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to cure oh to of france knew of political economy being told her people were for bread she asked why if there was no bread did they not give them cake mrs believed in the honesty of her heart that when she had hired ty of servants paid the highest wages bestowed handsome presents fed them not only but and never she had performed the whole active and passive of a mistress in common with many others she the and break downs of her domestic to imperfect of our society everybody had trouble with their servants of course she must expect it was the she i to her domestic wounds one morning was summoned to bring the baby down to show to some and the little thing being charmed with the j feathers and flowers that decorated the gay guests was to remain in the drawing room and retiring to the window she heard not the following conversation do you keep the nursery maid yon brought with you from paris mrs v dear yes i would not part with her on any account she speaks such pure french my next baby i am resolved shan t get the bad habits of my other children it shall speak french first and french always i am very fortunate just now i have a french cook and a jewel of a french waiter but do not your other servants quarrel with them asked mrs i had a french cook once and they made a perfect below stairs oh n replied mrs shrug and let live her what an below if you are in heaven above as i truly am with french cooking and waiting i am in a higher heaven than any of you said a mrs since i went to board i live in perfect luxury nothing in the world to do but get up and enjoy myself oh as to that replied mrs i never trouble myself about my domestic concerns what can t be cured must be endured you know but can you teach your husband your philosophy t does he not fret when he happens to find you out when he comes home to dinner and the dinner not ready never dear mrs my husband is one of the men in the world besides of course he knows it s all the servants fault and there s no use in scolding them if you dismiss one set you only get a worse in their place we long ago made up our minds that where there was no remedy it was wisest to submit with a grace there is one remedy thank heaven inter posed a mrs we can break up and go to board as mrs has done and as we shall all have to do i have been trying to persuade mr to it for the last year what is his objection t oh he says he married to have a home he got a of boarding houses when he was a bachelor d c c so we shall have to worry on a while longer but i take special care to let him know all the torment i have there s nothing like letting these men share the burden to make them willing to throw it o so henry said and to cure or to never gave her husband any peace till be took to france interposed mrs i had ti letter yesterday from mary henry they have bad a horrible time of it lately been robbed by their servants bless me how shocking do they intend remaining abroad t yes till the girls are grown she found her housekeeping interfered too much with their education she was a you know troubled about many things does she intend establishing her daughters abroad r asked a mrs who had till now listened in silence no indeed she speaks with horror of the state of society in paris and says she would rather bury her daughters than marry them there then there are worse social evils than the household of america dear mrs how sarcastic i did not intend a sarcasm if the evils we suffer are lighter than those that exist in other countries we should i think endure them without complaint and since they belong to a condition of society in which our lot and our children s is cast it might be well to try to them excuse me exclaimed mrs rising to go i have washed my hands of the whole concern and never shall voluntarily resume housekeeping and excuse me said mrs her friend s movement i have made up my and mind to dismiss the crew and give up the ship and laughing she followed mrs k son goat each one to his taste said mrs mine is not in your line dear mrs and she too took leave now they are gone said mrs i must say that if my husband was as as sam i would give up housekeeping too or hang myself mrs and mrs were old friends and in days though mrs was by a few years the senior this made it easy for her to adopt the style without any appearance of assumption a fault to which there were indeed no tendencies in her character no anne she replied no you are of too happy a temper to hang yourself in any x and you are too kind to drive others to hanging ap if your husband had been as as sam you would have set about making his home comfortable and not abandoned it but how can a home be made what a man calls comfortable with such servants as we have now dear mrs answer me that said mrs with the air of one who had uttered a by the mistress of the house doing her duty and thoroughly we must begin at the | 6 |
housekeeping than i did no one could know less than i did anne but my circumstances since have been more favourable to my improvement than yours the first three or four years of my marriage were by my ignorance of domestic concerns my husband as you know is most kind tempered and considerate but i saw him perpetually annoyed with the consequences of my ignorance and i was never indifferent to my household duties i felt my and failures and was perpetually made uncomfortable by them still i tried to persuade myself as everybody else does that it was my servants business to understand their work no one dares nowadays a servant to cure or to but i remonstrated with them i changed them i echoed the complaints i heard every side and verily believed housekeeping the bitterest curse of a woman s existence my three eldest were bom within the four first years of my marriage my cares of course multiplied rapidly and made me all but miserable my husband was most indulgent he inviting his friends to his house because i had upon two or three occasions been and made unhappy by dinners to our friends we could not afford to hire extra servants and i had not yet learned to supply my people s ignorance by my own knowledge and to provide against their by my own foresight so all the advantages and pleasures of hospitality were i am sure i remember your giving parties yes one perhaps two i did give because we must keep our place in society and this was the easiest contribution i could pay you can hire skilful people you know for such and get through them without feeling disgraced disgraced anne i confess i did in my secret soul feel for i was conscious that my miseries arose for the most part from my own defects i look back even now with bitter regret to the social duties that my ignorance my utter compelled me to forego dear that is superfluous misery i am sure who ever did perform so many social duties i have often wondered how you with your ten children could think of taking your two into your family and that little sickly orphan girl and let live ah anne we cannot make one duty a substitute for one omitted dear me then you may as well omit them altogether as i do but pray tell me when this new light dawned upon your affairs perhaps it was a northern light up in that barbarous country you removed to you are right it was my husband s affairs compelled us to remove to the st my nurse was the only person that i could for love or money persuade to go with me love was her motive love not only the children but for us for before this time i had got on a little in my domestic self education and had to treat lane as my friend bless me did live with you so long ago r yes she it was who taught me not only to appreciate the virtue but to estimate the power and respect the dignity of a domestic are you not tired anne dear pray tell me how you got on in that wilderness at first badly enough when we were within six miles of our home was taken ill we stopped at a log hut she was too ill to proceed there was but one bed that the people could for any consideration spare i wished to remain with my sick child but the mistress of the hut said no unless i could cook my own make the child s and do my own waiting on the nurse was welcome to stay but folks warn t plenty enough up there to run after ladies what a brute to or to endure not at all it was the plain truth told oh how much i would then have given for s faculties my servants anne there was no alternative and i was obliged to go on with the consciousness that i should be as useless in my own home as at the log hu t however i had health and strength and the cheerfulness they i was beginning to profit by the lessons of necessity our teacher and our best there were no domestic to be obtained i cannot describe to you my condition nor my family s when we were first reduced to depending on my skill oh how i over my first dropped it in the ashes and my fingers my poor husband standing by the while and laughing my potatoes i served as hard as they were dug out of the earth the first day we borrowed bread from my husband s farmer our only neighbour the next not coming i was compelled to make some i was ashamed to ask directions of our neighbour mrs stone i thought it be a simple operation and i knew as i supposed the materials of which it was composed i and baked it after calling my husband from important business to heat and clear my oven anne you would have pitied my consternation if you had seen me when i drew the bread from the oven it was as solid and as heavy as a i cried my husband laughed his patience was inexhaustible i then laughed too threw away my bread tied my right arm in a sent for mrs stone and said you see my condition will you mix some bread for me v she set about it with alacrity i watched h live and let live every step of the process and found i had omitted the in my composition i went a little further in my for i was in a position to be as much ashamed of my ignorance of the domestic arts as a professed amateur would be | 6 |
she was a poor child whom i took in country phrase to bring up a treasure she has proved she is now so accomplished that she can earn more than i can afford to pay her and she is about leaving me to go as a first hand to a then you do meet with ingratitude as well as the rest of the world t h and let live i have certainly no to complain of from i have had hard work to persuade her to leave me and she only on condition that i permit her to return if she cannot learn to content herself away from us what a pity said mrs whom the common way of at such subjects seemed to have rendered incapable of seeing them in mrs s point of view what a pity she did not keep to plain sewing could you not prevent her learning certainly but a poor girl has it hard enough getting her living by her needle at the most profitable work so i made her avail herself of every opportunity of learning of my do you never consider yourself yes anne most i most certainly benefit myself by the improvement of those under my care i have often wondered that in the country do not more frequently secure help by taking children to bring up young children may always be obtained and care and kindness while they are too young to render much service is amply paid afterward a child taken from a vicious family or from a ignorant or mother may thus be saved not only as far as concerns the self preserving virtues that are brought into action in this world but the fruits of a moral and religious education she may be saved in a higher sense in getting new i prefer young we have known mrs principle acted on where the and the were much greater than in to cure or to endure ones yoimg subjects can be and taught you can inspire them with confidence and make them zealous fellow workers with you in their own improvement those who have come to years of maturity especially foreigners have minds so and such bad habits that it is very difficult to make them comfortable members of a little family regulated upon principles of affection and confidence but dear what a task must all this teaching be and what a harvest anne depend upon it my dear friend there is no happiness like that of our faculties to achieve some good end yes you are very right but then the object must be worth the exertion now to confess the truth to you do not be offended i do not mean to apply it to you you are so superior to most women that it is different with you but in general i mean it does appear to me very vulgar for ladies to to to work sweep a room for instance roast a turkey horrible there will seldom be occasion for a lady to perform herself who thoroughly understands it for this very knowledge will enable her to direct the services of others but i would have every girl practice enough to be able to help herself in the that are constantly and to teach the ignorant whose ignorance mark if she cannot she must endure a woman may employ a vast deal of talent in the administration of her family affairs i think it was who said it required as much ge live and live to order an entertainment as to draw up an army and anne if our young ladies want the example of to redeem domestic offices from their vulgarity to the let them remember and and sundry others for a champion to my cause there is the old roman who tells us was followed to the wars by only one servant and when this servant was weary would cook the dinner roast a turkey perchance if he could get one seriously my dear anne do not let us con any occupation so vulgar as and how many lives are consumed in utter a little light reading a little a little visiting dressing and un dressing and so day after day passes away you and i anne know a great many who perform well their domestic duties without their interfering with what are called higher pursuits but i do not know how there can well be a higher pursuit than the improvement and happiness of those who are placed by providence in those little schools over which we in virtue of our characters as mothers and let us try to train our girls for this their happiest to prepare them to be the ministers of providence to the more ignorant children of the human family mrs was interrupted from an unexpected quarter lee had unobserved listened during the last sentences she had drawn nearer and nearer and now she involuntarily exclaimed how like mother she does talk a compliment cried mrs laugh ing and she bade take the baby up stairs reform the simplicity of the girl pleased mrs and her sweet countenance was stamped on her memory it is fortunate for you anne she said that my was interrupted when we mount our we are apt to our friends the truth is i often think reflection would bring others to the result to which necessity brought me it may be you have certainly given me some new ideas i have heretofore thought only of enduring the evil never of it chapter vm reform mrs the very next morning set about altogether her household like that of many fresh her zeal was employed on the faults of others rather than her own i am resolved she said to to speak to about her drinking she is getting too bad i have long thought so mrs and | 6 |
too often not in proportion their desert but accord ing to their effect on the convenience of their em mrs was under a strong impulse and she proceeded in that most delicate of all operations reform mary she said i perceive that you are getting uneasy like all the girls mary was suffering from and loss of spirits the almost certain consequence of top close a confinement to a employment she burst into tears don t be troubled mary i did not mean to reproach you resumed mrs servants are always they shall like some other work better than that they are doing it s the old story each one is eager to lay down his particular burden and glad enough to take if i live and let live up i was not the least offended if you had seriously proposed going away i should to be sure have thought you very absurd and ungrateful indeed indeed mrs i am not but what surely you do not in earnest mean to leave me i must ma am the doctor says i am getting a liver complaint nd i can never be cured if i don t take to some stirring work mary how absurd you have been to some goose of a doctor it is a great deal harder to do stirring work as you call it than to sit at your needle i will speak to doctor smith about you you know i have always told you that you might have our own physician free of expense thank you ma am but i am sure my own doctor is right he says he will not impose medicine on me it will only make the matter and i feel what he says to be true and you really mean to leave me t i must mrs well you must do as you think fit but i doubt if you find a better place mary was silent her tears stiu flowed there was something like a in mrs s words and still more in her manner which repressed the expression of the gratitude mary deeply felt for all the and kindness she had received at mrs s hand and the lady left her with the conviction that as she soon after said to a friend mary was just like all other servant girls let say what she will they are an ungrateful pack mr and i have made mary presents upon presents i have never counted her lost days and i have never spoken a harsh word to her and now she is going away when she knows how important she is to me just because some absurd doctor has put it into her head that sewing don t agree with her if mrs had understood the first principles of and she was perfectly capable of them and if she had felt the duties of her station and applied these principles to the persons cast upon her care mary would not have lost her health and they might have con to the end of their lives to live together with benefit instead of parting with smothered reproaches on the one side for and smothered gratitude on the other for the of virtues that after all were merely virtues of constitution after one or two other attempts at re form mrs to her old mode of ing with the current and letting things take their own way convinced she said there was no use in trying to have matters too perfect our conclusion is that old in families as in states are not of sudden ot e y and live chapter ix said you know you have the dishes to do to day it s my sunday out but i did not have my sunday out last sunday you know mrs that was not my fault nor was it mine said who had the strongest motive for maintaining her rights wanted to go out and mrs said if i would stay and amuse the children i should go home to day and had well earned the performance of the promise for mrs said she had never known the children so quiet she and mr had got their sunday s nap without once hearing them the secret of this was that finding it sorely against her conscience to pass the sacred day in picking up and dressing had kept the children still and most happy too by telling them sunday stories she had heard from h r mother left the kitchen for a few moments and presently the bell rung twice the summons for i am sorry to disappoint you said mrs but i entirely forgot it was s sunday out can t i set the dishes aside ma am and wash them when i come home no nothing puts out so much as that you know we must mind our p s and q s with don t look so dismal child it s waiting till to morrow j will think it s for ever waiting till tomorrow oh that little broken back brother you told me about never mind i ll give you some of the children s old to carry to him tomorrow he is not fond of mrs ar ey he can t play with them well books then picture books s face brightened she had often thought how happy it would make to possess a few of the books the children were tossing about the nursery thank you mrs she said nothing would please so much it will make the time seem shorter when i am away and half consoled and but half she returned to the kitchen where greeted her with you ll find miss lee you ll never get the upper hands of me so you may as well give up first as last telling about burnt or trying to keep me at | 6 |
home when my turn is out i did not try to keep you at home mrs i only tried to go myself and if you knew how reason i had you would not wonder her mild answer softened and she said well well child your turn will come young folks must give way you know after doing up her odds and ends went to bed and went to sleep for sleep is the certain compensation the sure wages of the working but not till she had wondered whether mother live and let live as pale as when she had last saw her and whether had felt very bad about her not coming home there s tears on her cheek and she sleeping said as she got into bed that night they sting me god forgive me the next morning seized a favourable moment to ask mrs to select the books oh there s no hurry child said mrs i can t possibly spare you to go home to day it s mon day you know and we are to have company to dinner and mrs was interrupted by a request from david that might help him with the breakfast things this was followed by a message from asking s aid you see how it is resumed mrs after giving an affirmative to both you must wait till to morrow come don t look like all the woes ril get your books ready now so there will be nothing to detain you when the time comes this she immediately did and in the indulgence of her good nature quite forgot the virtue that was appropriate to the occasion sore as s disappointment was that boasted for happiness having a little more to do than she could do the twenty four hours which followed now mrs she said i am going i have finished all you told me to do finished you have not brought down the things for the yes but you have not beaten the eggs yes and ground the and the coffee and the and cleaned the and taken the pin feathers out of the ducks called david from the top of the stain f just rub over the table and silver forks for me that s you poor with a sigh proceeded to the task before it was done mary s bell rung and had to run to the thread and needle store for something the must have on her return she met oh she said you must put mrs ai s room she has sent me to the s called out from the upper entry miss anne just come and on my for me mary is busy screamed master ask david for my boots and bring them up a little from the nursery door mamma says you may come and set up the soldiers i shoot down no no i cried in the same breath mamma says you may iron my doll s frock first secretly that if she ever d in an other service it should not be for odds and ends patiently her way through and then presented herself and to mrs and asked not if she might go but how long she might stay oh child i am really sorry i forgot to tell you that you cannot possibly go to day was the wet nurse says she must go out and yon know it is as much as my life is worth to refuse but cannot mrs come home in time for me t no will not be in till after dinner and then it will be too late for you dark ob mi won t miss anne mind the baby just while i run home and see how they all are and tell why i can t come no miss anne cannot she is just going to her dancing lesson was silent for a moment it seemed impossible to her to give up and she ventured upon rather a daring request mrs she asked won t you be so good as to take care of the baby yourself i ll be as quick as possible you are going a little too far every body that lives with me old and young upon my indulgence you know child i am just dressing to pay visits oh mrs if you could once see our poor you would not wonder that i could ask for dancing or visits to be given up it may be child but still you should recollect what is proper and what is not i really would not disappoint you if i could well help it turned away to hide the tears she not repress the younger children who had been listeners and spectators now from the kind of their nature pressed round their mother to urge s suit mrs probably from an comfortable consciousness of the wrong she was was unjust and much less good humoured than usual be quiet children she said i must be more firm with the whole of you don t me any more about this business of going home it s always inconvenient in the week to spare you to morrow and mary leave me and my new women are friday the baby is to be and saturday is always a busy day so you must wait till sunday comes and say no more about it it is said the worm will turn if you do tread on it had nothing of the in her nature but she did turn and said in a voice that should have penetrated the lady s conscience you you promised mrs hush child r go and lay away your cloak and hood but you did promise her mother said one of the children and you always tell us we ought to keep our promises certainly you ought and so i always do unless | 6 |
and sisters and brothers are everything the poor are not while they can thus r the minds of their children above mere animal gratification to a comprehension of the true riches of affection ttie pure happiness of home k and chapter xl all goes wrong i never was so tormented before said mrs to her husband what now my dear my new me so from morning to night she is coming to me with please to show me how you wish this done mrs and would you be so good as just to fix this me mrs if she don t suit you why not get another she does suit in some respects she is quick and very neat she only does not fitting can t you teach her how absurd i might as well turn at once i sha n t worry my life out about it if she don t get on i out for somebody change is the order of the day how does the girl in s place make out so so she is a but she an me so i in what way she has no she has always lived in the country and in families she about the the as if she were in a tavern sings when i am in the room down when she is taking my orders never all pots a miss to the girls names says yes and no to me and all that sort of thing these are all subordinate matters is she not good tempered and well disposed can t yoa teach her she is the very soul of good temper and she seems as if she not do too much for you but this is so tiresome i wish i could have one perfect servant we must have perfect first that is just like you it is their business and they ought to perfect themselves for it the part of a mistress is not less a business my dear nor does it require a less preparation don t be offended but i must say that i beg our girls may be made acquainted with domestic affairs i should be ashamed to impose them on any man as ignorant as many ladies are oh it s very easy talking but you men know nothing about troubles yon women my dear certainly do your best to us i think you are very unkind you see me so annoy your turn is coming for david is talking of going david heaven forbid he is and it is half your fault for ever io him about saving his wages and them for him till his head is fairly turned he is going to get married and buy a farm in the foolish fellow not so very foolish either to exchange a s place in the city for a wife a farm and in upon my word it lid gives me pleasure to find david s affairs turning out so well your tune will change when david really goes i hope not my dear we will try to lose the sense of our loss in david s gain charity begins at home mr but should not stop at home anne mr was a man of sense and benevolence but unfortunately he had begun with his wife as she had with her he found her not her place and it was much trouble to teach her it required too sustained an effort to awaken her to a sense of her and to inspire her with energy to supply them so he consoled himself with her favourite what can t be cured must be endured one raw disagreeable day when the was just enough above e point to allow a heavy snow to came into the nursery with the two little girls whom she had led from school that being one of the duties included in her odds and ends my dear said her mother why are you crying it s so cold mother could hardly help crying please make haste and take off my did her best but her hands were and she was less than usual what you your fingers are all i should think they would be mother said little who had inherited her mother s con kind she had not any gloves and she could not keep her hands under her cloak because she had to take hold of our goes hands you know and besides her shoes hare holes in them and her feet are wet my dear if girls will go out with ragged shoes they must expect wet feet why did not you change your shoes v i have no others ma am then pray buy a pair the first time you go out but in the mean time look in my closet you will find a basket there with half a dozen pairs more or less worn take them all if they suit you oh thank you ma am may i give a pair to mother mrs what an idea your mother wear my shoes did you notice my foot child i yes am but mother s is very small too and noise troubles father so much that a pair of light shoes will be a great comfort do what you like with them child you are both welcome to them but don t let me see you with holes in your shoes if there is anything i can t put up with it is an looking servant that s just the way continued mrs after had gone in quest of the shoes servants never provide themselves with walking shoes and they go about in the wet and then bark all winter it is too to hear them poor the immediate cause of this having before earned every cent of her wages to her mother s necessities had looked with dismay | 6 |
upon her shoes if the generosity with which mrs had half a dozen pairs of but half worn delicate kid shoes upon had provided her with a pair of stout walking shoes the child would k and ut hare been saved from much discomfort and suffering but she had not yet learned that it was her duty to know the actual condition of her to watch over their health and as far as she was qualified by superior judgment to their if she had even inquired into s she would have been touched with the child s virtue for mr was far from being an woman she was only thoughtless indolent and self indulgent few women are exposed to ring vices but let them beware of the and that their virtues the consequence of s exposure was soon apparent in a severe cold the running up and down stairs in the irritated state of her lungs gave her pain and ignorant as she was of diseases sad after crawling about for two or three days with a burning cheek and short breath she was laid on her bed and mrs s physician being sum he pronounced her very ill with of e lungs the virtues of s successor were now called into and they amply for the want of the graces that belong to polished service like most american bred she had been accustomed to service her talents had been developed by a life of she used her head as well as her hands and as found her heart for the direction of both is your mother s we once heard an a competent that the very beat had ever excepting tha scotch who did not them were the american female in all asked her kind attendant mn says david shall go for her oh please don t send to mother she cannot come and it will only make her miserable to know that i am sick i will give yon as little trouble as i can set the drink by my bed that is all i want it is not the trouble i mind but your mother is the person to be with you why cannot she come explained the sad and brushing ofi a tear said you are right we must not put another drop in a cup too full already if mrs will only allow me time i can do everything for you let me see your the was just opened when mrs s bell rung there i must go let it be till i return went down two pairs of stairs to mrs s room it was miss anne rang the bell tell what you want my dear have you seen my had not just look for it please can wait i guess i must go back to s look first interposed the mother miss anne wants to take her doll down have you sent david for s mother explained why had not how l resumed mrs how is she to be care of here t oh i can manage well enough if the children won t ring me down to wait on their babies there s your s anne and now if yoa live will go up to our sky parlour and see poor s you ll be sorry for her may i go mamma no my dear those upper rooms are you will take cold if a sick person can stay in them it won t hurt me just to go in mamma servants are accustomed to cold rooms my dear but mamma insisted the little girl who was sagacious and not accustomed to blind in any form i am sure the servants are part of their time in our warm rooms you are talking nonsense anne there is one thing that is not nonsense mamma i know if i was a servant i would not live anywhere that i could not have a fire when i was sick the child is fit to be a mistress thought as she the stairs and that s what can be said of few had just nicely arranged her dressing to proceed when the bell again sounded there it goes again ring a she exclaimed oh please go it my head snap so to hear it when you are staying just for me thus entreated went bring me my fur shoes from the next room the shoes were brought and half way up stairs when the bell again rung i forgot to ask you for my cloak and hat but have thought yourself is there anything else i ought to think of mrs before i finish the she asked as she handed in the all wrong bless me is not that done yet t why you began it half an hour ago mrs saw a cloud gathering on s brow and she added i know the sick must be taken care of give plenty of or anything in the house she wants perceived mrs was ery of what cost her neither exertion nor sacrifice is it surprising that such generosity little gratitude had scarcely reached the top of the stairs when the bell again rung most oh entirely forgot that mr wishes dinner half an hour earlier than usual run down and tell dear me i gave david leave to go out you ll have the table to set please oh how inconvenient it is to have servants getting sick mine always are the next morning was worse i shall never be better she said while i have such dreadful nights mrs to bed so and i her so that i get upon the very edge of the bed and she so horribly that i cannot close my eyes but pray don t tell mrs she knows as well as we do mrs drinks and it will just | 6 |
end in my being sent home to my mother and that i could not bear so your life is to be lost and all of us burnt up alive maybe just because she can their well it s a world if i only might have any little bit of a bed on your floor the house in vain for extra servants she was however a woman of if she had been in log hut in the western wilderness she could have and contrived something and so she would not be baffled in a rich merchant s establishment in the city of new york an old sofa cushion was brought from the garret and various articles of apparel for pillow and blankets then put into her bed agreeing with her the that they would alternately occupy the on the floor now the reward of the kindness she had shown these women when they were strangers in the family to her frequent of how kind you are how much trouble i give you would reply shut up child it s contrary to scripture and reason to be forgetful of good turns many a time have your weary little legs run up and down stairs to show me where to put or to find this or that de of mrs s and after all maybe it was not that but something else she wanted she often put me in mind of a fellow that was laying on to his ox and screaming he is said a man who ached to see the poor beast whipped oh i meant i said the fellow in spite of a good physician s advice and all the care her voluntary and most kind nurses could give her s disease though continued two weeks passed away how long they seemed to poor who in addition to the usual pains and of sickness felt the constant dread of adding to her mother s burdens and the failure of the rent money from her loss of time our father in heaven will not us mother has often said and i will try to remember this when i feel too bad thought and with such all goes wrong tions she her beating pulse is that little patient of yours never to get well doctor t asked mr one morning when the physician came into the breakfast room i cannot answer for it unless she can have a room with a fire in it bless me is she in a cold room all this time mrs my dear how is that you know mr the servants rooms have no and she could not have a room with one without turning out one of the family would she not be better off at home doctor even if her family are poor than in a damp cold atmosphere t it must be bad for lungs it is undoubtedly and if the child has a home and a mother as the day is fine and mild i should advise her being sent there at once so the carriage was ordered s wages paid without any for loss of time a basket with and another with provisions put up for her and permitted to attend her home as the carriage drove off that s a very good little girl said mrs i hope she will recover but if she does not what a comfort it will be to think we have done our duty by her i hope the poor child has not suffered from the cold room you should have thought of that anne my dear how can i think of everything i am more dissatisfied with myself than with you at this moment anne i see that it is a shocking neglect of our duty for people of our condition not to provide for the comfort no the actual wants of those they employ i do not wonder servants are always ready to change their places hoping b and live for something better no doubt if i another year those upper rooms shall be made comfortable r the tiresome domestic even poor s illness might have been avoided by proper and due attention on the part of mrs there was not in her case nor do we believe there often is any want of indulgence or liberality to be complained of we hope we shall not be accused of all the blame to the mistress because it is our task to illustrate her we know that the general low character of and their perfect independence the mistress of a family in much inevitable perplexity but the fault is not all the domestic s we believe the difficulty would be materially lessened if young women were educated for their household duties and if they carried into their relation to heir the right spirit if they regarded them as their unfortunate friends whom it was their religious duty to instruct to to improve to make better and happier it has been well said that when domestic economy was there would be no need of economy we would venture further and say that when our family are perfectly organized the will have come will it sooner thb chapter tbe scene is upon thee take and be patient when thou art changed to a low estate was an perfectly illustrated by s mother s folks an t day folks said when she returned to her friend the i found s mother in a little back room as clean as hands could make it sitting oyer a few coals sewing away for dear life and two bright slips of girls beside her sl e turned deadly pale when i brought in and the girls screamed out don t be frightened dear mother said in her quiet way i have been sick but i am getting better her mother drew a cot near the fire and we laid on it i saw the poor | 6 |
woman was all of a nerve but pretty soon she kissed her child and said it e a blessing to see you any how then i heard a slender little and i turned round and saw our you know up in a basket cradle an face he has on his crooked body he begged to have his cradle drawn close to her bed and then he took her hand and kissed it over and over and said oh how glad i should be if i was not so sorry to see you sick and now you will stay at home and it won t be your duty to go when you can t go and so on i declare it l live let live made me feel weak in the joints to hear him so i sat down and took an observation as the sailors say the father lay in bed with his eyes open but his wife said he did hot know anything he had had a stroke since was at home they re sort o and sort o not poor folks in respect to this world poor as the young but in respect to furniture for t other hut soul and body must be kept together and if you ll join me we ll send a load of wood just for love to they ll feel better to take it so than as charity from rich folks to be sure them that takes can t enjoy themselves so much as them that gives that s scripture law and we can t help it as our business is with s domestic service we must pass over the interval spent at home the energies of youth and good nursing soon restored her and through the good offices of charles s she obtained a place at a mrs s mrs s next door neighbour mrs would herself gladly have taken her but she had just then cast upon her a desolate german girl who on account of her utter ignorance of our language was unable to obtain a good place as soon as has learned english learned our ways she will do well enough said kind mrs and in the mean time i make out with her better than others for i am not particular never was woman less particular in her from others nor more exact in the performance of every duty of humanity than mrs she was too intent on her own perform to watch over her neighbours and she knew the scene changes nothing more of the than that they were what are called respectable people s new mistress was from one of the states her husband was a and she was in her little sphere an ambitious woman what is called in vulgar among country a driver she had certain aims in the first was riches the second that her children should rise far above their parents level she well understood the means of the the second is somewhat more difficult her eldest girl was eighteen with full dark eyes white teeth and a profusion of brown hair was dangling in half a of in the morning and depending from half a dozen in the evening she had moreover a fair pale complexion and a very slight person the result of indulgence and these attributes were valued by herself and her mother as giving her what they called a genteel look alas for such mrs reckoning an from manual labour as the r requisite for a lady that charmed word permitted miss to about all the morning in a greasy black silk with a novel or a bit of soiled muslin in her hand while she was in the kitchen herself and her was maid of all work she rose early and worked late it being an oft repeated of mrs that young help should be up the natural from these premises would seem to be that young help should go to bed not so reasoned dame live and let help she said should evenings to make up for not turning off heavy work that is should make up in time for defect of force i understood you hired for washing said the first time she saw preparation for those domestic that were said by a wit to have been to job s birthday the day he cursed did i say so t well i meant i hired when i did not keep help but i don t calculate to pay monthly wages and six shillings a day for washing six shillings is six you can t complain child for i take the of it did not complain but as she toiled through the too heavy burden imposed she looked back with regret to mrs s odds and ends and even to the never ending trifles of mrs when the washing was ended the fell to s share the hanging out bringing in and folding the of the i shall do myself said mrs you ll have nothing to do to day but make the beds and sweep down the chambers and hang over the dinner and smooth off the light things while the pot is boiling oh on t forget though to rub over the knives for he is particular about clean knives any further directions were interrupted by a call firom the stairs ma ma n t finish sweeping off the walk i sha n t be ready for dancing school yes run and do it quick if we do not know why so many good wives their by the he and it may be mm a feeling of their the changes he comes home and finds it not done hell find fault with i don t know how i am ever to make a gentleman of if he sets him about such another scream from the stairs and a request that | 6 |
ma would send to do up the parlour for miss expected mr smith to call mr smith was a young of the law from the country of whom miss flattered herself she had made a conquest at her dancing master s public the preceding evening the mother answered in the affirmative be she said to and make a fire in the grate and polish the and dust off the shades over the flowers and the up to the fire is very pa when she expects her and if mr smith should stay to dinner fix the dinner table just as they fix it at miss s and i expect you won t eat with us because has feelings about such things had feelings too but not about such things her mother had early taught her that feelings were given to the affections and awaken the sympathies and not to feed pride vanity and selfishness her feelings were no way affected by sitting or not sitting at mrs s table your respectability must come from your own character and my child and not from the place you occupy her mother had said and in her short experience had seen vulgarity at a gentleman s table and witnessed refinement in the lowest seat of the household had feelings and once every day they were called forth by her friend charles who brought her tidings from home which he al l and ways gave witli some kind word to boot he delivered the family supply of bread it had been mrs s custom to send to the in order to avail herself of a customary in the price of a certain number of but since had lived with her charles had to serve her at the door without an additional charge an offer extremely to dame who understood little of those considerations that cannot be represented by dollars and cents the day before s first month was up mrs said to her i see your ears are bored why don t you wear rings my mother bored them when i was a veiy girl to to please my father then you have worn them yes my father never liked to see me without them so i always wore them at home they are dreadful pretty things i think don t you yes ma am but i think as mother says they would look prettier if there was any use in them use or no use you would look a deal for them your face is the right shape and your neck rather long you want em what have you done with yours t mother disposed of them replied and she was leaving the room to avoid telling the why and stop did you ever take notice of s ear rings with red drops f had seen them well here they are just as good as new only one stone is gone ana one broke they might be repaired for a trifle they cost four thb has got two other pairs and so she has handed them over to me to oblige you let them go at half price thank you i do not want them don t want them i know what that means well rather than you should be disappointed you shall have them for one dollar it won t be like laying out money you can take them towards your wages i cannot take them at any price my mother has occasion for every penny i earn thus answered mrs was not ashamed still to urge and finally when she of putting her foolish broken finery she over something of girls not fifteen asking four dollars in cash a month and if she paid at that rate she should look out for somebody that could earn it and a deal of that made poor feel very uncomfortable mrs however understood her own interests too well to part with so faithful and capable a girl and went on in her second month s service you can t find it pleasant there said her mrs a vulgar hard woman but patience is a great help and in some respects she is a desirable person with whom to serve a short she is a thorough with her you are every day yourself for the future your work at mrs was quite as wearing and her odds and ends would never have fitted you to conduct business yourself go on my dear cheerfully the future has always a harvest in store for who diligently improve the present as some plants grow stronger exposed to winds and and let mrs lee s resolution had strengthened in keen s labours were interrupted by a summons home her father was dead the events that are appointed alike to all seldom pass without awakening sympathy no poor widow could be more lonely than was mrs lee but she found friends among those who bore it steadily in mind that to do good and to communicate is an acceptable sacrifice said mrs bustling in a few minutes after had got home would not give me a minute s peace till i came over to see how you all were and so forth the and so forth afterward explained with an awkwardness that had the quality of inward grace meant that at charles s by her own generous heart and by heir husband she came to offer to the expenses of a decent funeral mrs lee had calmly supported herself till that moment but such kindness from persons almost strangers to her such a tribute of respect to her and her little ones in their very low estate overcame her and she burst into tears as soon as she could regain her composure and express her gratitude in words she communicated with the confidence that such kindness deserved the precise state of her affairs she had a watch which had | 6 |
been given to her husband by his mother it had once been very valuable and now though if mr could obtain a just price for it she should be able to meet the expenses of the funeral she did not tell how through the scene changes ai necessities her husband had this memorial of his mother how amid the ruin of every just principle and every other pure and holy sentiment that affection which is truly our love and our last had clung to him neither did she communicate to any one but the of all her thoughts the weakness that had her noble mind for a little while i did feel she said as if i could not part with that watch it is the last of our better days and a secret wish has with me to have something to show the children in future as a proof of what their were so our little pride and vanity will stick to us so inconsistent are our foolish habits our principles it has been my desire to your minds to your situation to make you realize that all honour and happiness was in your own souls and not in anything outward and i might have spoiled it all by turning your eyes back to what your parents were instead of directing them forward to what you should be but we are lingering with s mother when our business is with far less interesting people mourning is very wa said mrs when returned to her work in her usual dress i conclude your mother don t feel as if she could put you all fully into it at once t no ma am that s well i like to see folks prudent and to help em to be so i ve got a that i had for my best when mother died and it was made over for when the baby died i calculate and let it will answer your purpose very well for sabbath days and so forth go get it did not know where it she believed she had tucked it in the rag bag her mother uttered a upon her and bidding her it the gown torn and rusty was soon produced it don t look very smart to be sure said mrs evidently taken by its forlorn appearance but when it s and turned and made over i u allow you time to do it pf evenings it will make quite a dress that is considering it sha n t cost you more than a dollar and a half only think of getting a for a dollar and a half i am not going to wear mourning at all mrs possible exclaimed mrs holding np both her hands nor your ma neither f yes my mother will wear it but not the children s manner was so quiet and decided that dame s hopes of turning the penny vanished but suppress her she could not well she said every one to their notion but i think if i was ever so put to it i should find a way to get mourning when my folks died especially where it was as it was it looks pa and wanting of respect to go without it looks is looks j would have borne this in silence if she alone had been concerned but her mother s part in it made the blood mount to her cheeks and she said my mother s rule is to show your respect by doing your duty to the living and after the changes those that form wrong judgments by looks must she checked her resentment and stopped must what t you may as well out with it must answer for it themselves mrs ma interposed miss how can you let your help be so impudent to you master stood by and taking a different view of the case said if ma is to her help she must expect her help to be to her but we are tired we are sure our readers be of the petty of a vulgar mistress endured them patiently for some months and till mrs became impatient of regularly paying the four dollars instead of putting off in part payment some useless thing that gave her the agreeable feeling of having got a bar gain out of the person on whom she imposed it happened not half an hour after had received her warning to look for another place that charles while delivering the bread said mother has found a capital place for and she leaves us next week and i leave here next week charles snapped his fingers but said never a word a few minutes afterward mrs sent for and engaged her to supply s place live and chapter s mother mb rs in point of fortune and station was on an equal footing with her neighbour her husband was a prosperous baker with seven sons healthy noisy good humoured boys our friend charles now a lad of seventeen being the oldest a person suddenly transported from the depths of the inter of an region to a land of soft airs fruits and flowers could not have felt a greater change than did in her translation from her dreary existence at dame s to the atmosphere of affection and kindness that mrs breathed around her these two women possessed the same external means the and selfishness of the one made a moral waste around her the good sense and sweet temper of the other like those blessed fountains well called diamonds of desert that minister to the life and beauty or everything within their reach if mrs had some defects which the effect of her virtues or rather diminished th amount of good she might have produced we do not care to them it seems unreasonable to demand an exact arrangement of rich ous | 6 |
productions we therefore prefer giving a glimpse of her home a day there might stand foi mother a year as her kindness was inexhaustible having no measure but the never ending wants of her fellow creatures s business made it necessary for him to be in his before light and charles at the peep of dawn was off in the bread cart the morning was yet dim when came in from his and his wife the kitchen fire mother he exclaimed why don t you call up your boys to do that oh i like to do it now and then myself yes but your now and then is about every morning it s the boys business they went out last evening yon know and it s their nature to love to sleep in the have a care mother l natures must not be humoured too much where is why is not she helping you oh you know she had here to spend the day yesterday and she and drew him home in the evening and she went to bed late and tired besides poor thing she has got a pain in her breast working so hard next door down late and up early and it will take a good deal of rest ing to bring her quite right again well she has reason to bless her stars she has got into hands that give rest to everything but themselves what upon earth is that noise a cock up stairs mrs laughed it s only s he begged me to let him take him up stairs to wake the boys up this morning i thought i would him m and once if s well it takes a power of to spoil good boys hit the truth though he did not precisely state it indulgence loses much of its effect where good feelings are kept in constant exercise by pure examples and warm affections come sam john bob cried mr going to the stairs get up and help your mother bring down your sam he ll wake i at this moment was coming down stairs and she said smiling she wished he d her sooner soon enough my child soon enough now is up to help you tu tell you what i stepped in for there was a poor german came into the last night for employment and made out to talk with him enough to find out he had been looking since he landed a week ago in vain for work he is a very man and tells a sad story about the starving of his old parents at for whom he hopes to provide a place in our country did interrupted mrs find out all that well he did not take all that pains to teach for nothing no mother a kind turn is seldom but i was going to say that as this poor fellow has nowhere to go to breakfast i thought if you were willing i would ask him in certainly i should like it you know i have rather a fancy for clap down some he has been so long he u want something warming make a good cup of it will be to him poor s mother low did all she was and would fain have done more a portion of her work had been omitted in consequence of s visit the preceding day and she set about rubbing the knives that will do said mrs they are clean never mind the put the brightest by father s plate and that poor fellow s i ll see to the and the cakes it s bad work for your eyes you run and set the table and clap on an end so that german need not feel as if he crowded us the cloth is rather spotted shall i put a clean one on mrs v no never mind it makes the too heavy for to have clean table linen every day set the plates round so as to humour the spots you say they only dirty one cloth a week next door i should think the had come if that happened with my boys they never will learn such neatness it is a good lesson to learn thought but learned ne t door at too great an expense of on the head over the hand and aching hearts mr now came in to say the stranger was ashamed to accept their hospitality he had not been shaven for a week and was not willing to appear before the women in that condition said mrs ever ready to sacrifice herself to the simplest act of kindness oh never mind let him just step into our bedroom and take him round the other way run in and clear up and away this was done and well done in a minute and no one can question and ut i s faculties who has seen mother s room ia a house where there are half a boys a baby and a never mind the hospitality was the first ray of kindness that had fallen on the poor stranger since he had reached our shore whither he had come full of hope as the of starving friends at home in charles s absence not one of the family could speak an intelligible word to him but each eagerly offering some kindness employed a language as universal as human feelings set his favourite cat on the stranger s knee and the baby sitting on s lap snatched from her plate a and offered it to him dear exclaimed his hand you are dripping the all over the cloth a tear of pleasure started into the mother s eye never mind she said dear little fellow how strange he should enter into his feelings mother cried out one of the little bo rs do see bob and drinking milk out | 6 |
of the same cup the mother but joining in the general laugh the reproof was you need not all laugh at me retorted for sam lets his dog eat out of his plate but not when he does interposed no but he lets pick the off his lips and i am sure my s mouth is as clean as s you need not laugh so mother it s than baby s was when you kissed it and said you did not mind such a sweet little fellow s dirt oh bob i guess not well if you did not say so mother you did not mind it s then punish myself by not kissing you for s week to come oh no no mother please give me one kiss now mother refused and bob a little rogue jumped up behind her chair encircled her neck with his arms and kissed her chin cheeks and forehead leaving an impress of wherever his lips touched there was a general shout round the table at bob s victory quietly handed mrs a wet the were and the breakfast being over the family proceeded to the business of the day mrs had an energy and in the pursuit of her children s improvement that if we did not every day see new and strange in individual character would have seemed with the habits of general indulgence we have depicted a portion of her power was undoubtedly wasted but her were accompanied by such perfect and generosity that all sense of the infirmity was lost in love and gratitude bring your book john she said and let me be sure you have learned your lesson yon were all about the last night just hear sam in oh never mind if you are getting s breakfast that s right dear keep the hot for him but you need not spread that clean over the cloth is used to taking it as he can get it he never finds fault mrs but he likes it nice don t mind washing a more for him she says s clothes wash easy it is among that m and li s gets the blind side of every one in the house but go on your own way bless ine i when did you that knife and fork it must be confessed you have by living next door such a body as mrs has her uses for those who know how to catch the good and leave the bad the bad was so disagreeable mrs could not catch it was right it is the faults of the good and that we are in danger of john had finished his in that charming school book charming alike to teacher and popular lessons and was now in eager pursuit of his slate have you seen it mother v he asked no how is that sam seven times seven is fifty think again dear just set the baby down and look for john s slate oh mother miss said i most not come to school again without strings in both my shoes lu dear run into the bedroom and look for a piece of fit is in the upper drawer or the under or on the table oh perhaps in my piece basket alas for the through that th oh please to find my blame it it s always gone find it yourself bob call on for everything the that good natured le easy j there is philosophy in this what a pity a moral power should be wasted which is a more certain o labour than th beat washing r d mother always can find and i always and so it proved with infinite sweetness found and arranged all thai was wanted and the happy little troop issued from the street door and were bounding away when their mother called after them john here for mercy s sake john you must take a bottle of wine to poor old mother clear to reed street not if you do not choose sir replied his mother sternly for she could manifest displeasure when her children failed in an act of kindness do give it to me mother i do choose only it s such a horrid long way down there no will take it by and by the way should never horrid long when we go to do a kindness well i don t see what he wants wine for you and father never drink wine the doctor has ordered it for him john now my boy you are conscious you have done wrong and are trying to find some reason for it take this book to martin has the doctor ordered a hook to cure martin s lame foot mother asked sam laughing i don t know as to that sam but i know it s what they call an medicine for all diseases that are not too bad to admit of using it ah good morning to you your breakfast is all ready and ready to cakes that s mother never did break fast meet a appetite to do it justice an appetite prepared by long exercise in the morning air and stimulated by good food arranged by neat and live while performing various other miscellaneous offices was the cakes filling his cup and throwing in kind words and smiles a spoiled favourite of fortune so called rising from the distasteful luxuries of a twelve o clock breakfast might have envied our baker s boy oh asked charles has father decided about the ticket for the lectures yes at least he left it to me as he always does and i am determined to go provided mr what ye call him says that a family ticket will admit to be sure it will is she not one of the there are | 6 |
