J 
 
EASTFORD; 
 
 OR, 
 
 HOUSEHOLD SKETCHES. 
 
 BY 
 
 WESLEY BROOKE 
 
 However virtuous the present age, there may be still growing employment 
 for ridicule or reproof, for persuasion or satire. GOLDSMITH. 
 
 BOSTON: 
 CROCKER & BREWSTER, 
 
 17 WASHINGTON STKEET. 
 1855, 
 
Entered according to Act of Congress, in the year 1854, by 
 
 CROCKER & BREWSTER, 
 In the Clerk s Office of the District Court of the District of Massachusetts. 
 
 HOBART ft BOBBINS, 
 Kngliui l Tjpeand Stereotype Foundry, 
 BOSTON. 
 
ADVERTISEMENT. 
 
 COURTEOUS READER : This book is an offer to present some of 
 the manifestations of common New England life and character, 
 truly. Of course, its foundation is fact. Perhaps the work has 
 other objects also, which, I trust, you will find it not difficult 
 to discover. In certain of its extraordinary aspects ; in many 
 of its lower developments ; and, occasionally, through a highly 
 romantic medium, we have seen whatever is striking in our 
 generally somewhat homely character, admirably portrayed. 
 We may doubt, however, if much correct notion of the homo- 
 life of New England, at least that of another day, can be 
 derived from many of these excellent productions. Of one 
 thing be certain, there is no humbug in the whole course of 
 these pages. Whatever is valuable (if anything) about the 
 book, I trust, is intrinsically such. At all events, I am content 
 to leave this entirely to your taste and judgment. Nor, as I 
 believe, does the book contain, or countenance, a solitary " ism," 
 to beguile the easily-deluded public ; or any of those morbid 
 extravagances, which often leave behind them the bitter fruits of 
 disgust and contempt, and reflect their mischievous consequences 
 upon whatever is really sound and wholesome in literature. 
 
 M806905 
 
IV ADVERTISEMENT. 
 
 No ; if you liko humbug ; if you have a proclivity to cant, 
 in any of its diversified but convergent varieties ; if you are 
 given to devour works of a highly flashy and trashy description, 
 you will not like this book. In a word, if you do not honestly 
 value, admire and honor virtue and religion, and a very useful 
 but homely characteristic, formerly known as common-sense, 
 why, then, however much you may really need lessons on these 
 important subjects, this particular book cannot suit your 
 idiosyncrasies, and, perhaps, you had best lay it aside at once. 
 
 In fact, if these are your absolute tendencies, be sure, the 
 book is not written for you ; but rather to encourage and gratify 
 those who are of a different way of thinking and feeling. 
 
 W. B. 
 
CONTENTS. 
 
 INTRODUCTORY CHAPTER. 
 
 Characteristics of our own ago The age of "Twaddle," material, 
 mechanical and degenerate Conference Light, 7 
 
 CHAPTER I. 
 
 Mr. John Atherton Miss Poulter Deacon Makepeace A true pas 
 tor s life and conversation Old times Elder Holdfast " Stoves " 
 and"orgins" Eastford Gardens The Sea, 17 
 
 CHAPTER II. 
 
 Genealogy The Puritans Villiers Colonial conflicts and trials 
 Capt. Atherton Louisburg A Revolutionary clergyman Bunker- 
 Hill Col. Atherton Washington The farm-house Education 
 Rev. John Atherton "Old Standard " Marriage, 25 
 
 CHAPTER III. 
 
 Col. Athorton Horseback Xenophon Life at the farm Archery 
 " Old Trenton " A Yankee A scamper A spirited boy Col. 
 Atherton s opinion of the education of boys and girls, 35 
 
 CHAPTER IV. 
 
 " The Sea " English language Its superiority Superstition, . 44 
 
 CHAPTER V. 
 
 A storm Horseback in the morning A stranded vessel Difficulty, 
 danger, energy, success and rescue, 49 
 
 CHAPTER VI. < 
 
 The lady The farmer s wife, Mrs. Joslin Alarm at the parsonage 
 Dr. Walton Black Nance The return A discovery, . . . . 59 
 
VI CONTENTS. 
 
 CHAPTER VII. 
 
 Feminine curiosity Benevolence Miss Sibyl Dudley Mr. Joslin s 
 house Hybrid pursuits " The Ohio " Dr. Walton s opinion, . 69 
 
 CHAPTER VIII. 
 
 Ladies Miss Dudley s house, character and habits Gossip Expla 
 nation Mrs. May s family Mr. Bell Henry May; his return 
 
 Lost deeds by the wreck, 79 
 
 CHAPTER IX. 
 
 Current reports Serious accident to Miss Poulter Mr. Thumpingwell 
 
 Ill consequences of wearing long hair, 92 
 
 CHAPTER X. 
 
 A guest, Mr. Prior Date Boarding-places Philology Mr. Date s 
 ideas of language Fortune, philosophy and religion, 98 
 
 CHAPTER XI. 
 
 Misfortunes never come single Heat The fever-ship Sickness 
 Dr. Walton s character An alarm Black Nance A disagreeable 
 dose, 109 
 
 CHAPTER XII. 
 
 Old times Miss Poultcr s retreat Nance s practical application of 
 Mr. Athcrton s advice A jump George Atherton Alice Mary 
 May A discussion Logic, philosophers, poets and historians 
 Speculations, 123 
 
 CHAPTER XIII. 
 
 A walk " Aunt Sibyl " Family intercourse College Dr. Church 
 man A fine boy, and a beautiful girl George s opinion on style, 
 and Aunt Sybil s A song, " The Zingaro s Daughter" "Made 
 line," 133 
 
 CHAPTER XIV. 
 
 Events of private life National faults Political equality Vanity ; 
 its excesses and dangers Philanthropy " Behind the times " A 
 deputation of ladies Listening A detection Politeness, . . 1-U 
 
 CHAPTER XV. 
 
 The deputation Miss Poulter, Mrs. MacFuzzy, Miss Maze A scene 
 A discussion of a great public question An unexpected consequence 
 
 An evening talk The way to settle difficulties Psalm-sing 
 ing, 154 
 
CONTENTS. Til 
 
 CHAPTER XVI. 
 
 Dr. Walton A widower s establishment An episode Old times 
 and manners "French claims" National ingratitude and in 
 justice, 1C7 
 
 CHAPTER XVII. 
 
 A tea-party Tho men and women of former days Degeneracy 
 Mary May Black Nance " Indian Spring " A surprise ; doubts 
 and fears, 177 
 
 CHAPTER XVIII. 
 
 "Commencement-day" Miss Inchskip ; her hospitality A soiree 
 
 A " sweet poem " Edward Shirland Miss Fringe and woman s 
 rights Dr. Griskin A quiz A cannibal Mr. Rosecream 
 Glimpse of a literary personage A chronicler College exer 
 cises, 184 
 
 CHAPTER XIX. 
 
 Oxton "The Tripletop"- Old bachelors A drive to "Indian 
 Shore " A fashionable lady Mr. Bundle The beach The moon 
 on the water Mr. Bundle s opinion of it A question of poetry 
 Mrs. Hylowe s views of the moon Tho results which follow the 
 neglect or exercise of our faculties, 200 
 
 CHAPTER XX. 
 
 Accident Benevolence Mr. Flyter and his rule Departure from 
 Indian Shore Dangers of wealth in its conflict with mind Family 
 pride Home, , 213 
 
 CHAPTER XXI. 
 
 Law-studies A lawyer of the old school Amusements and studies at 
 Eastford Mr. Cobstalk ; his views on certain subjects; George 
 Atherton s Rogues ; reason of their ill success Character of Mr. 
 May, 220 
 
 CHAPTER XXII. 
 
 Edward Shirland A disquisition on love Evils of interested matches 
 
 Progress of Shirland s suit The "Wolfe-House," 233 
 
 CHAPTER XXIII. 
 
 A picnic "Tho Cliffs" Discussion of character, between Mr. Cob- 
 stalk and Mr. Siineox A love-scene A drive and a moonlight 
 sail, 240 
 
VIII CONTENTS. 
 
 CHAPTER XXIV. 
 
 Love Shirland and Alice Atherton Georgo Athcrton and Mary May 
 Cross purposes Remonstrance of Alice ; her singular views of 
 happiness Old Arey A law-caso The trial An odd trick Tho 
 result, 248 
 
 CHAPTER XXV. 
 
 Mr. Joslin calls on Athorton Developments Old Aroy and his 
 daughter Peggy Athcrton regains the doed, supposed to have been 
 lost iu the wrock ; agrees to go to Maine, to substantiate title, . 2G3 
 
 CHAPTER XXVI. 
 
 Transition from law to love A declaration Trials, doubts and fears 
 A true woman, 271 
 
 CHAPTER XXVII. 
 
 The journey to Maine, by mail-coach Axeville Mr. Rutlodge, an 
 old-fashioned lawyer Mr. Rankin Mr. Ramble Gammon 111 
 success Indian women " Tapp and Fassett " Correspond 
 ence, 277 
 
 CHAPTER XXVIII. 
 
 Search after Messrs. Tapp and Fassett Success Tho court estab 
 lishes the title Mr. Gammon s proposition ; throats ; suggestion of 
 squatters Letters Resolve to visit the premises, 293 
 
 CHAPTER XXIX. 
 
 The interior of Maine Character of the country Major Rcclfield s 
 tavern His story of squatters in old times The woods A clear 
 ing McQuillen s cabin ; astern reception McQuillen ; a character 
 and a history Not so easy to leave the premises A dispute ; its 
 result Return to Axevillo, 302 
 
 CHAPTER XXX. 
 
 Jlom-o Love Benefits of illness A happy settlement of affairs 
 A dowry A song Autumnal weather and scenery Two wed 
 dings Some account of the characters in this book, 318 
 
INTRODUCTORY CHAPTER. 
 
 "And nothing is, but what la not."- MACBETH. 
 
 OTHER periods of the world in which we live have obtained, 
 by common consent, some distinguishing appellation, corre 
 spondent with their real or supposed characteristics. For 
 example, there are "The Golden Age," and "The Dark 
 Ages ; " which latter, perhaps, after all, were not so very 
 much unlike the veritable Saturnia reyna, and that awak 
 ening era, in which the identity of time itself seems almost 
 to melt away into the blazing lustre, which illuminates " The 
 Revival of Letters." 
 
 We are disposed, therefore, to offer a name also for our 
 own day, which at least is legitimately English, if not pecu 
 liarly elegant, and possesses the advantage of being, at the 
 same time, descriptive, appropriate and significant. 0, 
 reader ! this age of ours is the " Age of Twaddle." We 
 know what you will say, that it is really the " Age of 
 Pretension," or, perhaps, that of "Mediocrity." But, 
 although each of these forms of definition equally indicates 
 one or more of the current phases of society, still we are 
 fortunate enough to escape any partial view of the subject, 
 by the selection of an epithet so happy, as to include all 
 the others within its own broad and untranslatable expres 
 sion. 
 
 Indeed, in our time, when the enlightened and judicious 
 public is ready not merely to endure, but absolutely grows 
 
10 EASTFORD; OK, 
 
 enthusiastic over extravagances which aro exciting only 
 because they are unnatural, and insipidities which arc pro 
 nounced good merely for the negative reason that there is no 
 particular harm in them, the slight tendency to confusion 
 of mental and moral perceptions, which this state of things 
 implies, might, perhaps, in some moods, have given occasion 
 of discouragement to our own more modest lucubrations ! 
 But shrewdly reflecting that the twaddlers are, after all, the 
 most profoundly unconscious of their own absurdities, we again 
 take courage, and proceed with new vigor to the accomplish 
 ment of the purposes we have in hand. 
 
 We profess to write for those who think, and such we hope 
 there are ; and, of course, no reader of our own pages could 
 be properly classed with that forlorn category of diluted ele 
 ments, which an unshaken devotion to truth itself has made 
 us indicate, as conveying a lively description of the peculiar 
 ities of the times. And we have little doubt that the epithet 
 by which we have chosen to designate shortcomings, by us 
 sincerely deplored, will be considered quite unhandsome by 
 many, who so often pronounce this era of ours " the most 
 wonderful," " the most enlightened," and, indeed, on all 
 accounts, " the greatest of all ages," which the revolution of 
 centuries has yet been able to unfold. 
 
 But what, after all, can be said in favor of an age, the 
 best intellectual energies of which are devoted mainly to the 
 betterment of our material welfare ; which pampers the senses 
 at the expense of the moral perceptions, and cherishes the body 
 instead of the superior nature of which it is the instrument ; 
 whose virtues, whatever they may be, certainly are not heroic ; 
 which descends rather than soars; which unblushingly 
 announces itself as " mechanical ; " which admires the dwarf 
 ish proportions of its own petty inanity; which flings a 
 veil over those nobler sensibilities and affections, which alone 
 have made men illustrious and life honorable ; which weighs 
 love by money, and fights battles for gain; which counts 
 
HOUSEHOLD SKETCHES. 11 
 
 that glory nothing, which cannot be counted substantially ; 
 and to which " honor comes unlocked for," if it oomc at all ; 
 and, jealous of aspirations it is unable to feel or under 
 stand, like an oracle, solemn only by reason of its mysterious 
 dulness, shamelessly and boastingly proclaims that the " age 
 of sophists, economists and calculators has succeeded," and 
 the day of poetry has gone by ? 
 
 For, let the twaddlers say what they will, an admission to 
 this extent is tantamount to giving up the whole question of 
 the moral improvement of the race. Just so far as society 
 becomes callous to the generous impressions of tenderness and 
 honor, it is no longer on the way of any rational and true 
 progress. It recedes instead of advancing. Its bleared and 
 narrow eyes look downward, not upwards. Its frame is 
 of brass and its soul iron. To be mechanical is to be no 
 doubt useful, but the utility is of an inferior, not of an ele 
 vated character. The multiplication of spindles has no nat 
 ural tendency, we conceive, to make men better ; probably, 
 though not necessarily, it may make them worse ; for the 
 psalm-singing weaver cultivated, as he sang at his solitary 
 loom, those natural and happy emotions, which would be in 
 congruous and incapable of indulgence amidst the busy whirl 
 of a thousand spinning-jennies. 
 
 And though we should be sorry to be thought capable of 
 urging serious objections to that somewhat reckless and mur 
 derous march of mind, which has developed itself in the enter 
 prise of railroads, provided they be kept strictly on the 
 business lines of communication, and are permitted neither to 
 disturb the visions of present or future Wordsworths, nor to 
 cheat those, who really value such things, out of every sweet 
 secluded spot, and all gentle privacy and rational enjoy 
 ment; yet we have many doubts, whether this rapid and 
 popular mode of locomotion has not tended, and does not still 
 tend, to the deterioration of the race. 
 
 Indeed, the brilliancy of these experiments hardly repays 
 
12 EASTFORD; OR, 
 
 us for the danger to our necks ; and having recently under 
 taken a journey, entirely on our own affairs, in the famous 
 " HELTER-SKELTER- Aiu-LiNE," and having been whirled off 
 the track and hurled down an embankment into a ditch, find 
 ing ourselves there in a sort of " Where are you ? " condi 
 tion, our mind naturally reverted to a former mode of travel, 
 which, if less speedy, usually terminated in a manner far 
 more satisfactory. 
 
 In the mean time, we have exchanged that spirited, sensi 
 tive, and intelligent companion and helper of human fortunes, 
 dangers and glories, to sit upon whose back is enough to 
 awaken generous and noble emotions, and half converts his 
 master into a hero, whose company is almost friendship, 
 whose tread is the impulse of true nobility, whose movement 
 is inspiration, whose neigh is delight, for a senseless and 
 urisympathizing monster of iron, " the glory of whose nos 
 trils " is but a sickening congregation of smoky vapors, and 
 whose eldritch scream resembles nothing so much as the yell, 
 in unison, of a herd of bedeviled swine. 
 
 It is, in our opinion, somewhat less than problematical, 
 whether such constant and easy means of familiarity do not 
 breed contempt. And, as in a court, the salient virtues are 
 quickly rubbed down to the standard gauge of morals, 
 conventional, smooth and slippery, so, by this daily inter 
 mixture, upon the thronged thoroughfares of life, we lose 
 something of that wholesome reverence for the unknown, 
 which gave it the aspect of magnificence; we imitate the 
 obvious and easily-imitated failings of our companions, and 
 begin to believe that the virtues we . admired at a distance 
 are little better than fabulous ; and society finally loses that 
 individuality of personal character, which alone imparts its 
 freshness and charm, as alone it indicates the free working 
 of the spirit within. Instead of the deus ex machina, as 
 society becomes assimilated to the machine, the divinity with 
 draws ito presence and its power; and the age which becomes 
 
HOUSEHOLD SKETCHES. 13 
 
 truly mechanical is, at length, like a skeleton robed in the 
 habiliments of life ; there is no longer lustre in its soulless 
 eyes, or pulsation beneath its wire-compacted and artificial 
 frame. 
 
 But, notwithstanding these influences, which are at work 
 to spread this dull, stiffening and level crust over the surface 
 of society, happily there is some volcanic fire beneath, which 
 now and then breaks out. Nature, even in her slumbers, is 
 yet vigorous and recuperative. The virtues and graces of 
 life will still spring up, at times, out of the most seemingly 
 arid waste ; as the columbine lifts its graceful stem upon the 
 thinly-scattered soil, and hangs its bells, of lovely hue, over 
 the crevices of the rock. 
 
 When we speak of society, however, we mean that portion 
 of it with which our story is most likely to be conversant. 
 For the world around us is to us our world ; and the cast of 
 our thoughts takes its color from the objects which arc most 
 immediately within the circumference of our vision. Yet he 
 can have used his inner eyes to little purpose who has not wit 
 nessed, within the narrowest circle, those elements of human 
 nature, which, upon other and broader theatres, go to make up 
 what constitutes the grand drama of life. But although we ex 
 pect to have something to do with the city or its denizens, to 
 which our preceding observations may be supposed more pecu 
 liarly applicable, yet we have no idea of producing our char 
 acters directly upon that stage of action. For, though New 
 England energies are thought to come most prosperously to 
 fruit in the city, it will most generally be found that the trans 
 planted stock derived its virtues from the shoot, which first 
 sprang in the more genial soil and purer air of the country. 
 
 We propose, then, to turn aside from the days in which it 
 is our fortune to live, and to go back a few years, in order to 
 recall those scenes, which it is our purpose to present. Not, 
 however, Young America ! forth-putting and progressive, 
 beyond your not very extensive range of natural and moral 
 2 
 
14 EASTJ-ORD; OR, 
 
 vision. And yet, we beseech you, in reaching towards the 
 future, forget not utterly the past ! " Tell us riot," in tho 
 words of one of your favorite writers, " that the past, meas 
 ured by a cold philosophy, was no better and no loftier than 
 the present ; it is not thus seen by pure and generous eyes. 
 Let the past perish when it ceases to reflect on its magic mir 
 ror the beautiful romance, which is its noblest reality, though 
 perchance but the shadow of Delusion." 
 
 Before entering upon our story, however, we see fit to set 
 down a brief dialogue, which we held with ourselves, and 
 which aided very much in fixing our resolution to engage in 
 this work. 
 
 " What do you propose to write here ? " 
 
 " Something that I thought might prove interesting about 
 Eastford." 
 
 " Eastford ! I don t sec how you can make anything out 
 of it ; it always appeared to me a pretty and pleasant little 
 town enough, but quiet, and, in fact, I think uncommonly 
 dull." 
 
 " But the people, my dear sir, they it is who give life to 
 a place." 
 
 " Why, they really seemed to me the cause of the dulness 
 of the town. Quite a common-place population ; indeed, 
 decidedly hum-drum." 
 
 " All this is because you never really looked at them." 
 
 " You are quite mistaken ; I have looked at both town 
 and people very often." 
 
 " How did you look ? " 
 
 " With my eyes, of course." 
 
 " Ah, you mean those round, grayish protuberances which 
 project beneath your brows, and constitute a portion of the 
 features of your face ? " 
 
 " To be sure ! With what should I look, sir ? " 
 
 " Few people have eyes, properly so called. They sec abso- 
 
HOUSEHOLD SKETCHES. 15 
 
 lately nothing but the merest outside of things. Now I have 
 thought to examine this subject with my inner eyes, and to 
 call out its inner life ; in fact, I have, so to speak, ideal 
 ized it. Are you not aware that external objects are not 
 really interesting per se, but accordingly as they suggest other 
 things, which are neither in them nor of them, and of which 
 they are but the shows and shadows ? What is a rock, 
 the hugest, for instance, but a cold, gray, blank, barren 
 mass of inanimate and sluggish matter ? So the clodhopper 
 regards it. Yet, clothe it with its associations, and how 
 it rises upon the imagination ! It has size, which is an 
 element of grandeur, hardness, the substantial quality of 
 strength and power, age, invoking the sacred sources of 
 veneration and awe ; and so of other characteristics. It is 
 these associations and suggestions which make things agree 
 able and interesting, until by and by they become represent 
 atives of all the highest qualities of human nature itself." 
 
 " Is it actually a novel ? " 
 
 u Hardly, perhaps. I call it Sketches, you perceive. 
 But, if you look sharp, you may get more than you bargained 
 for." 
 
 " Is there really a plot, then ? " 
 
 "A plot, sir ! yes, sir ; a plot there is, and a very excel 
 lent plot. If my readers, unhappily, do not sec it at once, 
 why. I say nothing." 
 
 " I fear, however, in treating this subject, you may be 
 tempted into saying some disagreeable things, people in 
 small towns are so particular ! " 
 
 " Very likely. Would you have me preach smooth say 
 ings ? I assure you, we are great self-flatterers. We deceive 
 ourselves and one another too much altogether. Virtue can 
 not grow in such a pampered soil. My object is to tell the 
 truth." 
 
 " What is truth ? " 
 
 " Ah ! that is the question the same that was proposed 
 
EASTFORD; OR, HOUSEHOLD SKETCHES. 
 
 by jesting Pilate. In order to discover this, we must uso 
 our inner eyes again. A sincere seeker will find it." 
 
 " Still, our best speculations are often in the dark. To 
 me it seems that we need more light to discover this myste 
 rious truth. " 
 
 " Let me re ply to you, in the language of Pascal : There 
 is light enough for those whose sincere wish is to see, and 
 darkness enough to confound those of an opposite disposition. 
 So, en avant." 
 
CHAPTER I. 
 
 "Hie inter flumina nota, 
 
 Et fontcs sacros. " 
 
 VlUGIL. 
 
 "Allured to brighter worlds and led tho way." GOLDSMITH. 
 
 IT is very much to be doubted whether Mr. John Ather- 
 ton, whom we now take the liberty to introduce to our read 
 ers, ever spent one entire day of his long and useful life in 
 the capital city of his native state. It is true, that the care 
 of a numerous and devoted flock, of which, in the phrase of 
 Eastford, he was the "minister," required of him duties 
 which he yielded cheerfully and scrupulously, no less from 
 inclination than regard for the sacred obligations which he 
 had assumed. But, even in the coaching times of our ances 
 tors, Eastford was scarcely half a day s journey from Oxton, 
 which had not then arrived at its present municipal dignities, 
 and the opening of the railroad, which eventually connected 
 them still more closely, had set the little world of Eastford 
 agog for the sights and various allurements of the capital. 
 
 Still, although his outgoings and incomings very much ex 
 ceeded those famous migrations of the Reverend Dr. Prim 
 rose, " from the blue bed to the brown, 1 and though, as cer 
 tainly, he resembled that immortal monogamist in nothing but 
 the entire integrity and excellence of his public and personal 
 character, he exhibited an unaccountable disinclination to 
 depart from the ordinary sphere of his pursuits and duties. 
 Indeed, if the truth must be told, the good man showed little 
 patience (for the best will have their failings) towards those 
 
18 EASITORD; OR, 
 
 kind and disinterested persons, who saw fit to make confiden 
 tial comments upon his secluded habits of life ; so much so, 
 that, during the early period of his ministrations, when Miss 
 Betty Poulter a lady then fast verging towards a condition 
 of strict maidenhood communicated her earnest apprehen 
 sions to one of a select though extended circle of gossips, lest 
 the minister " should mope himself to death," the warmth 
 of his expression was such, respecting her probable motive 
 for seeking to convert his solitary waste into a garden of 
 bloom, as to require some charity to conceive of it, as within 
 the fair bounds of clerical decorum. Yet we believe that, 
 had that been possible, it would have had some influence 
 towards the control of the " unruly member " whose sharp 
 point, like the nimble weapon of a practised fencer, so often 
 touched the tender places of her too sensitive friends. Upon 
 the severe discipline to which her foes, real or supposed, were 
 occasionally subjected, it were useless to enlarge. 
 
 But we must do Mr. Atherton the justice to avow our be 
 lief, that his reprehension of this forth-putting damsel was 
 caused rather by his disapproval of her apparent self-seeking 
 and busy-bodying propensities, than by any wound which his 
 own self-love might be supposed to have received. For, when 
 Deacon Makepeace, whose three daughters, Judith, Hope 
 and Mercy, were all of a marriageable age, had taken occa 
 sion solemnly and affectionately to urge upon the minister 
 the scandals which might arise in the congregation, if a young 
 clergyman, possessed of his personal graces, should long con 
 tinue unmarried, and even went so far as to hint his alarm 
 lest thoughts of a more worldly nature, it was to be feared, 
 might sometimes shadow that devout interest with which his 
 public exercises were listened to by the female, as, to be 
 sure, they were also by the male portion of his hearers, Mr. 
 Atherton informed him, with some embarrassment, that he 
 was already under engagements, soon to be consummated, with 
 Miss Julia Walton, the only and half-idolized daughter of 
 
HOUSEHOLD SKETCHES. 19 
 
 the truly excellent and most eminent physician of the better 
 part of Eastford, and of the country round about. 
 
 But all this was much anterior to the date of our own 
 story, for Mr. Atherton, at the opening of the principal 
 events which we have in hand, had been all that a devoted 
 and honored pastor could be, for a period of many years. 
 And, indeed, the familiar and affectionate relations which 
 existed between him and his people may well account for his 
 reluctance to be long absent from those who required, in 
 some of their varied interests, almost his daily counsel, if not 
 some office of daily ministration ; to raise, to soothe, to direct, 
 or to warn ; to point out whence only corneth 
 
 "that aid 
 
 Implored by humble minds and hearts afraid ;" 
 
 to invoke the blessing so needful upon those who had just 
 pledged to each other the all which earth can have to bestow, 
 and at the mortal pillow to hold up that hope which alone 
 can cheer as only it can save the dying and repentant sinner. 
 To him, indeed, his entire congregation seemed only like a 
 more extended family circle, and he was thus intimate with the 
 hopes, the trials, the joys, sufferings and peculiarities, in a 
 word, with the temporal as well as the spiritual condition of 
 his flock; and truly his sympathy was as real as it was disin 
 terested. Beyond the immediate claims of his own family 
 upon his duty and affection, his main earthly object was their 
 welfare. And although gratitude is unhappily no very thrifty 
 or vigorous plant in the wilderness of this world, yet cer 
 tainly his labors in his own field were not bestowed altogether 
 in vain. Indeed, true benevolence is irresistible in propor 
 tion to its rarity ; and not to love and respect Mr. Atherton 
 was about equivalent to hatred of virtue itself. That the 
 minister was welcomed with delight, therefore, in every 
 household whose fireside he honored with his presence, while 
 it argued his own excellence, went also, in no little measure, 
 
20 EASTFORD J OR, 
 
 to show the unsophisticated character of his parishioners. 
 And, if ever a jealousy did arise in regard to the bestowal 
 of his favors, for such his visits were universally consid 
 ered, and there are always Betty Poulters enough to 
 raise a breeze even about such, matters, his kind and 
 beaming smile, at the next meeting, and the cordial grasp of 
 his warm and honest hand, were enough to prove medicinal to 
 the most desperate heart-burning. 
 
 From all this the inference is obvious, that the relations 
 of Mr. Atherton to his parish were very different from those 
 which exist in what we shall denominate our looser days. A 
 " settlement " then meant really a settlement ; and to neither 
 party did the idea of its revocation occur. Our pious fore 
 fathers regarded their pastor no less as a friend than a spir 
 itual teacher and guide ; and they chose him, as men ought 
 to choose their wives, for qualities likely to last a lifetime. 
 The credentials of his office constituted his recognized title to 
 the freedom of their families. To them, his mission was one 
 touching their life-long and their immortal interests ; and, 
 when solemnly sealed amongst them to the work of the 
 Gospel, he was over as well as with them, under sanctions 
 too serious to be dissolved, except for cause adequate to the 
 occasion. If faithful to his calling, no words could weigh 
 the value of his service. As time passed on, he became 
 intermingled and associated with all the dearest charities of 
 life, with their warmest family affections and the most 
 solemn and affecting domestic rites. And as the often- 
 repeated admonitions of a well-known and long-tried friend 
 touch us more nearly than the counsels of a casual acquaint 
 ance, so his influence for good was efficient in proportion to 
 its permanent character. And when, sooner or later, the 
 good man was gathered to his rest, the voice of lamentation 
 went up, as for a father in Israel. 
 
 ]Jut all this seems to have gone out, with wigs and cocked 
 hats, or hats with brims of formidable dimensions, such as 
 
HOUSEHOLD SKETCHES. 21 
 
 were formerly worn on the venerated heads of the pastors of 
 another day, and have faded, like those other characteristic 
 articles of clerical attire, which made a clergyman in the 
 street quite as distinguishable, as if he stood under the sound 
 ing-board of his own primitive meeting-house. 
 
 xVll this, we remark, is passed away. The meeting-house 
 itself has suffered change. The very elders, who, in accord 
 ance with the respectful observance of another day, once 
 claimed the reverence due to associated age, as their vener 
 able forms bowed together beneath the pulpit of the sanctu 
 ary, alas ! are scattered amongst the promiscuous multitude. 
 The deacons, who once, with gravest aspect, faced the congre 
 gation, are denuded of their official dignities, so far as the 
 outward exhibition is concerned, and actually occupy their 
 family pews ; while the sexton himself has long since ceased 
 to be 
 
 " perked up into a glistering grief" 
 
 for such we could not help consider his conspicuous position 
 at the head of the pulpit stairs, and has at length submit 
 ted to be 
 
 " written on 
 
 The roll of common men." 
 
 " I don t like the idee," exclaimed Elder Holdfast, a good 
 man, but rather narrow, to one of his cronies, " and I 
 hope you re o my mind, brother Goodcnow. This is reely a 
 shiFtin world ; and now the talk is of gittin a stove into 
 the meetin - us ! Jest as if we could n t keep ourselves warm 
 in meetin without a stove ! No, no ! let the women-folks 
 bring their foot-stoves, as they used to ; that makes the 
 meetin - us full warm enough ; my gals have come and gone, 
 with bare arms, and so ve your n, winter n summer, rain 
 or shine. I want to stand on the old ways, and " shutting 
 his eyes, as the good man was apt to do when a little excited 
 and inclined to exhortation " and now I ve heered they re 
 
22 EASTFORD; OR, 
 
 eubscribin round for an orgin ! Yes, an orgin ! " raising 
 his voice. "What on airth will they do next? That ever 
 I should live to see a Popish tootin -tub stuck up in our gal 
 lery ! And, brethren," forgetting himself a moment, 
 " what are we, to ask for stoves to warm us from these Rus 
 sians, who are little better than barbarians and heathens ; 
 and orgins o wood and brass, that do seem like idolatry, as 
 if we could n t praise the Lord with our nateral voices, and 
 that we should be pleasin ourselves with crectur comforts 
 instead o the meat that nourishcth, and go back, as t were, 
 to the milk fit for babes, and poor, sick and weak, queasy 
 stomachs? And, brethren, I mean brother Goodenow," 
 opening his eyes, " I got reelly carried away; I m sar- 
 tainly afraid all this care for the outer portion only makes it 
 worse for the better part of us." 
 
 And so they parted, on the way of their several " business 
 and desire," with many doleful shakings of the head at 
 innovations of such doubtful expediency, if not ominous 
 import. 
 
 But even Mr. Atherton, although emphatically of those 
 who " love no change," manifested satisfaction, rather than 
 displeasure, at these proposed modifications, and prejudice at 
 length yielded before the march of improvement. We mean 
 to apply this remark, however, simply to those changes so 
 feelingly deplored by the worthy elder to his compatriot ; for 
 whether the diminution of all the external array, and absence 
 of personal attendance and respectful show, has not availed 
 also to diminish the power of other things, affecting both min 
 ister and people, we can only guess, by endeavoring to trace 
 the causes of effects, which are only too evident. 
 
 It must not be supposed, however, that the pretty town of 
 KastforJ, though small enough in territory, was only a coun 
 try village. Far from it ; it had its river, its merchants, its 
 commerce, its public edifices, and, in some sort, its stately 
 ways. Whatever its present condition, it had once been a 
 
HOUSEHOLD SKETCHES. 23 
 
 prosperous and busy little place. As for its situation, it is 
 unnecessary to describe it in detail. Suffice it to say, that it 
 was one of the prettiest of the smaller towns of New Eng 
 land ; which, if they lack much which gives the character of 
 solidity and permanence even to many of the villages of 
 England and the continent, yet often possess a charm of 
 their own, in the very lightness and airy cheerfulness of their 
 structures ; or, rather, we should say, most of these edi 
 fices since many of the buildings of Eastford were as 
 substantial as brick and mortar could make them. And 
 few places could boast with so much reason of that most 
 graceful of all trees, the American elm, files of which over 
 hung the principal street, magnificent in their noble propor 
 tions, luxuriant in graceful foliage, stately in venerable age ; 
 and stood, like an army of Titans, proudly tossing their 
 matchless plumage, so rich, so golden, so verdant, as it 
 swayed and glittered to the sunlight and the breeze. 
 
 Of course, every house had its garden, and very pretty 
 gardens many of them were ; though long before Mexico, or 
 the Amazon, or the then untrampled solitudes of the West, 
 had poured their gorgeous, but, it must be admitted, some 
 what unpoetic stores, to deck the cultivated parterres of the 
 Atlantic. No ; these were the flowers of dear old England, 
 her flowers ; beloved for her memories ; embalmed by the 
 sentiments familiar to her heart ; consecrated by the litera 
 ture, which honored and immortalized her history ! Such 
 flowers, indeed, Proserpina ! as 
 
 " frighted, thou Ictt st fall 
 
 From Dis s wagon," 
 
 and, peerless over all, 
 
 " the garden-queen, the Hose ! " 
 
 The sea itself was at no very great distance from the town. 
 In fact, the softened murmurs of its chafing rote could be 
 distinctly heard of a still evening, as it leaped with wailing 
 
24 EASTFORD; OR, HOUSEHOLD SKETCHES. 
 
 cry upon the belabored beach. Not so often could its ocean- 
 sound be heard, while the storm was brewing, in the mingled 
 caldron of chaos ! Not so audibly did it utter its articulate 
 warning, while the tempest was stalking to its field of con 
 flict, loaded with auguries of the impending hour ! When 
 the whirlwind was mustering his forces in the crowded 
 atmosphere, the elemental voices, howling and shrieking in 
 inharmonious concert, would drown or deaden the prophetic 
 monotone of the advancing surge ! But when the blast and 
 the tempest were done, and the genius of the storm drew off 
 " the sons of the wind," and shrinking and prostrate Nature 
 once more revived and smiled, as if all had been, and forever 
 would be, peace, it was sweet, in the hush of the summer 
 twilight, to listen to that softened and continuous echo of tho 
 footsteps of the receding wave. 
 
CHAPTER II. 
 
 " My boast is not that I deduce my birth 
 
 From loins enthroned and rulers of the earth ; 
 But higher far my proud pretensions rise, 
 The son of parents passed into the skies." 
 
 COWPER. 
 
 THE original ancestor of Mr. Atherton in New England 
 was one of the earliest of those who sacrificed " home " 
 as they loved to call the land of their nativity as soon as 
 they discovered that the hopes they had formed for the suc 
 cess of Presbyterianism in England, under the auspices of 
 James I., at his accession, were doomed to be disappointed 
 by that faithless and inconsistent king, and man without com 
 mon sense. 
 
 Accordingly, his own was one of those associated families 
 which, in the year of our Lord, 1633, or thirteen years after 
 the arrival of the Pilgrims at Plymouth, landed upon these 
 shores, which were henceforth to prove to them an asylum and 
 a dwelling-place. Nor did they halt long in their inarch 
 through the unbroken and " howling wilderness," until they 
 had reached the territory of their appointed habitation, which 
 no human steps, save those of the forest-hunter, had ever 
 before trodden. And this wild and inhospitable region, be 
 yond the pale of Christian sight or sound, filled with unknown 
 dangers and dedicated to certain miseries, in memory of 
 that quiet village, the home of most or of all, that village 
 whose cherished scenes and buried hopes still clung so fondly 
 to their hearts, they lovingly welcomed as Eastford ; by 
 3 
 
26 EASTFORD J OR, 
 
 that familiar name, their Eastford now, instead of that, 
 which had so mournfully faded from their straining eyes, 
 behind those blue, forlorn, unfathomable depths, higher and 
 higher uptowcring, of an ocean henceforth to them impassable 
 and relentless. 
 
 It was not, however, to escape religious persecution alone, 
 that these adventurous spirits had built their hopes upon the 
 promised foundations of the New World. That was the 
 motive, unquestionably, with the wanderers at Plymouth. 
 But those, who soon afterwards followed, came rather with the 
 avowed purpose of erecting a Civil State, as well as to secure 
 the liberty of unencumbered worship. 
 
 In due process of time, allotments of the extensive tracts 
 of fertile and unoccupied lands were made, correspondent 
 with each man s means and disposition of improvement, qual 
 ified or enhanced, no doubt, by the personal dignity and 
 claims of the individual settler. Of course, Mr. John Ather- 
 ton, who was one of the principal grantees of their common 
 stock of territory, obtained what was thought fitting a person 
 of his consideration, and which proved entirely satisfactory 
 to his own desires. In addition to this, at a later period, he 
 purchased that outlying farm, about five or six miles from the 
 settlement at Eastford, which still remains in the family, and 
 the deed of which, subscribed with a rude attempt at an 
 arrow-mark (for the purchase was of the Indian chief of the 
 territory), has, happily, been preserved. At that day, how 
 ever, its value was almost, if not entirely, prospective, from 
 the danger which attended the cultivation of distant fields. 
 
 From this progenitor descended, through several succes 
 sive generations of prudent and unambitious cultivators of 
 the soil, portions, at least, of their original landed acqui 
 sitions to Colonel Atherton, the father of the Reverend John 
 Atherton, of Eastford. We should be glad to linger, longer 
 than would be convenient in this story, upon the characters 
 of these men, who are too often regarded merely ay Morn, 
 
HOUSEHOLD SKETCHES. 27 
 
 dark and uncompromising bigots. But though, undoubtedly, 
 many singular instances of nice exactitude in external de 
 meanor have exposed these good men to much unmerited 
 obloquy, we believe them to have been far more earnest, sin 
 cere and devoted, in their domestic affections and relations, 
 than those who have maligned and ridiculed them. Whoever 
 should peruse his letters home to the " dear heart " or " sweet 
 life " of some Puritan officer, it may be, as he lay encamped 
 amidst the tangled thickets of the savage wilderness, upon 
 some one of their never-failing expeditions against the relent 
 less foe, might find those words grow dim and dimmer 
 before his eyes, as he lingered over their accents of tender 
 and home-like love. 
 
 No doubt, their sincere and well-founded dislike to the un 
 bridled license and profligate manners of a worthless court 
 tended to lead them too far towards the opposite extreme of 
 unreasonable sanctimoniousness, in their external demeanor. 
 Upon this outward manifestation alone, without regard to the 
 sterling virtues and excellences of the real man, the harsh 
 judgments to which they are subjected have been too often 
 formed. But even one, whom they thoroughly disliked, and 
 who as thoroughly despised them, the brilliant and aban 
 doned favorite of the James, who had disappointed their just 
 expectations, and of the Charles, in whom they had no hope, 
 even Villiers, has said, " One can no more judge of the 
 true value of a man, by the impression he makes on the pub 
 lic, than we can tell whether the seal was of gold or brass, by 
 which the stamp was made." 
 
 Gold they unquestionably were! tried in the crucible of 
 no common afflictions ; tested by experiences which only the 
 purest metal could abide ; unflinching in their resistance to a 
 corrupt hierarchy ; uncompromising in their hatred to politi 
 cal tyranny; unabated in their ardor for the diffusion of 
 human intelligence ; prompt at the moment of peril ; devoted 
 in the hour of danger. No colonists have braved such suffer- 
 
28 EASTFORD; OR, 
 
 ings, endured such calamities, wrought such successes, accom 
 plished such results ; none, with means so inadequate and 
 spirit so unbroken, through the extraordinary period of nearly 
 a century and a half, against savage foes, and the veterans of 
 European warfare, during their long and disheartening Indian 
 conflicts, at Crown Point, and Ticonderoga, and Louisburg, 
 and Quebec, so willingly perilled their lives, and spent 
 their hearts 1 blood, upon so many adventurous, and, often, 
 chivalrous fields ! 
 
 To the second successful expedition against Louisburg the 
 grandfather of Mr. Atherton had led a company, composed 
 of his neighbors and friends, a portion of the contingent des 
 tined for this almost romantic enterprise against the Dunkirk 
 of America, by far the^ greater part of the forces detailed 
 for the undertaking having been furnished by his native state. 
 
 When the colonists rose against the mother-country, his 
 son received his father s sword, from the hands of the high- 
 spirited but somewhat broken old man. For when, at the 
 termination of the ordinary religious services on Sunday, the 
 gray-haired clergyman had takem occasion to urge their duty 
 to their country, in the ears of his congregation, and, at the 
 close of an ardent and stirring address, animated, no doubt, 
 by some kindling gleam of that old fiery spirit, which once 
 made Cromwell s preachers-militant irresistible in conventicle 
 and in field, he called upon those, who " were ready for the 
 great work, to present themselves there, at that moment, and in 
 that place, both propitious to the assumption of a right 
 eous cause, at the altar of religion itself, in the presence of 
 their wives and children and whatever else was most dear to 
 them on earth ; in the very sanctuary, whose unceasing and 
 fervent prayers would attend upon and hallow their devoted 
 courage, and while the blood of their martyred countrymen 
 was hardly yet dry in the green lanes of Lexington and Con 
 cord," it was remarked that young Atherton was the very 
 first to advance into the broad aisle of the meeting-house, 
 
HOUSEHOLD SKETCHES. 29 
 
 and to offer his manly person for the honorable but perilous 
 service. 
 
 Few, indeed, could be present at such a spectacle, without 
 yielding themselves to the current of feelings, which the heart 
 chooses other vehicles than words to manifest and unfold. 
 But when Atherton came gallantly forward, his breast heav 
 ing with generous emotion, and the steady resolution of his 
 brow contradicting the modest blushes of his manly check, 
 the fairest eyes in that assembly were deluged in a transport 
 of tears. 
 
 " Take this sword, my son," said Captain Atherton, after 
 the speedily-formed company of volunteers had selected the 
 young man for their commander ; " it has been borne by me, 
 I trust not without honor, in the service of the king. But 
 there are duties higher than any, which an honest man can 
 owe even to his sovereign ; and these claim every sacrifice of 
 him, who is not willing to cast away honor, and with it 
 whatever makes life something to be cherished rather than 
 endured." 
 
 " I need not say to you, father," replied the youthful com 
 mander, " how much my heart is in this contest; and I hope 
 I shall do nothing to disgrace my sword, or the office with 
 which my townsmen thanks to your example and character 
 have seen fit to honor me." 
 
 Accordingly, his company duly appeared at Bunker Hill, 
 the battle itself taking place within a few weeks following its 
 enlistment. And after that impetuous, desperate and immor 
 tal day, upon the organization of the northern army, under 
 the auspices of the Commander-in-chief, it became regularly 
 incorporated with the regiment of its district. Through the 
 various fortunes of the war, the young officer continued in the 
 service, honorably distinguishing himself upon such oppor 
 tunities as presented, and, alas ! they were only too many, 
 calling for all the courage, and prudence, and fortitude of a 
 man, and, at its close, had long held the rank and that 
 3* 
 
30 EASTFOllD J OR, 
 
 title of colonel by which he was ever afterwards so well 
 known. 
 
 In after days he was in the habit of saying, that Wash 
 ington was the only person he had ever seen who, at all 
 times, and under all circumstances, impressed him as being 
 uniformly great ; as great in the beautiful simplicity, con 
 sistency and dignity, of his well-balanced character, amidst 
 the easy intercourse of the social circle, as when he stood 
 superior to the complicated calamities of a disastrous cam 
 paign, or rode steadily along the line upon the eve of the 
 most momentous engagement ; that indignation for just and 
 weighty cause, such as Lee s untimely retreat at Monmouth, 
 or neglected precautions, which might have anticipated the 
 escape of Arnold, was the only passion which, upon very 
 rare occasions, seemed to gain the mastery over his soul ; 
 that he was no more elated unduly, when the surrendered 
 sword of the enemy at Yorktown sealed the established lib 
 erties of a nation, than he was dispirited and despondent 
 amidst the wintry gloom of Valley Forge, or under the hard 
 privations and almost desperate fortunes of that dark and 
 terrible campaign in " the Jerseys ; " that these singular 
 and admirable qualities, together with his true tenderness of 
 feeling, whenever feeling was generous arid becoming, and the 
 entirely irreproachable tenor of his private life, formed, in 
 his opinion, the elements of the most perfect merely human 
 character which the world had ever seen. 
 
 Upon the disbandment of the forces, Colonel Atherton 
 hastened home. His father had been some time deceased. 
 The evil chances of a seven-years war had made sad ravages 
 in his moderate fortune. The frequent inability and conse 
 quent ill credit of the government had made it necessary for 
 the young officer to rely a great deal upon his private means 
 for the supply of the unavoidable expenses of his station. 
 And this sacrifice, in common with other high-spirited gen 
 tlemen, he had willingly made, for the sake of the common 
 
HOUSEHOLD SKETCHES. 31 
 
 cause. Upon his return home, therefore, he collected, as far 
 as it was possible, his scattered but still decent resources, and 
 took possession of the out-farm, which still remained unen 
 cumbered, and was, for the most part, as wild as nature her 
 self could contrive to leave it. 
 
 And his choice was wisely fixed ; for, besides the unsettled 
 condition of the times, and the unpropitious prospects of com 
 mercial enterprise, a life in the camp, for so long a period, 
 had tended, perhaps, to unfit his habits for the requirements 
 of business, and to alienate his disposition from its details. 
 He soon married that Miss Julia Astley, who became, by 
 turns, so red and white, when he stepped into the broad aisle 
 of the meeting-house, and whose portrait, as a young girl, by 
 Copley, still adorns the front parlor of the house at Eahtfbrd. 
 She must have been a great beauty in her youth. Her wil 
 derness of hair is of that golden tint, which, when it is per 
 fect in its hue, is suggestive of something angelic, and seems 
 to have caught its light from heaven itself. The deep blue 
 eyes dance with a half-suffused but yet joyous gleam. Her 
 
 complexion 
 
 0, call it fair, not pale ! " 
 
 indicates refinement, and, perhaps, delicate health. Her dress 
 is a simple frock, of the slightest perceptible roseate tinge, 
 and she holds a single rose-bud in a hand scarcely formed for 
 the meaner offices of life. 
 
 The farm-house, which had been built some years before, 
 and to which Colonel Atherton conducted his lovely bride, 
 was of a description common enough to the times. Its situ 
 ation was incomparable. It faced the south-west, and from 
 its peaked roof the rafters descended, on the north-easterly 
 exposure, to within one story of the ground. It was situated 
 quite at the summit of an elevated piece of land, affording an 
 extensive view of a diversified and interesting reach of coun 
 try. A forest of oaks extended far into the rear, while on 
 one side stood a clump of stately pines, and at the foot of the 
 
32 EASTFORD J OR, 
 
 lawn-like declivity brawled a brook, shaded by willows, and 
 over it a rustic bridge, which constituted the ordinary means 
 of access to the house. We hesitate to announce that the dwel 
 ling was painted red; but this barbarism resulted rather from 
 the necessities of the times, than the taste of its occupants. 
 
 It was here that the minister of Eastford was born ; and 
 amidst these rural and quiet scenes was passed the early por 
 tion of his youth, until the preparation was completed 
 requisite for his entrance into a New England college. This 
 preparation was obtained under the private instruction of a 
 popular and competent teacher at Eastibrd, whither the young 
 man periodically repaired for the purpose of making the 
 necessary recitations. These excursions were performed gener 
 ally upon the back of his father s charger, old " Trenton," 
 who, at a very advanced age, still retained the spirit if not 
 the bottom of his warlike days ; but not unfrequently on foot, 
 by that manly and independent means of locomotion, winch 
 nature generously provides, and which so few of our modern 
 countrymen and countrywomen know how to value. 
 
 His preparatory studies for the ministry, after the honor 
 able completion of his collegiate course, were pursued under 
 the guidance of the Reverend Jonathan Styles, of West 
 Arlington, whose own early training had been had at Edin 
 burgh, and who had commended himself to Colonel Atherton, 
 especially, by his zealous and fearless discharge of the duties 
 of a chaplain to the revolutionary army. And Mr. Styles 
 was often afterwards in the habit of remarking that, " Mr. 
 Atherton exceeded all the other young gentlemen of his 
 acquaintance, in the extent of his classical acquisitions and 
 the admirable elegance and accuracy of his taste ; and, 
 although certainly other gifts and graces were of infinitely 
 higher importance to the calling of a Christian minister, yet 
 in him every advance in knowledge seemed rather to abate, 
 than aggravate, the natural vanity of the human heart, and 
 
HOUSEHOLD SKETCHES. 33 
 
 that pride of intellect, by which many famous scholars, it was 
 to be feared, had been only too easily deluded." 
 
 In consequence of this tenor of life and an intercourse 
 with Eastford, which, if cordial and most welcome, certainly, 
 to him and his father s son, was still casual and broken by 
 protracted absence, he escaped, in a great measure, the re 
 proach of being " a prophet in his own country." And so it 
 was that a vacancy having for some time existed, in con 
 sequence of the lamented decease of Dr. Kettleton after 
 a careful probation as a candidate, and an infinite round of 
 tea-drinkings with its principal matrons (to which severe dis 
 cipline he always afterwards attributed some habitual weak 
 ness of stomach), a scrupulous examination of his doctrinal 
 soundness, and a most thorough canvas of his mental, moral, 
 theological and personal qualifications, the parish of Eastford 
 gave him a call so unanimous, that it left no room or reason 
 for hesitation, which he might otherwise have entertained. 
 
 For although, after his first eminently successful public 
 exercise, one ancient and not too readily satisfied Presbyte 
 rian, of the old standards, who had long fructified under the 
 sometimes deeply metaphysical discourses of Dr. Kettleton, 
 and who was, no doubt, a lineal descendant of some fighting 
 Cameronian, shook his silvery head, at the meeting-house 
 door, and muttered to a compatriot, " Husks, husks ! no 
 food to-day ! " yet he afterwards admitted that " some defect 
 in hearing, arising from a severe cold " (he had long been 
 quite deaf), " might have led him to too hasty conclusions ; 
 and, having talked the matter fully over with his daughter 
 and grand-daughters, at home, he now felt sure that the young 
 minister must have the root of the matter in him." 
 
 In his descent from such an ancestry a-s we have rapidly 
 sketched, Mr. Atherton felt a satisfaction, which hardly de 
 generated into pride. Certainly he was not the man to boast 
 of such advantages. He would have taken no pleasure in an 
 alliance with blood, which had " crept through scoundrels," 
 
34 EASTFORD ; OR, HOUSEHOLD SKETCHES. 
 
 from the obscurest period of history, or with lines of men, 
 however long descended, who became notorious chiefly by 
 their brilliant vices and often doubtful services, in the cause 
 of country or mankind. 
 
 But the lives of his ancestors, if not eminently distin 
 guished, had at least been useful and honorable ; and a descent 
 of two hundred years from brave, and self-sacrificing, and 
 upright men, he valued not as " blood," but as claiming of 
 himself its unstained transmission to his posterity. 
 
 In this country, of course, the pretences of aristocracy are 
 not only ridiculous, but equally unmeaning and unfounded. 
 But if there really be any claim to such distinctions, those 
 which we have thus deduced form the only title, which a man 
 of sense would think worthy his consideration. 
 
 The marriage of Mr. Athcrton, which was duly solemnized 
 under the happiest auspices, necessarily settled all rival pre 
 tensions, and left those ladies of the parish, who had been the 
 most anxious for the minister s welfare. now, of course, 
 the peculiar care of Mrs. Atherton more leisure for the 
 performance of other duties, which, for a time, seemed likely 
 to fall into some neglect. 
 
CHAPTER III. 
 
 " Yen un cavallo cavalga." 
 
 SI-ANISH BALLAD. 
 
 Ran, Coll, our dog, and Talbot with the band, 
 And Malkin with her distaff in her hand." 
 
