

31:17

kept him in the saddest of all prisons,

31:20

his own heart, and still lay

31:23

upon his face as if to deepen

31:25

the gloom of his darksome chamber and

31:28

shade him from the sunshine of

31:30

eternity. For some

31:32

time previous, his mind had

31:34

been confused, wavering doubtfully

31:36

between the past and the present,

31:39

and hovering forward, as it

31:41

were, at intervals, into the

31:44

indistinctness of the world to

31:46

come. There had been feverish turns,

31:48

which tossed him from side to side

31:50

and wore away what little strength he

31:52

had. But in

31:54

his most convulsive struggles and in

31:57

the wildest vagaries of his intellect,

31:59

were no other thought retained its

32:01

sober influence, he still

32:04

showed an awful solicitude lest

32:06

the black veil should

32:08

slip aside. Even if

32:10

his bewildered soul could have forgotten,

32:12

there was a faithful woman at his

32:14

pillow who, with averted eyes,

32:16

would have covered that aged face

32:19

when she had last beheld the comeliness of

32:22

manhood. At

32:24

length the death-stricken old man lay

32:27

quietly in the torpor of mental

32:29

and bodily exhaustion, with

32:32

an imperceptible pulse and breath that

32:34

grew fainter and fainter

32:36

except with a long, deep, and

32:38

irregular inspiration seemed to prelude

32:41

the flight of his spirit.

32:44

The minister of Westbury

32:46

approached the bedside. "'Enerable

32:49

Father Hooper,' said

32:51

he, "'the moment of your

32:53

release is at hand. Are

32:57

you ready for the lifting of the veil

32:59

that shuts in time from

33:01

eternity?' Father

33:03

Hooper at first replied merely by a feeble

33:06

motion of his head. Then,

33:09

apprehensive perhaps, that his

33:11

meeting might be doubtful, he

33:14

exerted himself to speak. "'Yes,'

33:19

said he, in faint accents,

33:21

"'my soul has a

33:24

patient weariness until

33:26

that veil be lifted.' And

33:30

is it fitting," resumed

33:32

the Reverend Mr. Clark, "'that

33:35

a man so given to prayer of

33:37

such a blameless example, holy in

33:40

deed and thought, so far

33:42

as moral judgment may pronounce, is it fitting

33:44

that a father in the church should

33:47

leave a shadow on his memory

33:49

that may seem to blacken a life so pure?

33:53

I pray you, my venerable brother, let not

33:55

this thing be. Suffer

33:57

us to be gladdened by your triumphant

33:59

aspect.' As you go to your

34:01

reward, before the veil of

34:03

eternity be lifted, let me cast

34:05

aside this black veil from your

34:07

face." And thus

34:10

speaking, the Rev. Mr. Clark bent forward

34:12

to reveal the mystery of so many

34:14

years. But exerting a

34:16

sudden energy that made all the

34:18

beholders stand aghast, Father Hooper snatched

34:20

both his hands from beneath the

34:22

bedclothes and pressed them strongly on

34:25

the black veil, resolute to struggle

34:27

if the minister of Westbury would

34:29

contend with a dying man. Never!

34:32

cried the veiled clergyman. On earth!

34:35

Never! Dark old

34:37

man! exclaimed the infrighted

34:39

minister. With what horrible crime

34:42

upon your soul are you now passing

34:44

to the judgment? Father Hooper's

34:46

breath heaved. It rattled in his

34:48

throat. But with a mighty

34:50

effort, grasping forward with his hands, he

34:53

caught hold of life and held it

34:55

back till he should speak. He

34:58

even raised himself in bed, and

35:00

there he sat, shivering, with the

35:02

arms of death round him while

35:04

the black veil hung down, awful

35:07

at the last moment in the gathered

35:09

terrors of a lifetime. And

35:11

yet the faint, sad smile so

35:14

often there now seemed

35:16

to glimmer from its obscurity and

35:18

linger on Father Hooper's lips.

35:22

Why did you tremble at me alone?

35:26

cried he, turning his veiled

35:28

face round the circle of pale

35:30

spectators. Tremble

35:33

also at each other. Have

35:35

men avoided me? And

35:37

women show no pity, and

35:39

children screamed and fled only for

35:41

my black veil. Just

35:44

but the mystery which it obscurely

35:46

typifies has made this

35:48

piece of crepe so awful. When

35:52

the friend shows his inmost heart

35:54

to his friend, the lover to

35:56

his beloved, when

35:58

man does not vainly shrink

36:00

from the eye of his Creator,

36:03

loathsomely treasuring up the secret of his

36:05

sin, then deem

36:08

me a monster, for the

36:10

symbol beneath which I have lived

36:12

and die I look

36:15

around me and lo! on

36:19

every visage a

36:21

black veil." While

36:26

his auditors shrank from one another

36:28

in mutual affright, Father

36:30

Hooper fell back upon his

36:32

pillow a veiled corpse, with

36:35

a faint smile lingering on

36:37

his lips. Still

36:40

veiled they laid him in his

36:42

coffin, and a veiled corpse

36:45

they bore him to the grave. The

36:48

grass of many years has sprung up and

36:50

withered on that grave, the

36:53

burial stone is moss-grown, and

36:55

good Mr. Hooper's face is dust.

36:58

But awful is still the thought that

37:01

it mouldered beneath the

37:04

black veil. This

37:18

is B.J. Harrison. I hope

37:20

you've enjoyed this vintage episode of

37:22

The Minister's Black Veil by Nathaniel

37:24

Hawthorne. If you've

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