few said slightly blushing that consider help so then they are fools besides being but in order to be certain besides being sure i called on mr what call him mother s name u know for all mankind besides a part of and asked him and he said any one that lived with us was one of the family but be honest charles did you tell him i was your mother s help why should i any more than that mother was your help no to you but i think mother is the greatest help we have in this family if help means one and more kindly than any one else ever did i think she is the best help in the world charles oh and go about your business you are turning my head call again xiv call again mrs received a proposition from friends in the village where she had spent her youth that induced her at once to her wearisome life in town and return there she was to over the family of an old pair whose some dozen children were married and dispersed she was permitted to bring with her and advantageous situations were offered for her two little girls it was decided should be left with mrs and determined to her future to this poor little fellow s heart was almost broken at parting with his sister without the extravagance of s lover he divided the world into two parts where she was and where she was not continued through the year at mrs s reminded by nothing but the regular receipt of her wages that she was at service at the of that time a sad change occurred mr suddenly determined to to he was the proprietor of land there which was now promising to become very valuable and both he and his wife expected from a removal to that fine new country physical and moral benefit to their children the well established and let was to be retained and charles perfectly qualified for the business was left to conduct it after much deliberation decision and it was settled that should remain in the city this was urged by charles and rather favoured by herself a place had offered at mrs where she might earn with very light labour seven dollars a month this money would enable her to put some favourite plans for into and any time if she chose as charles said and lest the argument should not prevail she might go to her mother well my children said mrs at the conclusion of their if one must stay i had rather the other should too you will be a brother to charles and you will be a sister to him f they both promised did the thought of ever being anything nearer enter their young hearts we shall see we are obliged to omit some of the most interesting scenes in s life the parting from the and her closing for the last time those doors that as she turned their she thought had never been closed against any claim to hospitality or kindness of any sort and the first depression of her at the chill atmosphere of a new service place she went to mrs s in the morning and on inquiring for the lady was told she was never visible till eleven but that she could see miss ad le miss ad le proved to be the nurse a of a certain age who lost no time in with the duties of her new place and its advantages her discourse a at t call again we shall repeat merely taking the liberty to the french she and mend her broken english a very pretty position you will have here my dear if you do everything very quick and very well it is very necessary you should never forget you are to be grateful to me for it for mrs my dear would never know that you was bom if i had not made the discovery smiled tis very true my dear we had one here very low irish person but very good judge of character she admired me very much she spoke well of you your and so forth particularly she said you was very humble which is very pretty quality in young person young person should always look up and so forth to those that are very little older as i am than you ad e shouted one of the little girls you look full old enough to be her mother c est j ai la d un age m r ne that is because i have the dignity belonging to ripe years but you ought to speak only so you always say when you don t want us to be understood i hate french and i never will speak it i don t choose papa says i need not ma au but your mamma miss says quite the contrary oh well mind papa when i like and mamma when i like that is the way i assure you said ad ie let to making like most foreign a general from her individual experience with all american children there h no govern ment i l this country nowhere the people do as they please and the very little children do as they please ton will have the very great advantage to eat with me great advantage indeed interposed again the young speaker ad e will take the best and leave you the rest that was the way she served little tr s ble ce je me de miss you are very disagreeable this morning i will complain of you to your mother and mamma will complain to me and i will complain to papa and papa will complain back to | 6 |
mamma retorted the little girl laughing i wish you to pay no attention to miss because her mamma wishes her to say nothing in english and it is as if she spoke not a word then you need not answer what i say ad le ad e muttered a mon t between her teeth and proceeded you will keep our room very nice i like very pretty order yes when you have others to take the trouble of it ad e i and in very hot days i wish you to walk out with the young ladies because it is very to my health and your complexion ad e you remember the day your colour ran down on to your ad e colour now at least natural it i call a ain impossible she continued when miss is here to tell you all but you will do everything as i wish you must ask always my direction for mrs is very all american ladies are very delicate you know and she wishes not to be troubled a girl now appeared with the nurse s breakfast ad e inquired why it was not brought by the waiter for a very good reason replied the girl mr has turned out of doors turned out of doors i for what f for loving champagne too well and drinking as much of it as mr himself je ai ad e checked before she had betrayed herself madame muttered ad e son est un b te poor madame her husband is a brute anne she called after the girl these cakes are cold to send me some hot ones says you want any more you may come and them yourself ad le now bestowed the most vulgar abuse in french upon and then begged to run down and her some cakes just half a dozen for me you can eat the cold ones my dear but my stomach won t bear cold cakes but resolutely declined going down that she was a stranger and feared to give offence in the kitchen she immediately found in avoiding she had run on ad e had expected to find in a meek subject to her authority and disappointed as well as displeased at so early a resistance she looked live and let live angry spoke and her ness without the slightest restraint of good manners turning over the toast to get the best bits pouring off au the cl ar coffee and the only egg to herself before the breakfast was the baby cried and ad le directed to take the little angel up and make it quiet adding that it hurt her to be disturbed at her meals t obeyed the little proved to be a stout boy of ten months in a most humour and in spite of the kind instincts of her nature that led her always to care for and caress children she was tired resisting its and screaming before ad e was ready to take it miss id her sister had gone to their french school the baby was exquisitely dressed no one could deny s perfection in every department of the toilet had arranged the nursery and was sitting at her when mrs made her appearance she was a tall and handsome woman of about thirty but her beauty waa by and and from the absence of all expression her air of high fashion or perhaps her extreme coldness and indifference appalled our modest heroine and after the first glance she did not again raise her eyes to the lady s face and her gave her no information as to the character of her new mistress for ber languid to her baby her more animated admiration of its new french dress her conversation with was all in we take the liberty to it the with which both mistress and maid a their discourse mrs thinking it quite to exclaim at every other breath mon though she rarely uttered the words in english the being forbidden in her own country by the of good society as well as by a divine what made scream so horribly he broke my morning nap oh madame a thousand thousand ask mamma s pardon and she joined his hands exclaiming what an angel he was terrified at a new face she nodding to took him up too suddenly it was all i could da to him is the girl promising well enough i may make something of her in time with an of trouble but nothing too much to do for madame these americans are so awkward at first so ill and at last too ad le but i suppose we are to have an american waiter mr has turned away and he ll not another frenchman mr is very impetuous madame it was only a suspicion of poor the other servants are always us in truth madame they are all in revolution down stairs and he will going gone well i will just shut myself up in my room and let things take their own way if mr will torn away my servants he must get others to suit himself i have nothing to do with it ah madame that is like the devil when the coach went over the precipice never let mind i am but a passenger madame cannot live without french cooking american cooking is for the brutes not for ladies if madame could only persuade mr to return to paris ah ad e if i could f dear paris i shall never go there till i go to heaven mr makes a point of never going where i wish he says if he go s again to paris he shall go without me the savage a thousand madame but how can any one say or do anything unkind to such an angel as madame one | 6 |
thing is sure mr he will not go to paris without you and leave him well thought of ad le and by the way mr has taken it into his head that is getting pale and he puts all the fault upon you for he says the wet nurse told him the only reason she went away was because she would not live with you and she called you a bag of lies and the irish savage the irish are all savages all false and cruel was good to though certainly madame before your eyes and mr mrs was not ashamed to laugh at s against a faithful and warm hearted creature who during a long illness had watched all night with her child and carried him all day in her arms and whom mrs had finally sacrificed to her favourite i wish ad e resumed mrs you had borne with a call again little longer wet nurses are like cows we only keep them for the milk they give ad e shrugged her shoulders but when they kick and hook madame this precious was broken off by the entrance of the person in question at sight of her the baby sprung from his mother s arms caught in hers and pouring out a flood of tears him with the fondness characteristic of her people god bless my darling she exclaimed and ye feel just the same and six weeks it is that ye have not seen me one pretty while to stay away when one loves so furiously said ad e contemptuously her words were like the spark that a great fire and was i not here the very day after i left ye v asked yes you for your wages forgive me and so i did but my mind was so full of my baby that when they told me mrs said i must call next day i thanked god thinking then i should see the boy again the milk was in my breasts yet and pressed upon my heart like but i should have been thinking of the money for my own child s nurse was ing her pay and two miles from the had i for it but i told you i would pay you the next day ah but ye ladies never think we have not servants to send or carriages to ride in for our pay the time is all we have it s easy for you to say call again and call again and the time it n and let i to call again is money to us and ye are ns of it besides holding back our own you are very impertinent it s the truth and not me that s impertinent to you mrs just listen to my story and ye ll be convinced twas the next day i was offered a dollar for my day s i could not lose it for i had two dollars a week to pay for my child so i did it and then in the evening walked the two miles again to be told when i got to your door that you could not attend to it then you were dressing for a party i might call to morrow i asked for mr but he was out so back the two miles i went and the walk after the heavy day s work and brought on a fever that night and held me a week and dried eveiy drop of milk in my breasts so i lost the nurse place i had engaged and had to take my own poor little baby from the breast for how was i to pay eight dollars from the seven which was all i could get as and the poor thing and died and all all mark it well mrs came from my not getting my money when it was due mrs cold and careless as she was was startled with the consequences of her own mere and naturally sought some could i know you was in such need of it it was a mere only your last month s wages ye knew it was due and that is all a lady should want to know wliat seems a trifle to you is all to us but how could twelve dollars be of such mighty consequence t r m r v call again i hare told you my story it proved sickness to me and death to my child c est ridicule exclaimed ad e you desolate madame and you very well know madame is very charitable i was not after wanting charity but my own tiiat madam had and i could not get well pray say no more about it it is all paid yes mrs but paid too we trust such evil consequences as suffered from the want of in the employer s payment do not often occur but they are not without a parallel is it not very common for ladies far more from than meditated injustice to delay the payment of wages is there not a of the rights as well as necessities of a large class including and humble of every sort in that common reply to their demands again s live and let chapter xv and now a certain facility at talking mrs was educated before this was considered me of the necessaries of polite life and she set an undue value upon it she went abroad to use a commercial phrase without capital and consequently returned as poor as she went in language she acquired a taste only for that to which art gives a false and fashion a a love for the that float on the surface of society in the french capital and for the that belong to a highly artificial state of society about as well adapted to our stage in the progress of civilization | 6 |
as an is to the growing bounding child or a lord mayor s coach to our western hunting grounds instead of training her children to the vigour necessary to endure and resist our rugged climate she them alternately in the nursery and in a french boarding school instead of allowing their persons to in obedience to the laws of nature the beautiful work of god was and the frames fearfully and wonderfully made were given over to french and but worse than this instead of learning to speak their own homely saxon in the phrases consecrated by the domestic of truth d centuries they must first in foreign accents taught by french servants even mrs might have perceived the folly of a permitting her children to take their first lessons on that most delicate most cunning instrument language from an american servant but it never occurred to her that the care of the french servant teacher was worse inasmuch as the opportunities of education moral and intellectual for the lower classes abroad are inferior to those accessible to parallel classes at home but unhappily these were not mrs s most serious mistakes she never even thought of preparing the minds and manners of her children for the state of society in which they were to live or of her own conduct to the actual duties of her condition among other necessary effects of this was the disorder and which in our visits fall more particularly under our observation mr was a man of good moral instincts but very little moral cultivation he but half concealed from his children his contempt for their mother and not at all his of her french he very early took a liking to lee he perceived that his boy his idol soon preferred her to ad le and he knew the of a child are he expressed in ad le s presence his superior confidence in r s sweet qualities and thoroughly tried they were won the love of the little girls which they constantly manifested much to their mother s annoyance by preferring on all occasions to ad e all of course ad le but while her mistress was her champion she felt live and quite safe and she was not insensible to the advantage of having a young girl of s capacity and good temper upon whom she might impose her duties without her indolent mistress giving herself the trouble to or even to notice her injustice but there were occasions when she felt the presence of this faithful girl to be not only inconvenient but dangerous on one of these returned unexpectedly from mrs sister s where she had been sent to aid in the care oi a sick child the child had died suddenly and on re entering the nursery found ad le at a with a dear friend both master and mistress were out and the keys had been left in trust with ad le the table was spread with the luxuries of the after ad e recovered from the first shock of s appearance she resumed her conversation with her in french with apparent ease and with unwonted courtesy begged to join them declined and refused a glass of which ad e said was the best thing in the world to raise the spirits after seeing one little child die when ad le s friend was gone and the relics of the supper removed she said as if h how generous madame is she say to me always ad e do with mine as if it were yours ah she is one angel madame understood the drift of this no one likes to appear a passive and at ad le s thinking her so she said in allusion to the does mr teu you ad e to do with his as if it were your own very impertinent miss just so always falsehood madame know so well as i your little arts to get the blind of mr bad appearance in the young girls to get the blind of the lady s band i have madame s leave is quite another thing you will not tell him she added softening her tone considered for a moment and then remembering her mother s rule whenever she doubted as to her course to go straight forward she said ad e you that i know you are mrs s confidence ad e s eyes absolutely glowed with rage but proceeded did not hear you tell mrs how much sewing you had done the two evenings you were out at balls when she was gone and every i had taken myself you could not hear that we talk french i heard and understood perfectly half mrs words are english and i have learned many french words from you and the children perhaps you think i did not understand your at me when you showed mrs as your work the i had taken up on s nor your offering me the pink when mrs had left the nursery v so it was to insult me you did not accept it no but i would not accept a free gift from one i did not like and certainly not a bribe had begun with a high tone she now began to feel how powerful are the weapons of truth even by a child and softening down she said in a voice you my dear mean always right but in one young person the judgment is not ripe and i et if my judgment is not ripe ad le is very clear and i made no mistake when i locked mrs for you you would not have asked me to do it if you could have done it yourself mon mon is there but one in the world that was the of my friend i do not believe it ad e any n ore than i believe those stockings | 6 |
embroidered with which i saw on mrs s feet last sunday and which are now on yours belong to i am not deceived ad le and i fear i am wrong in not mrs you will not dare to say to madame cried ad e bursting into a stormy flood of tears that i am thief and liar madame will believe madame know very well the american servant hate all the french it is true she may not believe me but that is no reason why i should not do right i hate to turn i have no friend to advise me but my conscience a safe adviser tells me i ought not to stand silently by and see my employer s confidence abused then you tell t ad e alarmed and enraged i must if you go on in this way but if you here i will never tell what is past paused for ad e s reply she was too cunning to make a promise that implied confession i never will bind myself to one such little girl as you but remember you have promised not to tell till you suspect more she evidently was abashed but truth and not penitent she was hardened by the long and practice of evil and by mrs s silly confidence and partiality perhaps had been singularly unfortunate we leave to others to decide whether her case was a rare one but in many years service in her own country and with sorrow we add in ours she had never had one employer who had regarded it as a duty to attempt to reform the faults and moral sense and strengthen the feeble virtue of her inferior and she had never had one who considered her a member of the same great family with herself a creature of the same passions and affections who after a few flying years when the relations as a trial to the virtue of and employed are past must appear with her at the same mrs winked at her faults to profit by her faculties and instead of leading her back to truth and duty urged her forward in her course by the example of her own and self indulgence knew she had provoked a powerful who would do battle with the sword and the shield but she was strong and tranquil in the consciousness of having done right before going to bed she offered ad le her hand saying be sure ad e i wish to be your friend and it shall not be my fault if we are not the better and pier for living together c est un bon ie is a good creature r exclaimed ad le yielding to a good impulse and returning the pressure of s hand he s human and some pulse of good must live within his nature o and let chapter a detection though too confirmed in evil to be by s gentle influence for some weeks after her conversation with was guarded be fore her she wore only her own finery neither indulged herself nor a with champagne or and only went out with mrs ge this was often enough for waa the pack horse on whom she was allowed to cast all her burdens she was more lavish than ever of her hollow caresses and pretty french on in his parents presence and the little fellow her as well as if he had understood them by preferring everybody else to her the of s presence was becoming intolerable to and she took a new course treating her with injustice and constant in the hope of driving her to seek a new service but this was not easy to effect liad been early impressed with an aversion to change as an evil in itself and besides her love for would not permit her to desert him she had no confidence in ad e and she herself pledged not to communicate her distrust till there was some further act on ad e s part there were too in her situation where are there not some circumstances she had the half of every a detection to go to church and to the stroke of the bell charles was on the steps to go with her she had whole evenings when ad e had gone out without preparing her to read and write she wrote often to her mother and mrs her separation from all she dearly loved sometimes brought the tears from her eyes to the paper but she wrote cheerfully said nothing of her trials or put them in the faint hues of the distance in the landscape while her pleasures filled the the letters began and ended with some allusion to charles sometimes charles thought the sermon the best he ever heard or charles thought it not quite so instructive as the last sabbath it was a rainy sunday and charles wore his old coat or it was such a beautiful sabbath and charles looked so well in his new coat last sabbath dear mrs charles laughed and said my old bonnet wanted a new and my old a new bonnet and so to reconcile him i told him how remembering mother s advice never to wear what was not suited to my circumstances though given to me i had declined a present from mrs of a french pink satin hat hardly soiled at all the next day he sent me the greatest beauty of a little straw bonnet with a white satin i hope it will never wear out mother there is one thing i wish you would tell me whether you think wrong charles and i always come the longest way home from church it seems very short is not it strange should know charles when i am holding him up at the window and he sees him coming up the street he and | 6 |
his hands but oh the poor little fellow is so affectionate when i come home he shouts as if he would go mad with pleasure had now been four months at the and she was beginning to suffer the natural consequences of her position her principles rested too firmly on a sure basis to be shaken and her dispositions were too sweet they had too much natural force to be easily but her habits like the habits of most young people were and at the mercy of circumstances she every day and in her and life her meals became events she had felt a blush steal into her cheek as she detected herself mentally wondering how she had existed day after day on trained from infancy to early rising it had seemed as natural to her as to the birds to rise when the day broke at mrs she occupied a sofa bed in the nursery at first it had seemed to her a real misery to wait hour after hour in the morning till it pleased miss ad le to have the blinds opened but in the process of a few weeks partly from keeping irregular hours at night and partly from the facility that all young people have at sleeping and partly probably from the physical that seems ever ready to on our energies she became at first passive and then like the she loved a little more folding of the arms to sleep and a little more slumber from having been a very bee in her industry she was falling into the lounging habits of the household sometimes she would be so hurried by ad e that she was compelled to de a detection her work in the most manner and then precious minutes and half hours that she had been taught to cherish as the stuff that life is made of were wasted in lounging about with the children or gazing out of the window with them listening to their comments on the fine clothes that were worn by those people whose only part in life seems to be to play walking for dress was the constant theme at mrs s had scarcely ever heard her mistress talk of anything else upon this topic was almost eloquent and the little girls naturally adopted and repeated what they heard so that life in the aspect it now offered to afforded ground for the fanciful theory of a certain writer who man that of animals and of dust to be made up of clothes had been well fortified by her mother to resist this ruling passion of the house but she was not from the infirmity of her age and sex and there is no knowing how long she might have resisted the influences that make half the world creatures of mere sense and had they not been suddenly interrupted had arrived at the period trying to the soul of mothers and nurses s days and evenings were devoted to soothing him at night he was left to s tender her virtue could not be expected to stand the test of his and and repeatedly was startled from her deep sleep by the shrieks of the child and when involuntarily she sprang to his bedside the poor little fellow most and stretched out his arms to her she suspected that in her impatience inflicted some personal violence upon him and particularly after hearing her assure mr the next morning that it was the cries of cats and not his child s that had awakened him oh the same morning she saw frequently put his hand to a part of the arm covered by his sleeve and on examining it she found it black and blue and looking as if it had been severely pinched could ad e she asked her self have done this it seemed to her too an act but suspicion had taken possession of her and she determined to be watchful she loved the child fondly and felt the more tenderly for it from the carelessness of its natural protector the next night at his usual time and his first roused from her light she took care to give no sign that she was awake ad e got out of bed and taking up the night lamp and as she supposed that was sleeping she took a from under the pillow dropped a few drops into s milk and fed him he soon fell asleep and as observed slept late and heavily the next morning all the next day was wretched she shed bitter tears over the poor little boy who it seemed to her would be the victim of his nurse she was uncertain as to the best course to pursue she felt sure ad e had given the child but what use would there be in telling the mother so ad le would frame her own lies for the occasion and would be believed and then she herself would probably be sent ofi in disgrace and no one would be left to comfort the poor little boy a detection but had not best address herself to the father it would be easy to rouse his fears he was now in philadelphia and expected home the next day in the intervening night she might perhaps get some proof to her suspicions thus with a prudence beyond her years on ber course she was careful not to betray by word or sign her suspicions to ad le the next night lay awake with a beating heart till began his usual ad e gave him his milk and soothed him to sleep but his sleep was restless and she was long kept awake just as her breathing betrayed that she had fallen asleep and believing that all danger for that night was past was yielding to the demands of nature started up wide awake and screaming this was too much for s patience he had taken | 6 |
she need not hint at if she does not want to be hinted at and besides i won t s trunk she steal mamma s cape indeed i i would trust her with all the gold in the world why don t you your own trunk blushed deeply and said she had rather not threw up both hands and looking at mrs exclaimed mon est il possible no it is not possible retorted and fired by ad le s against her favourite she caught the by which s key was suspended and unlocked the trunk on the top lay a pencil sketch of charles that he had the sunday before given to grasped k and held it up to trembling embarrassment begged her to give it to her and while a little contest ensued between them ad le casting ever and anon stolen glances at mrs proceeded in her it was a short piece of work there was something in the neatness and order with which our humble aud ut friend s scanty stores were arranged that have appealed even to ad heart if she had not been intent on self you must excuse me she said as she shook out s and her stockings i only serve you as i serve me myself it is nearly finished and then as me you will be tranquil one thing more and we have done mad t she took the last article a cotton from the bottom of the trunk unfolded and shook it the cape fell from within it there was a general exclamation ad e s mon mon drowned every other after the first burst of surprise mrs seemed entirely occupied with examining a tear in the cape which her pleasure in her recovered property a pleasure that otherwise would have engrossed her to the of all emotion at the discovery of such guilt in an apparently innocent young creature for in her eyes was but a little servant girl a species of the human with whom she had about as much sympathy as with the bees and the whom she fancied were created solely to make honey for the table and spin silk for ladies to wear oh how could you how could exclaimed and grieved was near fainting and pale as death s exclamation brought the colour to her face and tears and voice to her relief i did not take the cape she said i don t know how it came into my trunk ad e must know i oh mon mon listen madame you have never seen one such bold one false yon not when she wished not her examined did you not see her and tremble did she not turn pale as one guilty person when the cape dropped and now she accuse me s ah c est un quite shocking indeed responded mrs faintly her eyes still fixed on the rent in her cape do you could dam this so it not show f i believe not madame k she had only stolen it and not torn it resumed mrs i could haye forgiven but she really does deserve the ad le bad as she was started from such a consequence and affecting to pity she said she is very young the mamma exclaimed shall not go to the i will ask papa he will be home before dinner she shall not go to the if she is ever so guilty s distress was increased by her embarrassment as to what it was best for her to say or do her faculties were stunned she almost lost the sense of her identity she felt alone helpless and exposed to judgment without mercy s affection touched the springs of her heart and as she afterward said first sent her thoughts to the place and that having breathed a silent trust in him who in darkness as well as in light she felt more composed still the tears poured over her cheeks and little who sat on her lap put up his hand and wiped off first one cheek and then the other then put up hia to and st i kiss ber and finding all did not do he too burst into tears and hid his face on her bosom become of me thought folding her arms round the little fellow i will do what i can for you and after a little consideration she resolved that she would if possible remain in the house till mr s arrival and reserve her statement at his ear in the mean time ad e whispered to her mistress and both retired for a few moments in that interval ad le strongly urged sending immediately off without other punishment than loss of character and loss of place if she urged she stays till mr arrives she will frame her own story she will put everything upon mr will believe her men always believe a very pretty young girl against one who has the misfortune to be not young will be left without any french servant and that dear angel master would speak english first just a the young ladies bed convinced by these precious arguments mrs returned to the nursery and announced to that she must leave the house within an hour entreated that she might be permitted to stay till evening and her entreaties and then declared she should not go till papa came her mother s decision only made her more vehement till to her that if she cared for she had best let her go at once for all the servants knew what had happened and no one could say how soon a might be in the house this roused the common childish terrors of an officer of justice and she now urged to hasten her x false appearances however reserved to abide all risks that of leaving before his | 6 |
father was warned of his danger her resolution was however suddenly changed by the arrival of a letter from mr saying that business had unexpectedly taken him to virginia now there was no reason for delay but whither go though she had served all with whom she had lived faithfully and had left them with a character they had never manifested that sort of interest in her that inspired the poor child with confidence to apply to them in her present stress had they performed their duty had they been friends as well as with what confidence might this poor girl have appealed to them sustained as she was inwardly by strong champion conscience she thought of going to her mother at once but though she was sure her mother would believe her story others might not and she ould not bear the thought of returning to her with a character she hoped that if she remained in the city the truth might come out her heart prompted her to go at once to charles there he was of faith and sympathy to the full but what could he do for her nothing while her to a young man as her only friend might render her liable to further and more cruel what then should she do she had not a shilling in the for two days before she had sent all her to dear again she passed her in review and among them mrs always good natured and kindly disposed had made the most favourable impression and she had half resolved to go and and ut tell her story to her when a of the lady whom she had seen at mrs s the mrs who talked so like mother darted into her mind the seemed like a from heaven she had such feelings for servants thought she will hear me and give me good advice at any rate her decision made she proceeded to the preparations her departure and first by fear of ad le she i to speak alone with mrs to this ad e objected and that lady bade her say whatever she had to say without any fuss she then in spite of ad e s and told the story of the calmly and exactly there are few who give all the weight that should be allowed to general character against appearances in a single case especially if they have appealed to their own senses certainly mrs was not one of the exceptions she had seen with her own eyes the cape taken from s trunk she had witnessed s reluctance to have her trunk examined and her confusion afterward and she readily in ad e s suggestion that the story of the was an after thought up to save herself and to take revenge on ad le for the part innocent and which she had in exposing s guilt remembered the drops on her and referring to them as a of her testimony she produced it but the stain was after a little hesitation after again and again kissing who clung to her as if he understood all that was going on she told the story of his shrieks and showed false the marks still on his arm ad e quick as thought exclaimed mon and proceeded to tell a story of having let fall on his coral bells and her to secrecy by many promises of future mrs s maternal instincts were she listened with to ad e and telling she had no more time to hear her bade her leave the house instant ly poor embraced for the last time and crying as heartily a he did she unlocked his arms from her neck and gave him to whispering an entreaty that she would watch over him till her father s return answered by a burst of tears and against ad le and begging her to be quiet left the room the servants who had heard through the explosion in the nursery gathered round her to express their sympathy and their pf they all offered to speak a kind word for her wherever she went was comforted by their good will an she left mrs s with a composure that in her circumstances would seem wonderful did we not know the power of calm endurance in a soul conscious of integrity and therefore stayed on god i am sure i have done right she repeated to herself i am sure my mother will approve am sure time will come when nobody can make charles feel like blushing for me and more than all i am sure that god who knows all is my friend so i ought not to feel very unhappy but oh poor little and she brushed the fast coming tears from her eyes aa she entered a shop to ask for a p live live chapter a new friend ran her eye over all the in the and selecting fortunately the right one she went to square and was admitted to one of the fine houses that overlook st john s park she asked to speak with mrs and was shown into a large room on the second floor mrs looked up as she entered and at once recognised the intelligent and benevolent countenance impressed on her memory the recognition was not mutual for the lady merely saying sit down my child i am busy just now proceeded to look over an account book while a girl of fourteen stood by anxiously awaiting the result three of mrs s daughters sat by the window one reading aloud a book of travels one drawing and another painting and near them a her needle and listening and enjoying with the rest two little girls of four and six were sitting beside their mother we must do them very neatly grace said the youngest for mamma says mrs will look at them with her spectacles and besides mamma says | 6 |
it is a shame to do work badly for a poor woman two boys were at a table with maps and and there seemed to be in this hive but one a busy little who among other miscellaneous mischief a friend let a glass not breaking the little exclaimed was not that careful r this excited a general and even our poor stranger s face relaxed into a smile which the little girls glancing their eyes towards her caught and one said in a low voice but loud enough for to hear don t she look sweet when she smiles and the other replied yes but i wonder what she has been crying so for and was relieved when mrs said returning the account book to the girl in waiting all is right girls give joy no give mrs thanks said i never could have got on if you had not kept my courage up mrs ah we dan only help those who help themselves what do you wish my child to to speak alone with you ma am replied in a tremulous voice for the dread of asking trust and employment from a stranger to whom she must confess she was in disgrace turned off as a liar and thief took possession of her mrs led the way to another apartment when there s brow contracted and her lips quivered there is something irresistibly touching in the distress of the young we expect storms in winter but we shrink from the cloud that over the of early summer what is the matter my child asked mrs so kindly that tears came to s relief and she was im to say you do not remember me ma am no i do not and i never saw you but once and that was a great while ago i lived at mrs s paused but mrs shook her head and proceeded to refer to the conversation that she had then heard to the mrs had and occasionally to the very words she had uttered and finally reminding her of her own exclamation how much like mother she does talk she succeeded in recalling the image of the little girl whose identity though grown a head taller she perceived the most accomplished could not have devised a more ingenious mode of approach than in her simplicity had adopted i thought then ma am she resumed that if ever i should have to apply to a stranger for advice and help i should wish it were you but why is it necessary for you to come to a stranger you should have made friends before this time of life i have friends ma real friends that i could go to in any trouble replied her face brightening with a just pride but they are all a great way off all but one why not go to that one t i did not feel as if that would be best ma am she replied casting down her eyes and blushing so deeply that mrs pitying her told her to proceed with her story briefly what the reader already knows her mother s troubles her service places and by relating fairly every particular of the unfortunate at mrs s mrs listened as a good judge to the tes a new friend in the case of a prisoner before him anxious to get the truth and leaning to a merciful interpretation where it could not be fully developed but why my child she asked if you were conscious of innocence did you object to having your trunk opened after a little faltering replied that there was a picture on the top of her trunk she did not wish seen a picture of what or whom t of that one friend ma am i said i had in the city and who is he and how long have you known him t ever since mother was in the deepest of her troubles he was the first person that was kind to us and he has been kind ever since but you do not tell n e who this friend is oh charles ma am ah i understand now the son of those friends you are so fond of after a little more questioning cross examination and deliberation mrs asked if she had any letters from her mother or from mrs and finding she had she said if would let her see them and if they her statements she would take her for the present into her family i will not she said send to inquire your character at the places where you lived so long ago suspicion might be excited by your not having referred me to the last place you was at that was just what i thought ma am l ut i did not suppose that anybody but mother and mrs would have thought so for me was and yet to know in mrs a christian woman one to whom the wants of her fellow creatures were claims and who judged and felt in their affairs as if they were her own to her might justly be applied s beautiful description of the man of christian sympathy bv nature turned and constant o his thoughts to sympathy with man he was alive to all that was enjoyed er he went and all that was endured mrs saw in a young creature who if her story were true and truth was stamped on her countenance was in most forlorn the simplicity of her manner and the and of her statements were in her favour and it seemed scarcely possible she could be guilty of the complicated in which a supposition of the falsehood of her story involved her at any rate it was in with mrs s principles and experience to hope all things of the young and true to her theory she bent to mrs for s trunk when that came she | 6 |
examined mrs s and mrs lee s letters sufficiently to s statement and then she permitted her to enter upon the of her new situation a previous duty however she performed i cannot she said to mrs rest easy a minute without writing to mr about the danger poor little is in if you only knew what a sweet little fellow he is mrs no child should be left m the hands of such a person as you describe that nurse a yourself to mr ll at tell own story i will add a perhaps he may yet out the truth for you perhaps so mrs but it s little that i am anxious about my conscience is clear and that is comfort enough for me the girl has the true secret of comfort thought mrs as this is a broken day she said and i want you to get troubles oflf your mind let us send for that friend of yours and him with your change of place at first feared he would be by the injustice she had to some rash act but the desire to communicate her good and evil fortune controlled her and with many thanks she assented to mrs s proposal charles instantly answered to the summons and in an hour s time had heard the whole story from s lips and with the impetuous resentment natural to his age had vowed that he would go instantly to mrs s that he would shoot if she did not tell the whole truth yes he would blow her up sky high after a while convinced him that though this mode of proceeding might punish it would not establish her innocence nor her from the in which ad le s arts had involved her he still insisted that he could not go quietly back to his work while she was lying under such an why he said i positively had rather walk the fiery furnace with and oh don t talk so please charles it is foolish and wrongs i know when you are and let live really the one in the furnace but then it does not even you for your conscience is like the angel that walked with those men while mine will torment me if i go quietly about my business just as if nothing had happened am i not the only protector you have in the city besides being your your your only friend no charles not my only one it would be wrong to say so when i have found such a friend as mrs leave all to her please charles charles at first refused urging that mrs did not know enough to judge in the matter but at last subdued by s gentle entreaties he yielded though declaring it was hard and in compliance with mrs s advice he promised to remain passive toll s return chapter xix a happy mr one of the wealthy and busy of the city of new york was happy in the confidence from long experience that his home was regulated in the best manner without his interference or in all important matters such as the proper amount ci their annual expenses the destiny of their children in life their religious moral and intellectual education the father and mother consulted and co in his pe affairs mr had no secrets from his wife he did not cautiously hide from her his and pour into her troubled ear his losses and disappointments nor did he show only the bright side and conceal every rising cloud as if she were as weak as a sick child till the storm burst on her unprepared head but she was made perfectly acquainted with his affairs and her kept her accounts accurately within the limits she prescribed to herself she expended liberally acting nobly up to that truth which most admit that in our country there are manifold reasons against and none for fortunes for children she never disturbed her husband with the details of her domestic economy she never him with q and i et of her servants with about her table her furniture or her dress all these matters she arranged and he enjoyed the results we would not imply that all who do not adopt this system of and who do not act up to the spirit of a and equal matrimonial are in fault we acknowledge with sorrow and humiliation that there are many wives not capable of acting well their part in their own sphere and that few deserve the confidence mrs had painfully earned by her self education but since the discovery is made that a woman is capable of something besides praying loving sewing and spinning or to s own words that it is not enough pour k en de m et her talents should be cultivated with reference to her whole domestic duty it is as a folly to permit an american girl to grow up ignorant of household as it d be to omit in the education of an or the use of the needle in the training of a but leaving our theory to the consideration of mothers we proceed o the homely details of mrs s this lady had now beer married seventeen years her eldest daughter was sixteen her youngest less than a year after the four years of her she has rarely talents says sir are the powers of execution a happy family changed her preferring we quote the words of an admirable mistress of a family the trouble of her servants faults to the pain and manifold disadvantage of them she bore in mind that they were the weak and neglected children of the great family doomed by circumstances to be and and subject to wrong and bad influences she was patient and long suffering with them willing to forbear to toil and wait if in the | 6 |
her cheek she was abashed at the thought of how freely she who had never spoken on such subjects but to her mother was confiding her spiritual experience go on my child said mrs with a smile so sweet and kind that forgot everything but that she was talk ing to one who listened with interest i was only going to say ma am that i could always pray even at mrs s where there was no outward sign there was a god except little and he seemed to me just like an angel from heaven and i felt sometimes when his head lay on my bosom as if we were together oh how much better is this true worship thought mrs than formal prayers and set a happy t days maintain this spirit my dear child she replied this is praying without ceasing take a few moments before you leave your room to consider your duty to god and your duties in the a sense of our responsibility to god will make us faithful in the discharge of our duties to one another i try to make all who live with me feel that they working for something besides the wages i pay them for something higher than my favour far better than my affection for the love of god in this service we are all and fellow is not this a bond strong enough to bind us all together oh yes ma am wiped away the tears that poured over her cheeks if mother only knew what a place i am in now i should be willing she should know all my troubles wait till you have tried you young people are apt to take for experience but i am getting on slowly in my instructions to you you will have the waiter s work to do till my new waiter comes one thing will perhaps be new to you in my house i do not confine any person to a single department and i will tell you why for i find if the reason of my arrangements is understood they are apt to be better liked in the first place i wish my to remain with me as long as it is for our mutual welfare to live together i have observed that the and among often arise from about their work one says this is not my work and another that is not mine and mary and now i wish each one to be capable of performing the duty of the other live and live and to have that spirit of kindness that she will be willing to do it and sure that the favour will be l and besides if a woman years in nothing but cooking when she has a family of her own how will she know how to take care of her house take card of her children make their clothes c or if she ten years in the nursery she will not know how to cook her husband s dinner my girls all get married after a while and i wish that while they are serving me they should have that sort of education that will enable them to make their own homes prosperous and happy that s very kind of you ma am but does not changing works so make a great deal of confusion no confusion arises from your being my this summer and my next to be sure i must teach you to well but the next year that will prove a great gain to us both no confusion in families arises from ignorance bad temper jealousy and never i believe from being well qualified to perform any office and willing to serve in it i am sure you will find me mrs in those countries where the whole life is passed in the principle of a division of labour is not t it certainly most convenient to the employer ae who au his mind and the whole of his life to of a watch will make them more accurately than he who the whole watch but if by any chance the from that department he is good for nothing w english servant is always found inferior r the vice of an american family to a up n a happy family and it will be my fault if i do not become capable who shall i ask to show me where to find the breakfast things ma am it is s turn this week to see to such matters you will have everything ready at half past seven precisely wiu show you how to arrange the breakfast room miss ma am is not that the young lady who was taking the french lesson yes she show me mrs she does not seem older than miss is past nine and miss is ten what a difference did not explain further did mrs inquire poor s faculties were as as a child s born without hands when you go up to bed resumed mrs take a of water with you you will find all for washing wash yourself from head to foot this i require of all persons under my control at least once in twenty four hours it will contribute to your health and in a little while you will find it essential to your com fort she then commended s very neat arrangement of her hair and particular attention to her teeth and all astonishment at this maternal interest was reminded of mrs having on a certain occasion said to her a fine pass things have come to when even servants must brush their teeth why i had never heard of a at your age she seems just as kind as mother or mrs thought as mrs bade her live and let live good night and grateful for the storm that had driven her into such a harbour she retired to | 6 |
her sleeping apartment this she shared with the they had separate beds a screen divided the room into two parts securing to each if desired privacy having had sole possession for three or four weeks seemed to feel it her part to do the of the apartment she was as is obvious an american here i he said is a tub to wash you and plenty of nice soap mrs is the most musical woman washing and the whole family are like but every one has notions here is a large closet with shelves and drawers no locks and there s none on their own you must keep your things in their places for when you least expect it mrs or one of the girls goes the rounds and everything is put in a heap in the second story entry i tell you i felt beat when i found my there beside one of the little ladies best is not it a pretty room this nice is so easy to keep clean and blinds and as good as any lady could wish and everything so tidy about the beds and a looking glass that make you look as if your face was all and only see here she added withdrawing a little green curtain see this shelf of books hot the bible only but a whole row to instruct and entertain you too and what is more she loves to have you get time to enjoy yourself reading and the long and the short of it is that she and all her children seem to have a sense that their help have minds and hearts as as they i have lived in a great many places an family with good people that some of them i am free to own it to me than i did to them but never did i see a family i respected as i do mr s it makes you feel like folks to have such a room as this instead of a little up place with just a nail here and there to hang your gowns on broken chairs a tottering table and a bed that looks and feels any how such things show which way the wind blows what rich folks think of poor folks the ladies rooms will be fixed off with everything dressing tables looking glasses of all shapes and sizes curtains and piles of enough to you and all sorts of notions that have no use but just to be taken care of and make work for us something of a contrast to our sky rooms it gives one thoughts to think of it and feelings too times are changed it s no longer lords and ladies in the parlour and slaves in the kitchen but it s a kind of concern and in this family your share is fairly divided out to you and i freely own that if i could stay here i should be contented to be help all my life contented and most thankful i should think said herself of s very first pause to express her sentiment why yes kind o and kind o not thankful that if you must live out you live in such a place but not thankful that you have not a home of your is home and we always after it but contented yes quite contented how long s might have led her on expressing in her homely way her not very dim of the present of the relation be live and let live and employed we know not for her was cut short by s t her of the preceding night and both duly mrs s notions by performing the prescribed retired to bed chapter xx a day at mrs s wake up said a kindly voice and opened her eyes and saw at her bedside wrapped in her little dressing gown mamma told me to wake you as soon as i was up by the time you are dressed i shall be ready to show you about the breakfast i am sorry said when they went down stairs together to give you this trouble but i trust once showing will serve oh it s no trouble at all we children have had it all to do ever since was married three weeks ago the only disagreeable thing is asking violet our new cook to help bring in the table i e is always so cross in the morning i should not think your mother would keep her if she is so cross to you mercy mamma never sends away anybody for one fault at least not till she has tried and we have all tried our best to cure it when we children get provoked mamma reminds us of a at mrs s some good man says that perfection hears with w and she says she fears we have a great many faults ourselves that we are so impatient with others and that makes us a little ashamed take care you have not got the quite straight eyes are just like a line that will do now ask violet please to help you in with the table made the request in the manner but it was before breakfast with poor violet and she was possessed by the demon of who does not always spare the humble though his be chiefly to the exalted she came up stairs grumbling i sha n t stay here if they don t get a man it s not my work to in the table i wonder what it s dragged out for to have me drag it in i suppose i am very sorry to trouble you said but it is mrs s order that the table not be lifted by one alone oh i dare say it s easy | 6 |