 IN a small place, like Eastford, we suppose a gentleman of 
 studious habits may reasonably require something to vary 
 the monotony of his ordinary avocations. Accordingly, the 
 Rev. Mr. Atherton might often be seen on horseback, trotting 
 along the pleasant roads, or sauntering through the quiet 
 lanes in the neighborhood of the town. Indeed, his early 
 use and the kind but strict tuition of his father, himself a 
 most accomplished horseman, had afforded him excellent 
 training in this manly and generous exercise. The good 
 colonel really seemed to think him but half a man, who was 
 untaught to ride, or who had no spirit for the noble art of 
 horsemanship. " There is nothing like it," he would say, " to 
 stir your blood lind animate your spirits. It really gives 
 one a double existence, and, in fact, superadds a sort of 
 higher nature ; for it lifts him above the mere common soil 
 of earth, and wafts him along at a speed, of which he were 
 otherwise incapable. It makes him more serviceable to his 
 friends, and more formidable to his foes." 
 
 And although, .most likely, Colonel Atherton had never 
 read Xenophon, he insisted strenuously upon at least two of 
 those chief points of discipline for the young, which, that 
 
36 EASTFORD; OR, 
 
 charming author informs us, were inculcated upon their youth 
 by the ancient Persians. 
 
 " To ride, to shoot with the bow, and to speak the truth," 
 constituted, according to the Greek historian, the elements of 
 physical and moral culture, amongst the famous people of 
 Cyrus, in the days of their highest glory. And truly this 
 most practical and honorable system of education tended, in 
 our opinion, to make a man more of a man, than many things 
 now taught in some of our most eminent seminaries of learn 
 ing. 
 
 In point of fact, however, besides the other two objects of 
 discipline, even the u shooting with the bow " was not entirely 
 neglected at " the Farms ; " for, as the colonel would not 
 countenance in his family what is called yunniny for sport, 
 and as boys have an undoubted natural propensity for projec 
 tiles of some description, he saw fit to indulge this tendency, 
 by often engaging with them in some of the competitions of 
 rustic archery ; and he entered into the game with interest and 
 spirit, amongst the youngest of his household and their com 
 panion?,- and would sometimes even induce occasional and 
 very grave guests, who had long forgotten, if they ever knew, 
 what " play " meant, to make most awkward and utterly 
 unsuccessful attempts to strike the not very difficult target. 
 
 Of a lazy summer s day, in the afternoon, it might be 
 after an early tea, when the sun was almost ready to sink 
 behind the grove of pines, it was very agreeable to engage 
 in a species of exercise deserving more attention than it 
 receives, beneath the shade of the great elm, which still 
 stretches its broad and stalwart arms across most of the front 
 of the house, in company with such lads and lasses, as were 
 visiting our young people, or nad the freedom of " the Farms ;" 
 for the use of the bow gives play to important muscles, and 
 sharpens several of the senses, and, if cultivated, could not 
 fail to aid in the improvement of some of our most valuable 
 faculties ; and accuracy of vision, sensibility of touch, bteadi- 
 
HOUSEHOLD SKETCHES. 37 
 
 ness of nerve, quickness of ciction, and readiness of judgment, 
 all so essential to the ordinary as well as the extraordinary 
 purposes of life, are both required and developed in the 
 practice of this implement, as much as with the boasted and 
 more deadly rifle. 
 
 But it was in a matter connected with this sport, that 
 young Atherton might almost have said, with Mazeppa 
 
 ill bctido 
 
 The school wherein I learned to rido ! " 
 
 The boy, as we remarked, had been early accustomed to 
 the saddle j indeed, from the time he could fairly sit astride 
 a horse s back. But the companion of his boyish ramblings 
 had been "old Trenton," a steed perfectly indifferent to the 
 ordinary annoyances which disturb the equanimity of his 
 kind, and who never had a thought of so rude a thing, as 
 attempting to throw a civil rider. In the excellent kindness 
 of his nature, he was entirely amenable to the most gentle 
 solicitations, except when roll of drum and file assailed his 
 short and active ears, upon which occasions he would stamp 
 and snort, if fastened, or, if on the road, it required no ordi 
 nary inducements to restrain him from presenting his person 
 in the fore-front of the militia-muster, or whatever other 
 public demonstration might be going forward. The differ 
 ences of intelligence in his species are almost as marked as in 
 human beings. If Trenton s ordinary demeanor was unex 
 ceptionable, he knew perfectly well how to accommodate him 
 self to circumstances ; and if a child were placed upon his 
 back, the steadiness and dignity of his quiet walk would have 
 done no discredit to the gravest embryo candidate for a vacant 
 judgeship. Whenever he made the martial exhibitions which 
 we have intimated, and, indeed, on all other public occasions, 
 he never failed to attract the attention of the knowing ones. 
 His broad breast and handsome limbs, his clean and well- 
 formed hoofs, his full and clear eyes, which seemed really to 
 4 
 
3b EASTFORD ; OR, 
 
 open up from the very depths of his brave and honest heart 
 together with the undocked glories of his thick and flow 
 ing tail, and his other not inferior equine perfections, were 
 the themes of scarcely qualified commendation with the most 
 eminent jockeys. The bright star on his forehead gave great 
 beauty to his small and shapely head, but his color, in other 
 respects, was a dark chestnut, if not fairly verging on bay. 
 
 Young Atherton was proud of his horse, and, it may be, a 
 little proud of himself; for he was, indeed, a noble and high- 
 spirited boy. 
 
 " I say, young man, how old might that boss o your n 
 be ? " was the inquiry, perhaps, of some not uninquisitive 
 brother Jonathan, in the market-place of Eastford. 
 
 " Trenton never told my father his age, sir, and he is too 
 polite to introduce the subject himself." 
 
 " Well, I do declare ! who ever heer d of a boss talking, 
 before? Sharp, hey?" 
 
 " Why, sir, Livy " (the young fellow was just getting on 
 in his classics) " tells of an ox speaking, and why not a 
 horse ? " 
 
 " I don no nothing about Olivy. She must be an old fool 
 to tell such a story ; you know that as well as I do. We 
 don t have talking-bosses in these parts. But I should judge 
 this hoss of your n, or your father s, to be Icm me look at 
 his mouth a minute." 
 
 " I have no wish for information, sir, about the age of my 
 horse; besides, he sometimes bites strangers." 
 
 1 Thought you said t was your father s hoss ! " 
 
 " I don t believe my father cares to know more than he 
 docs about it." 
 
 " Well, as near as I can guess, now, without seeing the 
 critter s teeth," turning to the bystanders, "and from 
 what I ve heern about him, I should judge this animal not 
 far from sixteen. But he s a dreadful good hoss now." 
 
 " As you give your opinion, sir, without a request, of 
 
HOUSEHOLD SKETCHES. 39 
 
 course you 11 not expect a fee," said young Atherton, laughing, 
 as he rode away. 
 
 " Dreadful high-strung young chap, that ! " said the disap 
 pointed but good-natured jockey. 
 
 " 0, that s young Atherton, Colonel Atherton s boy, up 
 to the Farms, " said another. " He s going to be college- 
 larnt, they say." 
 
 " 0, I thought he seemed sort o peart ! " 
 
 It happened, one day, in anticipation of the arrival of some 
 friends, that the usual stock of bows needed replenishing. 
 Their manufacture was generally accomplished by such handi 
 craftsmen as were upon the place ; but the materials where 
 with to replenish the exhausted armory could only be procured 
 at a cooper s work-shop, at the distance of several miles. The 
 lad, then about twelve years of age, started for the expedition, 
 upon a horse scarcely fitted for the occasion, since Trenton was 
 in use ; but this was an animal of far less matured graces. 
 Indeed, he was young and high-spirited, and little broken to 
 any but careful usage. The fearless and handsome boy, how 
 ever, thought little of difficulties or dangers, and, gallantly 
 mounted on his high-stepping steed, set forth in quest of the 
 necessary material. Upon obtaining an article of sufficient 
 size for the purpose, it proved more unwieldy than he had 
 anticipated; for it was considerably taller than himself, and 
 weighed almost half as much. Indeed, so heavy a plank was 
 far too great weight to be carried in this manner. Neverthe 
 less, young Atherton grasped it closely under his right arm, 
 and rested its lower edge upon the foot of his boot, where it 
 projected from the stirrup. He gathered the reins firmly in 
 his left hand, and trusted, with his confident skill and ordinary 
 good fortune, to be able to accomplish the homeward journey 
 without difficulty. 
 
 But his horse, from the first, had shown himself rather shy 
 of this strange experiment at double-riding, and proved not a 
 little reluctant to receive the extraordinary addition to his 
 
40 EASTFORD ; OR, 
 
 burden. Accordingly, with sundry oblique glances at an 
 object which evidently afforded him no satisfaction, he had 
 started off at a pretty round pace, and the youth soon found 
 the plank even more unmanageable than he feared. His left 
 hand was sufficiently occupied with the reins, with very slight 
 opportunity of bettering his hold ; and the right one was 
 hardly able to keep the clumsy burden in its proper position. 
 In fact, as they were proceeding at a very smart pace, the 
 perspiration streaming down the youth s face, and his horse 
 and load together giving him quite as much play as he desired, 
 at an unlucky moment the sharp corner of the wood touched 
 his startled horse in the flank, and, in an instant, it was neck 
 or naught ! Fast and furious was the gallop of the strong 
 steed. Drop the plank young Atherton would not; but, with 
 all his efforts to keep it upright, as the animal bounded for 
 ward, the plank was, now and then, jounced against his side, 
 and gave only new impulse to his speed. 
 
 Such unusual and rapid clatter of hoofs on the ordinarily 
 quiet road, brought, here and there, some old woman hastily 
 to the open door of her house ; and, with hands uplifted and 
 capped head shaking, she would cry, 
 
 " 0, dear sirs! the boy will be^killed! the boy will be 
 killed ! " 
 
 " Lord-a-massy ! " cried another, " what on airth has he 
 got in his hands?" 
 
 Catching the sound of his coming from afar, the gray geese, 
 at the pool by the road-side, lazily lifted their flapping wings, 
 and, screeching and hissing, awkwardly waddled across the 
 way, where they were certainly no safer than before, besides 
 running no little risk in their passage. 
 
 A snarling cur ran from a barn-yard, and, in a most cow 
 ardly manner, barked at heels, which soon left him to the 
 enjoyment of his own vain vociferations. 
 
 Still the boy grasped his prize with might and main, and 
 kept his seat like a hero, and held his horse stiffly by the rein. 
 
HOUSEHOLD SKETCHES. 41 
 
 In this manner they ran their course for a mile or more, and 
 perhaps, in a longer run, young Atherton might have succeeded 
 in bringing his horse to terms. But, unfortunately, it hap 
 pened that their road lay over a part of the highway, which 
 was completely broken up by certain repairs then in progress, 
 and upon which the workmen were at the time employed. 
 There could be no great trouble in picking one s way over this 
 rough portion of the road at a foot-pace. In a regular race, 
 it became a rather difficult operation for man and beast. As 
 they approached the ugly pass, Master John gathered his 
 reins closely to his breast; but as the leaping animal floun 
 dered amongst the holes, and heaps of dirt, and piles of stories, 
 he stumbled, and, as recovery was hopeless, fell forward at 
 his full length. 
 
 With great presence of mind, the boy, at the instant, flung 
 the unwieldy plank upon one side, just as he was himself 
 thrown some distance upon the other. The surveyor of high 
 ways and his gang had dispersed with summary expedition. 
 But happily the lad lighted upon nothing harder than a pyra 
 mid of gravel, and he was up arid on his feet quicker than his 
 horse was able to rise. In fact, the only ill consequences of 
 his fall were a few scratches upon his person, while his jacket 
 was presented to the eyes of the scattered and alarmed work 
 men in a rather dilapidated condition. He carefully brushed 
 the knees of the trembling animal, whom the disaster had 
 somewhat tamed, and, when he had soothed him for a minute 
 or two, remounted and rode him quietly home, leaving the 
 teterrima causa of the calamity to be transported to its desti 
 nation, by some more convenient and appropriate means of 
 conveyance. 
 
 Fortunately, it proved that the horse himself, owing to the 
 nature of the ground, really received no serious detriment, 
 but was bright as ever by the next morning. As for the 
 colonel, he only laughed at the accident, since it turned out 
 no worse; for, entertaining very decided opinions on the 
 
42 EASTFORD; or, 
 
 subject of the masculine culture proper for young men, he 
 was not the person to make much ado about those inevitable 
 mischances, to which boys seem subject, in the progress of 
 their youthful experience. 
 
 " As for boys," he used to say, " they must take it rough 
 and tumble. A little hard usage does them no sort of harm. 
 If a man were intended to sell tapes and bonnets all his life, 
 why, bring him up as delicately as you please. But if he 
 engages in the business fit for men, he will get a good many 
 hard knocks in this world, and find himself in many stir 
 ring scenes, where he will need to have all his wits about him. 
 A rough jostle or so, in his early days, serves to shake his 
 faculties well together, and make them, as they ought to be, 
 reaJy for action." 
 
 " But women, also, have much to undergo in this world, 
 colonel," would suggest, perhaps, some tender mother, whose 
 lily-livered offspring had no stomach for the Spartan doctrines 
 of the uncompromising old officer, whose silvered and vener 
 able brow showed, in more than one instance, that personal 
 experience had not tended to modify the strength of his 
 theories ; " would you have them also brought up to endure 
 hardships, poor things ? " 
 
 " Ah, my dear madam," he replied, " the case is different. 
 Woman, permit me to say, is the mystery as well as the mas 
 terpiece of God s creation ! When she is a true woman, she 
 is charming under all circumstances. But her sphere is endur 
 ance, rather than action ; and accordingly nature has gifted 
 her with fortitude far surpassing ours. She best answers the 
 ordinary purposes of her creation, as well as best serves her 
 own happiness, by making herself as agreeable as possible to 
 our rougher sex. This can only be effected, by means of the 
 softer graces and accomplishments ; for, I take it, there is no 
 pbject more unnatural, and, therefore, more revolting to a 
 true man, than a masculine woman. My idea certainly is, to 
 give her such an education as will best develop the peculiar 
 
HOUSEHOLD SKETCHES. 43 
 
 charms and characteristics of her sex. 1 should treat a 
 young girl with great tenderness. Give her such physical 
 training as is necessary for her health. I like to see the 
 delicate bloom of the rose upon their cheeks, but not too rude 
 a glow. But be gentle with them, my dear madam, be gentle. 
 And now, as the evening is propitious, suppose we take a turn 
 with the young folks, at the bow and arrows ? " 
 
 It is quite true, therefore, that Mr. Atherton was, as was 
 often remarked by those who witnessed his equestrian per 
 formances, a graceful and firm rider. In almost all weathers, 
 he indulged in this exhilarating exercise, which quite " set 
 him up," he was wont to say, when he was " run down," as a 
 faithful minister often finds himself, by the daily cares and 
 labors of his professional life. 
 
CHAPTER IV. 
 
 " On such a night 
 
 Stood Dido, with a willow in her hand, 
 Upon the wild sea bank, and waved her love 
 To como again to Carthage." 
 
 MERCHANT OF VENICE. 
 
 " Veteres avias tibi do pulmonc revello." 
 
 PEKS. 
 
 " 0, MY dear husband, the sea ! the sea! " exclaimed Mrs. 
 Atherton, one evening, when that gentleman came in rather 
 late, from one of his usual rambles, " what a dread and 
 troublous voice it has to-night! Georgy was sleepy, and I 
 put him to bed, and took my shawl, and listened to the 
 distant roar from the piazza, till I could really endure it no 
 longer, and ran in to wait for your coming home." 
 
 "There is sorrow on the sea ; it cannot be quiet," replied 
 the minister. 
 
 " How very beautiful that is ! " said his wife ; " where is 
 it?" 
 
 " I am sorry you do not recognize it, my love." 
 " I do not know that it ever attracted my attention before." 
 " So it seems ; but you know I have often said to you, that 
 whoever reads the Bible, however constantly, will be sure to 
 find something new, something which seems to him as fresh, 
 as if observed for the first time. The passage is, indeed, full 
 of meaning, and comes from that sole book, whose language 
 surpasses all that human genius has conceived. How insig 
 nificant would seem the most elaborate description, compared 
 
HOUSEHOLD SKETCHES. 45 
 
 with the power, the grandeur, the scope, the majestic sim 
 plicity of these few words ! I scarcely know of a passage of 
 Scripture more profoundly expressive. It is poetry, flowing 
 from the fountain of truth itself, whence, indeed, all true 
 poetry derives its inspiration ; and that the English language 
 should be so capable of conveying in translation the matchless 
 utterance of the inspired penman, pleads very strongly for 
 our beautiful native tongue, which so many are disposed to 
 own as harsh and homely." 
 
 "I know your love for the English language, my dear, and 
 that you are never ready to admit its inferiority." 
 
 " AIL contraire, as an Irishman might say ; and, consider 
 ing the degrading assumption of your proposition, I allege its 
 superiority." 
 
 " I am but a poor proficient in languages, as you know too 
 well, John : to me this seems as beautiful as it can be. But 
 tell me why you think English the best." 
 
 " Perhaps, because you speak it so charmingly, little one! 
 Even its most sibilant sounds come sweet to me from your 
 lips; not to make any account of that slight lisp of yours, 
 which, I have often told you, is rather becoming than other 
 wise." 
 
 " Perhaps I do so on purpose, John ; who knows ? " said 
 she, leaning on his shoulder. 
 
 " Somewhat she lisped for her wantonnesse, 
 To make her English sweet upon her tongue. 
 
 I declare, old Chaucer didn t seem to think the lisping sound 
 so very disagreeable. But you have not answered my ques 
 tion." 
 
 "Well, my love, if you desire a disquisition on language, 
 I shall tell you I consider the English really the superior 
 tongue, upon every fair view of its titles to respect. French, 
 they say, is the language of conversation, perhaps so, 
 though not, in my opinion, to the exclusion of our vernacular. 
 
46 EASTFORD; OR, 
 
 Italian certainly fits best into song, and has many beauties 
 peculiarly its own ; but, it must be confessed, its movement is 
 rather artificial and formal. Spanish is a noble language. 
 Compliments roll from it with incomparable sonorousness. 
 Besides it has plenty of idiomatic phrases, which I consider 
 much in its favor. It betokens genius and originality in the 
 race. The Spaniards are a people of good sense, my dear, 
 and this useful quality stamps itself on a language, in strik 
 ing expressions of individual peculiarity and natural obser 
 vation and homely wisdom. I am not, perhaps, so profoundly 
 versed in these questions, as your blinded eyes lead you to 
 imagine ; but this I should not hesitate to pronounce, that, 
 although the English language possesses none of the most 
 striking characteristics of the others, in their perfection, it has 
 them all to a sufficient degree (saying somewhat less about the 
 softness), and rightfully may claim to be more idiomatic, and 
 ergo, more expressive of sense than either. Then it surpasses 
 them all in copiousness, strength and variety, and in its ca 
 pacity of adaptation to the highest and homeliest purposes of 
 human life. Indeed, this very passage, which is so natural 
 and impressive in its sublime simplicity, according to our com 
 mon translation of Scripture, to me appears comparatively 
 mean and feeble in the versions of other languages." 
 
 " I am content to find it beautiful," she said, repeating the 
 passage again slowly to herself: " There is sorrow on the 
 sea ; it cannot be quiet. There is something dim and 
 mysterious, and awful about it just like the sea. It affects 
 me much as I felt, when I was alone listening to the ocean 
 this evening. I assure you I was quite superstitious." 
 
 * Why so ? the roar of the sea is a natural and not a very 
 uncommon phenomenon." 
 
 "True! But now you are in one of your calm moods; 
 and one might almost think you cold, who did not know how 
 true arid warm your heart is, and how really sensitive you are 
 to whatever is grand and beautiful in nature." 
 
HOUSEHOLD SKETCHES. 47 
 
 " You have always done your best to spoil me, Jule ; but 
 I trust my calmness arises from reflection and habitual self- 
 possession, rather than want of earnest feeling. I acknowl 
 edge deeply the mysterious and indefinable influence of the 
 ocean ; but, nevertheless, I shall not unresistingly submit 
 myself to an unknown fear." 
 
 " But don t you think, you are more than ever impressed 
 with a sort of unspeakable awe in the presence of the ocean, 
 so vast as it is, and so terrible ? " 
 
 " Perhaps, except amongst mountains. But it is, after all, 
 to be doubted, whether these wonderful objects of nature are 
 more significant manifestations of him who created them, than 
 those more ordinary exhibitions, which we are only too much 
 inclined to disregard. At the rock of Horeb, God was neither 
 in the wind, nor the earthquake, nor the fire, but in the * still 
 small voice ! Or, perhaps, His word would teach us, that 
 the terrors with which sensible objects are sometimes clothed 
 afford not such absolute emblems of His general designs towards 
 us, as those gentler admonitions, which are constantly appealing 
 to our consciences and common sensibilities. I urge no argu 
 ment, my love, in derogation of the influence, which the sub- 
 limer aspects of creation should awaken in our souls. Our 
 consciousness is none too active, as it is; and it is to be fearel, 
 we should become altogether insensible, if we were not some 
 times startled from our sluggishness, by extraordinary apparent 
 variations in the course of nature and in the sensible aspect of 
 external things." 
 
 " I a m almost afraid to tell you of another circumstance, 
 which I am ashamed to say may have disturbed me a little. 
 It was so silly ! " 
 
 " 0, let us have it by all means." 
 
 " But, will you promise not to laugh at me ? " 
 
 " My dearest love, I am at present adamant against the 
 most insidious approaches of mirth." And he drew her tow 
 ard him, and into a position, where she nestled with affectionate 
 
48 EASTFORD J OR, HOUSEHOLD SKETCHES. 
 
 satisfaction. " But what is this wonderful development ? " 
 he continued. 
 
 " Why, old Mrs. Dowling, you know, came in this afternoon 
 to make a call. Her son is at sea, and I suppose she is full of 
 apprehensions, poor body, especially after this terrible storm. 
 To be sure, Henry Dowling is not expected on the coast for a 
 good while ; but, no doubt, she thinks the storm extends 
 all over the world. Well, she says, that the mirror, which 
 has hung in their front parlor these forty years, cracked last 
 night from top to bottom. A sure sign of something awful to 
 happen very soon, she says it is ; and she felt so low, she thought 
 she would come over and have a little chat with me ; and 
 she told me so many terrible stories, that I got really nervous 
 before she went. She says that their house shook so with the 
 wind, too, they could hardly lie in their beds." 
 
 " Yes, I think she was well set to work, to come here with 
 her dismals to alarm a woman in your condition ! I can only 
 say, in regard to a lady of her years, that I wish she had 
 evinced more discretion. The old house must have shook 
 hard to break the looking-glass, though." 
 
 " But do you wonder that I became a little, just a little, 
 superstitious ? " 
 
 " O, not at all ! especially as the connection is so obvious 
 between a broken mirror and a mortal calamity." 
 
 " Ah, now you are laughing at me ! " 
 
 "Laughing! I m as grave as a judge. The intimation 
 would certainly seem rather vague, to be thus conveyed by a 
 superior intelligence, to which only future events can be 
 known ; and the only effect of the revelation would be, so far 
 as I can see, to fill the mind beforehand with indefinite pre 
 sentiments of evil, only too soon to present itself in certain 
 shape and dread reality." 
 
 " Have you no faith in presentiments, my dear husband ? " 
 
 " * Sufficient unto the day is the evil thereof. I leave the 
 future to Him who only knows, and alone controls it." 
 
CHAPTER V. 
 
 " The wills above be done ! but I would fain die a dry death." 
 
 TEMPEST. 
 
 THE voices of the surging waves, which had so wrought 
 upon the delicate nervous organization of the young mother, 
 at the parsonage, were, in reality, the retreating echoes of the 
 storm. For nearly three days, it had raged with almost un 
 exampled violence. The congregated clouds had come down 
 close to earth, big with their impending deluge, and opened their 
 fountains of waters. The hurrying blast seemed instinct with 
 life itself, and imagination shaped it into some monstrous in 
 dividuality, as it muttered and growled at night through the 
 lampless streets, and ever and anon it shrieked, as it shook 
 the trembling casements with ineffectual fury. Now and then, 
 the gust would rush upon the big drops, as they fell, and fling 
 them, in quick succession, against the rattling panes. Many 
 a fence lay prostrate, and here and there a chimney toppled 
 from its adhesion, and crashed through some ancient roof, or 
 was tumbled piecemeal into the street. The storm made sad 
 havoc with the gardens. Fruit, and flower, and foliage, suf 
 fered in the general devastation, and mighty limbs of trees 
 were torn from their parent stems, and flung, a melancholy 
 spectacle, to the ground. In a word, it was the Line Gale ! 
 
 It had now abated. The rain had ceased. The scud flew, 
 
 like spectral sails, across the angry-looking heavens. A dreary 
 
 mist stood upon the steaming earth, and hung, in heavy 
 
 masses, over the water. Towards evening it had fallen calm. 
 
 5 
 
50 EASTFORD; OR, 
 
 The wind awoke once more in the night, with sudden violence, 
 as if to blow its parting blast, and bursting, probably, along 
 the current formed by some newly-gathered cloud ; but soon 
 after midnight all again was still. 
 
 Mr. Atherton was awake, at a very early hour the next 
 morning, and, as the late weather had seriously interfered 
 with his usual habits of exercise, he arose softly, intending to 
 take a breathing before the family were astir. He had saddled 
 his horse, accordingly, and rode out of the town, through 
 streets which, at that early hour, had scarcely resumed the 
 activities of life. Nature slumbered in profound repose. 
 There was evident promise of a fine day ; though the mist 
 hung drooped in massive folds, over the river, to be seen from 
 the high road, and upon the more distant waters of the bay. 
 
 Mr. Atherton was a devoted lover and a student of nature in 
 all her moods ; and, as he listened to the thundering peal of 
 the surf upon the beach, distinctly audible, beneath the quiet 
 of the dawning hour, he quickened the pace of his horse, and 
 pushed forward, with the purpose of getting a glimpse of 
 Ocean, in the throes with which he smooths away the wrinkles 
 of his azure brow. His path led along by the habitations of 
 fishermen and sailors, and here and there some scattered farm 
 houses, inhabited by a hybrid population of diverse pursuits, 
 stood, at intervals, on the uplands which skirted far-extending 
 meadows. 
 
 As he rode along the causeway that led to the sea, he had 
 observed some movements towards the beach ; and upon 
 mounting over the sandy hillocks, which had hitherto con 
 cealed the ocean from view, he was surprised to find himself 
 close upon a group of, perhaps, twenty or thirty persons, 
 standing by the edge of the shore. 
 
 The occasion of this collection of people, at such an unusual 
 moment, was soon manifest. Through the mist, that was now 
 lifting under the influence of the morning sun, it was easy to 
 distinguish, though imperfectly, the hull of a vessel, stranded 
 
HOUSEHOLD SKETCHES. 51 
 
 at no great distance from the main land. The foremast ap 
 parently had been cut away, or, at all events, was gone by 
 the board. She seemed to be a schooner of more than a 
 hundred tons burthen, and lay fast imbedded on a shoal of 
 sand, not far from the mouth of the river, and maybe not more 
 than eighty or a hundred yards from the shore. Indeed, this 
 mass of sand was situated nearly at one extremity of a sand 
 bar, which extended, in a crescent shape, outwards, across the 
 mouth of the river itself, and upon which the sea was now 
 tossing and foaming with impetuous violence. Between the 
 position of the ill-fated vessel and the beach, the outgoing 
 tide set with frightful rapidity. As the waters of the river 
 debouched into the ocean, the current swept swiftly around a 
 headland upon this side of the bay, and, keeping this lateral 
 course, with gradually-diminishing velocity, ran, for a certain 
 distance, nearly parallel with the line of the shore. The 
 tumbling and mingling waves of the ocean, therefore, as they 
 rushed forward to expend their rage, here struck the current, 
 as it might be in flank or crosswise, with irresistible fury ; and 
 thus howling and struggling in fierce embrace, they flung 
 themselves prostrate together, with one bursting and savage 
 yell, upon the trembling, and reiinswering strand. 
 
 In consequence of the position of the vessel, her stern was 
 considerably elevated above the line of her bows; and though 
 the sea frequently made a clear breach over her, and she 
 shook, as it were, convulsively, at every terrible stroke, it was 
 evident that her after-part was far less exposed, than the rest 
 of the vessel, to the full violence of the tremendous and resist 
 less element. Indeed, the storm, as we have remarked, had 
 abated soon after midnight, and the sea itself had partially 
 gone down, or it is probable she would have been entirely 
 engulfed and destroyed long before morning. Far up her 
 main-rigging hung a human being, whose occasional cries, 
 heart-piercing to hear, were yet scarcely audibly articulate, 
 through the roar of the waters. No other sign of life was 
 
52 EASTFORD J OR, 
 
 visible. The rest of the ship s company, it might well be, had 
 been washed from the deck and instantly perished in the 
 seething waves. To an experienced eye, it was obvious, that 
 she might go to pieces at any moment ; and, indeed, it was a 
 wonder, how the best-built vessel, in such a state, could hold 
 together at all. It was certain she could not have been in 
 that position a great many hours. 
 
 As the improving clearness of the atmosphere afforded oppor 
 tunity to scrutinize her condition more closely, it was apparent 
 that the schooner did not lie broadside to the beach ; but had 
 drifted or been driven, stern-foremost, towards the shore. In 
 fact, she had been forced almost entirely across the narrow 
 spit of sand on which she lay, probably by the force of some 
 single wave ; so that from her stern to her main-chains she 
 seemed really clear ; and the keen eye of a sailor soon dis 
 covered that she had one cable, if not two, out forward, so 
 that she had evidently dragged her anchors to this position ; 
 and " these," as he judiciously remarked, " kept her nose 
 down." In reality, therefore, under her stern and part of her 
 quarter, there was a partial lee, though of an aspect so fear 
 ful, that no one would be induced to take advantage of it, 
 except on the sailor s doctrine of " any port in storm." 
 
 All these circumstances, with the quick and accurate obser 
 vation of seamen, had been carefully noted, by the men upon 
 the beach, by the time Mr. Atherton had ridden up. 
 
 44 Is it possible for you to do anything for these poor crea 
 tures, my friends ? " was his inquiry of heartfelt earnestness. 
 
 44 Well, sir," said one, touching his hat respectfully, and 
 whom he at once recognized as Captain Benson, one of his 
 congregation, and an enterprising young ship-master of the 
 town, and well known as one of the lieutenants of that famous 
 and fortunate privateer the 4 Fire-eater," which ran the 
 gauntlet so successfully in" a gale of wind, with her flag flying, 
 through an English fleet, off the capes of the Delaware, in 
 the last war, happily brought to a close, not long before, 
 
HOUSEHOLD SKETCHES. 53 
 
 "Well, sir," said Captain Benson, "it s hardly possible. 
 Boats have lived, perhaps, in as ugly a sea ; the chances are 
 against it. But the great trouble is, to get off the beach at 
 all, without swamping her, with such a surf running. Here s 
 a good boat enough, which they keep in this boat-house, up 
 the shore, in case of accident ; but I hardly see how we can 
 make any use of it." 
 
 " I ve seen sich a job done, though, in the Injy seas, by the 
 Masullah boats, where the rollers allers come in almost, 
 maybe not quite so bad, as they do here now," said one 
 weather-beaten tar, obviously long familiar with 
 
 " The battle and the breeze," 
 
 / 
 
 and whose head was decorated with a south-wester, his broad 
 shoulders, with a red baize shirt, and whose hair, gathered 
 into an immense club, depended halfway down his back. 
 
 " So have I, Jack," said Captain Benson, " and seen the 
 crews drowned, too, more than once." 
 
 " There s only one man aboard, as I can see," observed 
 Jack Holliday, looking at the vessel carefully, with one eye 
 shut, and holding his hand over the other ; " but I s pose life a 
 as dear to him as any of us ; maybe more so, now he s likely 
 to lose it." 
 
 " I will go with you myself, my friends," cried Mr. Ather- 
 ton, leaping from his horse, " if it be possible to undertake the 
 enterprise." 
 
 "Why, as to enterprise, sir," said Holliday, "I believe 
 Yankee sailors are about as enterprising as anybody. I can 
 pull as good a stroke-oar now as I ever could in my life, and 
 there s nobody, mayhap, to care much about me, now my old 
 mother s in heaven ; and, sink or swim, I m ready to go for 
 one, if the captain here 11 undertake to steer the dory." 
 
 " 0, sir," said Captain Benson, in reply to Mr. Atherton, 
 "you mustn t think of it for a moment. Excuse me, sir, but 
 5* 
 
54 EASTFORD; on, 
 
 skill is quite as important here as courage ; and your services 
 are needed elsewhere. As Holliday says, Yankee seamen 
 will do whatever can be done ; and, at least, as old Miller 
 said in the last war, * I 11 try, sir. Who 11 go here ? " 
 
 " My most fervent prayers shall go with you, captain," 
 said the minister, warmly grasping him by the hand. " I see 
 that it is very hazardous, but it is our duty to attempt all 
 that is possible to save human life." 
 
 Having resolved to undertake the perilous adventure, the 
 brave seaman was prompt in execution. There was no diffi 
 culty in finding a crew, where all were ready to share the com 
 mon danger; and, by general consent, he, having been se 
 lected to lead the party, chose three other stout fellows, whose 
 qualities he understood, together with Holliday, to accompany 
 him on his dangerous errand. The boat which, for the purpose 
 of meeting such emergencies as might arise, on a coast so exposed 
 to marine disasters, was maintained in a convenient place, by 
 some benevolent individuals or association, under the charge 
 of the light-keeper, was sufficiently well adapted to the pur 
 pose. She was light, but well constructed and strong, rather 
 long for her beam, sharp forward and aft, and clinker-built, 
 with her gunwales inclining inwards, and almost as buoyant as 
 an Indian canoe. She was slightly ballasted, however, but 
 had nothing else in her, except lines, which might prove of 
 use, her complement of oars, and the proper utensils for bail 
 ing. 
 
 " Now, my lads," cried the captain, " we 11 choose the best 
 place we can for shoving her off, and run her down the beach, 
 as far into the surf as will do, and take advantage of it as it 
 goes out. It runs back, you know, in a jiffy. Stand, men, 
 all ready, and when I give the word * Now ! push her into it, 
 and jump for your lives." 
 
 Accordingly, the place and the moment were judiciously 
 selected. Allowing more than one ugly-looking roller to 
 break over their limbs, as not presenting, in their leader s 
 
HOUSEHOLD SKETCHES. 55 
 
 judgment, the favorable opportunity, and standing bent for 
 ward, with their hands firmly grasping the gunwale of the 
 boat, the word at length was suddenly given, and the daring 
 feat as judiciously and skilfully executed. They had tumbled 
 into the boat the moment she floated clear. Wet, of course, 
 to the skin, and their frail bark half filled with water ; she was 
 seen a moment after, tossed and dancing like a feather, upon 
 the boiling and angry wave. 
 
 They had all thrown off their upper garments on the beach, 
 and now, with shirt-sleeves rolled to their shoulders, two of 
 the men were pulling for life, the other two were bailing 
 with desperate energy, and the captain, in the stern-sheets, 
 was holding her as hard as possible with his oar. 
 
 Scarcely ten minutes had elapsed, from the moment the 
 project was started, until now, that the fragile-looking little 
 thing, scarcely discernible as she fell with the falling wave, 
 was battling with an element of such seeming superiority. 
 
 The people on the shore, who had hailed her first appear 
 ance on the surface of the water, with a cheer, 
 
 " Not loud, but deep," 
 
 were now watching her further progress with intense interest 
 and anxiety. 
 
 " By Heaven ! they 11 do it ! " exclaimed one young fellow, 
 who had been ready enough to go with the others, but whom 
 the captain had excluded on the ground, that he was the only 
 son of his mother, and she was a widow. 
 
 " I tell you, young man," said one elderly personage, who 
 might, in fact, be seventy years of age or upwards, and who 
 
 " Mounched, and mounched, and mounched," 
 
 at something in his mouth, which distended his lanthorn- 
 jaws, when they were still, like a good-sized pebble stone, and 
 whose breast probably had long lost any embers of fire, which 
 might have animated his younger days ; " I tell you it s 
 
56 EASTFORD J OR, 
 
 easier to get into a scrape, than t is to get out of one. I 
 larnt that many a good year ago. My mind is, it s a clear 
 tempting of Providence, and a taking of the work out of the 
 Lord s hands." 
 
 " Well, Uncle Josh," was the reply, " we won t talk about 
 scrapes at such a time. I hope I shan t have the benefit of 
 your experience. Heavens ! how she jumped over that wave ! 
 I only pray Providence will help these good fellows as they 
 deserve ! " 
 
 It was a beautiful but fearful thing, to witness this mortal 
 conflict between manly courage, and spirit, and intelligence, 
 and skill, on the one side, and, on the other, the blind, tumult 
 uous, terrible energy of the ever awful and too often con 
 quering sea ! 
 
 No human imagination has been able to contrive an adequate 
 personification of Ocean, bursting and bellowing, in his fury, 
 from his multitudinous caves ! Not that howling monster, 
 who hurled the rocks of the mountain after Ulysses and his 
 companions, says aught like him, when he issues from beneath 
 and utters his accents of dread. The cerulean chariot of the 
 god of the ancients may be fancied mounting from its depths, 
 and riding triumphant over the peaceful wave. But when 
 Ocean covers his face with storms, his aspect suggests only 
 that infinite Power, which first created, and at his pleasure 
 pronounces " Be still ! " 
 
 As the boat passed through the waters, the minister of 
 Eastford stood upon the beach in earnest and audible prayer. 
 
 In a moment or two, it was evident, through the partial 
 mist and mingling spray, that the hardy fellows had actually 
 reached the unfortunate vessel, and while two of the men were 
 carefully holding the boat with their oars, a third, with 
 another oar, was at her head to keep her from being dashed 
 against the schooner s side. Apparently, Captain Benson had 
 exchanged places with one of the hands and stooped close in 
 the boat s bows. At some favorable moment, as it seemed, 
 
HOUSEHOLD SKETCHES. 57 
 
 she was permitted to come as near as safety would permit, and 
 in an instant he had sprung into the chains and taken a turn 
 with the painter, which soon gave the boat more play, and 
 helped also to steady her. It was the work of a very few 
 moments for him to run up the rigging, and to help, in his 
 progress down, the man who had apparently lashed himself in 
 the position indicated. This person seemed able to assist 
 himself somewhat, and, at length, with considerable difficulty, 
 and after two or three unsuccessful efforts, was taken into the 
 boat. 
 
 It was now thought that Captain Benson would at once 
 resume his place, and make the best of his only too difficult 
 way to land. To the terror of his friends on shore, who 
 were watching these proceedings with straining eyes, and 
 occasionally spying through a not very serviceable glass, 
 which had been hastily caught up by some one on his way, 
 and which was passed from hand to hand, the gallant seaman 
 had suddenly disappeared. In the midst of their comments 
 and ejaculations, however, he was soon again seen at the 
 schooner s chains, with one arm around the rigging, while 
 at the same time, he held closely towards him some light- 
 colored object, which might be, it was thought, a human being 
 enveloped in a blanket or other bed-clothes. Whatever it 
 was, he had evidently contrived to reef some extempore 
 tackle around it, and finally, by extraordinary exertions of 
 himself and his companions, and after she had several times 
 been permitted to come up and fall off again, the burthen 
 was safely received, and deposited in the bottom of the danc 
 ing boat. 
 
 It was far less difficult for Captain Benson, active and 
 steady as he was. to assume his own station on board the now 
 more deeply loaded little craft; although, at ordinary times, 
 she was, to be sure, competent to convey a much more numer 
 ous company. Her head was now" to- the shore ; and, perhaps, 
 after all, the most dangerous, if not the most difficult part of 
 
58 EASTFOUD; OR, HOUSEHOLD SKETCHES. 
 
 the enterprise remained to be accomplished. Indeed, as soon 
 as they left the vessel s side, except for the steersman, and for 
 the purpose of keeping the boat as steady as possible, the oars 
 were entirely useless. It needed in reality but a second, as it 
 seemed, and one or two mighty heaves of the incoming surge, 
 to present that apparently helpless and hopclesis company in 
 their frail bark, now almost submerged, as the lifting wave 
 yielded beneath her pressure, poised and suspended, as it 
 were, in the very jaws of the combing waters, above the heads 
 of their horror-stricken friends on the shore. Holding fast by 
 a strong line, secured far up, these stood almost at the verge 
 of the shelving bank, and the waters swept over their limbs, 
 as they rushed onwards, or receded from the beach. 
 
 The instant and utter destruction of the boat s crew seemed 
 really inevitable. No other final hope could look forlorn like 
 theirs. If there could be a possibility of escape, it was that 
 the shore was very bold at this point, in consequence, no doubt, 
 of the lateral action of the tide, and thus the main force of the 
 surf expended itself upon the almost perpendicular face of 
 beaten sand. 
 
 At this moment of terrible uncertainty, one daring fellow 
 stood curled, or was, perhaps, upon his knees, in the bow of the 
 boat. On his arm he held a short coil of rope, which had 
 been knotted to the painter, with, perhaps, some kind of weight 
 attached to its end. As she rushed forward with the impulse 
 of the descending wave, he flung it far and quickly towards 
 the shore. There were ready hands to catch, and, with in 
 stant speed, the friends of the devoted crew, with the rope 
 tightened over their shoulders, were springing up the beach. 
 The wave fell ! In another instant, the shattered boat and 
 its drenched and half-stunned company were strewed upon the 
 sandy beach, and far from the fury of the baffled and now 
 retiring surge. 
 
CHAPTER VI. 
 
 " Wo bear her home ! we bear her home ! 
 Over the murmuring salt-sea foam." 
 
 BAKUY CORNWALL. 
 
 * And all my knowledge is, that joy is gone, 
 And this thing, woe, crept in among our hearts, 
 There to remain forever, as I fear." 
 
 KEATS. 
 
 BUT the men were soon again upon their feet, being more or 
 less accustomed to hard thumpings; and the lady, for lady it 
 proved to be, with a feebly-wailing infant closely pressed to 
 her bosom, seemed herself to be suffering more from ex 
 haustion and fear, than from the violence of the shock. In 
 fact, at the moment of that fearful plunge, Jack Holliday had 
 seized the helpless burthen in his arms ; and, having thus par 
 tially put himself hors de combat, had sustained, in his own 
 broad and tough person, the principal force of the concussion, 
 and came off, as he chose to put the case, " cheap enough, with 
 only a broken arm." Amongst the rest were distributed, to 
 be sure, 
 
 " Bloody noses and cracked crowns ; " 
 
 the latter, however, only metaphorically, since no one made 
 complaint of serious injury, and nobody pressed them to fur 
 ther developments. 
 
 The lady, with the child, was speedily and tenderly con 
 veyed to the nearest dwelling-house, about half a mile distant, 
 extended upon a pea-jacket, converted into a litter for the 
 occasion, four stout fellows holding the several corners. The 
 
60 EASTFORD J OR, 
 
 party was received by the good womnn, the farmer s wife, with 
 ready and somewhat voluble hospitality. One of her sons, 
 at least, had been with the men upon the beach, and had 
 assisted in bringing the patient to her house. 
 
 " Massy sake alive ! " cried the good-natured and rather 
 portly dame, meeting the procession at the door, and quite as 
 much flurried, perhaps, by the unusual assemblage, as alarmed 
 at an incident which she did not yet fully understand, and giv 
 ing vent first to her maternal feelings, " Massy sake alive, 
 John ! where have you been all the morning, without your 
 breakfast? What! a lady drowndcd ! 0, come in! yes, 
 indeed! Fetch the poor body in. Lord-a-massy ! What! 
 and a dear little drownded baby, too ! 0, dear ! Here, 
 Betty, you great oaf, stir round, and do something or other. 
 Fetch her right into the kitchen, this way, folks, where the 
 fire is. Put her into father s great chair, till I get the bed 
 ready. You, Bet, why don t you do something? Lor, I 
 declare, if this an t Mr. Atherton ! How do you do, sir ? 
 Let me wipe a seat. I hope you 11 sit down in the house, 
 sir ! " 
 
 A comfortable bed for the suffering lady was soon ready, 
 and a rousing fire, constructed principally or altogether of dry 
 wreck-stuff, by the hands of Bet, was quickly burning on the 
 hearth. Upon stripping off, with the assistance of a female 
 neighbor or two who had come in, the heavy and soaking gar 
 ments of the sufferer, to replace them with such other clothing 
 as could be had, while Bet, a bouncing lass of twenty, out of 
 some reserved store of her own, probably, performed the same 
 kind offices for the infant near the fire, and, upon wiping 
 and slightly arranging her bewildered hair, she evidently 
 appeared, even in her present disordered condition, 
 
 " a lady fair to sec, 
 
 Beautiful exceedingly." 
 
 It would be BO unfair to her, however, to enter into particu- 
 
HOUSEHOLD SKETCHES. 61 
 
 Jars upon this subject, in her present dishevelled circumstances, 
 that we feel bound to defer this pleasurable task to a more 
 favorable opportunity. 
 
 Indeed, it is high time that our friend Mr. Atherton, who 
 has been as kind and attentive to the young lady (for she was 
 also young) as the warmest heart in the world could prompt 
 him to be, was looking a little after matters at his own fire 
 side. Accordingly, having stated his intention to return 
 speedily with a physician, he mounted his horse, which a lad, 
 who led him up from the beach, had held at the door (for he 
 had himself walked by the side of the litter), and rode sharply 
 along the causeway, on his road to Eastford. 
 
 But, before he arrives there, it would be well to explain 
 one or two points, upon which this narrative has hitherto 
 omitted to dwell. The reason of Captain Benson s appearance, 
 and of the gathering described upon the shore, at so early an 
 hour, was this. The captain had been anxious, during the 
 gale, on account of a vessel, with a valuable cargo, in which 
 he was considerably interested ; in fact, the schooner " Sally 
 Forth," now daily expected home from the West Indies, and 
 which was rather too much out of time. During the lull of 
 the afternoon before, he had driven down to the beach, at 
 early evening, and had there learned, from one of those char 
 acters who are always to be found loitering about such places, 
 some story of a vessel indistinctly seen through the misty 
 storm, shaken apart for a moment; and, according to the 
 account, she was anchored in a situation, which, if the wind 
 should blow heavily during the night, might well give occasion 
 for considerable apprehension. Now, the " Sally Forth " was 
 not insured. Having, therefore, talked the affair over, more 
 or less, with certain friends and adherents, upon his return to 
 town, and having made such appointments as were convenient, 
 with some of them, to go down with him early in the. morn 
 ing, he had passed a night of very little sleep, especially when 
 the gale recommenced before midnight ; and one or two near 
 6 
 
62 EASTFORD J OR, 
 
 friends, and some sailors, who had been voyages with him, or 
 expected to sail with him again, had met him on the beacli ; 
 and with them had come together people from the water-side, 
 whom they had called for on their way, besides a few of such 
 occasional stragglers as are always looking out for the conse 
 quences to be seen, and, perhaps, picked up, on the heel of a 
 storm, by carefully tending the sea-shore. 
 
 The stranded vessel, however, did not prove to be the " Sally 
 Forth " (which stanch schooner, it may as well be stated 
 here, safely arrived, some days later, deeply laden with an 
 assorted cargo of sugar and coffee, and a certain quantity of 
 molasses, all then commanding a high price), but was a vessel, 
 flour-loaded, called a " packet," from her taking an occasional 
 passenger or so, and was from the port of Philadelphia, bound 
 cast. The man, saved from the rigging, was her master. As 
 was too truly feared, all others of the ship s company had 
 perished ! She had got caught in the gale, and had made a 
 hard struggle to keep off. She had, however, been finally 
 driven into the bay, and had come to anchor, with both cables 
 out, not far from the position mentioned to Captain Benson by 
 his informant of the previous evening. The ground was not 
 good to hold ; she was altogether too close in, and had dragged, 
 and gone on in the night, during the final burst of the gale. 
 
 The master had informed Captain Benson that there was a 
 female below. With little hope of being able to save her, if 
 alive, or even to get below at all, he had, nevertheless, has 
 tened to make the attempt, and soon found that, though the 
 schooner was nearly full of water, yet, in consequence of the 
 comparative elevation of her stern, it was hardly up to his 
 armpits at the foot of the companion-way, and diminished in 
 depth, as he ascended towards the after part of the vessel. 
 The berth in which he discovered the lady, certainly more 
 dead than alive, was so far aft, that the water had not reached 
 it, except when some roll of the vessel would dash a portion 
 of it over her peivon. It was no time for words, scarcely for 
 
HOUSEHOLD SKETCHES. OJ 
 
 reflection. A rope he had brought with him from the boat, 
 which he had previously made fast to the schooner s shrouds, 
 and which he had led along with him into the cabin, to serve 
 not only, like the labyrinthine thread, as a clue, but also, if 
 need were, as a stay and helper, by which to regain the deck. 
 "With this line passed more than once around his own body, and 
 so attached to the shrouds of the vessel, he had secured the 
 free action of both his arms, as he stood upon the schooner s 
 main-chains; and then, as he used to say, " he scarcely knew 
 how," he had managed to hand the lady and her infant, to 
 which she clung convulsively, wrapped together in the blankets 
 of her berth, to one of the men below, as the boat rose upon 
 the waves, and thus succeeded, with great difficulty, in getting 
 the half-lifeless but precious burden into the frail and tossing 
 barque. 
 
 In the mean time, the parsonage at Eastford had been in a 
 state of no little agitation, if not alarm. The breakfast hour 
 was long passed. It was known, of course, that Mr. Ather- 
 ton must have ridden out, as his horse was gone from the 
 stable. No anxiety was felt in regard to his absence, until the 
 morning had advanced an hour or more beyond the usual 
 period of that morning meal. And then conjecture began to 
 be busy, and gradually thickened and darkened into a vague 
 apprehension, and the minutes grew to be hours. Mrs. Ather- 
 ton could scarcely endure her painful feelings. Little Georgy 
 had often inquired, 
 
 14 Mamma, why don t dear papa come home ? " 
 
 And she had folded the child to her breast in silent anguish. 
 The maid-servant had come in, more than once, with the 
 announcement, "Ma am, the cakes will be all spiled;" and, 
 finally, " Ma am, they re burnt to a cinder." But to eat 
 without her husband was now out of the question. Unable 
 to rest longer without conference with a friend, she had, at 
 length, sent for her father. 
 
 " My dear Julia," said Dr. Walton, kissing his daughter 
 
64 EASTFORD J OR, 
 
 as he entered, and hearing the statement of her distress, 
 " surely your alarm for your husband is entirely gratuitous. 
 You are only nervous, and have allowed yourself to become 
 unnecessarily wrought up. Mr. Atherton has gone out for a 
 morning ride, that is evident, and, probably, the fine weather 
 after the storm has tempted him to ride further than he in 
 tended. He is inclined to be a little absent-minded at times, 
 you know, my love, and, in enjoying nature, has forgotten, for 
 the moment, what he professes to consider one of her most 
 charming pieces of workmanship." 
 
 " 0, no, my dear father ! you are only flattering me to try to 
 amuse me and divert my attention. You know he never for 
 gets; he prides himself on being punctual; it s the only tiling 
 that sometimes disturbs me a little. And then he never does 
 forget me ; and he is so regularly at home, and never will 
 even spend a night away ; and he knows how anxious I shall 
 be about him ; and 0, I in sure something dreadful must 
 have happened ! " Sobs had interrupted, and now choked, 
 Mrs. Athcrtou s speech. 
 
 " Nonsense ! my child ; I beg you to use your good sense 
 to control a little your excited feelings." 
 
 " Massa Atterton find some poor sick body want him good 
 ways off," suggested a sympathizing voice at the door, recog 
 nized at once as that of Black Nance, an occasional inmate of 
 the minister s kitchen, who now poked her woolly head inside 
 of the apartment, arrayed in a handkerchief, in which the 
 brilliant color of yellow predominated, and put in her word 
 of comfort. 
 
 This person was, in fact, a negress of extraordinary height 
 and size, as well as of extraordinary character. Her appear 
 ance might signify her age to be not much, if any, beyond the 
 middle period of life. Her complexion, though riot of the 
 blackest, was dark enough to indicate that she had little, and 
 perhaps no mixture of blood in her veins. She had discov 
 ered that her uncommon size and remarkable aspect (for she 
 
HOUSEHOLD SKETCHES. 65 
 
 might be called fine-looking) were calculated to inspire awe 
 amongst the youngsters and the more superstitious portion of 
 the community ; and she had improved this influence to the 
 best of her ability. Her gait, like Catiline s, as described by 
 Sallust, was now quick, now slow ; and she would change from 
 one style of motion to the other with singular and unaccount 
 able rapidity. She would also come to a sudden stand in 
 the street, and, with a graceful movement of her arms, and a 
 stately turn of her head, would roll her eyes about, as if 
 gazing upon vacancy, or something not visible to other human 
 organs of sight ; and thereupon would start off suddenly, at a 
 pace, as if to use an expression attributed to Dick Western, 
 the stable-boy " she was bent," Dick profanely sup 
 plying the hiatus with a syllable not to be mentioned " to ears 
 polite." 
 