giving orders t you feel as well as usual this morning violet asked i feel well enough oh stop a minute violet called a little girl who was coming down stairs with a bottle and glass in her hand a successful case of forbearance with a very serious fault occurred in the family of a lady most m her relation to her she met her cook coming from the store room with her apron full of tea i a long conversation with the woman in which she was made to feel her sin and folly her mistress offered to retain her in her service to keep her a secret and to trust her as usual this did the woman continued to live with her for a long time and served her most faithfully and gratefully r and let what s wanted now out violet nothing replied little grace taken only mamma sent you down a glass of water and says if you will try it morning for two or three weeks she thinks it will make you as pleasant as anybody violet s colour mounted to the roots of her hair why exclaimed i am sure mamma did not say that poor grace replied somewhat fluttered well she said that that is she said i mean oh i don t know what she only she if violet was as well she would be as good natured as any of us violet s which was really merely was overcome by this view of the case she was the first to smile and having drank the water she thanked the little and bade her thank her mother in so changed a tone that one might have fancied the water had the miraculous virtue of that prescribed by the prophet when mrs appeared she bestowed a kind word of approbation on for the prime order in which she found ever transferred the praise to who she said understood a waiter s work as well as if she were brought up to it mrs s children were brought np to all the details of before breakfast the family every member of it assembled and joined in a common and a common to the father of all during the meal which was not hurried as if the only reason for meeting round the table were to the food and enjoy that told her a at mrs s father some interesting particulars she had heard from a country lady of the best mode of and taking care of and how much finer and more plentiful the silk was if the worm was well fed and kept clean and healthy and don t vou think papa said little grace she got to love love a worm wasn t that funny t no interposed for how often has papa told us we should love any we took good care of well then sue i guess that is the reason loves us so she takes such good care of us you have guessed pretty right grace said her father smiling at her modest explanation of her s tenderness but can you tell me who first found out a mode of the silk from the no sir can you no sir can you t no sir nor you mamma no sir a smile went round with the negative and as mrs pronounced hers her eye met s she saw the girl was listening with lively interest that her lips moved as if she were on the point of speaking but were restrained by modesty do you know she asked instead of the syllable she expected answered i believe ma am it was an of china called it see why who told you asked grace said nothing till mr a reply states that it see was made a divinity for her great and the spirit of the and silk worm live and let by asking where she had learned the fact she said her mother was trying to have her brother learn to take care of and that seeing the advertisement of a book about them she had chased and read it before she sent it there s an example for you my children said mr you see that by keeping your eyes and ears open you may get knowledge on every hand and communicate it he then proceeded to state some facts in relation to the varieties of the worm and the the extent and value of the silk product and the immense amount of our of the article was better qualified by her early education than most persons in her position to profit by such a conversation and it seemed to her a great privilege to have the place of waiter in such a family she naturally compared the scene before her to corresponding ones to the t te breakfast at the where the talk on the part of the husband was of profits projected or achieved on the part of his a boast of a a or some improved plan of in domestic economy the did not suffer so much by the comparison for there were the qualities of good humour and kind there is a volume of poems about to issue from the press in this city written by a person whose life has been spent in domestic service upon some one expressing to the author surprise at the knowledge indicated by the poems and asking where she obtained it she replied i have always lived in the society of intelligent and cultivated people and so she had dome of these poems would not any name in our land we trust their publication will increase the consideration of the fortunate for their only in position a day at mrs s ness and there the children s chattering and mamma s and papa s talk of the ball that was last evening and the that was to be to morrow and the new | 6 |
dress this lady wore and the new horses that gentleman drove were something better than nothing at the there was worse than a total loss of this immensely powerful engine in domestic education the family meeting at the social board for there the children were abandoned to the influence of servants the father hurried down his coffee to escape as early as possible from the atmosphere and the wife at ten or eleven alone and in over her distasteful breakfast at the there was simply the gratification of hungry healthy animals to the the dear with pride and joy there she had seen under a more homely aspect the same intelligence and goodness manifest in the of domestic and in imagination she but we will not betray her what girl or woman does not a home for herself and her own golden fabric of domestic joys after breakfast proceeded to the duties of her new place instructed whenever she needed instruction by her little who like the of the ancient fable interposed at the moment of necessity and then returned to her own element some may doubt the of a child not ten old to perform the tasks assigned to we have lately seen a girl not ten the daughter of a polish exile who seven years ago lived not only in but luxury the sole nurse of her mother through a l ing in and performing the duty well besides various other domestic services when b and let as we have said entered mrs s family at the moment of a general change of the officers of her household of course the domestic machine did not work without some trifling and asked mrs have you any objection to changing works with violet for a few weeks did not appear to comprehend you know i that you were to change works whenever i requested you oh yes ma am i calculated to be obliging and so forth whenever any of the folks are sick and so on but as to taking up cooking for a business i can t cook anything but boiled mother could father used to say she beat all at a and a mrs smiled at this of the mother s skill in what our rustic folk consider the ne of the art i dare say she resumed your father thought a great deal of your mother for her skill in these matters and would you not like to increase your value in some good fellow s eyes by understanding thoroughly plain cooking if you mean to have a home of your own one of these days it will be for your advantage as well as for mine and violet s that you should go into the kitchen for a month or of course you take the cook s wages and she yours mrs had touched the right spring no american girl s perspective is without a home and a good husband and after that she should spoil everything she touched consented thank you said mrs some astonishment was expressed to the mother ah she replied necessity is a great teacher a at mrs s i trust you will spoil nothing our every day dinner is a simple affair to day boiled fowls a tongue a potatoes and a rice my daughter will give you all necessary assistance and directions observe them to day and remember them to morrow promised to do her best and performed her promise but her best had many she was careless prodigal and but she had the sterling qualities of truth honesty capacity and and after a thorough trial of the patience of her and of the of her productions and after much some and a little on her part she acquired the art of cooking neatly and and felt that she had gained knowledge which would be wealth to her we give her own view of the case in one of her with some months after i declare i would not if the silver money were offered to me take a thousand dollars for what i h ve learned since i came to this house at first i could not feel reconciled to and changing works but when i came to realize it was for our advantage i felt different for it would be a sight easier for mrs to let us go round and round in the mill just as we were used to it s so seldom ladies think of anything but their own profit that it makes us kind o jealous when i came here i did not know how to do an well but chamber work and now i would not turn my back upon the king for any kind of plain cooking or making and and such things for sick folks or any kind of and sewing and into the bargain live and let live but you have not made the progress with your needle that has la no i guess not because i had the start of her at first miss had to begin at the beginning with her she did not know any more about handling a needle than you do about sailing a ship never did i see anything like miss s patience she was that of the v mary and she would lay down her without a look and show how to fix on her patch and by the time her brush was going again would get it all she does it by and rule now but she is the first irish person i aw that could put a patch on straight which shows it s all in teaching they an t stupid but they an t privileged to use their faculties when they are young miss is a beautiful said she even my mother oh they all beat all resumed i don t mind our folks speaking all sorts | 6 |
it ad le there was no use in attempting to any sort of self defence or into her relation proceeded to confess that partly to guard against the of s detection of the and partly to conceal her abuse of the cape from her mistress she had stolen s key while she slept and deposited the cape in her trunk i was sure of it cried hardly able to restrain herself till had finished i told you so mamma and anybody might have told you so said too much exasperated at his wife s folly to keep any terms even in the presence of his daughter anybody that had common sense might have known that this good girl was innocent and that piece of french was fit for just such a piece of that s always the way said mrs half crying and half indignant if there is anything the matter with the servants the fault is always laid on my shoulders and in heaven s name on whose shoulders should it be laid if not on yours when you took upon yourself to be the mistress of a family you assumed responsibility you promised such truth will prevail of your servants as should be best for them best for me and best for your children bless your soul mr i never promised i never thought of any such thing i believe you he replied turning away with disgust and with the desperate conviction save by a miracle the blind could not be made to see in the mean time ad e ing blame laid elsewhere felt her shoulders somewhat lightened and she was when mr said to her are you ready for h she exclaimed clasping her hands and almost rolling her eyes out of their be silent no punishment is severe enough for you you have sent out this innocent girl disgraced and suffering and all but murdered my child mr interposed i have not suffered and i never felt disgraced pray do not punish her on my account she is dreadfully punished already i do not believe she meant to give enough to hurt him that is the true truth if will let me tell it te ma un si bon god bless you my dear you have such a good hearth there are few hearts so as not to be softened by such generosity as s and for the first time felt something like real and wept tears of gratitude and honest grief mr stooped to kiss his boy and whispered ad e has had such an lesson that maybe if you would let her s and let off it would do her more good than her i will do anything you ask my child since asks it ad e you may go away i ll not you pack up and be off immediately but don t attempt to get another service place i ll send tour bad name after you this was something like the mercy to the dog i ll not kill thee but turn thee out and call thee mad such mercy as it was ad e was glad to profit by it and without waiting to express one of the sentiments she had professed for madame she prepared her luggage and was off there can be no attach ment between the employer and the employed where no virtue on either side has been brought into action was now b set by mr who offered her enormous wages and used every argument to induce her to remain and take the sole charge of his child himself urged his cause almost irresistibly by the mute eloquence of his eye and his arm fixed lovingly over her shoulder but was inexorable she felt too deeply the advantages of her position at mrs s to them even for such entreaties and she could only be induced to promise that with mrs s permission she would remain till a good nurse could be procured this matter being settled she modestly asked mr s leave to send for her friend mrs s son that he might hear ad le s explanation from his lips charles came on the instant and lis to the explanation coolly and as a matter of course but when r came to the express the conclusion sion of his gratitude to and his estimation of her virtues charles s cheek glowed and his eye whispered to do look at him why don t you look at him i you ve not half so glad as he is chapter thb conclusion we feel sure of pleasing all but our very young readers who always want a little more even of a dull story by abruptly concluding our book with a letter from to her mother written four years subsequent to s from mr s dear mother after and with mrs who has been like the kindest of mothers to us we have come to a decision which only waits for your approbation the is sold to mr a german who when a stranger and quite destitute came to the as it seemed accidentally was honest and industrious he understood the business thoroughly and introduced some improvements for the last two years he has been a partner and now he has bought out charles his two sisters and their old parents arrived a few weeks since and a happier family i never saw how strange that such a train of p live and let consequences should come from just coming in to breakfast with us one morning at mn s this is what mrs says we should call our father in heaven the opportunity for doing good and his faithful children improve it but to our own affairs it is not five years since mr went to and there are four thousand inhabitants in the village the people he says are very anxious to have the going the is built on the lot | 6 |
mr set off to charles for his vices when he was to him our house is nearly done and large enough for us all the ladies in the village will have plenty of work for the girls and establishment and dear will keep charles s books and all of us will be in a way to earn an honourable living all but you dear mother the remainder of your life must be rest you be our queen and we will be your workers mrs wishes you to consent to the wedding being here she says it will save time as we must return here on our way to and save the expense of a journey to charles likes this plan and i want you to know our family before i leave it mrs says she will provide lodgings for you all at a boarding house near to us is not this most kind t oh mother you like her so much she has such beautiful manners not only in the drawing room and to ladies but to all down to the man that sweeps off the and the poor that beg at her door she truly seems to see the image of god in every human creature it makes people civil to speak to her her manners inspire thb conclusion them i self respect she never herself hut raises them if some people looked as as they act to those above and those below them they would sometimes appear like the in the ballad i how very kind of you dear mother to offer fifty dollars from your little towards furnishing house but indeed i have no occasion for it you remember declining mr s gift at the time of that horrid affair of s you and i both felt and so did charles as if there was something and degrading to servants in paying their heart service as well as their body service but mr could not take this view of it so ie gave mr one hundred dollars in trust for me to be paid on my coming of age or at my marriage i wonder he should have thought that could take place before i was twenty one but i believe he suspected even then that charles and i had thoughts of one another well out of the one hundred mr has made two which with my is quite enough to furnish our house with comforts perhaps you will b surprised to know that i have saved anything more than i have sent to you first dear mother taught me to be content with a little and that the best quality in dress is its to the when i came to live with mrs she gave me an account book in which i set down every penny i earned and spent she purchases her cotton and flannel at and gives it to us at the same price and if she or the family make us presents it is not of their old clothes which would not be serviceable for us but some good and article a little better than we should buy a fur cape an umbrella or in all respects mrs has been a mother to me she has qualified me to take charge of a family of my own so that with the blessing of god i hope to perform my part well and to contribute to charles s prosperity as well as his happiness oh mother what a happy world this would be if there were plenty such as you and mrs if the rich and the poor in their respective stations felt and acted right how foolish and wicked are those who try to set one against the other when by being friends and acting in agreement so much good could be done so much happiness gained it seems to me as if it were necessary there should be rich and poor to make all those seeds of virtue which rod has planted in our hearts spring up and grow if mrs was not rich how could she manifest such humility and self denial such wise generosity and such wise economy and dear mother had you not been poor very poor could you have given us an example of such gentleness patience and self reliance some think the rich can only be generous in giving what a mistake mrs does not give the half that mrs does in presents or in charity but she gives her time she her knowledge she her spirit and oh none but those who live with her know how faithfully she tries to lay the foundation of religion to do all this she must it is true have other riches than the poor riches of money i have done if i were to write for ever i could not tell what a blessing i esteem it to serve in the place in such family as this the conclusion sends much love mother are not words very poor to express our strongest feelings i seem always to be struck dumb when my heart is fullest and now when the time has come when i may tell you how dearly i love charles how truly i have loved him ever since the cold morning he left us the loaf of bread it seems as if the words i use every day and in relation to other persons were not strong enough to express a feeling so much stronger than any other don t read this to the love i feel for him is not any less because i love charles more but he might think it so you won t think so mother for every woman knows that there is one love that masters all others god has ordained it and how can we help it here is charles looking over my shoulder and singing haste to the wedding answer our request by coming next | 6 |
tuesday dear mother with and the girls and believe me your affectionate child p s i forgot to mention that mr is married again i felt sorry when i heard the children were going to have a it seemed too much after having such a poor mother but mrs knows the new lady and she says it is one of the rare cases where the second mother will be a great deal better than the first dear little is as fond of me as ever his father has never failed to send him to see me once a month and yesterday he gave me with his own dear little hand a dozen silver how very thoughtful of mr and the little fellow and seemed to take as much delight in it as if it were his own thought mother how can people complain so much of ingratitude every kindness i have ever done has been returned even poor ad le came not long since to thank me as she said for my mercy to her poor thing she looks a if she were in great misery tke end valuable works published by brothers no cliff new the history of the decline and fall of the roman by edward esq complete in to maps and the history of modern europe with a view of the progress of society from the rise of the modem king to the peace of paris in by william ll d and a of the history to the present time by william jones esq with by an in vo with c the historical works of william d d in vo with maps c the history of the discovery and settlement of america by william d d with an account of his life and writings to which are added questions for the examination of students by john frost a m li one volume vo with a portrait and the history of the reign of the emperor charles v with a view of the progress of society in europe from the of the roman empire to the beginning of the sixteenth century by william d d to which are added questions for the examination of students by john frost am in one volume vo with the history of scotland during the of queen and of kin james vi till his to th crown of england with a review of the history previous to that period including the history of india the pilgrim s progress with a life of by robert ll d new and beautiful splendidly illustrated with fifty by bound in one volume mo works published by view of the state of europe during the middle ages by henry from the sixth edition complete in one volume vo the ancient history of the modes and and including the history of the arts and of the by charles with a life of the author by james bell first complete american edition in vo with nine including three maps the dramatic works and poems of william with notes original and selected and remarks to each play by samuel singer f s a and a life of the poet by charles d d complete in one volume vo with numerous the dramatic works of william with the and illustrations of dr johnson g and others by reed esq in crown vo with a portrait and other s or the old and new connected in the of the jews and neighbouring nations from the of the of and to the time of christ by d d dean of new edition to which is the life of the author containing some letters which he wrote in defence and illustration of certain parts of his in vo with maps and s lives translated from the original greek with notes critical and historical and a life of by john d d and william a m a new edition carefully and corrected in one volume with plates the same work in elegant mo large type s works new and splendid edition in press the spectator new and splendid edition in press the works of henry esq complete in one volume mo with a portrait f ttie complete works of with a in vo with a portrait sermons of the rev james late of the french church at the ha ie from the french by the rev robert robinson rev henry hunter d d and rev joseph a m a new edition with additional sermons and corrected by the rev samuel a m with a likeness of the author and a general index from the last london edition with a preface by the rev j p k d d in vo the works of john dry den in verse and prose with a life by the rev john in va with a portrait the works of more in mo illustrations to each volume the same work in royal vo with illustrations also an edition in two volumes royal with a portrait of the life and correspondence of mrs more by william esq with a portrait illustrated by j p m d translated from the french with notes by a am m d with plates the study of medicine by john good m d f r s improved from the author s and by reference to tne latest advances in and practice by samuel m d with notes by a a m m d to which is a sketch of the history of medicine from its origin to the commencement of the nineteenth century by j m d f r s in vo a on or the of the regions of the human body considered in its relations with and medicine with an of twelve plates by professor of and medicine etc translated from the french by a a m m d va with additional matter and plates i ud by illustrated from the works of hind and by a a m m d | 6 |
embracing an trip through the st and or rivers by henry with maps england and america a comparison of the social and political state of both nations yo sketches of turkey in and by an american vo with letters from the by james esq vo records of my life by john author of vo the history of the american theatre by william vo of the d madame vo with a portrait of prince of mo the life and remains of edward daniel by the rev william a m f l s vo visits and sketches at home and abroad with tales and now first collected and a new edition of the of an e by mrs in mo public and private economy by part first mo the history of a and his adventures in and exposing the great western land and his g r in with the evidence also of the trials and execution of a number of associates in the state of during the summer of and the execution of five professional by the citizens of on the th july by h r in one f brothers slavery in the united states by james k in one mo letters conversations and recollections of the late s t in one volume mo specimens of the table talk of the late samuel in one volume mo by a in one volume mo four years in great britain by in one volume mo thoughts on the religious state of the country with reasons for preferring by the rev in one volume mo lives of the or an account of the most eminent persons in successive ages who have claimed for themselves or to whom has been by others the exercise of power by william mo the south west by a yankee in ma the in north america by charles joseph author of the c in mo the in by charles joseph in one volume mo common school library first series mo common school library second series mo the life of by i mo the life of by charles le a m mo with a portrait the life of by charles le a m in mo with a portrait the of the whole scheme of revelation with itself and with by philip d t vo and the by the rev john scott a m in mo with portraits history of the religion in france by the rev edward in mo with a narrative of the visit to the american churches by the from the union of england and wales by reed d d and james d d in mo no fiction a narrative founded on recent and interesting facts by the rev reed d d new edition mo a memorial of an only and ter by the rev reed author of no fiction mo and his or the progress of illustrated in the extraordinary case of robert and some of his by william l stone mo and its in a series of letters exhibiting the actual state of the manners customs and habits of the jews and as modified by the policy of by an american long resident at porter mo the or pocket manual for travellers on the river the western canal and stage road to falls down lake and the st to and also the to and springs i mo with a map an improved map of the river with the post roads between new york and the life of president of the united states of america by william m p i mo with a portrait things as they are or notes of a traveller through some of the middle and northern states mo with letters to young ladies by mrs l h third edition mo f brothers the political grammar of the united states or a complete view of the theory and practice of the general and state with the relations between them by edward d mo elements of the and philosophy of in two parts by joseph smith m d a on language or the relations which words bear to things by a b johnson history of in all ages and countries by william in one mo the history of henry a little boy who was not brought up according to the fashions of this world in three parts by mrs the lady of the a series of conversations on the subject of confirmation by mrs in mo practical education by maria and by richard with other tales by maria in one volume mo the parent s assistant by maria in one volume mo harry and with other stories by maria in mo frank complete by maria in one volume mo a winter in the west by a new c f esq in mo france social literary and political by h l esq m p in mo domestic duties or instructions to young ladies on the management of their and the of their conduct in the various relations and duties of m life by mrs w with improvements in one volume mo anecdotes of sir walter scott by the shepherd with a life of the author by s esq in one volume mo works published by the life of baron by mrs lee in one mo letters to by the rev dr in one volume mo letters of j major second to his old friend mr of the new york daily in one volume mo with sketches and of col david in one volume mo scenes in our parish by a country parson s daughter in one volume mo the life character and literary labours of samuel drew a m by his eldest son in one volume mo the life of mrs by thomas in one volume mo with a portrait observations on professions literature manners and in the united states and canada by the rev in one volume mo s school books including s dictionary north american reader c the s leaves by mrs and addresses | 6 |
s that of the hot rings of virginia its temperature is of till we reached appeared j and the hills in the approach to town its are with to and very beautiful but the town or much of it as ve saw is horrid ib rot dirty filled with and priests you may resolve the three classes into one the beggar frankly the priest pleading the of authority and soldier takes without the pains of a priest m lie court of our inn beset fer money to say masses for his dead replied our to is en and if they were not he added what such men as they do for them t alas his in our company i the road from is continually ascending with on httle towns pitched ia among the rocks and sprinkled over the rough and e hill where it seems hard work tor a few to find i have seen many a patch of that i cover with my in among rocks and the look the o of this hard soil they are of and en and like a they us of and the pointed cap and i y garment are not to the dress of the half of them at least have some so as to be truly hideous of flesh b a even than these poor wretches with their huge are the an of idiot who as be ng dead ue ill in d l g g i to with a sort of compared to the s chant un a s il is the ia far down in the scale the german peasant he will rise as soon as the pressure is removed these people are crushed various causes ate for their pr e and mental diseases and inadequate and bad food sufficiently explain them the children to my looked fat and healthy it takes time to the vigour of nature and the t of life in the open air the people id tbe towns appear more healthy and in more comfortable than in the open country i remarked among them some young women stout and with a becoming kind of cap with broad stiffly bands which are so and set off that they resemble white wings they wear a black around the throat adopted to hide the fastened by a large at which hangs a cross tbe of their skirts are ornamented with a some with one some with half a tells us that a red a of a hundred but as this is but i do not give it to you for you know it is ray habit to walk whenever i can and to talk with tbe people by the way side and as the roads have been heavy ever once we left and our is a man to to beast i have bad this for many a mile the speak french well though tb use a among i stopped yesterday to talk to some women who were washing around a fountain on their knees one of them said in reply to my inquiry it was hard enough but said i you should have to kneel on ah madame les ne pas les es there waa a world of meaning in this i joined a peasant girl in the twilight last evening who after spending her whole day in tending her cow at an hour s walk from her house was carrying home her five bottles of milk the product of the cow what would our think of such a life their leisurely lady and abundance pass in vision before me as i ask the question my dear c bow often do i mentally thank god for the condition of our working people my poor way side friend told me she lived on milk and potatoes that she never ate meat how could she when she had no money to boy it but our host at who b a round ed jolly gives a of the poor s condition which his sunny portion he looks down upon quite cheerily they have meat for winter he says a bottle of wine and plenty of brandy they can work at night by made from and they have a tion of wood from the and they ih bat net the rich la to bj in the winter in the stable i ib the common between the rich man s account of the poor and the poor man s own story says what think you the charitable send them for when are why bread and ihey get and live to a hundred or a hundred and twenty years perhaps some of our of de and mi t these poor es who find in a nature s sweet life is a pavement here a bit of black stone and there a bit of white it is not all black even to the even in hie ia abroad some of our party were at st k and i walked on our first was on the of a while we sat there a pretty young mother came out of a house opposite with her child i called the little to me and the mother followed what a nice letter of introduction is a child we entered into conversation she told me all the children in st mi went to school that they had two schools fi r the poor one supported by the and another where each child paid three per month the little ten month old thing gave ne her band at parting and the sad an madame where may that be th e was an inscription on the under which we were sitting that a certain bishop an indulgence of days to who to su which pour the feed with t thousand the arc the beautiful stream that along the si we hare crossed the my dear c and are in italy bat not quite so easily as i | 6 |
write it the weather is as much a matter of speculation to those who are about to make a passage of e as if were going to sea this morning at three i was looking out from my window and found it perfectly clear my old were down on the valley of mon on his and over one of the mountain now thought i we are sure of a fine day but when came round to our doors with his customary gate always speaks in the hearing of the natives the sky was we were early whidi though both and good is the virtue of with us we took om five to drag np our carriage each mule of course had his the with his horses and whose motions often remind me of s was at the side of the carriage before or behind he found the best listeners the point of this is six thousand seven hundred and feet above the level of the but only two t to above the of this the least difficult pass into italy before napoleon came to make a broad and easy way over these frightful led an army over in the ninth century and this was i believe always the route by which the and brought their down upon the plains of italy the was the engineer of this road and was years in bringing it to its present perfection the road is up the of the mountain by ea again and again we turned and dragged on our weary way and yet we seemed no farther from was always under us but we saw by our joyous de voyage the arc to a thread that we were progress there are twenty three houses of refuge at intervals along this pass near some of them the traveller is at particular seasons in danger from and at all are m i and means of kept by the government the girls and i walked up the greater part of the way not following the road but taking the sharp cross cuts i had some talk our chief a man our conversation naturally turned on napoleon small in stature and great in mind he said but a bloody man that cared not how many he sacrificed to his he made a beautiful road not for our good but to get tb oa till i it to bis cannon into italy h qui i et qui ne i pas il n y k de lap c all those who like him and those who like him not must own that there is no head left equal to his as we ascended we got a and at the the mist was driving at a rate to be no faint of the gust from behind the sheet of water at i went into a to dry my feet the good dam told me they are often so buried in snow in winter that she does not step her foot out of doors from ml to spring there was a baby in the cradle here are bom and and may die for her husband has been can here for fourteen years he the highest pay thirty a day and bis and not nearly so much as you pay a man servant who has his food from your table and food as good as and whose life compared these poor people s is a perfect our prudent dismissed the be the barrier to avoid ae of five on animal attached to a carriage a tax which goes towards the road we then gave the main to the a liberal one i fancy from the abundance of and their cordial voyages our guide book had promised as a tolerable inn and a of from the lake but we went into the kitchen while a fire was in the and the floor strewn with egg to a it and v refuse cured oar we are not over nice these mountain have been from time a source of and their only one to the of the the of has lately put forth the lion s claim aad the poor fathers have been driven away after the plain of in which this lake lies we began descending a smooth road in many parts cut through the solid rock wherever it is necessary to have an support it is made by a wall of ma the which would dash the road are conveyed underneath by and arc let out on the lower side through two windows mouths or whatever you please to call them these water are the children of the scene mi of life and beauty we needed their cheerful voices for the mist became clouds and we actually seemed rolling along on them we saw nothing and a little while these small sweet voices with every other sound were overpowered by the rushing of a below us we were awed and silent at this moment two strong wild wretches out upon us whether they came from above or below we could not tell they thrust their bands into the vehemently demanding and very much as if they had s good will to take what we had no will to ve ua cracked his whip at them this had no effect he addressed it to his horses and this bad for they us within a veiy few minutes in i t of and our withdrew and the insist they meant and since we have escaped the danger we are quite to believe in it after going down down down the mist became less dense the trees began to appear then the outlines of the hills and when we reached a group of on die hill we were in a clear atmosphere and the beautiful plains of italy lay beneath us in a golden glowing light what a to the stem wild scene from which we had emerged was their abundance warmth | 6 |
and smiling loveliness sprang over the carriage wheel clapping his hands and shouting there were tears in all our eyes as well as in his for strong emotion of whatever kind brings and who could for the first time look italy in the without emotion italy appeared quite near enough for ua to have jumped down into its streets but we had still ten miles most gently descending road down a mountain of most think of down for twenty five but we are and are up at the which god has set around has fairest of lands is a little town in e midst of vine covered and which appear like the advanced guard of the and solitary dwellings are k says on the steep and are so nearly ai the colour of locks and boil that they are from them and positions seem to have been selected for the churches and of such difficult access as to re the to them the of a penance and finally there ia a of we are be to think an part of finished landscape white with on one side of our inn is a on the other a river we have already been out to see an old ro man arch our path has been crossed by a of priests we have been beset be and we have come in to give our to a came f in we are in italy here last evening entered the by a magnificent avenue is a very cheerful town with some in a gay capital rather for it is the capital of and was of you see how on the very threshold of italy we instinctively turn from what w to what was is said to have grown one fifth in the last ten year this in italian history is i believe owing to the care and presence of u ut open in a with i know no english that answers to it square it is not for it il farm t in italian tha an bj hut the to english ia away on the with thb ie so charles e t ed in the but better known to us as the of we are at the hotel de i europe and as it is the best inn and best position in the town you may like to know precisely our condition in it we occupy a of apartments on the second our drawing room has sofa and is converted into a bedroom at night and for these rooms with a large room we pay four a day they have silk walls at least four feet thick double doors of woods and painted hung with paintings and exquisite drawings of broken columns and old and are so richly furnished they almost put my eyes out our wretched i am sitting by a window open on to a balcony that the and i will describe it to you as it is at this moment the is as large as st john s park te to us is the king s palace with an on our right the or queen s palace on our left the opening into the fine street by which we entered the town and a row of lofty houses with an to the lower story our hotel one of a range on this side and carts are and sing and a busy people seem to be driving forward with some object before them but these are exceptions here is a little company of mu toe in si i them by ft with a n g national airs accompanied a man with a harp and a with a a ring of soldiers round them drop in on all and plenty of priests there may be or four persons in the ring there comes the royal carriage through the palace gate ihe ring breaks a line is formed and all hats are off a enters upon the scene and again the circle forms there goes a procession of with their superior at their head holding aloft a black cross near the stand a knot of old women with wrinkles in deep fin rows and white caps up into a sort of tower and loaded with an quantity of gay col cured and flowers there are two very young peasant girls them with a sort of hat with low crowns and immense l im and a bunch of flowers one side here are with long bare heads gray tied with and on their bare feet the king appears on horseback with officers attendant and servants in scarlet and again the ring breaks and all hats are defied now my dear c this may be very tiresome to you ance i cannot make it vivid to your mental as it is to my bodily eye but to me it seems as if the world had indeed turned into a stage and the men and women into players and actors of some poetic dream of my youth and as i have set down just what i have seen and nothing that i have not seen i sat at this window as it is not a day and not more than ten o clock a m it may be curious to you to compare life here with life in our working day world we have just returned from a drive pleases us the streets are as regular as those of philadelphia but here uie ends as these streets sometimes in a long and superb avenue and sometimes the perspective with a church or a palace the houses are regular too but twice as high as ours don t count feet and inches against me and built of a light stone first we went to a new bridge over the a single and reckoned the most bridge of its kind in the world while the was its was doubted and there were | 6 |
that when the was removed it would fall when it was finished the placed himself under the centre of the arch and ordered the to be taken away cross or crown crown it proved we then went to the church of the to see a famous statue of the virgin made to her saving from the most wretched b a and tone that well with hu appearance he was gratified with our good tidings of hu and much interested with our of hia s little have died a year or two at a la he said de its en de la prison bit pour c est conviction qui m a et me care in reply to his saying that he lived a of and had few acquaintances in we told him that he had friends all over the that proves he said that there are everywhere his looks his manner bis every word be spoke were in harmony with bis book certainly one of the f tions of our day i have been very to hear fi ne of his ti men speak of a id an a reluctant we that be bad sunken into willing to and craft it is said that he has joined the order of i do believe nor have i heard any e e in of it that to the proof of die of a soul in le he is a saint that fall grace there seems to me nor in bis urgent income god granted me mercy of m r i of god all or beat good it ii mid till in m p us former and his phase of the christian has been that of he is gentle not and the john not oft is a and has nor returned to his at the time after his career for he went last to see his and a d and morning after a whole night s and with them he his sa a and mother to see s a wearing a covered with red and artificial and and a string of gold heads as big an beans good gold as they are and that these are the most esteemed of the peasant s wealth and are from generation to gen happy should be the condition of the ant in the rich spacious plains abound u is at the foot of the watered by the fo and the and enriched with the vine and the the grows here in the greatest perfection and abundance it is meat delicious and so is the wine made from it which we are told is too delicate for we find always in a rich agricultural country as we have found here excellent bread and butter they bread in a form which they vol n c gi sane a sort of bread or dies of are placed at the head and foot of the table the in the poor cold valley of l bring all their not less than eighty miles and we paid for our we passed our first night after at route to give you an idea oi what an italian inn is which english travel has not yet i will set down our breakfast service for a and for boiled milk and a a for a bowl i we at l the second day a place t i remember figures on the scene in s italian and which half a page in our book forth churches and to be seen and how gained a victory under its wa and how built a temple here to us it appeared a most disagreeable place and if i built anything it would be an altar with an ex representing our carriage driving out of it we went to the which was filled with ugly old sitting of grapes and most soft nor i have eaten bat one since i came to europe tiiat would be thought above par in new york or philadelphia the market place in was filled with idle st men collected about us and stared so at the girls that they clung to me and i felt for the first time in my life and glad enough to get back to the hotel accustomed as we have been to the of going on in germany and where we felt as much freedom as in our own country it is very to be cut off at once from the free use and enjoyment of our faculties young women cannot walk out here without a male attendant or a woman pretty well in years who ordinarily is no at the inn till we were out of patience hia delay was explained when we found the bridge which crosses the a mile am the town was for the there was a boat but our way was by great numbers of carts and es which had of us knew it was market day and had foreseen this and calculated that we should be driven back to by the of the hour and thus he should gain twenty and a day s rest for his horses imagination up robbers pouring in with the coming night from and but our yankee wit was not to be by our nor our resolution by a s bo we seated ourselves on the bridge and watched the progress of the miserable little boat which ned five minutes in and it had five passages to c d l z s to our torn ft which the poor people te sold w but the s q d forbade this traffic the time up a coach with t and went ua all ah said who was up and down in a les des the nm was as we got into carriage and we had yet fifteen miles to travel add once persuaded us to stop and look at some bed in a filthy inn we came on to our ing and safely the | 6 |
is there is little danger of me ng the at present time on the great oi italy are aad n are too strong for poor fears were genuine and inherited his mother died of the of t from an attack of a few days before his tiie tea miles from on a granite bridge and there entered the kingdom and at the little town of our carriage was i possession of by soldiers ready to do the courteous of welcome which their imperial master up points to strangers as we were not enough to attempt to reform the code of national to we directed ib to pay the fee to save our from a and to get the necessary tbat th were filled with honest gowns skirts c what a disgrace to ct europe are these and petty thank heaven we have passed our from them as we are often by e pays est ah c est le pays de la liberty b a happy country the of liberty the country between and is fertile beyond description you have often heard my dear c of the rich plains of watered by with but you can hardly imagine the perfection of its the corn is now six eight inches high and the as green as ours in june and we have reached remember the twenty of october the road is with trees the country is too level picturesque beauty and it has not the highest charm of agricultural life there are no signs of rural cheerfulness j no look of the live in compact dirty little the very few country houses are with high with their lower windows mare from than a has large in told ma had up ta it on of ttie was obliged co at frontier b and female are appointed o the in our would be if had on the of and w or a u c even ttie bam windows have like a state of morals and does suggest what a to rural life in what to the condition of things ia our little village of s where a certain of her with n leaving all her plate in a hard by and puts in a second when she hears that a thief has been some fifty miles off oh pays well and we repeat thanks to all our friends dear c for ttie half of letters we have here a month s and five days less than a month old i brought us from the forty worth forty forty thousand we may shrink from other expenses but letters are ah indispensable luxury at this distance fr n you all a necessary of life what a pleasant ev ing s reading we had here a tear dropping and there a laugh bursting forth home voices rung in our ears home faces we were at s and l and i think i shall never the shock and in our ideas i the door opened for an inquiry about the di we were the and valleys of vanished and here we were at the hotel de in a lofty painted pictures of and a plaster stove surmounted with a statue ss hi we have been disappointed to find most of the to whom our letters addressed an still at th we have sent them however notwithstanding we hear that an american gentle man who brought a letter from one of our was ordered by the police to leave within twelve a of one gentleman and five obscure can scarcely awaken the q of at policy of our have come in from their country to honour the addressed to and have received us with cordiality it is cold and as it has been foe the last ten days j but it had a very agreeable drive about the city with the c a the streets are and are just now looking dull and dingy enough the gay people have not yet returned from their summer and of the inhabitants of we see only priests and women in nd k f a know men and or of trials and tempt ban rarely been subjected to wa dot for the few of difficulty which tbey i and can we homage to these who and that man holds most dear to and let me what in infer of the the j came t surely th t in to go do to the streets tie paved with small round stones with a double wheel of granite brought from the shores of ud the blocks so nicely joined that the as smoothly and almost as rapidly as over rails and they are so that there is no danger of the horse slipping the are you slight turn a dozen of ours one of them and the palaces magnificent as you may im be on our la for la which we had been was the largest in we to the at a of peace the termination im road and oe his republic projected by napoleon but not finished till within the last few months the work was begun in and the first artists were on statues d intended to illustrate the most of n s when the was finished his power and fe had ended and art too the slave to sacrifice truth and beauty to its own work hy cutting off napoleon s head that noble head made to be m marble and in its place the e head and mean features of the francis and poor who had do to an is into the c wisdom and wears s illustrations of on aad the great political of his life an hy the to stand for in history what may imagine where this species of was impossible new of marble have been which may be detected by the difference of shade the structure is seventy five feet in | 6 |
height and three feet in breadth the columns which are extremely beautiful are thirty eight and a half feet high the arch is surmounted by a figure of victory with four homes attached to a car in full career the details are elaborate and highly finished and the whole gave me some idea of what italy must have been in the days of the when their were fresh and and of the dazzling of this in entering the city from the road through this arch you come upon a very noble place d where the soldiers are exercised we crossed this to an by napoleon and first opened for a uie peace of it was for of arms and exercises it is of an form and surrounded by of seats where people may be seated they are now grass grown we next visited the formerly a college of the but now and by a to the arts and we did not take portion of our brief time to walk through the library and look at the of the volumes there once up the staircase where on the landing places are the statues of and we spent all our time in the gallery enjoying its pictures i first sought out no s sending away and once found it is difficult to leave it the colouring and is as it always be made to the moral the outer the inner the the head of the people you see the over the father and lover with her face in tears is the loving girl urging the claim of true and tender what seems to her an incredible sentence is the very of l al rights and the poor little boy burying his face in his mother s gown is the we were in an obscure apartment a superb bronze statue of napoleon by a grand work but strangely in resemblance within two years the have kept it hidden in a cellar buried alive one cannot but smile at terror at napoleon s mere as we were passing through one of the rooms c c a pointed to the bust of the emperor francis with an inscription in which be is called our fa our father i he repeated s and mine his emphasis recalled their reasons for a filial sentiment c having been imprisoned by the good three years and his ih while we driving the gentlemen pointed out to us the cannon kept always loaded guarded and pointed against the town th of its citizens w in tbe of d s of tke s wonder da supper on the and m parts so faded m to be ot time and the bare act b o its worst the ms and a door cut through it hj a decree that the mi t have their served hot front the to complete the e door was cot through the figure of our would it not be a these to be to a where should an and eat only cold like people who have too irons in the fire for he was painter and author let some of them grow cold b so g about this picture that the of tiie reproached him bitter and he took his r b head a of the prior s has recorded s reply to the prior s complaint which strikes us as considering the relative position of the parties o se io vi di me si se or if perchance i do not find it the face of i will put in that of the father prior who is me it will suit well the of this c tore jou a better idea of most of the heads e now does aod of the of die when that declaration on their hearts behold the hand of him that me is me on the table but no copy that i seen has approached this face of calm and beautiful it is god manifest in the f you are ready to exclaim with peter i die with thee yet mil never betray v and yet tt ia the painter left it unfinished that he could never his of the character of by way of a we have just had two men in our drawing room exhibiting a their grandfather cut out of wood fifty years ago he must have been i fancy fifty years cutting it there are figures oa it and an details the of you don t believe a word of that story of tile said aside to me this is an catholic s notion of a s faith when the men to our ideas of die privilege we were g said we were the fir to whom the had been shown whispered they have been showing it these five the are all belief w in god and go together man cf on till i l hi n d madame s been to see us she is a fragile looking little creature aad though now a grandmother as shy as a timid girl of there is a tender solemnity in her voice and manner that reminded me of and of c a though she spoke little of him and when she did turned away her face to hide an emotion perceptible enough in the pressure of her little hand which b not very much or than a s i wish those who confound all italian women in one condemnation could know as we know the character of this good wife devoted mother and mar r went last escorted by j c a to la it is as are the other theatres of on the ruins of a church d tall muscular young men were stationed at the entrance of the house at the foot of the stairs on the places and in the their swords and high caps rather frightful to us who hare a sort of dread | 6 |
of an police j c a took us up four flights of st rs to i that we might have a d of the whole theatre this row bears no resemblance to our galleries or to those of the english theatres the box we entered was one of several called de so they are fitted up as s for clubs of gentlemen with tables and and are veil lifted the of the from is or would b magnificent when they hare an a a daylight illumination ordinarily the blaze of is for the stage the audience is in comparative obscurity and consequently la b perhaps twice as large as the opera house in london its effect is by no means so brilliant as that where the light is and reflected by richly dressed people here we could only imperfectly now a matron s cap and then a young lady s as they peeped from behind the curtains of th boxes the rows of boxes are with mile bordered with crimson the box is the it the second and third rows and is as lai e as a small drawing room and is of coarse fitted up with and has a gilded crown suspended over it the theatre is the great of society the ladies receive in their boxes instead of at home and being constructed with reference to this custom they are deep and narrow not more than two can occupy a front seat between the seats in the pit and the front boxes there is a wide left for the gentlemen to the music is a secondary object holding e same place it does in a drawing room a air or a favourite attention for a few moments but as far as i have observed even the italian is not the common in b j of the bound of his own voice to s to be not to heavenly b was the in which when in the street i have to it being rather a phenomenon to see young ladies walking about as our girls do but the gaze of men lounging before our box and planting their for the ace of two or compared with the with i our women at home are treated rather strongly dr in the two after having heard la c the here was no great affair the can no longer afford to pay th best the presence of art and the result of study are striking in the stage management the opera all its is the study of this nation bs ns are the study of england and the states during the which by the way is ed between the acts of the opera much to the of its effect there was a corps of between and girls on the stage at the same moment not varying in height children are for the at a school uie for the and for besides this should be a fearful question to who must answer it it would i should cure people s mud for opera to witness the e of these poor young i felt sorry for our dear girls and for myself that ve were present at such i cannot call it ty a more name there were persons on stage at one time belonging to the army the emperor pays a sum to sa the opera at la considering it an e instrument for the political pulse ef italy no wonder that must be employed to sing e to those who have a master s pointed at th homes among other which the emperor has that the love of that divine and essence is at work in the hearts of the is the fact that no italian lady an officer in her box with it matters not what rank he holds if tes him she is put into by her countrymen is there not hope of a people who while their chains are dare thus openly to disdain their masters it ii we m no of italy aa it is by overpowered bj ths ot bet force and is still into but we of a how that the of their a to in the twelfth when their from them their and off their soldiers we are feeble forsaken and they said be i bo it does not to to hut to our country we oar left in our arms and the yet boiling d d l g g i thk two the c have beat to see us and eagerness to s letter the elder c is of th aa office that has fallen its al to a mere but mil as its gift is a proof of favour its incumbent will probably be of the friends of the bat apart from this e hare reason to expect the have no fellowship with the and into that we the habits and modes of in the two are ao different that there can be but little pleasure social intercourse the english gentleman in his italian acquaintance to his home he comes here and is offered the italian s he is and cold and intercourse ends after the gentlemen left ra r a k o had been talking with c i how him very much he is not only tiiat rice does not grow in new england that the does not empty into the atlantic but ha as with the of our country as if he had there the count is a a world and the most delicate made oi t id md b wa will wait not till tho hope of conquering i that bat till of n t is the greatest of all s tbe of the in the and the ob places in a one of the little used believe the display of and to crown all we had the of count c s escort the which you know is the great | 6 |
ca of and esteemed the second church in italy a stranger at this time at a temple consecrated to st charles as its divinity of his life for the most part painted are hanging its hundred and marble columns directly under the dome io the ia a chapel where the saint s remains with rich jewels are preserved in a crystal with with out as i am told having any very fill change i did not look within i do not like to see the image of the altar of this httle in which silver lamps are always is of solid ver the are hu g with of and gold woven in which cost thirteen pound sterling the than three of a yard ia pure silver the most striking events in the s life cover of e wall and at each angle is a statue of silver one of the ba relief re the to the poor twenty pounds the of an d l g g i be sold to relieve them in a lime of distress how would he approve he wealth in main in his chapel i have thus particular my dear c to show yoa bow the generous gratitude of the has been wasted and by ignorance and superstition this chapel is no just memorial of st charles his records are scattered over the territory in wise and merciful institutions so you may turn your of into the wholesome of veneration for christian virtues in catholic form st charles deserves everything short of the honours rendered to him he was made and cardinal in hia twenty third year he lived with the of sub sting on vegetables sleeping on a straw bed and di in private with the attendance of s he visited the villages of his and penetrated even into the recesses of the he the and schools he was the or of schools we saw a large collection of boys and girls in the taught by priests and and learned this school waa by st charles we saw the to parish church on sunday and were told they were go to the instruction provided by st charles he founded schools and a in every town in which be resided he left a memorial of his enlightened generosity a an ho or a fountain there are tea f and five os hit and fountains without number he poured out gifts of gold like water and better than he submitted his expenditure to a rigid scrutiny after hearing all this you would not the homage rendered to turn though you might v to its i must confess that to a forms and and of the mysteries of the church the ceremonies appear like a theatrical on the high altar there were statues in massive of st charles and of st the patron of and the interval between them with heads also of the of the church was arranged a hanging much as dishes are arranged on a on one sat the on a throne a golden and in magnificent robes the choir opposite to as sat the r of the the at their head before a table covered with a rich cloth on which were the bearings of in her hap her free days t the choir was filled with priests and beneath ds stood with fixed and like b line de m the was nearly filled people of all conditions and what a multitude there might be without a crowd you may imagine from the cathedral being paris feet in length and in breadth if it were for me to describe the no h it would be most tiresome to there was and good and bad as lively as a merry dance and as solemn as a e there was a of the host and burning of incense and a kneeling of the vast multitude there was much of the priests the was and as he l d a de each consecrated article of his apparel he it a kneeling priest presented him a gold and he washed hia hands there was a procession of priests and homage rendered by the representatives and a of peace by the by the priests in a manner which the girls to the elegant diversion of our childhood hold fast what i give you the whole concluded with a on the merits of st charles in the midst of we came away with the that we had been witnessing a sort of drama but i rather think this feeling was quite as far from christian as the ceremonies we time and use have consecrated them to the pious catholic to him each observation of to us empty and ve show some pious thought or holy memory and as the catholic is and as it assuredly is from the simplicity of the gospel it has we know its living saints and many a i who in spite of all these clouds and darkness in spirit and in truth c i came again today to us and we went forth in spite jf the rain for we have not time to wait till the waters from the of the earth will you not like my dear c to hear something of the charitable institutions of and to know that this work of christian love is well done here we first to the institution for this was founded in the century by one of the family a of st charles the building is built as i believe all the are here around a court and with broad on the four sides where the girls can have plenty of free exercise when the bad weather keeps them from tb ur garden their garden is even now on the heels of winter beautiful the grapes still in leaf roses in bloom and the foliage not more faded than ours is towards the last of september the establishment is well endowed the | 6 |
girls are received from the age of seven to ten and retained till they are eighteen they are instructed in reading writing tion and in female they in we saw most delicate in progress for royal when the girls leave the institution if they are not so fortunate as to get husbands at once not a rare occurrence the matron told us they are placed as or in shops we saw them in their long work room with the picture of the virgin mary at one end of it that image of lore to a eye ranged on each of the t ble with th r baskets cushions and the implements of their art in the order some were making garments the most ed and the youngest at plain or knitting is a little pulpit half way up ttie room from which of the reads prayers daily and a book of de books are not permitted the are apartments lo and and as arranged as our hours the shaking and with more to feed the beside each single bed spread with a pure white cover there hangs ths picture of a saint sometimes a and always a and about the walls are pictures of those good old men and women that constitute the world of the pious and for each or class there is an altar with all belonging where prayers are said night and morning we went into the chapel the kitchen and tiie where several girls were busily employed and finally into ttie dining room just as the bell was for dinner the girls came in in orderly beautiful girls they were and each as she passed us with a bow and a sweet smile i wish ng could give such manners and our stiff girls be taught them the was neatly spread a at each plate the soup was e ha i proved bj taking a spoon from one of the little things and it at which she looked up so pleased that you would certainly have kissed the round cheek she willingly turned to me and so did i besides the soup there was a small portion of meat potatoes excellent bread and white and red wine their supper consists of bread and fruit on the whole i came to the sion that the orphan s providence in is better than father and mother our who looked hke a respectable new england gave me a at parting and as we got into the carriage our most elegant of took off his hat and bowed to her with as a courtesy as if she had been a royal princess our next was to an infant school of one hundred and fifty children under six years of age of which count c i b this is one of seven in t schools in all supported by private the children s and girls were dress ed alike in of a stout cotton they were eating a good soup when we entered all except one little stood in a corner of tiie room condemned to some sin in this he attracted c s compassion and his superb bending over him was a picture the little penitent was of course soon to a hungry boy s paradise the dinner table after an after dinner grace they into an room where they went a vol n e for our showing themselves as well in as the young of institutions in our new england they finished with a somewhat from ours he e is paradise a ed th teacher in the invisible heaven why invisible to which while i was in response the boy replied se because it is not seen what did you become by v asked the teacher a christian are you all christians they replied in chorus per la di we are all christians by the grace of god poor httle fellows may they learn by experience what the glorious is by the name which alone the of can ve we awoke this morning to a bright day the first one we have had for weeks and this is the girls were enchanted as girls may be with forth in their new and fair weather dresses c s e was at our hotel at an early hour for was to be a busy day and off we drove to the hospital an institution founded in by fourth duke of he gave his palace a it is now however forming but a small of the pile of buildings ve enriched the institution till its income to two hundred and i z dollars there is for two two hundred and forty persons aod during the past summer the hospital has heen supported by this foundation but without the town is an insane hospital a lying in hospital and a hospital where there are now nine children and besides this are distributed to individuals throughout the territory in cases where it is considered to remove th n to ihe hospital there is a fine bathing establishment some are appropriated exclusively to with a fever peculiar to resembling for which the warm bath is the only known remedy there are plenty of diseases i fancy ling among the poor in italy for which the warm bath and plenty of soap would be a cure after going through the for clothes the galleries and courts for exercise the kitchen immense quantities of wholesome food were in preparation i said to c i the must be very glad to have a good reason for coming here on the contrary he said tliey are to leave their homes and never come till by misery truly he who set the solitary in families knew the elements of the affections he had given and for which he was providing we passed through some of the apartments where were great of die each ed with and yet in what was | 6 |
to bim complete solitude no wonder man everywhere to the home where he can feel a mother s hand meet the eye of a wife or hear the voices of bis children and see some mute objects that touch the springs of memory and hope i suppose this is much like other i never was in one before and the scene haunts me those haggard faces of or of and misery a few were reading religious books one man was g to his priest and a was receiving from a one of a society of men and women who devote them selves to the poor a screen was drawn around one bed to hide the unconscious tenant from whom the world was forever hidden in the we were shown s original deed of gift with his and what pleased me much more a deed of pa from my favourite st charles with slight record of our observation of the charitable institutions of will convince you that italy is not merely the mass of vice b and it is so often represented but that there are yet left more than the ten righteous to save the ok leaving the hospital a change came o er the of our dream i said the day was made to see the view from the t e of the so we went there and wound up the interminable but staircase to the lower roof this cathedral is of white marble that is originally white but as it was begun in the century a great part is nearly blackened it however well with the glittering whiteness of that portion finished in the me of napoleon it is a in stone going far back into the dim ages i am always on uie verge of a description of these in spite of my resolution against it but i am give none and therefore mere ly tell you that the is supported by fifty two marble columns that three of its sides are covered with with figures and groups of figures that there are more than statues on it that there are running up into points called needles each surmounted with a statue and in the centre and rising above all a marble gilt statue of the virgin crowned queen of heaven you have no conception of the of its till you are on the roof and pass from marble terrace to terrace up one flight of marble stairs and another and another and through of galleries and groups of statues of old saints and children every angle every little filled with them and see far above you those hundred figures on their airy looking as if they were native to the element they are in and might move upon it you may have some idea of the extent of this intricate of art and beauty when i tell you that persons have wan e about hen fi r los and unable to find a dew to ihe where they entered if who waa not to pious reflections exclaimed after his elaborate description of st how dull ia the ce how small the labour compared with the of the in that upon the surface of the temple what think you must have been our sensations when having passed every to our sight we our eyes from this go to a temple not built with man s hands to god s most beautiful on earth to the bounding one third of a horizon of magnificent extent every point defined every outline marked on the clear atmosphere to sitting a queen of beauty on her high shining like the angel in the whom the saw standing in the sun we were in danger of forgetting our but our was overpowered our field of contracted to the rich plains of then to the under us to ihe and to those detestable loaded and and we became quite conscious that this was not the best of all ble worlds after winding up the staircase within the central and spire we reached a point from our first resting place seemed hardly removed from the ground we came down to the marble again and wandered for an hour over it once c i paused and his hand on a said do you like young people always do looking like the they he proceeded two years ago was a attached to a young woman of our whose became jealous and to the lovers in their mad and despair they agreed to meet here and throw themselves off both were true to the appointment bat when the woman saw before her the terrible death to which she had consented her nerves not strong enough and she tried to escape from her lover his resolve however was for an hour he pursued she through these galleries over the running up these long and gliding down now hiding now darting out again hut finally he caught her dragged her here and while she was shrieking clasped her in his and leaped from this look down and you may imagine the horrors of the death we looked down at the points that the descent to the pavement and all turned away silent and shuddering we found madame t at our hotel full of cordiality and she had come in from her villa at to keep her appointment with us she first took us to her town house which has recently a and and a most luxurious establishment it is of taste the of england and the beautiful art of her own country have all been made to wealth almost un limited it seemed to me like the of an tale i have seen elsewhere but nothing not even at castle so as madame t s floors and a window painted hy io in the colours modem art has how scott has chained the arts to his car there was a screen too exquisitely | 6 |
painted by the same artist we went through the whole of apartments dining room room drawing room music room c madame t pointing out the details to us with the pleasure of a je assure she said il y a les en et satin les en c a un an english or american woman would have affected some little reserve the frankness of the italian lady was better when we expressed our admiration madame t said this is all very well but you must see the s s house it is far superior to mine t future jou ihe white with imder of ua up the ii t w here the s s the end there were nd painting but uie was not in as good w t a more i waa bj a portrait and an with na if waa the a ot no ha replied hu not with her for thia ia the picture of an a of the bu na children i id our i beg replied the man tiu one not quite a old i had a that i of madame t accompanied us to the of and the two most celebrated painters of northern italy ad italian is always interesting enriched as it is with the models drawing c that are the studies of the artist io is an and as well as and whatever he which is no trifle upon some treasure or curiosity of art so that his rooms looked more like a museum than a i might bore you with a description of some things that we saw here but that my mind was too j to observe o s paintings or even to heed his friend madame t s enthusiastic praises of them in coming here she had pointed out to us s house the of apartments occupied l and the through he attempted to escape when he was s ed by the police all this produced too an of our friend s sufferings to allow ai pleasant sensations immediately to succeed it you will be glad to hear that count c i has been the steward of as madame t expressed it la true providence r and the girls passed the in the s ic at the opera da er w re open wars filled with noblest in t gentleman to a who had the a id hi sit bet b this morning we set oft on an planned for us by our kind friends and came first attended hy o a to some eight or nine miles from this city you know is often named in the history of the italian it has now an imperial palace where the lives where he has a noble park which however does not suffice for his royal and so there are additions to it cut off from the grounds of the neighbouring gentlemen called which they must by no means intrude on what thorns must these be to the impatient q of the we went over the grounds they are richly varied with artificial water a c but the chief object of attraction at is the iron crown of i felt i confess a keen desire to see it for whatever doubts the may throw over the of the veritable of the from st to queen which form the of the iron crown it was beyond a doubt placed on the brow of and of napoleon it is kept in the a of th pomp tbe ing tbe iron crown from to for f with the bearing crown on of i old th honoured vehicle the crown in of and the of at he poets of the cathedral bj the of who bore it the and it the watched it during the cathedral of a rare old edifice with much ornament and containing among its some curious relics of the favourite queen of we improved the privilege of se g and looked only at a ponderous fan with which her must rather have heated than cooled herself at a very indifferent dressing comb with a richly handle and at uie cup wrought from a single stone in which her majesty pledged her second husband it was evident that our friends had made great to obtain for us a sight of the real crown and that very solemn were necessary to showing it which i fear we were quite incapable of priests entered and put on their sacred robes one knelt while others placed a ladder against the wall to ascend to the shrine where above the high altar this crown is kept enclosed three locks were turned with golden keys the kneeling priest flourished his silver sending up a cloud of incense and half veiled by it a huge cross with jewels was brought down and the sacred crown forming its centre was revealed to our profane eyes lie are made into a ring of iron enclosed by a of pure gold studded jewels in the arms of the cross which is of wood covered with gold are set at short spaces apart small glass cases containing precious relics the and reed of the of the true cross c cross was restored to its position with a repetition of the ceremonies the prayers and the incense and finally the official took off one by one and each he folded it i was glad when it was all over for these religious ceremonies where i am between the humility of ignorance and the pride of a superior liberty are always to me that grand om by turns the and of the church lies here we were obliged to pass out examination his and and the curious of cathedral for we wanted time on our way to to at the monument to the she is buried ia the grounds of her brother our friend count c i the spot is enclosed and a | 6 |
marble monument ia it with the following all written by e di it de ic i il xiv is di i con i e i d open e id i mm il i ad a as per cue s e ad par le i di die of and of maria on of september waa married to on th of is she aod in ae as and are to a human being her and her it but not hi the reading world is dow the character of with the particulars of the heroic of this victim to and martyr to affection let your children the sake of my dear c that character was formed in the bosom of the catholic church and sustained in a country where they will be often told the women are all of a piece with the s that the oi of society here as far aa women are concerned is bad enough i doubt not j hot let us not believe that to be universal which is only general madame t s villa is near the little town of after arriving at we had an hour of rich twilight before dinner to see her grounds have given us new ideas of an italian villa and would lead us to it is not much a want of taste for rural life as a want of means to out their ideas of art and beauty that drives the gentry from their country places madame t nothing to produce the results she wills her extending many hundred feet on each side her indicate wealth bj died on the of ing in the god of the sod thia h moat and and prepared it for them that may one repose beside bet dear and brave ud gentle we con up and for thee tin at that r life now penetrate the of which here below ate hidden in the of ood vol n f s thej are filled with fruits ami one b filled with pines in great perfection and abundance some five or six thousand well grown plants of e intimate the magnificent scale of things here on one of the estate there is an old abbey which serves the purpose of stables and other offices and which last year must have looked rather a t this has been recently under the direction of the artist and now appears to be fragments of an and an old abbey church with a tower from which you have a view over half the rich plains of of an of of in the distance and i could fill my with names that would make your heart beat if you had been here within the edifice there is a theatre and a d which is to be also a museum and is already well begun with a collection of there are noble avenues of old that might make an man look up and around him through one of these we went to a pretty toy of where one t get a little lost were soon by our lady who held the dew and who led us around the winding mar of a lake so extensive that i did not dream nature had not set it there and filled its generous basin till madame t told me it was fed by a stream of water from lake and this stream through the grounds now leaping over a and now dancing over a rocky channel and an ob its way as if it own pleasant path there are artificial we pass ed over one as hi as our laurel hill with grown trees upon it and between this and another is a with a an bridge and tangled a cabinet picture of some passages in j and on my saying this madame t she called it her at one end of the near a s hut is a to half with there was a boat near the hut and so i took it for a true story but on madam t throwing open the door we entered an apartment fitted up with musical instruments which she modestly called h sewing room how fit it is for that employment you may judge there is a lovely statue in the middle of the room the walk and ceiling are covered with of in and from each window is s and most view what a happy woman you must be said i to our charming hostess to be the mistress of this most lovely a foolish remark enough by her face changed her eyes filled witb tears and after to repeated from the of domestic ties by death and to the of her friends fi r political opinions she you know something of the human for me can i be happy alas alas what are there between the exterior and interior of life ie tie twilight drove in in and madame t who to the of her elegant t adds the higher grace of frank ness conducted us herself to our apartments ve truly were lost in six rooms each as lai as half an american and a pretty fair one we drew as nearly together as we could and made a settlement in these vast i lo d rather dreary our prejudices in favour of carpets comfort and un italian ideas there was a family party at madame t s and grand are staying with her the children were at table our italian custom madame t says and a wholesome one it is the dinner wai served in the of madame k at fruit flowers and placed on the table and being but little more than a ab dinner would i think rather have those people who fancy all live on and the was in the beat french style the french i believe give the law to the as well as the of the world we had a | 6 |
over this land of beauty we passed queen s villa these sur you may were ihe scene of some of the scandal that came out on her most scandalous trial and we passed a lovely of ta s where this woman who held the world at is living in happy on country an example of filial and maternal devotion a beautiful villa belonging to count was pointed oat to as and as i looked on its lovely portion and rich i these noble italian risked and lost in holy cause but not lost every self effort in this cause is written in ths book d life we saw the where the little described nearly years ago and li flows it then it me strange to ee one thing e the world has undergone such for a while my dear c we felt as if we could spend our lives in over this lovely lake do dot be shocked you at home can afford for once to be forgotten but by degrees our got uppermost the meal above the our voices one by one died away our superb looked a little g s gentle current j l laid her head on the table and fell asleep and by the time we arrived at twenty miles from the shores were wrapped in a veil and we were very glad to exchange our pleasure for a inn we went to bed at feeling that it would be little short of presumption to expect a third fine day and to be equal to either clouds or sunshine i confess i crept to the in the morning with dread but there i saw at her morning watch over the lake the sky a blue and the lake as still and lovely as a sleeping child i was malicious enough to reply to drowsy again but the was too fine to be in t ht of ot he t of freed here he a lie with able teacher to ite put and a in of the hi m b w ii lake we were all soon assembled in a little n surrounding the inn for so you might call a court filled to the very water s edge with rose bu es in bud and we met our the air with cigars which they gallantly discarded and attended us to the villa which covers a hill it is the property of a gentleman in the service who serving according to the universal policy far from his own country leaves the delight of and enjoying it to a relative this gentleman is now m a carriage road around the place and up a steep where at no trifling expense of course it is supported od arches of solid work the whole hu is into a garden filled with roses and every species of growing in the open air the which will not bear our september grows here and as a proof the invariable softness of the climate c i pointed out an olive tree to me three or four hundred years old this is the result of tbe of the shores of the lake for within a few miles the are severe we wandered up and down and around the coming out here and there on the most exquisite views once our pleasures were not by shrieks from l i hastened forward and found ha flying from a of that her shawl had enraged c leaning on cane with ter at her terror at these rather as i thought with them is on a that the lake into two branches and thence hare a of both j of on one side and oa the other and dear c it was in the morning light with the rose coloured hues on the and villages and gardens looking bright in the early day mom s mantle close drawn here and ih e the lake in the sunshine and no sound but a on the opposite shore the bells of a distant church it was a scene of for us children of the cold north and you will comprehend its effect and foi te h into the if i tell you that when i first met him on coming back into the he exclaimed his feeble frame thrilling with a sense of and delicious beauty i will never go back to america nature is indeed here a tender restoring nurse a ta break at we left forever alas and walked through an avenue of to the was president of the republic but when napoleon made the a and crown be made duke of the place has now into the hands of the duke s son a lad of the house fronts the lake there is a look of nature about the grounds and soft and quiet but aa they lie nearly on the level tf the lake they are in lake in to art comes in in italy to help nature to perfect her or to make you forget her we met and and other statues and single and on the were of and m among many others ng s homage to his master there is a chapel at a short distance from the house with a beautiful altar i think by and to different members o the that ther express some domestic story or are i could not make out which of all things i should like an chapel with the good deeds of my told in painting and stone i will not make you follow me through the of as they are but to get a of the refinement of taste in the room where two little marble boys are on a the one with a sad injured countenance an empty bird s the other a little of and fun has the e s th are groups of children painted on di of the wall all having allusion | 6 |
of such divine sweetness as if she might weep at the fantastic tricks and cruel games men have played and called them this is the first time we have seen any striking remains of roman magnificence and art on the very spot where they stood in the eye of those whose souls were breathed into r forms and ihe first time is an epoch in one s we left this morning at seven a morning il y en a nowadays when i opened my blind at hung over our balcony as brilliant as when she kept her watch at we have been driving on the a pretty old road and kept in excellent repair our first halt vas at on the shores of the di the the lake is nearly enclosed by and the climate is ao softened hy its mountain wall that the most delicate southern fruits are on its shores the fish of this lake were sung by of old and are quite as much by the who was born at had bis villa here on the of set its beautiful portion was pointed out to u the lake the stormy character vii l gave it in his time not a breath stirred leaves as we walked along the shore and yet the blue waves came with their white towards us and gave k rather too spirited a salutation always excepting this di with its is the most beautiful sheet of water i have ever seen for an hour we drove in view of the lake and during the whole drive we have had objects under our eyes a with its long lawn avenues a shrine a an old wall a bridge and the bounding our the our guide book calls them but what is there on earth so rich in beauty so suggestive to the imagination this is the richest part of covered with and vines and with as it appears to us a healthy lull fed from the cradle to the grave the i to nor tha but hu iu hat it to are and rosy masses of hair the women are tall and well developed and the old people so old that one would think they must themselves have they ever young the last thing they do forget but they are rocked in the cradle of age never cease from their labours we see even the old women with their gray heads bare or with a fanciful straw hat driving and leading cows on the highway whenever our carriage stops there are of beggars around us but they are for the most part or comparing the of with that here this climate would seem to be bed and board to them ttie first object that struck our on entering was a very curious old bridge over the and m that moment till we reached our inn we kept up a exclamation at the the famous old palaces the immense houses half as high as the and at the heavy stone a powerful d in the time of the and so ed in the ages when the bold lords of the family ruled its has now down to a population of to me it bears a charmed name as recalling the time when a child of seven years i sat down on the car pet by the old to read the two gentlemen of the only one of s plays now to me but is to every english blooded traveller the of that sweetest of the whose has converted into and fixed her shrine here we set off in a half hour after our arrival with a dirty old de place i have an to the best of the to see the of the sweet saint the palace of the so ed is a gloomy dark old rack rent edifice now a i we were conducted through an arched way into a court with carts loaded with the balcony was half way to heaven where poor needed in truth a s voice to be heard by her lover the garden we were told was beyond the court but we saw no wall high and bard to climb that love s l ht i ing alone might pass and we were eager to get away before imagination should lose forever the power of recalling the orange groves and the passionate girl in the balcony the lover in the garden and the moon with silver all those tree we drove half a mile beyond the gate to the old where tradition has placed the tomb of the and here in a dreary garden we were shown the spot where the tomb and alas for the that yet awaited ns a unlocked something very like a bam door and admitted us into something very like a bam where she showed us an open stone of marble which she assured us con h s body when it was removed from tlie garden to this place for safe keeping there was a stone pillow for her bead and a for a candle which it is to this day the custom of the to place lighted in the there were two holes for probably to admit air enough to support the flame in the heart of the ci enclosed by an iron railing of most delicate are the of the when all records are lost but s which will undoubtedly all others these may be shown for the of the there are monuments curiously marble and three are more elaborate than tbe rest and these run up into and are surmounted with statues an hie tbe rest this our said was of the greatest lord of it should then be of cane there is an here built of blocks of stone without and as early ae s time which is in admirable preservation napoleon repaired it in excellent taste so that it now appears quite perfect | 6 |
it can accommodate person tha first of he the ind hia court of all the draw to the and of there an till at of tbe protection ha to architecture but war c to i have apt half finished the sight of crowded but i spare you k and i returned a stroll in the morning in time to swallow our and to against an over charge in our lull a hateful task that falls to my share arid often makes me regret the days when i went on like a lady paying prices and scarcely knowing them but we hare in truth little to complain of the inn charges are seldom extravagant and as to strictly i think we rarely meet with them good policy has arranged these matters on great high roads we poorer americans must pay the whidi luxurious english travellers this lean have introduced we have now travelled nearly across the kingdom the which all the continent is a government is well arranged but much dearer than in germany the german is the least civilized of but the italian b lower in the scale of humanity his horses too are inferior in size and muscle but they seem to have a portion of the s of their masters and travel than the heavy german horse though we are on the verge of winter the characteristics of the country are manifest are yet blooming at the post women throng to our coach with filled with grapes t to apples and the people are all oat of doors women spinning by the road side their hair and performing other offices that we at all seasons reserve for in doors we at which is now a town of some long enough to see some of the best productions of one of the celebrated of italy who lived in the sixteenth century and was bom here all northern italy is by his and works i am no critic in these but a too lavish profusion of ornament seems to me to them the work esteemed his master piece is at it is called the theatre and was built precisely on the model of the ancient greek theatre that tb might get a precise idea of the mode of dramatic the scenery is a representing the entrance of a greek town and the into seven different streets where you see houses and arches the stage is not much larger than a generous table then there are columns and rows of statues extending all around the theatre there are fourteen of seats for the spectators and with all this of genius art and money there have been but two here one for the emperor and one for his you will agree with me that might have spent bis time and the their money better than on this all mere toy the private here are most richly ornamented with one the few honoured id his own the inhabitants of have down to about three times the number of the students it once gathered within the walls of that venerable where the exterior wall of the university is covered with ia and various the men who have been distinguished here you was bom at in this neighbourhood and was a in the church here where if me may judge by the zeal with every memorial of him is cherished his love were not considered there is a picture of the at the cathedral presented by turn there waa a curtain over it our said if the ladies commanded it should be uncovered we were so disgusted with this contrivance to exact a fee this covering up a picture from its to it to the gaze of for a paltry hire that we declined the offer we saw in the a bust of and a portrait painted by his contemporary wi were in to t oat own and to it the pictures in the that ihey be no et ken hut w t by the ind ne er seen but or the be he or and it ia the an from such a capital and the sight of the picture ta ten trifling sum it b we have a in this old world dear c as if the dead of all past ages were rising to life on eveiy de of us we saw in the hall of justice here a noble hall feet long and adorned with by a bust of which was in the of this his the roman remains and in are comparatively few and it is not to the days of roman dominion that the mind but to the period of italian independence you perceive in these rich of the source in nature of the individual life vigour and power of the free cities in these warm plains completely and producing without measure corn wine and the tree those natural sources of wealth and you perceive still in the noble the people the intellectual character that made italy the seat of art literature commerce and while civilization had scarcely dawned on the rest of europe with what feelings must idle impotent italy look back on those days when her were sending their gorgeous wherever there was money to pay for them when her could truly declare in eastern courts that they saw nothing there more luxurious than they had seen in the palaces of their native princes the days when their their poets and their painters were creating works for all posterity these were the days when and and and all the rest of their glorious company were when freedom was so dear to y that it was an that blessed were those that died for liberty and their when an insolent imperial letter was torn from a herald s hands and trampled under foot when a beautiful matron in a town with her infant in her arms | 6 |
who had for days on boiled leather offered the nourishment in her breast to a fainting soldier that he might up and do or die when with her houses to the ground and her inhabitants driven forth again rose and successfully resisted imperial and now soldiers keep the gates of these cities and say who shall enter and who depart no wonder that the italian s heart within him that the noblest spirits are with de air in or driven into there are three posts about seven miles each from to the usual boundaries of land and water are so changed by the of the rivers that i fear we are getting no very accurate notions of the face of the country in its ordinary condition you are conscious you are approaching a city that gathered to itself the riches of the world and whose market converted lands into gardens and golden fields there are what we have not seen elsewhere pleasant looking isolated cottages witli and and an of villages churches and magnificent villa to appear like drawing rooms pretty well filled with poetic gentlemen and ladies dressed and in sober truth there are many more statues out of doors here than you see people with us in the finest weather the houses are magnificent many built after the of and like everything of his they are surrounded with high walls with arched stone and iron gates with at the gates and statues on tiie walls at intervals the roses are still in bloom though the trees are nearly stripped of their leaves last night for the first time we had a slight frost at a mis able little town with beggars and screaming and and us we left our carriage and embarked in a yes dear c a which all our heroic poetic associations to the contrary notwithstanding is the most looking you ever saw afloat they are without exception covered by a black first imposed by a law of the republic and maintained probably by the laws of poverty is five miles from and seen thence appears like a city that has from and while distance its to the view still like a queen on her hundred or rather as its proud representative who refused his oath of to henry said as if it were a fifth ess belonging neither to the church nor the emperor the sea nor the land i nature too lent ua her the sun as we crossed the coloured the an with rose and purple hues which the waves that played around our reflected while the pale moon hung over the i cannot describe to you the sensation of approaching greatness as that of it is as if a majesty appeared to you from the dead we passed in silence the magnificent st and were landed at the steps of the formerly the went in the twilight last evening my dear c to the passed the palace and the bridge of sighs to get the feeling that we ore actually in and in this surrounded as you are by magnificent and objects it is not to realize s past wealth and splendour it is only difficult to believe that it is there is the church of st mark oriental magnificence with architecture and christian its fa with written in mo and over its arched entrance the little in the the i de i d b ra to the of l mark i ram to tbe the hj hid the body of their in under pile of pork from which the ve u tho the bt vol it i four of tbe seeming of victory often have they over the world to the victor s car these mute images put the and the of the world and its players into striking they were tbe of s glory of rome s of s of and of napoleon s their their glory and their generations have away and here these brazen horses stand three sides of the are surrounded with very with gay with and on the is a space open to the sea called the small on one side of this is the very beautiful of the palace a mixture i believe of and architecture but so unlike anything european that we have seen and so like pictures of the east that we seemed at once to have passed into the world near the water stand two granite columns one surmounted by the of st mark the other by the statue of a saint both these columns were brought from the east and are of the of the republic in the century opposite the palace is another palace of beautiful architecture and beside it the tbe hark i to ba written hia own hand is tbe of the church the sl h c male hia lion their and hi name in with peculiar or and the once had me in of b nine on stood to make his mis this is we said as after gazing for a half hour on this we turned to go to our hotel but our illusion vanished when we looked off upon the water and saw but and there a little boat where there were once from from and ind i went before breakfast this morning to st mark s and as i paused for moment at the door to look up at the figure of the saint on a ground of blue and gold two persons i am sure drew my eyes and thoughts from him they were young men appeared as if they had that moment landed from some expedition the one wa looking about him with a careless ty there was a wild savage desolation about the other i never can forget his face was and his tangled locks stood out as if tbey were of iron i met his quick glancing eye but i am | 6 |
sure he did see me nor anything in the world around the gorgeous the oriental the costly pictures were to him as if they were not and on he strode as if he were on a sea beach straight through the not pausing till he reached the steps before the high altar when he threw himself prostrate on them and seemed as if he would have buried his face in the marble hie people were up and him on him he moved no more than if be had been struck dead there it seemed to me that i could hear the cry from his soul god be merciful to me a sinner and not till the mass was over when he rose with an expression somewhat softened and and his companion who had been staring about hy the arm and hastened away could i see anything but him and when i did look around upon this most gorgeous of christian temples enriched as it is with the spoils of and the it seemed poor indeed compared with the worth of this suffering and penitent split j for so i am certain it was few churches are so enriched with historical as as st mark s it was here that the of imperial to power was ted by e dramatic of the humiliation of to pope alexander when emperor himself before his and him to plant his foot upon his neck the history of this church from ae it was a chapel a mere to the palace would be a history of t t id i u i of h moat of hi tha cloak the foot upon the neck too a and id a it p id the palace waa hare that of the ia the drama of waa tha blind have been over the palace up the giant s stairs and the golden staircase and through the immense halls whose and walls are by paul and to me i am profane or perhaps most ignorant to say so uninteresting pictures the portraits of the which bang below the com ice one apartment are not so they are all there excepting one and on the where that should be is painted a black veil with an inscription to signify that was to poor old man bj has painted his picture there and those who see it beneath the veil scarcely look at the others the have passed away and you meet here only to whom the are explaining in a ni dialect the painted histories of their and triumphs we went out of the palace on to the bridge of old the of and noble and in st i he laid of the in world and together fat the men i feeble old who need but ill filled is mr for i there ia none who can so well lead nd t i i who am lord if jou will out i take the i and teach and ton to guard the land i will go to and die with j m and and when this wag heard all with one and we ood to that jou forth oa and do it thia with mon particular be in a and to die of the for as y u know ud on band we went into the on a level with the sea those below its level were destroyed forever by the french who in their days of madness did this among many other righteous deeds the of are horrors and i shall not to you those that were shown us but leave them all for the cell where we saw the inscription which lord copied and which you may recollect in the notes to his our who was of a very superior to most of his craft read the lines with italian taste and grace and told m that lord bad taken the pains to and yes hit t fa we have been all the morning in our hideous n not than of am i mud soon a a few in ud which t m into a into which the aj of light that came was from the torch of the when a day he the food tha when to found a man in one of who bad been there for the ml him free and earned him in through uie tlie poor wretch w and died in two or three da a f i afterward to hear man agreeing hard in calling a and ing that ha had been in tt which ha wa r we first rowed through the grand canal which is bordered for two by churches and palaces of the rise dominion perfection decay desertion and death of a death ao recent that the freshness and beauty of life has not passed away a few of palaces are still in the and ot their noble families but wherever you see one in its original splendour and most splendid they are yon see the collar mark upon it di indicating that it is appropriated to the officers and purposes of the government for the most part they are broken glass panes and indications that they are degraded to base uses as we passed the palace we saw a washing patched gowns and all manner of drying over the massive and stone of home to behold which once more an son of the house risked and lost his life nearly opposite this palace is that which occupied its may have suggested the tragedy of the two and what and pleasant i did his re suggest to us as we passed under its balcony tha of preceded by of the end iti fill the of it had a long life of and f t we were told they be taken down and built from but for an of the | 6 |
sea san to see the and college whose foundations were laid long ago by an who bought th bland and a school here for his countrymen the pupils a learned education for various professions the has a press and prints books in forty or fifty different languages a is realized rom th sale we were conducted about the institution by a and courteous priest and we encountered some fine old eastern people with long the lady if there ere a free in the world it must be the of and ihe relates in her her with ike who if she asked if he would print a book for her thai required a certainly he replied any that her might write what if of tbe en of au certainly not might hare at r this waa worse still unwilling to her game tbe grand the grand a powerful neighbour in a word it that the of san was as free aa the of europe where one might print freely under the of two or three b men extremely handsome as yon go east and south the beauty of the human race there is a richer colouring and more spirit more of the sun s light in the eyes our conductor showed us the room in received his lessons when his took the whim he said to study and to swim across to us from the as we were homeward a gentleman who us pointed out the d k where bodies are thrown which any one wishes quietly to dispose of fishing here he s id is forbidden lest it should lead to hotel was so fall on the first day of our arrival in that we could only get dismal apartments in the rear where we felt as if more than the palace had a attached to it but the following morning we were transferred to a superb of apartments in front out upon the sea which have to us a charm from having been d by the when she was for her husband s pardon with long deferred and finally baffled hope to the court i am alone tbe family being all at the opera and i hare just been standing in the balcony looking at the moon which is pouring a flood of light through this r atmosphere down upon the sea in her is dimly visible i can look to vol u k b c no the objects in the and fo my distance from you but the painful sense re as i bring my eyes to earth for how is this earth from ours there is the splendid church of san with her tall and maria salute with her and here are gliding out of the little canal into the and others gliding in and out among the vessels that lie at anchor in the harbour on my right ia the palace and prison i cannot see the of sighs but it is almost within my touch so near that i the atmosphere that it and am glad to be cheered by the lively voices of a merry troop that are ng on to the and as that sound dies away to hear the delicious voice of a in a who is for his own pleasure and for mine we hear so much of the in that we almost there is solid earth for tread of feet though for the most part artificial after passing the greater part of five delicious days in a i went this morning the beginning o our last day in to the on foot that i might see something of the of this singular town there is nothing i believe in the world like the streets of streets they can scarcely be called nor lanes nor for they have not of they are lined by such lo that excepting at a ray of ill son no wheel in them no horse s over them they are by the and filled with petty shops that in no wise recall the time when was the and channel of the productions of the east the manners of the are but not or they have the general italian habit of asking one and offering to take the half of it the pleasure of serving madame or to make a beginning or for some other ready and most reasonable reason we bought on the some trifling specimens of the exquisitely fine gold chain work done here a for the lace manufacture these gold chains some of beads and some rather but inferior glass all that remain of the glass works are now the only peculiar to we have merely seen the out de of things here our only a exquisite who not to suspect there is any but an outside to life could give no very answers to our many in reply to an inquiry about the education of women he shrugged his shoulders and said a commence so i suppose they are about as well instructed ag they were in s time here it la to be that our oc lo the of moat l da to a of b lie to when you may remember a a learned lady asked if be were not the killed in a by i asked our acquaintance when we were the mad house which looked very like a if hie were well taken care of ken well enough he replied his luck is a lord we bad our at we must take the turn of the wheel here mt dear c we are seldom annoyed in italy with any apparent dissatisfaction in the people we employ the servants at the de place c are all paid by they have a pride or self respect which prevents their murmuring when they are not there b a monstrous between the wages of people and the for instance a working out of i owe an for | 6 |
that is universal and wherever man exists in savage or in civilized life he renders an instinctive homage to such an of justice and love of freedom as has manifested in persecution in prison in bonds and under of death i believe that if at this moment his youth country and high position could be restored to him with his experience of sixteen years of chains and most dreary imprisonment he would again sacrifice all and all over again in the same cause such is the material of bis noble character here we are m the of bis family ood friends one of them a man of letters b called immediately after breakfast and attended us first to the where persons the gentry of who are its meet every evening and unless there is a ball or they are otherwise particularly well to an adjoining theatre truly their life is not our life we next went to st anne s hospital once a and now to the really christian purpose of the sick and insane the insane are under the care of a man of science and what b more to the purpose a genuine we have been told to day many of him from which we infer that his organ of benevolence like our honoured friend s has a particular development for the of mad people the minister to the mind in our land takes his to church the italian professor them to the theatre the universal in italy k says the con and of old and young rich and poor the different modes of proceeding are characteristic both prove that excitement property administered is and not to the insane patient we were shown the cell of the hospital in which was imprisoned our old had a loyal he the enlightened and for mi w cf in the in d l g g i for the house of and would have ua believe that dismal as the place appeared to us it was quite a pleasant residence in s time with one upon a street and another upon a garden there was as much common sense as in shutting himself up in this to write us lament of he was sure to find the actual of suffering innocence and ge a heated furnace for his imagination the old man told us some particulars of lord s and showed us his name written by himself in deep cut under lord s name he said was of his samuel we all smiled at once to mr as we had recently seen him with bis own poetic reputation surrounded by the respect that waits on age heightened into homage by bis personal character and k and tried to the old man s ignorance but in vain s is the only english name that has risen or ever will rise above his horizon and the must remain a dim reflected light b escorted us to hb house where we were kindly received by the and admitted to the of her son who has just received a prize at for miniature painting they showed us some pictures of his execution upon which i said you are a fortunate mother to have a son of such genius ah she replied but he is so good so good this does indeed make the f v mother in this country of art my dear c b the painter s is a sort of museum young r a occupied several apartments pretty casts and the walls were covered with sketches studies of and paintings b the father gave us various works of his own a work on and from he is an enlightened man and a rate of priests and kings as all are who have the hard fortune to take our in train he accompanied us to the green square where there has been recently placed a colossal statue of on a beautifully white marble pillar with this comprehensive inscription a la in farm is there not the made a furious opposition to the of the statue being no lovers of or of any homage to eminence they wished to put the statue of his on the and wrote to rome for a decree to that effect but before the answer came the wits of had them by dint of working night and day the statue had been placed on its lofty and buried under it is a history of the and as b i s of the which when time shall b if men write in i is to get or fat divided u we ue thirteen ia no fat if mo i are to be the they write merely to or their public scott ie of the few who had the w that wa a distinct motive for have knocked down the column will serve to posterity as to the history and true character of the in the mean time the poet stands as he did in life high above his fellows a natural we visited a house which built and where be lived and died the room in which he wrote has a fine bust of bim on one and on the other the following inscription in e da la rt da co e perch se next to the of greatness is the sentiment that it and this you find everywhere in italy the door of s prison and that to s room have been well b conducted us to the an old ment from the priests after as he said a a and converted to the good purpose of burying the dead instead of the living the long perspective of the is beautiful many of the are converted into family and decorated with monuments and one lai e apartment is appropriated to the illustrious men of wrote in this room and built inhabited bj bim waa bought and restored bj witb | 6 |