 " What ! are you there ? W T hat do you know about it, 
 Nancy ? " said the doctor. 
 
 " Don t Nance see de minister come home agin, all bright 
 and handsome as ever ? Some folks know something, too, well 
 as other folks." 
 
 " You think you see a good many things nobody else can, 
 Nance ! I can t tell why the minister harbors you here. 
 But, if you see so much, I wish you would tell us where he is 
 now., there d be some sense in that." 
 
 This was an unlucky speech ; for it shook his daughter s 
 confidence in the judgment he had given, and set her out 
 again. 
 
 " 0, father ! " she cried, " I know you are only trying to 
 comfort me. I know you think about it just as I do ! I m 
 sure " 
 
 " Horse-tramp ; hear him come, now ! " broke in Nance, 
 with her strong, but not unmusical voice. 
 
 In fact, her acuter senses had enabled her first to distinguish 
 what soon became audible to others, the clatter of hoofs 
 along the street, and, in another moment, Mr. Atherton threw 
 6* 
 
66 EASTFORD ; OR, 
 
 his bridle over a post, and, hot from his ride, entered the 
 apartment, and his wife flung herself upon his breast. 
 
 Joy for the recovered treasure seemed to obliterate, for the 
 moment, the memory of its recent loss. But Mr. Atherton 
 hastily explained the cause of his detention, and proposed to 
 Dr. Walton to accompany him back immediately to the house 
 of farmer Joslin. 
 
 " 0, my dear fellow, that won t do at all ! Three or four 
 hours of such service are quite enough for one morning ; and, 
 as I suppose you have had no breakfast, I was just about 
 ordering you a calefacient, in the shape of a cup of coffee." 
 
 " How thoughtless I am ! and I know I must have seemed 
 very foolish," said Mrs. Atherton, wiping her eyes, to which 
 the reflux of her feelings had brought those pleasant tears 
 which relieve and quiet the heart. " But I 11 not consent to 
 your going down again to this awful scene. You look as pale 
 as death now, and ought to have rest, instead of more excite 
 ment, and you not very well either." And now, getting into 
 good spirits, " No, I don t think I can spare you out of my 
 sight again at present. I mean to watch you a good deal 
 hereafter, 0, so close, you can t think ! and to take care 
 you shall not go off again in a hurry, on any knight-errant 
 expeditions after drowning ladies. But how did the poor soul 
 look ? You have told us nothing about it. I ve an idea that 
 people taken from the water are frightful spectacles. Is she 
 young or old ? " 
 
 " Quite young, not so old as yourself, I should think." 
 
 " Indeed ! Not really good-looking, was she ? " 
 
 " Very handsome, I assure you." 
 
 " Dear me ! It s really high time some one were seeing 
 into this affair. I must be trying to discover whether Nancy, 
 here, or some other deep personage, has not given you an inti 
 mation that a quite young and * very handsome lady was 
 all ready to be rescued from drowning this morning by the 
 gay and gallant minister of Eastford ! " 
 
HOUSEHOLD SKETCHES. 67 
 
 " I did not rescue her, my love ; it was Captain Benson. 
 And now that Polly has brought in the breakfast, for which, 
 I confess, I feel a reasonable appetite, let me tell you I 
 should not be surprised, from such inspection as I could make 
 of the features of this lady, if she proved to be an old ac 
 quaintance of your own." 
 
 " A friend of mine ! Who can it be ? " 
 
 " I said an acquaintance, not a friend, Julia. In my opin 
 ion, she will be very likely to turn out to be Susan Bell, of 
 the * Upper Village, who was considered so very pretty, and 
 whose father removed to Pennsylvania several years since." 
 
 " Susan Bell ! " 
 
 " Yes ; and whom young May was so desperate for, and 
 followed, and married, after her father s failure." 
 
 " I believe her father did not long survive his misfortunes," 
 said the doctor. 
 
 " So I have heard. I do not positively assert, that I recog 
 nized her to be Mrs. May. She was scarcely able to open her 
 eyes, or to speak. She has been away some time, and the 
 faces of pretty girls make a very transient impression on me, 
 you know, Jule ? " 
 
 " Yes," rather dryly, and looking a little cunning. 
 
 " Let me see, I think she has no near relations here, 
 now, except her mother s sister, Miss Sybil Dudley," observed 
 Dr. Walton, who had seated himself at the table with the 
 family, and " improved upon " (as he expressed it) his early 
 breakfast, followed by professional avocations, by a liberal 
 slice of broiled salmon, which he was now devouring, and a 
 stout cup of coffee. In fact, the breakfast proved to be excel 
 lent, notwithstanding Polly s depreciatory statement, and, 
 indeed, Mr. Atherton preferred the cakes " well done." Lit 
 tle Georgy had been upon his father s knee, proposing several 
 questions, often easier to ask than to answer. 
 
 " I think she has none," said he, " and it never occurred to 
 
68 EASTFORD J OR, HOUSEHOLD SKETCHES. 
 
 me before ; but it would be well for me to ride up, and inform 
 that lady of this calamity immediately." 
 
 " Certainly. In the mean time I will get out my chaise, 
 instead of the sulky, and follow you to her house, to take her 
 down with me, as, no doubt, she will be anxious to be with 
 her niece immediately ; that is, if a maiden lady of a certain age 
 has no objections to riding alone with a widower of my standing." 
 
 " A lady may have objections, and not make them, father, 
 according to circumstances." 
 
 " Yes, and she may make them, but not have them ! But 
 de lion apparentibus et non existentibus eadem est ratio. I Ml 
 bother you with a little Latin, in payment of your criticism ; 
 and so, good-morning to you, Madam Julia Atherton." 
 
 We sincerely trust, that none of our judicious readers will 
 be so uncharitable as to imagine, because Mrs. Atherton had 
 been so disturbed by her husband s not very prolonged absence, 
 that she was, therefore, a lady given to hysterical affections. 
 Far from it. But, besides that the circumstance was so 
 unusual as to be really extraordinary, her condition, as has 
 been before intimated, was now one of peculiar delicacy, more 
 or less affecting the feminine nervous system. She was, in 
 fact, only a devoted and true-hearted wife, full of strong and 
 warm feelings, and loving her husband with an old-fashioned 
 and unhesitating affection. But, in point of general firmness 
 of character, and sound, genuine good sense, she was not sur 
 passed by any lady, with whom we have had the pleasure and 
 happiness to be acquainted. It is to be remembered, also, 
 that she had been somewhat stirred up by worthy Mrs. Dow- 
 ling, the evening before. That good lady occasionally after 
 ward (though never to Mrs. Atherton, the minister took 
 care of that) shook her head very mysteriously, when the 
 wreck was mentioned, and hinted at her broken mirror, as the 
 "forerunner;" though, as she had neither chick nor child, kith 
 nor kin, on board the vessel, the reason of the warning to her 
 especially has continued to this day an unexplained enigma. 
 
CHAPTER VII. 
 
 " Shallow. How a good yoke of bullocks at Stamford fair ? How a 
 score of ewes now ? 
 " Silence. Thereafter as they be." SHAKESPEARE. 
 
 " fool ! to think God hates the worthy mind, 
 The lover and the love of human kind, 
 Whose life is healthful and whose conscience clear, 
 Because he wants a thousand pounds a year." 
 
 POPE. 
 
 MRS. ATIIERTON was naturally anxious to be informed of 
 all further particulars, in regard to the condition of the young 
 and pretty Mrs. May. Far be it from us to impute this 
 laudable desire on the part of that most sweet lady to femi 
 nine curiosity. We are not of that acrid class of dealers 
 with poor human nature, who believe that all its conduct 
 must have some selfish motive at the bottom. As Dr. John 
 son once well remarked, in effect, these persons, by imputing 
 universal baseness to mankind, at least convict themselves. 
 We loathe, and scorn, and detest all such imputations, 
 especially in regard to the fair sex, who arc well known to 
 have " borne and forborne," often under the most provoking 
 circumstances, and in innumerable instances to have been 
 found capable of the most generous and self-sacrificing con 
 duct. Leigh Hunt relates a story, of his mother having once 
 stripped off her flannel petticoat, when it is to be inferred 
 petticoats were scarce with her, in order to put it around the 
 limbs of a poor shivering creature, whose wants had enlisted 
 her sympathies, and who seemed to need as much to be made 
 
70 EASTFORD; OR, 
 
 warm, as to be filled. And, upon our faith and honor as a 
 veritable historian, we are familiar with a precisely similar 
 incident, between a poor berry-woman and an American lady, 
 who had never heard of Leigh Hunt or his excellent mother ; 
 thus showing that feminine feelings are as spontaneously and 
 specifically kind in one part of the habitable globe as another. 
 
 We believe Mrs. Atherton s motives, therefore, to have 
 been entirely pure and disinterested ; and, her spirits having 
 revived, and her husband s strength being much recruited, she 
 made no further objection to his proceeding upon the pro 
 posed excursion. 
 
 His horse, an entirely steady roadster, becoming his cloth, 
 had, in the mean time, been properly cared for, by his boy 
 Tom ; for he was not a man to provide for his own necessi 
 ties and neglect those of his beast. Accordingly, by the time 
 Dr. Walton drove gallantly up, with Miss Sibyl Dudley 
 demurely seated at his left hand, Mr. Atherton was entirely 
 ready for the road. Miss Dudley s handkerchief was at her 
 eyes, but she was a woman of a good deal of spirit, and had 
 evidently made a strong effort to brace herself up for the occa 
 sion. Her bonnet, we would inform our female friends, was a 
 black straw, and the shawl around her shoulders of a dark- 
 gray hue, bordered and fringed with black. In fact, she 
 still wore these colors in memory of her deceased brother, 
 whose death had afflicted her deeply ; and, with the exception 
 of his child, she now stood almost the last relic of a family 
 long and highly respected. 
 
 AVithout alighting from the chaise, the party started 
 together; audit required but half an hour s sharp driving, 
 over a road not all of it in the best condition, to bring them 
 to the house of farmer Joslin. Indeed, part of the way lay 
 through Long-lane, which was then, and still is, quite narrow, 
 and bordered, as is well known, with overhanging apple-trees ; 
 and a portion of which was little better than a bridle-path, 
 or, at most, a drift-way. Still, as it opened upon the main- 
 
HOUSEHOLD SKETCHES. 71 
 
 road, at both extremities, it was a favorite drive, and even 
 walk, with the young people of Eastford ; and thither they 
 often repaired, late in the spring, when the apple-trees Avere 
 in full bloom, or during the summer afternoon, when twilight 
 began to throw its charming and soothing shadows over the 
 scene, and the voices of birds were sweet, returning to 
 their evening nests. Indeed, it was a most rural and romantic 
 path.. And some of the happiest families at Eastford arc 
 said to date the dawn of their subsequent felicity from tender 
 emotions, conceived and interchanged, during twilight or 
 moonlight strolls along that delightfully suggestive road. 
 
 Mr. Joslin s house stood about a quarter of a mile up this 
 lane, and but a few rods from the stone-wall which skirted 
 the road. The house itself was of a description common 
 enough to the times and the situation ; and though much 
 exposed, in so close neighborhood to the sea, yet, except in 
 height, not differing much from the ordinary farm-houses of 
 inland towns that is, it was a story and a half high, and 
 not of very ample dimensions. Of course, it was built of 
 wood, and its walls, as well as the shingles which covered its 
 roof, and which were, here and there, brightened with a patch 
 of moss, were blackened by time and the storm. The rather 
 shabby-looking barn stood at no very great distance, by the 
 open door of which no, that was a little later in the season, 
 when we observed an enormous pyramid of yellow pumpkins, 
 interspersed with squashes of a great variety of shapes and 
 dimensions. Pigeons, however, were now wheeling over the 
 roof of the barn, and settling, from time to time, along its 
 caves and upon the ridge-pole. 
 
 Within, there was but the kitchen, the " keeping-room," and 
 a pantry, together with the principal sleeping apartment, upon 
 the lower floor ; and it seemed as if the further accommoda 
 tions for the necessary refreshment of nocturnal repose must 
 be on a somewhat limited scale above. Many of the domestic 
 offices of the household were performed upon the stoop or 
 
72 EASTFORD J OR, 
 
 lean-to, commonly called li?iter t which faced the south. 
 Although the building was of a moderate age, apparently 
 the owner had not yet had the leisure, or else the means, 
 properly to finish some portions of the interior, for the laths 
 on the walls of the entrance and the pantry were not even 
 covered with plaster. A mirror, which made up in showi- 
 ness what it lacked in value, was suspended between the 
 windows, not all the panes of which were whole. A seaman s 
 chest, painted blue, occupied a place on one side of the 
 kitchen, and a large mahogany folding-desk held an oppo 
 site position. Over the high mantel-piece was a minia 
 ture schooner, of the class known as a " pink," " jigger," 
 or " chebacco boat," not very skilfully carved, it is presumed, 
 with a jack-knife, and fitted with rather clumsy-looking sails 
 of coarse cotton. An agricultural implement or two leaned 
 against the corners, or stood in some part of the passage-way, 
 in which hung a pair of fisherman s boots and a barvel. On 
 the whole, rather an air of discomfort pervaded the inside of 
 the establishment. There was an entire absence of taste, and 
 no little want of care. 
 
 The interior, as well as exterior, of a thriving New 
 England farmer s premises, in our day, indicates usually 
 rather a pride of neatness, and, commonly, the possession of 
 substantial comfort. In general, everything about his 
 household glares only too much with the glitter of paint, 
 which would be much more agreeable, if it were somewhat 
 sobered down. For, although white and green colors mingle 
 prettily enough together, yet, it must be observed that nature 
 seldom presents these very marked and rectangular contrasts. 
 Her fields, and hills, and pastures, and rocks, and trees, are 
 really toned by a subdued and blended tint. And even the 
 soft and delicate whiteness of her silvery birch only, here and 
 there, diversifies the grayer glories of its forest companions. 
 
 As we have observed, there was certainly no waste of 
 paint, or striking contrast of colors, on the house of Mr. 
 
HOUSEHOLD SKETCHES. 73 
 
 Joslin, which presented, on the outside, only that hue, which 
 time and the elements had combined to communicate. Within, 
 it was equally unconscious of extrinsic aid. To do Mrs. 
 Joslin justice, her interior was reasonably clean (for want 
 of neatness is not a New England failing); that is, it was, 
 as she said, " as clean as she could keep it. These men were 
 so dirty and so careless, it war n t of much use trying; but 
 there ! she did her best, and what could a woman do more ? 
 She might scrub, and scrub, and scrub, but t was jest 
 about as dirty, next day, as twas afore! " 
 
 The too promiscuous character of the occupations pursued 
 by the inmates tended very much, no doubt, to produce a 
 good deal of that appearance of neglect which we have indi 
 cated. At a season of the year when their services were 
 needed on the farm, one or more of " the boys " would be 
 absent, for a longer or shorter period, as sharesman in some 
 fishing-trip to Labrador or the Banks. And living as they 
 did, in rather a hodge-podge manner, keeping little account 
 amongst themselves, but all deriving some benefit from the 
 mutual acquisitions, the farmer could hardly refuse the young 
 men the opportunity, which these voyages often afforded, of 
 securing the only ready cash they were likely to obtain, for 
 their fitting-out on their several paths of life. Nor is it 
 likely that they were, when at home, as ready and efficient 
 helpers as they might otherwise have been. A blue jacket 
 ill consorts with a farmer s frock ; and in this way more 
 labor was thrown upon the head of the family, than he well 
 knew how to dispose of. But all the thoughts and feelings 
 of the boys centred in " home ; " to them it had associations 
 and charms, which a stranger meddled not with ; and a new 
 gown to " mother," or " Bet," and perhaps some pecuniary aid 
 afforded to "father," when taxes or other dues were required, 
 in hard times, made all as easy as could be expected, under 
 the circumstances. 
 
 Upon the arrival of our friends, Mr. Joslin, a tall and 
 7 
 
74 EASTFORD J OR, 
 
 rather gaunt-looking man, his shock of gray hair covered 
 with a chip hat, and wearing a farmer s frock of blue-striped 
 cotton stuff, accompanied by one of the boys, stood in the 
 doorway, as if to bar the entrance of the coming guests. 
 This was by no means his purpose or wish, however, but only 
 in accordance with a not uncommon Yankee practice, of 
 standing stiffly in a doorway, which is really intended for 
 the ingress and egress of people, rather than for any such 
 inconvenient use. 
 
 On the contrary, without in the least altering his position, 
 though he bobbed his head, in token of hospitality and re 
 spect, he really welcomed the party to his domicil, offering 
 his hard hand, rather hesitatingly, first wiping it a little on 
 the breast of his frock. He had traded more or less with 
 the gentleman, perhaps with the lady. 
 
 " Happy to see you, Mr. Atherton, sir. 0, how do 
 you do, doctor? The lady 11 come in, I hope. Very pretty 
 day, ma am, after the storm. The poor young woman s 
 easy, they say, now ; she s had a dreadful hard time of it. 
 But I m glad you re come, for I don t know nothing about 
 sich cases, and our women folks have been in a terrible 
 fluster." 
 
 "Has she been asleep?" inquired the doctor, as he hitched 
 his horse, an operation of which neither the host nor his son 
 made any offer to relieve him. 
 
 " Don t know about that, b lieve not. Miss Goodwin 
 Captain Goodwin s wife, up here come over, and wanted to 
 give her something or other; some sort o yarb drink, I 
 b lieve; but I told our folks she shouldn t take none of 
 their stuff, and I would n t have no tampering with the young 
 woman, till the doctor come and see himself what s good for 
 her." 
 
 " I wish everybody had as much sense," replied Dr. Wal 
 ton, as he entered the house, whither his companions had 
 preceded him. Leaving them to await his judgment upon 
 
HOUSEHOLD SKETCHES. 75 
 
 the patient, and marshalled by Mrs. Joslin herself, he 
 entered the apartment where the guest lay, and which com 
 municated with the kitchen. After a due interval, he 
 appeared at the door, and beckoned Miss Dudley to accom 
 pany him into the bed-room. 
 
 " I was away this morning," said Mr. Joslin to Mr. Ath- 
 erton, " when all this happened ; for I d gone out to see 
 about gittin in the rowen, and so I did n t know nothing 
 about the matter, till our John come over the field and told 
 me what was goin on. It s been a pesky bad storm, sir; 
 I never see it blow harder. Vessels sometimes go ashore 
 here not very often ; mostly they get off, after the blow ; 
 and sometimes they re all drownded. But it s curious how 
 they got her out ; there ! t was a right smart job, that 
 ere." 
 
 " It was indeed a most wonderful and providential escape," 
 replied the minister. 
 
 " Miss Goodwin seemed to have an idee she d seen the 
 young woman, up in town somewhere or other ; for her life 
 she can t tell where. But, there, it can t be, I told her ; for 
 this schooner don t hail from here at all, but comes from 
 somewhere south, I believe from Philadelphy." 
 
 " It may be so," said Mr. Atherton, musing. " How has 
 the season been with you, Mr. Joslin ? " 
 
 " Well, can t say much for it. Potatoes is good ; whites 
 better ri or nary ; long reds almost always turn out fair. I 
 meant to bring you up a bag of the whites, sir ; other sarse 
 is reasonable ; corn is poor. I did think we should have a 
 murth of it this year, but the summer s been a leetle too 
 cold a good deal of the time, and Injin corn, you know, sir, 
 must have a hot sun and plenty of it. How s your health 
 been, sir ; and the folks to hum ? " 
 
 " Comfortable, I thank you. You used a word just now, 
 Mr. Joslin, which I am quite sure I never heard before, 
 when you were speaking of the corn-crop." 
 
76 EASTFORD; OR, 
 
 " Do tell ! Well, I declare, that s cur ous ! " scratching 
 his head ; " I thought you knew all the words in the diction 
 ary. Word ! I don t know what word it was, though." 
 
 " Something you said, which sounded like mirth, when you 
 were speaking of the corn." 
 
 " O, yes ! murth, yes, nmrth of corn ; I always say so : 
 my father always used to, and gran f ther too." 
 
 " What do you take it to mean ? " 
 
 " Why, I always thought it meant a good crop ; at any 
 rate, I shouldn t call it a murth this year, haw, haw, 
 haw ! " 
 
 "I never heard the word before. How has your own 
 health been, Mr. Joslin?" 
 
 " Well, I can t say much for it. I did n t feel exactly right 
 in the spring of the year ; and then, I was n t very smart all 
 through cowcumber-time ; but I got better, and then got 
 most down again with rheumatiz ; but I got over that ; and 
 now, I ve got a sort of bad finger ; there, you can see where 
 it s swelled up. Still I keep a doin all the time. Fact is, 
 I have to work most too much for a man of my years, and 
 the times is so hard, if you stop doin you stop goin , right 
 away." 
 
 " You have some good land here, I should think, Mr. 
 Joslin." 
 
 " Yes, it s a good farm ; a dreadful good farm, if t was 
 only well cared for. But I tell my wife I ve a notion of 
 sellin out here, arid packin up and goin off to the Ohio." 
 
 " That s a very long journey and a wild country, Mr. 
 Joslin." 
 
 " So I hear ; but there an t land enough here for all of 
 cm to live on, and I might take one or two of the boys with 
 me and set em out well in the back settlements." 
 
 " Would you be willing to go into the wilderness, Mr. 
 Joslin?" 
 
 Such was Mr. Atherton s question; and such, at that 
 
HOUSEHOLD SCENES. 77 
 
 period, was the general character of that vast north-western 
 territory, then known under the general appellation of " the 
 Ohio," to which the tide of eastern emigration was rapidly 
 setting. Indeed, the name of wilderness might have been 
 well applied, at that time, to a great portion of the Ohio 
 itself, now containing a population of two millions, distributed 
 amongst its beautiful cities and within its extended domains. 
 And the journey thither from the eastern borders of New 
 England, forty years ago, was really more difficult and tedious, 
 than it would be now to the very foot of the Rocky Moun 
 tains themselves. 
 
 " Well, sir," was Mr. Joslin s reply, " we Yankees must 
 keep steppin . I in e ena most tired of this, and I should 
 reely like to see a new country ; where, they say, a man can 
 git a livin almost for nothin , and nobody to molest him, 
 only the Injins and the bears, and they won t trouble you 
 much, if you take care and don t trouble them." 
 
 Upon the reappearance of Dr. Walton, all doubts, if any 
 existed, in regard to the identity of the rescued lady with 
 Mrs. May, were dispelled. Miss Dudley had informed him, 
 when he called at her house, that she was expecting her 
 niece by water ; and the fact, that she would prove to be the 
 lady saved from the stranded vessel, seemed only too prob 
 able, to admit of her hesitating to accompany him at once to 
 the scene. The excellent doctor pronounced his patient to be 
 doing well. 
 
 " All she needs, my dear sir," he said, taking Mr. Ather- 
 ton aside, " is rest, and a fair opportunity to recover from 
 what has been unquestionably a severe shock. In some 
 sense, it is like coming back from the grave, for the poor 
 creature can have had little hope of safety. These people are 
 kind, but it is best she should be where she can receive the 
 attentions of old friends. Familiar faces and forms, the 
 voice of recognized affection, and even a well-known step, 
 have a wonderful influence in thgse cases. After the coin- 
 7* 
 
78 EASTFORD J OR, HOUSEHOLD SKETCHES. 
 
 posing draught, which I have administered, has had its 
 proper effect, I see no reason why she may not be removed 
 to her aunt s residence, this very afternoon." 
 
 "And in regard to the infant, sir? " 
 
 " 0, the young one will do well enough. A little unusual 
 exposure is pretty much all it has had to endure. It s 
 really astonishing how much these little things will bear, 
 tender as they are ! I suppose that unconsciousness really 
 saves them from much, which aggravates the hardships of 
 older people. We bring up our children to anything but Spar 
 tan hardihood. Why, sir, I ve known a poor woman take a 
 baby, of six months, with her to some muster, or some idle 
 show, with which she had no earthly concern, and keep it 
 exposed to a raw wind a whole afternoon ; and I never knew 
 the little creature came to any harm, though very likely it 
 did. But there s a mean in these things, sir, there s a mean. 
 In media tutissimus is generally good sense." 
 
 Leaving Miss Dudley, therefore, with her niece, the gen 
 tlemen departed, having agreed to make arrangements for a 
 carriage to come down, in the course of the afternoon. 
 
CHAPTER VIII. 
 
 * Sweet dimness of the sacred room, 
 I hail thy chaste and sober gloom ! 
 I feel the breeze of mental health, 
 Where calm content and order dwell; 
 The fulness of the poor man s wealth, 
 The freedom of his prison-cell." 
 
 GOETHE. 
 
 " Adversity is like the period of the former and of the latter rain, 
 cold, comfortless, unfriendly to man and to animal ; yet from that sea 
 son have their birth the flower and the fruits, the date, the rose and the 
 pomegranate." THE TALISMAN. 
 
 THIS casual absence of Miss Dudley affords us now an 
 opportunity to make a more minute examination of her resi 
 dence, than we should think decorous, in regard to the sacred 
 home of a maiden-lady, of mature years, in her presence, or 
 unless by special invitation. On the absolute point of age, 
 however, we have really no certain means of information. 
 Miss Dudley was unmarried, and a modest woman ; of course, 
 she said nothing whatever on the subject. We have known 
 those who, at a certain period of life, say, at a time when 
 they chose to call themselves twenty-five, or at most thirty, 
 would seem to come to a stand. With them, either the years 
 did not move at all, or the months possessed a singularly 
 expansive power, and grew very much longer than any term, 
 which the calendar imputes to them ; so that, really, a year 
 might seem to hold, within its mortal round, not merely twelve 
 months, but actually, in some instances, even twelve times 
 
80 EASTFORD ; OK, 
 
 twelve, and so on, to another stop ; and thus, from these occa 
 sional resting-places, the leaps downward were tremendous, 
 instead of a gradual gentle descent towards that final decrep 
 itude and decay, which no longer admit of the possibility 
 of fiction. 
 
 But Miss Dudley, on the other hand, neither conversed 
 about her own age, nor made any false pretences. Her dress 
 was always quiet, and full as old as her apparent years war 
 ranted. Her spirits were uniformly cheerful. Her complexion 
 wore the hue of health, not robust, but delicately lady-like 
 and soft. Her heart had lost none of its youthful warmth 
 and vigor, and her whole appearance was so unaffectedly 
 pleasing, that nobody ever thought or cared whether she were 
 young or old. 
 
 No contrast could be more complete, than that which 
 existed between the air of her house and that which gave its 
 character to the dwelling-place of Mr. Joslin. Her virgin 
 bower was a structure of a much later date, than the other 
 habitation, and of far neater aspect. Its appearance cer 
 tainly was not prim or formal, but compact, convenient and 
 attractive, and gave one the idea of respectability in very 
 moderate circumstances. In size, it was hardly adapted to 
 serve more than the special purposes of its inmate, and for the 
 accommodation of one, or perhaps, upon a pinch, two, not 
 very frequent guests. From the front, arid upon one side, a 
 passage-way extended the entire length of the house, and 
 opened upon the garden by a glass door. From the passage 
 way, which was decorated with several rather dingy and not 
 very well-executed portraits, doors communicated with the 
 several apartments. 
 
 Further than this, in respect of the interior, we dare not 
 go. As to the outside, the house faced the south. On its 
 eastern exposure, honeysuckles, of several varieties, ran on 
 light trellises, and roses were trained upon the walls, and, in 
 their season, presented a spectacle of incomparable beauty, 
 
HOUSEHOLD SKETCHES. 81 
 
 as, with lovely and blended hues, they covered the entire side 
 of the building, and fell in profuse clusters over the eaves. 
 On the other side, a slender piazza extended, which aiforded 
 no very expansive prospect, by reason of rising grounds in the 
 neighborhood ; but it enjoyed an uninterrupted view of that 
 most glorious of all the magnificent aspects of nature, the 
 western evening sky. 
 
 In fact, the sun was just sinking, in a blaze of glory, be 
 hind the gently-swelling ground, when the carriage drove up 
 to the gate, which guarded the path to the house. The vehicle 
 was driven by the skilful hands of Dick Western, who might 
 be said to be a natural coachman, so kindly did he take to 
 the reins. Under the ban of repeated interdictions, he had 
 repressed, in the most exemplary manner, his native vivacity 
 and natural desire to display his Jehuish accomplishments; 
 and he now repaid himself for his virtue, by a crack so por 
 tentous, that it brought Miss Dudley s house-maid precipitately 
 to the gate, and scattered, in dismay, several little boys, who 
 were playing marbles in the street. 
 
 We perceive no objection to our now peeping into the 
 chamber, to which " Aunt Sibyl " at once conducted her 
 pretty niece. Of this apartment, it would be seen that the 
 furniture was of a uniform color and extremely plain, except 
 one large easy-chair, covered with shining patch, and that the 
 counterpane of the uncurtained bed was of white dimity, and 
 neatly and tastefully frilled. On the wall hung the portrait 
 of a gentleman, in powdered hair and black velvet clothes, 
 with a silver-hilted small-sword by his side, seated at a writ 
 ing-table, on which was impictured a letter, superscribed to 
 " The Honorable Shubael Dudley, Esquire, etc. etc. etc." The 
 windows of the chamber looked into the small and neat gar 
 den, which was devoted almost exclusively to the culture of 
 flowers. There were currants and gooseberrries, however, in 
 great plenty, and more than one peach-tree, its irregular 
 growth sustained by necessary props, and even now a St. 
 
82 EASTFOUD; OR, 
 
 Michael s pear hung loaded with its delicious fruit, whose 
 spots of deeper red mottled and heightened its general golden 
 hue. The house, which we have described, occupying a posi 
 tion a little elevated, stood quite by itself, being, in fact, sur 
 rounded by fields upon three sides, the fourth looking towards 
 the high road. From this it was partially concealed, in sum 
 mer, by a variety of shrubs, bordering the paths, and by 
 clumps of ornamental trees, several of them yielding flowers, 
 and which were tastefully and judiciously disposed. 
 
 Miss Dudley had lived here, for several years, upon a very 
 moderate income, only sufficient for her own respectable main 
 tenance and the performance of those constant and unostenta 
 tious acts of charity, in which she found it pleasant and use 
 ful to indulge. The ladies of " St. Andrews Sewing Circle," 
 and one or two other charitable societies, connected with the 
 church of which she was a member, and of which the llev. 
 Dr. Mountain was, at that time, rector, had found her entirely 
 averse to accepting office among them, though the most 
 honorable and conspicuous positions had been repeatedly pressed 
 upon her, for the reason, as she alleged, that far more suit 
 able persons might be found ; but, in our opinion, because 
 her tastes and habits led her rather to avoid than to incur 
 notoriety. By her unfailing contributions, and personal 
 labors, and ready visits to the poor and the sick, she rendered 
 such services as she thought were due, from such means as 
 she possessed and her comparatively unincumbered situation ; 
 and her charities, we may remark, were rather special than 
 general. She spent her leisure moments in reading works of 
 standard value, and, often, poets, whose writings, as she said, 
 ennobled her emotions and spiritualized her soul; or novelists, 
 whose productions, she alleged, awakened, cultivated and 
 enlarged her character; and one book, of course, had her 
 daily and devout attention. Her solitary and yet occupied 
 life hud contributed to make her an early riser, and she might 
 often be seen, of a morning, engaged, with her own well-gloved 
 
HOUSEHOLD SKETCHES. 83 
 
 hands, upon her plants and flowers; which attention she 
 devoted, as well from sincere love of the garden, as for the 
 sake of the healthful and innocent employment it afforded. 
 
 " What stranger cause, yet unexplored," had so long kept a 
 lady, universally acknowledged as one of the most estimable, 
 cultivated and elegant, of the good society of Eastford, in a 
 state of virgin solitude, had often excited speculation, but still 
 remained a mystery and a marvel. So little had she mingled, 
 since the days of her girlhood, in such general society as East- 
 ford possessed, and so subdued was her manner, in the course 
 of any conversation of which she chose to partake, in pro 
 miscuous company, that the young men of the town complained, 
 they felt scarcely acquainted with Miss Dudley ; and, indeed, 
 it required the consciousness of far more and better founded 
 pretensions, than most of them enjoyed, to enable them to feel 
 entirely at ease within the charmed circle of her rare and 
 intimate associates. I am speaking now of a somewhat ear 
 lier period of her life. As a girl, though always inclined to 
 be thoughtful, upon any occasion of merriment she was as 
 light-hearted as the gayest of her girlish companions. Time 
 had now somewhat mellowed her character, and brought out 
 again the warm sincerity of her youthful feelings, while it had 
 tempered, at least, an unaccountable gravity, which seemed 
 to shadow one long interval of her days of bloom. During 
 this interval, 
 
 " More frequent at confessional, 
 More rare at masque and festival," 
 
 might have been remarked of her, had she been a Romanist, 
 and had such exhibitions as confessionals arid masques been 
 known or countenanced in the good town of Eastford. As 
 it was, she appeared more constantly than ever, if possible, 
 at church, and seldom, if ever, at the parties given by the 
 inhabitants. To be sure, she did not remain, during the whole 
 period, at Eastford ; but spent some time with friends at a 
 
84 EASTFORD; OR, 
 
 distance, and a portion of it, at least, with her mother s rela 
 tives in Oxton. Her father had been long dead ; and, upon 
 the decease of her mother, leaving her some decent fortune, 
 for a single lady, she had continued in her native place, and 
 taken the house we have described, which owed much of its 
 neatness and prcttiness to her own subsequent care. 
 
 A character so excellent and so independent was no mark 
 for scandal. Yet none escape discussion. Betty Poul- 
 tcr enlarged upon it a little, when the subject was on the 
 tapis. 
 
 " Now, dear, everybody knew Miss Dudley had good con 
 nections ; they were rather a high family in old times. To 
 be sure, she could not approve of airs ; certainly, it was not 
 republican ; but, after all, this was a free country, and if 
 Miss Dudley did keep herself a little aloof from almost every 
 body, why, there was no law against it, that she ever heard 
 of; she would not be understood exactly to approve of peo 
 ple setting themselves up ; but, for her part, she must say, 
 whenever she had called at Miss Dudley s, she had always 
 been treated perfectly like a lady; a piece of sponge-cake 
 or sugar-gingerbread, about which Miss Dudley is very par 
 ticular, always, and sometimes a glass of wine. And as for 
 single women, she could not imagine what people meant by 
 eternally slurring about old maids ; she did n t doubt, that 
 every one of them might have been married, over and over 
 again ; some folks could tell stories, if they were only willing 
 to reveal the inmost and treasured secrets of their hearts ! 
 As for Miss Sibyl Dudley, she would not pretend to assert 
 anything really positive ; but there was a young man, that 
 she knew, she had heard the story, a good while ago, from a 
 cousin of hers, Nabby Poulter, who tended at Madam 
 Fribble s, a while ; she said she heard Madam Fribble herself 
 call her Miss Dudley, as she was trying a pair of gloves, 
 the gloves were dove-color, and this young gentleman 
 was with her, very handsome, and looked a good deal 
 
HOUSEHOLD SKETCHES. 85 
 
 like an officer; and this was actually, this I do know, 
 dear, while Sibyl Dudley was visiting her aunt Shirley, in 
 Oxton, before her mother s death." 
 
 " 0, but the young man, Miss Poulter what became of 
 the young man ? why were n t they married ? " 
 
 " 0, something must have happened to him, I suppose; in 
 fact, I never heard the particulars, if it did, it was all 
 hushed up ; but one thing I am certain of, ladies, that this 
 very young man was actually seen with Miss Dudley in 
 Madam Fribble s store." 
 
 " But, I really don t see what she is going to do now. Her 
 property is only just enough to keep her decently; and with 
 this young niece of hers and her baby on her hands, she 11 
 have a pretty hard time of it to get along," said one. 
 
 " Susan Bell was well brought up," suggested another of 
 the consulting party, who was rather romantic, " and she s 
 young and able to do something for a living ; she is not in 
 the autumn of life, when everything is faded, but has bright 
 dreams and beautiful days before her," (and 0, " most lame 
 and impotent conclusion ! ") " perhaps she might take a small 
 school ; I d send our Jenny in a minute ; yes, and Johnny 
 too, I rather guess." 
 
 "Yes; or what do you say to a millinery establishment?" 
 replied^ another. " I ve always felt, somehow, as if we did not 
 get the first of the fashions at Mrs. Fadington s ; and, as Susan 
 has been living now some time in Philadelphia, it s likely she 
 has picked up some very good notions in dress. That s a 
 sweet bonnet you have on, Miss Poulter ! " 
 
 " It is, dear ; Nabby Poulter sent it down to me, on Satur 
 day, by the stage ; I always depend on her for my best bonnet 
 every season, and I should have worn it out, the very last 
 Sunday, if it had not been for this weary storm." 
 
 The kind interest, however, which these ladies took in the 
 well-being of Mrs. May, on the present occasion, was alto 
 gether gratuitous. They had not taken into the account, that 
 
86 EASTFORD; on, 
 
 Mr. May, whom they had entirely forgotten, to say nothing 
 of the lady herself, might entertain objections to their best- 
 contrived arrangements. Indeed, as none of them were at all 
 familiar with the true relations of persons and things, which 
 they had seen fit to discuss, their views upon the subject were 
 as unenlightened, as they were necessarily disinterested. 
 
 Mr. Bell, the father of Mrs. May, had removed to Pennsyl 
 vania, several years earlier, in the hope of bettering his for 
 tunes by some speculations in coal-lands, of which an opportu 
 nity offered. Of course, he took with him his only and 
 motherless child, then a school-girl of sixteen or seventeen 
 years. The bright and sparkling girl had deeply fascinated 
 young Henry May, who was then residing at Eastford, for the 
 purpose of pursuing his studies in the law, the town, at that 
 time, being famous for one or more eminent legal practition 
 ers. What little Mr. Bell had observed of the love-passages, 
 between his pretty daughter and young May, he scarcely 
 reflected upon at all ; his own affairs demanded his closest 
 attention ; and it had probably occurred to him, only as one 
 of those passing fancies of youth, which was hardly likely to 
 stand the test of time and absence. Nor, in fact, had any 
 definite declarations of attachment been made, on the part of 
 young May. He had, perhaps, judged it best to defer these 
 to the season of some clearer future. And, although his heart 
 sunk within him, when he saw the young girl depart, as if 
 a sensible cloud, dreary, hopeless in gloom, perpetual in som 
 bre shadow, had closed down upon the beautiful town of 
 Eustford, then really shining under the brightness of one 
 of the loveliest of summer mornings, he had swallowed his 
 emotions, as he best could ; and after one entire day spent in 
 wandering a long distance into the country, had resumed his 
 usual avocations ; fixing his eyes steadfastly, at times, during 
 the following day, upon one and the same page of " Ilalc s 
 Pleas of the Crown," which we believe was the treatise then 
 particularly engaging his attention. 
 
HOUSEHOLD SKETCHES. 87 
 
 Upon learning, after the lapse of a year or two, by what 
 means 
 
 " We well might guess, but may not say, " 
 
 the disastrous result which had awaited Mr. Bell s specula 
 tions, young May, shortly before this admitted to the bar, had 
 hastened to Pennsylvania, and to the interior town of Mr. 
 Bell s residence. By both of his old friends, to whom friends, 
 it is likely, were few, he was cordially welcomed. The spirit 
 of Mr. Bell was completely broken ; and May had not the 
 heart to leave him. In fact, he determined to remain, and 
 assist, as fur as was in his power, to retrieve, perhaps, some 
 thing, of what seemed to be an utterly-lost game. He was 
 not without some moderate resources of his own, and had 
 neither duties nor strong ties to draw him elsewhere. Mr. 
 Bell gladly accepted his services, and, as our readers might 
 with propriety anticipate, in due time these young people 
 were married. Shortly afterwards took place the not unex 
 pected demise of Mr. Bell. 
 
 Young May had continued at Colesville, to wind up the 
 embarrassed affairs of his father-in-law ; and having now 
 brought them to a conclusion, and saved something from what 
 proved to be not a total wreck, he had determined to return 
 to Eastford with his family. But as a journey on land, of 
 several hundred miles, was not then performed with its present 
 ease, he had reluctantly concluded to embark them on board 
 the unlucky packet, anticipating for her a brief and pleasant 
 run. His own business on the way made it necessary for 
 him to travel by land. He had been compelled to start a few 
 hours before the vessel could sail, leaving his wife in the 
 charge of some friends, who were to see her safely on board. 
 Other female passengers were engaged to go, so that she ex 
 pected company and any necessary assistance. These failed 
 at the moment of sailing, which must account for her proceed 
 ing alone. Her husband might now be shortly expected at 
 
88 EASTFORD; OR, 
 
 Kastford, and then, probably, would first hear of the dangers 
 and sufferings, to which his wife had been subjected. 
 
 " And how do you find yourself now, my love ? " inquired 
 Miss Dudley, after some changes had been effected in the 
 attire of her niece, and she was comfortably installed in the 
 dimity-covered bed, which her aunt had insisted on, as best 
 for her, though she would herself have preferred to occupy the 
 easy-chair by the pleasant window. 
 
 " I think nothing is really the matter with me, my dear 
 aunt," she replied; "I feel weary, and just a little confused. 
 The incidents of the last day or two scarcely appear to me 
 like the events of waking hours. Were it not that I see your 
 kind face, and hold my darling baby in my arms, I should 
 hardly believe myself in a world which had almost passed 
 away from me, 0, how frightfully ! " 
 
 " You have, indeed, had a terrible experience, darling." 
 
 " Yes ; it has seemed to me that, until that moment, I 
 never knew what life was, or what death might be." 
 
 " Do you remember, in one of my letters to you, I once 
 quoted from some author, La vie ne se revele a naus- 
 mcmes, qu avec le choc des occasions ? But I ought not to 
 disturb you with these thoughts now." 
 
 " yes, I remember it well, that dear letter ! It is only 
 recent events that are at all confused with me ; it was after 
 my poor father s misfortunes, at Colesville ; and it does me 
 good to talk ; it helps me to collect my senses, and brings me 
 back, nearer and nearer, to breathing life again. 0, what a 
 mercy it was that Henry was spared this experience ! I do 
 believe he would have gone mad for me and poor little Mary, 
 when the captain called down to the cabin, All s lost ! 
 But I was really so stupefied with horror, and so terrified 
 with the. frightful noise of the waters rushing in, that I 
 scarcely realized anything perfectly, till after I was brought 
 into the house, on the shore. But when I did think, I tried 
 hard to feel resigned." 
 
HOUSEHOLD SKETCHES. 89 
 
 " It is well," said Miss Dudley, " that we do not know 
 what we may be called upon to suffer. When the trial 
 comes, God gives his children strength equal to their day ! " 
 
 " The most vivid recollection I have," said Mrs. May, " is, 
 I think, of the afternoon before the gale. I was, of course, 
 unaware of what was soon to take place. But the sea was 
 almost calm, unnaturally so ; it grew black overhead, and the 
 heavens seemed actually to shut down upon us ; all looked 
 preternatural and ominous : along the western horizon; the 
 sky was of a perfectly ghastly white, and the sun, as it glared 
 over the waves, looked absolutely pallid, and very small, 0, 
 whiter and smaller than the smallest moon ! as if it were 
 shrinking away in terror, as well it might, from such a fear 
 ful coming conflict of winds and waters ! The sailors had 
 been stamping about the deck, getting in the sails, I had 
 taken only one look at the scene, and hurried down to hide 
 my head in my berth, and " 
 
 "Hey, hey! what s all this?" said Dr. Walton, entering 
 the chamber. " This will never do ! I must strictly forbid any 
 recurrence to these scenes for the present." 
 
 Mrs. May gently insisted that the " talk " had done her good ; 
 but professed her willingness to submit to the doctor s direc 
 tions. Miss Dudley assured the doctor, when she left the 
 room with him for a moment, that she had only indulged her 
 niece in this conversation, to which she was so much inclined, 
 as she had sometimes observed, that, in this way, the over 
 strained nerves were relieved. 
 
 " Yes, when tears supervene ; a plentiful flow of this ad 
 mirable provision of nature may be, and often is, extremely 
 serviceable ; for, in that case, it constitutes a crisis of feel 
 ings, and tends to relieve those functions, which have been 
 wrought up to a dangerous pitch. Did you observe any 
 moisture in her eyes, my dear madam ? She turned her face 
 from me. A dry talk rather operates to excite, and there 
 might be fear of the brain, in the weak and feverish state of 
 8* 
 
90 EASTFORD; OR, 
 
 a patient, by recalling scenes of extraordinary agitation and 
 suffering. However, our patient is doing extremely well 
 you gave her the drops, ma am, yes. Quiet, no doubt, will 
 soon bring her round. I trust we shall soon see her husband 
 with her, which will prove her best medicine, after all." 
 
 Indeed, we are glad to announce, that the doctor s prog 
 nosis was happily justified by the event. 
 
 Henry May reached home in the course of one week long 
 enough to him, but 0, how tediously drawn out to his anx 
 iously expecting and loving wife ! Those were not the days 
 of telegraphs, and the " Eastford Courier," containing a par 
 ticular and most affecting account of the wreck of the vessel 
 and the rescue of his wife and child, was not likely to fall into 
 his hands on the road. In fact, on the last stage of his 
 journey, from Oxton to Eastford, on a route, where there are 
 now half a dozen trains, and hundreds of passengers, every 
 day, there was nobody in the stage-coach but some sailors, 
 bound to join their ship, and a deaf old lady, who seized a 
 moment, at one of the stopping-places, to let him know how 
 frightened she was, lest she should hear something awful from 
 the tars. The very driver (as Yankees say) was not ac 
 quainted with him, so that really he had arrived at the very 
 door of Miss Dudley s house, without having learned a word 
 on the subject. 
 
 Over a meeting like this we shall refuse to linger. In the 
 course of the conversation, however, Mr. May inquired if 
 nothing was saved from the wreck, with some interest. " There 
 were papers," he remarked, " in one of the trunks ; in fact, 
 Susan, with other things of less consequence, a deed to your 
 father, which might have proved of some value, though proba 
 bly not much, of lands in the backwoods of Maine, which 
 I intended to examine into. I had understood, from what 
 little your father said upon the subject, that these were en 
 tirely unproductive, and the deed, I observed, was not even 
 recorded." 
 
HOUSEHOLD SKETCHES. 91 
 
 It seemed, however, that nothing was saved. The vessel 
 had gone to pieces in the night, and, except some drift-stuff, 
 nothing was known to have come ashore. 
 
 " It was truly a pity," Mr. May said, " though it would be 
 most ungrateful in them to complain, who had been the sub 
 jects of such a merciful preservation ; but this tract of land 
 was one of considerable extent he believed an entire town 
 ship ; it had been conveyed to Mr. Bell in the course of his 
 transactions at Colesville, and it might have proved worth 
 attending to, some time or other ; but, as the deed was lost, 
 there was an end to the matter. If it had only been re 
 corded, why, that, of course, would have saved it ; he had 
 not thought it worth while, or, indeed, prudent, to send the 
 deed so far by mail, and no other opportunity offered. He 
 had intended to see to this, upon his return to the east, and 
 had put it in the trunk with other papers of less value. But 
 if it s gone, Susy, there s the end of it, and fretting about it 
 will do little good to anybody." 
 
CHAPTER IX. 
 
 * Pictures like these, dear madam, to design, 
 Ask no firm hand and no unerring line ; 
 Some wandering touches, some reflected light, 
 Some flying stroke, alone can hit them right." 
 
 POPE. 
 
 TRANSACTIONS, such as we have recorded, could hardly 
 take place in the little town of Eastford without attracting a 
 good deal of public attention. At the insurance office, of 
 course, the occurrence of a marine disaster was a subject of 
 thrilling interest. The old "sea-dogs" and retired merchants, 
 who frequented that common centre of confluent tidings, 
 where it was said that questions, savoring rather of the per 
 son than of the personalty, sometimes occupied their atten 
 tion, discussed the details of this maritime mischance with 
 professional skill and concern. Luckily, nothing was under 
 written at the office on the stranded vessel, so that the interest 
 exhibited was more of a general than special nature. If the 
 cables should be cut and the vessel could be warped off, 
 stern foremost, at the next high tide, it was thought she must 
 be so hogged, indeed, it was likely, so completely strained 
 and broken-backed, that she would be no more fit to make a 
 voyage in, as one said, " than an old basket." The conduct 
 of Captain Benson for men will honor courage and gener 
 osity was universally commended; and, to the credit of 
 the office be it said, several of its habitues contributed, with 
 out grudging, to a small sum, which it was proposed to raise 
 for the benefit of Jack Holliday, now hauled up, poor fellow ! 
 with his broken arm. 
 
EASTFORD; OR, HOUSEHOLD SKETCHES. 93 
 
 The news had run about the town with great rapidity ; 
 and, in a very short time, the particulars had become so 
 mixed up and wrested, in their passage through various vehi 
 cles, that it was now really impossible to distinguish the true 
 from the false. " A large vessel," some alleged, " had been 
 hurled, by one tremenjious wave, high and dry up the beach, 
 and the people were all now down at Joslin s farm, and 
 coming up to town, as soon as they could get their clothes dry. 
 Dick Western had gone down with his carriage on purpose to 
 bring them up." This story happened to meet with contra 
 diction in one particular, on the spot, by the inopportune ap 
 pearance of Dick, in person, on the street, whistling to a large 
 Newfoundland dog, which usually followed him. It was then 
 asserted that the schooner had sunk at her anchors, and every 
 soul on board had perished ; while another statement gained 
 considerable currency, to the effect " that a raft had been 
 constructed out of spare spars belonging to the distressed 
 vessel (which, it was alleged, was an Indiaman), and that Mr. 
 Atherton had swum his horse through the breakers, and, by 
 almost superhuman eiforts, had been able to drag the half- 
 drowned wretches to land that Mr. Atherton was now 
 lying at farmer Joslin s in high delirium Dr. Walton had 
 been hastily sent for, and Mrs. Atherton was in a state next 
 door to distraction," which last particular element pos 
 sessed some little grain of the salt of truth to season the 
 
 remaining monstrous inventions. 
 
 
 
 In the course of the day Mrs. Atherton had had many cal 
 anxious to gain authentic information at its most likely source. 
 Many friends came, earnest to sympathize with her, if she 
 were really in distress, and to share in her misfortunes; and 
 some acquaintances, ready enough to observe hbxrshe (espe 
 cially she, a minister s wife) grappled with the vaguely 
 understood calamities and 
 
 " clouds that lowered upon her house." 
 
04 EASTFORD; OR, 
 
 While she was thus sitting, in the forenoon, gayly laugh 
 ing, with some of her young friends, at certain of the int-i- 
 dents of her morning s apprehensions, a loud and hasty knock 
 at the door was speedily followed by the appearance of Miss 
 Betty Poulter, in a state of great and evident excitement; 
 she instantly sank, almost breathless, into a chair. 
 
 " 0, dear ! " she broke out, " you must excuse me, Mrs. 
 Atherton, mercy on us ! I don t know whether to laugh 
 or to cry, I in so agitated, ladies ! " 
 
 " What is the matter ? what is the matter ? " exclaimed 
 the whole company at once. Mrs. Atherton, with whom 
 Betty was no favorite, summoning all the dignity she could 
 command, under such a wild and sudden incursion, was able 
 to say, 
 
 " I pray you to tell us what has happened, Miss Poulter." 
 
 " 0, such an accident ! And to think it should happen to 
 me, after all, to find it out ! He has ears, I assure you, 
 he has ears, as true as you re alive ; I m ready to take my 
 oath of it before any justice, this very blessed minute." 
 
 "Ears, ears! what on earth are you talking of, Miss 
 Poulter ? Won t you have my salts ? Fanny, they re on the 
 table by you, dear. Pray, hand the bottle to Miss Poulter." 
 
 " Why, poor old Mr. Thumpingwcll, the Methodist preacher, 
 I stumbled against him, coming quick round the corner; 
 for I was anxious to pay my respects to you, Mrs. Atherton, 
 at this time. I m sure and I m extremely glad the 
 story can t be true about Mr. Atherton. How people do 
 talk ! and he chose to tumble over ; I can t see, for my life, 
 how it happened ; for he s rather a stocky man, you know, 
 and I m nothing but a shadow, as it were ; and when he went 
 over, the wind blew his long locks away, and I saw his ears 
 plain with my own eyes ; and his hair is n t a wig neither ; 
 it s all a sheer fabrication. I took hold of his ear myself, 
 when I helped him up, for I was resolved not to let such a 
 chance go by." 
 
HOUSEHOLD SKETCHES. 95 
 
 " Well, ladies," said Mrs. Atherton, laughing heartily, as 
 did all the rest, who were fast getting into what, in New 
 England, is sometimes called a "gale," " well, ladies, I am 
 sure I am entirely in the dark about this affair." 
 