now to that old oh i must this to that who is stretching up her arm to me what a perfect she would be if hat face was washed keep off you to a lean tall half idiot who was the a now l this must go to that old man oh i wait see this poor pale girl now for the old woman but the bit went to a trembling boy who looked like a with a withered arm and when my old women was at last supplied there was an evil eyed and four boys who the first comers away and two of them after like hungry dogs what we gave them followed us half a mile calling ca ri ta i be de the i have described and who were actually en scene we saw as we drove off others lame and blind coming from their more distant stations towards us you must attribute some portion of the of my travelling journal my dear c to the bad weather that almost without exception has attended us in our passages from place to place we entered italy the advanced season too is against us all rural occupation is suspended the is past the com is and the country has now november as hare an aspect as it ever has in italy as you first see it under the shadow of the with its antique and leaning towers is a most picturesque town but all is picturesque in to the laden ass and the beggar from the and villages that the town you ma how rich the must be in any but this desolate season ab we drove through the streets we were with the long lines of and columns front au the and which afford a perfect to the foot passenger they were designed i think by the luxurious when the laws of the republic forbade the use of carriages there is an of arches extending from the town to a church of the on a hill three miles from the truly the has kept itself free of laws thb to which i have just in a pouring rain is one of most characteristic and monuments of the italian that we have yet seen in italy with the fountain of the master piece of john of in the centre it is surrounded by churches superb old palaces towers and other buildings with the most curious fronts the academy of the fine arts here contains one of the best galleries of pictures in the world tliey are the pieces of the first masters and what masters they were i feel now more than ever what nonsense it is to write about these with all i have read about them i find i had no conception of their none worth having of the a divine it s rule in these galleries not to go bewildering myself from room to room but to my attention to the best pictures and i have to my to day hardly glancing even at the pictures of the three all natives of b there is a painted tragedy here hy that break your heart the murder of the the of the lovely children who feel themselves safe in the close embrace of the mother contrasted with her terror and anguish is most touching the most figure is a mother with her hands clasped and her two dead children at her feet it is all over with her she has nothing farther to hope or fear and the resignation of the saint is struggling with the despair of the parent you want to throw yourself at her feet and weep with her the of st by with its glorious golden tight is a picture that even dear j with all her horror of representations of physical suffering could not turn away from there is sweet peace on the face of the young women art could not better illustrate that true and beautiful declaration of the prophet the work of shall be peace and the effect of and assurance forever the her bright hair with one hand while with in the other he is burning out he flesh of her throat and bosom the judge looks on and are over the b s one holding the crown of mar and another a pen to record her triumphs i pass over i and even that of perfect grace and beauty s st their names those who have seen them for s cm which like the very scene fills yon with solemnity and awe there are but four figures and they are as large as life that of expresses it is finished mary is not as in most ho pictures to the gross of truth represented young but in the of womanhood she has the same face dress and attitude as in the but there she your attention with the admirable portraits of the four saints there scripture truth and are sacrificed to a table or an imagination of the church here you see the real mary and the depths of her sorrow show the prophecy accomplished the sword pierced her soul john standing on the other side the cross is the of gentleness and tenderness worthy that highest trust of his master woman behold thy son the only that struck me in the picture is a want of a right expression in mary she is a beautiful young kneeling at the foot of the cross and ng her brow against it but she is not the penitent the foi ot that nine of receive their strongest through their senses when they excluded such glorious pre of divine truth from their i should have but a poor opinion of him whose y aa not by s a head an old man arrested my attention i examined my catalogue and found it was painted by in a night and was called the head of the eternal father the attempt is | 6 |
as as to represent him whom no man can see and live while enjoying these sublime works of art as a new revelation we were hurried away to see something else that must be seen now or never the being the most beautiful thing of its kind in italy we could not overlook accordingly we drove there this was formerly a an immense establishment once the dreary habitation of the living who suffered in its solitude now the beautiful abode of the dead who cannot enjoy it such are the of human things the at to in compared with this i can ve you do idea of the immense perspective of its all lined with and monuments and paintings or of the almost infinite series of converted into family by the of these open the and are so arranged as to produce a most picturesque effect the million are laid in four large open courts in classes one for men one foe women one for boys and another for girls seemed to me in this a cold neglect of the law d lore that all an some splendid public monuments and a is building for the illustrious of and in the mean time there is a large apartment with their noticed a veiy fine one of a woman who was professor of greek in the ty of within the present century as tiie establishment is large are making you mean to have room for all bo it na i said to our conductor madame le et en c est pour il ut all come in and none go out so we have to keep on building it has been our great pleasure to meet miss here you can hardly imagine the delight after b exclusively among foreign people of meeting a bred who is to us she sang for us and truly as mis said of her she does not sing hke an angel but like a choir of angels music is the key that it il hu u r of that bu to od the of it of who in the x of her hi u to ber wit and learning to tha hm ill while in error and that it waa adam who it ia that the moat of woman up io a are en to i where education aa their duty and u their soul and brings its rich to her she looks while hke an in we went to the opera with her where we saw for the time a decent the house ia very pretty there are firom the which show off the audience and give the house a aspect unusual in the italian theatres a wretched morning and the rain pouring my dear c but our letters are at and there must we be so bo i for the as we drove out of i bad a melancholy sense of the ludicrous of two rainy days in a place where we might have been employed for six months in studying the almost records of its days of power and in spite of the pouring ram we en the of they are richly at our second post we took a third pair of horses and at the first ascent a yoke of oxen in addition and then began a slow drag up the which we continued till this evening with the exception of a race down the hills as fearless and careless as the in our own country this is a new experience for till now the caution of our has gone even a little beyond my cowardly notions of prudence the are a tion of hills ic s li care we hive tie higher but not unlike in their the hills between and g their very unlike in their here are fine of well winter grain and of grapes flung from tree to tree once die misty atmosphere cleared and we got a peep of the and the we have been all day thinking of you it is thank day and our in a huge lonely inn in the midst of the with a over a stable is a sorry contrast to your sweet and social pleasures round the hearth of our childhood we have entered and t fancy i can see the spirit of thb most fortunate land of italy in our frank good humoured hostess and her beautiful with their blade eyes and golden skins we have been talking the eldest and and the youngest and a pretty of rom and sam k says i like of all things to stop at these which are not the regular stopping places the people are social and and you get some insight into the national modes of getting on you will find no and no tea but that first of necessaries you always have with you and you have a droll for your table service and instead of a waiter with his french and his and his action never suited to the word you have all the family to serve you with their amusing and all eager and j to we left our shelter bt at we are often wondering at the complaints we ha re heard of the in italy we had excellent bread end delicious butter from the the duke s with our tea and e b in the generous un italian fires id two and a pair of for to day s lunch all for one dollar each and being an where travellers seldom stop they had the temptation to pluck well the goose that ia rarely caught i walked on in advance of the this and a heavy impenetrable mist came over the hills in one direction and far far away in another the light streamed down in a very shower in which the old faith of the land would have | 6 |
enveloped a descending divinity i was amid scenery so wild and solitary that it recalled my earliest ideas of italy got from mrs s when i was suddenly awakened from a to an uncomfortable of my and helplessness by the apparition of a savage looking wretch clothed in skins he however himself to the occupation of tending his sheep soon after an ass rider overtook me and i tried to keep pace with his beast thinking that he was a who possessed even so much as an ass but the brute away from me and while i paused hesitating whether to proceed w turn towards the carriage i perceived a ra ed wild man in an adjoining who eyed me vol m i i to for an instant and then came rapidly towards me i hesitated no longer but turned and walked down hill seeing as i looked at my that he gained on me ob thought i what a fool i was when told me yesterday was no country for a lady to walk alone in to try it a second time the man i thought all the world might hear the in my ears when to my unspeakable relief our great machine with its of six horses appeared in oh how brave i felt as i ag turned and eyed my enemy who immediately retreated giving me some colour of reason to believe that i had been on the verge of an very rare of late years it is to me with the temptations of boot the rich english travellers offer the of the people s and the favourable on the great that are not frequent in italy the wind blew furiously to day on the of the of wind as m read to us from our guide book at the moment it seemed to be swelling to a formerly carried away carriages travellers and all but now all danger of such a catastrophe is by stone walls erected for protection by the paternal grand duke at our fourth post all and disappeared and we came down upon v i lai e tracts of rich where herds of cattle and flocks of sheep were and a little lower down appeared of vines and aa we approached hm most city of the bills even at season appear gardens and as we came down the last long descent with the valley of the at our feet and with and before us we seemed to have passed into another world the olive tree our sized willow in its shape and in the hue of its foliage some person has happily said that it as if it grew in an idea exquisitely into by in his address to his oi adding j et t paler to tbe pile the olive lives to such an age that the peasant the oldest were planted in the time of our the bearing limbs are renewed by but the main stems are apparently and so decayed and hollow that you wonder how the can be kept in circulation and yet they are in full bearing in the most places where as our friend k n said too in prose they pump oil from the rocks we are settled for a week at tbe hotel on the formerly one of the palaces of the this i fancy is the season when most english are to be found in it seems like an english colony the in the streets are english with english ladies and english tbe shops are thronged with ei and the galleries filled them w t my c arrived here last just at the mom t of the only italian sunset we hare seen to be compared vith our brilliant the golden and crimson rays me of home but how different from anything at bom the and towers that reflected them our drive yesterday was through as lovely a country as can be imagined broken into steep high hills whose of every form are enriched by the highest cultivation which shows even now what a garden is that here nature makes her home with man there seems to be a fitness and harmony between the ground and its we have seen nowhere so handsome and attractive a they have bright cheeks and bright eyes and the most graceful cheerfulness the animals too seem the fit of of this their mother earth the are mouse coloured lai e fat and beautifully formed when we arrived at the inn we found that all the apartments au were held in reserve for an expected all the english on the continent are my lords so we are obliged to put up with a little saloon without a fire and to round a smoky chimney in r s bedroom to it t when record went and mm at lay rate of once who t thou t to bi ind to bow it as we have been looking forward to a sunday you must forgive my grumbling we fully realize e happiness of travelling in a large party when we a little our mass that being over this morning we forth to the cathedral old and grand rich without and within it has a rare of black and white marble representing scripture and events and of the catholic church in a style by a mere n that tb ua o on uie it be be replied when ride in best um b m ind in the in and when to thia ia added the a and hia ht at hia from principle and habit and tlie chat be in all of thus running of a national pride and i mar add t a it ia why he ia the of general di like it i a pity bs lose the benefit of bis wide it ia who e of old cities it it he who the in oa the roads who | 6 |
makes a beaten path to of old art however and to ihe bat su or nothing to long u he bit national and m an laid to a friend of mine into italy ai if he were at the head of a army the american being aa jet but a in tbe english and the language are in if not english why then they say you are english bat tbe they became fully aware that you u a and they open ih hearts and poor out a flood of tbe at wa a wa he settle and avoid tbe of tbe wet m s it a very to b i there are in the by in which there are three portraits of himself if not en he must have had an outer fitting his inner man in same are twenty five volumes of church music illustrated by in the century in colours as vivid as he rainbow and with the most elaborate finish for the rest i adopt a great authority guide book which guide book sent us ofi in search of the to which by a simple mention has given an immortal youth so up we and down we strode through a street that no carriage could pass and at the foot of it and at the gate of the ci we found the n is celebrated for the purity and abundance of its water here it flows through several pipes and by grotesque mouths into an immense basin which is covered with a stone roof of three arches and over this on the verge of a perpendicular hill is a lai e church to st it is a most picturesque place but what ia not picturesque in italy the old i saw as we again mounted the steep bill were subjects for michael ai lo if these old women had been bom in new england they would as soon have themselves as in the street of a sunday so much for conventional virtue it was day in and these were a curious episode enough in the general to and of the streets it was st s too being her day and we were passing by a little chapel built on the site of he very house in which she was born j so we pushed the curtain to the door and turned into it expecting to find it crowded but she whom the painters more effectually than the church have has met with the fate and has little honour ia her own r her own chapel there were some twenty children kneeling about the door who prayers to stare at us and the priests who were going in and out inferred from the direction of their eyes thought less of the saint than of the young who were with me we were up this morning and before seven drove from the httle with its antique column surmounted with the nursing mother of and and her human we were but a few miles from when i discovered that i had left my shawl and at the bead of my bed where i had placed them to my scant pillow i sent back a line from the next post but i take it there is little hope in italy of such a loss if the master of the hotel chances to be honest the will be too quick for him b as we have proceeded od our journey to day the country has become and we have been followed up and down hill by a tail of little beggars clothed in a mass of ragged patches yet th with a certain grace and in vent to my heart they are not beggars by or th r parent and when their little hands were stretched out for i longed to take them and lead them to my free country and they w e quite as kindly disposed to us promising us for our the protection of all the saints the company of maria and to crown all access to paradise k asked a boy of twelve years who wore a cotton jacket and trousers december two thousand four hundred and seventy feet above the and no under if he knew where america was no nor england nor rome nor another still older had heard of rome but he bad been four years to school his mother was dead and there was no one to pay for him and give him bread any longer and he concluded there is no work ah h miserable rom an ir hot after ma to rome by with a note from our t ai tha the man who it a for it and in for bit ha a been rare instance of in america and ia england bat mill a italian ra and miserable indeed it of a range of hills without soil here there enough to sustain for a few sheep we are on one of the highest and are now just as the evening is in the huge balcony of our like i will ch the scene before us for you no j we are quite at the summit for that is crowned a ruined fortress and under its walls is a wretched village between which and our inn the road passes before our door is an old stone fountain with the of some forgotten family from the fountain there is a straight sleep path to the village above ascending this path are with immense bundles of on each a s winter supply i ly of mere twigs and there are priests too the only people here says who don t and do eat with their gowns and three hats up the path and there driving their scanty flock to the fold goes a shepherd and and their little girl looking lean and wearied their half hidden with dark red here the shepherd s costume which hang | 6 |
perfect all the blame which his com ed upon him the disaster to his in not turning his horses confirmed their statement and k at earnest wrote as a statement them as the case admitted to be presented to tiie of a u tells us now that she will be recalled to as a and on in not putting hu name to the miss k he says coolly did not think no ns but if had e could not have to do justice to those men because she exposed herself to ah madame one must take care for one s self first wa went through ihe being at o free net lot a in with tbe of all the town and the horror of hut fellow il star we pitied them one of them at who um he had got off with a few weeks waa the asked sa ao had a yea did not fear he would your at t i bat ba waa a ha thanked and li na i t to last posts were through the dreary that rome the is not as i had believed a but presents an surface without or water or anything that except its utter desertion the grass rich and rank as if it sprung from a vii in soil and its tints tire glowing even at thi season there are scattered here and there large of sheep with lean haggard and half clothed and shepherd s dogs and there are herds of oxen of a very large and fine species and with horns as beautiful as but with these exceptions there b no life from the of the hills and there are considerable hills the eye stretches over a wide reach of country extending far miles in every direction and here and there an old hke dwelling a crumbling tower a shrine or a but no no curling smoke no domestic sounds nothing that human life and country it is one vast desolation a fit for the tomb of nations as we caught the view of st peter s and the and of the three hundred and ty churches of rome it seemed as if life were still at the heart of the body doomed to die first at the you may expect to know my sensations on first se g rome i cannot tell them my dear c i do not myself know what they were i forgot two from rome we passed the on b the the place where the of tiie cross and this of the country changes and around the walls of rome there is a belt of and gardens a little with what has preceded like people in a train the city as we entered it at the p lo has the gay of a modem capital with its fountain churches and modern but there are certain like the covered with which in the of gay young people who have just set up housekeeping e had plenty of time for observation while was trying to soften the officials but hearts were too hard fin his and so we drove to the enough the the street in rome long and narrow i as we proceeded at a foot pace with a soldier on each side like captured the was of gay filled with english people and lined for the most part with mean shops with mean such and such goods as you would see in the main street of or in any other second rate town we had no feeling of till we arrived at he custom and saw some witnesses for the old city in a r with superb antique pillars after a little ceremony a mere make believe peep into ba age and tiie of a for thia gentle treatment we w fe released and are at moment in comfortable apartments in the de we are m rome we were be to think the deep blue sky of italy a s story but h e it is the is delicious there if an a our apartments open on a garden and ve have been in it amid orange and n trees bent with fruit and roses and in some of these planted in stand fragments of antique pillars i observed one on a colossal foot perhaps by a greek artist at turn there are statues too patched as our patched china with modem roman throats toes and fingers on ad and even a trunk legs arms and head supplied how the organ of must in rome w came to us immediately on our could be more fortunate than our meeting him here where the girls most need the brother friend he will be to them and we all need the refreshment of his and the comfort of his co operation n is here too for the winter so we have suddenly come into possession of an independent for tune w has engaged onr lodgings near out on a green hill die a garden in english and n ic iso of in and what it better than all the rest with the bud on us rising to its we pay one hundred and one dollars a month lor our all other expenses are a separate a ir this low price as we are assured it is is in of our r from the english quarter but as we have no acquaintances that does not signify and the acquaintance we wish tp make and daily the the tie are very near to the tribute which from ail parts of the world pay to these ruins is now the chief support of rome there are here every year from ten to twenty thousand strangers for the and english noted fix the liberality of their expenditure we have been to the not farther from us than your neighbour s y is from you not quarter of a where | 6 |
a cold on most to the it looks like the idol it is and rather in keeping with expression is the ri t foot from the presented to the kiss of the faithful i have often heard of the kissing of st peter s toe j but till i saw grown up men and women actually press their lips to this worn bronze toe then rub against it a and finally kneel before the image i had never fairly conceived of this and ye should we call it so who shall the feel ing in which love and reverence i a art to separate the ray of who shall judge d of he of tha rome in tbe b of and m b to ihe of the ood an ihe hat bind to tt iti tiu ie bo hi and c the impulses of in an mind t i will not but rather describe the scene i saw before thia image to day the throng who came and went were two peasant women both in each had a in her arms one a about two old the other a somewhat er they were ragged but i ua accustomed to these uttle in rags and happily in preparation foi a visit to the grand they had ne the rare ceremony of a washing and their eyes shone out firom the golden of the roman but w yellow hardly their tint of has done it well in poetry il em da a about this complexion the richest curling hair of a golden the mother of the boy after kissing the toe herself put his lips to it he submitted to the ceremony reluctantly faintly touching it with his and giving his nose a brush across it as he raised his head he saw the little mother was waiting for her turn and half from his mother s arms he kissed the child s cheek of warm and blood and uttered a chuckle at its contrast with the bronze toe that re sounded through arch and aisle it was a pretty triumph of nature a living picture in this land of pictures december a beautiful my dear c the sun has just risen above the hill i perceive a slight on the garden to us tbe leaves on the tall orange tree hj our window look chilled and the foot women who are with close over their heads shrink from the as ours would if the were ten degrees below this is the first we have felt in rome we devoted yesterday morning to s and s they present a striking of the toils and difficulties of the young and ling genius with the comfort and glory that on him who has won the day is at this moment up ill and is making a visit in his native country which is little short of a progress from the w ht of their material are to work on the ground floor s three obscure small and apartments so cold and damp that they strike a chill through you here he has a few things and several spirited and models that are to be done into if he has orders for them the labours under a disadvantage from tbe of his material if he be poor he cannot put his design into marble till it is in part paid for our countrymen not being practised in these it and it u with vol n o have not considered and have be given with generous with the idea of on delivery of the goods which could not be executed for want of money to buy the block of marble it is the english custom to pay half the price of the work on giving the order s designs is a veiy noble statue of it ia meant to illustrate his discoveries in he is looking up to the clouds with the calm assurance of conscious power what an would be for one of the philadelphia squares another design which seemed to me to belong to the romantic school is the r of described in the the curse is on a family the group inevitably reminds you of the and in one respect it seemed to me superior the parental instinct here triumphs over s last and most work is an which as far as discovery has yet gone has no pe among the ancient he has presented the rare husband at the moment of entering bell is and his heads are fallen in sleep the is pressed under s left arm and his right hand shades his eyes as if to the light on entering the dark region the figure will i believe bear criticism it has the effect at any rate to an eye of success it is light graceful and spirited a most ve of poetic thought is the beau of perfect in tiie face d a of which though unusual in models does not at all its serenity the young man ia said to possess the courage and that is bone and muscle to genius if this be true he is sure of success and this cold cheerless will at some future time be one of the of our countrymen we bad some last with our friend k n on the character of american intellect which ended in his his surprise at what we are i find he said here and at three american artists powers and we have but three and m and you have mr at who has set himself down there to write the life of and is hia with the of a lawyer and here is green your who with health has determined to devote twenty years to a history of italy i told a friend the other day we must put to whip and spur or we should be it is something new to hear our country ed anything but | 6 |
cutting down forests and to we had of per und ot our in b the had in he bad hi health and known lo of hia while thia book ia h be hear that of s hu been np in for hia we hope that new york not u behind bnt will hand lo her own while there ia fat id doing ao when ha become known then will be no in him ap towns in a day or and but surely the same power that in one stage of our progress physical will ia another the stables of the palace have been converted into a for and they are filled with the exquisite forms which invention imagination and love can take the collection of that bears his name gives you some idea of the variety and beauty of his works that which impressed me and brought to my eyes which supposed marble could not is a colossal statue of christ his arms are extended and he seems on the point of saying come unto me all ye that are weary and heavy laden and i will give you rest there is a most affecting of and power in his expression you feel at god has him above his fellows and that he will save to the those that come unto him the head of our in da s last supper is the only one that approaches this in force of is attended by his x aa either the statues were done for a church in there is another set of figures i for the of the same church these are so arranged as to make on each de a descending line from the centre this is done with art a seems design or choice to have into the attitude of the feeling of the moment j the preaching is the middle next stands a his head thrown back an old man over his staff in devout attention a young shepherd is to the spot while two boys are dog a child is leaning on his mother s shoulder and another mother is the ground with her infant in her arms besides sending these great productions to his native country has founded a museum in and enriched it with copies of his works and thus he will send from all parts of the world to his far cold land no wonder the love him and follow his footsteps him gifts and honours my c thk is the of st peter of course a great day in rome as we have been so long of the privilege we may any day enjoy of seeing the pope we went this morning to high mass at st peter s where he was to be present he has the merit of having risen from the lowest grade of society and is said besides having considerable learning to be an amiable old man you know the great principle of the i of all to all has ever been m the catholic church a catholic ceremony is to the eye of a more or a dramatic show with a rich theatrical wardrobe and dull actors what i wonder would d l g j an ol the who had heard of die church think on coming into st peter a and up the under its and golden ceiling vith its of its columns its magnificent arches statues pictures and monuments its gilded made of the of the its hundred lamps burning round st peter s tomb with his image and let it be bis with the pope in triple crown arrayed by his in crimson and embroidered satin attended by his guard in fantastic uniform and by his g what if there were such an person as i have imagined among these spectators from all quarters of the world what would he on being told that this was a temple and these the and ministers of ttie meek and lowly who taught that only accepted such as worshipped him in spirit and in truth the ceremonies we saw to day and which certainly would not contribute to supposed person s farther i shall not describe to you the pope who is an ugly old man with a big nose and a expression had an elevated seat the where his attendants seemed chiefly occupied in the care of his which flowed many a yard on the ground when he stood was borne by them when he moved and nicely folded and replaced in his lap when be again sat down the cardinal as a class of men are very noble in appearance wi b the exception of two or middle aged men they are old and have the of age their thin and white locks g they too had train from an inferior order of priests one part of the ceremony was solemn and as a sentiment expressed by a of men most always be at the elevation of the host all the present their heads and fell on their the swords of the soldiers ringing on the pavement the music was delicious after the were finished and his had blessed the he was placed on a chair covered with red velvet the triple and crown was put on his head the chair was placed on poles also covered with red velvet and borne cm the shoulders of twelve priests on each side was carried a huge fan of s feathers and thus suited and attended he made a progress down the and into a side chapel he shut his eyes drooped bis bead and appeared to me like a old woman but to show bow just such passing judgments are i was afterward told the poor om man said he habitually closed his eyes to escape the by his position as we stood in tiie awaiting our cardinal after cardinal drove off and as i saw each heavy coach with fat black | 6 |
horses gilded and harness and its of three in embroidered dash through ik bo ignorant multitude nearly the and lame those words of doom occurred fo me wo be to the of feed themselves should not the feed the flocks the have ye not strengthened neither have ye healed that was neither have ye bound up that was broken have ye brought again that which was driven away neither have ye sought that which was lost but let us not forget my dear c that from the herd of priests and issued such men as and and their body and having died or to die in their faith are such men as san and our own c tired of waiting k and i left the rest and walked home passing a half open door we heard a murmuring of tiny voices and looking in we saw in a dark damp cold den lighted only through this half open door a dame s infant the teach and here too for tbe take of our i m ia of and no of the he the more men or fewer or want of th n of he not mean of continental t i the powerful of the to the in italy in tbe io of the teaching to the few of that in italy who are taught even are given lo fa dead language they do not the which tbe to be in the teach them to be poor and and after tbe the common model that a their and that the power rf to property ai well aa to r a subject was away ir life and teaching these little things two three and four old their prayers in latin which they repeated with the and most of them were and dirty hot enough for s angels i thought of the well lighted warmed and spacious school in my own country and of the light poured into e mind we have been looking at to day and if i should nm into my dear c about them do not think it is to impose on you new world people who have seen them but that it is the effect of and surprise added to their beau you are probably aware as the name that they are put on the wall while the plaster is fresh of they must be executed with great rapidity the ceiling and the walls of the private in italy are in this way and though done without much expenditure of art money they are so very pretty that i rather dread seeing again our blank painting is to us a new revelation of the power of the art and such a as s his school of or s life and death of st in a certain httle chapel here seem to him i p t fix e i me as superior to an painting as an is to a poem there ere but few of in good preservation they suffer more than oil paintings from damp and neglect the had this art in great perfection i have seen in a of s in an apartment of s palace and in the tomb of s all now far under ground birds c tr with accuracy and grace and the colours still vivid the now hanging in the library of the is one of the most beautiful of the old it is a representation of a greek wedding is supposed to be a greek painting and was found in the of guide s one of the most poetic ever manifested to the eye of man is still as fresh as if it were just in the rainbow on the of an apartment in the ru i palace s is also a and it has an advantage over the in bearing the impress of the true religion it seems to me the most fortunate subject a painter ever chose it is painted in an obscure church maria so is genius the place to be covered was an arch in the the most awkward it would seem for the disposition of the figures but difficulties were only spurs to the genius of and so perfect is the grace and nature of this picture that it would never occur to you he bad place and space at will as after se rome tbe of and rome w my ia suffer me to describe it to you my the four the lay who are supposed to have intimated to tiie old the revelations they had of the coming of our are the subjects of the picture the time is the moment of the angels communication to the inspired women the is a beautiful young creature in the est of womanhood her record book is in her lap and her glowing face turned towards the angel the glory to god in the highest and on earth peace and good will to man the face of the who is at her intently with his chin resting on his hand the joy there is in heaven at these tidings to man the next is writing down the revelation as her heavenly messenger it her face b in it has something more than mere joy a of l e obstacles to be met and the moral to be made there is ness in the angel s face and an in the young woman s the art that could ve such force to such delicate lines is amazing the face is the most and i think the most beautiful i ever saw her whole soul is so intent on the record she is making that it seems as if her pen would cut through die the next figure r yon of models of pre in art else ic s in the picture does it is v y lovely and perfect awe and reverence as if her inward eye beheld | 6 |
the king of all living things the fourth is a dark old who c the coming struggles with the of ness the uie seed to be sown in tear and seeing the end is and what must have thought and felt before he painted this picture he is the of painters and with almost as full a measure of inspiration the picture is a poem as i hope maybe in die of if the soul read without the of letters s are in the four angles of the dome of st they are reckoned his best and he is reckoned second only to the freedom and vigour of the figures and the freshness and harmony of the are st mark s arm actually stands out firom the picture there is a lion his symbol at his feet with lovely playing on his back at whom he looks round so gently that he reminded me of the humane lion of bottom s and st john an angel who holds and two little boys at his feet in one another s arms are all of love on that little children love one another these are the transfer and tion of actual existence they have but the one of s statue do not breathe looking at these pictures till were stiff we went to san to see the virtues by but we had got in when a young priest ordered us out because there was to be on of the and the presence of ladies must not profane the ceremony we had just come from witnessing the same service in the chapel in the august presence of the pope and so we told but the young priest was inexorable us he would and so casting a look at the lady charity who sat impotent among the cardinal virtues we were swept out this is the first of the sort we have met with here our landlord was so when we told him of it that after many exclamations of is it a he went to priest and brought an apology and a very civil invitation to come again to the church it is the studied policy of the roman people the pope down to the english and such is the given them at the religious ceremonies and so great th number in comparison with that of tbe that you might imagine they were got up for their then u u i hare tom w of v hen tt the m st i lie b u fin r vol p i my c i must know by this time that our friend k n is not one of those at rome whom m j reproaches with regarding it merely as a where pictures statues of antiquity and all the productions of the fine arts are to their to whom the or inhabitants who within the walls of rome appear merely an k n sent us a this morning us that there would be an immense of the roman people in costume at the and onr carriage being soon announced by our coachman us up two splendid s we set c to see the show the is tiie largest market place in rome it was so completely filled with the people and their and wares that it was with some difficulty we made our way among them at last we got a station in the centre of the near a fountain where four gods seated on rocks which the water issues are an there was a fair going on very few of the people were in costume unless alas the general of italy rags may be so termed the graceful not ni in on to seeing we of or or of of little ood forgotten like good hut in mile bead dress you see in the of the roman is uncommon now the women wear in its place a cotton handkerchief tied under the chin which being of a colour has rather a pretty effect some of them wear cheap but the at this is a stout the men wear hats with high sugar loaf crowns the shape of the it would be difficult to tell for i think i have seen a whole one their breeches are at the knee and their legs sometimes bare but usually covered with what may by a stretch of courtesy be called a every man who can command such a luxury once in his life it is kept on as long as it a semblance of the original garment a cloak and as gracefully as if he were a they really look like princes in so lofty independent and is their bearing mr the english artist in speaking to me of the grace of the roman people it in part to the with which they are treated by their which them from the shyness and whose natural language to borrow the term is awkwardness we alighted to see better what was oil us to leave in the carriage whatever might be as the place was full of and n for ihe mom put at id to the ther fits p r b s id width tlie are ie its ing his meaning b e s a curious memorial this of the old van with we made our way amid vegetables poultry honey eggs coarse wares wretched toys and a most crowd and were follow ed by ragged boys un do you wish a porter t and were glad to get back to the carriage with some paltry toys the best we could find for s children i have never seen the children look so happy as to day not one but had some trifling toy lady d finds the roman people much during her acquaintance with them and in the place of th r former and sweetness of this may possibly be in part owing | 6 |
is it remarkable that most of the best i ments here are with good names that line out among the great ones of old rome the bears the family name of the record of the and triumphs of bis sod the arch of the conqueror of the jews the man who when master of the over every day with a good deed aa almost entire the and arches are remaining are if not at the extreme right about names and the column of best of the good still bears the record of his deeds the ed column of is the memorial of a man whose name his eminent goodness almost every day we drive under the still perfect arch of the while the palaces of the extended and by such wretches as and are a mass of if i had your of in this way dear c w of illustration i would pie you a letter worth having on the beggars of rom the italian has sentiment in nature and the beggar expresses it in the form of his petition his non m and per i di imagine your imagination if not heart how i should like to show you the fellow who sits like a oo bis throne on the stairs of the di and whose smile ng teeth strong enough to u near a of the beg i bu what in our ba good for d grind til the in rome and his tion well worth the be much more as a right than a favour he ia an old recover of customs and is well known to have a treasury how dare you beg of me asked mr q when you are already so rich ah i have my donkey to feed you are able to feed your but i have my nine children there is no answer to be made to a fellow who to such then there is the poor of a man whose trunk on to a circular bit of wood slightly comes daily down our street of st at a pace and the two old at who towards you with a sort of pas de and seem as well content that one get your as the other equal to fortune they are probably partners in trade and re ia die handsome youth by the french academy who has been dying with a di of blood for the last fifteen years without any apparent of the vital current and the little troop of whose hunting ground is somewhere about the american s with their smiles sweet voices and most winning ways a genuine lover of happy young faces ought to pay them for a of theirs even be is picturesque b c we went to the church of st to see s one of his most the church was so dark we could dot per its excellence but we did see what to you a student of human nature would be far more this church has a statue of the child which has peculiar virtue some poor in an of devotion seen the holy mother open and shut her eyes upon her miracles have ever ce been wrought for the faithful who before this image i am not sure whether it be of wood or stone but whichever it be the foot is so worn away with kissing that it has been with silver the altar on which it is placed was at midday brilliantly lighted with candles and a of lamps hung before it the mother is sitting the child stands on her knee on one foot in a attitude both images wear glittering crowns the mother s throat is covered with strings of pearls she has a complete of jewels her arms are laden with and her fingers with rings and to make her look like the c een of strolling players her hand is filled with artificial kneeling before this image in earnest devotion i saw many tears but not a wandering eye were a multitude of men and women for the most part ragged and filthy beyond description all of whom as they came in or went out kissed the silver shod toe some again and again fondly as a mother kisses her child but ihe most thing of all is the of a pillar on s right it is vith every species of small h mi da c these have been to the holy mother by two classes of by those who have been from the murderer and by the murderer who ha escaped the of his crime the e is still in force at rome a gen d dare not follow an into a church he may remain tiu he is driven by to surrender but no one is permitted to supply his the police of r is wretched the laws are ill ofi es escape justice and small ones if they be against the church are rigid i believe reports of here are much exaggerated we have been repeatedly told that our street which is retired and has few is dangerous after nightfall but our friends and go eveiy evening without and w leaves us the truth is the who daily meet and gossip on the choose to all lodgings remote from that and they amuse their idle with little tragic taking care to make deep like a certain young friend of ours who in her maiden burned all her alive od the i mr q and w had an animated here i evening w that it is the of mankind that the are to t l and ml q that do not strike and never but with good cause there being no public justice to right the they an like to take the matter into their own ds he said that notwithstanding all reports about during a twelve acquaintance with he had known but end k that n the rob they | 6 |
the and them in baskets bread and baskets are of the identical used by the roman of the day in a hard by whither they have been from the tomb are the statues of the and bis wife worthy elderly people lying by on a st after going about day q d l g j is an day to ke die of to of the pride and luxury of and the of the it wai dew c to find in this baker s tomb a the virtues and went to the ai st to to the of a ic ua and as on life aa if instead of a good ca living under the dropping of she had been bred in boston a carpet was spread in th a double row of chairs set around it and the was guarded by a from the pope s guards by e n s interest we a place on these extra we waited two mortal hours the cardinal who was to come here to bury the living was engaged in the dead the mother with the nurse and young bride of sat near ua and who if he had ve appeared to me as a mere us over the surface of life now made me feel that there was a dignity in an that the affections of a wife a d mother the circle of chain was filled and a lai english finally in s the and the who him in embroidered and p they took from a trunk when he tu completely equipped with us od his head a chant hie bride s aj and she entered the church with a at her and a train attendant she appeared about and with that peculiar expression of jt that you may hare seen on a young girl whose head was witli the j at of a wedding she was in a load of finery to more her oi the and of the world her head was off with all jewels gold chains and her l hair her wealth hung in over bet face neck and shoulders and falling over the back of her head she had a vol embroidered with the folds of ber embroidered satin gown were sustained by an fashionable par and her train was held up by two children three or four years old va blue and pink and artificial flowers as i infer red from feather wings to backs person angels the poor thing knelt before the cardinal and made tow of she then sat as as a wax figure while he addressed to her a song in which he held up before k long line of female saints who had endured ie and this precious and without a sign of emotion was over she was led out bj the cardinal and we again saw her but veiy y a door in a side chapel she was her hair cut off and in the s and veil she lay under a pall while the service for the dead was over her it is not since this whole ceremony was performed in the of the church and the present decent of withdrawing behind the series is a faint sign that there is life and here it was after all though i have spoken of it a touching sight to see a young creature self through the force of most unnatural but i do not wonder that in a country where die alternative is for the most part between vice and a woman should choose to ve ft religious colour to the latter female school education here is in the bands of die you may e how well fitted to girls to be wives and mothers and e of these poor wretches must be who know the world only through th and regrets the are ringing and so they are in rome at every hour of the twenty four there are certain bells that ring eveiy fifteen minutes and that ring the hour when i am b a in the t by the d with the deep sunken impressions of i in my room in w and aa its what a deadly comes over me as i awake to the reality and contrast the of the bells tf the two pretty fairly of condition the steamer a bell die of the bu with the project of a new and an old or new laws and the cm the who has come to examine a peace so or on the of of an author about to some new in religion or a life which is to reform the morals and mend manners of mankind of the of a new machine which is to improve the of the race and make his own of a host of to buy to sell while the bells are ringing they are all on shore no no and what say the bells of rome why that the poor and must out of beds and troop to in the orders th is repeated three and four times during night this dear c is the productive labour of i an italian gentleman who was die fire at miss m s in die hopeless endeavour to send the smoke up the chimney if the chimneys in borne were apt to smoke tbey smoke be replied and bow can it be otherwise the hare been built hundreds of years and the put in they are an english luxury and seem contrived as an english writer says to than to warm the fires injurious to health there is ice in the street dow and a blazing fire of half a dozen good sized sticks is essential to our comfort while our little landlady is warmed with a few coals in an pot called a with an upright handle a most affair the immense marble apartments of the palaces are warmed only by a with | 6 |
a few coals once i hare seen at some villa a blazing fire at the probably for prince is married to an the shivering old out of doors with a at feet are forlorn ot yon would be surprised at the articles of food ex posed for sale here such as cock s the of poultry blood and tbe of animals i smile when i recall tbe time when our village butcher refused to make a charge for a calf s head and feet and that even now it is a bold to sell meat is sold here in bits as small as we about the table indeed the poorer classes scarce taste meat at all onr it wm m a of tbe fire ho ths to he b tbe ia here as in other of italy a prime article of food the bread they eat is of a good quality and often made quite luxurious by a of they have delicate preparations of milk resembling our but much called and these are thought to be prepared by the of the neighbouring mountains we thought them so the other day when they came to us from a friend in pretty covered with fresh leaves are very cheap and the very poor almost live on the i have seen old women in the streets devouring the of soup ia th i luxury by courtesy but the of wine holds the place to them oat tea does to our people our was looking very surly and on inquiry we it was because we had not provided wine her breakfast are bread here they are cheap abundant and very delicious much than sweet and and the of their sweet as they are perfume the streets which sadly need you will hardly be able to estimate the poverty of the roman pet le the indications of die food on which they live without knowing the extreme of good provisions w tells me at he can get a dinner at a s for twenty five a of a and a of i wm there n no plague with servants bat if lights on their bear the statements of i bear here and such as i often beard in england the men here are more capable than women bat they are utterly not having the fear of god before their eyes there is no to be placed on word ot their honesty the women are and ue and but being still the of their religion you have a bold on there is not a in italy who knows how to cook but francis to the m opinion of women s my information is of worth but i have none other to give we have ed but two the one and efficient the other and true so there it nothing peculiar to any country in this the whole tendency of service here is to corruption service for the most part is paid s which are irregular and uncertain many of and princes are not paid i em but on they are in feet birds of prey for example a gentleman here in an told me that eveiy on the of january and on die of the servants of the and whom be to demand a fee from him and he must pa it the day after his first official interview with the pope a servant s bill to sixteen dollars was sent to him when the noted bank gives a ball his servants th tribute mai next day cm the guests to show you in what estimation this same gentleman ia held in borne it is a common report that his give his balls mt dear c you may almost doubt my being in rome since i have not yet said one word of the where the and religion of the old world are recorded by the hand of art the truth is that from the moment of my visit to cathedral i have felt as i those do who go to another world that the sensations from a new ate and new are ue i cannot convey to you what i have enjoyed and am enjoying from painting and ar and when i involuntarily shudder at the idea of leaving these magnificent and lovely forms i doubt the of our new world people coming here to acquire which be appeased at home i would advise no to come to italy who has not strong domestic tions and close domestic ties or some absorbing and worthy pursuit at home without these strong vou n r ic to his country he may feel he there as one does who attempts to read a on after lost in the of a romance you would fully comprehend this danger if had passed but this day with me first we wait to the the gardens where we were first shown the remains of bath for so a large of stone is called into which flows a stream of the copious to drown half a dozen then we were led down broken steps into the of where now buried in the bow of the earth are apartments suited to imperial luxury the c shown by wax is and painted with a border of the richest colour of miniature loves the statues have been removed from the these are remains of imperial luxury and our pleasure was not disturbed with doubts as it sometimes is when we are told a broken of bricks half hidden with thorns and ivy this is the palace of the c we into our guide led us up a flight of steps and to a mass of l said these are the remains of our friend who used to admire the al effect of general s swearing would call this bold lying the moral courage of a roman these b changed i the and of guide but the view from the little | 6 |
platform where we stood was no fiction before us was an of mountains melting into the atmosphere their snowy edges like glittering clouds the dome of st peter s in j towers churches ruins on every side beyond them the a ea with its s ft green surface and the in the distance gleaming like steel in the sun no scenery that i have ever seen is more none can be more expressive than thai in and about borne from the garden we quite to the other f rome and mounted a hill to the church of st where was buried it was in the church that he lodged when he came to rome to receive the poet s crown there is a with an inscription on the wall over the sacred spot where his remains were but a more touching memorial of him is an oak tree in the adjoining garden it is uie largest oak in rome and is called s from the circumstance of his having been carried at his own desire to nt under its shadow the day before he died what a scene for a dying poet the entire of rome with its j memories under his eye and the mountains the that if th appeared as they appeared to day so shadowy and ethereal must have to bis soul of that world on whose threshold be stood away with us now dear c to the whose galleries the pope c to the im twelve o clock on the monday and thursday of every week and to open till three when guards appear and the lingering spectators like a flock of sheep om room to room till they are fairly out of the palace the as you well know is the palace it b an irregular mass of buildings a company of palaces to st peter s built from time to time according to the ability or whim of ve without reference in its external to harmony or beauty of any kind mrs gives feet as the c these at twelve o clock the of st peter s is thronged with english and vi from all part of the civilized world they enter the that leads to st peter s turn and ascend a side staircase mount to a open court to which privileged may drive by making the circuit of st peter s and then enter the palace where scattered through the immense galleries and apartments of the museum the congregation that pressed through the appear but as a few my dear c i shall not attempt to or describe to you the treasures of these marble halls you know that the genius of nations which had passed away when rome was founded has f contributed to fill them that here are monuments of egyptian and art that here is the graceful of that here in marble are ber philosophers poets b and and that here b our real world of old rome in her rulers and heroes and the eye of the artist was on living heads are the of and but a list of them fill a instead of a letter the men of past ages you have their his their occupations their religious offices their written in marble these are of as if to your eye to increase of light the walls at the entrance of the ball are covered with as you proceed these are with fragments of and along the of the walls are placed fountains and you proceed on through galleries with side halls and with pictured c and and marble columns to a small court in the midst of which is a fountain sparkling in the bright around this court is a containing the most precious remains of art in which have bathed and tha of ii by ha to b a the ce ii bo yon cm believe it more iu hia age at the time of death tha ce ii a record of ind the month ii like a then ia a d lo hare made when he boy of eight or nine and to be the moat bait bi the world it ia in and if he were the mid monarch fain he moat h ta rs b for thai bodies e in the four angles of hia are the the the and last s great works and the from this you pass to the hall of animals where i confess i can never linger though it is filled with works admirable tor art bat fish even and dogs have little chance when against gods and men there is one most little apartment that we never pass by called the t chamber of die from the represented in its pavement among several m it has an exquisite in found in s villa with s the ba et the goat and the grapes hanging round his joyous face there is another we always enter too if we can tear ourselves from the in time in which stands on an exquisite a of an h m l beautiful of art u that famous ia the capital od which battle of the is with the story of and which i would to hb most to men t t no of modem artist a and been into ite and i hope mj a j be if i a doubt a will n tain their after the of hai the of in the century a more like an representing than like a criticism be to other the have not the free untouched n ton of the x this ia the moat pavement except the fragment of wa law in italy it i y b or forty two feet ia but my dear c i must on through apartments filled with and eveiy form of magnificent of marble and through the hall of maps a quarter of a mile ia length on whose | 6 |