 " Why, did you never hear it rumored that Mr. Thump- 
 ingwelPs ears were cropped, for some reason or other, I 
 believe because he was a Methodist, before he came over to 
 this country ? and that was the reason why he wore his mon 
 strous head of hair so long, and curled so stiff down his 
 cheeks ? I always did insist there was n t one word of truth 
 in such a shameful story." 
 
 " I assure you, I never heard any such rumor ; I have 
 always understood him to be a very good person." 
 
 "Well, there s flo truth in it; I m perfectly satisfied 
 now." 
 
 " What ! that he s not a good man ? " 
 
 " 0, no ! that his ears are on his head ; and good large 
 ones they are, too." 
 
 " Let me offer you a glass of water, or a little wine, Miss 
 Poulter." 
 
 " 0, thank you, Mrs. Atherton ! " said she, taking the wine. 
 " I feel a little better ; this has been truly a day of disaster ; 
 I only hope the old gentleman didn t know who I was. I 
 scampered in here fast enough, I assure you." 
 
 Notwithstanding Mrs. Atherton s ignorance on the subject, 
 the gossips of the town, in fact, had often canvassed the 
 point now so satisfactorily elucidated by Miss Betty. For 
 the worthy Mr. Thumpingwell, whether in consequence of 
 any unusual size imparted by nature to his ears, as alluded to 
 by Miss Poulter, or for any other reason, or whether design 
 edly or otherwise, had hitherto certainly concealed those 
 necessary appendages from the too curious gaze of an inquis 
 itive world. But if his ears were, in fact, of extraordinary 
 dimensions, nature had certainly been equally liberal to the 
 exterior of his cranium, in one other particular ; that is, in 
 
96 EASTFORD; OR, 
 
 respect of his hair ; which was profuse in quantity, and jet- 
 black in color ; and in which he took some perhaps excusable 
 delight. For, say what you will, though I cheerfully allow, 
 that the vanity which seeks to substitute personal advantages 
 for, or even to compare them with, more substantial quali 
 ties, is ridiculous and unworthy, yet I could never understand 
 why personal graces were given, except to bear their proper, 
 though inferior, value ; and I am firmly convinced that those 
 who possess any such are unanimous in this opinion. How 
 ever that may be, it is certain that Mr. Thumpingwell wore 
 this mass of hair after a fashion then not usual, in thick 
 curls, hanging down the sides of his face, and over his very 
 shoulders. 
 
 Hinc illce irce. That is, hence the unsated curiosity to 
 which this practice had subjected him, the gossip and scandal 
 of which it had proved the occasion, and his sad final over 
 throw, at the hands of Miss Betty Poulter ; for black 
 Nance always insisted upon it that she did it on purpose. 
 
 " Lud-o -man ! that Missy Betty, she s always poking her 
 long nose round all creation. Hope she 11 die easy, now she 
 find out old English Methody got some ears ! " 
 
 Even Jack Holliday, to whom this irreverent remark was 
 made, ungallantly asseverated, 
 
 " 0, Nance ! She s a regular old maid. She s in every 
 body s mess and nobody s watch." 
 
 Upon this point I do not pretend to pronounce. It is cer 
 tain that Mr. Thumpingwell was a very worthy teacher of his 
 sect, of rather a spare habit of body; not " stocky," as Miss 
 Poulter asserted; and that he did a vast deal of good 
 amongst a class of people, who would not, probably, have 
 derived an equal amount of spiritual instruction from a dif 
 ferent sort of guide. He had officiated to a flock at East- 
 ford for a considerable time. Some malicious person had set 
 afloat the ridiculous story about his ears; and some old- 
 womanish people were idle enough to believe, that they had 
 
HOUSEHOLD SKETCHES. 97 
 
 been actually cropped, before he left his native land, in con 
 sequence of his resolute dissent from the doctrine and disci 
 pline of the established church of that enlightened and 
 highly civilized country. For their traditionary lore had 
 not, probably, enlightened them as to any changes from those 
 intolerant days, when a certain diminutive archbishop was in 
 the habit of promoting such punishments (among the lightest) 
 towards his Christian fellow-creatures ; and which had ex 
 torted from their Puritan ancestors that emphatic ejaculation, 
 " Great laud to the Lord, little Laud to the devil ! " 
 
 But, it seemed, that Miss Poulter, upon the occasion of 
 her signal discovery, was rapidly moving down the street, 
 which led into that on which Mr. Atherton s house was situ 
 ated. Her sunshade, unluckily, was held very near her face, 
 and she was intensely ruminating upon the objects she had in 
 view. As she turned the corner with very considerable for 
 ward impulse, she came directly upon the divine, who was 
 quietly advancing in an opposite direction. In conformity 
 with the law of mechanical forces, one or the other of the 
 opposing powers must necessarily give way. She called her 
 self " a shadow"*" and she was not stout, in proportion to her 
 height; but she was tall, gaunt, bony and strong, and under 
 the influence of perfectly straight forward and rapid propulsion. 
 The poor preacher, on the -other hand, was really nothing to 
 her, in point of physical power, and projectile efficiency; to 
 say nothing of a far inferior degree of velocity on his part. 
 The re%alt, therefore, was not doubtful for a moment. The 
 preacher foiled into the gutter, and the secret of his life, if 
 secret it were, was no longer more safe than a similar one of 
 the Phrygian king; ^ter it had got into the possession ofj&at 
 whispering jade of a Sy ttfix-j -Wfc-eay Syrrfix ; but, at any 
 rate, it was one of that inveterate family of ; hearkeners," the 
 arundines, for we are not really sure whether her transforma 
 tion or the disgrace of Midas fell out first. *^^3a^ 
 9 
 
CHAPTER X. 
 
 We mistake man s diseases, when we think there needeth nothing to 
 cure them of their errors, but the evidence of truth. Alas, there are 
 many distempers of mind to be removed, before they receive that evi 
 dence." RICHARD BAXTER. 
 
 "Egli dirizza il becco allo sparviere." ITALIAN PROVERB. 
 
 THE afternoon of this day of days passed off quietly enough ; 
 but, as if fate had marked it in the calendar with a piece of 
 chalk of some very peculiar color, it seemed as if its wonders 
 would never cease. 
 
 When Mr. Atherton came home to tea, for he had called 
 with Dr. Walton at Miss Dudley s, he found rather an odd 
 acquaintance at his house, whom he had not seen for a 
 number of years, and who had announced that he now visited 
 him on business. This was Mr. Prior Date, a person whom 
 Mr. Atherton had slightly known, as a sort of hanger-on at 
 the college, while he resided within the walls of that semi 
 nary, as an under-graduate. This gentleman was graduated 
 himself so long before, that nobody at least, nobody of a 
 recent generation remembered the period. He had em 
 braced no profession, nor had he any ostensible occupation ; 
 but spent the greater part of his time in fumbling over the 
 college library ; and many years of his life had been passed 
 in dipping here and there into books, which no one else ever 
 looked at, and apparently to no earthly purpose. His mode of 
 life was unsocial, and he seemed really friendless ; and it was 
 some slight civility, casually rendered him, which had awak- 
 
EASTFORD; OR, HOUSEHOLD SKETCHES. 99 
 
 ened perhaps a spark of feeling in the rather fogyish-looking 
 gentleman, who was now seated in Mr. Atherton s parlor. 
 
 This person was of a very inquisitive disposition, and talked 
 a great deal about being practical ; though why, it would be 
 difficult to conjecture, for nobody could be more utterly and 
 hopelessly theoretical, and what schemes he had were of a 
 nature altogether impracticable. lie took occasion, however, 
 to urge his notions so strenuously, and in such a contentious 
 spirit, that most people avoided his society. Some, who, it is 
 to be hoped, did him injustice, considered him little better 
 than a free-thinker. Besides all this, he was noted for an ex 
 traordinary indecision of character, and was one of those per 
 sons, who seem unable to arrive at fixed opinions upon any 
 subject whatever. This unhappy constitution of mind it was, 
 which probably prevented his falling into any of the ordinary 
 and regular pursuits of life. After Mr. Atherten left col 
 lege, he had vaguely heard, that this personage had wandered 
 off to the " far west," and had taught school a while ; and 
 some said, had engaged in other employments not so useful, 
 and may be not so creditable. 
 
 Mr. Date s head was as gray as his pantaloons, which 
 scarcely extended to ankles, wrapped in integuments of blue 
 yarn, and his upper garment consisted of a rather rusty black 
 coat. The collar of his shirt fell over his cravat. His va 
 grant hair started off from his head in many directions, and 
 stood up stiffly along his forehead ; and this, combined with 
 the effect of large round spectacles, w T ith iron bows, which ho 
 wore, gave a peculiarly owlish aspect to his rather circular 
 face ; which character was much enhanced by a hooked and 
 slightly-twisted nose. Mr. Atherton invited him to tea, 
 which was already prepared, and after enjoying this refresh 
 ment, Mr. Date proceeded to unfold his errand. 
 
 It seemed, that he was now anxious to obtain some con 
 venient boarding -place in Eastford, to which he had been 
 attracted by its reputed cheapness and quietude ; for he was, 
 
100 EASTFORD; OR, 
 
 for the present, engaged upon the preparation of a spelling- 
 book upon a new system, in which English words were to be 
 presented strictly in accordance with their sounds ; or rather, 
 what Mr. Date supposed to be their sounds, for, as he was un 
 able to distinguish one tune from another, it is not likely his 
 senses were very acute as to tones. There was now a mani 
 fest and deplorable incongruity, he asserted, between the 
 results arrived at by the organs of sight and hearing. His 
 plan, he contended, would revolutionize the English language, 
 and eventually supersede a literature, conveyed in a vehicle so 
 barbarous in its extent and form. lie intended to cut off all 
 superfluous syllables, and exclude every unnecessary letter. 
 The word " type," for instance, should be spelt " typ," and 
 "voyage," "voyj"; or, perhaps, to avoid the diphthong, it 
 would be best to come at once to the spelling warranted by the 
 maritime usage of pronunciation, and write it " vyj." Acting 
 upon his theory, he wrote his own name PRYR DAT, which 
 accounts for his receiving no answer to a note, addressed 
 by him to Mr. Atherton, on his present business, and which 
 that gentleman had taken to be some idle hoax. 
 
 What he now desired was, advice in respect to a boarding- 
 house. He had examined several, but had been unable to 
 arrive at any definite conclusion. 
 
 "At Mr. Keep s," as he proceeded to state, "for instance, 
 the vacant room was up three pairs of stairs, but there were 
 curtains to the windows ; while at Mrs. Lodger s, only two 
 flights were to be ascended, but shutters alone would be found 
 at the windows, upon entering the room ; he had learned, on 
 inquiry at Mrs. Lodger s, that they had brown bread for 
 breakfast ; while, at Keep s, they offered white exclusively, 
 though toasted, if preferred, for that morning meal. The most 
 elevated apartment was in fact the largest, though the least 
 accessible. The windows of one establishment commanded a 
 view of a green square ; in the other you looked upon a rather 
 agreeable garden. At Mrs. Lodger s, a boy was maintained to 
 
HOUSEHOLD SKETCHES. 101 
 
 perform the general household drudgery ; while at Keep s 
 house, you must either black your shoes yourself, or trust to 
 the offices of a female underling, who could not certainly clean 
 a man s shoes satisfactorily." 
 
 Of course, Mr. Date was an old bachelor. 
 
 Between the rival houses, he had found himself entirely un 
 able to strike the balance of pretensions, and had now come 
 to seek the arbitrament of Mr. Atherton. He stated his per 
 plexities with great gravity and no little unction. 
 
 "Non nostrum tantas componcre lites," 
 
 said Mr. Atherton, endeavoring to preserve his own gravity, 
 while his wife had found it scarcely possible for her to remain 
 soberly in the room. She had moved about the apartment in 
 various directions, pretending to busy herself about something, 
 but had at length been compelled to hasten into the kitchen, to 
 indulge in an inextinguishable burst of merriment. 
 
 " In a case so evenly balanced," resumed Mr. Atherton, 
 " I should be governed very much, I think, by any slight dif 
 ference in the price." 
 
 " Unfortunately, they charge exactly alike," said Mr. 
 Date. 
 
 " A plague on both their houses, then, I say, thus to 
 embarrass a simple seeker after bachelor accommodations. 
 The curtains, I think, would settle the question with my wife, 
 were it not for going up that third flight. To me it scerns a 
 case, in which we might properly enough invoke the most fab 
 ulous dispenser of human fortunes. Suppose I toss up a 
 copper for you ? Will you abide the issue ? " 
 
 " I could n t engage to bind myself; the matter has cost 
 me a good deal of uneasiness, one way and another. But I 
 am surprised to find you a believer in Fortune, Mr. Ather 
 ton." 
 
 "la believer, my dear sir ! I am utterly faithless. I 
 abjure her worship, and deny her heathenish divinity. A 
 9* 
 
102 EASTFORD; OR, 
 
 goddess, to be worthy of idolatry, should be benevolent, con 
 siderate and just ; she is only fleeting, capricious and cruel." 
 
 " I suppose you are as sound in orthodoxy, as when you 
 fought its battles so stoutly at college ? " 
 
 " I trust my faith has suffered no decadency, sir." 
 
 " Have you met with this new work on the Cosmogony, 
 which shakes to pieces the common idea of creation ? " 
 
 * I have seen the work ; still, I may say, my faith is mod 
 erately firm. Those, who are so very much enlightened by 
 anonymous conjectures, had, perhaps, no great faith to be 
 shaken." 
 
 " Well, I confess myself a firm believer in the Pre- Adam 
 ite theory. I see no reason why this world should not have 
 been inhabited for countless ages. I don t understand its 
 beginning the other day, as it were." 
 
 " You might as well urge that its habitablcness began yes 
 terday. This would equally solve your doubts. By carrying 
 the commencement back, you remove no diflaculties. A 
 beginning ten thousand centuries ago was a beginning still ; 
 and is no more intelligible than one of six thousand years." 
 
 " An origin so remote, however, at least carries the ques 
 tion beyond the reach of what we know, instead of offering 
 us an account, which many philosophers, as you are aware, 
 pronounce unsatisfactory." 
 
 "Not Christian philosophers, surely. The doctrines of 
 these speculatists seem to me those very * oppositions of 
 science, falsely so called, against which the great apostle of 
 the Gentiles uttered his warning. And you would accept a 
 theory, whose only quality is, that it makes the question more 
 obscure, in place of the only account we have, which, while it 
 appeals to our faith, is certainly not inconsistent with our 
 reason ! " 
 
 "Then you hold to the Bible account of creation?" 
 
 " There is certainly an argument, let me humbly suggest, 
 against the theory of the existence of a race before Adam, 
 
HOUSEHOLD SKETCHES. 103 
 
 or, to state the proposition in more general terms, its ex 
 istence, for a period prior to that accounted for by Scripture, 
 to which I should beg to await your reply." 
 
 " What is it, pray ? " 
 
 " That there is no authentic history of the world amongst 
 men, or of which, if lost, we have any account, tradition or 
 intimation, anterior to that contained in the Bible. Do you 
 suppose, if men existed on the earth, for all the hundreds or 
 thousands of centuries, imagined by certain so-called philoso 
 phers, that, during these immense periods, they were perfectly 
 stupid and senseless, incapable of improvement, without any 
 use of ordinary human faculties, having no learning, or litera 
 ture or annals; and leaving behind them, not merely no 
 records of their existence, but not a vestige or trace of the 
 arts of life; neither the ruins of their architecture, nor a 
 solitary sign of their habitation, throughout what must have 
 been a peopled earth; and no allusion to them or 
 theirs, and, we may thence infer, no knowledge of them, in 
 the most ancient writings which we possess, or of which we have 
 heard ? Such a speculation as this not only contradicts our 
 own experience and all known history, but is too preposterous, 
 on the face of it, for the belief of the most credulous child." 
 
 " Why, Mr. Atherton, the people of what is known as 
 antiquity were more or less barbarous, and, for aught I see, 
 might have continued so, for a longer or shorter period." 
 
 "I beg your pardon, sir. Many, certainly, of the nations 
 of antiquity, of whom we have any authentic information, 
 were people advanced in arts, eminent in literature, known 
 for learning. The Egyptians, notwithstanding their recent 
 condition, are an instance in point. That Moses was learned 
 in all the learning of the Egyptians, pre-supposes them to be 
 a people of high cultivation, at a much earlier date ; and to 
 them at a later period, Plato, as we know, is said to have 
 been indebted for the elements of his philosophy. Yes, the 
 very Arabs, the mass of whom have probably been nomadic, 
 
104 EASTFOUD ; or, 
 
 from the days of Ishmael, have given us even our numerals, 
 and algebra, no study of a savage race, surely, and some 
 literature. During the dark ages, a kindred race were the 
 most cultivated people of their times ; and, at a very early 
 period, if the book of Job presents a true picture, these Arabs 
 had amongst them men full of knowledge, philosophy, logic, 
 eloquence. To the very ancient Persians we owe the elements 
 of astronomy. And the few hints we get in Scripture, as to the 
 state of affairs amongst the Medes and Persians, whom we 
 are too apt to consider as barbarians, and which are confirmed 
 by profane history, not only present them in a very favorable 
 light, but give us a high idea of their probity, as well as their 
 intelligence and cultivation. Why, sir, the decrees of Cyrus, 
 Darius and Artaxerxes, recorded in the book of Ezra, not only 
 exhibit a wise and stable administration of public affairs, but 
 are conceived in the most noble and magnanimous spirit, and 
 I trust it is not irreverent to say so show an absolute skill 
 in the detailed management of mere business matters, which 
 could not be surpassed by the state papers of any modern 
 nation. I need not speak to you of the classic people. But 
 all these and others, earlier or later, have made their im 
 pression upon the world, and have left behind them some tan 
 gible evidence of their intelligent being. 
 
 " Now, sir," he continued, " my argument is, that the his 
 tories of these people are within known limits, and subse 
 quent to, and correspondent with the Bible history. But 
 where are the works and records of your anterior races, if 
 any such there were ? 
 
 " If the present race of mankind were descended from a 
 stock preceding the time of creation, according to the Scrip 
 ture relation, we should have, I hold, some glimpses of them, 
 however faint. If they were an earlier and independent race, 
 that is another matter ; but it does not militate with our origin 
 in Adam, according to the received account." 
 
 " Why, Mr. Atherton, do you really believe in the account 
 
HOUSEHOLD SKETCHES. 105 
 
 of the creation, literally ? that days, for instance, are to be 
 understood as our days, and years to mean what that term 
 does with us ? " 
 
 " Well, sir," he replied, " as, upon this subject, I know 
 nothing else, I can say nothing different. 
 
 " But upon the general topic of our discourse," he continued, 
 " permit me to say, that as philosophers are more inclined to 
 believe pagan than Christian history, and it has this badge 
 of truth, that, being independent, its confirmatory statements, 
 of course, challenge faith, it certainly does confirm the 
 scriptural relation, as far as it goes ; that is, for a certain 
 period anterior to the times of the Saviour. For what pre 
 cedes, then, and going back far beyond the times of any other 
 record, we have the books themselves, carrying their own evi 
 dence clearly with them, as to their antiquity and faithfulness. 
 Then, at the time of the Saviour, there is their undoubtedly 
 reputed authority and antiquity. Then, to say nothing of the 
 confirmations of profane history, and the monuments of 
 Egypt, for instance, for a very long period before Christ, 
 the last of the prophets comes down, to about four centuries 
 antecedent to that era. This is no great interval, within 
 which to transmit records or traditions. Think of books we 
 have in the English language since 1400, or 1450, yes, and 
 manuscripts of many centuries earlier." 
 
 "Traditions ! do you mean to say, you have any reliance 
 on traditions ? Why, they fade out in a generation or two." 
 
 " Not among a people like the Jews, who held to them and 
 preserved them. Besides, the communication between differ 
 ent ages may be closer than many imagine ; for instance, I 
 have often heard my father say, that he knew a man in the 
 army, who had often conversed with another, who was well 
 acquainted with Peregrine White, the first child born of Chris 
 tian parents in New England. This might carry back any 
 direct communication, considerably more than two hundred 
 years, and, supposing White s parents, or their friends, had 
 
106 EASTFOIIT); OR, 
 
 told him anything, the tradition might go back to the time 
 of James I., or Elizabeth, or even earlier, with a good degree 
 of accuracy. 
 
 "Then, sir," continued Mr. Atherton, " we have yet exist 
 ing the cities of the most ancient times recorded in the Scrip 
 tures. There is Damascus, the Damascus of Abram, as 
 well as of Paul, still standing; and Nineveh, * that great 
 city, the city of Ashur, destroyed and now exhumed. 
 
 " Where are all, or any of these things, throwing the 
 slightest ray upon any earlier period, than that of which the 
 Bible informs us ? 
 
 " Having, therefore, a sure word, professing to come home 
 to us, under divine sanctions, and sustained by the reliable 
 evidence of all existing facts, our fallible reason may specu 
 late upon vague theories, but we are liable to make ship 
 wreck of what is most valuable to us, and to grope in dark 
 ness forever. No, sir ; the Bible offers us that account of 
 these things, which inspiration was willing to afford ; all 
 beyond may be bold and ingenious, but -can be only unsatis 
 factory, and, to say the least, very vain conjecture." 
 
 " Well, sir," said Date, " I can t pretend to argue this 
 question with a divine ; but I hardly supposed people, now-a- 
 days, fully believed in the Old Testament." 
 
 " I do not know what people you mean, Mr. Date ; 
 Christians do ; and let me assure you, that no intelligent per 
 son can reject the Old, who really believes in the Neiv Tes 
 tament. The authority of the one asserts that of the other, 
 in every book of its sacred pages." 
 
 Mr. Date now rose to take his leave. 
 
 Mrs. Atherton had returned to the room, and was present 
 during the discourse which we have detailed. 
 
 " You have had rather a high argument, my love," said she, 
 " with this oddest of all odd sort of people." 
 
 " Y r es, he is very much to be pitied for his peculiarities, 
 many of which, to be sure, arc highly amusing. Out of 
 
HOUSEHOLD SKETCHES. 107 
 
 trifles he makes grievances, and he trifles with matters of the 
 highest weight. His mind is a sort of whirlpool, into which 
 much enters, but nothing comes out ; or, if anything really 
 escapes, it is twisted and distorted, beyond all natural shape." 
 
 " Let me ask you, my husband, if ancient nations do not 
 pretend to give some account of their own descent ? I have 
 not a very clear notion on this subject." 
 
 " Yes, my love ; the people of antiquity, who were at all 
 refined, endeavored to give some explanation of their origin ; 
 but it was always so absurd, as to show they knew ndthing 
 about it. There had been a period, no doubt, when they 
 were comparatively barbarous, and the traces of their descent 
 were lost. It does not require thousands of years to wipe 
 these away, amongst a people so situated ; a few generations 
 may suffice, in such a condition of society, to erase all definite 
 tradition, or to pervert its true character ; so that they would 
 know no more about their ancestry than our Indians, for in 
 stance, or thfe savage people of Africa. On the other hand, 
 the Hebrews were always in a condition to preserve their 
 records." 
 
 " Well, I ra sure, we have had strange mutations to-day, 
 and have literally gone 
 
 1 From grave to gay, from lively to severe. " 
 
 " As one of my lively friends in college used to say, * such is 
 life, " replied her husband; " and now, it is high time to pre 
 pare for bed, after a day of so much to excite and weary us." 
 
 In regard to Mr. Prior Date, we are compelled to inform 
 our readers, that he was entirely unable to settle the conflict 
 ing claims of the several boarding-houses, and consequently 
 left Eastford on the following day, and, it is to be hoped, 
 found offers of lodgings, less distracting to the mind, in some 
 other equally quiet and cheap town. We fear, however, that 
 the indeeisive character of his disposition has had an influence, 
 in still retarding the appearance of the new spelling-book, 
 
108 EASTFORD; OR, HOUSEHOLD SKETCHES. 
 
 which has not yet been announced. To show the unhappy 
 results of indecision and procrastination, however, we would 
 suggest what has been subsequently seen, that other more 
 enterprising philosophers have revived his ingenious theory, 
 and, in a very unphilosophical spirit, have shamelessly deprived 
 Mr. Date of all the credit of his original discovery. 
 
CHAPTER XL 
 
 "Nature, more infallible than politicians, teaches us to prevent the 
 evil which threatens us ; it becomes incurable while prudence is delib 
 erating what remedy to apply." 
 
 DE RETZ. "Conspiracy of Fiesco ayainsi Genoa. 
 
 " Nor love thy life, nor hate ; but what thou liv st 
 Live well, how long or short, permit to Heaven ! " 
 
 MILTON. 
 
 BUT now misfortunes were impending over the pleasant 
 town. They say, that these never come single. We suppose 
 this only means, that the relations of things in this world are 
 really so close, though often unnoticed by the casual ob 
 server, or even sometimes imperceptible by the most careful 
 scrutiny, that if one link of the embracing chain weaken 
 and break, the other parts, which are in * a concatenation 
 accordingly," necessarily fall to the ground. In the present 
 instance, therefore, we conceive that, from the occurrence of one 
 calamity, a direful brood of ills may have naturally sprung. 
 
 The latter portion of the summer had been excessively warm ; 
 but this is too soft a word, it had been hot, hot almost 
 without parallel. Not that soft and attempered heat, fanned by 
 the pinions of the sweet south-west, bearing on its fragrant 
 wings the balmy odors of fields and flowers, which, in our 
 harsh and variable climate, so often makes the breath of June 
 a luxury and a delight ; nor yet that of a still later season 
 of the year, when, as the shadowy evening hours ascend the 
 expectant heavens, the lord of day refolds the gorgeous cur 
 tains of his air-built pavilion, and robes the place of his rest 
 10 
 
110 EASTFORD; OR, 
 
 with those hues of light and loveliness, which art of man but 
 faintly imitates, and mines of earth afford ineffectual pig 
 ments to portray : and then, as with the sudden and rapid 
 rush of airy squadrons, the ocean breezes wheel into the ex 
 hausted city, and dash with irresistible vigor along its scorch 
 ing avenues, and offer to the panting multitude a succor and 
 a joy ! 
 
 No; it was like that parching and thirsty breath, which 
 drinks up the springs of being, along the arid sands of Arabia, 
 or the fire which waves, as with an ever-flaming torch, over the 
 trackless and lifeless Lybian wastes. 
 
 Indeed, the heat had been sultry, continuous, suffocating, 
 intense. The heavens were of brass, and the earth iron. A 
 browner horror darkened amidst the dusty and sapless foliage. 
 The walls glared with a fierce and merciless light. The pave 
 ments reflected a beam unendurable to human vision. Day 
 by day the withered earth seemed smitten by the same 
 piercing, lurid and remorseless sun. And when night rebuked 
 his burning eye, with her veil of lustrous and ineffable azure, 
 even this hung motionless, breathless, unsprinkled with pity 
 ing dews, unstirred by relenting hope, over the face of wearied 
 and beseeching nature. 
 
 O, for " a little cloud out of the sea, like a man s hand ! " 
 0, for the big and bounteous drops of refreshing moisture ! 
 0, for the leaping, dancing, plashing, abounding and rejoicing 
 rain ! 
 
 Of course, such a season and such a condition of the 
 atmosphere were not favorable to health. Although, at that 
 period, regular watering-places were not, yet such, as were 
 able to desert their ordinary avocations, languidly resorted to 
 the sea-shore, for an afternoon, at least, to gather such 
 refreshment as they might, from its cooler breezes and amidst 
 its sparkling breakers. 
 
 In the mean time, an unlucky vessel had arrived at East- 
 ford from a foreign port, and although kept for a certain 
 
HOUSEHOLD SKETCHES. Ill 
 
 period at quarantine, had been permitted to come up to the 
 wharf, before the proper purifications had been completed. 
 The decease of the regular port-physician, who took the 
 malignant disorder brought by the unfortunate vessel, un 
 doubtedly afforded opportunity for some neglected precaution 
 in this particular. The consequence was, the fever began to 
 appear in that part of the town where the vessel lay. And, 
 although confined mostly within a certain quarter, as well by 
 a rigorous cordon sanitaire, and other necessary means of pre 
 vention, now that the mischief had partly taken root, as, 
 perhaps, by a predisposition to this sort of fever along the 
 banks of a river, rather than in more elevated and airy situa 
 tions, not a few of the worthy citizens of Eastford sickened 
 of a disorder, which seems yet to have lost none of its viru 
 lence or its terrors. 
 
 Many of these unfortunates were parishioners of Mr. 
 Atherton, and, of course, their unhappy condition claimed 
 of him a duty, to which so true a soldier of the cross would 
 not be found wanting, in the battles of his master. 
 
 In this maritime quarter of the town, though inhabited mostly 
 by people in moderate circumstances, dwelt some of the most 
 thriving, as well as most esteemed, of his congregation. Some 
 prosperous merchant, it may be, had here built his handsome 
 mansion, that he might sit at the open window, of a summer 
 morning, or, after the early tea of old-fashioned times, and 
 watch for the well-known signal of his home-returning bark, 
 or speculate upon her cargo and condition, as, with swelling 
 sails, she swept upwards, on the bosom of the gentle river, 
 towards her accustomed berth. Or, haply, some retired sea- 
 captain might prefer, 
 
 " From such a loop-hole of retreat," 
 
 to indulge his taste for maritime matters in general, and, spy 
 glass in hand, to keep a bright look-out for the incomings and 
 outgoings of all the familiar craft which frequented the port. 
 
112 EASTFORD J OR, 
 
 With these were others, seamen, artisans and persons of vari 
 ous pursuits, whose occupations made a residence near the 
 water convenient or desirable. Not a few of the inhabitants 
 of the infected district had removed, temporarily, to dwelling- 
 place^ more salubriously situated. To most, this was impos 
 sible. The rich may fly before the face of the destroyer, and 
 seem to escape all but " the inevitable hour ; " to the poor, 
 there is no such choice. They must brave the danger and 
 abide the issue, and find their only refuge in the eternal Prov 
 idence, which watches over and provides for the meanest sub 
 jects of its paternal care. 
 
 It was a melancholy mission, which required the services 
 of Mr. Atherton, in this feverish and now almost desolated 
 region. It was the abode of silence and sorrow. The distant 
 hum of busy movement, the rattle of wheels in the remoter 
 streets, the clink of hammer or sledge upon the anvil, heard 
 through the drowsy stillness of the summer air, penetrated 
 here, with a faint reverberation, that yet seemed, almost 
 harshly, to remind these solitudes of a world from which they 
 were completely shut out. The houses were darkened, and 
 wore a deserted aspect. The stores and shops were chiefly 
 closed. The dismantled vessels looked ghastly, as they clung 
 to the cheerless wharves. The flap of the tide, as its waves 
 struck and recoiled from their lazy sides, resounded through 
 the hollow docks with an echo, which was almost startling. 
 The very footfalls of the few who had occasion to flit along 
 these unfrequented walks, had something eerie and weird- 
 like in their intonation. The shadow of death folded over 
 the place the sombre plumage of his drooping wing ! 
 
 The sufferings within those afflicted dwellings it would be 
 vain and intrusive to portray. Who can depict the unspeak 
 able anguish of the human heart ? In its own depths let its 
 bitterness rest ; and, perhaps, from its root may spring a 
 branch, bearing precious and immortal foliage. It was the 
 voice heard in Itamah. It was the universal language of 
 
HOUSEHOLD SKETCHES. 113 
 
 human bereavement. It was the cry of the prophet, " My 
 father, my father ! " It was the lamentation of the king, 
 " My son, my son ! " 
 
 A sore trial it proved to be, to the youthful wife of Mr. 
 Atherton, to feel that this was a war from which her husband 
 could not be exempt. Life could be dearer to none than to 
 their loving and happy household. Little Georgy Atherton 
 was now a golden-haired urchin of about two years ; and his 
 mother had felt for some time gathered about her heart an 
 other of those ties to earth, which make " life more sweet, and 
 death more bitter." 
 
 " I scarcely know how to let you go, my love," said she, 
 upon the reception of a message summon ing her husband to 
 some sick-bed. " I grow almost superstitious about it ; and 
 though, as you know, I endeavor to control such feelings, I 
 sometimes hesitate about your duty, in exposing yourself to 
 these constant dangers." 
 
 "I have no doubt, darling," replied he, "that any hesita 
 tions you may feel are of a very lady-like and delicate char 
 acter ; indeed, of that description of gentle noes, which 
 always lead to an eventual yes. For neither of us can have 
 any real doubt about the duty ; and when that is settled, I am 
 sure you would not have me flinch." 
 
 " Indeed, I am sure you will do nothing unmanly, or un 
 worthy a Christian minister ; but you come home so weary ! 
 And then, how do you keep up your spirits so? Do you never 
 think of the danger ? " 
 
 <k Not often. Of what avail would it be ? To give way to 
 fear, or to whatever prostrates the physical or moral energies, 
 is to open the gates to the enemy, and rather to urge, than 
 merely invite him to enter. I have no doubt, reasonably good 
 nerves, with the consciousness of performing my duty, have 
 given me immunity so far, and I trust, by the blessing of God, 
 will still preserve me." 
 10* 
 
114 EASTFOUD J OR, 
 
 " I fervently pray so, my darling husband ; but O, your 
 nerves must be sadly tried ! " 
 
 " Yes, love, and my heart, too, often enough, as you well 
 know. Your pretty little favorite, Lucilla Downing, caused 
 me the most affliction, I believe; and though now so happily 
 recovering, yet it must long be said of her, 
 
 questa fu rosa. 
 
 But now I must hasten down to poor Hutchinson, who, I 
 fear, is ill prepared for the event that most probably awaits 
 him." 
 
 And not without such preparation for his perilous mission 
 as was then considered serviceable, and such leave-taking as 
 love suggests, and many charges to be careful and return 
 soon, and attendance to the door, and looking after him 
 down the street, Mr. Atherton departed on his errand of 
 mercy. 
 
 The person, whom he most frequently encountered on these 
 occasions, was his father-in-law, Dr. Walton, whose skilful 
 and often successful treatment of the insidious disease, had 
 added much to his many claims upon the affection and respect 
 of the community. Unlike some of his profession who, in the 
 absence of more sterling qualities, deem it politic to assume 
 every exterior advantage, likely to beguile the easily-deluded 
 world, Dr. Walton was, perhaps, only too negligent of the 
 forms and the expectations of society. If truth must be told, 
 his outer man appeared sometimes a little slip-shod. Captious 
 and inconsiderate persons, who were not aware of the real 
 merit and true ability, which all this carelessness partially 
 veiled, might have been tempted to employ still stronger ex 
 pressions. His ample growth of unshorn gray hair often flew, 
 as somebody said, " every -which- way " to the breeze. All 
 the attention of Mrs. Walton was in vain, to keep his garments 
 always in precise order ; but constant use, and the frequent 
 miry condition of the ways, afforded some plausible excuse 
 
HOUSEHOLD SKETCHES. 115 
 
 for the generally spattered aspect of his professional sulky. 
 In point of personal ablution, however, no person could be 
 more scrupulously exact. 
 
 To make up for these deficiencies, he had a true genius for 
 his valuable profession. His mind was rapid and decisive. 
 His keen eye detected, in an instant, the lurking elements of 
 the specific disorder. He seemed to grasp and analyze them, 
 by a sort of instinct. And although this habit of quick and 
 close observation might sometimes lead him to jump to erro 
 neous conclusions, yet, as his rapid views were formed by a 
 ready judgment, instead of imperfect observation, his skill 
 and accuracy were generally vindicated by the result. 
 
 " I perceive, John," said he, at one of these interviews, 
 as the doctor was mounting his sulky to depart, u I perceive 
 that your duties often begin, where mine have come to an 
 end." 
 
 " Ah, my dear sir ! " replied the minister, " the call for my 
 poor services ought to commence, long before there is any 
 pressing need of yours." 
 
 " Modest as ever, I see ; and faithful as modesty is apt to 
 show itself." 
 
 " Is there no hope for this poor man, sir ? " 
 
 " None, in this world. His habits of life have been such, 
 as completely to break him down ; and the sooner you are 
 with him, the better it will prove for him, I trust, lor the 
 future. Ibit ad plures." 
 
 And with this professional sentence upon his patient, and 
 smiling, as doctors will, his mind reverted to his next case, 
 as he rode off to another scene of suffering, and, perhaps, of 
 death. 
 
 As the season rolled on, however, a favorable change had 
 taken place in the condition of the atmosphere. Copious 
 rains had fallen; and were succeeded by bright and beauti 
 ful and bracing days. The stagnant air revived. The brassy 
 heavens were once more blue. The cheerful breeze again 
 
116 EASTFOUD; on, 
 
 came loaded with blessings. The face of nature smiled once 
 more with an exultant joy. Signs of renewed life began to 
 animate this half-deserted quarter of the town. The remoter 
 sounds, which so lately reechoed through these hollow streets, 
 were now drowned or melted into the present din ; and even 
 the reverberating blows of the cooper, upon the cask he was 
 constructing at his shop, came softly across the still river, and 
 would scarcely be noticed except by an attentive ear. Amidst 
 the busy hum of renewed industry, the few lingering cases of 
 disease were almost forgotten, but by the immediate families 
 and friends of the sufferers. To these, however, Mr. Ather- 
 ton was unabated in his attention. But long-continued fatigue 
 and exhaustion and anxiety were now beginning to wear seri 
 ously upon his excellent health and sound constitution. 
 
 In fact, upon his return home, at dusk, from one of his pas 
 toral visits, he was compelled to admit to himself a conscious 
 ness of far more than usual indisposition. He had been 
 somewhat exposed to a shower upon his way, and was sitting 
 by the ample fireplace of the kitchen, drying his garments 
 by the blaze, which the cooler air of the opening Fall now 
 rendered sometimes comfortable of an evening. This was 
 the day of wood-fires, and the cheerful flame crackled and 
 ascended up the voluminous chimney. So large were the 
 dimensions of the fireplace, according to ancient custom, that 
 it admitted a four-legged article of household furniture, called 
 by our ancestors " a form ; " that is, a long bench or seat, 
 extending from the opening line of the fireplace to the very 
 back wall of the chimney itself, thus admitting whoever was 
 disposed, as the Scotch say, to " sit into the fire." 
 
 Mrs. Atherton was herself superintending the preparation, 
 by the maid-servant, of a comfortable cup of tea for her weary 
 husband ; and, for the sake of the grateful warmth, the table 
 was already set in the neat and shining kitchen itself, a 
 practice which our genteelest ancestors did not, upon occasion, 
 disdain. Mr. Atherton had made no complaint in regard to 
 
HOUSEHOLD SKETCHES. 117 
 
 himself; but the quick sense of affection had observed, that 
 the usually animated clergyman was more than usually lan 
 guid and drooping. In the chimney-corner, upon the form, 
 sat another personage, who had been equally scrutinizing, 
 and whose observation, indeed, few things ever escaped. She 
 had rolled into the kitchen, a moment before, with a swagger 
 of more than ordinary amplitude, and, with a short pipe in 
 her mouth, had now installed herself by the fire. 
 
 This person was Black Nance, whom we have before intro 
 duced to our readers, and who was said to have been brought 
 from the West Indies in her youth by some shipmaster of 
 Eastford. If so, she had long been left to her own devices, 
 and lived quite alone in a small house, with a garden, near 
 the centre of the town. Whether it resulted from pride, or 
 whatever cause, she kept up no habits of social intercourse 
 with the " Guinea" people of color, for so their place of 
 residence, on the outskirts of the town, was called, in compli 
 ment to the country of their origin. She would not own 
 them for " her folks." She called them, contemptuously, 
 " niggers ; " and, upon any allusion, implying connection or 
 equality with them, she had a mode of distorting her mouth 
 and contracting her brow, much more expressive of her in 
 ward emotions, than at all pleasing to witness. Her great 
 strength and undoubted experience, together with a certain 
 reputation even for skill in the treatment of ordinary ail 
 ments, had long established Nance, as a nurse of fame, 
 amongst those who were favorites with her. 
 
 We are aware that many persons seem to believe a prac 
 titioner skilful, in proportion to his ignorance. But in the 
 case of Nance, if her claims to confidence, in this respect, were 
 not great to the extent of her pretensions, they stood upon 
 a foundation of reasonable solidity. During the recent epi 
 demic, she had exhibited the most fearless conduct, as well as 
 an apparent immunity from danger of infection, and even 
 from fatigue. With all this, she was chary of words, and 
 
118 EASTFOfiD ; OR, 
 
 perhaps fairly lost some of her honest dues of praise, l>y 
 merely doing what was to be done, rather than staying to 
 make much parade about it. Or, at least, the parade in 
 which she chose to indulge was after her own fashion, and 
 consisted of various contortions of her visage and sundry fold 
 ings and unfoldings of her hands, occasionally diversified by 
 setting her stalwart arms a-kimbo. To some, the vague ter 
 rors of her presence were too much, to admit of her services 
 being welcome in a sick-room ; and, on the other hand, it 
 must have been a very strong case, which could induce her to 
 go where her prejudices, which were strong, and not always 
 discriminating, operated against it. 
 
 Of the minister s kitchen Nance was a frequent inmate. 
 From this familiarity she derived substantial benefits, and 
 Mr. Atherton, when he occasionally met her, would often be 
 amused with her original and free comments upon persons 
 and things. Not, certainly, that he would encourage evil- 
 speaking; but besides the unadorned aspect, in which mat 
 ters and things presented themselves to her unsophisticated 
 observation, and her naive manner of expressing her opinions 
 thereon, perhaps, like a general in the field, who must, by 
 some means, learn the actual condition of the enemy, and 
 sends out, therefore, those who are rewarded if successful, and 
 hung only if caught, he felt himself justified in gathering 
 points of information, thus casually and privately, upon topics 
 of interest to his charge, which their modesty, we will say, or 
 some other motive, often induced them cautiously to conceal 
 from him. 
 
 Amongst her other peculiarities, like a petrel foreboding 
 the storm, Nance seemed to have a sort of instinctive appre 
 hension of threatened sickness to those whom she fancied ; and 
 upon the present occasion, had glided noiselessly into the 
 apartment, and assumed her familiar position in the chimney- 
 corner. 
 
 Mrs. Atherton had left the room for a moment, after saying 
 
HOUSEHOLD SKETCHES. 119 
 
 a word or two to Nancy, and no sooner was the door shut 
 than she gently said, 
 
 " Massa Atterton have yaller fever." 
 
 " Nonsense, Nancy ! what do you mean ? You will 
 frighten Mrs. Atherton, if you talk so," said he. 
 
 The maid-servant dropped into a chair aghast. 
 
 " Better little fright now, than good deal more by mby. 
 Massa Atterton, let Polly get big tub, and massa have his 
 feet in hot water. Nancy know Yaller Jack berry well, when 
 she look him in the eyes. Seen him berry often in Basseterre, 
 long time ago." 
 
 " I see no objection to the hot water, Nancy, whatever may 
 be my trouble, which I hope will soon be relieved. Polly, 
 you can do as Nancy tells you. But what makes you think 
 me so seriously unwell ? " 
 
 " Massa got pain in back of his head ? Yes. Got pain in 
 small of his back ? Yes. Bad look about his eyes ? Yes. 
 Talk not so easy ? Yes. Pis Yaller Jack grip him all over, 
 sartain." 
 
 Accordingly, the largest wash-tub was put in requisition, 
 and by means of a copious infusion from the steaming boiler, 
 the temperature of the water was raised to the highest endur 
 able pitch ; the contents of the mustard-pot were poured into 
 the vaporous libation, and the minister s legs, almost up to 
 his knees, were undergoing a process of parboiling by the 
 time Mrs. Atherton returned. 
 
 In the mean time, however, Nancy had proceeded to the 
 gnrden, with which she was sufficiently familiar, and which 
 contained its beds of sage, and savory, and mint, and rue, as 
 well as the vegetable productions, needed by the family, and 
 had reentcrcd, with her apron full of Homan wormwood, 
 which she was now engaged in pounding in the kitchen- 
 mortar, and occasionally expressing the juice through a cloth. 
 
 "Mercy! Nancy, what are you doing?" exclaimed Mrs. 
 Atherton ; " and, 0, John, how wretchedly you look ! " for 
 
EASTFORD J OR, 
 
 Mr. Athcrton was now leaning his head languidly upon his 
 hand, and was certainly showing the effects of the disorder, 
 under which he was suffering. " 0, do let me send for 
 father ! " 
 
 To this proposition her husband made no objection, though 
 Nance privately rolled up the whites of her eyes, and accord 
 ingly Polly was despatched, at a round pace, to effect Dr. 
 Walton s instant attendance. 
 
 " Nancy thinks I should have my bed warmed, love ; and 
 I should indeed be glad to lay my head on the pillow." 
 
 Mrs. Atherton, who was amply efficient in all these domes 
 tic and necessary offices, soon provided the warming-pan with 
 its suitable contents, and proceeded to the chamber, with a 
 charge to her husband to follow in five minutes. In the 
 midst of her anxiety and the performance of her own part, 
 she had paid little attention to Nancy s operations, who had 
 soon contrived to fill a tumbler at least half full of the clear 
 juice of the bitter herb. By means of entreaty and expostu 
 lation, she soon induced the minister to swallow nearly the 
 whole of the unpalatable draught, which trying operation, in 
 the reduced condition of his physical and moral powers, he 
 had scarcely the energy, or perhaps the care, to resist. With 
 the assistance of Nancy, who would have thought little of car 
 rying him in her arms, he was immediately led to his cham 
 ber, and, aided by his wife, was soon safely ensconsed beneath 
 an ample supply of bed-clothes. A profuse perspiration very 
 shortly rewarded the hopes of his nurses, and by the time 
 Dr. Walton arrived, he was enjoying a sound sleep. 
 
 His father-in-law declined to have him awakened ; but 
 after finally inducing Mrs. Atherton to retire, both he and 
 Nancy remained by the bed-side of the patient for the night. 
 When morning at" length came, as come it will, even to a 
 sick-chamber, Mr. Atherton awoke, feeble certainly, but 
 refreshed ; and Dr. Walton pronounced febrile symptoms to 
 be scarcely perceptible, Rejoicing the heart of his daughter, 
 
HOUSEHOLD SKETCHES. 121 
 
 therefore, with his favorable judgment, as to her husband s 
 speedy recovery, he ordered such slight prescription as he 
 thought necessary, and departed to his own home. 
 
 Dr. Walton often, afterwards, commended Nancy s ener 
 getic and judicious proceedings. 
 
 " No doubt," he observed, " much had been owing to Mr. 
 Atherton s excellent constitution, and to such gentle remedies, 
 as he had found it necessary to employ. Still, there was 
 nothing like taking these things in season ; and too much 
 could hardly be said in favor of a hot foot-bath, as hot as 
 could be borne, as promoting that perspiration, which 
 tended to throw off feverish symptoms. Once get the dis 
 order upon the surface, my dear sir, and then, you know, we 
 have an open enemy to deal with." 
 
 In regard to the decoction of wormwood, Nancy saw fit to 
 say as little as possible. She had seized the very earliest 
 opportunity, in the evening, to remove all traces of its prep 
 aration, as fearing, perhaps, it might be considered a bold 
 and unauthorized interference with the privileges of the heal 
 ing art. Nor are we, on our part, able to pronounce, whether 
 the dose was really of any absolute service, in breaking up 
 the fever ; or, indeed, if it was actually the yellow fever, with 
 which Mr. Artherton was threatened, as Nancy so confidently 
 asserted. On this point Dr. Walton looked solemn, but gave 
 no opinion. Certain it is, if that be any evidence, that the 
 bed-clothes themselves were found to be very yellow. " The 
 sheets," as Mrs. Atherton and the washerwoman afterwards 
 asserted, "were as yellow, yes, no saffron ever was so 
 yellow! " 
 
 Mr. Atherton sometimes alluded, afterwards, to the potent 
 and difficult dose he had been induced to swallow, in his weak 
 condition. 
 
 " Bitters berry cleansing, Massa Atterton," was all Nancy s 
 reply. 
 
 Indeed, if fame spoke truth, unlike some regular prac- 
 11 
 
122 EASTFORD; OR, HOUSEHOLD SKETCHES. 
 
 titioners, she did not hesitate sometimes to swallow her own 
 medicine ; though qualified, in her case, by something, which 
 corrected the taste, and made it, perhaps, easier to take. 
 
 Of one thing we are certain, that there is no reason to be 
 lieve Dr. Walton was ever informed of the administration of 
 the wormwood. 
 
CHAPTER XII. 
 
 " Ilinx-minx, the old witch winks." 
 
 NURSERY BALLAD. 
 
 " Thoso authors, therefore, are to be read, that supply most axioms of 
 prudence, most principles of moral truth, and most materials for con 
 versation ; and these purposes are best served by poets, orators and his 
 torians." JoHXSoy. " Life of Milton." 
 
 So passed the time away, at dear old Eastford. It was not 
 generally moved by such stirring incidents, as some of those 
 which we have thought worth recording ; and, it must be con 
 fessed, that the course of life with its inhabitants was of a 
 rather humdrum character. The town, in fact, had grown a 
 little drowsy. An unnatural quiet began to reign, in its once 
 stirring and busy streets. As the iron men of another day 
 passed off the stage, the spirit of society became, perhaps, 
 somewhat degenerate. There had been those, who had fought 
 with Wolfe at Quebec, and others, at a later period, who, 
 with Arnold, in the hour of his then untarnished fame, had 
 ascended the Kennebec, upon the hazardous and difficult expe 
 dition which he led ; and many more, whose energies had been 
 awakened and their minds enlarged, by intercourse with the 
 world without, through the trials and toils and glories of the 
 llevolution. Men of this stamp had communicated to those 
 around them something of the fire and stoutness of their own 
 natures, and entered themselves, with a bolder and loftier spirit, 
 into the various pursuits of business and the avocations of 
 life, in which they were subsequently engaged. 
 
 These, and such as these, as has been observed, had faded, 
 
124 EASTFOIID; OR, 
 
 or were fast fading out ; and the times had become degener 
 ate. Let us not be understood, however, fully to agree with 
 Lord Verulam on this subject; especially should we be reluc 
 tant to give undue preeminence to the qualities developed in 
 war. We glory in peace ! Et nomen pads didce, et ipsa 
 res salutaris. And it would no doubt be the disposition, as 
 it is the duty, of all Christian people, to " follow after those 
 things which make for peace." But is it possible for us yet 
 " to live peaceably with all men "? Perfect peace, it would 
 certainly seem, can only exist amongst perfect men. In the 
 present constitution of society, there will yet be " the cankers 
 of a calm world and a long peace." And though war, Heaven 
 knows, has evils and horrors enough, yet it may sometimes 
 be doubted, whether vices and meannesses, more degrading, 
 more chilling to the heart, more killing to the soul, do riot 
 sometimes grow up and prevail, when the nations slumber in 
 profound repose. This, to be sure, is because their own 
 natures are vile, and they do not make the right use of peace, 
 which is naturally the daughter of love, and should be full 
 of her mother s kindness, gentleness, and generous feeling. 
 On the contrary, we fear that men s minds grow really belit 
 tled, where they ought to be enlarged ; and " honor sinks," 
 where all the pursuits of men become a mere encounter of 
 wits, after petty gains. 
 
 Be this as it may, Eastford certainly fell off from much, 
 which had formerly given its character a name and a renown ; 
 and many of its young men left it, with lingering steps, 
 lovely as it stood, in the charms with which nature had en 
 compassed it, to seek the more active field of the capital, or 
 still more distant scenes of employment, for their fretting 
 faculties. But although events undoubtedly occurred in the 
 quiet little town, which, if properly presented for the consid 
 eration of our readers, would assume a cast more or less ro 
 mantic in their texture and development, yet our business is 
 especially with those, who have been thus far exhibited upon 
 
HOUSEHOLD SKETCHES. 125 
 
 the stage of action, and it is to their further fortunes, that 
 we feel ourselves compelled to ask the reader s attention. 
 
 But, in justice to the plan, which we have thought proper 
 to mark out, we shall be under the necessity of omitting, upon 
 the present occasion, certain relations going over a series of 
 years, and including details of a highly interesting, though 
 private nature, in regard to persons, many of whom, it 
 must be admitted, are deserving of the respect and good 
 will of all well-disposed people. In tnis particular, the nov 
 elist possesses a power which, if arbitrary and supreme, may 
 yet, if judiciously dispensed, be made agreeable to the sub 
 jects of his dominion. The dramatist must absolutely pre 
 serve his unities, by presenting a combined series of well- 
 connected and naturally-succeeding incidents. The historian 
 can properly and justly leave no hiatus in that sequence of 
 events, great and small, which it is his business to relate in 
 the consecutive order of their occurrence. 
 