walls are painted in maps of all the pope s and ground plans of his cities to the halls of worked after s but not even here can a of linger for on and above are his di his and his these or chambers are four lai e rooms painted in walls and ceiling by or by his best pupils from his each picture one side of a room after glancing at the rest i always find myself standing before the school of this was a subject of s own selection he was by of pope or cardinal and freely followed out the of his inspired genius and you have the result in the most dramatic combination of character circumstance and on t bum head of tha of the and the ceiling of apartment i an the won into e band with to the h to ceiling which had been b his matter and a memorial of bu thin the of that it like to leave the without the and the communion of st by are called the two great of the s was the last picture on which he worked waa not quite finished when he died and was borne before his body in his procession received but twelve guineas for his from ignorant who suffered it to be thrown into a garret but here it now stands for tiie admiration of the world and to dispute the palm with s between these we always finish our day at the and on o md en in and each holding a in are to la an figure on the on the left at the top ia talking to young who ia a of attitude ai if half tha willing to turn from it to to and ran tha career of i know not why the young waa not made mom the old man him with a cap tm to another looking the of who ii writing hia if finer the in deep on hia elbow with a pen in hia hand ia holding a ia to a figure with on a on the ground sod am whole that him tie beyond all in tha on the right the with a cap ia p of and him of it ia that the writer of thia a hate omitted to ihe figure of whose intellectual ia ao with she reminded me of hamlet in hia of to be or not lo be she in bar mind a be of her and st are only driven from them by the unwelcome cry of the guards si the signal for the gates of paradise upon us we make our exit through the or these are attached to three stories of the palace running along one side and are more like we call a than thing else they are all painted by a one series he begins as some do in maiden at the creation of the world and comes down to the they repay the study of days but we bare not yet contrived to save a half hour for them and you will not at this my dear c if you remember how much the contains to be examined besides the galleries which you may well think i have taken but a flight its immense library and the and both painted by michael the with his the last judgment my dear c ve began this morning with looking at the of old rome then followed a memorial of the middle ages at s tomb and in the museum of the we have been looking l ck through t es and ages far into uie past do you wonder at the common testimony of that you live a month in day at rome and what a month it is tha of in on of a that yon cannot bee mile and ie i walked an hour this morning vith r up and down the of st peter s there had been a ceremony in the chapel and the in rich as they came slow winding down the magnificent marble staircase io deep shadow and the guards in their at the end of the their arms gleaming in the and the light glancing over and his made a picture for us as ve pursued our damp and wise gloomy walk we finished the in the where we had a pleasure quite peculiar o it i believe of through the lar st library in the world without seeing a not the lai est in the number of books for though it is enriched by the of ages and the of the number including does not exceed volumes but largest in ace i the principal hall is feet long and into this you enter by one of feet which in my ignorance i took for ox whole and through it looking at its rich walls which are adorned with portraits of all the great of learning from down the books and are locked in wooden cases of which i presume his ke the key more than he does that he holds in st peter s right as he had far rather open the gates of paradise to the dead than the paradise of to the living the pictures on the lu tails representing the graciously receiving from their authors literary and discoveries in science seemed rather a severe comment on the present s of letters and of literary associations t the unlocked many rf the cases to exhibit their treasures among them are a quantity of quaint old pictures of the earliest period of the revival of the arts it is curious to see how the patronage of the church has the of the s here are the same and holy families that you see now in s we saw relics oi the early and lamps that were in the a | 6 |
strange passage the mind makes dear c from this palace to st peter and his friends lighting these lamps in the ns of the dead for their worship a curious of another kind was shown us the hair of a woman found in a tomb on the an way there they a little the very that some years ago the head of a roman lady probably the only unchanged mortal remains of all the masses of men and women in rome c the museum of the its paintings and relics of antiquity would be quite enough ie s to draw the world to rome if here were up volumes have been written upon it but i shall wisely from writing even one letter and only tell yoa exquisite pleasure i have had from again and again e dying which is in this collection die artists appear to me often to have sacrificed to serenity to a sort of but the brow and lip of the dying express tbe deepest emotion s it owes something o its effect to s admirable interpretation but it seems to me that if he had never written and statue had never its suggestive one could not look at it without seeing a man of refined nature death stricken without hope and whose most dejected thoughts are on some distant object of t love it was for s vision to see in these objects young all at play there are ma r in tbe hall of p in die the picture that kept me standing it half an hour when i was sick weariness is guide s st the of poor saint is a favourite witb the and you see him in all the galleries stuck of arrows mere is a vulgar means of producing effect the sensation to show the triumph of the soul it is the deep shadow that brings out the light the young martyr is a beautiful boy of fourteen innocent as a baby and fresh as a b hands are tied together above his heed to a tree have not an expression but one of voluntary submission one arrow is sticking in his side another in his the calm sweet resignation of his face expresses though he me yet will i trust in among the of the we always look in faith dear c it is a great help at rome is the bronze wolf with her foster sons mentioned by and said to have been struck in the prophetic storm on the night before s death the first as appears by its inscription and the or lists of the nearly en e with the date of their election and the term of their service engraved upon stone thb generosity of the of the roman palaces in throwing them open to the occupation of vi is worthy of all praise occupation it may be called as from morning to ni ht they are traversed by these new of northern the ground story of a roman palace is given up to offices and shops the picture gallery the second or the greater part of it a range of rooms and halls is filled from flow to with pictures there is furniture curtains perhaps of faded and chairs and tables centuries old i have never seen excepting in the s palace any look of there we found warm rooms and a table spread n s books and tbe delicate of a lady h d been from the room by oar entrance few days rumour says that tbe of this lady in on having the choice of her rooms has led to a quarrel and ended in her leaving husband s bed and board and lodgings in another palace i could fill a letter with a mere list of tbe pictures of one of these galleries they are vast of art more or less valuable but not one of them but some works of the first painters who have ever lived almost every day we have a new to estimate our industry if you can and thank me for m s example and instead you with us writing and if that guide book should chance to be madame s you will admire her opinions of pictures thus expressed after the of ttie name of all countries the southern part of italy would appear the most delicious for rural tbe about rome are from dread of tbe their go to them in winter only and then for short periods the with resources of soil and climate might make of th if they studied and obeyed nature instead of her with trees into every th r avenues with hedges that look as much as possible like solid green and laying out their like those of with coloured stones b n flowers in patterns but why yon may me with the of human expectations look for i am not sure i should not steal away from the and perfection of of an english nobleman s park garden and to wander over the old villa on tlie aa hill ruined and abandoned as it is with its ragged its rose hedges its broken statues and its as it now is broken and for firom its high swelling you have an unbroken view of the mountains that half rome you turn your eyes from to to the to th bear names to with and it seems as if nature delighted in them in a light she hai for nothing else they are invested with a silvery mist you would call it ethereal for there is nothing or shadowy about it but i fear ethereal mist is nonsense it is a li t a brighter moonlight the outlines id with the atmosphere before you is the wide desolate with its grass and the long lines of broken s tomb the huge ruins of s st john s statues standing boldly np against the | 6 |
sky the walls of with gates towers and voices of ry and the whole city of rome beneath you with its crowds and its dead its st peter s and its desolate places where the tent pine and the slender staid as for the dead at villa whose treasures of art any monarch in europe might we found something much in the dwelling of a roman prince than d of painting or rooms with a enjoyed aspect fire in the chimney and english books and fresh journals on the tables a was among them our told us the read english a of intellectual life you will not think me quite a savage dear c though the lovers of might if i tell you what most interested me at tbe villa had been at the admirable group of and and as i turned it my e fell on some toys thrown hy a tired child into a magnificent old i forgot the gods and heroes about me my thoughts flew home to you my dear c to your young at play and i hung brooding over the little tin and battered doll till i was summoned away the villa is on the hill just under the walls of rome and is indeed in its extent and prince is noted for his liberality and as ai few roman princes now are for his immense wealth the author of rome in hie nineteenth century happily says that only his gardens to the roman pe le the princes give theirs their gates and doors are always open and the visitor when and bow be pleases b and e often vary their drives by going those grounds where the b ue tbe grass is always green where the hedges and rf trees are always and the always singing and where you may lose yourself in the sweet fancy of a perpetual summer if you will not foolishly look about for and observe that the trees are and a species of oak that never and the hedges of certainly there was no illusion in the roses we saw blooming there in on the th of december how far below your on that day dear c i i passed four hours on friday in walking through the and avenues of the villa with lady d and came to the that four hours could scarcely be m e delightfully passed than with an agreeable there it is on the western de of the its present mistress is a beautiful young of the but there is no english mark upon her villa and perhaps it is good taste to keep up what is national and characteristic nothing can be better than the noble pines that these grounds and which you see them appear in striking harmony with the spirit of the scenery of home the pine of italy is unlike any that we have and that of home seems to me richer and broader than i have seen elsewhere it has a and trunk and a broad top of foliage that seems to have been growing deeper and deeper ever ance it or the world stood the of fountains at is too a characteristic beau the same ir bom applies the the of is conducted across the villa it is peculiar to rome that stay here as long as will if you hare a month a day aa hour ten to spare you may fill it with some object c deep interest we bad a half hour on our hands after leaving the and lady d who her objects with the that can only be acquired by a long with in and about drove to the fountain to the beautiful view on the and to st in where in a court adjoining the church is a small temple by with columns of oriental granite erected on the very spot where st peter was so says tradition and so believe the mr dear c you can hardly imagine anything more sombre than a drive in tbe evening through tbe lighted streets of rome as they are with human hfe in tbe by ht o clock you see only here and there a dim form away from your coach or an indistinct figure stealing along in the deepest where all is shadow there is the gloom of night the ont the consciousness that the are at rest and the wicked have ceased troubling if you go to visit a friend lodged in a palace you will have the happiness to find die staircase lighted and a porter ready to you is like a closed prison we wait list our mrs l after bad repeatedly we heard a s voice uttering the never inquiry who ia it v to which friends after a long pause and impatient shouts from by of open the door said the little voice and cried and the was ended the child opening the door and us up a long staircase hy the light of a antique lamp in her hand rather it seemed to me than die was the lower classes of tlie people are en ia the and the stranger who has no of seeing the better condition of italian life has here his best opportunities for observation j and i assure you my dear c these streets are a curious and spectacle to one accustomed to tiie bustling ad industry of new or to the quiet and innocent leisure of our village life the first thing that meets my eye as i come into the drawing room in the morning b the of before our window this is he great instruction and of rome i as we drove to the to day i how our little b with her quick would endure the aspect of this throng of people who in die a language of f b s have do prospect bow she would by turns laugh and cry the would | 6 |
can the day it dear b take this seat me with an sun for weeks are muddy and they are so narrow and the houses that at this season they have no chance to dry that heap of indescribable is permitted you perceive hj the word on the this like many comers of the streets is a place of common we have turned into the and here you may see the average condition of life in rome in the quarter it is better in other quarters much worse the windows of the lower stories are not glazed most of the have no windows the light is admitted through the open door and most cheerless and they are in these damp when the weather is as cold as our match but alas there are few people iu these end little to be done in them you are shuddering b you fear we shall down some of the people in this crowd there is no danger uie are accustomed to driving through full streets and the people know so well how to take care of themselves that they never move aside till the horses are close upon them do yoa observe the sullen brooding aspect of those men who are up and down in tlie sun ii in population that of ii of tar tha tin the at rome par wants thej go then we be unto you if to a bit pair of or in the city of the a quality and at ma talking nor w the man against that ruined arch wrapped in his cloak with a remnant of a hat what a free and graceful air he has he looks like ft rebel brooding over fresh bat i see the men on the playing at ball and bare caught your e e or are you looking the women in that door step who are and at a rate do you have detected a thief or discovered a murderer no it is but their ordinary manner they are more than the men because they are even more ignorant they think less and they have some employment sewing and knitting am to women you are wasting your pi on babies for though they are left to the tending of these pale lean uttle children more tour oe fire years old and though as i am told clothes in which they are wrapped are not opened more than once a week yet they are quiet and contented in five weeks that we have now been here and every day and all day in the street amid this baby population i have never heard but one crying is not this a fact in favour of the virtue of the open air this seems to me th only advantage these of human life so hailed and wi us as the blossoms of fruit are here but a burden i have never once been a child in even by its mother i do you ask there are so many idle m die the crowd io the flock my dear but iu trained ill fed and the pope s government has not energy enough to maintain a vigorous police those are you will meet them in every street in with th gowns with around their th r long and their feet only with an of dirt and this is a of men are they not these have stopped to let them pass and we must stop too what huge animals are the oxen attached to these and observe the half circular of skins by which the driver himself from the wind not a bad contrivance ah the beggars are taking advantage of our pause to come out upon us from the sunny steps of that magnificent church where they always listen to them mark the words of their petition forever repeated and often true and thank god dear b that you never heard it in your own country ho non m i am hungry i am dying with hunger do not abandon me see as we pass the bridge of st and the l thy street that into the di st i able men on those wooden benches and women in rags with faces and forms that might see the blind and old stretching their hands for charity and the s coach dashing on before us but we are at the shall we go in and in that beautiful marble world forget this world of flesh and f sensation and suffering there i in ihe world tbe and of roman people not ao ii in il i u i od of in which he after and personal that the of the find from it are owing to a of those law of which if would fe mm food to member of the human ha not look at the the in which and it but he the which hats it to its and it it ii la h t into but it ii to lee that and other moat the present mode of an of in twenty in miles from rome u in the of about eighty object ia lo get the of with the coal ol labour aa in mode oi greater return to than no p of the land ia ed more than in ten there ia one man over all called di be under bim who like the e south the on that work the actual an brought mt but bom the the kingdom of n plea they come with in of tin hundred they on the and on the or creep at night into the the old or the they are fed in the manner la it that at the most at a tenth of their every the bo short the being from one district the from another and so on tb by which human life is multiplied | 6 |
end comfort to it ia totally the the a of the of hia aod connect him by on and interest in the he compare the of the foreign and on the cant ie i have never j et met a stranger in italy who did not profess to love rome here he and here he returns here though he be of the mould he be to a new and after a little while will find himself getting the feeling of a lover for the desolate places of the old city i have been disappointed in the ruins not in effect but in their condition the the the temple of and a few others they are such mere ruins so changed in and strip ed of their original that only serve to the or puzzle uie with that ef at onr new no wonder that in em i till iu own m in and with oar you bs i would not gin fat ii in thia ha laid when had kept bit r spent the in wandering broken of the palace of the and a tbe roman ue tbe farm of tbe ui ia and at its ii tbe fragment of the wall ef a and a fan of in which wan one of that the modern waa hen though long ago wa mt aa we walked the with broken with dangling ity hanging oat the of the great men had walked and talked here and not than we when the of in rid and all the rf b but are objects in rome that your i honestly scarcely entered into mine these are the scenery of rome end ite the and pillars and e fountains which almost re of oriental as to art in rome antique and modem as you may imagine even my very of our pleasure it for us of uie new world a new life i have as yet said nothing to you of the churches of rome amply because so much has already been said and for another not quite as reason that so much to say i have no power to communicate there is little beauty in their exterior and that little is by being in by other the effect of the of an old village church in its harmonious is better than that of any church in rome but compared with the interior of these churches any church that i have seen even vn cathedral is like a ed house the churches hare i to and with lo ban ib it for period of nod a to put within the power ef these i a name a and a home with all il vol n t ie s h n to tiie art and wealth of tiie old world the columns that the temples of the gods now support the of the temple the and that adorned their palaces and the in which their and heroes were arc now consecrated to tjie of the saints the for water are now the which the pious catholic crosses himself these churches have been enriched too with the spoils of the eastern world with the of and queens from st s days to ours and with the of rich who hoped at the last to drive a good bargain by ng the treasures of the other world with those they could no longer enjoy in infinite industry has been employed on them and art has given them its works such works as s guide s michael and s how i have sometimes wished for some of y u at home who have worshipped all your lives in a meeting to walk up the of maria ore with me a church very near us double low of most magnificent pillars which once adorned a temple of and passing by and laden with vessels of these are but an of io for which ma been the either be hot men or they were to from of ter and gold where are forever burning he a re the pictures of saints and mar down with on the steps of the chapel tiie richest in the world it has cost millions and it is but a apartment of the church a rich to a chain there is a beautiful pavement the walls are with oriental the ceiling u painted with there are columns of and rich pictures in and splendid monuments not a square inch is left and yet dear c i think your eye would turn from all this to the lean b ar on th step you the is now a church and the pan once a temple for all the gods is now consecrated to the one true god the statues of the have disappeared from the and tha they are now filled with and the pictures of saints there is a little chapel of the near ttie i with pictures that you would like to see every day in the year but of all the if i of writing moat we of tha t that produced tha aod that he f of sl a t worship of tha ba long and with at m the of tha bnt ia one in he al which we all offer our homage it i a the of feel in rome more than that of you see and el m he died at the age what a he achieved in thia brief period the of the man who never heard the name of without hat not to who been to rome in and i assure you i most renowned of the three and not me among them i hesitate as i except st peter s has given me more than maria it is built a of michael on the of s the roof is supported by hi e granite columns stood in s ball it is in | 6 |
drops hia um into the has appeared in the distance the last hour hke sheet of gold winding down the ve on to the formerly so and now the hot they are miles in length and from ax to in the of them was on hj the bj the and the and to its present slate by vl who the w and it what it dow is one tha best in europe this is supposed to he the place rf by st as aad this say tbe was s second t ace on his journey to i trust they the elements as kind as we do our is draws tip mi the turf while our horses are taking their and as the inn is a old most we out of r is taking in the e is at her work k reading aloud the of a soldier from a book i her i a ci italian and li is about with an ivy wreath oa her and the fresh tucked ob om wind our put on our breakfast table as a of the the wide land on each d ok is t only by and water and co with herds of and flocks of sheep and of horses a long level horizon bounds the view on the and on the east beyond the are steep and rugged mountains two or three miserable villages are visible on their at there stood once a temple to one hundred and thirty feet high before and behind as r as we can see stretches the road completely and looking like a avenue the inn there is another dwelling for human a made of and straw i walked past it and looked in ragged wretches with want and were playing cards like lean and sallow creatures are up and down before carriage staring at us d are standing at the inn door and two are on tbe step devouring a crust of oh youth and nature how potent are ye we are again on the the waves are breaking as softly under my window as the of a lake the boats are drawn up on the shore and the are drying so a might have appeared in the stage of society and here was an important town of the an independent nation and here on tiie t spot where the little boats se n sleeping in the were once tbe ships of an important d v s on the land side of our inn is a moat pile of stone of nature s and a little from the summit are some regular stone arches the remains of a palace of or a temple ol we up a street almost perpendicular to see the cathedral built on the ruins of a temple of but we were frightened by the ragged looking wretches in tlie and without seeing the consecrated pillars we came down again au we ue o that of um u ood u put bat at the nd bj uie can tha by the in be at it at a wretched eight my we kept for a the kill d of of no account ba made on one to on to thirty and final ly the amount a hundred when we d if it be that one of moat of the field can make hia perfectly wretched it tf amid the airs of italy of party longed for the cold wind and of their a delicate ba at the of thi topic into a lady a i be allowed to that it it a very one among tha most refined of the her that i heard it for half an in a of and ladies where oo one was aa a and od the other it was the only occasioned the ta fainting i article in and are the of the fine in one of the of rome there is a picture of a pretty woman with a of water ed in to b mm mr rail c g ii i m tbe atmosphere of most de place and yon id its orange but ance tbat cannot be tbe next time pass my take down a certain ed book s poems and read tbe last lines of end yon will find the poet do ing for you what i cannot this six on this side at a huge gate between two stone we from the roman the territory you have had too much of this or i would describe to you uie mob f us at we to bare been as they called us to afforded relief to such in proportion as we advance south the shoes are a rare luxury aad as who wears in their they wear leather fastened on with that are wound around their legs the working people wear a cotton and extending a little below tbe knee the shirt is a garment we have se to day with on but thin short ragged cotton a mile aad a half before we reached we passed tbe very spot where as it is believed was killed and a a yards from the road is a erected to his memory it is it ii to look at than and i think to bear of di stories and circular ami a column of the height of the edifice the stones and are bare and the m that ed them have place to a of ivy and whose rich breath the name of all roman antiquity our inn has the position i have seen in italy it b in the midst of a large garden or rather of orange and groves for the first time in our lives we have seen to day these tropical in perfection as spreading not as high as an apple tree and bending under the of fruit the gardens are in the recess of a bay and fill their the interval | 6 |
between the last slopes of bare rugged mountains and the sea these slopes are covered with vines and and through some in our or we get glimpses of a narrow gray village pent in between us and the our inn and garden formerly the villa of an italian prince are supposed to cover the te of s villa and upon the strength of that supposition bears the attractive name of la di we have been down to the shore and seen the foundations of and arches and columns that indicate roman magnificence we wandered about till the twilight deepened upon us to remind ns that we were not in paradise to he doubts in which the of tradition them let the md the doubt we the will tbe rf b vol ii u so ht our way to the inn we heard ft after us of i il ladies ladies i to the gardener i and turning we perceived a tall fellow in pursuing us for his tax on the sweet air we had breathed i have never enjoyed anything so perfect of its land as the quiet sunday we have been passing at di we left it just at evening and drove from our e into the very narrow street of the village so charming i through garden it being sunday the people were of course in their dresses such as bad them and they were like a swarm of bees in that street leaning lying it seemed next to impossible that our carriage should find a passage through them and such a mingled shout of b and salutation assailed us some hands stretched out for per l di and to give us the graceful italian greeting at the end of the street a troop of gathered about us playing their to the infinite of the boys and girls i would have said hut oil were merry as childhood my dear c let us be thankful for the system of compensation that makes their sunshine not only meat and clothing to these children of the south but a fountain of ever cheerfulness the scene has changed we are at st at a inn our laughs i our fallen and so it always is in life you had the good at you must expect the bad at sl unworthy wretches that we are the has just sent us up a letter from w announcing that he and k n have engaged delightful lodgings for us at where we hope to be to morrow it mt dear c a pleasant drive through a long stretch of and olive we arrived at the gate of at four o f m w our good angel met us at the where we had the torment of a long we drove down the long street of the such of human life i never saw nor heard such it was as if all the on earth ha been let loose upon it is a quiet solitude in comparison however we for i from of one of mj a of at die too of lo ba we at tha and w came oat to meet a how delightful to be to thk place oar j b in and at of am ne dominion tlie cried r and w and a young officer then came ap hu their and mad for but again la water th c bad by such li difficult to divine what them ic got its and every other vexation when we our spacious drawing room at st and sat down by the window to gaze upon the bay of directly under us without any apparent for we overlook die street between us and the water the uke curve from us to the base of brings the mountain in front of us the light smoke curling up from the caught the beams of the just risen moon while the itself and were a mass of shadow we sat watching the httle white at becoming distinct as one after an caught the and the tiny boats which with their read sails shot across the path of quivering beams and again vanished in yes we set as if spell bound till we were roused by a voice asking is there anything better than this nothing we replied with one voice but deeds speak louder than words we turned away from the most beautiful of nature to exchange greetings with our dear friend k n to whose actual presence they were after all but mere we are rich at w makes one of our family k n is at the almost within sha hands distance j an english lady our ance who is not one of those who bait blind am real feigned all u ai in a walk in wood in it m r wall ba what a wa bad com in our a nor could a en has lodgings over ns our mr ia cm us and finally our mr a of sterling qualities with twenty years experience here is upon us essential the advantage of his society being that we esteem above all the rest we n et here letters of introduction obtained by c i at paris to distinguished they are shy of us and as we are told compelled to be so by the system of and persecution by the general the commander of the italian of napoleon s russian army has been several times to see us his ne countenance has a most melancholy expression no wonder he told me that of the two he led into the finest fellows in the service all save thirty four perished in night he lives in perfect retirement but it is said that in any emergency the will be glad to employ him one of our daily pleasures is a walk in the villa a public garden between | 6 |
the the great street of and the bay the garden is about a mile in length well planted with trees and shrubs and in wa left of with ood p pe u u very add voice of this land of th south the brightest flowers are the english children who take their daily in the garden beautiful they are of a noble stock themselves here with their fair skins ruddy cheeks blue eyes and long curls no can ri or are permitted within the garden we now and then see a pretty costume the uniform of the upper classes of all for instance we saw to day a nurse in a dark blue skirt with a broad gold border round the bottom a bright scarlet jacket with gold bands round the wrist and a gold comb in her a sort of the garden is with statues casts of our friends in rome the and certain not modest whose exposure in these public grounds shows a in the king who in a fit of or as k a terms it has put all the in his museum under lock and key the villa is view of the bay the very name of the bay of sets all your ideas of beau in a and so let it they will create no image approaching io loveliness to the all yet in the of its blue and delicious atmosphere f lying like a crouching lion at its mouth of its other islands of with its fresh of yesterday s snow our mr maintained to me that it was not to be to the bay of new york i have at one time he said counted fifty there and is there but what is there the or museum of has after tlie the collection of in the ld the are and noisy one of the of passing by it it may be a mere fancy but these serene statues with solemn associations seem to me to require an atmosphere of tomb like silence is discord and a street is a congregation of and all surroundings have yielded up their treasures to this museum among them is an the finest statue in the world ca s judgment the figure is in a mantle there is a mental ud a in its erect attitude md an of tranquil intellectual dignity in the head and ce fitting the of the just strange as it may seem there is a in the fa not locked up p who appears to me to express as much as die this is th she stands with her bead towards with a gentle reproof in her ur and a purity in her expression as if she were indeed o er all the her sex victorious one of the prettiest groups is d with a most lovely laughing face and curly hair has his round about the neck of a whose tail around hia body has thrust bis l s into the air there is in this group an on of life and inconceivable to one who has not seen in the how art matter marble into the image of god s if this whim of art of being in a room stood as it was o stand in the midst of a fountain in the atmosphere of an orange grove with i and playing over it its effect would be not one of the here but a certainly is an a most elaborate piece of the bead and hands black marble li the body is enclosed like in an case upon which is carved heads of animals and other ornaments this image as w suggested explains the don of die of to the faith which was to put an d to their profitable labour we found day after day leaving halls filled with statues and groups to stand before a thing the tr ment of a statue the are gone and the lower part of the body the back and top of the head are shaved off nothing remains p but the face and neck it is called a p and is truly the type of the soul it is tiie perfection of beauty and grace there m in the hang of the bead and a touch of sadness in the that reminded k of in s game of but uie face appeared to me far powerful and if i had to answer all the of the at my sex or to defend the rights of women i would to to s to s and to s and to the ine of the world have believed of our faculties and virtues the in one apartment of the museum are said to be the finest in the world they were to ac in marble among is a life like bust of with sharp sunken cheeks lock and his neck eagerly stretched forward aa if on the point of speaking and there are exquisite and one a of rooms is devoted and one some of the best treasures of a by which is only powerful than s and less tender an a there is a of s a boy four or five years old in a blue is standing with his bands in the man of sin is and though the child does not see he a of the presence of evil and a of weakness and danger b nd him stands a beautiful young angel in all the r of pointing to a glory above and hit between the devil and the ie the at is inferior in g and to that of rome but it is said to foe only second to that it is generally remarked that its interest is dying away from year to year those who think its amusements were only suited to an age when could neither read nor write this to the march of mind which | 6 |
does march though much in fashion even here others maintain that all thinking people feel so deeply the and misery of their condition that they have little heart for amusements of any kind such as it is and so much or rather so little as ladies could see of it we have seen and childish sport enough you will think it during the the which is a course t carriages through the the main street of occurs twice every week we joined in it to day mr t took a portion of our part in bis carriage and the rest followed in our own mr t s carriage was furnished with baskets of aud of flowers as his station ha him to be in some sort a in the ve soon entered the and took a place in the line of the street was a dense mass of human beings with just space enough for the ascending and descending lines of carriages and die windows and of the houses to the fifth and sixth stories were crowded guards on horseback looking like statues were at short intervals and conspicuous d l g g i s the red flag which they held the king and royal family were out his majesty with some twenty j was in an car drawn by six the king wore no of distinction they were all dressed in gay and velvet caps with white and all wore the ladies of the court were in a similar car and dressed in a like fa both cars were furnished with containing of made of lime with a thin of sugar these are up and around the great contest is who shall throw most and most of flowers are thrown bout our girls had their filled with them of course an acquaintance a quaint or a pretty woman is the favourite aim when the royal cars meet they stop the of both lines halt behind them and a general a you are not absolutely killed but the are as large as very large the face is protected by a mask of wire our hands were sadly bruised mine are yet black and blue some carriages were protected by cloth but in general they merrily took as well as gave showers fell from the and the poor wretches in the street scrambled for them in times the royal cars veritable but even this grace has ceased the novelty amused us for two or three hours but i think we should all rather play hunt the at home than to go again to the were i days on l the a ball at san the largest theatre in italy it begins at o clock on sunday night i was over to go by kind friend mr t and n s mi that it is best to see things that yoa may sub an idea for a word but as yon dear c can have only the words i shall make them as few as the theatre was brilliantly lighted and viewed the depth of the stage was a splendid spectacle the in the s service were planted like about the house the royal family in their box and the king came down and led with the crowd he is a tall stout y like man i ob served as he stopped for a few moments near oar box that be excited little and and pushed as his subjects the was confined to the and was a mere there were few and these few supported no and merely walked up and down uttering in feigned voices there was an excessively pretty young woman in the box next to us who attracted general attention and it was to yoa the at her that the king of his h d tbe ud the at tbe were home the all at ones we be to the the were we were the in the street and and were we u we ran our i had stopped near ua she was the er of a lady whose beauty had a brother of the the lady s husband was a few days before the and the royal lover off the next day to his health i save the little excitement by pretty s presence and die addressed to her by the the ball was a ir the has had its day men can a great but not forever ms t procured us invitations to the and last evening we went the mere forms of are much alike au over the civilized world the ball rather more space to move m for there were fifteen or twenty rooms of the palace open was conducted much like one of our balls nothing stuck me about the women but the of their and the abundance and of their diamonds the princes diamonds as they do their pictures when every other ago of wealth is gone the who looks like a quiet body designed by nature to nurse babies and keep the house tidy sat with the court la es at one td of the dancing room and rose once to make a progress through the apart the royal family by themselves was not one ot the balls of the are g s tables were spread for the the of our there were fish and game and on each table aa entire wild stuck with silver arrows the ladies gathered y about the and like good we retired after supper to an room and sat down b a liberty equality style near a cot of ladies who put up their eye and stared at us but without any other demonstration we soon perceived th were the ladies of the court and they no doubt forgave us on the flattering ground our american savages can exceed the of the about the crops aa the best ground are each season as follows and apples grapes two of indian com and one | 6 |
of wheat and at end of the season a crop of or some other t but what it to the who go every day a man who get work only by the hardest labour in summer sixteen cents a day and he pays a tax if three tor of salt he con t he is forbidden to use uie salt water that of it boat s akin a in ii and ii by on me while wa there bet own hand a iu sport t price of i low c a tbe shore all articles of are there is a tax of s cent on the income of real estate we hear much of the of the of they are idle but mr is a sagacious observer says they are not indolent be has never known one of them to refuse work when offered to him and they will work for the smallest am we complain of their extreme of invariably us after paid tbe price agreed on for a little more ah be say tbey are so veiy poor if the man had half a soul tbe king of tbe i would be most wretched but his people are only his to provide for pleasures and feed is his ruling t during tbe an of half a of was laid to the extreme of the fifty thousand only went to relieve their necessities and the remainder to the s whenever the provinces require for or they raise by laying ai if each were not lo i into tha hind of it of pro ho l i no m m di tha of is m king t of a with while w wore at and the people red and and to a report it the king got up that lie might in the this ht a it don ie tut but the money so raised be laid out till a of the government makes a iq as to the if three pass a report being made the money to the long repeatedly the tax has been laid the money collected and the made the of a private individual ia a folly in a king it is a crime we had heard a very pretty of the king the and remaining with his at that he might share the common and calm the panic the truth is that he remained at a royal at a distance from the danger and that once when he drove into the city and was through the the de people gathered him and their black bread into bis carriage he threw it out again and bade them flock to the churches and pray to pardon them for the crimes for which he had sent this upon does it seem to you dear c that our world of free people and responsible can be the same in which this wretch lives a king and permitted to power to his like he has been educated by priests and is now in tbe of ii w much is the at that tha flock to city foe we of a mom and man had political some bad and bad of look with on the o a that wa not tbe tliat tb la b die hands of the his has the coarse ot by he trained his n al and l the is there set ford as the the people as his sheep over whom be has absolute power to lead them be will to give life or inflict death as the people nor the soldiers have any attachment to the there might be some hope of a better future if it were not backed by the power of the of the is bo notorious that even the long himself is of it he had at one time a to ve the a new uniform dress them as you will said his father at their first opportunity they will run away from you p then is a deep and general h re doubtless but the spirit of manhood is not extinct a few days since a soldier was struck by his superior officer he to his colonel who treated the grievance as a the next day on the parade the soldier shot the officer end walked quietly away he was of course seized and the next morning to the last be was and said coolly that he had only done what should have been done for him i neither is extinct here and as you r in the knowledge of a good deed as a does in the of an antique or a picture in e acquisition of a i will tell you a story mr t told us of a gentleman whose benevolent be pointed out at the court x s the person in question is the king s of nobly horn for ft of bis a sword from the first at the battle of the has done something better or receiving swords during the he took under hia protection eighty recent he built an asylum for them which cost thousand dollars he has ever since its expenses and it daily his income does not exceed nine thousand pa an went yesterday my dear c to k a was with us quoting and talking poetic prose the accompaniment of such on an occasion like is like fine ki with which during it tha king fancied he could ma m ths ra hi to um word ba lo m he to da the king he lad de of office and ordered to to the the h hi hi ia the would throw them a it the e end entreat pardon then too will do it et the peril of my i e my mr i t no mt it ii all lo me a fan d told him he to ay these thing | 6 |
swallowed them as large round as the top of a pint bowl made of with a rim of having on one de a group in of seven figures representing with wonderful on an and on the other an exquisite s head there are a great variety of personal ornaments rings pins c from which our fashionable of late years has been copied we saw the and s wife wore for one thousand eight hundred years yesterday we went into her wine cellar where she was found with her ra um ia in her hand ami where the wine still standing there is an of bronze some of it beautifully and so heavy that it would seem to a s strength to it one was found on a soldier who stood it out bravely at his past he was discovered at a gate of his still on guard when the ashes were removed there is an endless variety of bronze lamps some beautiful and small one that seemed to me a had e fireplace in the pipes running round it and at each comer there is every article a could de re to furnish her with bronze for and in short dear c there is to identify the wants and comforts of e with our own keys garden tools we observed a in the fashion of a compact little affair k is dow and which she bought at a in the ue various and there are seventy alike of small and which were taken from a table a that was eaten and perhaps it was this very dinner that some meat i ch we saw in was in preparation tht pour i to h te in ihe t been it from most of h d ting to d s s there are honey and all unchanged to the eye except darkened in colour and there b all for the oven and a cake just taken out of it marked into and looking precisely like a composition cake prepared for one of our rural i did not taste it and i saw a little cake ma le in the form of a ring and set a de perhaps to cool for some pet child at school strange thoughts all these objects called up of human projects and pursuits and of human you will be pleased to know that your at though not sons as they for the most part take have a benevolent association for the of the causes of the poor this society meets every morning and go in a body to church to say w prayers on every thursday morning four k their number are in waiting to receive our l a who is one of them says it does amount to much not from the of the lawyers but from the reluctance of the who have no confidence that the right can prevail without the customary of a bribe to the judge is about as much a matter of course as fee to the lawyer l a took us yesterday to see the courts held in the a palace formerly occupied by die of the lower story and vol n y apartments are devoted to and mt in a condition the upper story is kind of prison there the of the state are kept and among them precious records locked up foreigners are occasionally a few hours among them and a few favoured have been admitted for a short time in up the wet stone staircase we passed a half looking woman sitting asleep with one child at her breast in vain seeking food there and another lean pallid thing close to her would not such a spectacle in the of your courts have brought down a shower of these people past them as regardless as if these human things were a part of the stone they sat upon this is custom god has not given the hearts harder than ours up in we went through several crowded filled with lawyers and of stationary and beggars one long hall was lined on both with occupied by who amid such as i am sure you never heard were going on as as if they had been in your qui office we made our way through three rooms where courts were in and where the business was conducted quietly and decently much as it seemed to me in form hke the bu ness of our legal except in one particular there is one officer called the whose il is to the law and apply its to the cause in question accustomed as i have always been to regard our judges as d and i felt a sort of shuddering in looking at these men whose vices are diseases of the heart that must carry disease and death into every part of the body of the state there are thousand lawyers in including clerks and and it would seem that they and all their and were within the of this old palace these masses looked busy and intelligent and much more respectable than the in the street as if it had been indeed and this was the grain that the the lawyers are marked by the government as it is well known that they best the rights of the people authors are marked men too and with good reason if they reflect and feel as well as write than ii to iii who to print of tha or went on till came to the century when the or the g ie tim to the g in o u bit u ba portion it out of tbe to be is an here o ri on for the poor which e that the are b them the dotted to each i a year and not more e hair of thia ia spent upon him the ra and | 6 |
ha wrote a poem in which ha in was printed here with a foreign he wi and he the but maintained there was no law his what be would to the the for ha but ha hum one poor for a much was i am tempted here dear c to copy a passage from s journal which lies before me relating to a author whose the girls have been reading with our l it will at least serve to show you bow were your fears that our young people in tie of these countries would lose their sense of the advantages of their own l considers count the finest poet and certainly there is great power in some of the things we read and oh it gives us such a feeling such a sense of the mental endured here by men who have one spark left of that love of freedom which seems to be god s gift who have their eyes open to what is them and aspirations after better things and as we read with l and see how excited be becomes how from the very d ths his soul he to the and keen of the poet we too into a glow of indignation and feel ourselves animated by the spirit of resistance and when we lay the book we thank heaven more than ever tiiat our lot is cast in a land where we can think speak and act as the e us and america rises before us in a of light brightening to into i m ud with ba mad he inch forth be l now in s and as says oa his seeing paradise e a come d ud sole for a who does not care to run i can imagine more delightful to sit at the window as i do now and look out on the bay and the golden clouds floating over and and at itself in purple but the chief pleasure of a residence in after visiting the up the a e road overlooking the bay after walking through the royal pleasure grounds at di through the a green with walls and looking at the king s sa en hundred dragging their green their white and their blue over the green turf and after through the ta coral and shops the chief pleasure at na is from the excursions about its rich the have ascended and will give you their report we have of the tomb of hardly to be called an on for it is just at the end of the city over the to the fact of it being the tomb of is disputed earnestly the real but is an easy it is however a the poet might have chosen if be looked fondly back to earth it is in a amid forms of which give a to the ivy that hu about the tomb as if they had grown there there are affording glimpses of of the bay and its lovely shares the tomb itself is an with enough lor all the latin poets who have come down to us we have just returned from the after to the end of the gay we entered the of which is a cut a hm and is ei feet in length twenty two in breadth aod where eighty seven feet in height it has dim lamps whose light is supplied by the few rays of day that the at each extremity the passage is wild and the and sound from the walls is nothing earthly the who we working by fitful fires in a deep at one stationed at the of s realm an almost powder from ground which no drop of rain ever touches and the atmosphere a drives past yon with noise enough for a train of railroad cars then a oar with a little demon of a horse with a h of skin and there and n flesh along nine w wild ragged passengers stuck cm and laughing and all vanishing as soon as past seeming mere ia a shadow land a gleam of the figure of a gray old woman an ass with pan or is on t bare l girl another loaded with piles of wood they but appear and in darkness there are in the wall where a lamp before an image or a and in the very heart of the passage is a chapel to tbe virgin in the rock i have seen this illuminated and when its lights are glaring on two or three kneeling and on a haggard beggar pointing to the image of tbe holy mother and stretching his hand to you it produces a effect it is remarkable that the date of this work is unknown it is mentioned by and and is supposed to have been done by the to connect with after ng from tbe morning and what a delicious it is to the open and earth we turned off our road towards a pretty secluded lake devoted to the king s birds such were emerging from it hat it seemed a fountain of life and as if its waters were at every moment becoming in feathers and wings poor things they had a doomed look we our carriage on the lake c re to walk up a steep hill to where we were admitted within a stone wall of four or five in which the king s preserves it was here the queen did that delicate bit of y killed her seventeen of a fine b tbe hill where we stood we looked down five or ax hundred feet into what was once the of a and is now a spacious plain overgrown by trees and walled round by steep there is no tradition of the and no other record of it than that which the earth bears on her bosom to an | 6 |
should be a law to the conscience when men standing where we stood should smile doubtfully at being told here was s palace there was s villa and there and there on lived with s daughter the woman so and so and should guess whether this ruin was a temple to or or no temple at all or this other to and nation should these temples these this world and it with its luxury and pomp to estimate the faith of the brave who in the midst of it all counted all things but the loss for tbe of the knowledge of christ our lord but to return to ourselves dear c our carriage was as usual by a train not of beggars this time but of young looking who held up with bits of precious from the ruins which as they truly said were th r leader a joyous creature addressed a sort of flattery to me telling me i too was e i and when i shook my head she shouted merrily and said i should be if i bought her the train swelled as we proceeded and among them was a young mute who had her and and spun as she walked she seemed about seventeen with a most graceful fragile figure and with a shade of prophetic sadness features so that they reminded me of s saints we had left our carriage and gone up through a d e to get a view of the queen s o er eating lodge and when we returned our merry troop and laughing met us half way would tiiat i could describe the scene to you my dear c but i can only give you the materials and you must make out the picture for yourself on one were the ruins of temples on the other the monstrous foundations of before us the bay and with its blue wreath of smoke and the in their caps of snow and off in the y so soft and dreamy that it seemed melting away while we were at it and were driving over us with through them our merry were joined hj an old woman with a ht red handkerchief tied over her locks she was the living image of s the same wrinkled and cheeks and energy burning in her eye the resemblance was perfect even to tiie two teeth she was sitting on tiie fragment of a marble holding above her head a on which she was playing one of the wild rs to which they dance the and accompanying it with her cracked voice to this music e bare l girl i have described to you s a companion was dancing a around k n who though he enough from a or has in his fine english face much os the of these and jovial my girl danced and shouted like a frantic i never saw a month so expressive of glee nor an eye whose brightness was so near the of insanity there were children with tangled locks of brown and gold and eyes like precious stones and clapping their hands and joining in the old woman s chorus and my pretty mute was among them with a mirth and most eloquent si b go i apart stood four girls as grave and fixed as with immense piles of brush on ea heads which they had just brought from the hills and we from the cold north were looking on k n who had begun by regarding our followers as troublesome of had by degrees given himself up to the spirit of the scene the of poetry and of sympathy with these wild children of the south were opened j and over his soul lit face there was an indescribable shade of melancholy as if by magic he were beholding the elder and classic time and that were an actual perception which before had been imperfectly by poetry painting and he threw a shower of silver the happy creatures and we drove off i have n vain tried to put this scene on paper for you i have seen nothing in italy so characteristic and and when k n came to us in the evening i found i had not exaggerated nor even fully estimated his enjoyment we have been with our english friends to and though it rained torrents through one of our three days of absence we had quite pleasure enough to repay us for crossing the ocean what think you then of the scale io which these three days are but a make weight nothing was ever better suited than the approach z to a wide and most plain with no thing visible at far a shepherd in the of a flock of gaunt ragged a herd of as k a says as if made of the refuse of all other or a solitary wretch on an who appears like the to carry his house and goods with him the ia suited to the ruins my dear c because there is nothing to divert your attention for moment from them there they stand between the and the sea in a wide blank page scarcely ruins but monuments o the art wealth aad faith of a nation long firom the erected to an unknown god by an unknown people i could pages of description and speculation from more learned than i but after all th settle nothing we are still left to and conjecture as the emperor did when he came from rome to nearly years ago to gaze as and as i trust as we now do the cork have given you an accurate idea of the form of these but you must see them in this affecting solitude with god a the mountains behind them the sea before them and the long grass waving from their to id them to class the sensations | 6 |