 But the novelist is confined within no such narrow limits. 
 As, in the family circle, all parties are not uniformly present, 
 and some may be absent upon long journeys or distant voy 
 ages, and, after weary intervals, may all appear again, 
 changed it may be, and travel-sore, around the domestic 
 hearth ; so the painter of private life may, at his pleasure, 
 drop, as it were, some or all of his characters, at a suit 
 able epoch, and take them up again, after the lapse of an 
 appropriate space of time ; in a word, he may occasionally 
 consult his own convenience, and leave much to the imagina 
 tion of his readers. 
 
 As, for instance, in the case of Miss Poulter, of whom, by 
 the by, Jack Holliday, generally a devout admirer of the 
 sex, was ungallant enough to say, 
 
 " That woman s as busy as the devil in a gale o wind ! 
 Why, she knows everything. A young fellow can t look at a 
 pretty girl, but what she 11 tell you a long story about all 
 the particulars she s as good as a newspaper." 
 11* 
 
126 EASTFORD; OR, 
 
 That lady, however, had found it convenient to quit tho 
 field of action for a time ; and, like a wise woman, sought, by 
 means of temporary absence, to mitigate the force of a public 
 ridicule she could not hope to subdue. For the adventure 
 of Miss Betty with the unlucky preacher had resounded 
 through the town, with all the hundred versions of rumor. 
 Some went so far as to allege and they were those who 
 adopted Black Nance s theory that she had been observed 
 looking anxiously at th e minister, on several occasions ; peer 
 ing at him curiously in public, and even procuring an occa 
 sional seat near the pulpit, in the conventicle where he offi 
 ciated ; and that she had now shamefully clasped that divine 
 in her arms, in the street ; and that, in his efforts to escape 
 her awful embrace, he had unfortunately tumbled to the 
 ground. At all events, she had thought best to flee to the 
 city, on the pretence of visiting Nabby Poulter, her cousin, 
 and of personally superintending the construction and trim 
 ming of her next new bonnet. During her lamented absence, 
 though scandal is never entirely dormant in a small town, 
 whatever may be the case in the city, it was remarked, that 
 the people of Eastford enjoyed a season of somewhat less 
 flngrant gossip than common. 
 
 Her return was the topic of a slight conversation, between 
 two of our frjends. 
 
 " Well, Nancy, I hope you re well ; what s the news of 
 the morning ? " 
 
 " Pretty well, tank you, sir. Hope you re berry well, dis 
 fine morning, Massa Attcrton, and all de good folks in dis 
 here house, sir. Bad penny soon returned, Massa Atterton ! " 
 
 " You can t mean yourself, surely, Nancy ? " (And she shook 
 her woolly head.) "You set too just a value on your own 
 merits ; but what ill coin have you been passing off, that has 
 come back upon your hands? " 
 
 " I ! dear me, Massa Atterton, ha, ha ! poor Nancy get 
 too little money nuff to pass, anyhow ; don t take no bad 
 
HOUSEHOLD SKETCHES. 127 
 
 money ; poor folks keep bright look-out ; hard ting to cheat 
 Nancy, I tell you ! Dis none of my money, sir, Miss Betty 
 she s come again." 
 
 " Ah, indeed ! quite an active, stirring person, Nancy." 
 
 " Busy as old hen wi chickens ! see her in twenty places, 
 dis berry blessed morning ever was." 
 
 " 0, not quite so many, I think, Nancy ! you re too 
 much inclined to exaggerate." 
 
 " Well, she s flying all over dis town, anyhow did hope 
 some silly old body pick her up in de city. Wants somebody 
 to take care of her, see she don t run over ministers, sir. 
 Then how her tongue do go ! Try to catch me dis morning, 
 but Nance too sly for her." 
 
 " Why, how did you escape, Nancy? " 
 
 " I, sir ? I only don t do nothing. I stop short, sir, 
 stand jes so " (setting her arms akimbo and throwing back 
 her head) " look at her so " (putting on a succession of 
 inimitable grimaces) " berry polite make her low curtchey, 
 so, she soon make off, I tell you, sartain, hear her keep 
 muttering all down the street." 
 
 " Why, Nancy, you must be careful ; you 11 be up, one of 
 these days, before the justice, for frightening honest people 
 out of their wits." 
 
 " I, sir ! Nancy never fright honest people, sir, never ! 
 Miss Betty say I crazier than ever, she got no great wits 
 herself to brag about ; too long tongue for that ; could n t 
 make out case gainst poor old Nancy, fore no justice, no 
 how." 
 
 " Well, really, Nancy, you give your own tongue rather 
 too free license ; don t you know, you should n t speak ill of 
 your neighbors ? " 
 
 " Like to know who my neighbors be, Massa Atterton. 
 Some folks lie ; some folks talk scandal ; some folks run gad 
 ding all round town ; don t want no such neighbors." 
 
128 EASTFORD; OR, 
 
 " But you know, Nancy, even truth is not to be spoken, at 
 all times." 
 
 " Truth, he bear his weight, though ; ever know Nancy 
 lie? no, guess not." 
 
 " Well, you should be careful of your own conduct and 
 conversation, and endeavor to give no offence, and avoid all 
 persons, whose example or society might lead you into mis 
 chief and sin." 
 
 " Now, Massa Atterton, bless your heart and soul, did n t 
 I tell you how I got away from Miss Betty, dis berry morn 
 ing, sir?" 
 
 Since it is as easy, therefore, to jump over an interval of 
 years, as of weeks or months, we propose to clear, by one fell 
 leap, the considerable chasm of sixteen or seventeen years. 
 We may feel ourselves impelled, at some future period, to fill 
 up this long interspace of time, for the purpose of offering 
 several interesting and valuable suggestions which we have 
 on hand. Our present objects forbid this now. 
 
 In the mean time, Master George Atherton had grown to 
 be a very fine lad, almost at man s estate, and was more than 
 two years the senior of his sister Alice ; while Miss Mary 
 May, whose early career had so narrowly escaped a sudden 
 conclusion, had arrived at a time of life, half way between the 
 two. "Not out of my teens yet, 1 she insisted, "by more than 
 one good year. No, Ally, my love ; I propose to come to a 
 dead stand, just where 1 am. I shall use the imperative privi 
 lege of my sex, and command time itself to stand still, to suit 
 my sovereign will and pleasure. I intend to hold all my sub 
 jects obedient, even if it take me the enormous length of im 
 posing commands on that very wise and judicious youth, Master 
 George Atherton. I beg your pardon, George; I believe you 
 call yourselves men in college." 
 
 " Yes, Mary, such is the decorous observance instituted 
 amongst the future dignitaries of the land." 
 
HOUSEHOLD SKETCHES. 129 
 
 " Upon my word, they do themselves much honor ! 
 Neither law nor custom, I believe, yet confers upon them the 
 title of manhood ; and their own exertions are yet to secure 
 for them the future dignities, which they seem to have grasped 
 so summarily." 
 
 " Mighty fine, indeed ! This is an extraordinary disser 
 tation for a girl in her teens. Don t you know, Mary dear, 
 that education and the influence it confers put them on the 
 high road to honor and fortune ? " 
 
 " I admit nothing, sir, while I am in the height of this 
 great argument; especially with a gentleman figuratively 
 arrayed in cap and gown. I believe a man s position must 
 be the result of his own efforts,, and that all the learning in 
 the world will not help him, unless he knows how to use it, 
 and, knowing, dares employ." 
 
 " That sounds well ; and your argument is as profound as 
 a lady s always is. Yet, though there may be exceptions, I 
 suppose the possession of learning generally implies the ca 
 pacity to use it ; so that, after all, the case you put is much 
 like what the logicians call reasoning in a circle." 
 
 " Logicians ! I hate logic ! " 
 
 " Hate logic ! that s good, for a young lady who s trying 
 to make out a proposition ! But is n t it rather a strong 
 expression of dislike towards the main implement of reason ? " 
 
 " 0, George ! " said Alice, " she s only trying to pester 
 you. I declare I found her, the other day, just before you 
 came home, poring over a syllogism, in a regular brown 
 study." 
 
 " Traitress ! And I suppose you 11 next pretend my ire 
 was excited, because it puzzled me for the moment ? I was 
 only endeavoring to discover the utility of a set method of 
 doing that, which people generally do as a matter of course." 
 
 " Logic helps one to see how few people reason correctly, 
 Mary. It is astonishing how bewildered they often get about 
 the commonest things." 
 
1 30 EASTFORD J OR, 
 
 " If your statement is well founded, it goes to show that 
 reasonings mind, I don t say reason are not so valuable 
 to us as the instincts and feelings, which commonly lead us 
 to correct results." 
 
 " Stated like a philosopher, and logically too ; your study 
 of the syllogisms, after all, must have been of service to you. 
 You remind me of the Frenchman, who discovered, to his sur 
 prise, that he had been speaking prose all his life without 
 knowing it." 
 
 " AY hat is to be the subject of your exercise at commence 
 ment, George ? " said Alice. 
 
 " I propose to illuminate the world with an essay, On the 
 cultivation of the imaginative faculties. What do you think 
 of it?" 
 
 " O, that s a sweet subject ! I suppose you 11 have a 
 good deal to say about poetry, and sentiment, and feeling. 
 How I shall long to hear you ! " 
 
 " I shall expect great aid from both of you young ladies, 
 especially from that most logical personage, Miss Mary May, 
 to enable me to repress any too exuberant and erratic out 
 pouring of ideas." 
 
 " But what shall you say about it, Georgy, darling ? " 
 
 " 0, I intend to give quite a loose to my imagination. I 
 shall assert, that my own large experience of life, and pro 
 found knowledge of the world, aided by the counsels and 
 advice of two equally well-informed and judicious female 
 friends, have tended to enlighten my mind with a great many 
 novel ideas, upon matters and things in general." 
 
 " Ah, now you re jesting! but pray be a good boy, and 
 tell us really how you intend to treat your subject." 
 
 " Do you desire to be informed what is the sum of that 
 accumulated mass of learning, imbibed by your humble ser 
 vant, during his four years residence at the seat of letters?" 
 
 " Excellent ! go on, sir." 
 
 " This, then, it is ; that, as all mankind are mainly con- 
 
HOUSEHOLD SKETCHES. 131 
 
 cerncd with the moralities of life, and few have any real use 
 for the exact sciences, moral training is of more consequence 
 than mathematical ; and, since our imaginations do sensibly act 
 upon and influence our morals, it is of the utmost importance 
 that the first should be sedulously cultivated and instructed." 
 
 " Spoken like a great reformer ! " said Mary ; " and how 
 do you propose to bring about this grand result ? " 
 
 " I3y encouraging young persons you perceive I mean to 
 include ladies as well as gentlemen in the study of works 
 which will ennoble their natures, instead of those merely 
 which tend to sharpen their faculties." 
 
 " What do you hold to be really such, George ? " 
 
 " Philosophers, who teach the science of mind; poets, who 
 analyze the springs of action, and whose fame is vindicated 
 by the common assent of mankind, in its better moments, to 
 the elevated sentiments and noble examples, which they offer 
 to view ; and historians, whose statements, if not always 
 to be relied upon, yet afford us the opportunity of com 
 parison and reflection upon human life ; and, if we are 
 wise, encourage us to good and restrain us from evil. For 
 this reason, I should prefer to sec the chair of mathematics 
 vacant ; the oracles from which, I fear, seldom illumine 
 the darkness of our subsequent steps to that of moral 
 philosophy, whose teachings all men, who are to lead society, 
 ought to know ; and Professors of Polite Letters, under my 
 system, should become as useful, as they often are orna 
 mental members of society and the college." 
 
 " I commend your doctrine very much, George," said 
 Mary ; " but do you conceive the kind of cultivation you 
 propose will help one on in the world ? " 
 
 " Perhaps not, as the world is constituted ; but you forget 
 I am fiery for a great reform." 
 
 " Do you expect to rise by it ? " 
 
 " 1 do not expect to rise at all. This world was made for 
 Ciesar, not for me." 
 
132 EASTFORD J OR, HOUSEHOLD SKETCHES. 
 
 " Is it manly to feel thus ? " 
 
 " Manly ! I assure you, I think people rise now-a-days 
 rather by feminine than manly qualities." 
 
 " I thought men boasted of greatness as belonging pecu 
 liarly to your sex." 
 
 " Once, maybe, it was so ; but heroism is gone out of 
 fashion ; now, they advance on all fours, looking down instead 
 of up ; and rise by creeping, instead of flying." 
 
 ** The representatives of our sex, in your presence, sir, if I 
 may speak for both, feel flattered by the qualities you are 
 pleased to attribute to us." 
 
 " On account of the creeping ? 0, that s only an illustra 
 tion, deduced from your natural weakness ; the charge was 
 levelled against my own sex." 
 
 41 Of course, you except Mr. Atherton? " 
 
 " Perhaps so ; people of heroic tendencies, you know, often 
 lie pcrdus, and lost to the world, for want of opportunity, or 
 in consequence of the degeneracy of their times. But here 
 we are at Aunt Sibyl s gate, and there s the dear old lady, 
 nodding to us from the window." 
 
 But we will defer our account of this visit to another 
 chapter. 
 
CHAPTER XIII. 
 
 " And many deemed her heart was won ; 
 For, sought by numbers, given to none, 
 Had young Francesca s hand remained 
 Still by the church s bonds unchained." 
 
 BYIION. " Sieye cf Corinth." 
 
 " Sweet harmonist ! and beautiful as sweet, 
 And young as beautiful, and soft as young, 
 And gay as soft, and innocent as gay, 
 And happy (if aught happy here) as good." 
 
 YOUNG. " Niyht Thoughts." 
 
 IT will be perceived, therefore, that the conversation thus 
 detailed, took place in the course of the little more than a 
 mile s walk between the house of Mr. Atherton and that of 
 Miss Dudley, who still resided at " The Cottage," as she and 
 her friends loved to call her pretty, and really romantic, little 
 place of residence ; though the term was scarcely known at 
 that time, as applied to dwellings in New England. Under 
 her fostering care it had grown to be a lovely spot ; and, 
 fairly embowered in roses, and protected by shadowy foliage, 
 it might seem the appropriate retreat, as it was, of some un 
 worldly and placid devotee, who conceived that at least one 
 way of reaching a better condition of being, was gratefully to 
 accept, and piously to enjoy, such blessings as Heaven, in its 
 goodness and abundant mercy, saw fit to bestow. Still active 
 and benevolent, though retiring as ever, the good lady found 
 her chief pleasure in the society of her familiar friends; for 
 of formal acquaintance she had few or none ; and such would 
 have found little solace or satisfaction in her society. She 
 12 
 
134 EASTFORD; OR, 
 
 had not been without her severe trials, especially in her early 
 days. She had never experienced, in all their agony of bit 
 terness, those 
 
 " Sufferings the poor alone can know, 
 The proud alone can feel ;" 
 
 but, besides the great misfortune of her early orphanage, she had 
 had to endure, and still endured, that one life-long calamity 
 of her youth, whose memory hung, like a mourning veil, over 
 its secret shrine in her heart; for she had discovered, alas! 
 too late for her peace, but yet in season to save herself from 
 a worse doom than the mere loss of earthly happiness, that the 
 man whom, in the guilelessness of unpractised youth, she had 
 loved, as the best of her sex only know how to love, concealed 
 something more than mere unthinking heartlcssness, or even 
 ordinary villany, beneath a smooth, and only too prepossessing 
 exterior ; and, from that moment, she beheld him no more. 
 
 Against the earnest remonstrances of her friends, with 
 whom she might, no doubt, have soon passed into the condi 
 tion of some of the most excellent, most useful, yes, and most 
 amiable maiden ladies, whom any of us have been fortunate 
 enough to know, in which it might have been said of her, 
 as of them, perhaps, to a very late period of life, " 0, Aunt 
 This will do that," and " 0, Aunt That will do this," she 
 had felt it necessary for her to gather up the shattered ele 
 ments of her broken heart, as she would the bruised petals 
 of a rudely-trampled but precious flower, and, in the solitude 
 and silence of a life, repair, if possible, for heaven, what was 
 henceforth worthless for the first great purpose of woman s 
 existence upon earth. In this effort she had gained peace of 
 inind, at least ; and her life had long glided on that gentlest 
 and smoothest of all currents, which bears amiable and vener 
 able maiden ladies to their final haven of rest. 
 
 To her friends, and especially she dearly loved to be 
 surrounded by those yet in their youth, her hospitable door 
 
HOUSEHOLD SKETCHES. 135 
 
 stood ever upon the latch ; and they soon learned that they 
 could hardly offend her more, than by attempting to herald 
 their approach by the formalities of a knock for bell, of 
 course, there was none. 
 
 Long before the occurrence of that event in their lives, 
 which had bound the two households together with the strong 
 chords of a common anxiety and sympathy, similarity of 
 taste and feeling had united Mr. Atherton s family with Miss 
 Dudley in bonds of the strictest intimacy ; and this, too, not 
 withstanding, as we have before intimated, the lady was a 
 constant attendant upon public worship at St. Andrew s 
 church. Indeed, this made no sort of difference ; for, upon 
 one occasion, when the Presbyterian clergyman was inca 
 pacitated by a casual illness, the Rev. Dr. Mountain, who, 
 by good fortune, happened to have a brother ecclesiastic 
 ready to perform divine service for his own flock, was re 
 quested, in a friendly manner, and actually did officiate on 
 Sunday in the Presbyterian meeting-house. This liberal pro 
 ceeding on both sides gave occasion of scandal to some; and, 
 while one party thought it a great concession in the Episco 
 pal clergyman, there were those who held it to have been a 
 piece of unwarrantable license, on the part of the Presby 
 terian session. 
 
 Between the houses of Mr. Atherton and Miss Dudley, 
 therefore, there were few days passed without the interchange 
 of some friendly intimacy or kindness ; and, as the young peo 
 ple grew up, this happy condition was likely to suffer no 
 diminution. Indeed, the older they grew, the closer, if pos 
 sible, the intimacy seemed to become ; and when George Ath 
 erton was home for the vacation, especially after a sunset of 
 a fine summer evening, you might hear his cheerful voice, as 
 he called his sister from the garden, or her chamber, " Come, 
 Ally, get your bonnet, dear, and let s have a stroll;" which 
 generally meant a walk to Aunt Sibyl s, arid always a call 
 for Mary May ; unless, indeed, Mary happened to be at Mr. 
 
136 EASTPORD; OR, 
 
 Atherton s ; which chance, it is vain to deny, was one of 
 pretty frequent occurrence. It were really hard to say 
 which of the two young ladies was the most afflicted, and, 
 truth to tell, cried the most, when Master George, wearing, 
 at the final moment, an aspect by no means denoting a too 
 ardent eagerness in the pursuit of knowledge, was ready to 
 take his departure for the college, which his father had chosen 
 for his initiation into the ingenuous ails. The promise of let 
 ters, however, with college news, and, may be, a little city 
 gossip, on the one hand, and Eastford events, on the other, 
 served to brighten up the trio a little. Of Mary, George 
 took leave the evening before, in a manner, though affection 
 ate, yet, as Alice, who was present, must have thought, far 
 less striking in its external demonstrations than the fond 
 parting with her and his mother, on the following morning. 
 In fact, this latter ceremony was rather tearfully conducted, 
 until Mr. Atherton appeared, ready to accompany his son; 
 which relief was well ; for that gentleman, though always 
 kind and considerate, was one 
 
 " unused to the melting inood," 
 
 whenever the time seemed to have arrived for action. 
 
 The college selected was that over which the llev. Dr. 
 Churchman at that time presided. This gentleman was an 
 ardent lover of learning, and, actually, a scholar from taste 
 and inclination ; a man of wit and elegant accomplishments, 
 and famous, amongst other things, for that charming sketch 
 of one of our greatest orators, who has often been styled 
 with more justice than often pertains to personal comparisons 
 the Burke of America. The reverend doctor was besides 
 a shrewd reader of character, a pattern of honorable feel 
 ing, and an example of active benevolence ; with a heart 
 capacious enough to contain the whole human race ; warmly 
 beloved by his pupils, and remembered by them all with kind- 
 
HOUSEHOLD SKETCHES. 137 
 
 ness and veneration ; in fact, full of knowledge, letters, vir 
 tue and piety. But he lost ground with many, for want of 
 skill, deficient or unexercised, in financial concerns, de 
 manded, it was said, by the practical exigences of the times; 
 which, really, should have been left to other officials, as better 
 befitting them, than the head of a university intended for the 
 liberal education of young gentlemen. At this institution 
 Mr. Atherton chose to have his son entered, although widely 
 and radically differing from the religious opinions then preva 
 lent, and often deploring its defection from the true inter 
 pretation of the motto engraved upon its ancient seal, " CURISTO 
 ET EccLESi-E." But, as he well remarked, " if George could 
 not be safely trusted, in this particular, he should have little 
 confidence in the steadiness of his future course of life." 
 
 It is not strange that Master George should have been 
 quite a favorite with Miss Dudley ; as, indeed, he was with 
 every one who saw him during the delightful days of a well- 
 guided and well-disposed boyhood ; for he was a thoughtful 
 but still spirited little fellow, and of a form and bearing 
 which could hardly fail to attract the attention of others, 
 who look around them with the least " considerate eyes." 
 His father would have discountenanced any shyness, on his 
 part, to such companions as he deemed suitable to the lad s 
 age ; but this was unnecessary ; for, although he did not enter 
 into the feats of youth with the active eagerness of some, 
 yet, when it so happened, it was evident enough that nature 
 never intended him to be merely a follower, wherever courage 
 and generous action lead the way. 
 
 "There, there s George Atherton, now, riding up the 
 street," observed Miss Dudley, looking out of the window, 
 one afternoon, to Mrs. May and Mary, who were sitting with 
 her which latter, at the time, had little more than entered 
 upon "her teens." "What a fine, manly boy -he is! I 
 declare, he bows like a prince ! " 
 
 " Yes, he s a noble boy ! I don t blame his father for 
 12* 
 
138 
 
 EASTFORD; OR, 
 
 being proud of him, though some people do think it unbe 
 coming a minister I wonder what horse that is, he is riding." 
 
 Miss Ma} r suggested, that she " believed it was Western s 
 Black Warrior ; " for that worthy had long before arrived at 
 the dignity of a stable, upon his own account. " mother," 
 she continued, " you must let me ride with George, some time, 
 now this weather is so fine." 
 
 " Well, my dear, whenever Mr. Atherton is willing to trust 
 Alice." 
 
 " I really wish," said Aunt Sibyl, " that George would have 
 his hair cut; such a mass must be uncomfortable." 
 
 " 0, aunt," said Mary, " how cruel you are, to wish to cut 
 off those beautiful brown locks! I would n t have them clipped, 
 for anything in the world. I m sure all the girls are envying 
 them to him." 
 
 " Well, but, my dear, it is better for the hair, to keep it 
 rather short. Did you ever remark George s nose, Susan ? 
 It s the true Atherton nose, not exactly straight, but a 
 little rising at the bridge, which I think gives more spirit to 
 the face than a mere straight line, which is rather tame than 
 otherwise." 
 
 But, whatever may be your opinion of a fine boy, a little 
 thoughtless, perhaps, yet "candid, generous and just," 
 still, by no means, in our opinion, exactly 
 
 " the father of the man," 
 
 as was prettily said, by that famous poet, Mr. Wordsworth, 
 unless, in accordance with another observation of the same 
 great writer, he be permitted, during his nonage, 
 
 " to wander, at his own sweet will," 
 
 certainly, there is no sight in nature so pleasing, as a fair 
 young girl; indeed, no object comparable to her, both for what 
 she is, and what she is not. She is so innocent, so simple, 
 so shy, so bashful, so truly lovely ! The feelings of 
 
HOUSEHOLD SKETCHES. 139 
 
 her nature are only just dawning, and Tier instincts, though 
 existent, are yet incomplete ! And the very immaturity of 
 her mind and heart and person endows her with a charm, 
 which no after-developments can surpass. And surely a 
 sweeter creature than young Alice Atherton never glad 
 dened the eyes of the weary seekers, in this world, after an 
 ethereal beauty, seldom vouchsafed to mortal vision. To say, 
 that she was like her brother in the cast of her features, only 
 more delicate, would be doing very slight justice to the charms 
 of that lovely young lady. Indeed, she had a grace and nat 
 ural elegance, rarely exhibited, even by the gentler sex ; and 
 George s brown locks were somewhat lighter in shade, and 
 really only moonbeams, compared with the thick-hanging and 
 sunny ringlets, which relieved a face and neck, almost dazzling 
 in the purity of their virgin complexion. It was always diffi 
 cult to tell the exact color of her eyes. But, deep within their 
 inmost depths, there was a shifting and peculiar blue gleam, 
 like the glimpse one sometimes gets, of a summer s day, 
 when the lightest of all vapory shadows is sailing over the 
 sky, of a brighter, clearer, purer, bluer heaven, far be 
 yond the moving circle of this lower, azure arch ; intense, 
 transcendent, a ray of the soul within, claiming kindred 
 with the soul without. 
 
 There can be no doubt, however, that that very charming 
 young person, Miss Mary May, would attract the first, and, 
 perhaps, the next look of admiration, from a true adorer of 
 the fair sex. In height, she was somewhat taller than Alice, 
 and of a browner, yet clear complexion ; and her hair, often 
 braided over a forehead, low, yet perfect in the outline of its 
 sweeping arch, fairly glittered with a hue, which only was not 
 black. 
 
 " Her eye s dark charm twere vain to tell ! " 
 
 We should be tempted to call them Italian, were it not that 
 those are sometimes too sleepy, to admit the appropriation of 
 
140 EASTFOUD J OR, 
 
 so general a description to those of our beautiful friend ; for 
 hers were far from slumberous; but within their large and 
 broadly-opening round, there beamed a real and substantial, 
 but softened fire; dark, full, deep, lustrous ; eyes, in fact, 
 1o which Nature had clearly imparted all of which eyes can 
 be made capable ; they smiled or glowed, from out their 
 fringed and darkly-shaded caskets, like orbs of beauty swim 
 ming forever in liquid and ambient light. 
 
 " Well, young folks," said Miss Dudley, as they passed 
 through the open door, into her cheerful apartment ; " you 
 have come just in season to taste a dish of my very best 
 strawberries." 
 
 " Do you expect, aunt," said Mary, laughing, " to tempt 
 such grave persons as we, with sublunary comforts ? You are 
 not aware how we have been illumined by the light of philos 
 ophy, on our way up." 
 
 " Ah, Mary ! " said George, looking rather tender, " you 
 know, very well, that other lights, though, perhaps, riot less 
 divine, have power to draw me away from the most nectared 
 sweets of philosophical speculation." 
 
 " And for such a gallant arid really pretty speech, Master 
 George, you ought not to fail of your reward-; which shall be 
 in the shape of this very largest strawberry, profusely su 
 gared by the instrumentality of my own fair lingers ; so hold 
 your mouth, sir, that I may drop it in." 
 
 " 0, Aunt Sibyl," cried Alice, " do you know what we ve 
 been talking about ? George s piece at Commencement is to 
 be on Imagination, and, 0, it will be so delightful ! full of 
 poetry, I suppose, and all about Byron and Moore. We shall 
 all go, of course, and Mary depends on it, though she pretends 
 not, and, 0, if you could only contrive to go with us ! " 
 
 " Upon my word, Ally," said George, " you seem to have 
 contrived already the tenor of the brilliant speech expected 
 of me. With such judicious prompting, how can I fail to 
 make a most distinguished appearance ? " 
 
HOUSEHOLD SKETCHES. 141 
 
 " How tiresome that is! but isn t it so? " 
 
 " I don t know that I have countenanced any such state 
 ments." 
 
 " But," said Miss Dudley, - who, it must be confessed, 
 was no great admirer of those two eminent poets, but rather 
 inclined to peruse the classics of an earlier period of English 
 literature, " but, Ally, my love, you know I seldom leave 
 home ; and though it would be so agreeable to hear it deliv 
 ered in public, I shall, of course, have to content myself with 
 the reading of it at home. But I think George will hardly 
 follow the plan you have marked out for him, shall you, 
 George? I should prefer something not so flashy, as many 
 modern writers indulge in something, for instance, in the 
 style of the Spectator, now." 
 
 " You put a modest estimate on my abilities, Aunt Sibyl." 
 
 " 0, I mean, of course, in regard to the general tenor of the 
 thought and the style, that is all. I confess, I am no great 
 friend to what is sometimes called fine writing. " 
 
 " Nor I," replied Atherton, " when it is merely fine; when 
 it is elaborate without strength, and glittering only, with no 
 inner power ; when the long succession of tawdry words leads 
 on the poor, thin, cold, barren thought, then, I grant you, 
 it is like a beggar decking his tatters and his dirt with flow 
 ers." 
 
 " But do you generally approve of ornamented diction ? " 
 
 " My judgment is, of course, mature ; but I may reply, 
 that I do not approve of that which is finical. The grace and 
 beauty of composition vindicate themselves. If the subject 
 and the style are appropriate, I think that a true taste accepts 
 what a true taste has conceived and expressed. A novel, for 
 instance, admits of a more ornate diction, than an essay on the 
 tariff. The art of employing language skilfully is one of the 
 highest and rarest of human powers, and its ornamental exer 
 cise, judiciously managed, often imparts a wonderful charm to 
 composition. Dull fellows, of course, may object to a rhetoric 
 
142 EASTFORD , OR, 
 
 beyond their faculty. Yet what soul does not glow with the 
 impassioned and elaborate eloquence of Burke, and yield 
 itself captive to the softer, but no less cunningly-wrought 
 sentences of Washington Irving? " 
 
 "You certainly have been practising for the oration, 
 George," said Mary, " and it is evident that you intend to 
 carry, at least, our sex by storm." 
 
 " Such devotion," he replied, " is entitled to its guerdon ; 
 and, since I have given you this taste of my quality, suppose 
 you reward me a little, in advance, with a song." 
 
 " What shall it be ? " 
 
 " 0, yes ! " they all cried, " do, Mary, sing something to us, 
 it s so quiet and beautiful now ! " 
 
 " Let us have that little gypsy thing, with the wild melody, 
 you were practising to-day, Mary," said George. 
 
 Ere this, the party had adjourned to the piazza, facing the 
 western sky. The golden hues of the summer twilight yet 
 lingered along the summits of the distant hills. Not far above, 
 suspended in a heaven of pure and deepening blue, "apparent 
 queen," the crescent moon, and one sole star, like the attendant 
 spirit of her sweet domain, slowly descended towards the 
 faintly-glowing horizon. 
 
 Fluttered by no lady-like hesitations, but with a voice at 
 once soft, clear, and of a touching and tender melody, Mary 
 
 then began 
 
 "THE GYPSY SONG. 
 
 Ah, Zingaro s dark-eyed daughter, 
 
 Romance, 0, Romance ! 
 Heeds her heart the tale it taught her? 
 
 Romance, 0, Romance ! 
 
 " Morn d red stream flushed heathery blossom, 
 
 Romance, 0, Romance ! 
 Ruddier flame shot through my bosom, 
 Romance, 0, Romance ! 
 
 " Pearl-bright dews lit brake and meadow, 
 Romance, O, * 
 
HOUSEHOLD SKETCHES. 143 
 
 " Upon the whole," said she, " I think I 11 give you some 
 thing else," with rather a cunning glance at Master George, 
 and changed the measure, at once, to 
 
 " MADELINE. 
 
 "0, I know thou art a queen, Madeline ! 
 
 On thy brow sits throned the sign 
 
 Of a sovereignty divine, 
 
 And the gleam within thine eyo 
 
 Mocks the light from out the sky, 
 Where the brightest star is seen, Madeline ! 
 
 " Then, look down with queenly face, Madeline ! 
 0, for me no more unrolled, 
 Weave those locks of living gold, 
 Waste no more each maiden wile, 
 Nor the dreamlight of thy smile, 
 Or, sweet-heart, give royal grace, Madeline ! 
 
 Ah, t is vain ! no more I fly, Madeline ! 
 With the day, thy voice alone 
 Woos my soul s replying tone, 
 And thy only thought broods deep 
 In the vision of my sleep, 
 And for thee I faint, I die, Madeline ! " 
 
 " That is a sweet and piteous chant," said Aunt Sibyl, 
 who, apparently, had not attended to the change of the song. 
 " Those gypsies are a very strange people ; but I was not 
 aware they had actually any songs or poetry amongst them." 
 
 " This song was evidently written by some one who had 
 been a-gypsying, though," observed Atherton. 
 
 " Shall I tell where it came from, George ? " inquired 
 Mary. 
 
 " No, I think that had better be reserved to a more fit 
 ting occasion." 
 
 And thus, with music and discourse, and the union of true 
 and gentle hearts, glided away, as often before, the rapid mo 
 ments of the soft and solemn eve. 
 
CHAPTER XIV. 
 
 " New fashions, follies and vices, make new monitors necessary in 
 every age." GOLDSMITH. 
 
 Ego vero 
 
 Oppono auriculam." 
 
 HORACE. 
 
 DURING the considerable space of time which we have 
 barely alluded to, as having elapsed between the early child 
 hood and now the almost opening manhood of George Ather- 
 ton, we have intimated that the period had passed unmarked 
 by any events of an interesting public nature. This had 
 undoubtedly been the fact, at least, so far as Eastford was 
 concerned, and especially the household and congregation of 
 the Rev. Mr. Atherton. That good man had sedulously and 
 faithfully fulfilled the work of his ministry. Incidents of 
 great private interest had undoubtedly taken place in many 
 families. Some were born, and some died, words of very 
 common, but, to the party concerned, of wondrous individual 
 import ! And bor?i, living, dying this constitutes the actual 
 history of the mass of mankind. Of the great body of the 
 very worthiest human characters, endowed with excellent 
 hearts, and pursuing a vast variety of useful avocations, 
 beloved by a circle of kind friends, it may be, and sincerely 
 deplored, at last, by all connected with them of all this very 
 large class nothing more really can be said. 
 
 Of course, the congregation under the charge of that gen 
 tleman were principally, if not altogether, of this description. 
 Many of them, no doubt, during their day and generation, 
 
on, HOUSEHOLD SKETCHES. 145 
 
 held a different rank, according to their own estimate ; but 
 such was not the deliberate judgment of the world. Neither 
 is there doubt, that many of them were troubled with a 
 quality, resulting partly, we apprehend, from the very 
 nature of American institutions, and for which the English 
 language affords no entirely accurate term, and which, for 
 want of a better, we may take the liberty to style vanity, 
 which is the fault, if it might not even be called the vice, 
 of the people. 
 
 The cause of this failing is obvious. Where all are on a 
 political equality, all at least, the unthinking all will 
 strive to be in fact, and if this is out of their power, to seem 
 to be, on a par with their neighbors. Now, this is practically 
 impossible by the constitution of nature itself, which, between 
 those who are declared " free and equal," by the constitution 
 of the country, makes differences, greater or less, the very 
 instant they catch a breath of the air, which permeates this 
 changing world ; and which has stamped these differences 
 indelibly, not only in form and feature, but in totally distinct 
 characteristics of mind, and widely-diversified qualities of 
 heart. 
 
 Our equality, therefore, is simply political. Inside of this, 
 there will be inevitable, though not fixed gradations; and it is 
 the constant effort to be, or to seem to be, in a rank above us 
 in social life, which is the cause of many trials and troubles. 
 And, even when our fortunes, abilities and pretensions of 
 various kinds, would give us a very fair range of some one of 
 the lower circles, by reaching and stretching up beyond our 
 powers, in order to catch hold of the upper circle of all, and 
 so whirl round in the very vortex of fashion and frivolity it 
 is thus we often lose the rotatory impulse of our own appro 
 priate sphere, or are, perhaps, thrown off the track altogether, 
 and come limping on again, if at all, under still more unfa 
 vorable circumstances. 
 
 Yes , it is our vanity, and the unfounded pretensions we 
 13 
 
146 EASTFORD J OR, 
 
 indulge, which do a great deal more mischief than people are 
 aware of. So that, sometimes, the veriest whipster who can 
 put on a brilliant exterior, often got up, it must be confessed, 
 in very ill-taste, thinks himself not only on a political 
 equality, which is true, so far as his vote goes, with the 
 gravest senator, the most eminent statesman, or the most 
 learned judge, but, also, on the same real level which is 
 far from being the case with others, very much his supe 
 riors in mind and character, and public service, and in all 
 which really entitles one to the peculiar respect of mankind. 
 For surely they are deserving of this respect, who use their 
 powers for the benefit of those, who do not or cannot employ 
 their own in this manner, and without which society would 
 be the loser; whereas, the departure of many of those self- 
 deluding persons who most esteem themselves, and conse 
 quently have the least respect for the rights and merits of 
 their neighbors, to any unknown parts, might take place with 
 out any public detriment whatever. 
 
 In the way thus indicated, a great many silly people learn 
 to over-estimate themselves, instead of esteeming what is 
 really estimable. Of course, it will generally be found that 
 vanity and self-conceit prevail in our hearts, in proportion to 
 our own ignorance and folly ; and the best evidence of true 
 merit in any person is, that he knows how to value the same 
 quality in others, and is willing and ready, in proportion to 
 its rarity, to honor what is noble, wherever it may appear, or 
 in whatever individual, quite as often, it may be, amongst the 
 lower as the higher ranks of society. 
 
 One method in which this unhappy propensity operates, is 
 to engender envy of whatever seems to be above UP, and 
 thus prompt to the pulling down of much which is really 
 great and good ; so that the community too often loses the ser 
 vices of the very best, while inferior people are hoisted into 
 positions which they do not adorn, by those whose jealousy 
 
HOUSEHOLD SKETCHES. 147 
 
 has not been excited, in regard to them, by any superiority of 
 theirs to the common level. 
 
 In this and other ways, national vanity is really a national 
 calamity. And, besides what we have* thus slightly indicated 
 amongst its ill-consequences, it is too truly the fruitful parent 
 of vice ; how truly, let our cities tell ! For who does not 
 know, that this inordinate ambition to appear beyond our 
 means leads necessarily to unwarrantable extravagances, and 
 fatal embarrassments, and desperate means to maintain the 
 delusion, and is a manifest bribe to Satan to renew his 
 temptations ? 
 
 lleally, there seems to be little true sense of economy 
 amongst us, properly so called. While, on the other hand, 
 by cultivating a better spirit of contentment, and giving less 
 to show, and struggling far less to keep up appearances, and 
 utterly disregarding the insinuations or more open sneers of 
 Mrs. Grundy, all people in this blessed country might enjoy 
 a healthy and unexampled prosperity, and be far more happy 
 accordingly as they became more contented. 
 
 It is just this same spirit, we may believe, which prompts 
 many people to enter upon schemes of impracticable benev 
 olence and universal philanthropy, extremely well exemplified 
 by those great universal philanthropists, Messieurs llobes- 
 pierre and others, in France; which began by professing love 
 for all mankind, and ended by cutting oil the heads of every 
 body who stood in their way. The motive often is, to minister 
 to a feeling little better than a morbid appetite for mushroom 
 notoriety. 
 
 That the religious society, of which Mr. Athcrton was pastor, 
 should remain entirely free from this spirit, notwithstanding the 
 sound and excellent character of his public and private counsels, 
 and the living example of his truly Christian life, was not to be 
 expected. Society at Eastford, as well as elsewhere, had 
 undergone certain modifications. Many of the "old standards" 
 the sterling men and admirable women of another day had 
 
148 EASTFORD J OR, 
 
 gone to their reward. The characters of many of the younger 
 people had changed with the shifting times, and others, it is 
 likely, had come in, strangers, and persons of this or that 
 different cast, " who knew not Joseph." 
 
 In former times, the charities of the church and congre 
 gation had been expended in aid of the poor of the parish, 
 or, at most, to help out the funds of the " Bible " or the 
 "Home " and the " Foreign Missionary Societies," all of which 
 laudable objects had been held to come within the fair range 
 of ordinary Christian duties. But now various other asso 
 ciations had arisen, affording a good deal of employment to 
 idle time, and which it would be uncharitable to allege ever 
 trenched upon that, which might have been usefully devoted 
 to private and domestic affairs. Some persons, it is true, were 
 so inconsiderate as to allege, that too inordinate devotion to 
 these more distant purposes tended to draw off the attention 
 and divert the supplies needed for objects of charity nearer 
 home ; and that the poor, at our very doors, who, it was said, 
 could be relieved any time, were likely to be somewhat in the 
 case of " shoemakers children," whose own toes sometimes 
 peep out, while their father is supplying the necessities of 
 customers, who are "neither kith, kin nor allies" to him. 
 But these people were grumblers. 
 
 All these associations, however, were not liable to this 
 objection. For instance, there was one which did an im 
 mense deal of good; that is, "The Hag-baby Society," for 
 the general supply of that useful article of home consumption, 
 and the proceeds of the sale of which were to be devoted 
 to the gradual diminution, and those who never smoked, 
 thought, the final extinction of the clay -pipes, habitually used 
 by a portion, at least, of the foreign population, " in our 
 midst " for so the by-laws of the association somewhat 
 cantingly phrased it, in utter disregard of the exigences 
 and usages of the king s English. Over this deliberative 
 body Miss Poulter, assisted by several younger and more 
 
HOUSEHOLD SKETCHES. 149 
 
 blooming adjutors, presided, with much dignity, tempered by 
 great suavity of demeanor ; and we have been told that the 
 project, practically, has proved of great service, in the way 
 of quieting babies. 
 
 Of other associations that lady was simply a collaborator, 
 or held some capacity below the highest, in point of official 
 consequence. From one of these a deputation of ladies pro 
 ceeded, on a certain morning, to make a call of business upon 
 the llev. John Atherton. It seems that a something 
 it could riot be called a defection, for there he stood, just 
 where he had always stood, but, so to call it, a deficiency, 
 measuring him by the standard of the times had been noticed 
 in regard to the public services of " that great, good, worthy 
 man," for so Deacon Makepeace and others, in different lan 
 guage, maybe, did not scruple to characterize him. It had 
 been first thought by some then just hinted at by a few, 
 again faintly whispered by others, then talked over a little 
 in a deprecative manner, at a committee-meeting, while the 
 ladies of the committee were enjoying the refreshment of tea 
 
 that Mr. Atherton, though a Christian, a gentleman, and a 
 person of admirable powers and really delightful character, 
 "Such a sermonizer! " Miss Betty said, after all, hardly 
 seemed to be, as they chose to express it, " up to the times." 
 Whether that gentleman might not have had the misfortune 
 to full on evil days, of which these persons were themselves in 
 some sort the unconscious exponents, had not, of course, 
 occurred to them. 
 
 At all events, the discussion of the matter had eventually 
 been transferred from the committee to the full convocation ; 
 and it had been finally and formally resolved, that it was 
 their duty, so to speak, to deal with the minister ; though he, 
 
 good easy man ! all the while, had not the remotest sus 
 picion of the bomb-shell soon to explode at his feet. Of 
 course, he knew that a great deal of nonsense and folly was 
 rampant at some of these meetings; but, steadily pursuing the 
 
 13* 
 
150 EASTFORD; on, 
 
 path of his own duty, he had never conceived himself the sub 
 ject of their deliberations, and no single individual of the 
 association would ever have ventured to hint so much to him. 
 
 The deputation of ladies, however, soon made their appear 
 ance at his door, " in manner and form," as Polly observed 
 to Black Nance, in the kitchen ; and as their inquiry was par 
 ticularly after Mr. Atherton, she had ushered them at once 
 into his study, where, that gentleman, at the very moment, 
 was engaged in writing his sermon for the next Sunday. 
 
 They had scarcely been inducted into that studious retreat, 
 when Nance suggested to Polly the propriety of listening at 
 the door. 
 
 "What all dese ole women come here for, Polly? Dat 
 Missy Betty and all de rest of em? " 
 
 " Sure I don t know ; come on business, they said, to see 
 Mr. Atherton, particular." 
 
 " Do no what business ; busy-bodies, sure enough, all dese 
 here sort o ladies, Polly ; some plaguy mischief going on, I 
 tell you, now. You go hear what dey say, Polly," insinuat 
 ingly. 
 
 "I I m sure I shan t do no such thing, shouldn t 
 dare, would be much as my place is worth, and that s 
 good fifty cents a week, if Mr. Atherton should find me 
 out in such a mean sort o business, or Mrs. Atherton 
 either ! " 
 
 " No harm catchin foxes by de tail, Polly. Missis up 
 stairs in her chamber ; guess Massa Atterton got his hands 
 full, le me go, see, my own self." 
 
 " Can t hinder you," said Polly, scrubbing away at the out 
 side of a coffee-pot she was brightening ; " but I guess you 11 
 get your black head into a scrape, if you don t look out 
 sharp." 
 
 " Never you fear Nance," replied that dark lady, swallow 
 ing the personal allusion, in her interest in the occasion; " &he 
 always keep good look-out, anyhow." 
 
HOUSEHOLD SKETCHES. 151 
 
 Accordingly, moving with noiseless steps to the door of the 
 study, she got upon her knees, so ardent \vas her devotion to 
 the cause of knowledge, and placed her ear to the key -hole, 
 with an air of the strictest attention. 
 
 But, as the craftiest are often caught in their own guile, so 
 intent was she, in endeavoring to get some notion of what was 
 going on within, that she actually lost all sense of things 
 without, and was, in fact, brought to her feet, in the most 
 unexpected manner, by a light touch upon her shoulder. 
 
 " Lud-a-massy, ma am ! thought you up stairs ! " she ex 
 claimed, jumping up with wonderful agility for her years. 
 
 " Nancy, what is this ? " said Mrs. Atherton, with dignity, 
 for it was she who had come into the passage, and was sur 
 prised by finding Nancy in such an attitude in her house. 
 "Listening at my husband s study door? You surprise me, 
 Nancy ! I thought better of you ; I thought you had too 
 much respect for Mr. Atherton and for me, to act in this 
 manner. I must say, I am perfectly ashamed of you, and 
 vexed I cannot tell how much ! " 
 
 " 0, ma am, don t be angry, now ! " expostulated Nance, 
 completely humiliated, and not a little flustered ; " beg you 
 pardon, ma am, thousand times, Missy Atterton, deed I do, 
 don t want to hoar Massa Atterton, Lud-a-massy! 
 What did I say? always do want to hear him, only don t 
 listen, dat is, always do listen, berry tentive, ma am, 
 when he preach ; only here s dat Miss Betty and don no 
 how many old women some mischief going on, know dat 
 berry well, did n t think nothing, could n t help jest hark 
 a minute, sartain true, poor old Nancy don t mean no harm, 
 nohow, you know, ma am." 
 
 " I cannot countenance such conduct for a moment, Nancy. 
 I must inform Mr. Atherton of this, and I am sure he will be 
 highly displeased." 
 
 " O, now, Missy Atterton, Nancy beg berry hard, missy 
 never do tell Massa Atterton bout poor old Nancy; never 
 
152 EASTFOUD J OR, 
 
 could bear have Massa Atterton angry with me. Sure I 
 did n t hear so berry much, only two three little words ; de 
 ladies talk all together, pretty loud, too ; hear em cry out 
 * niggers all poor degraded beasts o burden, like to shake 
 dat Miss Betty ! " 
 
 " Listeners never hear any good of themselves, Nancy." 
 
 " Me, ma am ! now xscuse me, Missy Atterton, please. 
 Nancy an t no nigger, nohow ; surely, you berry well ac 
 quainted wi dat fac . Guinea folks, up dar, nigger, pah! 
 wish it to be most particular understood, I am colored 
 lady ob de fair sec ob dis free country ob de United State ob 
 Immeriky." 
 
 As Nancy had, by this time, recovered, in some measure, 
 her lost dignity, we may now revert to the interior of the 
 minister s apartment. As the ladies entered, that gentleman 
 had risen, with the courtesy which always distinguished his 
 demeanor. Indeed, he had more than politeness, for the 
 foundation, so to speak, of his manner, was that considerate 
 sweetness of disposition and goodness of heart, which is the 
 base of all true politeness. Much, which is called so, is in the 
 manner merely ; while of that, which is of the heart, what ap 
 pears outwardly is only the manifestation. As we once had 
 the pleasure of hearing that celebrated guide and example of 
 fashion, Mrs. Routaway remark (she had casually met Mr. 
 Atherton, somewhere in her travels), "Now Bob Varnish s 
 manners" (and Bob was himself of the crcme de la crtme), 
 " are the perfection of art, while Mr. Atherton s are the 
 perfection of nature." And though that lady was too much 
 involved in the empty frivolities of fashionable life, she was, 
 by no means, deficient in sense, or in shrewd observation of 
 people and things around her. 
 
 His politeness was perfect, therefore, because it came from 
 a heart, which honestly and sincerely wished well to all man 
 kind. And since, in our opinion, the ills and misfortunes, to 
 which humanity is subject, are the result of the waywardness 
 
HOUSEHOLD SKETCHES. 153 
 
 and wickedness of the species, and not of the determinate 
 counsels of Heaven; so there is no impiety in alleging that, 
 could he have carried into effect the purposes which his be 
 nevolence conceived, then 
 
 " Not a tear or aching heart 
 Should in the world bo found." 
 
 But, in our judgment, the interview already on foot, in Mr. 
 Atherton s study, is of sufficient importance to be entitled to 
 a separate chapter. 
 
CHAPTER XV. 
 
 " Tu potes unanimes armaro in praelia fratrcs, 
 Atque odiis versare doinos ; 
 
 tibi nouiina mille, 
 
 Millo nocendi artes." VIRGIL. 
 
 " The happiness of the world is the concern of Him, who is the Lord 
 and the proprietor of it ; nor do we know what we are about, when we 
 endeavor to promote the good of mankind in any ways, but those which 
 he has directed." BISHOP BUTLER. "Analogy." 
 
 11 LADIES, good-morning to you," cried Mr. Atherton, 
 cheerfully; "this is really an unexpected pleasure; but I 
 cannot flatter myself the visit is intended for me. Mrs. 
 Atherton, I believe, is in. I suppose our handmaiden must 
 have introduced you into my quarters by mistake, and they 
 are really a good deal too much littered for such a company." 
 
 " No, reverend sir," said their leader, with much formal 
 ity ; " we have come for the purpose of seeing you." 
 
 "Indeed! then I am highly flattered. I pray you be 
 seated, ladies ; the morning is very fine, Miss Poulter ; and " 
 (addressing Mrs. MacFuzzy, a lady whose liege lord had long 
 been bed-ridden) " how is your good husband, madam ? I have 
 not called so recently as I ought." 
 
 Having addressed each of the ladies in the circle arranged 
 around the study, and having obtained from each an appro 
 priate reply to his friendly queries, the conversation then 
 came to a dead pause. As often happens, when people set 
 out upon missions of doubtful expediency, the courage, which 
 at first pricked them on, sensibly evaporates in the presence 
 
EASTFORD ; OK, HOUSEHOLD SKETCHES. 155 
 
 of the object of their designs r so now the deputation began to 
 become more and more sensible, how delicate a matter it 
 was, after all, to volunteer counsel to a solemnly-authorized 
 teacher, upon the subject-matter of his own preaching. Tra 
 ditional veneration, not worn out, for a minister of the Gospel, 
 and a real respect, which could not be withheld from the pres 
 ent representative of that sacred character, awed them in 
 spite of themselves. 
 
 Besides those qualities, which we have attributed to Mr. 
 Atherton, his manners, at once courteous and dignified, and a 
 personal appearance calculated to excite interest if not admi 
 ration, had their effect. In regard to personal attire, also, he 
 strictly observed that fashion and hue of garb commonly appro 
 priated to his profession ; wisely concluding, that neither he nor 
 his office could gain anything, and that his cause might lose, 
 by breaking down distinctions, even those which were appar 
 ently trivial, or, in any other way, by putting himself within 
 the exact social relations of the people of the world. He 
 knew how much that world is influenced by form and appear 
 ance, and, therefore, he never discharged the duties of the 
 pulpit, arrayed in a style of garment just as well adapted to 
 a military officer in undress uniform. 
 
 We have said there was a pause ; and it continued until, 
 on one side at least, it began to be awkward, if not painful. 
 Would it be decorous for us to suspect a person of Mr. Ather- 
 ton s character, of any purpose of covert mischief in this 
 dilemma ? Upon this point we have no opportunity of con 
 sulting you, judicious reader ; and we shall leave you, there 
 fore, to form your opinion upon the facts, reserving also our 
 own judgment. That gentleman sat in an easy posture, gently 
 rapping his right knee with an ivory paper-folder, which he 
 held between his thumb and finger. He was always rather 
 cool, upon occasions when many people get fussy. His feat 
 ures now wore an aspect of imperturbable gravity, though there 
 never were features more capable of the expression of mirth. 
 
] 56 EASTFOIID J OR, 
 
 His eyes were fixed upon the floor ; perhaps to aid him in 
 restraining a tendency to merriment, which sometimes came 
 over him, under ludicrous circumstances, and which would 
 manifestly have been highly unbefitting the present interesting 
 condition of affairs. Glances and gestures had been exchanged 
 between the guests, as of those who would willingly shift 
 upon one another the difficult commencement of an unpleasing 
 ceremony. Hands were held up, and eyes were cast up, and 
 mouths were pursed up, according to the diversified forms of 
 deprecatory expression. An occasional hem had faintly pro 
 ceeded from the throat of Mrs. MacFuzzy, whom fate and the 
 committee seemed resolved to push to the fore-front of the 
 battle, and who had indeed been previously selected for this 
 purpose. Generally, to do her justice, she has not at all to 
 seek, in such cases. 
 
 That lady s mind, however, was now much exercised and 
 distracted by her headlong zeal for the cause, on the one hand, 
 and conflicting doubts, on the other, as to the probable recep 
 tion of her message. As when opposing currents rush to 
 gether, they expend a portion of their force in uprising foam, 
 so her first fire was rather scattering, when she, at length, on 
 a sudden broke forth, in a high key, but with a rather hesi 
 tating manner, 
 
 "Mr. Atherton, sir I have come that is, we ladies 
 have come in fact, sir, we are a deputation of ladies, who 
 have been deputed to come here to see you, sir." 
 
 " lleally, I am exceedingly obliged both to you and your 
 constituent parties ; but you seem disturbed can I hand you 
 anything, madam ? a glass of water ? is anything the matter? " 
 
 " No, sir," said she, regaining courage, at the sound of her 
 own voice, as an excited steed is inspired to new animation 
 by the clatter of his own heels, " no, sir, we have called 
 upon you in regard to a subject deeply interesting, indeed, 
 I may say, most harrowing to our feelings." 
 
 " It must, then, interest uic ; I beg you will not hesitate ; 
 
HOUSEHOLD SKETCHES. 157 
 
 if it be anything of a charitable nature, you know that I am 
 always ready to contribute according to my means. I trust 
 you will speak with entire freedom." 
 
 " Sir, it is in regard to yourself." 
 
 "I hope not; my personal wants, thanks to the liberality 
 and industry of the ladies, are really all supplied ; I am not, as 
 you are aware, entirely dependent on my salary, and have, 
 therefore, ventured to suggest sometimes, perhaps ungraciously, 
 a diversion of their generous efforts, in my behalf, towards 
 the poor of the parish. I say it in no spirit of pride, ladies, 
 but I really am not an object of charity." 
 
 " 0, no, it is the poor negroes of whom we wish to speak." 
 
 " You surprise me> I have heard nothing. Who of them 
 are suffering? I was down to * Guinea yesterday, has 
 sudden calamity befallen any of them ? " 
 
 This was decidedly wilful, but grew even worse. 
 
 "0, sir, it is our colored brethren and sisters it is the 
 slave " (and now growing eloquent and a little whining) 
 " the poor crushed and down-trodden of the earth the slaves 
 in a land of liberty the heathen amongst a Christian 
 people." 
 
 " Certainly, ladies, you do not suppose I have any slaves ; 
 if anything, I am rather subject to bondage myself, in the 
 presence of your fair sex." 
 
 " 0, Mr. Atherton, how can you trifle on such a subject ? 
 so to speak to you, sir ! " 
 
 " Are you aware of any of my congregation who are slave 
 holders?" 
 
 " No, sir, but we have come to claim of you your strong 
 yes, sir, your strongest testimony against this curse and bane 
 of our land. We would speak openly with you, reverend sir, 
 and in a friendly spirit ; but, to be free with you, we have 
 been pained at the silence and coldness of one whom we have 
 ever honored as a minister, while such an enormous sin pre 
 vails in our midst. We would have you raise your voice on 
 14 
 
158 EASTFORD ; OR, 
 
 high cry aloud and spare not break down the strong 
 holds of oppression, and let the captive go free." 
 
 " Why, this is asking considerable, if you expect me to do 
 all this ! I really think, ladies, that a cry from my house 
 top would scarcely be heard where slavery prevails ; nor am 
 I able to see, I confess, why you ladies should become more 
 excited on this particular topic, than for the many other evils, 
 which make part of the wretchedness of this world. Slavery, 
 surely, is no new thing, that we should break out upon it all 
 at once." 
 
 " Ah, sir, what are other evils to this ? This, sir, is the 
 one great curse, the" (referring to a paper in her hand) 
 * the one wasting, withering, blighting, gigantic sin, that 
 calls for judgment on our guilty land." 
 
 " Excuse me, madam, I am very far from agreeing with 
 you ; I must seriously tell you, this is dangerous doctrine ; 
 there is great danger lest we persuade ourselves, that our zeal 
 for this cause excuses us for the neglect of other duties, and 
 in the commission of many enormities, if not presumptuous 
 sins. The land is guilty enough, and slavery is, assuredly, a 
 great evil, perhaps greater to the master than to his servant ; 
 but I am sorry to think it does not stand alone, or even hold, 
 in my opinion, the prominent place." 
 
 " What can be worse ? " 
 
 " Much, which leads people away from their plain duties 
 to God and man, madam ; irreligion, a sad departure from 
 the sure and solid faith of our fathers; infidelity, which is 
 making fearful progress amongst the careless of our people; 
 vain philosophy, which is deluding their souls ; and political 
 corruption, which is sapping fast the very foundations of our 
 excellent iitstitutions; all these, and each of them, far more 
 pernicious, than the mere external condition of any portion 
 of our population, though to continue degraded and enslaved 
 for many generations." 
 
 " We are no politicians, Mr. Atherton." 
 
HOUSEHOLD SKETCHES. 159 
 
 " I marvel then, madam, that you should entangle your 
 self in this matter, which, under our institutions, is a purely 
 political question." 
 
 " Is slavery never to end? " 
 
 " In God s good time, doubtless, not a moment before ; 
 at present, the way seems not clear. His providence, we 
 need riot doubt, will provide a mode and a time, correspondent 
 with his own good pleasure." 
 
 " Is not Providence, as you are pleased to call it, rather 
 slow, sir?" broke in a sallow-looking young lady, in green 
 spectacles, who was suspected of reading the German philos 
 ophers. 
 
 " I will answer your question, Miss Maze, without 
 formally reproving its irreverence. Providence is generally 
 more apparently slow in its operations, than man s rash will 
 arid blinded judgment are satisfied with." 
 
 " And must we believe in a government of the world, which 
 permits such evils as slavery ? " 
 
 " The government of God permits fire, plague, pestilence, 
 famine, sword suffers the aggravated sins of mankind, and, 
 what to human patience is almost as hard to endure, their 
 aggravated follies. Good, in this world, frequently results 
 from apparent evil; indeed, all is not unmitigated evil, which 
 seems such to our narrow vision any more than all is actual 
 good, which wears its semblance." 
 
 . " Sir, sir, ought we not to strive against one great prevail 
 ing sin, which we can see and reach? " said Mrs. MacFuzzy. 
 
 " So far as we in Eastford are concerned, madam, this evil 
 is distant ; and our duty is at least doubtful ; we ought first 
 to look at home ; we have our own faults and vices and sins ; 
 it might be, perhaps justly, retorted upon us, First cast the 
 beam out of thine own eye. " 
 
 " Sir, we have not their crimes to answer for ; we are not, 
 I hope, kidnappers" (looking once more at her paper), " men- 
 stcalers and women-stealers dealers in human flesh, and in 
 
100 EASTFORD ; OR, 
 
 the bones and sinews, the blood and the souls of men. Is it 
 not the duty of a preacher of the Gospel to urge such wretches 
 to repentance? " triumphantly looking round. 
 
 " I fear this kind of appeal, which, you must admit, is not 
 exactly conciliatory, would stand little chance of winning them 
 to a better course of conduct. My experience would touch me, 
 that not in this manner are people generally converted from 
 the error of their ways." 
 
 "At least, something could be done; an earnest appeal from 
 you, sir, would rouse a stronger and more determined spirit 
 amongst ourselves." 
 
 " I cannot fight like one who beats the air. If you desire 
 me to excite angry passions, already enough inflamed, amongst 
 my own congregation, I must decline. This would only make 
 us worse, and others no better. There is no such preaching in 
 the Gospel." 
 
 " Does not the Gospel oppose all oppression ? " 
 
 " The Gospel emphatically teaches love to all ; no doubt 
 its genuine spirit tends to the removal of all evil." 
 
 " But the slaveholders will not hear, because their interest 
 is opposed; that s plain enough! " with great energy. 
 
 " If that be the case, so that they resist the appeals of the 
 Gospel itself, I fear their self-interest is too powerful for us to 
 overcome, by any arguments we should be able to urge." 
 
 " Shall we, then, become time-servers ? Must we neglect 
 the great work we have in hand ? Shall we sit down quietly, 
 let me ask you, while sins of such open enormity are practised 
 in our midst?" 
 
 "I wish this were the only presumptuous sin prevalent; but 
 we can, at all events, amend our own lives, and show a good 
 example of Christian love and forbearance, and exemplify our 
 faith by our practice, and so exhibit that meek and quiet 
 spirit, which is, indeed, of great price. " 
 
 " Very well, sir. Come, ladies, it is high time we took 
 leave. You must follow your own course, sir ; for us, we can 
 
HOUSEHOLD SKETCHES. 101 
 
 hold no terms with slaveholders ; let the timid and the time 
 serving shrink; the cause of down-trodden humanity shall not 
 call to us in vain ; we are ready to resist unto blood, yea, 
 even to suffer at the fiery stake. I cannot countenance 
 slaveholders." 
 
 " Let me ask your reflection on a passage which, I trust, 
 has no personal application, Though I give my body to be 
 burned, and have not charity, it profiteth me nothing. " 
 
 " Good-by, sir ; we have cleared our skirts, we have done 
 our duty " 
 
 " Manfully, ladies. But I must say to you, in parting, that 
 I have entered into this discussion out of courtesy merely ; 
 for, although it is convenient for me in many matters to con 
 sult with the brotherhood of the session, I know of nothing, in 
 the discipline of our church, which requires me to confer with 
 the sisterhood. You may rely upon it, however, that I shall 
 preach the Gospel among you, in weakness, no doubt, but 
 still faithfully, according to the strength given me. Good- 
 morning to you, ladies." 
 
 We have held ourselves amenable to a strict accountability, 
 reader, to set down this improving conversation, precisely as 
 it occurred, say not far from twenty years ago, in order that 
 you might compare the state of opinion which then existed, 
 with the present aspect of this unhappy dispute. The sole 
 question, at that time, was one of moral right and wrong, for 
 which rational people in New England did not conceive them 
 selves responsible. Some of our fair friends (and we say this 
 out of no disparagement to them; for all of whom, even in their 
 errors, we cannot help feeling an unbounded admiration) cer 
 tainly held extravagant notions, without seeing, probably, the 
 appalling consequences to which they must inevitably lead. 
 Fanaticism was rampant, but it was weak ; and ladies are 
 always weak, when they permit themselves to become entan 
 gled in public questions. But, at that period, the brains of 
 no very considerable portion of their male compatriots had 
 14* 
 
162 EASTFORD ; OR, 
 
 become so bewildered, that they were ready to push abstract 
 theories to the point, not merely of unsettling the ordinances 
 of man and the very constitution of civil society, but many of 
 them foolishly and impiously to arraign, if they do not abso 
 lutely deny, the supreme government of the world ! 
 
 The general sentiment of New England was, we say, that 
 expressed by Mr. Atherton. Unhappily, this question has 
 become very much complicated by subsequent events, so as to 
 assume a most fearful aspect ; which wise men then foresaw, 
 and did their best to prevent. 35ut passion, on the one side 
 and the other, had not then obtained the predominance over 
 reason ; nor had public affairs arrived at that crisis, that only 
 consummate wisdom, and forbearance, and mutual concession, 
 can avert consequences, which all men, in the possession of 
 their senses, must sincerely deplore. 
 
 But, as we are often unconsciously and imperceptibly influ 
 enced by external circumstances, and even sometimes led con 
 trary to our actually preconceived determination, so it hap 
 pened, strangely enough, that this matter turned itself over 
 and over, in the mind of Mr. Atherton, until it worked out 
 that famous sermon of his, preached in the afternoon of the 
 next Sabbath, and which may be found in the second volume 
 of his printed discourses. As these volumes have been long 
 out of print, we have been sorely tempted to transfer a pas 
 sage or two of this celebrated production to our own pages ; 
 but we forbear. 
 
 It is rather remarkable, however, that neither Mrs. Mac- 
 Fuzzy, nor Miss Maze, nor, in fact, any of the devotees of 
 abstract benevolence, ever called to thank Mr. Atherton for 
 what was, after all, a literal compliance with their request to 
 preach on this subject. 
 
 Dr. Walton was in, however, during the evening of that 
 Sunday, and congratulated his son-in-law, upon his excellent 
 and timely discourse. 
 
HOUSEHOLD SKETCHES. 1G3 
 
 " These people, my dear sir, do a great deal of mischief," 
 he said. 
 
 " At home, they certainly do," replied Mr. Atherton. 
 
 " I mean so ; if it were nothing more than gadding round, 
 about matters with which they have no earthly concern, to 
 the neglect of their husbands and children, it would be a great 
 grievance, of itself, to have all these old women running about 
 in this fashion." 
 
 " Why, father, they are not all old women ! " interposed 
 Mrs. Atherton. 
 
 " They are not all clothed in feminine garb, my dear ; but 
 they are mischievous, of whichever sex they are. Instead of 
 being benevolent, their minds are really perverse. Their uni 
 versal benevolence is only a cloak for their universal selfish 
 ness. I have no patience with them. A universal philan 
 thropist I consider the greatest rascal going." 
 
 " It would be uncharitable to conclude," said Mr. Atherton, 
 " that all our friends, who are zealously engaged in so many 
 of the benevolent enterprises of the day, are entirely deficient 
 in good motives. I have not observed, however, that univer 
 sal philanthropists are practically the most charitable or 
 benevolent people in the world ; that they are either more 
 free of their substance, or more gentle in their feelings and 
 demeanor, than others, whose love for man has a more limited 
 range. I trust they mean well." 
 
 " You know of what place good intentions constitute the 
 pavement ? " 
 
 " Is not that strong sentiment rather intended of those who 
 stop short at good intentions, without taking pains .to carry 
 them into effect, in a word, those who mean, rather than do, 
 what they ought ? " 
 
 " Certainly ; that s the very case in hand ; the philanthro 
 py of these people is abstract, not practical ; their philosophy 
 would bo degraded by coming down to instances, and their 
 benevolence contracted by relieving individual suffering." 
 
1G4 EASTFORD ; OR, 
 
 " I should conceive," replied Mr. Atherton, " that true 
 Gospel love to the species commences, certainly, with the 
 domestic and social relations ; and fulfilling all the law, in 
 this respect, extends itself only so far, as it may be of prac 
 tical service. Any individual, of the remotest zone, might, in 
 his necessities, enter into this charming circle of affections, and 
 find sympathy and relief. But this kind of love does not spread 
 out and weaken itself into mere speculation. Now, abstract 
 philanthropy is an exercise of the intellectual, not of the moral 
 qualities, and thus it deprives the heart of all real feeling for 
 that which absolutely requires its sympathy close at hand. I 
 do not mean that- it is always so, only its natural operation. 
 Universal benevolence, so called, therefore, may make men 
 selfish in reality ; it may convert them into fanatics for any 
 impracticable cause, and will probably make them discon 
 tented with an order of Providence, which does not immedi 
 ately conform to their notions ; until their universal benevo 
 lence has actually left them at last, havi7ig no hope and with 
 out God in the world" 
 
 " This slavery question is a very ugly business," said the 
 doctor ; " it makes everybody ugly who handles it indis 
 creetly. The indulgence of the feelings it engenders too 
 often converts women into anything but angels, and men, 
 who might have been refined and valuable members of soci 
 ety, into mere brawling and vulgar ruffians." 
 
 " The evils of society," said Mr. Atherton, " result very 
 much from giving undue prominence to special and partial 
 objects of interest. As the avaricious man, for instance, makes 
 gold his idol, and he who is over-ambitious worships only 
 power, regardless of the rightful means to acquire or maintain 
 it, so those associated for moral purposes, too often, the 
 devotees of temperance, for example, or the zealous opponents of 
 slavery, and so of other things, are in danger of making these 
 their religion, and of worshipping the golden image they have set 
 up, instead of God. Other objects, quite as vital as their own, 
 
HOUSEHOLD SKETCHES. 165 
 
 become matters of indifference to them, and are neglected. 
 Under the temptations of human frailty, they may commit all 
 other sins but that which they denounce, and hold themselves 
 excused. One is thus a partisan and a sectary, but not a 
 Christian. He substitutes a single moral purpose, for that 
 great system which includes all, and thus narrows, instead of 
 enlarging his soul." 
 
 "The Scriptures, you will .observe, undoubtedly denounce 
 particular sins, but their aim and scope obviously is, to pro 
 duce that state of mind and heart, which excludes all sin, by 
 teaching that love of God, with which sin itself is necessarily 
 inconsistent." 
 
 " It is this factious state of society, in our day, which fills 
 the world with countless ills, and betrays men, who profess to 
 be moral and benevolent, to infidelity itself." 
 
 " I have no doubt this is the key to many apparently unac 
 countable contradictions," replied the doctor ; " but as to the 
 slavery question, I cannot help thinking it would be far better 
 for us to let it alone, and permit it, as it will, to cure itself, as 
 the natural result of its own burdens and evils." 
 
 " Such a course often proves the best with very serious dis 
 eases," said Mr. Atherton. " Do you remember, whenever 
 any difficulty occurred at the Farms, between our neighbors, 
 or any gossip or scandal went round, and they came, as they 
 often did, on one side or the other, to lay their grievances 
 before my father, what was generally his advice?" 
 
 "To keep quiet?" 
 
 " Keep saying nothing about it ; which is, indeed, a sum 
 mary of wisdom upon such matters. The enforcement of this 
 doctrine settled a great many troublesome affairs. I always con 
 sidered it a saying worthy of an ancient philosopher, if it were 
 not, as Lord Verulam might tell us, too high for a heathen. 
 In fact, the sentiment involves something more than merely 
 passively keeping quiet, and seems to imply a sort of positive, 
 and, so to speak, active silence; indeed, a masterly inactivity. " 
 
1G6 EASTFORD J OR, HOUSEHOLD SKETCHES. 
 
 " Come, Julia," said the doctor, " we have not had our 
 Sunday evening psalm-singing. Find your Village Harmony, 
 my love, and let s tune our voices." 
 
 " And, 
 
 tune our hearts, by far the noblest aim, " 
 
 said Mr. Atherton. 
 
 " We shall need your voice, George, and Ally s," said Mrs. 
 Atherton to those young people, who had been listening with 
 respectful attention to the conversation of their seniors. 
 
 And so, upon that sweetest of PleyePs melodies, which 
 Cowper s tenderest language has consecrated ; upon the glo 
 rious and spirit-stirring " Christmas " of Handel; upon the 
 ennobling and immortal strains of ancient " Mear ; " upon 
 many a sweet and touching measure of our own Billings, 
 and Holyoke, and Holden ; and mounting, finally, upon the 
 pealing swell of Luther s solemn and world-honored hymn, 
 as the voices of the young and the old mingled in measured 
 cadence, their hearts ascended far towards the bending heav 
 ens, and thus closed the peaceful and soul-reviving hours of a 
 New England Sabbath, in one of its many quiet evening homes. 
 
CHAPTER XVI. 
 
 " Calamities are on us, evil days 
 
 O er our isle darken, but the noble wear 
 Disaster as an angel wears his wings, 
 To elevate and glorify." 
 
 MlLMAN. 
 
 ALTHOUGH Dr. Walton, during the many years of his wid 
 owed condition, had maintained a bachelor establishment, 
 presided over by a respectable housekeeper, he did not, by 
 any means, neglect the rites of hospitality. Indeed, in old 
 times, his house had been the scene of much generous and 
 elegant entertainment. The doctor s occasional dinners to a 
 select party of the Eastford gentry, we have been told, were 
 considered highly palatable, whatever might have been 
 thought of his medicine. Jovial, they undoubtedly were ; 
 and often, it is said, the doctor s guests have been known to 
 sit, from one o clock of a winter s afternoon, till dark itself; 
 and even then these young gentlemen did not always find it 
 convenient to repair to the domestic fireside, with their ordi 
 nary alacrity and familiar readiness. 
 
 The mansion which Dr. Walton still continued to inhabit, 
 at the date of our story, was the brick house, yet preserving 
 the dignified appearance of ancient respectability, situated a 
 little out of town, near the extremity of what used to be 
 called Queen-street, but now rejoices in the more popular 
 name of " Constitution." The grounds connected with the 
 house extended far into the rear, and, at the bottom of a 
 pretty slope, bubbled a sparkling fountain, with which some 
 
168 EASTFORD; OR, 
 
 forgotten tradition had connected the name of " Indian 
 Spring." A belt of handsome trees encircled and shaded 
 this fountain, and beneath them the doctor, in his early days, 
 had constructed a rustic and pleasant seat. 
 
 But, if the old-fashioned dinners of Dr. Walton were con 
 sidered agreeable, the tea-drinkings of his good lady, then in 
 the early bloom of the first years of married life, were 
 thought, by her own sex, at least, very much to surpass those 
 genial gatherings. And when lady after lady, long before 
 dark, and each one clad in silken or satin attire, and with 
 hair submitted to a process of adornment far less pleasing 
 than the more recent simple fashion, had duly arrived, and 
 had each been received with hearty but graceful welcome, 
 and at length were all seated around the walls of the best 
 parlor, in those high-backed chairs, which kept our grand 
 mothers straight, the prospect of entrance into that charmed 
 and charming circle affected bashful natures of the opposite 
 sex with something approaching to awe. The tea, which was 
 then a costly luxury, instead of an ordinary beverage, was 
 handed round by black Phillis in tiny cups, upon a silver 
 salver. The gentlemen seldom appeared until a rather later 
 hour. To be sure, the minister came to tea, and the doctor 
 performed his duty admirably, in aid of the festivities of the 
 occasion. 
 
 It is curious to observe how similar the conversation, for 
 mally detailed to us by Miss Poulter, was to the turn it is apt 
 to take even now. Of course, there was no more scandal 
 than is permissible by the proprieties of modern times. In 
 deed, the presence of Dr. Kettleton, the incumbent of that 
 day, would prevent any undue indulgence in the discussion 
 of private character. For, if the minister was metaphysical 
 in the pulpit (and he was a Calvinist of the old school), he 
 was sensible and charitable in the world, and did his best 
 rather to build up the characters of his parishioners, than to 
 permit the little, that the least of them had, to be taken 
 
HOUSEHOLD SKETCHES. 169 
 
 entirely away. But the fashions were talked over, as indis 
 pensable to the well-being of genteel society, and the neces 
 sities of the times made our grandmothers politicians, as well 
 as their husbands. 
 
 11 What a Iov 7 cly bit of lace ! " said Mrs. Walton, admiring 
 the cap of one of her older visitors ; " it has the true color, 
 and really looks like a charming piece of Brussels! " 
 
 " Indeed, it is, ma am," replied Mrs. Dalton ; " my great- 
 grandmother brought it over with her, and you can t tell what 
 trouble it gives me to do it up. It s really as light as 
 gossamer, and, of course, I should only think of such a 
 thing on very set occasions." 
 
 " You are very polite, ma am. Does the captain write 
 anything from Paris, as to the style of bonnets which the 
 ladies are wearing?" 
 
 " dear, no! My son is so worried about his vessel, that 
 I scarcely get a word from him on any other subject. In 
 deed, he writes chiefly to the owners ; and, as he is compelled 
 to give up all hopes of her release, I am expecting him home 
 very shortly. " 
 
 " 0, we shall be really delighted to see him again! I can 
 tell you, Captain Dalton is very much missed by his friends. 
 Here s the doctor, is always talking about him, and says he s 
 the finest young fellow that sails out of Eastford ; and often 
 wishes he could see him settled down in a home of his own." 
 
 "I thank you, doctor; you are always very kind. But 
 Richard writes that the French privateers are taking our ves 
 sels so fast, we shall soon have none left, and then I don t 
 know what a young sailor will find to do at home. Indeed, 
 he is quite dispirited." 
 
 "Well, Mrs. Dalton," said the doctor, "we shall all re 
 joice to see the captain home again, and, no doubt, he 11 find 
 another vessel. And we must submit to these temporary 
 misfortunes as well as we can, and sustain the policy of our 
 good president. To be sure, the conduct of the French is 
 15 
 
170 EASTFORD; OR, 
 
 most outrageous ; but war cannot last forever, and by and by 
 we shall get redress. For my part, I have just heard of the 
 capture of my father s brig, the Fair-trader, and I had 
 myself much more interest in her than I should like to lose, 
 or should think worth talking of in your company, ladies. 
 And, certainly, we 11 not allow these things to disturb us 
 now." 
 
 Upon the coming in of the gentlemen, all these points of 
 public interest were once more fully commented on, especially 
 over a final glass of particularly excellent punch, which the 
 doctor had the art of concocting, in a manner satisfactory to 
 his guests. But, as they were all stanch Federalists, their 
 denunciations were levelled at the French Directory, and not 
 the government of their own country. 
 
 " If our West India trade is thus interrupted, and, indeed, 
 destroyed," said Dr. Kettleton, who made no objection to 
 a moderate tumbler of punch, followed by a reasonable pipe 
 of tobacco, " we shall soon find it impossible to obtain 
 either lemons or sugar, except at an exorbitant price." 
 
 " Well, sir," replied Dr. Walton, " let us hope things will 
 mend. Congress is doing the best it can for the protection 
 of commerce ; and, though we are weak enough on the water, 
 compared with these rascally French Jacobins, I hope our 
 retaliatory measures will teach them we are not altogether to 
 be despised. Our Yankee ships are already giving a good 
 account of some of them. In the mean time, sir, let me give 
 you another glass of the punch we have, and trust to the 
 next arrival for some more." 
 
 " No," said the reverend gentleman, " I fear Mrs. Kettle- 
 ton will be waiting for me ; and, indeed, your hospitality has 
 already induced us sober people to keep rather too late 
 hours." 
 
 On their way home, the various knots of our friends 
 would naturally refer to the subjects of discussion during the 
 evening. The gentlemen, quite a number of whom wore in- 
 
HOUSEHOLD SKETCHES. 171 
 
 terested in commerce, shook their heads at the capture of 
 such a vessel as the " Fair-trader," with her valuable cargo ; 
 the ladies lamented the price of sugar ; Miss Betty Poulter 
 thought, that so nice a young man, as Captain Richard Dalton, 
 ought not to be permitted to give way to lowness of spirits ; 
 it was generally conceded, that Mrs. Dalton s Brussels lace 
 would command a fair price, in case of the worst ; and almost 
 all wondered how she could afford to indulge in the luxury of 
 a great-grandmother an article, of which few of them 
 had any authentic information, and of which some, perhaps, 
 could take no great pleasure in boasting. 
 
 In process of time and that only too brief the loss 
 of the " Fair-trader " was followed by that of the " Sally 
 and Hope," and the " Bouncing Bessy ; " in both of which 
 craft the doctor had embarked only too much of his fortunes. 
 So that he and many others, to whom similar misfortunes 
 occurred, were compelled to reduce very much the style of 
 profuse hospitality, to which they had been hitherto accus 
 tomed. 
 
 But the doctor was a man of nerve and great good nature, 
 and of a great deal of philosophy, too, in his way. So far 
 as his losses were unknown, he said nothing about them ; and, 
 as to those, of which the public were informed, he laughed 
 them off, and vowed " the mounseers should pay for it one of 
 these days ;" and appeared at the bedsides of his patients, with 
 the same gentle and interested manner, and the same cheerful 
 and warm-looking smile, which, they all declared, did them 
 more good than anything else he could administer. 
 
 But the redress, of which he was so confident, never came. 
 The advantages which he had enjoyed for commercial enter 
 prise, without active participation in the business, under the 
 auspices of a merchant so intelligent and successful as his 
 "ither, had now ceased, and he was compelled to return to the 
 pursuits of a profession, at that time more arduous than 
 lucrative. The accumulated calamities, however, had fallen 
 
172 EASTFORD; OR, 
 
 in such rapid succession, that Colonel Walton himself, once 
 reputed one of the wealthiest merchants of New England, 
 was fain to yield to the irresistible pressure. He had found 
 it necessary, in his declining age, to seek the countenance of 
 the government, which then held, that the emoluments of 
 office were most properly bestowed upon those who had ren 
 dered the country the most valuable services. The claims of 
 an old soldier, therefore, who was at the same time competent 
 to the station, were not likely to be set aside, in favor of the 
 pretensions of demagogue or partisan of any particular fac 
 tion. Upon the intimation of his wishes and necessities, he 
 was appointed collector of the port and district of Eastford, 
 which was then a position of decent emolument and conse 
 quent importance. 
 
 The doctor, yet in the vigor of his youth, betook himself 
 zealously to the duties of his profession, and his practice had 
 continued for many years to be laborious and extensive, as 
 we have already stated his attendance to be most welcome. 
 Many of his patients were poor; and, to the honor of New 
 England be it said, they have never yet failed to find the phy 
 sician as kind and attentive to suffering human nature, as the 
 rich. Indeed, the doctor used jokingly to say, he " made the 
 rich pay for the poor." 
 
 But, in truth, the mischances, which we have recapitulated, 
 had brought most of the fortunes of Eastford to a state of very 
 considerable dilapidation. With other merchants throughout 
 the country, those of Eastford were urging their own govern 
 ment for indemnities, now assumed by the country, in exchange 
 for stipulations of treaty remitted by France. In the mean 
 time, many of them lived on hope. As this sort of food is 
 unsubstantial, they necessarily suffered want; and with want 
 came despondency and too often despair. 
 
 Dr. Walton, however, kept up his spirits, and with them 
 much of the appearance, if not the reality, of prosperity. 
 The hospitalities of the mansion were certainly less fre- 
 
HOUSEHOLD SKETCHES. 173 
 
 quent ; and, if the pinch of the times had not produced 
 a general contraction, would have been thought, perhaps, 
 less liberal than of old. Still, Mrs. Walton rustled in 
 silks, on the surface of which a keen eye might have de 
 tected a partially faded lustre. Phillis continued to hand 
 round the identical china tea-cups of ancient times, upon 
 the same silver salver, which at least had lost no gleam 
 of its former brightness ; and Cato duly harnessed his mas 
 ter s white horse into the antique, square-topped chaise, the 
 respectable aspect of which was so familiar to every street 
 of the town. 
 
 But the reparation for former losses, which had been 
 BO long delayed, at length seemed likely to be almost indefi 
 nitely postponed. The justice of the claim no one yet 
 had had the hardihood and cold-heartedness to deny. But 
 the ill-condition of the public treasury, which had long 
 been the reason for deferred payment, had been latterly 
 aggravated by the embargo, and more recently by the ex 
 penses of war. 
 
 In these commercial disasters, to which Dr. Walton had 
 been subjected in his early days, Eastford itself had suffered 
 its full share. At an earlier period, the stirring little town 
 had made rapid progress in the accumulation of wealth, and 
 had reaped all the advantages and consideration which the 
 favors of fortune bring in their train. If the glittering key 
 to riches were only as potent to open the fountain of happi 
 ness, as to fling wide the portals, whence issue envy and 
 uneasiness, and carking care, this universal struggle for the 
 winged bauble, so frequently eluding the life-long search, or, 
 if found, so often burdensome and heart-wearing in the grasp, 
 w r ould make the motives for the most strenuous and 
 untiring race after its possession equally apparent and intel 
 ligible. 
 
 Fortunately, however, perhaps few really reason, and not a 
 very numerous class learn much from the reasoning of others. 
 
 15* 
 
174 EASTFOKD J OR, 
 
 So that, really, we see our friends every day go to tlieir graves, 
 who have had, actually all their lives long, only their labor for 
 their pains ; and, on the other hand, the most colossal for 
 tunes (so supposed) suddenly break down, with a tremendous 
 figurative "crash," if such an expression can be used with 
 propriety, where there was truly nothing substantial to break, 
 or to disturb the quiet of the atmosphere, and yet, the very 
 next moment, their ready followers go forward with a gravity 
 that really respects itself, and enter upon the same pursuit, 
 with all the inordinate desire of their predecessors for that 
 which is not their faith in the desperately deceitful, their 
 constancy to a dream and a shade. 
 
 In the mean time, a great deal of the more substantial part 
 of Eastford s prosperity, together with as much of the show 
 of it as could not be kept up to any advantage, had passed 
 away. Like other towns on the Atlantic coast, it had suf 
 fered 
 
 " a sea-change." 
 
 Reversing, however, the effect of that gorgeous and fanci 
 ful vision, with which the poet s imagination has made the 
 ocean-depths to be forever haunted, the transmutations of 
 which we were speaking, instead of being 
 
 " Into something rich and strange," 
 
 had been only from bad to worse ! The policy pursued by the 
 government had been of a character to interfere, most 
 seriously, with the thrifty pursuits of the sea-board, and to 
 drain its resources almost to the dregs. Embargo and non- 
 intercourse had fallen upon Eastford like a mildew. Instead 
 of the busy and bustling mart, and the cheerful voices of sea 
 men on her wharves, heaving merrily to the measured and 
 inspiring tone, these scenes and sounds had long lost much of 
 their ancient spirit, and despondency had taken the place of 
 hope and courage. 
 
 From this disaster they had not recovered. Indeed, here 
 
HOUSEHOLD SKETCHES. 175 
 
 and there, relics of the people of that day yet survive, to dwell 
 upon the sad story of their losses and their wrongs. A few 
 tottering old men, who once had " means in supposition," and 
 " ventures squandered abroad," yet linger on the descending 
 verge of life, and still cling to a miserable hope in the eventual 
 justice of an ungrateful country. The stunning blows of 
 thick-coming misfortunes, the consciousness of a cause too 
 honest to admit of doubt or delay ; the heart-sickening and 
 bewildering sense of often-repeated postponement ; the cold 
 and cautious counsels of friends, and the unreasoning malice 
 of opponents ; and whatever else the heart is called upon 
 most bitterly to endure, have too often broken their spirits, 
 and paralyzed their energies, and disquieted their lives ; and 
 while they have pursued their honest purposes, and entreated 
 for their honest rights in vain, the mocking legislation of 
 their country has denied them the simplest and plainest 
 justice. 
 
 Yes ; let it be proclaimed, as an offset to our pride, and, if 
 iniquity asks for judgment, as a warning to our power, that, 
 for the long period of more than half a century, the influence 
 of selfish interests, and the baseness of political factions, have 
 robbed the very hearth-stones of our citizens of comforts, 
 which should have brightened and cheered them, of com 
 forts, due to all they yielded in the day of trial, without a 
 murmur, to the common cause. For such sacrifices, honor, 
 truth, justice, and a decent regard for the ordinary pretences 
 of honesty, demand a redress, which now must be tardy, and 
 never can be complete. 
 
 In the mean time, what vast sums have been expended 
 on a war, of which the least we can say is, that it ought not to 
 have been permitted to interfere with the payment of such a 
 claim ! And how many noble talents have been devoted to 
 self-ends and the vain pursuit of personal and futile ambi 
 tion, which were bestowed, in order that they might be 
 employed for the good of mankind ; and which, if they 
 
17G EASTFORD; OR, HOUSEHOLD SKETCHES. 
 
 had taken this direction, would have called down tho 
 blessing of him that was ready to perish, and have secured 
 an enviable immortality ! Alas, it is these vices, which 
 have lowered the standard of morals amongst us, and are 
 fast making us anything but an honest and virtuous people. 
 
CHAPTER XVII. 
 
 Who 
 
 Art thou, that steppcst between heart and heart 1 " 
 
 THE scenes exhibited in the preceding chapter, judicious 
 reader, which, it must be confessed, is rather episodical, serve 
 partly in illustration of the characters and events of this 
 true history, and partly afford some glimpse of a subject, 
 deserving the serious attention of the people and the decisive 
 action of the legislature of this country. 
 
 Although now arrived at a period of life considerably 
 advanced, and living in the state of solitary bereavement here 
 tofore indicated, Dr. Walton had invited the circle of his 
 family friends to take tea at his hospitable mansion. It was 
 a true pleasure to visit the genial home of the cheerful old 
 man. His house and furniture remained very much in the 
 condition, in which they had been left upon the lamented 
 decease of his young and lovely wife, so many years before. 
 The same tall clock clicked with distinct accents, which seemed 
 to echo through the ample hall. The same carved and 
 stately chairs appeared to be waiting for their former appro 
 priate occupants, around the solitary apartments;, and upon 
 the walls of the best parlor still fluttered, when the open 
 windows admitted the morning air, those hangings of leather, 
 gilded after some foreign fashion in fact, the arras of 
 ancient days. In a word, the whole house, though devoid of 
 the slightest seeming pretension, had an undoubted air of solid 
 and genuine gentility, of a character unapproachable by all the 
 
178 EASTFORD; OR, 
 
 costly frippery of modern times. Upon the present occasion, 
 like many of the matrons of the town, under similar circum 
 stances, the housekeeper had called in the services of Black 
 Nance, who had often proved an aid, at once ornamental and 
 effective, to the progress of domestic festivities. 
 
 Dr. Walton had been joking George, soon after tea, upon 
 the eagerness, with which a young gentleman of his imagina 
 tive tendencies, looked forward to the dry study of the law, 
 upon the completion of his college course. 
 
 " We had famous lawyers in Eustford, in your younger 
 days, grandfather," said George. 
 
 " Yes," said the old man, " the most eminent in their pro 
 fession ; no town, I think, could boast of such an array of 
 legal talent. But this was in the time of Eastford s prosper 
 ity. All this is sadly changed ; and with our prosperity has 
 gone out much of our spirit and energy ; or, perhaps, our defi 
 ciency in these qualities has been the true cause of our 
 decline. Why, I remember when thirty or forty private 
 carriages were kept here, where now there is not one to be 
 seen." 
 
 " The society must have been good, then, as it is generally 
 styled." 
 
 " Yes, no doubt, in a certain sense, yes ; there was a vast 
 deal of visiting, and not a little dissipation. The reputation 
 of our legal gentlemen brought a great many young men, to 
 pursue their studies here ; some of these were highly con 
 nected and of educated and cultivated minds, and not a few 
 became afterwards persons of the highest eminence in public 
 life." 
 
 "You had famous beauties here, also, father," said Mrs. 
 Atherton. 
 
 " I shall not be so ungallant as to say we have them not 
 now, Julia ; but certainly there was a circle of very charm 
 ing young ladies. You know one of our great men, then a 
 student in the town, celebrated a bevy of them in rhyme 
 
HOUSEHOLD SKETCHES. 179 
 
 rather satirical, but the piece was thought to be discriminat 
 ing, though perhaps too severe upon the young girls. Our 
 friend, Miss Dudley s mother, was one of the most beautiful 
 persons of her day, and, if she will permit me to say so, of a 
 character delightful to see preserved in its purity by her 
 daughter. Of your own mother, Julia, I will say nothing " 
 with a sigh. 
 
 " I have sometimes heard it said," observed Miss Dudley, 
 " that our mothers and grandmothers were not, perhaps, as 
 truly refined and cultivated as the present generation." 
 
 " In point of learning, certainly, they were deficient," re 
 plied the doctor ; " they had neither the schools nor the mul 
 tiplicity of books, which have deluged us of late ; but in native 
 good sense and genuine simplicity of character I think the 
 ladies of the past generation were at least the equals of their 
 successors. Their manners were a little open, perhaps, but 
 there was a great deal of sterling worth among the girls I 
 used to know. As to my own sex, I really think they have 
 degenerated ; the cotemporaries of rny early days were men, 
 often rude in speech and coarse in manner, and they indulged 
 freely in some species of excesses, in which we have seen a 
 partial reformation. But, on the whole, their plainness 
 betokened their honesty ; men were not then reduced to their 
 present conventional and artificial character; they did not 
 deem it honorable to cut your throat with a feather ; but, 
 if any of that work was to be done, they did it in daylight 
 and after a man-fashion." 
 
 "Ah, iny dear sir," said Mr. Atherton, "you arc running 
 quite counter to the recognized notions ; improvement, not 
 degeneracy, is the order of the day, if we are to believe our 
 modern reformers, the world is about to enjoy the beams of 
 a brighter light that ever yet shone upon it." 
 
 " A conceited estimate of our own virtue is not the best test 
 of its possession," replied the veteran doctor. 
 
 " And yet, my dear sir, what can we say about degencr- 
 
1 80 EASTFORD J OR, 
 
 acy ? " replied Mr. Atherton. " This has been an old com- 
 pliint, confined, I believe, to no one period of the world ; do 
 you remember what Horace tells us? 
 
 uEtas parentum, pejor avis, tulit 
 
 Nos nequiores, niox daturos 
 
 Progeniein vitiosioretn. 
 
 The world, I think, can hardly have been going down, and still 
 down, ever since his day ; if so, we should be now in an abyss 
 of vileness difficult to be conceived of." 
 
 " On the other hand, if we had gone on really improving, 
 from any given date, our virtues ought to be far more con 
 spicuous, and our superiority more absolutely demonstrable," 
 replied the doctor. 
 
 " I suspect the truth is," said Mr. Atherton, " the world 
 alternates, in different ages, between a loftier and a lower 
 stanlard. When society recedes, and corruption seems to have 
 unusual possession of it, this gives occasion for the complaint 
 of the moralist. In another generation, affairs may be very 
 much mended; and this will account philosophically enough for 
 what has been said, from time to time, for many ages, about 
 the degeneracy of mankind ; which, it is obvious, cannot have 
 been a continuous thing. On the contrary, let us hope, 
 there is a general tendency towards improvement. At all 
 events, we have a better authority than Horace on this point, 
 which may give us some encouragement, Say not thou, 
 What is the cause that the former days were better than 
 these? Our business is really to amend ourselves." 
 
 In the course of this conversation, our acquaintance, 
 Miss Mary May, had stepped into the hall, which leads 
 through the house to the garden-door, and there had encoun 
 tered Black Nancy ; who, arrayed in her best bib and tucker, 
 had been doing her duty to the assembled guests, and was 
 now enjoying the early summer twilight, near the open door. 
 As Mary stood leaning against the door-post, it may be some 
 what pensively, Nancy, with that familiarity, in which per- 
 
HOUSEHOLD SKETCHES. 181 
 
 sons of her class and color often indulge towards their supe 
 riors, approached with the kind intent of offering that 
 sympathy which, no doubt, she supposed was needed upon 
 the present occasion. 
 
 Now Nancy, in the days of her virgin innocence, had been 
 per-force compelled to yield to the tender influences of the 
 Cupid of the African race, and had been mistress of the affec 
 tions of a dusky swain, who, soon after marriage, had left her 
 to the solitude, in which she had continued virtuously to live. 
 Actuated, it is probable, by some vague remembrance of 
 former personal experiences, and conceiving that when a 
 young lady saw fit to look sober, it was because she was 
 uneasy in mind, and that mental uneasiness in a young lady 
 could result only from one cause, her rather abrupt question 
 was, 
 
 " Miss Mary, where Massa George dis berry fine even 
 ing?" 
 
 "Mr. George Atherton is in the house, !Nancy, sitting with 
 his grandfather and the others." 
 
 " Seems to me, old folks ought to sit in de house ; young 
 folks, dey ought to walk togedder in de air and enjoy dein- 
 selves." 
 
 " Is that your idea of enjoyment, Nancy ? " 
 
 " Deed tis, Miss Mary; when I was young lady, 0, I 
 was berry proud, I sure you ! would n t have nothing to say 
 to young fellers ; kept em all at arm s length, deed I did ; 
 thought myself mighty grand ; more I stiffened up, though, 
 worse I felt," 
 
 At this moment, Nancy was called off by the sudden sum 
 mons of her principal in the kitchen ; and whether it was, 
 that the suggestive nature of her intimations had really 
 touched a kindred chord, we profess not to know ; but cer 
 tain it is, that the desire to indulge solitary reflections of 
 some kind led Mary into the open air and down the gentle 
 path which conducted to Indian Spring. 
 1G 
 
182 EASTFORD J OR, 
 
 Having completed the " chore " she had been summoned to 
 perform, and bent upon pursuing her friendly conference with 
 Mary, Nancy had made haste to return to the garden-door, 
 but, instead of Mary, now found George Atherton standing by 
 himself and inhaling the freshness of the summer air. This 
 seemed really almost a coincidence. 
 
 " Where Miss Mary, Massa George ? " cried the good- 
 hearted creature; " she standin here, minit ago ! " 
 
 " I m sure I don t know, Nancy ; she s not in the room 
 with the company ; I thought she might be here." 
 
 " Was here jes now ; want to see you berry much ; 
 must be gone down to Injin Spring, to see if you a n t there ; 
 tink I most see her goin down now," lifting her hand to 
 her brow, and peeping through the shrubbery and down the 
 path. 
 
 " Mary wish to see me very much ! Good heavens ! what 
 do you mean, Nancy?" cried Atherton, without waiting for 
 an answer, but hurrying instantly along the path to the 
 spring. As he descended the slope, he distinguished the 
 sound of voices in earnest conversation ; and pausing a mo 
 ment, that he might not intrude upon others, he was surprised 
 to perceive, through an open space in the foliage, which 
 partly screened the fountain, Mary herself standing, and a 
 gentleman on his knees at her feet. He would have rushed 
 forward, fearing danger to her, at such an hour and in this 
 somewhat solitary spot ; but, at the moment, Mary s voice, in 
 earnest but not agitated tones, struck his ear : 
 
 " Cruel I am not ! Had I encouraged you " 
 
 He heard no more ; but, turning on the instant, slowly 
 retraced his steps, and pausing outside the door of the house, 
 so as to be within earshot, in case his services might be 
 needed, he very soon perceived Mary coming up the path alone. 
 
 Atherton reentered the room, where the company was 
 assembled, leaving Mary to follow, which she soon did, look 
 ing rather pale, certainly, but composed. His mind was agi- 
 
HOUSEHOLD SKETCHES. 183 
 
 tated arid distressed. Of Mary, certainly, he could seek no 
 explanations. He disdained to make inquiry, on such a point, 
 of a menial, even supposing Nancy knew anything about it, 
 which seemed improbable, from the fact that she had sent 
 him in pursuit of Mary ; and, as that lady did not afterwards 
 voluntarily enlighten him as to this mysterious interview, he 
 did not, at present certainly, feel himself at liberty to speak 
 on the subject even to Alice. 
 
CHAPTER XVIII. 
 
 " Virtus rectorern, duccmquo desidorat ; vitia sino magistro dis- 
 cuntur." Cic. 
 
 " He has cast nature off, which was his shield, 
 And nature casts him off, who is her shame." 
 
 SlIELLEY. 
 
 COMMENCEMENT-DAY at Camborough, always an occasion of 
 much interest and importance to large classes of our fellow- 
 citizens and their families, excited far more attention, and in 
 days, not very distant from our own, than at present. The 
 institution of its periodical occurrence, as an annual holiday, 
 by the statute of the commonwealth, indicates the light in 
 which our ancestors regarded such an event, and the whole 
 some respect entertained by them for good learning, and the 
 great benefits and blessings of which it is the instrument. 
 The assembly, which graced this literary festival with its 
 presence, came together, not only from all the vicinal towns, 
 but was collected, in part also, from the very remotest quarters 
 of the land. The dark-eyed and dark -haired southern belle, 
 whose brother or cousin was about to graduate at this most 
 venerable of our literary institutions, with her graceful figure 
 and perhaps languid manner, was often contrasted, in the 
 crowded assemblage, with New England s more precise, but 
 blooming and bonny daughters. And the military dresses of 
 the guard of honor, in attendance upon the chief magistrate 
 of the state, mingled in well, on these occasions, with the 
 more sobcr-hucd exterior of the students and various profcs- 
 
EASTFORD; OR, HOUSEHOLD SKETCHES. 185 
 
 sional personages, and with the black gowns of the head of the 
 university and its professors. 
 
 Oxton, of course, poured forth its thronging multitude, and 
 long before the hour appointed for the exercises, the various 
 avenues leading towards Camborough, both from the city and 
 the country, were crowded with multiform vehicles of trans 
 portation; from the elegant carriage, in which lounged the 
 rich merchant and the ladies of his household, to the plain 
 country wagon, guided, perhaps, by some neighboring young 
 farmer, seated between a couple of bucolical damsels, who 
 were ambitious to sec the sights, if not to participate in the 
 literary proceedings of " Commencement-day." 
 
 The distance between Eastford and Camborough was so 
 considerable, as to require more than half a day for the com 
 pletion of the journey. Accordingly, the Atherton party had 
 left home the preceding morning, in order that they might 
 reach the quarters secured for them at Camborough, at a 
 seasonable hour, and enjoy the rest and refreshment of a 
 night, before the moment arrived for the great work of the 
 day of days itself. Mr. George Atherton now properly 
 entitled to that appellation of manhood, for, if it does not 
 appertain to a young gentleman, about to proceed Bachelor of 
 Arts, we are at a loss to know who may rightfully claim it 
 occupied lodgings at some little distance from the college build 
 ings. Within this, his own boarding-house, and which was, 
 indeed, a somewhat stately and spacious mansion of an elder 
 date, he had been able to secure accommodations for his 
 father s family, including Miss Mary May, who had been in 
 duced to accompany the expedition, " entirely out of curi 
 osity," as she remarked, since she "had never yet seen a 
 Commencement." 
 
 The landlady of this establishment was the widow of a 
 once flourishing merchant, afterwards bankrupt, and some 
 time deceased ; and she now employed this laudable means 
 of maintaining her family and of procuring education, that 
 16* 
 
186 EASTFORD; OR, 
 
 prime necessity of New England, for its younger branches. 
 The comfortable house of Mrs. Dunham, however, was not 
 entirely devoted to the uses of the students ; but several of 
 its apartments were occupied by such other occasional or per 
 manent boarders, as were induced, by their taste, or desire for 
 literary intercourse, to choose their residence near the seat 
 of the university. Amongst these was Mr. Prior Date, still 
 extant, whenever he saw fit to honor the precincts of his alma- 
 mater with his presence, and Miss Inchskip, a lady of much 
 literary accomplishment and elegant refinement. Whether 
 she had really ever written anything herself, was a point 
 enveloped in the profoundest mystery. At all events, she had 
 not that confidence in the judgment of the world, to induce 
 her to subject herself to the caprice, which too often governs 
 its decisions. She was excessively fond of the society of liter 
 ary gentlemen, and acted as a sort of foster-mother to the 
 nursing youths of the college. These young persons partook 
 of her aesthetic teas and thin cakes, and formed their own 
 opinions (which they often expressed with an innocent free 
 dom) of the style of discourse and entertainment, with which 
 she strove to foment and nourish their budding genius. The 
 countenance of Miss Inchskip, as her friends often remarked, 
 was " highly intellectual." Her brow, in our opinion, was 
 far too prominent to consist with a true idea of feminine 
 beauty, and long curls of light brown hair, native or foreign, 
 depended by the side of cheeks, too thin to betoken a very 
 recent entrance upon the pilgrimage, weary or otherwise, of 
 this world. She indulged in the singularity of mincing a 
 good deal in her speech, likewise in her -gait ; quite as much, 
 indeed, as any conscious miss of tender years ; from one, 
 at which interesting period of life, it was difficult to distin 
 guish Miss Inchskip, when she happened to be in front, 
 upon the same line of march with one s self. But she was a 
 mighty dapper and cheerful body, at least upon all public 
 Occasions, and took the deepest interest in all that concerned 
 
HOUSEHOLD SKETCHES. 187 
 
 the university, its officers, their wives, their children in 
 short, their domestic affairs in general, and, as has been ob 
 served, in the promising under-graduates at that eminent seat 
 of learning. 
 
 It seems that, on this evening preceding Commencement, a 
 sort of accustomed soiree or reunion was to be held at her 
 rooms, or rather in the public apartments, yielded for the 
 occasion, her own being used merely as ante-chambers ; and 
 her liberal invitation, of course, included all the inmates of the 
 establishment. She was, indeed, happy to form the acquaint 
 ance of the family circle of so great a favorite as George 
 Atherton, and she now pressed her hospitable intentions upon 
 those, whose personal presence exhibited them in a character 
 so truly prepossessing. 
 
 "She sincerely trusted" this was addressed to Mrs. 
 Atherton " that she should not be disappointed in the 
 pleasure of seeing her and her charming family present at the 
 little gathering, which would take place in the evening; it 
 was really only a few friends ; several of the ladies of Cam- 
 borough, her acquaintance, and some of the elite of the young 
 gentlemen of the university, and one or two of the officers of 
 the college, who occasionally honored her petites soirees. 
 Mrs. Crewell, Rev. Dr. Crewell s lady, you know, and Miss 
 Fringe, Professor Fringe s daughter, she was quite sure of, 
 amongst others, both ladies of high literary taste, and she 
 thought she might depend on Dr. Griskin, the professor of the 
 Oceanic dialects, and," turning with a smile to Alice and 
 Mary, " I think, I believe, I may almost say I am posi 
 tive, though these poets, these poets are so very, uncertain, 
 we may get a glimpse of Mr. Rosecream himself! " 
 
 Those young ladies expressed themselves delighted with the 
 idea of meeting an actual poet, though we are sorry to say, 
 they were compelled to insinuate some inquiries, as crafty as 
 they could contrive, as to a poetical reputation not yet famil 
 iarly known at Eastford. 
 