they produce with those excited by the most magnificent works of nature and the we stood before them we walked through n s i and them and then returned to the little only here to beside the blazing with hot soup and and laugh at the eating and parties english german and italian who seemed pouring down with the rain upon and whose om poor little tried in vain to among them waa an honest german who seemed to have come for nothing but the roses which the elder poets and which he expected to find as immortal as their poetry we left him over the wet grass in search of them to my dear c we leave and take the homeward step as the when they turned towards the holy city you may well have got the impression my letters that the beggars are the only company we keep here and in the and the street here at rome and everywhere are the only inhabitants of the country of whom we have much knowledge there are bo few elements in their condition that he who runs may read them all aware thai m book u tbe patience of mj i omitted tb f mj of our to my of of lame of would bat an idea to who not it and who not to be bow li to be to acknowledge that they hare organs passions ix die with wants souls with an immortal destiny and ye while we give volumes to ruins picture the are over with a line or a sneer we forget the wrongs which have l to their present and keep them in it and quiet our sympathies by that the are the moat cheerful people in the world and so they are except perhaps our slaves more cheerful as a friend of ours says than they have any right to be happier than you and i dear c if happiness he indicated by a careless brow and merry shouts but is not the happiness of a reflecting being shaded by seriousness looking as he must before and after and is not the of these people the most hopeless thing about them proving as it does an that marks the lowest point of human degradation t no not the lowest point i would rather be one of the than the king of the is it not strange dear c that people should leave well ordered countries to come here to live there are many strangers for the most part english who by the attractions of the climate and the loveliness of the adjacent country remain here year after year life b rather too short too full of import to be consumed in mere pas ve enjoyment my walk in wo of the place to l ft from id i hid gone ten a old bag on her me to april u have left rome my dear c and with feelings too much like parting with a friend foi ever to say anything about them we took good advice and instead of returning to by the dreary way we came we are on the a route which is filled with beauty and is beginning to realize my early and most romantic dreams of italian scenery we scarcely know what is our change of season is like the russian hath the plunge from the to hot water here the and the graces seem to have taken the thing with her and gate bar mj f feeble em had died upon mr e i i felt a into wine pocket end turning k in act of it i forgot that be u italian and i of i too i kept in pocket bat for the and u if i bad been robbed of all i wai worth in ttie world i out indignation id a of word a good oa blow lad at mj impotent wrath back a and to a tall to that ha i and then out hia hand in tons ah ml aa i the duke of palace a poor on the pa bar head the wall with a child in nothing but her look hare better th n mr it did not my heart waa aa bard aa tbe a and i walked rapidly on to ot dirty with hands and feet that were me par i di di hat the from my to the waa not of a mile we the holy weak at rome hy are with and aa i to i omitted s ki into own hands and all nature is and grace after winding around hills covered with houses and down into the deep pathway which the mar has made for itself through we arrived here at twelve o clock this morning and have spent the afternoon in vi ting the falls if you have seen and said yon may die content but hardly deserves this companionship the as per you know is the waters that the country above it having been drawn off by the into the a small stream and over the rocks into the ar it does not owe its to the amount of water but to its height its most graceful form and above all to its to the varied slopes and mountains to tiie lovely view out into a world and to its memories came here from rome to a cause about this veiy we saw the fall at ever point of view from the summit to the base it was late in the afternoon and we had the advantage of deep shadows below and bright lights above and the playing over it not like lots with but more like love fondly hovering around beauty in truth s whole description is an his infernal is so soft and that you can scarce tell whether it move np or down it might | 6 |
be formed of the glittering of b to ascending and descending should have and he could have it we came from the fall by a lovely winding through tall chestnut bursting into fresh and shrubs heath and sweet and cherry and through the orange of a certain count ah my dear c this is and the girls who met us with whereon we were to ascend the hill to were as beautiful as would have painted wood owes a portion of its fame to this atmosphere of exceeding beauty the day has been warm and towards noon we crossed la a high peak of the we had a yoke of oxen attached to our four horses to drag us up this three mile ascent k and i walked the greater part of the way and amused ourselves talking with the train of that we accumulated not and lame and blind but stout and pretty children the oxen pulled the taking care to let them do all the work till when we were within a few yards of the summit one of them suddenly stopped and staggered th r master detached them when the poor beast gave a leap and fell dead his owner broke out into the most violent expressions of despair beating his breast clasping his hands off his hat and throwing himself on the ground do not laugh at la me v truly he me of s over tbe dead body of there could in no case be more of grief our b forgot and gathered him ex their sympathy most while be continued touching the animal s horns and crying out o o io drawing open one and then the other and exclaiming m to k i this was all unaffected the oxen were probably tbe ly means of living the poor man his for bread for himself and his but he showed all he felt they are a people do you remember a story mr of one of our who having left hi wife and children alone in their log habitation to go into the forest found them all on coming back lying murdered before his door by indians he made no movement no but said quietly well now if this if not too ridiculous la after crawling to day at a s pace up the immense hill on which the old city stands we were induced to our way by the report of the recent opening of a it it bat that afterward he the of old age la tomb in some of the of this old have sl t for the last years descending the bill in a uttle post carriage and a field we descended a ladder and a doubly locked door b ng opened to us we entered the tomb of a noble family opposite our entrance hung suspended a bronze in little there are nine small chambers built of square blocks of with a well cut s head in die centre of each ceiling and about it and i think but our survey waa so hasty that i do not for its accuracy one apartment only is left as it was found from the rest the and ornaments have been removed in this are several of as white as marble and as perfect in all re as when they came the s hands there was a figure on each to be the of the person whose remains within the a portrait gallery to be opened to after years is it not everything is as fresh and as the laid th dead here the tomb ot the is a to this we had only time for a strange bewildering none to go into a palace ban to some very found in the tomb and removed there foe safe keeping and which we told as are on like were better worth seeing than all the rest we are this evening at an inn m a straggling vol a a s la half way up a steep hill where fancy no travelling ever stopped before any rooms with an invalid are better than none and our threatened us th the probability of sleeping in our carriage if we proceeded to the stopping place so here we are in the midst of an italian rustic all serving us all curious and good humoured have been borrowed from a luxurious neighbour a as sent a mile and a half to bring milk for us and our thoughtful provided butter at so you see how extremes meet an isolated western in a like would have had recourse to like but i wonder if ever but in this land where grace and beauty are native to the there was so pretty a rustic as is at this moment with the help of two arranging our beds i can scarce write for looking at her and from that i believe we all feel she returns my glance and a smile into the bargain she is not an italian beauty there is no brilliancy of colouring j but such perfect and such a appealing touching expression she over the floor as a bird over the surface of the water i never saw motion so light and full of grace it would make die fortune of an of pastoral comedy i must ask her name and of her history her name is and for her she has none she says her father is dead eveiy one s dies sooner or later her mother is very ta poor neither is that any distinction here and she her bread with these good people of the inn you have never to america no she lied infinite simplicity nor to she would like to go to said her friend ah you have a lover there said l no no i will be a i looked at ha gay coloured | 6 |
hia to with bim bu fixed and j hia contract it ia be year b l tbe that he and by a for will pre him than the product if upon tbe land a if it were hia it to it in the the ba will be by hia ud and in bet uie oa the land aim la they it with a that s to had you my dear c pa this afternoon wi os i d have but to write and tu would rise before you ind bill la pie id not four feet wide uie of it co ihe ia that ia cold here ihe is deep k ia the of rack bam hare then it be labour to indian com even or a little su and uie o thia brook ia for learn with from the r that in a of soil the and lay of land to him a than a rich to in hia of five or ail au ea after in the which and the h the aod of the character are often bat ii not which ia all of ta who three the h having an in and there a portion of time from actual and cm a of the a life aa admirable lor aa it ia when you the and climb up tha of the valley of meet at ever step little which winding among the and are never by a wheel and are only for mountain with along paths it hundred you find npon a little which the image of fully rewarded of a lore of the land of and tbe built with good one story often two tbe floor there are on the ground a for two and the room which name from the large in which the wine ia putting it to it ia here that hia ca oil and to with th her loveliest of and in the background her with its fortress and pouring oil and he can repair bis the for tbe on lad sm two three and four window are without i they hare only wa mom ii do ice in tbe mom nd air ot then are of ha and june to growth ot tor and and wooden are tbe principal of a her tha ba e neither curtain nor but on a good bed made of uie of the com there are two wool or poorest of tow a good ot and over the beat bed a of raw which is on there ia ne in there ia in one room a large wooden with in which are a sufficient of end uie ot two and at two copper in which to fetch and keep water au tha linen aid of the ate na the men aa well aa the women i are of a kind of they call t if thick if thin the ia a thread of or cow the filling ii of wool or cotton it ia the who it oat can hardly the of linen the women by how many are in the how t and to an idea rf it we add a part of an of family beat known to aa i a family neither among tha nor rich cat but iii happily on the half of tbe of of land th i di c of coloured of of cotton cloth i winter working tt and white s i black i black apron working white a coloured worked and i veil u felt and on wine into her the sunny bills that slope down to her feet but you have not seen it dear c and neither the word nor all the i may tack to it will give you so much pleasure as to know we are thus far on our homeward track and that we found our friend mr h on the steps of the hotel de york where though the town is full of strangers he has secured agreeable apartments for us from which we have a look out on the i its and gay as all the world knows my dear c is almost in the beauty of its and it is most curious as the best preserved monument of the middle ages but apart from all this it has interest to an american a claim on the sympathy of the of a free and working country that belongs to no other part of italy derived the glory and power of its brilliant day from its industry and freedom not the freedom of a few lawless but the freedom of its classes who in formed themselves fine s gold pain gold with two with gold we be to tee out with an the began writing tale in the of their after telling a that the thought enough in a gown of c adds with ail this bad mind were to one another into twelve companies of arts and trades the seven major arts having their captains and and got so completely the upper hand of the that a title rendered a man to office there is a curious memorial of the exercise of popular power existing in the architecture of the city more than which originally were the of the nobility and which were by an of the people reduced from the of feet to feet are now into other buildings and constitute a part of that massive architecture whidi makes strike a stranger as a of of individual force where the power of the was sometimes feeble but where each man was master and lord in his own house these towns were lighted and the resorted to an expedient suited to their delicious climate near the towers they built which served them for offices market places and drawing rooms some of them still remain the da is with groups of statues in bronze | 6 |
and with its greek arches and columns is a beautiful specimen of architecture the palace the re of the ths m l y which wag lot the tion of wall and ths of th t talk with it b fit tor an was bj a as were many of which may stand for aught that i can see as as the solid of they are built of blocks of stone without aad without but to me their aod strength are more effective than any they have a curious lai or brass rings in which they placed wax lights and to which they the standards of the they built to the expense of an extended wall the d t streets are too narrow to allow a e to pass across some of them you ought grasp bands from palace to palace i am sadly in it the city certainly but it is and like all the italian streams i have i with the exception of two it as if it had been stirred op with french chalk we have just from and are overpowered with the heat i do not wonder at the hat no one can die in in the winter and no one can live b e in summer but for it is our visit to the centre of pilgrimage uie of italy so indeed day that sacred place be justly called where are the monuments of such as and michael the monuments are im dense piles of marble not one of than s es me with its aa a of art but art would be but secondary here ts abbey after the place by uie great spirits of our own language there is no like that of it is a sad thought that we have the last time walked up and down its long line of columns on the marble pavement trodden by generations long gone before the monuments of and i was begun in and is still on as are all the of the churches this is to save the heavy tax imposed by the pope on the completion of a church and in part probably from the of the plan exceeding the ability for its execution the of has historical that make it quite worthy of the the richest citizens says m having excited one to in the of before a church and there now are the of the great men of the republic of the dead was first tlie popular slate of we went quite to die extreme from this the of popular in going from to san where are the splendid of the of the of the de wm designed by michael and its in at p t l him there are on two vol u b b figures in attitudes that it would be di for a posture master to they are called day and and and twilight doctor bell sees in the a spring of ht an principle marble is a hard material for an refinement the celebrated statue the duke of called its wonderful of deep thought is in chapel i cannot but that this and other of michael throw a dazzling over his inferior works and that in these statues on the monuments and in be has half taken the step fi m the to the but this is as dangerous as to talk in an saloon the gorgeous though yet unfinished di is also at san it is to the of the grand of and all that can be to these accidents by walls with the and the most work in is done bat what is it all in e t to the name of on his tomb or ate inscription on s i we have seen mr s statue of washington it is a seated colossal figure the arms and breast are bare one hand is extended in the act of the sword and the other raised as if appealing to i have heard ol to the double action but why once they are related and produce a unity of the too b s l n and will no doubt be by many of our people who are of any degree but what was mr to says a french artist made a cast of washington while he was in military costume and nobody liked it put him into a roman and into a such as neither roman nor american ever nothing re for him but to present him and certainly the is arranged with expression and grace the head is noble almost to the point of wisdom and firmness as near an approach to as washington s face will bear without a sacrifice of good not quite the subjects of the relief are happily chosen is on one side a fitting of our young country and on the is the infant the serpent a subject suggested i presume by dr s and indicating our ie with die mother country mi even with his previous reputation may be satisfied with this work and our country of it it is something to say for our progress in art tiiat in forty years washington s death the best of him is by bis own i been about mr w who naturally first showed me some of his hero mr w was as you know a few years an in oar a from of ton to out the life of from the mr w is among the few fortunate men win from a false has by his own found out and own energy achieved his true one we went to a inserted in the the which oa that there was accustomed to rat and there he contemplated this church which before as mr w has discovered by a in favour of its was pronounced the most edifice in when we have such to mai the of and might not | 6 |
idle inquiries there are those that are forever inquiring and inquiring and never coming to the truth one inquiry should for a loyal subject what is established v and that being well ascertained the line of duty is so plain that he who runs may read i would that all our youths had inscribed on their hearts that golden rule of political religion framed and well maintained by our good queen elizabeth no man should be suffered to decline either on the left or on the right hand from the drawn line limited by authority and by the sovereign s laws and instead of such healthy our lads heads are crammed with the philosophy and and history of those liberty loving and this is the lore that has poisoned our fountains liberty what is it daughter of and mother of all who from the hour that she tempted our first parents to paradise hath ever worked mischief to our race but above all brother as you value the salvation of your boy restrain him from all association or even acquaintance with the if my master took counsel of me he would ship these mad fools to our new hope england colonies their tender would be no more offended because a his prayers in white and where they might enjoy with the savages that primitive equality about which they make such a god that our good lad william should company with these he must be narrowly watched for as i hear there is a neighbour of yours one a notable gentleman too a they say but he doth his birth and breeding who hath embraced these principles and doth them with the authority of his birth and condition and hath much weight with the country there is in too as i am told one a young a who doth find ample in the idle maidens and lawless youth who flock about him these are dangerous neighbours yourself brother give over your idle sporting with hawk and hound and watch over this goodly of ours ours i say but i you no daughter or guinea of mine shall ever go to one who is with this spreading plague this letter was too explicit to be misunderstood but so far from having the intended effect of awakening the caution of the expectant of fortune it rather stimulated the pride of the independent country gentleman he permitted his son to follow the bent of accident or the natural course of a serious reflecting and enthusiastic temper the a hope future governor of was the of young and the of new england his most intimate friend these were men selected of heaven to achieve a great work in the quaint language of the time the lord three nations for precious seed to sow the wilderness there were interested persons who were not slow in conveying to sir william reports of his nephew and the young man received a summons from his uncle who hoped by removing him from the region to rescue him from danger sir william s pride was gratified by the elegant appearance and graceful of his nephew whom he had expected to see with the and lawyer like carriage that marked the scholars of the times the was struck with the lofty independence of the youth who from the first showed that neither nor favour would induce him to bow the knee to the sir william had served there was something in this independence that awed the inferior mind of the uncle to him it was an unknown mysterious power which he knew not how to approach and almost of however he was experienced in life and had observed enough of human infirmity to convince him that there was no human virtue that had not some weak some point time and circumstances were not long in developing the of the nephew had been the companion of his childhood they now met without any of the reserve that often prevents an intimate in hope between young persons and proceeds from the consciousness of a which it would seem to deny the intercourse of the cousins was renewed with all the frankness and of the sunny season of childish love and confidence had been educated in retirement by her mother whom she had recently attended through a long and fatal she had been almost the exclusive object of her love for there was little between the father and daughter the ties of nature may command all but they cannot control the was deeply afflicted by her her cousin s serious temper with her sorrow and nature and opportunity soon linked their hearts together sir william perceived their growing attachment and in it for as he fancied it reduced his nephew to on his will and he had never himself experienced the full strength of any generous sentiment but he had learned from observation that love was a passion and he now most anxiously watched and promoted the of the flame in the expectation that the fire would subdue the principles of civil and religious liberty with which he had but too well ascertained the mind of his nephew to be he silently favoured the constant and exclusive intercourse of the young people he secretly contrived various modes of increasing their mutual and when he was hope ness was he cast the die he told his that he perceived and rejoiced in the mutual affection that had so naturally sprung up between him and his daughter and he confessed their union had been the favourite object of his life and said that he now heartily accorded his consent to it one condition only but that condition was you must william in the presence of witnesses he said the notions of liberty and religion with which you have been you must pledge yourself by a solemn oath to obedience to the king and to the established church you shall have time enough for | 6 |
republic which he fancied to be founded on the basis of established truth was disturbed by the outbreak of and his heart when he saw those who had sacrificed whatever man holds dearest to religious freedom imposing those r hope on others from which they had just released themselves at such a price t influenced by these and partly by that love of contemplation and retirement th t belongs to a character of his cast especially when depressed by some early disappointment he refused the offices of honour and trust that were from time to time offered to him and finally in when and formed their settlement at on river he determined to retire from the growing community of boston to this frontier settlement mrs received his decision as all wives of that age of masculine or most of those of our less passive age would do with meek submission the and d of that were not unknown to her nor did she them but would as soon have remonstrated against the command that bade him go forth from his father s house into the land of the as she would have failed in passive obedience to the resolve of her husband the removal was effected early in the summer of assumed at once under the of its wealthy and the aspect of a village the first followed the course of the indians and planted themselves on the borders of rivers the natural gardens of the earth where the soil is and enriched by the annual overflowing of the streams and prepared by the processes of nature to yield to the indolent indian his scanty supply of and other b k t id hope the which constituted the village or to use the description the smoke of the natives gave place to the clumsy but more convenient dwellings of the where there are now rows of shops filled with the of the east the of europe the rival of our own country and the fruits of the where now stand the stately hall of justice the academy the bank churches and and all the of a rich and community were at the early period of our history a few log houses planted around a fort defended by a slight and the of the were rather more spacious and artificial than those of their more humble associates and were built on the well known model of the modest dwelling illustrated by the birth of milton a form still in the eastern parts of and presenting to the eye of a new the familiar aspect of an awkward friendly country cousin the first clearing was limited to the plain the beautiful hill that is now the residence of the gentry for there yet lives such a class in the heart of our community and is with stately and expensive pleasure grounds was then the border of a dense forest and so richly fringed with the original growth of trees that scarce a had penetrated to the parent earth mr was at first welcomed as an important hope acquisition to the infant establishment but he soon proved that he to take no part in its concerns and in spite of the of the he fixed his residence a mile from the village exposure to the of the savages very slight and the of an inquiring neighbourhood a certain evil his domain extended from a gentle eminence that commanded an extensive view of the to the shore where the river the meadow by one of those sweeping graceful curves by which it seems to delight to the land it the border of the river was fringed all the water loving trees but the broad meadows were quite cleared excepting that a few elms and had been spared by the indians and consecrated by tradition as the scene of or the house of our pilgrim was a low modest structure ample accommodation for a family where children and servants were all to be sheltered under one roof tree on one side as we have described lay an open and extensive plain within view was the curling smoke from the little cluster of houses about the fort the habitation of civilized man but all else was a savage howling wilderness never was a name more the condition of a people than pilgrim that of our forefathers it should be from the and ludicrous associations which have degraded it in most men s minds and be by the sacrifices made hope by these voluntary they were for they had resigned forever what the good hold most dear their homes home can never be transferred never repeated in the experience of an individual the place consecrated by parental love by the innocence and sports of childhood by the first acquaintance with nature by the of the heart to the visible creation is the only home there there is a living and breathing spirit into nature every familiar object has a history the trees have tongues and the very air is there the of decay doth not close in and control the noble functions of th soul it sees and hears and without the of gross material substance mr had resided a few months in when he one day entered with an open letter in his hand that apartment of his humble dwelling by courtesy the parlour his wife was sitting there with her eldest son a of fourteen busily assisting him in twisting a cord for his she perceived that her husband looked disturbed but he said nothing and her habitual ence prevented her inquiring into the cause of his after taking two or three turns about the room he said to his son my boy go to the door and await there the arrival of an indian girl she is as you may see yonder by the river side and will be here shortly i would not that should at the very first shock | 6 |
the child with her ways hope child coming here exclaimed the boy dropping his bow and gazing through the window who is she that tall girl father she is no more a child than i am his mother smiled at an exclamation that betrayed a common jealousy of the honour of dawning manhood and bade the boy obey his father s directions when had left the apartment mr said i have just received letters from boston from governor w he paused our friends are all well i hope said mrs yes our friends are all well but these letters contain something of more importance than aught that concerns the health of the body mr again hesitated and his wife perplexed by his embarrassment inquired has poor mrs again presumed to disturb the peace of god s people you aim wide of the mark my present emotions are not those of a for a ship has arrived from england and in it came my brother exclaimed mrs no no it will be long ere his paradise to join a suffering people in the wilderness he paused for a moment and when he again spoke the softened tone of his voice evinced that he was touched by the expression of disappointment slightly tinged by displeasure that shaded his wife s hope gentle countenance forgive me my dear wife he said i should not have spoken aught that implied censure of your brother for i know he hath ever been most precious in your eyes not the less so that he is yet without the fold that which i have to tell you and it were best that it were quickly is that my cousin was a passenger in this newly arrived ship your wrong you the mean that some women have i am sure never been in your heart if i deserve your praise it is because the lord has been pleased to my heart and make it his but if i have not the i have the feelings of a woman and i cannot forget that you was once to your cousin and and that i once told you frankly that the affection i gave to her could not be transferred to another that love grew with my growth strengthened with my strength of its beginning i had no more consciousness than of the commencement of my existence it was sunshine and flowers in all the paths of my childhood it inspired every hope modified every project such was the love i bore to love immortal as the soul you know how cruelly we were severed at how she was torn from the strand by the king s guards within my view almost within my grasp how sir william tempted me with the offer of pardon my cousin s hand and poor temptation indeed after that honours fortune you know that i hope even my precious knelt to me that smitten of god and man and for the moment of the right use of reason she would have persuaded me to yield my integrity you know that her cruel father reproached me with breaking my that many of my friends urged my present and you know that there was a principle in my bosom that over all these temptations and think you not that principle has preserved me faithful in my friendship to you think you not that your obedience your careful to my wishes your steady love which hath kept far more than even measure with my deserts is h an be lightly estimated oh i know said the humble wife that your goodness to me does far my merit but you it is the nature of a woman to the first place it is the right of a wife and there is none now to contest it with you this is but the second time i have spoken to you on a subject that has been much in our thoughts that has made me and would have made my on earth miserable but that you have been my support and these letters contain tidings that ave opened a long sealed fountain y uncle sir william died last january perished in a foreign service thus released from all bonds and sole mistress of her fortunes determined to cast her lot in the of s people she em hope with her two girls her only children a voyage proved too much for a constitution already broken by repeated she was fully aware of her approaching death and died as a child of faith in sweet peace would to god i could have seen her once more but he added his eyes devoutly not my will but thine be done the sister of a mistress attended and with her she left a will committing her children to my it will be necessary for me to go to boston to assume this trust i shall leave home to morrow after making suitable provision for your safety and comfort during my absence these children will bring additional labour to your household and in good time hath our thoughtful friend governor procured for us two indian servants the girl has arrived the boy is retained about the little the youngest of whom it seems is a child and is pat pleased by his activity in to her amusement i am glad if any use can be made of an indian servant said mrs who oppressed with conflicting emotions expressed the of them a concern at a sudden increase of domestic cares where there were no to them how any use you surely do not that these indians possess the same faculties that we do the girl just arrived our friend writes me hath rare gifts of mind such as few of god s creatures are endowed with she is just fifteen she understands hope and speaks english perfectly well having been taught it by an english captive | 6 |
who for a long time dwelt with her tribe on that account she was much noticed by the english who with the and young as she was she acted as their she is the daughter of one of their and when this tribe were killed or from their she her brother and their mother were brought with a few other to boston they were given for a spoil to the soldiers some by a christian use of money were and others i blush to say it for it is god s gift that every man should enjoy the good of his own labour were sent into slavery in the west indies the mother of these children was noted for the singular dignity and modesty of her many notable instances of her kindness to the white are recorded and when she was taken to boston our worthy governor ever of his duties assured her that her good deeds were held in remembrance and that he would testify the gratitude of his people in any way she should direct i have nothing to ask she said but that i and my children may receive no the governor her children and assured her they should be cared for for herself misery and sorrow had so wrought on her that she was fast sinking into the grave many christian men and women for her but she would not even consent that the holy word should t c be interpreted to her in the pride of her soul that all the children of the great spirit were equal objects of his favour and that he had deemed the book he had withheld needful to them and did she inquired mrs thus perish in her sins she died replied her husband fixed in those sentiments but we should not suit god s mercy to the narrow frame of our thoughts this poor savage s life as far as it has come to our knowledge was marked with innocence and good deeds and i would gladly believe that we may hope for her on that broad foundation laid by the peter in every nation he that god and is accepted of him that text answered mrs her heart easily with the flame of charity a light behind many a dark scripture like the sun shining all around the edges of a cloud that cannot hide all its beams such thoughts my dear wife naturally spring from thy kind heart and are sweet for private meditation but it were well to keep them in thine own bosom lest taking breath they should the fears of souls but here comes the girl clothed in her indian garb which the governor has permitted her to retain not caring as he wisely says to interfere with their innocent peculiarities and she in particular having shown a of the dress hope now threw wide open the parlour door inviting the indian girl by a motion of his hand and a kind smile to follow she did so and remained standing beside him with her eyes to the floor while every other eye was turned towards her she and her conductor were no unfit representatives of the people from whom they sprung was a fair ruddy boy of fourteen his smooth brow and bright curling hair bore the stamp of the morning of life hope and confidence and gladness beamed in the glance of his keen blue eye and love and played about his lips the active hardy habits of life in a new country had already knit his frame and given him the muscle of manhood while his quick elastic step truly expressed the spirit of childhood the only spirit without fear and without reproach his dress was of blue cloth closely fitting his person the sleeves reached between the elbow and and the naked and as it would seem to a eye awkward space was with lace of a coarse texture a or collar of the same material was worn about the neck the indian stranger was tall for her years which did not exceed fifteen her form was slender and graceful and there was a freedom and in her movement which though tempered with modesty expressed a consciousness of high birth her face although marked by the peculiarities of her race was beautiful even to a european eye her features were regular and her teeth white hope as pearls but there must be something beyond of feature to fix the attention and it was an expression of dignity and deep that made the eye linger on s face as if it were there the record of her birth and wrongs her hair contrary to the of the indians was parted on her forehead and confined to her head by a band of small feathers jet black and and attached at equal distances by rings of polished bone she wore a waistcoat of fastened at the throat by a richly wrought collar her arms a model for were bare a mantle of purple cloth hung gracefully from her shoulders and was confined at he waist by a broad band ornamented with rude the mantle and her strait short or of the same rare and costly material had been obtained probably from the english stockings were an unknown luxury but similar to those worn by the ladies of queen elizabeth s court were no bad substitute the neatly fitted to a delicate foot and ankle and ornamented with bead work completed the apparel of this daughter of a which altogether had an air of wild and fantastic grace that well with the noble and peculiar beauty of the young savage mr surveyed her for a moment with a mingled feeling of compassion and curiosity and then turning away and leaning his head on the man hope his thoughts to the subject that had affected him far more deeply than he had ventured to confess even to the wife of | 6 |
his bosom mrs s first feeling was rather that of a than a tender woman my husband she thought might as well have brought a wild from the forest to plough his fields as to give me this indian girl for household labour but the wisest men have no sense ih these matters this natural domestic reflection was soon succeeded by a sentiment of compassion which scarcely needed to be stimulated by ell s whisper of do mother speak to her she said in a friendly tone you are welcome among us girl bowed her head mrs continued you should receive it as a signal mercy child that you have been taken from the midst of a savage people and set in a christian family mrs paused for her s assent y but the proposition was either unintelligible or to mistress means said a middle aged serving who had just entered the room that you should be mighty thankful that you are snatched as a brand from the burning hush said touching the speaker with the point of an arrow which he held in his hand s eyes had turned on flashing like a through an opening cloud s touched a tender and when c hope she again cast them down a tear trembled on their you will have no hard service to do said mrs h r address i cannot explain all to you now hut you will soon perceive that our civilized life is far easier far better and happier than your wild wandering ways which are indeed as you will presently see but little superior to those of the wolves and suppressed a reply that her heart sent to her quivering lips and said hunted as the indians are to their own i am sure mother they need the of the wolf and the cunning of the fox true true my son replied mrs who really meant no in expressing what she deemed a self evident truth and then turning again to she said in a gentle tone you have bad a long and journey was it not girl my foot replied is used to the wild wood path the deer not of his way on the mountain nor the bird of its flight in the air she uttered her natural feeling in so plaintive a tone that it touched the heart like a strain of sad music and when again interposed in the conversation by saying that truly these savages have their house in the wilderness and their way no man knows her mistress cut short her by directing her to go to the outer door and learn who it was that was conducting to the hope t a moment after mr s domestic entered vith the air of one who has important intelligence to communicate he was followed by a tall gaunt indian who held in his hand a ha said mr have you returned what say the t can they furnish me a guide and attend for my journey v yes an please you sir i was in the nick of time for they were just a messenger to the governor on what account why it s rather an odd errand replied scratching his head with an awkward i would not wish to shock my gentle mistress who will never bring her feelings to the queer of the new world but lord s mercy sir you know we do more of taking off a here than we did of our at home exclaimed mr explain yourself the indian as if to assist s communication his and drew from it a piece of dried and skin to which hair together with blood still there was an expression of fierce on the countenance of the savage as he surveyed the with a grim smile a murmur of indignation burst from all present why did you bring that wretch here demand ed mr of his servant in an angry tone i did but obey mr sir the thing is hope an to the soul and eye of a christian but it has to be taken to boston for the reward what reward the reward sir that is in reason expected for the of the chief as uttered these last words shrieked as if a dagger had pierced her heart she darted forward and grasped the arm that the my father she screamed in a voice of agony give it to her by heaven you shall give it to her cried springing on the indian and losing all other thought in his instinctive sympathy for softly mr said that is the of not the had two you know now released her hold and as soon as she could again command her voice she said in her own native language to the indian my father my father does he live he does answered the indian in the same dialect he lives in the of the chief of the was silent for a moment and knit her brows as if agitated with an important deliberation she then a from her arm and gave it to the indian i charge ye she said as ye hope for game in your hunting grounds for the sun on your and the presence of the great spirit b your death hour i charge ye to convey this token hope to my father tell him his children are servants in the house of his enemies but she added after a moment s pause to whom am i trusting to the murderer of my father s friend fear not replied the indian your errand shall be done was a strange tree in our forests but he his root deep and lifted his tall head above our branches and cast his shadow over us and i cut him down i may not return to my for they called brother and they would fain him but fear not maiden your errand | 6 |
shall be done mr observed this conference which he could not understand with some anxiety and pleasure and he broke it off by directing to conduct to another apartment obeyed muttering as she went a notable providence this concerning the even like as he has done to others the lord hath him mr t en most reluctantly took into his possession the savage and dismissed the indian deeply that motives of mistaken policy should tempt his brethren to depart from the principles of their religion hope chapter m but ah who can deceive hia or by warning to avoid his fate fairy queen on the following morning mr set out for boston and escaping all perils by flood and field arrived there at the of nine days having accomplished the journey now the affair of a single day with unusual expedition his wards were accompanied by two individuals who were now with them to become permanent members of his family mrs the sister of their father and one master a scholar skilled in the tongues who attended them as their mrs was a widow far on the shady side of fifty though as that was a subject to which she never alluded she probably regarded age with the feelings ascribed to her sex that being the last quality for which would wish to be honoured as is said by one whose satire is so good humoured that even its truth may be endured she was unhappily for herself as her lot was cast a zealous to the church of england good people who take upon themselves the of their neighbours in that age and from them mrs received frequent hope and to these she replied that a faith and mode of religion that had saved so many was good enough to save her that she had received her belief just as it was from her father and that he not she was responsible for it offensive such opinions must needs be in a community of professed but the good lady did not make them more so by the of over wrought zeal to confess the truth her mind was more intent on the forms of than modes of faith and she was far more ambitious of being the leader of fashion than the leader of a she would have more earnestly for a favourite than a favour ite and though she undoubtedly believed a saint in to be twice a saint in lawn and maintained that no man could administer the offices of without gown and wig yet she chiefly directed her against the attire of the j ladies of the colony who she insisted did most their nature is women and their birth and bringing up as by their ill and apparel to this she was fast gaining for if we may believe the simple of there were even in early and pure days gentle who inquired what dress the queen is in this week the spread rapidly and when some of the most and zealous proposed that the should hope make it the subject of public and personal reproof it was whispered that the scandal was not limited to idle maidens but that certain of the wives were in it and it was deemed more prudent to adopt gentle and private measures to the evil an evil so deeply felt as to be by the merciless above quoted in the following affecting terms it would break the hearts of englishmen to see so many goodly english women imprisoned in french peeping out of their hood holes for some men of mercy to help them with a little wit and nobody them we have about five or six of them in our colony if i see any of them accidentally i cannot my of them for a month after it would seem marvellous that a woman like mrs apparently engrossed with the world living on the foam and of life should become a voluntary exile to the colonies but to do her justice she was kind hearted and affectionate susceptible of strong and attachment and the infant children of a brother on whom she had her love of frivolous pleasures and personal indulgence she certainly believed that the resolution of her sister to go to the wilderness had no parallel in the history of human folly and madness but the resolution once taken and as she perceived she made her own destiny not without some but without serious it was an unexpected shock to her to be com hope to leave boston for a condition of life not only more rude and inconvenient but really dangerous necessity however is more potent than philosophy and mrs like most people submitted with patience to ah inevitable evil as good master was a man rather acted upon than acting we shall leave him to be discovered by our readers as the light of others falls on him mr received the children the and gifts of a woman whom he had loved as few men can love with an intense interest the youngest mary was a pretty child and she mr s caresses and ran away from him to shelter herself in her aunt s arms but the eldest seemed instinctively to return the love that beamed in the first glance that mr cast on her in that brief eager glance he saw the living and beautiful image of her mother so much was he impressed the resemblance that he said in a letter to his wife that it reminded him of the heathen doctrine of and he could almost believe the spirit of the mother was transferred to the bosom of the child the arrangement mr made for the of his charge to might probably be traced to the preference inspired by this resemblance he despatched the little mary with her aunt and the brother of the indian boy and such attendants as were necessary for their safe conduct | 6 |
and he retained and the to be vol i d e the companions of his journey before the children were separated they were by the reverend mr cotton and in of the christian graces of their mother their names were changed to the of hope and faith mr was detained at first by business and afterward by ill health much longer than he had expected and the fall winter and earliest months of spring wore away before he was able to set his face homeward in the mean time his little community at proceeded more than could have been hoped from the materials of which it was composed this was owing in great part to the wise and mrs the sun of her little system all were obedient to the silent influence that controlled without being perceived the following letter which she wrote to mr just before his return contains some important domestic details to my and husband thy kind letter was duly received fourteen days after date and was most welcome to me containing as it does a portion of that stream of kindness that is ever flowing out from thy nature towards me sweet and refreshing was it as these gentle days of spring after our sullen winter winter ever in these parts but made more dreary by the absence of that precious light by which i have ever been cheered and p hope i thank thee heartily my dear life that thou dost so warmly commend my poor to do well in thy absence i have truly tried to be faithful to ray little and to cheer them with notes of gladness i have drooped inwardly for the voice of my mate yet my anxious thoughts have been more with thee than with myself nor have i been of any of thy by sickness or otherwise but in all thy troubles i have been troubled and have ever prayed that whatever might me thou return in safety to thy desiring family i have had many to contend with in thy absence of which i have to inform thee it the duty of a wife never to her husband with her household cares but now that with the lord s permission thou art so soon to be with us i would fain render unto thee an account of my knowing that thou art not a hard master and wilt consider the will and not the weakness of thy loving wife this dame is strangely out of place here for a parlour bird than a flight into the wilderness and but that she commended to us as a widow a name that is a draught from the lord upon every christian heart we might find it hard to brook her light and worldly ways she and yet i think not with an evil mind but rather at our most precious faith and hath even ventured to read aloud from her book of common prayer an offence that she hath been prevented from re hope by the somewhat profane jest of our son whose love of mischief proceeding from the gay temper of youth i trust you will overlook it was a few nights ago when a storm was raging that the poor lady s fears were greatly excited my apprehensions had a hard struggle with my duty so terrific was the hideous howling of the wolves mingling with the that swept through the forest i my beating heart w th the thought that my children leaned on me and i must not betray my weakness but dame was beside herself at one moment she fancied we should be the prey of the wild beast and at the next that she heard the alarm yell of the savages brought her her prayer book and affecting a well gravity begged her to look out the prayer for distressed women in imminent danger of being by north american indians the poor lady distracted with terror seized the book and turned over leaf after leaf meanwhile affecting to aid her search in vain i shook my head at the boy in vain i assured mistress that i trusted we were in no danger she was beyond the influence of reason nothing her fears till to catch a glance of eye she detected the lurking laughter and him soundly over the ears with her book she left the room greatly enraged i grieve to add that evinced small sorrow for his levity though i him thereupon at the same time i thought it a fit occasion to commend the sagacity whereby hope be had detected the of prayers and to express my hope that as his are he may prove a son of jacob that shall and prevail i have something farther to say of who is in the main a most devoted son and as i an apt scholar as his master me he latin like his mother tongue and is well in the greek the boy doth greatly affect the company of the girl if in his studies he meets with any trait of heroism and with such truly her mind doth seem naturally to as he straightway for her and it into english in which she hath made such marvellous progress that i am sometimes startled with the beautiful forms in which she clothes her simple thoughts she in her torn doth take much delight in describing to him the customs of her people and relating their tales which are like pictures to a youthful tion he hath taught her to read and reads to her s and many other books of the like kind of which i am sorry to say dame hath brought hither stores i have not forbidden him to read them well knowing that the appetite of youth is often by denial and fearing that the boy might be tempted secretly to my authority and i would rather expose him to all | 6 |
the mischief of this lore than to tempt him to a deceit that might corrupt the sweet fountain of the well spring of all that is good and noble d i have gone far from my subject when my boy comes before my mind s eye i can see no other object but to return i have not been of my duty to the indian girl but have endeavoured to into her mind the first principles of our re f as contained in mr cotton s and elsewhere but alas to these her eye is shut and her ear is closed not only with that blindness and common to the natural man but she an aversion which has the of principle and doth continually remind me of s hatred to rome and is like that with her filial piety i have in vain attempted to subdue her to the of domestic service and make her take part with but as might you yoke a deer with an ox it is not that she obedience to me so far as it seems she can her duty she is ever but it impossible to her to the wing of her soaring thoughts and keep them down to household matters i have sometimes at the providence of god in on this child of the forest such rare gifts of mind and other and outward beauties her voice hath a natural deep and most sweet melody in it far beyond any instrument she hath too think not that i like am as a charmed bird to her she hath though yet a child in years that in her mien that doth bring to mind the lofty and the gracious when i once said this to he re hope mother is she not more like the gentle and tender v to him she may be and therefore it is that innocent and safe as the intercourse of these children now is it is for thee to decide whether it be not most wise to remove the maiden from our dwelling two young plants that have sprung up in close may be separated while young but if after their are all one or perchance both s y perish think not that is anxiety the mistaken fancy of a woman that love is the natural channel for all the purposes thoughts hopes and feelings of humanity neither think i thee that with a foolish fondness my noble boy i into importance whatsoever him no my heart towards this poor heathen orphan girl and when i see her in his absence starting at every sound and her restless eye turning an asking glance at every opening of the door every movement a spirit and then the sweet contentment over her face when he oh my honoured husband all my woman s nature for her not for any present evil but for what may having commended this subject to thy better wisdom i will leave caring for it to speak to thee of others of thy household your three little girls are and as to the baby you will not be ashamed to own him though you will not recognise in the boy that plays bo peep and quite over the room the little creature who hope had scarcely opened his eyes on the world when you went away he is by far the largest child i ever had and the most knowing he has cut his front upper teeth and signs of two more he is fond of and his hands with joy whenever he sees him indeed the boy is a favourite with all the young on s and me by continually them he is far from his sister gay and giving scarcely one thought to the past and not one care to the future his sister often him apart to discourse with him and sometimes doth produce a cast of seriousness over his countenance but at the next presented object it as speedily as a shadow before a he hath commended himself greatly to the favour of dame by his devotion to her little favourite a spoiled child is she and it a pity that the name of faith was given to her since her shrinking timid ter doth not promise in any manner to resemble that most potent of the christian graces hath always some charm to her he home the treasures of the woods to please her and wild flowers and the beautiful of birds that are brought down by his aim hath much advantage from the wood craft of the two boys daily our table which in hath need of such helps with the spoils of the air and water i am grieved to tell thee that some hath crept m among thy servants in thy absence alas b what are sheep without their shepherd is as ever faithful not with eye service but hath much with some evil who have been the law of god and the law of our land by meeting together in merry co playing cards dancing and the like for these they were brought before mr and to receive each twenty well laid on having been overtaken with drink was condemned to wear suspended around his neck for one month a bit of wood on which is written and who is ever a having gone last saturday with the cart to the village about there and did not set out on his return till the sun was quite down both to the eye and by the accordingly early on uie following monday he was summon before mr and ordered to ten but by reason of his youth and my which being by a private letter doubtless had some effect the punishment was he heartily promised and a better carriage there hath been some alarm here within the last few days on account of certain indians who have been seen lurking in the woods around | 6 |