188 EASTFORD; OR, 
 
 " 0," said Miss Inchskip, " he has written such delicate 
 poetry ! I do not show my album to every one, I assure you, 
 for all it contains is original ; but, Miss May, if you will 
 please read with Miss Atherton this little gem, * Upon the 
 Whiteness of a Cloud ; it is so sweet and shadowy, that you 
 must put yourself into connection, as it were, with the poet 
 himself, in order to catch the exact idea, or rather allow 
 me." 
 
 "UPON THE WHITENESS OF A CLOUD. 
 
 * Wandering cloud, that down the zenith 
 
 Floatest in thy silvery brightness, 
 Of thy pureness what it ineaueth, 
 Tell, 0, tell me of thy whiteness ! 
 
 ** Born thou wast mid shadows misty, 
 
 Or, where waves in vapory weather, 
 Boil and heave in tumult yesty, 
 
 Blue, greon, white, and all together. 
 
 " Lingering sunbeams, rich and golden, 
 
 Pierce thy bosom s airy texture, 
 How, pure cloudlet, wast thou moulden 
 Of such marvellous commixture ? 
 
 * Let vain Art reveal thy story, 
 
 Solve thee, ! and teach thy mission, 
 To my heart bo still a glory, 
 
 Lovely doubt and mystic vision ! " 
 
 "Is n t that sweet?" 
 
 Mrs. Atherton pleaded the weariness incident to their 
 journey, and the fatigues, to which they might expect to be 
 subjected the next day, but upon the promise of an early 
 release, finally accepted Miss Inchskip s kind invitation. 
 
 The evening passed off very agreeably, and the general 
 topics of such occasions were discussed with freedom and dis 
 crimination. The extraordinary heat of the weather, the 
 immense volumes of dust, which commonly enveloped Cam- 
 
HOUSEHOLD SKETCHES. 189 
 
 borough, during the dog-days, reminiscences of past com 
 mencements, and of promising young gentlemen of those times, 
 who had subsequently acquired distinction in the several 
 walks of life ; together with pleasing anticipations of new 
 successes on the morrow ; these formed the staple material of 
 conversation, diversified by an argument on the subject of 
 " woman s rights," introduced by Miss Fringe, an inveterate 
 spinster, who, it seemed, was a sturdy advocate of the doc 
 trine, which even then found an occasional adherent. 
 
 " For her part," she remarked, " women being of the same 
 general physical structure with the other sex, and possessing 
 similar mental powers, which she was not willing to admit to 
 be in any wise inferior, she saw no reason why the sexes 
 should not be placed upon terms of perfect and entire equality. 
 To suppose a gentleman was necessary as an attendant of a 
 lady, upon her walks or drives, was an insult to the natural 
 and rightful independence of woman." 
 
 Mrs. Atherton, to whom this doctrine was novel, modestly 
 suggested, that, " though, in other countries, the condition of 
 woman was, more or less, degraded, yet, in our own, she had 
 not observed any reasonable ground of complaint, in respect 
 of her personal freedom." 
 
 " No," Miss Fringe replied ; " in point of personal liberty 
 there is not, perhaps, so much to object to ; indeed, I should like 
 to see the man, who would undertake to exercise any restraint 
 upon my free action ! But why, let me ask you, are we not 
 permitted to enjoy the general rights of mankind, to take an 
 equal part in the regulation of our own destinies ; in a word, 
 to vote, to speak, to act, in regard to our own personal and 
 political rights ? " 
 
 " I believe we should find it very disagreeable," Mrs. 
 Atherton said, " if not absolutely inconsistent with our domes 
 tic duties." 
 
 " Not at all ; the Indian women of our own country per 
 form a great many duties, which are assumed by the male 
 
190 EASTFORD J OR, 
 
 sex amongst ourselves, and yet it does not interfere with their 
 domestic avocations." 
 
 " I never heard," observed Mr. Atherton, coming to his 
 wife s rescue, " that the Indians ever called their women to 
 council, however." 
 
 " No ; in this respect savage and civilized are alike." 
 
 " Does not this assumption, by our sex, of the more serious 
 burdens of life, and amongst these I cannot help including 
 political duties, for instance, imply rather an improvement, 
 under our state of society, upon the practices of savage exis 
 tence?" 
 
 " I tliink, at least, sir, our rights should be thoroughly 
 settled and defined," replied Miss Fringe. 
 
 " I will not be guilty of the incivility of urging that this 
 states nothing, since the rights must first be accurately known 
 and universally applicable, before they can be definitely estab 
 lished. But the truth is, my dear madam, woman is most 
 secure, in that vast and vague range permitted to her influence 
 upon sublunary affairs. Her rights really are, deference 
 courtesy admiration tenderness respect. Her own 
 qualities, if what they should be, and, let me say, most gen 
 erally are, rarely fail to call forth these elements, which 
 go to make up her happiness, from high and low of our 
 rougher sex. It is not her misfortune to have ?io rights, but 
 her happiness that they are great, really beyond definition. 
 To set them down, therefore, in precise terms, would be only 
 to limit and actually deprive her of much, which she now en 
 joys without restraint. It would place her in antagonism 
 with man, instead of improving those agreeable relations 
 which now exist; and, instead of elevating, would go far 
 towards reducing her to the sad condition of her lot in all 
 barbarous countries." 
 
 " I believe the true way," broke in Mr. Date, " of equaliz 
 ing men and women, and indeed, all mankind, is to give them 
 a universal language, which might easily be effected, since the 
 
HOUSEHOLD SKETCHES. 191 
 
 organs of articulation are the same all over the world, and it 
 only needs that sounds shall be so presented to the organs of 
 vision, that, in attempting to enunciate them, the syllables 
 necessarily will form themselves into precisely similar tones." 
 
 " Even then," remarked Dr. Griskin, " people still would 
 continue to be white and black, long and short, fat like me, 
 thin like you, Mr. Date, not to mention many other attributes 
 of natural and unavoidable diversity." 
 
 " Still, it would tend to render them much more alike," re 
 plied Date. 
 
 " Alike ! good heavens ! we are all alike stupid and silly 
 enough now ; I beseech you, don t make us any more alike ; 
 rather promote every reasonable distinction 
 
 * All nature s discord makes all nature s peace ! " 
 
 In the mean time, the young gentlemen of the college had 
 made all the advances which their courage warranted, to the 
 lovely young ladies of Eastford, whose fresh, youthful and 
 unworn charms inspired their tender bosoms Avith those emo 
 tions, by which beauty always awes, yet attracts us to itself. 
 
 " like Morning led by Night,"- 
 
 Ned Shirland, a great friend of George s, pronounced them to 
 be, as Alice passed across the room leaning on the arm of Mary. 
 The other young men, who had been having a time more or less 
 jovial, in one of their rooms, during the afternoon, and were 
 even now a little hilarious, rather rallied Shirland on his 
 mauvaise honte ; seeing he maintained his position in the cor 
 ner, which they chiefly frequented. In the course of the even 
 ing, they had all been presented, but Shirland kept much 
 aloof, apparently preferring to turn over the leaves of a book 
 of prints, rather than to engage in discourse. 
 
 During a moment of general conversation, Dr. Griskin took 
 their hostess on one side. 
 
 " My dear Miss Inchskip," said he, " do you recollect the 
 
192 EASTFORD; on, 
 
 story of the Ghoule in the Arabian Nights Entertainments? 
 You know she was one of those Eastern horrors, a sort of a 
 cross between a cacodaemon and a phantasma, who assumed 
 the form of a beautiful female, and got married to a worthy 
 Oriental, and pretended her appetite was so small, she could 
 only pick up grains of rice with a pin; notwithstanding, which 
 she stole out softly, at night, while her husband was asleep, 
 to enjoy some sort of hellish repast." 
 
 " Horrible ! Dr. Griskin, what are you driving at ? " 
 
 " Do you know I have discovered somewhat about one of 
 our most interesting friends, not exactly like the Ghoule, to 
 be sure, but which has really horrified me ! " 
 
 " Mercy on us ! who is it?" 
 
 " Is it not more important to ask what is it? " 
 
 " Tell me, Dr. Griskin, I beseech you ; I must beg you not 
 to keep me in this state of dreadful suspense ! " 
 
 " Will you promise secrecy ? " 
 
 " I do most solemnly ; who is the party ? " 
 
 " Our friend, Miss Fringe," whispering. 
 
 "What is it? what is it?" 
 
 " I am afraid she is little better than I scarcely dare to 
 say what " 
 
 " Than she should be ? " energetically. 
 
 " 0, no, indeed, my dear Miss Inchskip ; 0, no ! " 
 
 " For Heaven s sake, what do you mean, doctor? " 
 
 " Why, I have reason to think she is a in a word, I 
 believe she is little better than a cannibal ! " 
 
 " A cannibal ! heavens and earth ! what have you seen 
 her cat?" 
 
 " By the merest accident, this very day, when she had no 
 idea any one was particularly observing her, I saw her, my 
 dear madam, with my own eyes, eat, shall I tell you? 
 rawjleth?" 
 
 " 0-o-h ! " groaned out Miss Inchskip. 
 
 " If it had been cut fresh from a living creature, and dc- 
 
HOUSEHOLD SKETCHES. 193 
 
 voured on the spot, it could not have been much warmer or 
 more raw ! " in a low and rather tremuluous voice. 
 
 " What was it ? 0, tell me what it was ! a child ? " 
 
 " Child, my dear madam ? no, indeed ; what was it ? it 
 was mutton; but I assure you almost entirely raw, and she 
 seemed actually to enjoy it. If that is not approaching very 
 near to cannibalism, I don t know what is. In fact, I was 
 dining there, to-day, and the transaction took place at table." 
 
 " 0, you shall be well paid for this, sir ! " 
 
 From this incident it will be perceived, that the doctor 
 was rather a practical joker, and that his estimable hostess, who 
 had been often taken in so by him, was a little single-minded. 
 
 While Mr. Atherton was engaged in pleasant conversation 
 with a really intellectual and agreeable circle of men and 
 women, connected by various ties with the college, Miss Inch- 
 skip, who had, by this time, recovered from the felonious as 
 sault of Dr. Griskin, approached Mary and Alice, and sug 
 gested to them the advantage of taking a position near the 
 door of the apartment. 
 
 "If you would please stand about in this position, Miss 
 May, and you, my dear Miss Atherton, I think you may 
 have a sight of Mr. Rosecream, as he passes down. He is 
 actually above stairs, in my own parlor, and I have been up 
 to speak to him for a moment." 
 
 " Will not this gentleman enter the room, so that we may 
 sec what a poet is really made of?" inquired Mary. 
 
 " Nothing will induce him," replied Miss Inchskip ; " in 
 deed, I did not venture to propose it; he is so shy hush, 
 my dear ! " 
 
 And as she spoke, with a quick and light step, this object 
 of so much interest and admiration flitted down the stairway 
 and fairly glided out at the street-door. 
 
 " Why, that s a will-o -the-wisp," cried Miss May, laugh 
 ing, " a meteor, a flash, --- a phantom anything that is 
 unsubstantial and evanescent ! " 
 17 
 
194 EASTFORD; OR, 
 
 Alice looked rather wonder-struck, and inquired if these 
 were the usual habits of this literary lion. 
 
 " 0, he lives very secluded ! " half whispered Miss Inchskip ; 
 " poets, you know, are apt to avoid observation." 
 
 " Not always," replied Mary ; 
 
 ** * Sometime walking, not unseen, 
 
 By hedge-row elms, or hillocks green, 
 
 seems to have been the wish of Milton ; and Shakspeare, as 
 well as many other great poets, have mingled freely with the 
 world." 
 
 " Perhaps Mr. Rosecream," said Miss Inchskip, " can 
 hardly yet be called a great poet ; he is rather a young and 
 tender nursling of the Muses, who is cultivating, as yet, his 
 poetic powers, and prefers to live with nature rather than 
 man." 
 
 " Well, Ally, my love," cried Mary, laughing, as Miss 
 Inchskip left them, " I suppose we country girls can hardly 
 judge about the habits proper for literary shadows." 
 
 " Did n t you think him rather handsome ? " asked Alice. 
 
 "Rather, that is, rather handsome for a mere gleam. 
 Such a style of beauty is unsatisfactory, however. I confess I 
 prefer more permanent charms." 
 
 " What do you suppose he acts so oddly for? " 
 
 " I rather think from mistaken notions ; I can conceive of 
 a literary person wishing to avoid impertinent intrusion ; 
 but such an excess of shyness either savors of affectation, or 
 else must be merely morbid." 
 
 " Perhaps, this is necessary for him, as Miss Inchskip 
 says, so that he may cultivate his poetical powers, my dear." 
 
 "I haven t much faith in that. I believe a truly great 
 poet studies life as well as nature ; and I rather think such 
 poets will be found to know more about both, than other peo 
 ple. I am sure this is the case with our favorites, love ; but 
 
HOUSEHOLD SKETCHES. 195 
 
 certainly, if they are of a true temper, they will live in the 
 lisjht as well as the dark." 
 
 B 
 
 As the sun rose, the next morning, it glowed with a heat 
 scarcely sufferable, even at that early hour ; but, happily, a 
 slight shower, which soon came down, though it could not attem 
 per the warmth of the summer atmosphere, served to lay the 
 dust, which is often a serious inconvenience upon the flat and 
 dry plain on which Camborough is situated. Very shortly, 
 the quaint old town began to assume an aspect of unusual ani 
 mation. Upon the common, in the market-place, and by the 
 sides of the road, near the college, tables and benches were 
 arranged, protected either by awnings or matted branches of 
 evergreen, and piled with various simple refreshments, adapted 
 to the bodily wants of hungry and thirsty mortals. " Cakes and 
 ale " were yet held to be sufficiently virtuous, and both ginger 
 and spruce beer liberally furnished forth those festive tables, 
 which thus surrounded and decorated the seat of the Muses. 
 
 As the morning hours advanced, those classic shades began, 
 to be alive with a swarming and moving multitude. The stu 
 dents, in groups or singly, passed over the intersecting walks 
 of the college grounds, beneath the grateful shadow of their 
 overarching trees. Many a venerable relic of a day long gone 
 slowly paced, or maybe tottered, along those ways, over which 
 his boyish steps had once bounded ; and perhaps sadly re 
 flected, how little of substantial happiness or solid good had 
 intervened between that hour of youthful follies and his now 
 almost opening grave. To one, who seemed to be thus mus 
 ing upon the future or the past, as he slowly made his way 
 along the rapidly-filling street, another who appeared like 
 the depositary of college annals and chronicler of its passing 
 veterans, and he, himself, far down the file briskly ap 
 proached from behind, as if the very forms of all who yet 
 lingered were familiar to his eyes, and, tapping him on the 
 shoulder, cheerfully exclaimed, 
 
196 EASTFORD; OR, 
 
 " Ah, Iladlcy, you re the next but one Williston s gone 
 last week, and Cantwork s the only one older than you now 
 left standing on the catalogue ! " 
 
 And so he passed rapidly onwards, leaving the muttering 
 senior much more confounded than delighted, by such a very 
 summary, and not, perhaps, over-welcome announcement. 
 
 And now, every stall and nook in the crowded stables, and 
 every disposable shadow flung by the branching foliage, is 
 occupied by the reeming steeds, which have drawn the learned 
 and the idle, the grave, the gallant and the gay, to this place 
 of general congregation. But, hark ! the bray of trumpets ! 
 Martial are the sonorous notes which announce the expected 
 coming of the dignitaries of the land ! Tarn Marti quam Mer- 
 curio ! Here is the waving of banners and the flutter of pen 
 nons upon the summer air ; and, proudly advancing, the long 
 line of scarlet-coated lancers slowly denies along the crowded 
 streets, as it escorts the carriages containing the chief magis 
 trate and the attendants of his civic and military state. The 
 galleries of the house of worship, devoted to the exercises of 
 the day, have long been filled, and animated by the beauty and 
 fashion, which the outer world lends to grace this festival of 
 learning and honorable ambition. And soon, the long proces 
 sion, duly marshalled by its appointed youth, preceded by 
 the respected head of the university, and moving with steps 
 Hymphonious to the mood of military strains, advances up the 
 aisle ; and while its foremost ranks ascend the stage, which is 
 to be the scene of the glories and honors of the day, its 
 flanks distribute themselves amongst the pews, which occupy 
 the body of the house. 
 
 The further order of proceedings and exercises it might be 
 tedious to recount. AVe have the heart to bestow it all upon 
 our readers, but this our apprehensions of their patience for 
 bid. The Athcrton party, by the happy efforts of George, 
 and his college chum, Edward Shirland, had been fortunate 
 enough to secure seats directly opposite the stage. After the 
 
HOUSEHOLD SKETCHES. 197 
 
 successful event of his own part, the latter young gentleman, 
 by superhuman exertions, had worked his way to the imme 
 diate vicinity of his friend s family. As the moment ap 
 proached for George s appearance upon the stage, their hopes 
 and fears and nervous agitations may be easily imagined by 
 those who have been present on similar occasions, with feelings 
 enlisted for those who were dear to them. 
 
 At length, the voice of the President was heard, " Ex 
 pect atur Oratio, in Ii7igua ver?iacula, a At her ton," where 
 upon, that young gentleman came gracefully forward, and, 
 duly bowing towards all appropriate quarters, proceeded 
 to the delivery of the speech, which had caused so much in 
 terest and speculation among our friends at Eastford, during the 
 preceding vacation. His appearance certainly was the occa 
 sion of a flutter among other young ladies than those of his 
 own party. 
 
 " 0, he s a dear, a darling ! " cried Mrs. Flyter, one of 
 the fashionable and semi-literary ladies, whose seat adjoined 
 that appropriated to the Athertons. This remark, delivered 
 with considerable distinctness, was unavoidably overheard, and, 
 whatever other effect it may have had; caused a gentle flush 
 upon at least one pair of cheeks in the party. The oration, 
 though exceedingly beautiful and effective, these pages are not 
 entitled to record. Suffice it to say, that it was listened to 
 with profound and unaffected admiration, interrupted, at no 
 very long intervals, by decided manifestations of applause 
 from the gentlemen, and by the waving of handkerchiefs and 
 flutter of fans, on the part of the lovelier portion of the assem 
 bly. But when, at the close of his address, the. turn of the 
 discourse led him to the complimentary allusions usual on 
 such occasions, to the head of the college, for example, and 
 the other noted personages on the stage, and especially to the 
 beaux yeux, all intently regarding the youthful and distin 
 guished-looking speaker, he thus proceeded (as we have 
 ventured to set down from our minutes), addressing the 
 17* 
 
198 EASTFOIID; OK, 
 
 governor of the commonwealth, whose own acknowledged 
 literary abilities and successes had aided rather than retarded 
 his political advancement. 
 
 " But the theory I would advance surely needs no specula 
 tive argument for its support. Honored as our venerable 
 mother this day is, by the presence of those who have risen to 
 no little eminence in the republic of polite letters, and by 
 you, sir, especially " (turning to his Excellency), " yourself 
 the living example of what literature may do for the honor 
 of him who truly honors her, you, whose brow, in the halls 
 of legislation or in the chair of state, has been still wreathed 
 with flowers, plucked at the very sources of the Pierian spring, 
 
 you, sir, the charms of whose eloquence have cheered and 
 adorned, with unknown graces, the gravest political debates, 
 
 we have these living arguments which look, speak and 
 breathe, which act amongst and with us, though fur above 
 us, and are no more to be doubted than the genial glow of 
 nature which we feel, no more to be denied than the beams 
 of heaven, which embrace us with their glory, and animate us 
 with their truthful light. 
 
 * Solcm quis diccrc falsum 
 
 Audeat ? " 
 
 When, we say, this highly eloquent sentence was pronounced, 
 crowned with its appropriate Latin quotation, which some of 
 the audience, certainly, understood, the applause was of that 
 rapturous and tremendous character, which could leave no sort 
 of question of Atherton s complete and overwhelming success. 
 And many a glance of more than doubtful tenderness was 
 cast upon him and his brown curls, as, with dancing eyes, he 
 rejoined his father s party, at the close of the commencement 
 exercises. 
 
 " Who is this young Atherton, who created such a sensa 
 tion to-day ? " demanded Mrs. Flytcr, who attended a soiree 
 at the president s mansion that evening, accompanied by two 
 
HOUSEHOLD SKETCHES. 199 
 
 blooming scions of her house, one in pink, the other in 
 straw color, of one of her fashionable acquaintance. 
 
 " Don t "know, ma am, pon my word," replied Dick Simcox, 
 whose father was a respectable grocer in the city of Oxton ; 
 " young gentleman from the country, I believe ; " and he set 
 tled his cravat, as he settled into some very improving conver 
 sation with the Misses Flyter. 
 
 " But what is his family ? What are his connections ? " 
 persisted Mrs. Flyter, whose own father was a worthy farmer, 
 and whose husband exercised the profitable calling of a stock 
 broker and note-shayer. 
 
 " Think I have heard he was son of a country minister, 
 ma am ; can t tell anything certain about these people," said 
 Dick. 
 
 " ! Lizzy, my dear, it is hardly worth while to be at all 
 desirous of introductions to these young men who graduate 
 and pass out of sight, and have really very little hold upon 
 society, and probably must make their own living." 
 
 " Mr. Atherton s father, madam," said Dr. Churchman, 
 who had heard part of this conversation, " is a very eminent 
 Orthodox clergyman at Eastford ; his grandfather was Colonel 
 Atherton, a distinguished officer of the Revolution, and his 
 ancestors, I believe, have been quite respectable and useful 
 members of society, from the first settlement of the country." 
 
 No opportunity for an introduction for which Miss Lizzie 
 Flyter was really anxious occurred, however, as the Ather- 
 tons, before the hour appointed for the soiree, had been long 
 on their way towards Eastford. 
 
CHAPTER XIX. 
 
 " Prscsentiorem conspicimus deum 
 Per invias rupes, fera per juga, 
 Clivosque procruptos sonantes 
 Inter aquas, nemorumque nocteua, 
 Quam si, repostus trabe sub citrea, 
 Fulgeret auro, et Phidiaco manu." 
 
 GRAY. "Ode." 
 
 " Now reigns, 
 
 Full-orbed, the moon, and with more pleasing light 
 Shadowy sets off the face of things ; in vain, 
 If none regard." 
 
 MlLTON. "Paradise Lost." 
 
 AT the conclusion of the last chapter, our friends for so, 
 we trust, we may all consider them had left Camborough, 
 with its pleasures and triumphs, behind them. It had been 
 determined, however, that they should spend the night in 
 Oxton, and, in the morning, pass down to Indian Shore, for 
 the purpose of enjoying the sea-breezes and other attractions 
 of that famous watering-place, for a day or so, on their way 
 towards home. Mr. Atherton conceived this indulgence due 
 to George, after the anxieties and successes of Commencement. 
 That young gentleman and the young ladies were all quite 
 earnest for a taste of sea-shore pleasures, and, though they 
 would not, perhaps, avow such a motive, a sight of the 
 fashionable society, which resorted to that rocky peninsula for 
 its summer retreat. 
 
 Upon arriving at Oxton, towards evening, the coachman 
 was directed to drive to the Tripletop-House, then in the full 
 
EABTFORD; OR, HOUSEHOLD SKETCHES. 201 
 
 flush of its primeval glory. In those days, this celebrated 
 hotel held a preeminent rank amongst the hostelries of our 
 land, and, we suspect, of any other, and was usually thronged 
 with its multitude of guests from all quarters of the country, 
 and various parts of the world. Indeed, all Oxton was justly 
 proud of " the Tripletop ;" and its solid front of gray granite 
 and handsome Doric portico really deserved their admiration, 
 in spite of some partial fault in the proportions of the facade. 
 But it was the interior management which especially deserved 
 and commanded their approbation ; and the young gentlemen 
 of Oxton pronounced its name with an air of conscious supe 
 riority, and lounged into the Tripletop of an evening to meet 
 their acquaintance, and to have a bit of chat upon the news, 
 or to enjoy the refreshment of a cigar, as the London dandies 
 visit their clubs ; and, perhaps, in Oxton now, the same class 
 resort to establishments which bear a similar name ; for we 
 know not how they are conducted, since, being a married man, 
 of course we do not visit them. Indeed, this truly popular 
 hotel was the fashion, magic word! which often converts 
 ugliness itself into something to be admired, and gives to 
 inherent vulgarity an undoubted currency, and often a very 
 leading and eminent position in this easily-deluded world. 
 
 But, at all events, the Tripletop was an admirably-con 
 ducted establishment, famous for its capital dinners and superb 
 wine (illius " dum regna manelant "), and, above all, for that 
 spirit of genial and liberal hospitality, which really lulled the 
 guest into forgetfuluess that a bill was to be paid, until that 
 inevitable document made its appearance ; and then drew from 
 the opening purse the ungrudged, and 0, wonder of hotels ! 
 
 the willing and rather grateful coin ! 
 
 Indeed, the manners of the house were well-bred and high- 
 toned. The landlord himself, or some one of his ready aids, 
 
 we really forget which it was in the present instance, 
 but one of these constantly received the coming guest, and 
 sped him who was parting, with genial courtesy, at the well- 
 
202 EASTFOKD J OR, 
 
 attended door. So that actually the Tripletop-IIouse seemed 
 more like a home, anxious to receive the returning inmate 
 within its kind and familiar walls, than, as too often proves 
 the case in modern inns, a mere money-getting and money- 
 paying place of bargain and sale, and frequently sharp and 
 rude at that, in which we believe that hosts have sometimes 
 44 entertained angels unawares," who by no means received the 
 treatment suited to guests of this description. 
 
 Of course, the bachelors, regular inmates of the estab 
 lishment, who caught a glimpse of the girls as they passed 
 in, exchanged some complimentary remarks, which we have 
 observed that pretty faces elicit from the most inveterate and 
 venerable of this melancholy race ; and we should not wonder 
 if some, to whom age and custom had accorded privilege, 
 strolled into the drawing-room in the evening, in the hope of 
 warming their chilly hearts with the sight of objects, indeed 
 well worthy of their unbounded admiration. The party, 
 however, retired early, and, at a seasonable hour in the morn 
 ing, took their departure for Indian Shore. 
 
 " Smack went the whip, round went the wheels, 
 Were never folks so glad," 
 
 as, over the long and sounding beach, the echo of the hollow 
 hoofs reverberated upon the summer air. For ourselves, we 
 confess that we know of few pleasures so exhilarating, as a 
 rapid drive with generous steeds over a hard and sandy beach, 
 along an open shore, and to inhale the freshness and delight 
 of ocean in his hours of placid mirth. The young ladies were 
 in high glee, but screamed slightly, now and then, as the gen 
 tle breakers dashed over the fetlocks of the scarcely swerving 
 horses. But, after a drive, which they declared to be " per 
 fectly charming," they duly arrived at- the hotel, upon the 
 piazzas of which many of the guests were assembled subse 
 quent to the morning meal, and were now seduously contriving 
 how to get through the laborious hours of another unoc- 
 
HOUSEHOLD SKETCHES. 203 
 
 cupied day. Amongst these proved to be the Flyter family, 
 which, it seems, made their summer quarters at Indian Shore, 
 and had merely run up to Camborough, to attend the Com 
 mencement services, and returned late on the previous evening ; 
 and Edward Shirland, who had taken an early start that very 
 morning, under the idea that his own health would be bene 
 fited by a short run upon the beach, in the company of the 
 Athertons. His intention to do so, he had announced at 
 Camborough to somewhat incredulous ears; and now the 
 greeting between him and his friends and his friends friends 
 was cordial and rather merry. Amongst a portion, at least, 
 of the Flyter party, the new arrival produced some sensation. 
 
 " O, ma ! " cried Lizzy Flyter, " that is George Atherton, 
 and his father and mother and sisters, I suppose, who sat near 
 us yesterday. Pa must get introduced to Mr. Atherton, 
 I should so like to make their acquaintance ! " 
 
 Mrs. Flyter, in the mean time, had scrutinized the party 
 closely through her glass, that is, the ladies of the party, 
 and the result of her investigations seemed doubtful ; for 
 their travelling garb was entirely appropriate to the uses of 
 a journey, plain and unostentatious, without a solitary orna 
 ment to be seen upon the person of either ; and Mrs. Flyter 
 was a lady, who scarcely understood why those who were 
 lucky enough to possess diamonds, and other beautiful articles 
 of jewelry, should not, on all fair occasions, claim for them 
 that open admiration of the world, which she held to be the 
 due of them and their fortunate owners. Still, the air of these 
 lacties was so truly elegant, in the midst of their simplicity, 
 that to her mind it really presented a rather puzzling case. 
 
 " My dear Lizzy," said Mrs. Flyter, lowering her glass, " I 
 have often tried to impress upon you the importance of 
 restraining the too ardent expression of your feelings. I 
 dare say your father would find no difficulty in making 
 the acquaintance of this gentleman, who appears certainly 
 
204 EASTFOJID; on, 
 
 respectable, this Mr. Athcrton, Atherton seems a good 
 name " 
 
 " 0, so aristocratic ! " broke in Miss Flyter. 
 
 " The name is well-sounding enough, my dear. Dr. 
 Churchman certainly spoke in high terms of his family ; but 
 then he is only a country clergyman, probably with a small 
 salary. Mrs. Atherton certainly has rather an air." 
 
 That lady had indeed passed with some dignity into the 
 house, under the somewhat impertinent stare of Mrs. Flyter s 
 glass ; and a present formation of acquaintance seemed hope 
 less; for the party almost immediately proceeded to the beach, 
 with the intention of making the most of the time they pro 
 posed to devote to the pleasures of the sea-shore. Of course, 
 Edward Shirland accompanied them ; and one would really 
 judge, from his demeanor and laborious efforts, that the chief 
 delight of life, to any rational mind, must consist in picking 
 up shells for the special benefit of Miss Alice Athcrton, who 
 took them very demurely and threw them all away again, 
 except a very few which she pronounced particularly pretty. 
 Their long and merry morning scamper, however, rendered 
 repose welcome for the afternoon. ]3ut while they were 
 lounging on the piazza, after tea, by some of those innocent 
 arts of management, which ladies know so well how to put in 
 practice, at such places, the younger people of the several 
 parties were soon upon terms of reasonable familiarity. In 
 deed, Miss Flyter contrived to engage Miss May in a little 
 promenade, along the piazza, with her own arm affectionately 
 wreathed in that of the dark-eyed beauty of Eastford. 
 
 " O, Miss May ! " cried she, " you are really acquainted 
 with Mr. George Atherton." 
 
 " Yes," replied Mary, laughing, "I think I may claim some 
 fair acquaintance with him ; we have been almost brought up 
 together." 
 
 " How delightful ! Is n t he a perfect love ? " 
 
 " Why, as to his perfections, he is certainly a very excel- 
 
HOUSEHOLD SKETCHES. 205 
 
 lent young man ; but I doubt if he has given much attention 
 to the subject of love." 
 
 "0, I don t meant so! but isn t he, I hardly know 
 what to call it, but one of those, you know, you would go 
 distracted for ? " 
 
 "He is certainly very amiable and prepossessing," said 
 Mary, rather wincing ; "but is it not a little dangerous to let 
 young men know you hold such ideas about them ? " 
 
 " You are so cool, Miss May ! But, if you have been 
 brought up with him, I suppose he seems to you more like a 
 brother, or something of that sort. Of course, I would n t 
 have him, for the world, hear what I say ; but I declare I 
 think him perfectly charming ! and then, such a sweet name, 
 George Atherton ! " 
 
 " You have had very little means of forming a correct 
 opinion, it would seem to me." 
 
 " Why, I saw him yesterday and to-day, and heard him 
 speak, and had a very fair opportunity of comparing him 
 with the other young men. Do you believe in love at first 
 sight, Miss May ? " 
 
 " Yes, such a thing is possible, I suppose, but hardly cred 
 itable, I should imagine, to our own sex, who ought to hold 
 themselves worth seeking, if worth dying for." 
 
 " How odd you are ! and what old-fashioned notions ! ]5y 
 the way, what is your Christian name, Miss May? " 
 
 " Mary." 
 
 "Mary! Mary May; what a very pretty name! May 
 I call you Mary ? yes ? I thank you ; and is East-ford an agree 
 able place that is, do they have plenty of balls and parties 
 and dancing? " 
 
 " No ! I fear you would think it excessively stupid ; we 
 have very little of that sort of amusement." 
 
 " Why, what do you do ? " 
 
 " We read and walk, and attend to domestic affairs a little, 
 and sometimes make calls, and occasionally go a shopping ; 
 18 
 
206 EASTFOllDJ OR, 
 
 and then we have a sewing-circle, now and then, for some 
 charitable objects." 
 
 " How good ! " tossing her head a little. 
 
 " Do you object to goodness, Miss Flyter ? " 
 
 " 0, no ! but it must be so tedious ! But, positively, do you 
 have no parties?" 
 
 " 0, sometimes ; but then we have very few young gentle 
 men ; as soon as they grow up, they run away to the city. 
 Only conceive, Miss Flyter, of our distressed condition, 
 three or four young ladies, and sometimes more, after an even 
 ing party, cap-a-pie in shawls and hoods, and armed with 
 umbrellas and perhaps a lanthorn, forming themselves into 
 platoons for the mutual defence, and marching home, under 
 the escort of at most one young gentleman, and he, perhaps, 
 not very efficient ! " 
 
 " Horrible ! but now you will have George Atherton," 
 such was the rapid familiarity at which this impulsive young 
 lady had arrived. 
 
 " Yes, he will be a great hero amongst us, and no doubt 
 will save us from many perilous mischances ! " 
 
 At this moment, that heroic young gentleman advanced 
 and announced the intention of the others to witness the moon- 
 rise upon the ocean, from the rocks, at no great distance, in 
 which interesting expedition these two young ladies readily 
 engaged. They were also accompanied by Mrs. Ilylowe, an 
 older sister of the Misses Flyter, recently married to their 
 father s junior partner, distinguished subsequently as the 
 chief active manager in the well-known firm of " Flyter, Ily 
 lowe and Grubble;" and Mr. Bundle likewise attended them, 
 a young Englishman, who was, what is called, we believe, " a 
 drummer " to some manufacturing concern at home. He 
 looked, it was thought, with favorable eyes upon Miss Eliza 
 beth Flyter, with the full approbation of her parents, as his 
 prospects were rising; but met with very little encouragement 
 from that really pretty young lady. Indeed, she manifested 
 
HOUSEHOLD SKETCHES. 207 
 
 an unaccountable contempt for trade, and seemed to concen 
 trate within herself all the sentiment, and what she called 
 " heart," of the family. 
 
 The evening was soft as summer and the gently-breathing, 
 sweet south-west could make it. The peaceful wave below 
 sent up only its faintest murmur, as it fell, with measured 
 cadence, upon the grating shore. A soothing quietude, like 
 the hushed repose of a true Elysium, reigned in the deep, 
 wild heart of slumbering nature. The party was only just 
 seated upon the elevated rocks, when the moon peered above 
 the plane of the scarcety-rippled sea ; and, slowly ascending, 
 full, round, and glowing with ineffable loveliness, at length 
 rcpaved with silvery light the level surface of the tide. 
 
 " How heavenly ! " exclaimed Miss Flyter, in a voice, to 
 which generous enthusiasm had imparted some agitation. 
 
 " Very nice very nice ! " responded Mr. Bundle, in quick 
 but rather impassive tones. 
 
 No doubt that gentleman intended to manifest his absolute 
 approval of this pleasing exhibition of nature ; but, as the 
 entire range of an Englishman s expression of liking and dis 
 like (we mean, such Englishmen) including positive, 
 comparative and superlative is from "nice" to "nasty," 
 and so vice versa, and, as the latter word was clearly inap 
 plicable, he seemed to have no choice. It was a species of 
 injustice, therefore, as well as indecorous, for the young peo 
 ple to cavil at his language, as they manifestly did, by peals 
 of laughter sufficiently explosive. 
 
 "What is it?" cried he, slightly coloring; "dear me! 
 what is it ? I don t see anything." 
 
 " Oh-o-o," laughed out Lizzy Flyter, " to think of any one 
 calling the moon on the water nice, just as you would speak 
 of a dinner or a new bonnet ! " 
 
 Mr. Bundle controlled his temper handsomely. 
 
 " Why, Miss Flyter," said he, " I see nothing to laugh at 
 nice nice " (considerately) " I really think it nice." 
 
208 EASTFORL; OR, 
 
 Edward Shirland, here, as Madame de Stael would say, 
 " prit la parole." 
 
 " Mr. Bundle, I suppose it was rather uncivil to laugh ; 
 but the expression was so unusual with us, as applied to such 
 a subject " 
 
 " Unusual ! we always say so, sir. It s an English word, 
 I believe." , 
 
 " Undoubtedly ; but we should as soon think of calling 
 Niagara * nice, as he tumbles into the foam, with all his lakes 
 about him." 
 
 " I ve seen Niagara, too ; and I thought it ?iicc ;" a little 
 warmly. 
 
 " We must congratulate ourselves, I suppose, that you did 
 not consider it nasty." 
 
 " Now you are using a vulgar word, Mr. Sliirland," said 
 Miss Flyter, offering a slight diversion. 
 
 " I assure you I am only quoting." 
 
 " I had no idea," said Mr. Bundle, " that you Americans 
 were so very nice there I ve got it again in the use 
 of language." 
 
 " There it s appropriate," observed Sliirland. 
 
 " But I have often heard you laughed at, in fact dear 
 me ! a good deal, about some of your expressions." 
 
 " We are very apt to see the faults of our neighbors, at 
 least," replied Shirland. 
 
 " There s more truth than poetry in that," said Mr. Bundle. 
 
 " What was your remark ? " interposed Mr. Atherton. 
 
 " More truth than poetry, I was saying, in our seeing our 
 neighbors faults rather than our own." 
 
 " Excuse me, Mr. Bundle, but I think you might as well 
 sny, More truth than logic, or more truth than algebra. 
 Pardon me, if I ask you if you know what poetry really is?" 
 This question, we confess, may seem impertinent, but was, 
 perhaps, justifiable. 
 
HOUSEHOLD SKETCHES. 209 
 
 " Why, yes ; I think so, there s The Lady of The Lake, 
 a very interesting work very interesting," was the reply. 
 
 " But you have not given Mr. Atherton your definition of 
 poetry, Mr. Bundle," said Miss Flyter, now deeply interested. 
 
 " Why, poetry I take to be h-m to be fiction." 
 
 " Arid may I ask you what is fiction ? " inquired Atherton. 
 
 " Fiction is falsehood, of course." 
 
 " Not necessarily ; in fact, it is creation, forming, 
 framing or making ; and the elements of the creation may 
 be all true, as true, if you please, as the clearest proposi 
 tion of Euclid. Many persons consider the book of Job, for 
 instance, an allegory ; that is, a fiction, mind, I do not, 
 and so, of the parables ; but they are, nevertheless, the most 
 admirably contrived vehicles of truth." 
 
 " Do you mean to assert, sir, Mr. Atherton, I think it 
 is yes Mr. Atherton do you say, sir, that poetry is not 
 fictitious writing?" 
 
 " I mean to allege that poetry is abstract truth, that is, 
 when it is true poetry." 
 
 " I have often heard the sentiment used, however, which I 
 expressed." 
 
 " Yes, it is a true Yankeeism ; and comes from not 
 understanding the meaning of terms, nor, perhaps, of things." 
 
 The Eastford young ladies had enjoyed this conversation 
 exceedingly ; for, of course, they could not much admire the 
 pert and rather presumptuous ignorance of Mr. Bundle, and 
 besides their natural affection for George, they felt not a lit 
 tle proud of that truly sensible and accomplished young gen 
 tleman. 
 
 " What a perfectly lovely evening it is ! " exclaimed Alice. 
 " I quite envy you, Miss Flyter, the pleasure of coming down 
 to enjoy this scene, whenever you choose." 
 
 " 0, I assure you, I don t come half so often as I should 
 like," said Miss Flyter ; " that is, if we could have such agree 
 able company." 
 
 18* 
 
210 EASTFORD; OR, 
 
 "The evening is really perfect ; it is so soothing ! " said Mary. 
 " One can hardly imagine the sea could ever be stormy, it is 
 hushed now into such a scarcely audible ripple ; and how glo 
 riously the moon flings its flood of splendor over the perfectly 
 smooth expanse ! " 
 
 " I hate the moon ! " broke out Mrs. Ilylowe, who had 
 exhibited frequent symptoms of discontent, and had, more 
 than once, proposed the return of the party to the house. 
 
 " Hate the moon ! " replied Atherton. " Is riot that rather 
 an unreasonable prejudice against a very inoffensive lumi 
 nary?" 
 
 " At any rate, I know I hate it," said she. 
 
 " Well," said George, laughing, " I must say, I know of 
 no parallel judgment on such a subject, except that in * Para 
 dise Lost, where a certain personage, more brilliant than 
 respectable, pronounces a similar denunciation against a 
 greater light 
 
 0, sun, to toll thoe how I hate thy beams ! 
 
 I recollect," he continued, slyly glancing at Mary, " once 
 hearing a young lady, Mrs. Hylowc, declare that she hated 
 logic, which struck me as rather a strong mode of expressing 
 her distaste for a chief implement of reason ; but I suppose 
 she only meant to indicate her preference for sentiment and 
 feeling. Your intense dislike of the moon, however, if you 
 will permit me to say so, seems to me a very unaccountable 
 vagary." 
 
 " It is so pure and innocent looking ! " the young ladies 
 exclaimed. 
 
 " But it looks so yellow ! " persisted Mrs. Ilylowe; " and 
 then it always makes me melancholy ; and I can t bear to 
 come down to the rocks, and see it rising so slow and still 
 over the sea, and making everybody so quiet ! " 
 
 " Your objections, certainly, arc a tribute to the moon s 
 influence; and though I am aware how disagreeable the idea 
 
HOUSEHOLD SKETCHES. 211 
 
 of any sort of submission is to many modern young ladies, 
 I should suppose you might find it less irksome, when the 
 sway is exercised by a power, popularly and mythologically 
 classed among your own sex," said George. 
 
 " Well, I can t bear it, at any rate, and should a great deal 
 rather have lights in the parlor, than sit under the brightest 
 moon that ever shone." 
 
 As there seemed to be no rational reply to this outburst ; 
 and the evening was really drawing late, the party moved 
 towards the hotel. Miss Flyter protested she had never 
 passed such an agreeable evening. She gayly insisted upon 
 collecting the various judgments of the company upon the 
 apparent bigness of the moon ; which, measured by their 
 separate organs of vision, varied, as usual, from the size of 
 a common dinner-plate to the circumference of a cart-wheel. 
 Mr. Bundle thought the moon looked hardly so bright or so 
 large as in England ; especially in Yorkshire, in one of the 
 Hidings of which, it seemed, he had passed the earlier period 
 of his youth. 
 
 " Why," said Alice, "I should suppose it would be brighter; 
 for 1 thought our climate was noted for the clearness and 
 purity of its atmosphere." 
 
 " That might tend to diminish its apparent size, Miss Ath- 
 erton," observed Shirland, who professed to be a bit of a 
 natural philosopher. 
 
 " I think the moon," said Mr. Bundle, " has a much finer 
 effect over ruins, and amongst old forests, under the trees, 
 you know ; you have no ruins in this country." . 
 
 " No, not yet," replied Shirland ; " but we have forests 
 enough." 
 
 " I have never seen your forests." 
 
 " No, they do not grow on the sea-shore, with us, or have 
 been all cut off; but you must go into our back-country, if 
 you wish to see trees." 
 
212 EASTFORD; OR, HOUSEHOLD SKETCHES. 
 
 " Taller," said George, " than any 
 
 Tallest pino, 
 
 Hewn on Norwegian hills, to be the mast 
 Of some great amuiiral. " 
 
 " It s really a nice moon, very nice ! " said Mr. Bun 
 dle, amiably and handsomely, looking upward towards that 
 luminary, as the party ascended the steps of the piazza. 
 
 Within the house were music and dancing, for such as 
 chose to participate in those amusements. After all, Mrs. 
 Hylowe seemed to take as little delight in what man or 
 % woman could do for her entertainment, as she did in the 
 charms of natural beauty. Indeed, the whole party was 
 somewhat fatigued, the Eastford portion of it by the active 
 exercise of their physical and moral qualities, the rest by the 
 " labor dire " and " weary woe " of doing nothing, and all 
 soon sought the refreshment of sleep. 
 
CHAPTER XX. 
 
 " The love of letters is connected with an independence and delicacy of 
 mind, which is a great preservative against that servile homage -which 
 abject men pay to fortune." HENRY MACKENZIE. 
 
 " Yellow~dross ! interrupted Alexius. * Do they call that noblo 
 metal, equally respected by Roman and barbarian, by rich and poor, by 
 great and mean, by churchman and layman, which all mankind are 
 fighting for, planning for, intriguing for, and damning themselves for, 
 both soul and body, by the opprobrious name of yellow dross? They 
 are mad, Agclastes, utterly mad." COUNT ROBERT OF PARIS. 
 
 THE departure of Mr. Atherton s family had been fixed for 
 the next morning ; but an incident occurred, which caused 
 the delay of this purpose for several hours. It seemed that, 
 during the night, one of the boatmen, who usually supplied 
 the table of the hotel with fish, and often took parties with 
 him on his piscatory excursions, had made a misstep in 
 climbing the slippery rocks, and fallen, so as to break his leg, 
 besides receiving other dangerous hurts. As this man was 
 quite a favorite, in consequence of his skill and good-humor, 
 much sympathy was enlisted in his behalf and that of his 
 distressed family; arid Mr. Atherton, in his character of 
 clergyman, upon learning the occurrence of the accident, had 
 made an early call, to offer them such consolation as he could 
 .bestow. Much conversation took place upon the subject of 
 the misfortune in the course of the morning ; and since the 
 sufferer was altogether dependent upon his daily labors, it was 
 proposed to raise a sum of money, off-hand, to meet the im 
 mediate necessities of his family. The people at the house 
 generally entered into this scheme with readiness, and sub- 
 
214 EASTFORD; OR, 
 
 scribed their respective quota, according to their several 
 means and disposition. 
 
 It seemed to be quite an object with some to induce Mr. 
 Flyter, the wealthy head of the Flyter family, to aid in 
 this benevolent intent ; although there were certain winks 
 and sly looks, among those who were probably the knowing 
 ones, when this idea was suggested. That respected and very 
 prosperous gentleman was not present at the discussion of 
 the subject. Before its introduction he had put on his spec 
 tacles, and had become much interested in that column of the 
 morning paper which exhibited the doings of the previous day, 
 at the " Second Board." In the midst of the animated dis 
 cussion, however, and soon after the plan of the subscription 
 was started, other avocations had apparently called him 
 elsewhere, and he had quietly slipped out of the room, with 
 out disturbing anybody. Those who were not rich had put 
 down what they saw fit, and it was now proposed to request 
 Mr. Atherton, as a stranger and a clergyman, to open the 
 matter to Mr. Flyter ; to which proposition the former gen 
 tleman, knowing nothing to the contrary, made no objection. 
 
 Mr. Atherton accordingly proceeded upon his mission. 
 There was no great difficulty in discovering Mr. Flyter, who 
 was, in fact, only at the extremity of the piazza, with the 
 newspaper in his hand, and still apparently engaged in the 
 consideration of the stock market. Upon broaching the sub 
 ject, Mr. Flyter at once admitted the just deserts of the 
 object of charity ; indeed, he, or members of his family, had 
 been, more than once, on fishing excursions with the man ; 
 but there was a difficulty in regard to this project peculiar to 
 himself. " , 
 
 " It would give me pleasure, my dear sir," said he, smiling 
 graciously, "if I had not a rule upon these subjects; I 
 have a rule, sir ; and, although it is rare that an object of 
 higher desert oifers, or one which I should be more glad 
 actively to favor ; yet, that, you know, sir, would be a devia- 
 
HOUSEHOLD SKETCHES. 215 
 
 tion ; which, of course, you would not recommend. * Straight 
 to the mark ! that s my maxim, sir." 
 
 " I would suggest, however," replied Mr. Atherton, " that 
 a deviation, as you style it, on the side of benevolent action, 
 could hardly involve any moral delinquency." 
 
 " Surely you would not advise a deviation from principle ; 
 and there s my rule, my dear sir ! " 
 
 " Will you permit me to ask you, Mr. Flyter," said Mr. 
 Atherton, not a little amused, " why you have ever framed 
 such a rule ? And, if you find its practice so uncongenial 
 with your inclinations, why you do not set it aside at once? " 
 
 "What! break the rule, sir? 0, I couldn t think of 
 that ! I trust I am a man of too much principle for that, 
 sir. I consider a rule as a principle, and I hold to principles, 
 sir. You perceive that, without such rule, I might naturally 
 be called upon to investigate numerous cases, all of which 
 it would be impossible for me to relieve ; and I deemed it 
 best, therefore, to have one fixed, settled, invariable rule on 
 this subject, which, as I said, is my principle ; and I take it, 
 you do not expect me to violate principles, my dear sir? 
 Straight to the mark, sir ! " 
 
 "No sir; I shall not expect it; and as, of course, I can 
 have no doubt of your charitable disposition, apart from the 
 rule, I wish you good-morning." 
 
 In fact, by keeping his maxim steadily in view, Mr. 
 Flyter had really reached his "mark," which was, a large for 
 tune; he had been restrained by no obstacles; he had made 
 (/old his hope, and had devoured widows houses. As to the 
 straightness of his path, that was another matter ; few 
 courses could have been more devious and crooked. 
 
 Not long after dinner, the Athertons took their departure 
 in an extra carriage, hired for the performance of their jour 
 ney of between thirty and forty miles, rendered necessary 
 by their starting at an irregular hour. Not a few were sorry 
 to see them leave ; since real worth generally has its influ- 
 
216 EASTFORD; OR, 
 
 cnce upon those who arc themselves worthy ; and quite a 
 number lamented the loss of the pretty girls of Eastford, 
 until the next arrival, or some other incident of the day, 
 called off their attention from this cause of grief. Miss Lizzy 
 Flyter was inconsolable. She was really a very good girl ; 
 a little vain and affected, but with considerable natural feel 
 ing, and, on the whole, not more uninteresting than young 
 ladies in her station often are. The interchange of letters 
 
 o 
 
 she had vainly proposed both to Mary and Alice, who pro 
 fessed duties at home, as a reason for politely declining her 
 correspondence ; but there seemed some prospect of their 
 meeting in the course of the following winter, during a visit 
 the girls had half engaged to make to certain of Miss May s 
 relatives in Oxton ; or perhaps, Miss Flyter suggested, they 
 might meet in Eastfofd, where she had some distant connec 
 tions. To Mr. Bundle their departure proved a dark hour ; 
 for the face of the light which he worshipped so far as he 
 was concerned suffered a total eclipse. Edward Shirland 
 had promised a visit, at no distant date, to his friend at East- 
 ford. With the rest of the Flyter circle the parting was so 
 civil, as to show there was no feeling on either side. There 
 are many persons in this world, very much better than the 
 Flyters, to whom, of course, you say, "How do you do?" 
 when you meet them ; and there the intercourse ends. It 
 would proceed no further, if you met them every day for fifty 
 years. Why should it? You have nothing in common with 
 them, except that very common thing, the weather; and 
 there, and there only, can you feel with them at home. 
 
 The character of Mr. Flyter was a little more positive. In 
 the course of their homeward-bound conversation, Mr. Ath- 
 erton laughed with the rest, over the ill success of his morn 
 ing s mission to that person, and remarked, 
 
 " I really never happened to meet any one more anxious 
 to secure a handsome sum to die upon." 
 
 "And yet, sir," said George, "I believe he stands ex- 
 
HOUSEHOLD SKETCHES. 217 
 
 trcmely well with society in Oxton. I have often heard the 
 young men of my acquaintance speak of them as among the 
 leading families." 
 
 " Certainly, my dear," said Mrs. Atherton, " his family 
 ought not to be involved in the discredit of Mr. Fiyter s 
 meanness." 
 
 "I only wish, mother," replied George, "that any real 
 discredit attached itself to him, on account of his character 
 and conduct. Such meanness as his is only too contempt 
 ible." 
 
 " No doubt," observed Mr. Atherton, " it is unworthy of a 
 rational and accountable being. But, not to discuss indi 
 vidual character too closely, the point which you suggested 
 just now is one of very great importance ; I mean how far 
 wealth ought to be allowed as the foundation of what is called 
 the aristocracy of a free country." 
 
 " It seems to be taking the leading part now, sir," replied 
 his son. 
 
 " Wealth, under all governments and all institutions," con 
 tinued Mr. Atherton, " must occupy a certain prominent 
 position, and exercise a certain power ; but it must riot be 
 permitted to conquer in its strife with mind. This is our 
 danger ; that talent, I do not say genius, for that is gen 
 erally disinterested, but that talent will be supple and sub 
 servient to the mere momentary and unenlightened power of 
 money. This would demean and degrade society, and eventu 
 ally prove destructive to freedom. Money has not yet had 
 this preeminence, except in the decline of states. Power and 
 genius have generally had some common ties; and real, 
 honest, well-won power is often genius, or has with it some 
 near kindred." 
 