us they are reported not to have a friendly appearance we have been advised to remove for the present to the fort but as i feel no apprehension i shall not my family by taking a step that would more of fear than prudence i say i fed no hope on yet i must confess it i have a cowardly spirit and fear is set in motion by the very mention of danger there are vague about me and i cannot drive them away even by the thought that your presence my honoured husband will soon relieve me fix m all apprehensions and repair all the faults of my poor judgment fearful thoughts press on me accidents have prolonged thy absence our may yet be far distant and if it never chance in this world oh remember that if i have fallen far short in duty the measure of my love hath been full i have ever known that mine was s portion that i was not the chosen and the loved one and this has sometimes made me fearful often but remember it is only the perfect love of the husband that out the fear of the wife i have one request to prefer to thee which i have lacked courage to make by word of mouth and therefore now commend it by letter to thy kindness be gracious unto me my dear husband and deem rot that i the modest bound of a woman s right in with that which is thy the ordering of our eldest son s education here hath few except spiritual privileges god who my heart i do not these the of the wilderness yet to them might be added worldly helps to aid the growth of the boy s noble gifts a kind providence having opened a wide door in the generous offer of my brother true he hath not attained to our light whereby manifold errors of church and state are made visible yet he hath ever borne himself and to us most lovingly and as i remember there was a good and a faithful i think we are permitted to the bounds of our charity to those who work not of our communion thou hast already sown the good seed in our boy s heart and it hath been i say it not with a mother s tears and prayers trust then to the promised blessing and fear not to permit him to pass a few years in england whence he will return to be a crown of glory to thee my husband and a blessing and honour to our chosen country i know is not in a wife it is the instrument of weakness whereby like the mouse in the fable she would away what she cannot break i will not therefore urge thee farther but leave the decision to thy wisdom and thy love and now my dear husband i kiss and embrace thee and may god company with thee and restore thee if it be his good pleasure to thy ever faithful and loving and obedient wife t her honoured husband these be delivered the letter may indicate but it feebly expresses the character and state of mind of the writer she never her love by words but expressed it by that self self sacrificing con hope to her husband and children in all ages and circumstances faithful and de she was too generous to communicate all her fears about which a woman is generally least reserved to her husband some of the preceding day had given her just cause of alarm at a short distance from the name that mr had given ns residence there lived an old indian woman one of the few of a tribe who had been faithful of the after the destruction of her people she had strayed up the banks of the con and remained in she was in the habit of supplying mrs with wild and and receiving in return and on that day went thither as it appeared on her customary errand she had made her usual and had drawn her blanket around her as if to depart but still she lingered standing before mrs and looking at her mrs did not at first observe her her head was bent over her infant sleeping on her lap in the attitude of listening to its soft breathing as she its innocent face a mother s beautiful visions floated before her but as she raised her eye and met the piercing glance of the old woman a dark cloud came over the clear heaven of her thoughts s brow was contracted her lips drawn in and her little sunken eye gleamed like a diamond from its dark recess why do you look at my baby thus v asked mrs v the old woman replied in her own dialect in a hurried inarticulate what says she asked mrs of the indian girl who stood beside her and seemed to listen with unwonted interest she says madam the baby is like a flower just opened to the sun with no stain upon it that he r pass now to the great spirit she says world is all a rough place all sharp stones and deep waters and black clouds oh she is old and the days have come to her that have no pleasure in them look there she said at my son the boy was at the moment passing the window flushed with exercise and triumphantly displaying a string of game that he had just brought from the is there not sunshine in my boy s face to him every day is bright and every path is smooth ah replied the old woman with a heavy groan i had sons too and but where are they they trod the earth as lightly as that boy but they have fallen like our forest trees before the stroke of the | 6 |
english axe of all my race there is not one now in whose veins my blood runs sometimes when the spirits of the storm are howling about my i hear the voices of my children crying for vengeance and then i could myself deal the death blow spoke with vehemence and wild gestures and her language though interpreted by s soft voice had little tendency to the feeling her manner inspired mr vol l e hope from her and instinctively drew her baby closer to her breast nay said the old woman fear me not i have had kindness from thee thy blankets have me i have been fed from thy table and drank of thy cup and what is this arm and she threw back her blanket and stretched out her naked trembling arm what is this to do the work of ven she paused for an instant glanced her eye wildly around the room and then again fixed it on mrs and her infant they spared not our homes she said there where our old men spoke where was heard the song of the maiden and the laugh of our children there now all is silence dust and ashes i can neither harm thee nor help thee when the stream of vengeance rolls over the land the tender shoot must be broken and the goodly tree that gave its pleasant shade and fruits to all it is a shame and a sin said who the room just as was conveying s speech to mrs a crying shame for this heathen to be pouring forth here as if she were gifted like the of old she that can t see into the future by reading the devil s book and if that be the case as more than one has it were best forthwith to deliver her to the judges and cast her into prison peace said mrs alarmed less should hear her and her which hope were then at an exalted pitch should be wrought to but her apprehensions were the old woman saw nothing but the visions of her imagination heard but the fancied of the spirits of her race she continued for a few moments to utter her thoughts in low articulate murmurs and then without again addressing mrs or her eyes she left the house a few moments after h departure mrs perceived that she had dropped at her feet a little roll which she foimd on examination to be an row and the rattle of a enveloped in a skin of the same she knew it was the custom of the savages to express much meaning by these and she turned to demand an nation of who was deeply skilled in all the ways of her people had disappeared and who bad ever looked on the poor girl with a jealous and an evil eye took this occasion to give vent to her feelings it is a pity she said the child is out of the way the first time she was like to do a she may be skilled in snake s and bloody arrows for i make no doubt she is as used to them as i am to my and will you call to me said mrs in a voice that from her would h ve been a reproof to a more ear than s but she no ways replied ah that will i madam if i can find her but where to look s for her no mere mortal can tell for she does not stay longer on a perch than a butterfly unless indeed it be when she is working on mr or filling his ears with wild about those indians ah there she is she exclaimed looking through the window talking with just a little way into the wood there i see their heads above those oaks see their wild mo tions see starts homeward now the old woman her back now she seems the old shakes her bead covers her eyes what can all this mean no good i am sure the girl is ever going to ma s hut and of moonlight nights too when they say work their will birds of a feather flock together well i know one thing that if master was i would sooner in faith cast him into the lion s den or the fiery furnace than leave him to this offspring of a race that are the children and of the evil one said mrs thy tongue far thy discretion restrain thy foolish thoughts and bid come to me sullenly obeyed and soon after entered mrs was struck with her changed aspect she turned away as one conscious of possessing a secret and fearful that the eye will speak her air was troubled and anxious and instead of her usual light and lofty step she moved timidly and come to me said mis x hope and deal truly by me as i hare ever dealt by thee she obeyed and as she stood by mrs the poor girl s tears dropped on her benefactor s lap v thou hast been more than true she said thou hast been kind to me as the mother bird that the wanderer in her nest then if it me to know it thou wilt explain the meaning of this roll which dropped at my feet the girl started and became very pale to an observing eye the changes of the olive skin are as apparent as those of a fairer complexion she took the roll from mrs and shut her eyes fast her bosom heaved but after a short struggle with conflicting feelings she said deliberately in a low voice that which i may speak without bringing down on me the curse of my father s race i will speak this she added the snake s skin this the unseen and silent approach of an enemy this you know | 6 |
and she held up the rattle is the warning voice that of danger near and this she concluded taking the arrow in her trembling hand this is the symbol of death and why are these tokens given to me dost thou know girl aught of a of an foe i have s that i may say she replied mrs questioned farther but could obtain no satisfaction s lips were sealed and e hope it was certain that if her resolution did not yield to the entreaties of her own heart it would resist every other influence mrs summoned ev and bade him urge to disclose whatever had communicated he did so but for he said the old woman was cracked and s head was turned if there were indeed danger he and was of it think you mother she would permit us to remain in ignorance he turned an appealing glance to but her face was averted without suspecting this was he continued you ought to do penance for the alarm you have given mother you and i will act as her to night assented and appeared relieved by the proportion though her gloom was not ed by mrs did not of course in this arrangement but she deemed it prudent to communicate her apprehensions to her after a short consultation it was agreed that should remain on guard during the night and that the two other men should have their in order and be ready at a moment s warning such precautions were not and caused no excitement in the household mrs had it as she expressed borne in npon her mind after the evening exercise to make some remarks upon the uncertainty of life she then dismissed the family to their d apartments and herself retired to the given above observed closely through the evening and he was convinced from the abstraction of her manner and from the efforts she made which were now apparent to him to maintain a calm that there was more ground for his mother s apprehensions than he at first supposed he determined to be the companion of s watch and standing high in that good fellow s confidence he made a private arrangement with him which he effected without his mother s knowledge for his youthful zeal did not render him regardless of the of her fears y hope chapter iv it would haye been happy if they had converted before they had killed any robinson the house at had both in front and in rear a or as it was more and therefore more named a shed that in the rear was a sort of to the kitchen and one end of it was enclosed for the purpose of a bedroom and occupied by found sitting at the other extremity of this his portion was chosen the moon was high and the heavens clear and there concealed and sheltered by the shadow of the roof he could without being seen command the whole extent of cleared ground that bordered on the forest whence the foe would come if he came at all like a good knight had carefully his arms and just taken his position beside when they heard s window cautiously opened and saw her spring through it would have spoken to her but made a signal of silence and she without observing them hastened with a quick and light step towards the wood and entered it taking the path that led to s hut confound her exclaimed she is in a plot with the old woman hope no no on my life she is not some mischief some mischief said king his head they are a treacherous let s follow her no we had best keep dear of the wood do you call after her she will to you hesitated speak quickly mr urged she will be beyond the reach of your voice it is no light matter that could take her to s hut at this time of the night she has good reason for going i am sure of it and i will not call her back reason muttered reason is but a jack o lantern light in most people minds you trust fa too far mr but e she is returning see how she looks all around her like a frightened bird that hears an enemy in every rustling leaf stand close observe her see she lays her ear to the earth it is their way of listen ing there she is gone again he exclaimed as darted away into the wood it is past doubt she holds communication with some one god send us a safe i had rather meet a of than a company of these they are a kind of beast we don t comprehend out of the range of god s creatures neither angel man nor yet quite devil i would have sent to the fort for a guard to night but i liked not being driven hither and yon by that old s tokens nor yet quite to take counsel from your good mother s fears she being but a woman i thi you have caught the fear without hope taking its counsel said which does little credit to your wisdom the only use of fear being to against danger that is true mr but don t think i am afraid it is one thing to know what danger is and wish to it and another thing to feel like you fear naught lads that have never felt a of pain and have scarce a sense of your own you would be the at an attack mr and i should stand a siege best a boy s courage is a keen weapon that wants temper apt to break at the first stroke from the enemy you mean nodded assent well i should like at any rate to prove it added time enough this half dozen | 6 |
years yet my young master i should be to see that fair skin of stained with blood and besides you have yet to get a little more worldly prudence than to trust a young indian girl just because she takes fancy and why does she take my fancy because she is true and noble minded i am certain that if she knows of any danger approaching us she is seeking to it i don t know that mr she ll be first true to her own people the old proverb holds fast with savages as well as with the rest of the world won t pick out eyes like to like throughout all nature i grant you she hath truly a fair hope all that s foul is our own suspicion is it not not exactly there s some mystery between and the old woman and we know these were above all the indian tribes their cunning and what is superior cunning among savages but superior sense you may out talk me mr replied with the impatience that a man feels when he is sure he is right without being able to make it appear you may out talk me but you will never convince me was not i in the i ought to know i think yes and i think you have told me they showed more resolution than cunning there in particular that the brother of whom she so to this day fought like a young lion yes he did poor dog and he was afterward cruelly cut off and it is this that makes me think they will take some terrible revenge for his death i often hear talking to of her brother and i think it is to stir his spirit but this boy is no more like to him than a to a nothing said had any tendency to s confidence in the subject of the war once started and were in no danger of sleeping at their post loved as well as another man and particularly those who have had brief military ex hope to his battles o er again s d was at an age to listen with delight to tales of ad venture and danger they thus wore away the time till the of both and listener at that pitch when every shadow is and every passing sound bears voice to the quickened sense hark said did you not hear footsteps i hear them now replied they seem not very near is it not returning no there is more than one and it is the heavy though cautious tread of men ha them the old house dog now sprang from his rest on a mat at the door stone and gave one of those loud inquiring by which this animal first the approach of a strange footstep hush hush cried and the dog obeyed his instinct seemed satisfied to submit to his master s voice and crept lazily back to his place of repose you have hushed and the footsteps too said but it is well perhaps if there really is an enemy near that he should know we are on guard if there really is said who terrific as the apprehended danger felt the irrepressible thirst of youth of adventure do you think we could both have been deceived nothing easier mr than to deceive senses on the watch for alarm we heard some thing but it might have been the wolves that even now about the very clearing here at night ha he exclaimed there they are and starting forward he his et towards the wood you are said striking down s with the butt end of his own it is at that moment emerged from the wood appeared confounded could i have been so deceived he said could it have been her shadow i thought i saw an indian beyond that tree you see the white bark well just beyond in the shade it could not have been her shadow for you see there are trees between the and that place and yet how should he have vanished without motion or sound our senses deceive us said s own argument in this moonlight they do but my senses have been well in their time and should have learned to know a man from a woman and a shadow from a substance had not a very strong conviction of the actual presence of an enemy as was evident from his giving no alarm to his in the house and he believed that if there were hostile indians about them they were few in number still he deemed it prudent to in their measures i will remain here he said mr and do you follow what you can from her depend oh there s something vol l f wrong why should she have turned away on seeing us and did you not observe her hide something beneath her mantle to s proposition not with the expectation of his suspicions but in the hope that would show they were he followed her to the fix nt of the house to which she seemed involuntarily to have bent her steps on perceiving him you have taken the most difficult part of our duty on yourself he said on coming up to her you have acted as while i have been quiet at my post perhaps did not understand him at any rate she made no reply have you i et an enemy in your and i fancied that we both heard and saw the foe when and where exclaimed in a hurried alarmed tone not many minutes since and just at the very edge of the wood what when raised his gun i thought that had been in sport to me no sporting does not suit our present case my mother and her little ones are in peril and is a faithful servant faithful echoed as if there were more in expression | 6 |
than met the ear he surely may walk straight who hath nothing to draw him aside hath but one path and that is plain before bim but one voice from his heart and why should he not obey it the girl s voice faltered as she spoke and as she concluded she burst into tears had never before witnessed this expression of feeling from her she had an habitual self command that hid the emotions of her heart from common and veiled them even from those who most narrowly watched her s confidence in had not been in the least degree weakened by all the appearances against her he did not mean to imply suspicion by his of but merely to throw out a leading observation which she i follow if she would he felt reproached and touched by her distress but struck by the which as he thought her language afforded to the mystery of her conduct and confident that she would in no way aid or any mischief that her own people might be against them he followed the natural bent of his generous temper and assured her again and again of his entire trust in her this seemed rather to than her distress she threw herself on the ground drew her mantle over her face and wept he found he could not the storm he had raised and he seated himself beside her after a little while either exhausted by the violence of her emotion or comforted by s silent sympathy she became composed and raised her face from her mantle and as she did so something fell from beneath its folds she hastily recovered and replaced it but not till had ed it was an eagle s feather he knew this was the of her tribe and he had heard her say that a from the wing of the monarch bird was her father s crest a suspicion flashed through his mind and was conveyed to s by one bright glance of inquiry she said nothing but her look was rather sorrowful than confused and anxious to believe what he wished to be true came after a little consideration to the conclusion that the feather had been dropped in her path by a passing bird he did not her motive in concealing it he could not think her capable of evil and anxious to from her mind the distrust his countenance might have expressed this beautiful moon and her train of stars he said look as if they were keeping their watch over our dwelling there are those who believe the stars have a mysterious influence on human destiny i know nothing of the grounds of their faith and my imagination is none of the brightest but i can almost fancy they are stationed there as guardian angels and i feel quite sure that nothing evil can walk abroad in their light they do look peaceful she replied mournfully but ah man is ever breaking the peace of nature it was such a night as this so bright and still when your english came upon our quiet homes you have never spoken to me of that night no for our hands have taken hold of hope the chain of friendship i feared to break it by speaking of the wrongs your people did to mine you need not it i can honour noble deeds though done by our enemies and see that cruelty is cruelty though inflicted by our friends then listen to me and when the hour of ven comes if it should come remember it was provoked she paused for a few moments sighed deeply and then began the recital of the last acts in the tragedy of her people the principal circumstances of which are detailed in the of the times by the witnesses of the bloody scenes you know she said our fortress homes were on the level summit of a hill thence we could see as far as the eye could stretch our hunting grounds and our gardens which lay beneath us on the borders of a stream that glided around our hill and so near to it that in the still nights we could hear its gentle voice our fort and were with a formed of young trees and branches and sharply pointed no enemy s foot had ever approached this nest which the of the tribe had built for their mates and their and my father were both away on that dreadful night they had called a council of our chiefs and old men our young men had been out in their and when they returned they had danced and and were now in deep sleep my mother was in her hut her children not sleeping for my brother had lingered b ind his com f hope and had not yet returned from the the warning spirit that ever keeps its station at a mother s pillow whispered that some evil was near and my mother bidding me lie still with the little ones went forth in quest of my brother all the servants of the great spirit spoke to my mother s ear and eye of danger and death the moon as she sunk behind the hills appeared a ball of fire strange lights darted through the air to my mother s eye they seemed fiery arrows to her ear the air was filled with death sighs she had passed the and was descending the hill when she met old do you know aught of my boy v she asked your boy is safe and sleeps with his companions he returned by the that way can only be trodden by the strong and my boy is safe said my mother then tell me for thou art wise and see quite through the dark future tell me what evil is coming to our tribe v she then described the she had seen i know not said of late | 6 |
darkness hath spread over my soul and all is black there as before these eyes that the arrows of death have pierced but tell me what see you now in the fields of heaven oh now said my mother i see nothing but the blue depths and the watching stars the spirits of the air have ceased their moaning and steal over my cheek like an in nt s breath the water hope are rising and will soon spread their soft around the nest of our tribe the boy sleeps safely muttered the old man and i have listened to the idle fear of a mother i come not of a fearful race said my mother nay that i did not mean replied but the watching her young is fearful as a the night was far spent and my mother bade him go home with her for our have ever a mat in the of their chief nay he said the day is near and i am always abroad at the rising of the sun it seemed that the first warm touch of the sun opened the eye of the old man s soul and he saw again the flushed hills and the shaded valleys the sparkling waters the green and the gray old rocks of our home they were just passing the little gate of the when the old man s dog sprang from him with a fearful bark a rushing sound was heard the english the english cried my mother joined her voice to his and in an instant the cry of alarm spread through the the enemy were indeed upon us they had surrounded the and opened their fire was it so sudden did they so rush on sleeping women and children asked who was unconsciously all his interest to the party of the even so they were guided to us by the traitor see note at the end of the second i hope he from whose bloody hand my mother had the captive english maidens he who had eaten from my father s dish and slept on his mat they were by the cowardly h who shrunk from the sight of our tribe who were pale as white men at the thought of j and so feared him that when his name was spoken they were like an bow and they said he is all one god no man can kill him these cowardly waited for the prey they dared not attack then said as i have heard our people had all the honour of the fight honour was it ye shall hear our warriors rushed forth to meet the foe they surrounded the huts of their mothers wives sisters children they fought as if each man had a hundred lives and would give each and all to redeem th ir homes oh the dreadful even now rings in my ears those fearful guns that we had never heard before the shouts of your people our own battle yell the piteous cries of the little children the groans of our and oh worse worse than all the silence of those that could not speak the english fell back they were driven to the some beyond it when their les gave the cry to fire our huts and led the way to my mother s the noble boy defended the entrance like a at bay till they struck him down prostrate and bleeding he again b nt his bow and had taken deadly aim at the english leader when a blow severed his r then was taken from our stone where the english had been so often warmed and cherished the brand to our dwellings they were covered with and burned like dried straw the enemy retreated without the in vain did our warriors fight for a path in which we might escape from the fire they were beaten back y the fire gained on us the pressed on the english howling like wolves for their prey some of our people threw themselves into the midst of the flames and their courageous souls parted with one shout of triumph others mounted the but they were shot and dropped like a flock of birds smitten by the hunter s arrows thus did the strangers destroy in our own homes hundreds of our tribe and how did you escape in that dreadful hour you were not then taken prisoners no there was a rock at one extremity of our hut and beneath it a into which my mother crept with myself and the two little ones that afterward perished our simple were soon consumed we heard the foe retiring and when the last sound had died away we came forth to a sight that made us lament to be among the living the sun was scarce an hour from his rising and yet in this brief space our homes had vanished the bodies of our people were strewn about the ruin and all around the lay the strong and warriors cold silent powerless as the clay hope paused she was overcome with the recollection of this scene of desolation she looked upward with an intent gaze as if she held communion with an invisible being spirit of my mother burst from her lips oh that i could thee to that blessed land where i should no more dread the war cry nor the death knife dashed the gathering tears from his eyes and proceeded in her narrative while we all stood silent and motionless we heard footsteps and cheerful voices they came from my father and and their band returning from the friendly council they approached on the side of the hill that was covered with a thicket of oaks and their ruined homes at once burst upon their view oh i what horrid sounds then on the air shouts of wailing and cries for vengeance every eye was turned with suspicion and hatred on | 6 |
the counsel of old men and old women v said in the bitterness of his spirit when women put down their thoughts and counsel like men they should be obeyed said my father follow me warriors they burst through the we saw nothing more but we heard the shout from the foe as they issued from wood the momentary fierce encounter and the cry they escaped then it was that my mother who had listened with breathless silence threw herself down on the stones j and laying her hot cheek to mine h my children my children she said would that i could die for you but fear not death the blood of a hundred that never knew fear in your veins hark t the enemy comes nearer and hope nearer now lift up your heads my children and show them that even the weak ones of our tribe are strong in soul we rose from the ground all about sat women and children in family clusters awaiting unmoved their fate the english had penetrated the were already on the little rising ground where we had been death was dealt freely none resisted not a movement was made not a voice lifted not a sound escaped save the of the dying children one of your soldiers knew my mother and a command was given that her life and that of her children should he spared a guard was stationed round us you know that after our tribe was thus cut off we were taken with a few other to boston some were sent to the islands of the sun to bend their free limbs to bondage like your beasts of burden there ate among your people those who have not put out the light of the great spirit can remember a kindness done by an and when it was known to your that the wife of once the protector and friend of your people was a prisoner they treated her with honour and gentleness but her people were extinguished her husband driven to distant forests forced on earth to the misery of wicked souls to wander without a home her children were and her heart was broken you know the hope this war so fatal to the had the preceding it was an important event to the infant colonies and its magnitude probably somewhat heightened to the of the english by the terror this resolute tribe had inspired au the circumstances attending it were still fresh in men s minds and had heard them detailed with the interest and that belongs to recent adventures but he had heard them in the language of the enemies and of the pe and from m s lips they took a new form and hue she seemed to him to nature s best gifts and her feelings to be the inspiration of heaven this new version of an old story reminded him of the man and the lion in the ble but here it was not merely changing to give the advantage to one or the of the artist s subjects but it putting the into the hands of truth and giving it to whom it belonged he had heard this destruction of the original of the soil described as we find it in the history of the times where we are told the number destroyed was about four hundred and it was a fearful sight to see them thus in the fire and the streams of blood the same and the horrible scent thereof but the victory seemed a sweet j sacrifice and they gave the praise thereof to god in the relations of their enemies the courage of the was distorted into ferocity and their fortitude in their last extremity thus set forth many were killed in the swamp like sullen dogs that hope u would in their and madness sit still to be shot or cut in pieces than receive their lives for asking at the hands of those into power they had now fallen imagination touched by the of feeling presented a very different picture of those families of savages pent in the recesses of their native forests and there not by superior natural force but by the circumstances of arms skill and knowledge from that offered by those who then living and worthy of did affirm that in the morning entering into the swamp they saw several heaps of them the sitting close together upon whom they discharged their pieces laden with ten or twelve at a time putting the of their pieces under the boughs within a few yards of them did not fail to express to with all the eloquence of a heated imagination his sympathy and admiration of her heroic and suffering people she listened with a mournful pleasure as one to the praise of a departed friend both seemed to have forgotten the purpose of their which they had kept without apprehension or when they were roused from their romantic abstraction by s voice now to your beds children he said the family is stirring and the day is at hand see the morning star hanging just over those trees like a single in all the wide as you have not to look in a prayer book for it master don t forget to g i hope thank the lord for keeping ms safe as your mother god bless her would say through the night watches stop one moment added lowering his voice to a he rose to follow j did she j tell your tell me what v what heaven s mercy what the boy why did she tell you what brought her out to night did she explain all the mysterious actions we have seen are you crazy did not you ask her v hesitated fortunately for him the light was too dim to e to s eye the that betrayed his consciousness | 6 |
that he had forgotten his duty did not tell me he said but i am sure that that she can do no wrong hey master well that may be very satisfactory to you but it does not content me i like not her secret ways it s bad wai that needs a dark store had tried the force of his own convictions on and knew it to be therefore having no reply to make he very retreated without attempting any crept to her bed but not to neither watching nor weariness procured sleep for her her mind was with apprehensions and conflicting the rack to an honourable mind had communicated to her the day the fact which she had darkly intimated to mrs that with one or two hope was lurking in the forest and watching an opportunity to make an attack on how far his purpose extended whether simply to the recovery of his children or to the destruction of the family she knew not the latter was most probable for hostile indians always left blood on their trail in reply to s eager inquiries said she had again and again assured her father of the kind treatment his children had received at the hands of mrs but he seemed scarcely to hear what she said and left her telling her that she would not again see him till his work was done s first impulse h ad been to reveal all to mrs but by doing this she would her father s life her natural her strong affections her pride were all on the of her people but she shrunk as if her wn hfe were from the blow that was about to fall on her friends she would have done or suffered anything to it anything but betray her father the hope of meeting him explains all that seemed mysterious to she did go to ma s hut but all was quiet there in returning she found an eagle s feather in the path she believed it must have just been dropped there by her father and this circumstance determined her to remain watching through the night that if her father should appear she might his vengeance she did not doubt that had really seen and heard him and that her father would not hope le shrink from a single armed man she hoped hope that his sole object was to recover his children hoped against hope we say for her reason told her that if that were his only purpose it might easily have been accomplished hy the of had said truly to that her father s nature had been changed by the wrongs he had received when the were proud and prosperous he was more noted for his humane virtues than his warlike spirit the of his tribe was acknowledged and it seemed to be bis noble nature as it is sometimes the instinct of the most powerful animals to protect and defend rather than attack and the ambitious spirit of his brother had ever to dominion over the allied tribes and immediately after the appearance of the english the same temper was manifest in a jealousy of their he employed all his art and influence and authority to unite the tribes for the of the dangerous on the contrary averse to all hostility and no danger from them was the advocate of an hospitable reception and pacific conduct this difference of feeling between the two may account for the apparent treachery of the who as the influence of one or the other prevailed received the english with favour and hospitality or their of friendship inflicted on them and death the stories of the of stone and are familiar to every reader of our early annals and the anecdote of the two english girls captured at and protected and restored to their friends by the wife of already been illustrated by a sister and is precious to all those who would late that the of ood is never quite from the souls of his creatures and that in their darkest ignorance and deepest degradation there are still to be found traits of mercy and benevolence these will be gathered land in the memory with that fond feeling with which park describes himself to have and cherished in his bosom the single flower that in his melancholy track over the african desert the of a savage race is the of the honour of his tribe and their defeat is a disgrace to him that can only be by the blood of his it is a common case with the unfortunate to be compelled to endure the reproach of inevitable and was often reminded by the remnant of his tribe in the bitterness of their spirit of his former kindness to the english this reproach sharpened too keenly the edge of his he bad seen his people or driven from their homes and hunting grounds into shameful exile his wife had died in and his children lived in in the house of his enemies hope perished by treachery and alone remained to endure this accumulated misery in this extremity he determined on the rescue of his children and the of some signal deed of by which he hoped to revive the spirit of the natives and himself as the head of his broken and dispersed people in his most sanguine moments he meditated a combination and unity that should eventually the chapter v there have been sweet voices in your walks that now are still there are seats left void in your earthly homes which none again may fill rose from her sleepless pillow to join the family at prayers her mind distracted with op fears which her face the mirror of her soul too truly reflected mrs observed her narrowly and confirmed in her by the girl s apprehensive countenance and still farther by s report of her behaviour during the night she | 6 |
resolved to despatch him to mr for his advice and as trance touching her removal to the fort or the appointment of a guard for her servant who kept his alarm to himself knowing as he said that a woman s fears were always ahead of danger applauded her decision and was on the point of proceeding to act upon it when a messenger arrived with the joyful tidings that mr was within a few hours ride of and the intelligence no less joyful to dame that with his luggage already arrived at the village was a small box of which she had ordered from london v n mrs feeling as good wives do a sense of safety from the of her husband bade any new arrangement till he had the benefit of his master s counsel the whole house was thrown into the commotion so common in a retired family when an arrival is about to interrupt the current of life whatever and superior happiness some others might have felt no individual made such bustling as mrs it was difficult to say which excited her most the anticipation of seeing her niece hope or of the box of immediately after dinner two of the men i were despatched to the village to transport their master s luggage they had hardly gone when mrs recollected that her box contained a present for madam which it would be a thousand to have brought to and lie there perhaps a week before it would be sent to her and she would like of all things if mrs saw no objection to have the pony and ride to the village herself where the present could be made forthwith mrs was too happy to throw a shadow across any one s path and wearied too perhaps with mrs s for the good dame had all day been wondering whether her confidential agent had matched her orange satin how she had trimmed her cap c c she ordered a horse to be and brought to the the animal pro ted a little and mrs not helps le lie m became alarmed and begged that might be allowed to attend her s cleverness was felt by all the household and his talents were always in for the miscellaneous wants of the family but like good servants in every age was aware of his importance and was not more than a domestic of the present day to be worked like a machine he muttered something of old women making fools of themselves with new top knots and saying aloud that mistress knew it was his master s order that all the men servants should not be away from the place at the same time he was turning off when mrs who was standing at the door observing him requested him with more authority than was usual in her manner to with mrs s request i would not wish said still hesitating to mrs if it were a matter of life and death he added lowering his voice but to get more for the old lady when with what she has already she makes such a fool of her self that our young master and out our old hen with s feathers and and then call her dame in a hush said mrs it ill you to laugh at in the boys they shall be corrected and do you learn to treat your master s friend with respect come come screamed mrs vol i h shall i go and break my master s orders v ask ed still bent on having his own way for this once you shall answered mrs and if you need any apology to your master i shall not fail to make it but if anything should happen to you mistress nothing will happen my good is b t your master at hand and an hour or two will be the extent of your absence so get thee along with out more could not resist any farther the authority of his gentle mistress and he walked by the side of mrs s pony with slow unwilling steps all was joy in mrs s dwelling my r mother said it is now quite time to look out for father and hope i have turned the hour glass three times since dinner and counted all the sands i think let us all go on the front where we can catch the first glimpse of them as they come past the elm trees here he continued as he saw assent in his mother s smile help me out with mother s rocking chair rather it rocking he added as he adjusted the with the logs that served for the j but mother won t mind trifles just now ah bless ed baby brother he continued taking in his arms the beautiful infant you shall come too even though you cheat me out of my and get the first kiss from father thus saying he placed the laughing infant in his go cart beside his mother he then hope aided his little in their arrangement of the they had brought forth to welcome and astonish hope and finally he made an elevated position for faith where she might he said as she ought catch the very first glimpse of her sister thank thank you said the little girl as she mounted her if you knew hope yoa would want to see her first too everybody loves hope we shall always have pleasant times when hope gets here it was one of the most beautiful at the close of the month of may the spring had at last come forth in all her power her work of gladness was finished and forests fields and meadows were bright with life the full swept triumphantly on as if still in its release from the of winter every had the spring note of joy the meadows were | 6 |
the first time enriched with patches of english grain which the new had sown by way of experiment occupying the greatest portion of their rich mould with the native indian corn this product of our soil is beautiful in all its progress from the moment when as now it studded the meadow with shooting its spear firom its mother earth to its maturity when the long golden ear bursts firom the leaf the grounds about mrs s house had been prepared the neatness of english taste and a rich bed of that the hope before the already rewarded the industry of the over this delicate carpet the domestic fowls the first civilized inhabitants of the country of their tribe were now treading picking their food here and there like dainty little the scene had also its the birds those ministers and of nature were on the wing filling the air with melody while like little they forest and field for materials for their housekeeping a mother encircled by sporting children is always a beautiful spectacle a spectacle that appeals to nature in every human breast mrs in obedience to matrimonial duty or it may be from some lingering of female vanity had on this occasion dressed herself with extraordinary care what woman does not wish to look handsome in the eyes of her husband mother said putting aside the exquisitely fine lace that shaded her cheek i do not believe you looked more beautiful than you do to day when as i have heard they called you the rose of the wilderness our little mary s cheek is as round and as bright as a but it is not so handsome as yours mother your heart has sent this colour here he continued kissing her tenderly it seems to have come forth to tell us that our father is near it would shame me replied his mother embracing him with a feeling that the drawing room might have envied to take such flattery from any but thine hope oh do not call it flattery mother look for heaven s sake cheer up look would you know mother s eye just turn it mother one minute from that road and her pale cheek too with this rich colour alas alas replied glancing her eye at mrs and then as if heart struck withdrawing them how soon the flush of the setting sun away oh said impatiently why are you sa l your voice is too sweet for a bird of ill omen i shall begin to think as says though is no text book for me i shall begin to think old has really you you call me a bird of ill omen replied half proud half sorrowful and you call the owl a bird of ill omen but we hold him sacred he is our and when danger is near he cries awake awake you are positively unkind s on a would not be more out of time than your is now the very skies earth and air seem to partake our joy at my father s return and you only make a discord do you think if your father was near i would not share your joy tears fell fast from s eye but she made no reply and mrs observing and her emotion and it probably arose firom comparing her orphan state to that of the h hope ry children about her called her and said you are neither a stranger nor a servant will you not share our joy do you not love us love you she clasping her hands j love you i would give my life for you we do not ask your life my good girl replied mrs kindly smiling on her but a light heart and a cheerful look a sad countenance doth not become this joyful hour go and help he is quite out of breath blowing those soap for the children smiled and shook his head and continued to send off one after another of the and as they rose and floated on the air and bright with the many coloured ray the little girls clapped their hands and the baby stretched his to grasp the brilliant oh said covering her eyes i do not like to see anything so beautiful pass so quickly away scarcely had she uttered these words when suddenly as if the earth had opened on them three indian warriors darted from the forest and on the air their horrible my father my father burst from the lips of and faith sprang towards the indian boy and clung fast to him and the children clustered about their mother she instinctively infant and held it close within her arms as if their ineffectual shelter were a uttered a cry of agony and springing forward with her arms uplifted as if his approach she sunk down at her father s feet and clasping her hands save them save them she cried the mother the children oh they are all good take vengeance on your enemies but spare our friends our i when they are struck oh command them to stop she screamed looking to the companions of he who by her cries were pressing on to their deadly work was silent and motionless his eye glanced wildly from to replied to the glance of fire yes they have sheltered us they have spread the wing of love over us save them save them oh it will be too late she cried springing from her father whose silence and showed that if his better nature against the work of revenge there was no of purpose darted before the indian who was advancing towards mrs with an uplifted you shall me to pieces ere you touch her she said and planted herself as a shield before her the warrior s heart untouched by the of the helpless mother and her little ones was thrilled | 6 |
by the courage of the heroic girl he ed and grimly smiled on her when his companion crying hasten the dogs will be on us deadly blow at mrs but his uplifted arm was penetrated by a shot and the fell harmless to the floor hope f courage cried the pie but neither courage nor could avail the second indian sprang upon him threw him on the floor his from him and his over his head he would have aimed the fatal stroke when a cry from arrested his arm himself from his grasp and hope flashing into his mind he seized a horn which hung beside the door and it this was the conventional signal of alarm and he sent forth a blast long and loud a death cry mrs and her attendants were just mounting their horses to return home listened for a moment then exclaiming it comes from our master s dwelling ride for your life he tossed away a that him and his horse to its utmost speed the alarm was spread through the village and in a brief space mr with six armed men were pressing towards the fatal scene in the mean time the tragedy was proceeding at mrs s senses had been stunned with terror she had neither spoken nor moved after she grasped her infant gallant restored a momentary consciousness she screamed to him fly my son fly for your father s sake fly never he replied to his mother s the savages always rapid in their movements hope were now aware that their safety depended on despatch finish your work warriors cried obedient to the and by his bleeding wound the indian who on receiving the shot had staggered back and leaned against the wall now sprang forward and tore the infant from its mother s breast she shrieked and in that shriek passed the agony of death she wa unconscious that her son putting forth a strength beyond nature for a moment kept the indian at bay she neither saw felt the knife struck at her own she felt not the arms of her and as they met around her neck she fainted and fell to the floor dragging her impotent with her the savage in his struggle with had tossed the infant boy to the ground he fell quite on the turf at s feet there raising his head and looking up into the s face he probably perceived a gleam of mercy for with the quick instinct of infancy that with sagacity its appeal he clasped the naked leg of the savage with one arm and stretched the other towards him with a piteous that no words could have expressed s heart melted within him he stooped to raise the sweet when one of the fiercely seized him tossed him wildly around his head and dashed him on the door stone but the silent prayer perhaps the celestial inspiration of the innocent tore was not lost we have bad blood enough hope cried you have well me brothers then looking at who had in one corner of the clasping faith in his arms he commanded him to follow him with the child was torn from the lifeless bodies of his mother and and dragged into the forest uttered one cry of agony and despair as she looked for the last time on the bloody scene and then followed her father as they passed the boundary of the cleared ground tore from his english dress and casting it from him thus perish he said every mark of the of my children thou shalt return to our forests he continued a skin around him with the of thy people le us chapter vl it is but a shadow a a will pay for au had the disappeared and the sound of their footsteps died away when i and came in view of the dwelling ah said in his horse i thought all this ter was for nothing the blast a boy s a pretty piece of work we ve made of it you ll have mistress about your ears for tossing away her on all is as quiet here as a saturday night nothing to be seen but the smoke from the kitchen chimney and that s a pleasant sight to me for i went off without my dinner and it will now taste as as jacob s lent no attention to his companion s chat but pressed on his fears were but not removed as he approached ihe house he that the silence which pervaded it no good but the horrors of the reality far surpassed the worst suggestions of his vague apprehensions oh my mistress my mistress he screamed when the of death burst upon his sight my good and her girls and the baby too oh god have mercy on my master i and he bent over the bodies and wrung his hands not one not one spared yes one spoke a trembling voice which proved to be s who had just emerged from her hiding place covered with by the blessing of a kind providence i have been preserved for some wise end but she continued panting the fright has taken my breath away besides being squeezed as flat as a in the bedroom chimney stop for heaven s sake stop and tell me if you can if mr was here did not know she remembered having seen the family in general assembled just before she heard the yell of the savages how long inquired have they been gone how long since you heard the last sound that s more than mortal man or woman either in my case could tell mr do you think when a body seems to feel a knife in their heads they can reckon time no hours are minutes and minutes hours in such a case oh fool fool cried and turning disgusted away | 6 |
his eye fell on his thank the lord he exclaimed mr has poured one shot into the he alone knew where the gun was bless the boy bless him he has a strong arm and a stout soul bless him they have taken him off we ll after him bring my hunting look to your faith les e all gone be con his first amazement and thought after thought flashing the truth on his mind i remember last oh mr how the girl deceived you she knew it all ah so i thought said she knows everything evil that happens in e u th sea or air die and that mother witch i always told mrs she was warming a in her bosom poor dear lady but i suppose it was for wise she was left to her blindness are you ready asked ready yes i am ready but what is the use what are we two against a host and be des you know not how long they have been gone not very long said shuddering and pointing to blood that was drop by drop from the edge of the to the step how long the faithful fellow might have urged we know not for cowardice hath ever ready and abundant arguments and was not a man to be persuaded into danger but the arrival of mr and his men put an end to the debate mr was the faithful paternal guardian of his little colony he saw in this of violent death not only the present overwhelming misery of the family at but the fearful fate to which all were exposed who had their lives in the wilderness but he give but brief space to bitter reflections and the of nature instant care and service were necessary for the dead vol i i b hot e n the living the bodies of the mother and children were removed to one of the apartments and decently disposed and then after a fervent prayer a duty never omitted in any emergency by the whose faith in the minute sup of was practical he directed the necessary arrangements for the pursuit of the enemy little could be gathered from she was mainly occupied with her own remarkable preservation not doubting that had specially interposed to save the only life utterly insignificant in any eyes but her own she recollected to have heard exclaim my father at the first of the savages the necessary conclusion was that the party had been led by th chief it was obviously probable that he would return with his children and to the where it was well known he had found refuge of course the to take a direction was of opinion that the party was not numerous and ei they must be with their prisoners the one a child whom it would be necessary in a rapid flight to carry mr had sanguine expectations that they might be overtaken the obliged to avoid the cleared meadows had as mr believed take an path through the forest to the which in of their probable route they would of course cross as soon as they could with safety he selected five of his men whom he deemed for the expedition and it to them to be hope guided by the counsel of whose impatient zeal was apparent he directed them to take a direct course to the river he was to return to the village and despatch a boat to them with which they were to up the river in the hope of the passage of the indians the men departed led by to whose spirit every moment s delay had appeared unnecessary and fatal and mr was mounting his horse when he saw mr who had avoided the road through the village from the forest and come in full view of his dwelling mr called to yonder is your master he not come hither while this precious blood is on the old i shall take him to my house and assistance shall be sent to you in the mean time watch those bodies faithfully oh i can t stay here alone running after mr i would not stay for all the promised land back woman cried mr in a voice of thunder and retreated the danger of advancing appearing for the moment the greater of the two mr was attended by two indians who followed him bearing on a litter his favourite hope when they came within sight of they shouted the chorus of a native song hope inquired its meaning they told her and raising herself and tossing back the bright curls that shaded her eyes she clapped her hands and accompanied the english words the home the home the s home and mj home too is it not she said mr was touched with the joy with which this bright little creature who had left a palace in england hailed his rustic dwelling in the wilderness he turned on her a smile of delight he could not speak the sight of his home had opened the of his heart oh now she continued with animation i shall meet my but why does she not come to meet us where is your and the girls there is no one looking out for us the stillness of the place and the absence of all living objects struck mr with fearful apprehensions heightened by the sight of his friend who was coming at full gallop towards him to an accurate observer the effects of joy and sorrow on the human figure are easily misery and the body as it does the spirit remain here for a few moments said mr to his attendants and he put spurs to his horse and galloped forward put down the litter said hope to her i cannot stand stock still here in sight of the house where my sister is the indians knew | 6 |
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