 " Do you think, father, the history of the world will sus 
 tain your view, in regard to monarchical governments, for 
 example? " 
 
 " Perhaps not, in what are styled legitimate monarchies, 
 19 
 
218 EASTFORD ; OR, 
 
 especially in modern times. But do you suppose that 
 * mighty men, which were of old, men of renown, were mere 
 brutal men offeree? Far from it; they had mind often, and 
 therefore knew its value and respected its possessors ; but 
 money ! its possession does not necessarily argue cither wit 
 or worth. We are a nation of merchants and tradesmen ; 
 and there is danger lest things of higher value than mere 
 wealth lose their just estimation." 
 
 " I wish, sir, that some of the Flyters of society could 
 hear your remarks." 
 
 " I fear it would prove of little service to them. But what 
 I wish to enforce, my son, is this, that, if anybody is to 
 be at the top, I am in favor of intellectual superiority. 
 Aristocracy, if we are to have one, for mercy s sake, let it be 
 an aristocracy of talent, not of ignorance. If we are to be 
 trodden upon, let it be by men of sense, not by fools. In 
 the first place, we get for our rulers and superiors those who 
 know the most, which entitles them to our respect; and, in 
 the next place, those who know the most will generally rule 
 the best, and bear all their honors the most graciously." 
 
 " Happily, sir, our laws protect us from any permanent 
 aristocracy of wealth, by providing for its distribution." 
 
 " Yes, our forefathers wisely took care of that ; but then, 
 the more transitory an aristocracy is, it is only the more 
 offensive and unendurable. Indeed, nothing strikes me as 
 more absurd and ridiculous, than pretensions of this sort, 
 founded on mere wealth. For riches, as we know, are often 
 obtained by the most dishonest means ; and as often are 
 employed for purposes of baneful luxury, and vain frivol 
 ity, and empty show. Their possession surely implies no 
 necessary merit. Quite as often now as beforetirne, instead 
 of to men of understanding, they seem to be 
 
 * Given to the fool, the mad, the vain, the evil. " 
 
 " There seems to be little opportunity for a regular aris- 
 
HOUSEHOLD SKETCHES. 219 
 
 tocracy amongst us, sir," said George; "and I suppose you 
 would not, as a republican, countenance pride of family." 
 
 " I should countenance no sort of pride, my son, that is 
 false. We are in little danger of pride amongst us, from 
 this source ; but, so far as it goes, it may be good, if founded 
 on merit and maintained on the same principle. It is noth 
 ing, truly, or worse than nothing, to you, or to me, individ 
 ually, that our ancestors may have been illustrious, through 
 a long line of generations, unless we are also animated by 
 their spirit, and dignified by a correspondent desert. But to 
 a noble mind, the fact that they have been thus distinguished 
 is a pledge to posterity, of public honor, and an earnest of 
 generous service ; and he is less likely to prove a coward 
 or a slave, whose ancestors stood manfully forward for the 
 principles of enlightened freedom, or to quote one of your 
 favorites, young ladies who 
 
 "\Vrapped his colors round his breast, 
 
 on the field of his country s fame. 
 
 " I can conceive how a consciousness of claims and motives 
 such as these may foster a generous pride, and tend to inspire 
 those qualities which honor the man, while they serve and 
 ennoble the nation ; instead of those meaner motives, begin 
 ning and ending, like the struggles of Plutus at his hoard." 
 
 And thus discoursing, they reached Eastford, " dear 
 East ford," the girls called it, as the carriage rolled through 
 the deserted evening streets, under the softest summer moon, 
 towards their quiet and happy home. 
 
CHAPTER XXI. 
 
 " Summum credo nofas animam prrcferre pudori 
 Et proptcr vitaui vivondi perdero causaa." 
 
 Juv. " Saf." 
 
 " Mais ferine dans ma route et vrai dans mes discourg 
 Tel je fus, tel je suis, tel jo serais toujours." 
 
 ANON. 
 
 ON the very next morning, soon after office-hours began, 
 George Atherton might have been seen sitting, with the first 
 volume of Blackstone s Commentaries open before him, in the 
 law-office of Henry May, Esquire, of Eastford. For, having 
 previously resolved, with the advice and consent of his father, 
 upon the study and pursuit of the honorable profession of the 
 law, there existed no reason for any loss of time ; and these 
 gentlemen came of a stock, which was in the habit of wasting 
 none of that valuable commodity in useless delays. 
 
 Mr. May was himself a lawyer of the old school ; that is, 
 he brought the full powers of a strong and clear mind to the 
 investigation of those principles which lie at the foundation 
 of civil society, and whose practical application to the daily 
 business of men makes law eminently one of the liberal pro 
 fessions. This great and valuable science, calculated in its 
 purity to elucidate and maintain the higher principles and 
 purposes of life, had scarcely begun to show symptoms of 
 what many persons consider modern degeneracy in its prac 
 tice. An eminent lawyer of those times would be, of course, 
 not only a person of competent learning in his profession, at 
 least, but also a man of honor and elevated notions ; arid the 
 
EASTFORD; OR, HOUSEHOLD SKETCHES. 221 
 
 necessities of his position, if not his own inclination, often 
 made him really a statesman of the old, generous stamp. No 
 doubt pettifoggers then existed, and, in that day as in our own, 
 often had eminent success. Mere mercenary characters of 
 this description have always flourished, and helped to degrade 
 all professions. Medicine has had its quacks ; there have 
 been hirelings amongst the clergy, and sharpers in trade. 
 These, we will hope, are the excrescences of human nature. 
 Although the profession of law certainly affords frequent 
 opportunities to one so disposed and so of all other occu 
 pations to be a villain; on the other hand, it offers far 
 higher inducements to him to be an honest man. At the time 
 of which we write, a reputation of the latter character was 
 certainly necessary, in order to secure signal success in this 
 pursuit. 
 
 Mr. May was honest, by nature and inclination, as it were ; 
 that is, dishonest practices were absolutely repulsive to him, 
 and his mind was never disturbed by those conflicts, which 
 many persons undergo, in deciding between the right arid the 
 wrong. He was, therefore, the soul of honor; was truly 
 genial in his feelings, and social in his intercourse with the 
 world. His practice was enlarged and as important as it 
 could be, resulting from so small a place as Eastford, with its 
 surrounding country ; but he was often retained as an advo 
 cate in causes of consequence arising in other parts of his 
 county. With all this, his reading was varied and extensive, 
 beyond the line of his profession, and it was this, no doubt, 
 which aided the natural operation of his mind, in the exercise 
 of that power of illustration, which so often charmed a listen 
 ing court and jury. 
 
 It will be seen, therefore, that Mr. May was not a mere 
 case-lawyer. Indeed, on this subject he entertained very 
 decided opinions ; to wit, that exclusive attention to subtle 
 points of law, often not easily distinguishable from each other, 
 necessarily tended to narrow the mind ; and that a liberal pro- 
 19* 
 
222 EASTFORD J OR, 
 
 fession can be maintained in its proper condition, only by 
 liberal professors, which those cannot be, who are always 
 groping in the dark. While he counselled Atherton, there 
 fore, to devote a just portion of his time " sex haras" 
 as we believe, steadily to legal reading, he encouraged, rather 
 than restrained, the natural inclination of that young gentle 
 man to give another portion of the day or evening to general 
 studies, of a nature calculated to raise and enlarge, rather 
 than to contract and enfeeble, his mind. 
 
 " My notions, my dear boy ! " he once observed, for the 
 familiarity between his own household and Mr. Atherton had 
 made this appellation common with him, " my notions on 
 this subject are not perhaps generally entertained. Yet I 
 think you will find that really great men, of whatever profes 
 sion, and especially of our own, are more or less imbued with 
 literature. Your mere practical and unideal lawyer professes, 
 that a taste for such pursuits unfits a man for the business of 
 life. It did not unfit Mansfield. You remember what Pope 
 
 says, 
 
 How sweet an Ovid was in Murray lost ! 
 
 So it was with Blackstone; even Coke himself takes a good deal 
 of pains to quote the poets. And I rather think you will find 
 the difference between lawyers, who are remembered after they 
 are dead and those who are not, is, that the first class pos 
 sessed literature as well, and the latter only law." 
 
 " I see no reason, sir," said George, " why one may not be 
 a good lawyer, even if he does exhibit some accomplishments 
 of mind and manners." 
 
 " Prejudices prevail upon this subject at present, no doubt," 
 said Mr. May, " which are really injurious to the best in 
 terests of the profession, and consequently to those of the 
 public. Tlic object of both should be to keep up the standard 
 of professional pursuits. It is strange, too, there should be 
 such an idea prevalent, that a man of refined tastes cannot be 
 a good lawyer. I rcseqt it as an insult to our profession. It 
 
IIOUSEIIOLD SKETCHES. 223 
 
 must have been got up by some of the dullest of them. Arid 
 yet I never knew a fellow of this description, who did not 
 seize every opportunity to make dismal attempts at figurative 
 illustration. Of their success the least said the better." 
 
 " Mr. Cobbleston was in, this morning, sir, to speak to you 
 about the flowage case you are to argue together next week. 
 He sat down and chatted with me a good deal about law, and 
 talked rather discouragingly." 
 
 " Indeed ! what did Cobbleston say about it?" 
 
 " 0, he said it was a very crowded and laborious profes 
 sion, and complained very much of hard work." 
 
 " Upon my word, that is a joke ! Everybody must work 
 in this country upon something or other. But I am surprised 
 that he is dissatisfied. Why should he complain of work ? 
 He would be utterly wretched, if he were taken off from his 
 mill-horse track. He has no capacity for enjoyment. The 
 beauty of the world might as well not exist, so far as he is 
 concerned. Why, he is fit for nothing but work; he has 
 hands and feet, and a dull sort of brain, and, putting all these 
 into dreary exercise, he makes some progress in a circle, and 
 is a very useful member of society, especially for himself." 
 
 " Then, sir, you think he would be out of place in the 
 enjoyment of gentlemanly leisure? " 
 
 " He ! he would be out of place in anything but routine ; 
 there he s excellent. But the man has no mind ; he is a sort 
 of machine, that was wound up by somebody to its pitch, and 
 so keeps going. Why should he claim pity for the absence 
 of pleasures he could never enjoy? Hang him, let him work ! 
 In the mean time, I have accepted an invitation for both of 
 us to take a run with your father s family down to the beach 
 this afternoon. The fact is, my dear boy, we don t have half 
 as much systematic play in this country as we need ; and 
 that s one reason people s heads are so full of nonsense." 
 
 "I have always thought," said George, "that your ideas 
 of life were rational, as they certainly are agreeable, and 
 
224 EASTFORD J OR, 
 
 were true to the nature, which 1 believe Providence meant 
 should be a source of enjoyment to us." 
 
 " I hope so. I enjoy life rationally, I trust ; it is neces 
 sary for me, and best for all, to be employed for some useful 
 purpose, and up to a certain point. But I endeavor to take 
 cheerful views of life. I have fair health ; and merely to breathe 
 a fine atmosphere, and to be abroad in the midst of charming 
 scenery, instead of giving me, as somebody says, Words 
 worth is it? yes, Wordsworth, 
 
 * Thoughts that do often lie too deep for tears, 
 
 is to me really a luxury, a sincere pleasure, a positive, sub 
 stantial enjoyment. And now, have you copied out my brief 
 in the flowage case, and looked over the authorities ? Very 
 well ; there are some nice points in it. There s another of 
 these poets, whose words get into my head, though I cannot 
 always remember who they are, who says something to the 
 point we were speaking of just now, 
 
 * Work at morn, and rest at noon, 
 And sleep beneath the sacred moon. " 
 
 " There is another very high poetical authority, Mr. May, 
 which says, 
 
 What hath night to do with ?leep ? 
 
 "Ah, who is that? it sounds familiar." 
 
 " Milton, sir." 
 
 " Milton, indeed ! where is the passage ? not in his own 
 person, certainly. His mind was too staid and well-balanced 
 for that, unless in some very fervid mood." 
 
 " No, sir ; he puts it into the mouth of Comus." 
 
 " 0, you might as well quote me the argument of counsel, 
 instead of the reliable judicial decision ! This was the opinion 
 of Comus, not of Milton, who was a person of regular habits; 
 while the Signior Comus, I take it, was not a very reputable 
 character." 
 
HOUSEHOLD SKETCHES. 225 
 
 It will be seen, therefore, that Mr. May s ideas were a 
 little out of the common course ; and no doubt his residence 
 at a place like Eastford afforded him a better opportunity 
 for the indulgence of his habits of life and modes of thought, 
 than might have been possible, had he been chained down to 
 the engrossing duties of full professional practice in the city. 
 At all events, he found more satisfaction in the position, in 
 which he chose to remain. But it must not be inferred from 
 this, that he had not an extensive acquaintance with men, or 
 was not a shrewd observer of their various capacities and 
 characteristics. Indeed, we are very much inclined to doubt, 
 if a continuous residence in the city, amidst the whirl and 
 hurry of its constant occupations, tends quite as much to the 
 enlargement of the mind and improvement of the judgment, 
 as the means of calm reflection, enjoyed in that suggestive 
 repose, which whispers wisdom to the heart, amidst more 
 quiet scenes. His opinion, therefore, is entitled to weight, in 
 regard to an eminent jurist, of whom his young student had 
 expressed a very strong admiration, after one of his casual 
 visits to the city. 
 
 " I think you are mistaken in your estimate of his real 
 character," said Mr. May ; " to me, who have often observed 
 him, this gentleman seems not even a great lawyer, far less a 
 great man. To be either, one must have something more than 
 mere external training ; there must be inner, vital force ; and 
 when great men say they owe everything to industry, I 
 mean, in any walk of life, they do not mean, that labor 
 could make that man a genius whom nature intended only for 
 a dolt ; but that the operation of the combined causes has 
 brought about the wonderful but natural result. 
 
 " Now this person, nature gifted with only a fair allowance 
 of her intellectual stores, a mind of a limited capacity, fitted 
 to analyze, not to create ; able, perhaps, to convince, but of 
 no service to persuade. Such a mind has a memory for facts, 
 a power to apply principles, the ability to collect and classify 
 
226 EASTFORD; OR, 
 
 learning, a respectable degree of judgment, a solid show of 
 reason. It has exhibited the same characteristics, in the 
 same degree, for a series of years ; and would continue to do 
 so forever, if forever were granted for the exercise of its fac 
 ulties. But it is not imbued with letters, or enlarged by 
 science, or ennobled by philosophy. It could not be ; it has 
 no breadth, no grasp, no far-reaching conceptions, no power to 
 see at a glance, or gather up, as in the hand, the multiplied 
 and infinite relations of things ; and, though respectable, 
 useful, honorable, valuable, is not, therefore, great." 
 
 " I believe he is very learned, sir, is he not ? And holds 
 a high professional rank, in the common judgment of the 
 world?" 
 
 "Yes, he is learned in the books ; but the world, George, 
 does not see very deeply, and is not a very accurate judge of 
 the character of cotemporaries. But the real defect of this 
 gentleman is, that he really has no instincts. He thinks, not 
 knows ; and he thinks well enough within his range ; but he 
 lives in a world of his own. In a word, he is artificial, rather 
 than natural, and has every sense but common sense." 
 
 " What shall I say to Mr. Cobbleston, if he comes in again, 
 when you are absent, sir ? " 
 
 " 0, tell him I 11 be ready! How many times has he been 
 in about this case ? I m sure I don t know. There s another 
 man ! the most teasing fellow at the most malapropos times. 
 He gets one idea, or a glimpse of one, into his head, and he 
 can t rest till he works it up into something monstrous. It s 
 an actual misfortune to be engaged in a cause with him. He 
 is like the Irish candy-woman, to whom I once unadvisedly 
 presented some small coin, for I never take such wares, 
 and who appears daily and duly at my door ever since, with 
 out the slightest further encouragement, on my part, until 
 her presence has become a nuisance, which ought to be 
 abated." 
 
HOUSEHOLD SKETCHES. 227 
 
 " I believe he is not eminently successful, sir, in bringing a 
 great deal to pass, for all his hard work." 
 
 " No, indeed ! he is fussy rather than effective. In fact, 
 I do not know a person who is more efficient in constantly and 
 laboriously doing what, half the time, really amounts to just 
 nothing at all ! " 
 
 It was in the midst of his agreeable relations with such an 
 instructor, occupied with a good deal of hard reading and not 
 a little hard work, that the months, and, perhaps, we may as 
 well at once say, the years of George Atherton, slipped by. 
 This mode of life was pleasantly diversified by such social 
 entertainments as Eastford occasionally afforded, by visits 
 to " the Farms," with which many of his boyish associations 
 were connected ; by jaunts to the beach, which had been the 
 scene of that early adventure of his father, and whose conse 
 quences had colored, more or less, the subsequent life of both ; 
 in strolls, of very frequent occurrence, to Miss Dudley s hospi 
 table door, and in occasional excursions, with the many charm 
 ing young ladies of Eastford, to those various points of inter 
 esting natural scenery, for which the neighborhood of the old 
 town has always been considered remarkable. 
 
 Whenever these parties to the rambles became of a more 
 miscellaneous character, than was often the case, they were 
 usually attended by another student of Mr. May s, older than 
 Atherton, and holding very different relations to the society, 
 which both of them, more or less, frequented. This was Mr. 
 Cobstalk, the son of a pains-taking farmer in the neighbor 
 hood. This person had enjoyed those advantages of early 
 education, which are obtained in the common schools, and, 
 much to his worthy father s dissatisfaction, had determined to 
 devote his somewhat crude abilities to the pursuit of a profes 
 sion, which demands sound training and thorough cultivation 
 of the mind, for its successful and honorable practice. We 
 are aware, that there are exceptions to this doctrine, in the 
 
228 
 
 EASTFORD J OR, 
 
 case of men of extraordinary powers ; but the rule, neverthe 
 less, will be found generally correct. 
 
 The person of this young man was square, his head rather 
 large, and his manners were marked by a certain native sim 
 plicity, entirely regardless of the aid of ornament. Indeed, 
 there could be no doubt he was of nature s coarser grain, 
 rough, rude, loud, and that nothing could avail to give 
 him any essential polish. With the ladies, of course, he was 
 no favorite ; but, as he was good-natured and obliging, in his 
 ungainly way, those who were themselves good-natured, put 
 up with whatever was uncouth and unformed in his general 
 demeanor and conversation. Besides all this, he had a 
 strong fund of native shrewdness, well calculated to serve 
 him in some parts of practice, in the profession he had 
 chosen. 
 
 AVith Mr. Cobstalk, Atherton got on extremely well. His 
 own disposition was entirely good-humored, and mindful of 
 what belonged to those who differed from himself in very 
 essential particulars ; and, from habit and reflection, he was 
 inclined to make the best of what could not be helped. While 
 he did full justice, therefore, to Mr. Cobstalk s native sense, 
 he endured, for the nonce, those qualities, or deficiencies, of 
 his character, which rendered that gentleman rather brusque 
 than really vulgar, which, of course, would have been intoler 
 able. The young men chatted together, consequently, with 
 great freedom, upon the subject of their mutual studies, and 
 sometimes, perhaps, on topics of more general interest ; and 
 it will be seen from this, that Atherton himself was not what 
 a great modern novelist, originally, so far as we know, has 
 denominated a s?iob. For a snob we take to be a person who, 
 justly, has so little confidence in his own claims and titles to 
 the position he occupies, that he is of necessity always on his 
 guard, lest he should make some concession to another, unbe 
 coming his pretensions, and dangerous to his importance ; 
 while a gentleman yields naturally, and of course, a deference 
 
HOUSEHOLD SKETCHES. 229 
 
 to others, which may, or may not be actually deserved by 
 the particular subject of this kind and Christian species of be 
 nevolence. On the other hand, snobbishness, which is but 
 another word for vanity and selfishness combined, snobbish 
 ness, we say, which denies due respect to others, also eats up 
 that self-respect, which is the pledge and guardian of virtue. 
 In fact, the man, who justly estimates himself at some price, 
 is also likely to be somewhat considerate towards the proper 
 rights of others, and of the decencies and proprieties of life. 
 
 " Atherton," said Cobstalk, one day, " I wish you d give 
 me the meaning of this passage, quoted from Coke s Littleton, 
 in the book I m reading here ; it looks curious, but I ve no 
 idea what it s about." 
 
 " Just read it, Mr. Cobstalk." 
 
 " How particular you always are to put the handle to my 
 name ! Don t know s I can read it ; however, I 11 try." 
 
 The effort was unsuccessful. 
 
 " Your pronunciation of French," said Atherton, laughing, 
 " is rather ingenious than accurate ; " for Mr. Cobstalk had 
 read the crabbed passage as nearly in correspondence with the 
 spelling as he could." 
 
 " 0, confound the lingo ! " cried he ; "I never could learn 
 to speak a word of it. I can read it only a very little, when 
 it s ever so plain ; but this seems to me a mighty odd-looking 
 sort of a sentence. Here, just take the book and read it your 
 self." 
 
 Atherton read " Etil semble, que cest parole (hotch-pot) 
 est en English a pudding; car en tiel pudding rfest com- 
 munement wise un chose tantsolement, mes un chose ovesque 
 auters choses ensemble. Et pur ceo il covient en tiel case de 
 mitter les terres dones en frankmariage ovesque les auters 
 terres en hotch-pot, si le baron et la femme voilent aver as- 
 cun part en les auters terres" 
 
 And Atherton explained to Cobstalk the interesting and 
 excellent doctrine of hotch-pot. 
 20 
 
230 EASTFORD ; OB, 
 
 " Atherton, I wish I knew as much as you do." 
 
 " Your ambition is rather limited." 
 
 " No ; I suppose I shall make a good practising lawyer 
 enough ; but I have to puzzle away over things that you get 
 hold of so easily ! But, I 11 tell you one thing, I think you re 
 too hone.st for a lawyer." 
 
 " Indeed ! Do you think people object to honesty in the 
 agents they employ ? " 
 
 " Why, they may think much better of you personally for 
 being honest, for this they can t help ; but whether those, who 
 mostly employ lawyers, will be more likely to seek you on that 
 account, is what I doubt. The men of the world, of course, 
 want you to be honest towards themselves ; but when they 
 have their own objects to gain of their adversaries, that s 
 another affair. I guess they like pretty sharp fellows then." 
 
 " Then you think, that unbending integrity is rather an 
 obstacle to than a qualification for success? " 
 
 " I believe it s often so ; and then you seem just as honest 
 as you are ; you might conceal it a little to advantage." 
 
 " Ha, ha, ha ! Cobstalk, that is really an original idea." 
 
 " I guess you 11 find it correct. I think it is better to seem 
 a little politic, even if you are not so." 
 
 " I think it will be hardly worth while for me to make too 
 strenuous efforts to conceal my virtues ; but, on the whole, let 
 matters take their course, and still seem indifferent honest, 
 as you say I am." 
 
 " But don t you think, yourself, the want of more caution 
 may impede your success ? " 
 
 " I think a manly course more likely to secure eventual 
 success, of every kind worth striving for, or of any value 
 when obtained. If not, it leaves me, at least, as honest as 
 I started ; and that is a good capital on which to leave this 
 world, or to begin another with." 
 
 " But is it not necessary to conform, in some measure, to 
 the judgment of the world ? which is harsh and hard, I grant 
 
HOUSEHOLD SKETCHES. 231 
 
 you, but still is not over-ready to believe any one better than 
 itself, and perhaps thinks worse of him, if he appears so." 
 
 " There may be something in this ; yet I have not so poor 
 an opinion of the world as you entertain. What you call its 
 harsh judgment, as to character, is often only its ignorant 
 judgment. The world certainly is no better than it should 
 be; but then it sees only a little way, if any, below the 
 surface, and takes even this superficial view through spec 
 tacles, shaded according to the fancy or disposition of the 
 looker-on, as, green, for instance, blue, yellow, gray, and, 
 we will hope, most generally, white." 
 
 " How does it happen, then, I should like to know, that 
 rogues and knaves are so often successful, in our profession, 
 as well as every other ? " 
 
 " 0, it is only the great rogues who succeed, as you call it, 
 and they do it by dint of superior talent ; the smaller fry are 
 generally caught. I have often thought the reason why 
 rogues are so frequently detected is, that, fortunately, they 
 are generally deficient in real ability. To contrive a plot in 
 crime requires genius, the same as to contrive a novel or a 
 play ; and your dull fellow, who attempts to do either, is de 
 tected by his inefficiency and the want of congruity of parts. 
 There will always be something wanting, something deficient 
 or ill-contrived in the scheme, which saves society by securing 
 the detection of its enemy." 
 
 " I never thought of that before ! Why, we generally call 
 knaves sharpers." 
 
 " You may rely upon it, however, that true talent is gener 
 ally on the side of virtue ; a bad man is, after, all, a foolish 
 one." 
 
 We trust it will be seen, from what we have said in this 
 chapter, that Mr. May s office was a fine school for these 
 young men. It was of him, indeed, that the Rev. Mr. Ather- 
 ton once wrote to a gentleman, who sought his advice in re 
 gard to placing his son under the tuition of that eminent 
 
232 EASTFORD J OR, HOUSEHOLD SKETCHES. 
 
 lawyer. After enlarging somewhat upon his professional and 
 .personal character, he concluded by saying 
 
 " I esteem him, therefore, my dear sir, most highly, because 
 he is really superior. His character is noble by the gift of 
 nature. His soul revolts at what is mean, in thought and 
 feeling and action. He cannot do a dishonorable thing. His 
 heart beats to true instincts, and his mind responds only to 
 what is right. And he may be safely confided in, at all times 
 and under all circumstances, in secret as well as in the open 
 gaze of men ; because the sources of his character spring from 
 within, and his conduct acknowledges no responsibilities, but 
 those which are real, absolute, and worthy his consideration." 
 
CHAPTER XXII. 
 
 * Je 1 aime, parcequo c est lui." 
 
 ANOX. 
 
 " the pure, open, prosperous love, 
 
 That, pledged on earth, and sealed above, 
 Grows in the world s approving eyes, 
 In friendship s sinile and home s caress, 
 Collecting all the heart s sweet ties 
 Into one knot of happiness." 
 
 MOORE. 
 
 IN the mean time, Master Edward Shirland had certainly 
 made his promised visit to Eastford. His visit, did we say ? 
 By r Lady, a handsome series of visits ; indeed, frequent 
 enough to cause, and perhaps warrant, the various remarks on 
 this subject, circulated by those, who speak and hear of such 
 things. His pretence, of course, was, the wish to see his old 
 college chum and friend, or a boating-jaunt down the pleas 
 ant river, or a quiet drive through the interesting country 
 in the neighborhood of Eastford, or " any other reason why," 
 except the true one; which, in his secret heart, was, that 
 he was deeply enamored of the sweet and innocent charms 
 of Alice Atherton. 
 
 In fact, young Mr. Shirland, we are loth to avow it, 
 since his quality has become obsolete in that sharp encounter 
 of money-mingling wits, which makes modern matches; 
 wherein Love surely suffers no profanation, because his divine 
 presence is not introduced to the company, Mr. Shirland. 
 we say, was really a modest man, in regard to his own pre- 
 20* 
 
234 EA9TFORDJ OR, 
 
 tensions ; and, from the first moment he had fixed his eyes 
 upon the lovely face of Alice, in the meeting-house at Cam- 
 borough, she had seemed to his imagination a being created 
 above the ordinary exigences of this world, and almost too 
 pure to be invited to intercourse with its earthly and meaner 
 pursuits. 
 
 We confess ourselves unable to settle this question satisfac 
 torily, whether such a state of mind is, on the whole, favor 
 able to the progress of successful passion. On this interesting 
 point authorities and experiences differ. The knight-in-arms 
 of authentic romance converted the mistress of his worship 
 into an absolute idol. For her he gladly sacrificed his all ; 
 for her he did much desperate battle ; for her he underwent 
 weary vigils, toilsome pilgrimages, heavy labors, many, many 
 painful days, and many longsonie, restless nights; blanching 
 his cheek, wasting his frame, spending his heart his blood 
 his life repaid by an occasional smile; and after this 
 severe discipline, obtaining, as a general rule, the consumma 
 tion of his heart s dearest wishes. 
 
 And truly, in our opinion, some of these ladies, as de 
 scribed, deserved it all, and were worthy of this homage 
 worthy of the seven years service for Leah, and the twice 
 seven years for Rachel ; each worthy to be the " mother of 
 thousands of millions," and that her " seed should possess the 
 gate of those who hate them." 
 
 On the other hand, an authority of great weight and learn 
 ing (so reputed) in these matters, pronounces a different 
 opinion ; this is Lord Byron : 
 
 " Little he kens, I ween, of woman s breast, 
 Who thinks that wanton thing is won by sighs : 
 What careth she for hearts, when once possest ? 
 Do proper homage to thine idol s eyes, 
 But not too humbly, or she will despise 
 Thee and thy suit, though told in moving tropes ; 
 Disguise even tenderness, if thou art wise ; 
 Brisk confidence still best with woman copes ; 
 Piquo hor and soothe in turns, soon passion crowns thy hopes." 
 
HOUSEHOLD SKETCHES. 235 
 
 And, in regard to ladies of this ungrateful and frivolous 
 character, we should have no doubt that the least said to them 
 the better, and should fully agree with the further opinion of 
 the same learned and eminent authority, 
 
 " When all is won that all desire to woo, 
 The paltry prize is hardly worth the cost." 
 
 But upon one point we are well assured, namely, that fair 
 ladies, who are worth having, are worth striving for, and, if 
 necessary, worth waiting for ; and that since from interested 
 matches result coldness, indifference, neglect, eventual urihap- 
 piness, if not absolute hatred, arid, most probably, degenerate 
 and worthless offspring love, and love alone, can form the 
 basis of marriage, which answers its true intent; and, in fact, 
 that the reason why there are so few happy marriages is, that 
 so many enter into that dear and holy relation from unworthy 
 motives. 
 
 Think of this, we beseech you, ye pretty girls, whose 
 cold-blooded fathers and mothers sometimes attempt to sell 
 you, body and soul, for gold ; and look as sharply as your 
 unsuspecting natures will permit; for, although this will not 
 seem the literal reading of the contract, yet, rely upon it, we 
 have only too truly explained to you the actual construction 
 of the marriage articles. 
 
 In the records of the County Court at Cambridge, under 
 date of 1656, will be found an entry, in regard to a gentle 
 man, who held rank in the civil and military affairs of the 
 colony, of the following tenor, to wit : 
 
 " Mr. , of , was admonished for marrying 
 
 of himself contrary to law. He made confession, and stated, 
 that he misunderstood the grounds whereon he went" 
 
 We fear this is often the case, in our own times, even where 
 people marry according to law. 
 
 But, whatever may be the speculations of our readers on 
 these subjects, we have no hesitation in avowing our own con- 
 
236 EASTFORD , OR, 
 
 viction, that the condition of love is the one delicious draught 
 of this our mortal state ; and that, however trying this ex 
 perience often may be, it affords more valuable compensations 
 than are the property of any other passion or pursuit. For, 
 in true love, after all, there is something truly elevating, and 
 which only a person of noble mind can fully feel or appreci 
 ate ; and, to have even felt 
 
 " The hope, the fear, the jealous care, 
 The exalted portion of the pain," 
 
 to be capable of experiencing all this, in its depth and breadth, 
 and not to be altogether conquered by it, shows a soul of some 
 power and generous aspiration, indicating an immortal nature, 
 and is of itself worth living for in this breathing world. 
 
 But if Edward Shirland was modest, Alice Atherton, on 
 her part, was timid ; and it is obvious that mental qualities 
 of this nature might long keep young hearts from any very 
 close communion. Of course, Shirland felt rather than specu 
 lated upon his own emotions, and of course Alice could not 
 but be aware of Shirland s preference ; but still matters went 
 on much as usual, from month to month, and really remained 
 in a rather indefinite condition. 
 
 Whatever might have been the private .conferences, if any, 
 of the parents of this young lady, upon the topic suggested, 
 they never transpired ; and to her certainly nothing was said 
 by them. Indeed, the freedom maintained in that excellent 
 family, between the young and those of mature years, preserved 
 itself within the bounds of a natural delicacy ; and as the 
 question had scarcely yet presented itself in a tangible shape, 
 no obtrusive comments were made. Still, the devotion of 
 Shirland was so constant, that its purpose could not escape 
 their observation ; but it was one of those cases in which no 
 objections could exist to the favorable issue of his suit, and it 
 seemed best to leave it to take its own natural course. No 
 doubt the steady, sterling character of Edward Shirland, and 
 
HOUSEHOLD SKETCHES. 237 
 
 the sound good sense, exhibited by that young gentleman, 
 would have sufficiently commended him to such unworldly 
 people as Mr. and Mrs. Atherton, without the possession of 
 the gifts of fortune ; for they acted upon the principles of 
 those doctors of wisdom, of whom Tacitus tells us, " qui sola 
 bnna quce honesta mala tantum quce turpia ; pote7itiam, no- 
 biiitatejn, cceteraque extra animam negue bonis neque malis 
 adnumerant" But, in fact, his temporal prospects were good. 
 His father, a person of great intelligence and enterprise, was 
 a substantial and prosperous manufacturer in the neighbor 
 hood of Oxton, anxious to see his son fairly settled in life; 
 and, though his establishment was likely to commence in a 
 cottage, it would probably turn out one of a somewhat ornee 
 description. 
 
 " A picnic, how delightful !" cried Alice, one morning, 
 to her brother, who had come home *o a rather late breakfast, 
 and, imperiously summoning that young lady to his assistance, 
 had announced, upon her entering the room, that a project 
 was on foot for such an afternoon s entertainment. " But 
 where will it be ? is there time to get it up ? who are 
 going?" 
 
 " Question one, it shall be at the Cliffs ; two, it is 
 already got up ; three, everybody is only too glad to go. 
 While you, madam, have been dallying over the morning, the 
 work of invitation has been going on, and the wheels of the 
 affair are already in motion." 
 
 " Have you seen Mary, Mr. Teaser ? " 
 
 " Yes, and Shirland," he replied, drawing her towards 
 
 him, and kissing her cheek. 
 
 " I did not know your friend Mr. Shirland was in 
 town, George," said she, with a slight hesitation and apparent 
 difficulty of articulation, the exertion of which, no doubt, it 
 was, which caused a certain suffusion of color to rush to her 
 face. 
 
 " No ; how should you ? He sent me over word from the 
 
238 EASTFORD ; OR, 
 
 Wolfe House, where he arrived late last evening. I have seen 
 him only this morning ; but now I must attend to further 
 arrangements ; so, prepare yourself, young lady, with your 
 4 cakes and ale. " 
 
 " But how are we to go, Georgy dear ?" 
 
 " 0, I shall drive you and Mary and Shirland in a wagon 
 I have provided ; the rest will choose their own modes of con 
 veyance; and old Tillery is to come up with his boat in the 
 afternoon, to take home such as prefer to go down in it with 
 the evening tide ; " and he sang 
 
 " * And with moonlight and lovelight 
 We 11 float o er the billow. 
 
 But come, Ally, my love, bustle round. I must be off to the 
 Wolfe House forthwith, and meet our self-constituted commit 
 tee of arrangements." 
 
 Accordingly, he took his departure for that respectable inn, 
 whose name, by the way, affords the most satisfactory evi 
 dence, in one respect at least, of the injustice of those charges 
 of puritanical and strait-laced narrowness, which were some 
 times brought against the worthy community of Eastford. 
 For this ancient inn had been originally established by an old 
 soldier of Wolfe s, who, with his Eastford compatriots amongst 
 the New England forces, had marched under that valiant and 
 victorious general through the wilds of Canada, with them 
 had surmounted "the formidable Heights of Abram," and, 
 more fortunate than his young and ever-glorious commander, 
 had survived to see the British standard planted on the sub 
 jugated ramparts of Quebec. Upon his return from this con 
 quering expedition, he had set up this hospitable establish 
 ment, and had hung out a conspicuous sign, intended to 
 exhibit the living image of JA S WOLFE, ESQ., in red coat and 
 laced cocked hat ; in which pictorial attempt the limner of the 
 day, having no subject from which to copy, seeing the original 
 
HOUSEHOLD SKETCHES. 239 
 
 was " lapped in lead," had seen fit to represent the hero with 
 a rather wolfish expression of feature. 
 
 Daring the civil troubles preceding the Revolution ; through 
 all the chances of that protracted conflict ; amongst all the 
 heated passions of the later war, unaffected and unassailed 
 by the bitter obloquy so often levelled at the government and 
 aggressive spirit of our friends over the water, the " coun 
 terfeit presentment" of JA S WOLFE, ESQ., had still hung on 
 high, for the long period of more than three quarters of a 
 century, stained only by the weather, beaten only by the blast 
 and driving rain ; indeed, refreshed and renewed in color from 
 time to time ; gradually losing in this way a good deal of its 
 primeval ferocity of expression, and probably any little relic 
 of fidelity to the original it may have possessed ; but glorious 
 still in the red laced coat and sharply cocked hat, so terrible 
 to the Frenchman of another day. 
 
 " A small thing," as Mr. Pepys might say; but yet sig 
 nificant of anything rather than a desperately illiberal con 
 dition of public and private feeling. 
 
CHAPTER XXIII. 
 
 " lie who hath lovod not, hero would learn that lore, 
 And make his heart a spirit ; he who knows 
 That tender mystery, will love the more ; 
 For this is Love s recess." 
 
 CHILDE HAROLD. 
 
 " 0, Gioventu ! 
 
 0, Primavera, gioventu dell auno ; 
 0, Gioventu ! priniavera della vita." 
 
 THE Cliffs, in the mean time, began to present a truly 
 animated spectacle. This place the well-known scene of 
 occasional pleasure-parties was, perhaps, hardly entitled to 
 an appellation even of such very liberal breadth of interpre 
 tation, but was rather an elevated bank of the broad river, 
 which here swept between shores of far more than common 
 loveliness. At certain points, the rocks did indeed descend 
 precipitously to the indented shore beneath, leaving a con 
 siderable space between their foot and the common line of the 
 tide. In other places, the ground fell towards the river by a 
 gradual and gentle declivity. From this lofty bank, crowned 
 with various descriptions of forest trees, and especially with 
 several species of pine and fir, a noble prospect was afforded 
 of the cultivated country on the opposite side of the river, and 
 far up its ample and only partially winding stream. In the 
 spring of the year, the thin and scattered soil, beneath the 
 spreading pines and upon the surface of the rocks, would be 
 clothed with that sweetest of our early harbingers of nature s 
 reopening heart, the lowly and lovely Mayflower. At this 
 
EASTFOKD J OK, UOUSEIIOLD SKETCHES. 241 
 
 season, however, the glades were profusely decorated with 
 another more showy and really splendid favorite, which, under 
 the general name of laurel, richly spread its brilliant and clus 
 tered blossoms over all the open spaces of the lofty bank. At 
 this somewhat wild and uncultivated spot, it was the custom 
 of the young people, upon occasions like the present, to gather 
 as much as they chose of this beautiful shrub, which grew in 
 no other neighboring place, but flourished here in inexhaust 
 ible supply ; and, adorning their horses and carriages with its 
 branches, clothed in brightest flowers and leaves of shining 
 green, thus to drive into the town, when the early twilight or 
 later moonlit evening called them homewards from their pleas 
 ant summer excursions. 
 
 And now vehicle after vehicle, reasonably filled with smil 
 ing belles and gallant beaux of Eastford, dashed through the 
 open gate, and across the smooth and level field, and, winding 
 through circuitous paths beneath the arching trees, were dis 
 charged, one after another, of their fair and merry occupants. 
 
 The gentlemen, of course, tethered their panting steeds, 
 wherever shade was afforded against the rather powerful 
 summer sun. 
 
 The brief hours of a pleasant afternoon pass off too agree 
 ably, to admit of a long and detailed description of their prog 
 ress. Suffice it to say that, after general greetings had been 
 interchanged, the party broke up into various groups, some of 
 whom reclined in the shadow of the trees, or gathered the 
 glittering laurel, or strolled upon the river-shore; while those 
 ladies who were of a more domestic turn, in due time, aided 
 by the services of an effective committee of arrangements, 
 spread the cloth upon the grass, beneath a grateful shade, 
 and, as the sun descended, distributed thereupon a liberal 
 supply of refreshments, provided by the joint stores of the 
 assembled company. 
 
 Much of this arduous duty devolved upon our friend, 
 George Athcrton, as one of the chief originators, if not 
 21 
 
242 EASTFORD J OR, 
 
 entitled to the praise of planning the entire arrangements of the 
 excursion ; and that young gentleman was admirably qualified 
 to perform offices, even of this description, in a manner to 
 make them peculiarly agreeable to all who were interested in 
 the event. For he was not like some persons whom we have 
 known, extremely efficient when there was nothing to be 
 done ; but he really performed well whatever matter of 
 business or pleasure he might have in hand, without saying 
 much about it; and he well understood that from the disregard 
 of these things, which are often considered trifles, spring most 
 of the inconveniences, and a very large proportion of the 
 actual miseries, of life. 
 
 Indeed, a similar remark was made by Mr. Cobstalk him 
 self, upon this very occasion, to a group of young people, 
 amongst whom was our old acquaintance, Miss Lizzy Flyter ; 
 who happened to be on a visit to some friends in Eastford, 
 and, of course, had been invited, as a stranger, and well 
 known to certain of the company, to participate in this fes 
 tive scene. She was now attended by her persevering admirer 
 and follower, Mr. Simcox, not yet established in his lady s 
 grace. 
 
 "Now, just look at George Atherton, Miss Flyter," 
 which request, we may observe, was quite superfluous, 
 * he s quiet as a clock ; but he brings a mighty deal to pass. 
 I never saw such a cool fellow, and so pleasant too. Truth is, 
 he knows just how to take hold, and that s half the battle." 
 
 " Do you consider Mr. Atherton good-looking, Mr. Cob- 
 stalk ?" inquired Miss Flyter. 
 
 " Why, that depends on what you call good-looking. In 
 the dark, you know, everybody looks black. ha ! ha ! ha ! " 
 
 " You seem to be amused, Mr. Cobstalk." 
 
 " Well, I really was laughing at a lady s asking such a 
 question about such a handsome fellow as Atherton is. You 
 must have finer-looking men in Oxton than I ever saw, to 
 compare with him at all." 
 
HOUSEHOLD SKETCHES. 243 
 
 " Is not your friend Atherton rather cold, Mr. Cobstalk, 
 and even a little sour ? " asked Mr. Simcox, who was loung 
 ing upon the grass, yawning drearily now arid then, and who, 
 apparently, did not fancy George much. 
 
 " Cold and sour ! no, indeed. It is evident you re a 
 stranger, and know nothing of him. When you come to know 
 him well, he has one of the best and kindest natures in the 
 world." 
 
 " I should not have thought so, sir," persisted Simcox, who 
 did not seem to like hearing George praised. " I have been 
 somewhat acquainted with him very long." 
 
 " Then, I in sure, it s your own fault, and you might find 
 yourself just about as well acquainted with him in a thousand 
 years," said Cobstalk, with considerable spirit ; for he did not 
 submit to hear Atherton depreciated, with patience. 
 
 " You mean, I suppose," said Simcox, " he is not open 
 with me." 
 
 " I mean you don t know how to open him." 
 
 " Perhaps, I should not think it worth my while to try. I 
 don t like his high airs, I assure you, sir." 
 
 " Perhaps not ; but, excuse me, Mr. Simcox, so dogs bay 
 at the moon ; but the moon goes on, shining just the same, 
 and all they get for their pains is to be rather hoarse." 
 
 How this conversation between that elegant person, Mr. 
 Simcox, and our plain-spoken arid sturdy acquaintance, Mr. 
 Cobstalk, might have terminated, we are unable to say. Miss 
 Flyter evidently was highly gratified, and cast several ap 
 proving glances at Cobstalk, who was too much engaged in 
 the controversy for his friend to regard or even observe 
 them. But Mary May, who had entered the circle in the 
 midst of the discussion, interposed, like a true peacemaker as 
 she was. 
 
 " I suppose, Mr. Simcox," said she, " that our friend, Mr. 
 Cobstalk, who, by the way, I never suspected of moon-gazing, 
 must have used his comparison only for the purpose of illus- 
 
244 EASTFORD; OR, 
 
 tration ; but I came to summon you all to the collation, where, 
 I trust, your appetites will enable you to discuss things about 
 which we can all agree." 
 
 In fact, the subject of the preceding conversation was now 
 approaching the group, with the same hospitable purpose, 
 which, of course, prevented any further allusion to the 
 topic. 
 
 In the mean time, amongst the several parties, who had 
 wandered away, through the deep groves and amidst a variety 
 of picturesque and enchanting scenery, Alice and Shirland 
 had become gradually separated from any companions, and 
 had reached a very sweet spot upon the immediate shore of 
 the river. A shallow but nearly semi-circular indentation of 
 the bank rose here, with almost perpendicular cliffs, to a con 
 siderable height from the broad, rocky foundation at its base. 
 Near the summit, however, the jagged rocks protruded, and 
 along their upper edge, trees, inserting their roots into every 
 crevice, and many interwoven, tangled shrubs, completely 
 screened from observation those who sat upon the rocky floor 
 below. This place was reached with no difficulty, from the 
 strand by the verge of the river, whose shore at this point 
 was somewhat bold, along which the stream, glancing and 
 colored by the setting sun, swept with a smooth and rapid 
 course. But never, certainly, were its bluest waters so 
 lovely in their hue, as that transparent, deeper, bluer light, 
 which looked from the eyes of Alice Atherton, now some 
 what thoughtfully fastened upon the half-shadowed and 
 incessant tide. 
 
 The eyes of Shirland, which, as we believe we have not 
 before suggested, were quite dark, as in duty bound, followed 
 the direction of those of his mistress. The young people sat 
 for a considerable time, in the position we have indicated, 
 without speaking. Indeed, real, honest, hearty love is not, 
 in our opinion, voluble. Sincere love, we say, is apt to bo 
 silent. Its depths can scarcely be sounded, much less be ex- 
 
HOUSEHOLD SKETCHES. 245 
 
 pressed in fitting words, and all words seem really too mean 
 for its purposes. Often and often, as we are given to under 
 stand, have lovers, upon occasions like the present, made a 
 very blundering piece of work of it. And surely, if so re 
 nowned a warrior, as old John of Gaunt, stumbled and hesi 
 tated and stammered in an affair of this sort, as we are 
 assured was the case by no less authority than Mr. Chaucer 
 himself, and could only manage to get out the words, " Mercie, 
 sweet ! " what, we say, could be expected, in similar awful 
 circumstances, of a mere civilian ? Probably, however, Shir- 
 land argued, in the very agony of his tremors, like " time- 
 honored Lancaster," upon the former occasion, that Heaven 
 could not have formed a creature of such extraordinary 
 beauty and bounty " withouten mercie ; " and the time and 
 opportunity and scene seemed all so apt to bring to an issue 
 a matter which he had so long seriously considered, that, at 
 length, he ventured, in rather tremulous tones, to remark, 
 
 " Miss Atherton, you seem pensive." 
 
 " If to be pensive is sadness," replied that lovely young lady, 
 " I assure you I am not so. 
 
 "You are thoughtful, then, and I am glad your thoughts 
 are pleasant. Will you not tell them to me, Miss Atherton, 
 that I may enjoy them with you ? " 
 
 " Perhaps I am thoughtful ; yet I could scarcely define my 
 thoughts ; I was rather dreaming, I believe." 
 
 " Such dreams as yours must be always happy ; would 
 would I might mingle in your dreams ! " 
 
 Tears, certainly not of grief, were fast swelling in Alice s 
 blue and downcast eyes. 
 
 " Do you, indeed, indeed, wish so? 0, what shall I say ? " 
 and she trembled from head to foot. 
 
 " Yes, 0, yes, Miss Atherton, Alice, let me call you ! 
 0, let me feel it, if I die of such happiness ! 0, to feel that 
 I am in your thoughts, as you are in mine, dearest Alice ! 
 
246 EASTFORD; OR, 
 
 this were happiness, hardly to be hoped for. Bo not be agi 
 tated let me sustain you." 
 
 Her cheek flushed her eyes were fixed upon the ground 
 her head sank upon her bosom he caught her hand and 
 clasped it to his breast he drew her gently towards him, 
 scarcely daring to believe in his own desperate hardihood, and 
 imprinted on her virgin lips that first, glowing, passionate, 
 holy kiss of young bewildering love. 
 
 It needed language no more. That one loving and gentle 
 embrace that one sweet, intoxicating draught of earth s 
 gupremest bliss that sober certainty of mutual love, no more 
 a dream, a doubt, a fear, a shadow, which might be dissi 
 pated, but sealed on earth and in heaven, immortal and inex 
 tinguishable as immortality so seemed to their young and 
 faithful hearts the divine and rapturous all of life and hope and 
 love, which each to each had thus trustingly given arid 
 received. 
 
 Of course, we have attempted, and, indeed, have only 
 conceived it proper to give a mere outline of their dis 
 course, which entered somewhat further into details, though 
 broken and disjointed, as, arm in arm, they slowly moved to 
 rejoin their party ; which it was high time they were doing, 
 since the sun had now fairly descended beneath the horizon. 
 Fortunately, they had not lingered behind alone, but encountered 
 various returning groups, by the way, so that they attracted 
 no very special observation, when they seated themselves, 
 with the others, around the grassy table. Mary, it is true, 
 glanced at Alice, and George looked a little shrewdly at both 
 his sister and Shirland ; but it so happened that the eyes of 
 both those young persons were steadfastly fixed upon the 
 repast spread before them, and gave no conscious sign. 
 Alice urged a slight headache, which, we have no doubt, was 
 real, by reason of the agitating scene she had undergone, to 
 account for her want of appetite ; but Shirland was absolutely 
 in hilarious spirits, and raised a great laugh against himself, 
 
HOUSEHOLD SKETCHES. 247 
 
 by spreading a liberal supply of mustard upon a slice of bread, 
 which one of his fair neighbors had held out to him, in rustic 
 fashion, for a piece of butter. Much cheerful conversation, 
 but not of a kind to interest the public, enlivened the enter 
 tainment. All pronounced the picnic delightful, and unani 
 mous thanks, of which the motion was put by Mr. Cobstalk, 
 were voted to the spirited and skilful managers. All, however, 
 were somewhat weary with the long rambles of the afternoon, 
 which had now declined to early twilight ; and, after a lively 
 song or two, and, finally, " Auld Lang Syne," proposed on the 
 score that everybody could join in the chorus, their serious 
 preparations for departure were soon completed. 
 
 And thus, with harness and carriage festooned with flowers, 
 and merrily singing along the country road, the various parties 
 wended their way towards home. George had yielded his 
 wagon to Shirland, who was to drive Alice; but in that 
 particular vehicle no singing, as we believe, took place. Ather- 
 ton had invited Mary to accompany him and others down the 
 river in old Tillery s pleasure-boat. They, too, had pleasant 
 song, floating across the water and echoing between the river s 
 banks, beneath the summer moon, as, with scarcely swelling 
 sails, their boat was wafted by the ebbing tide along its 
 rapid stream. Miss Flytcr and Simcox also went by the 
 boat, and that lady contributed much to the interest of the 
 musical performances, in which she excelled. There was no 
 doubt the entire company had found the excursion agreeable, 
 and two hearts it had certainly made supremely happy. 
 
CHAPTER XXIV. 
 
 " Ask mo no more ; thy fate and mine are sealed ; 
 I strove against the stream, and strove in vain ; 
 Let the great river take me to the main ; 
 No more, dear love, for at a touch I yield. 
 Ask me no more." 
 
 TENNYSON. 
 
 " We do that in our zeal 
 Our calmer moments are afraid to answer." 
 
 SHAKSPEAUE. 
 
 WE should be loth to undertake a description of Shirland s 
 sensations that evening, as he walked, or, perhaps we should 
 say, metaphorically, floated to his lodgings, after having left 
 Alice at her father s door, and disposed of the vehicle which 
 brought them from the cliffs. Those of our readers who 
 have anything more within their breasts than that mechan 
 ical process of stony texture, often erroneously denominated 
 "heart," which is, in our opinion, in any true sense, some 
 thing far more than a mere muscular appurtenance of the 
 human system, those we say, will be able to form some 
 conception of a transcendental degree of happiness actually 
 beyond weak human nature s powers of endurance, for any 
 very considerable period of time. His heart beat ; his brain 
 danced ; his senses were intoxicated ; in a word, he was in 
 love ! 
 
 Alice almost immediately sought her chamber. But, as 
 she had no secrets from her mother, and Mrs. Athcrtou none 
 from her husband, the actual state of the case was fairly 
 understood by every member of that united family, at a rea- 
 
EASTFORD J OK, HOUSEHOLD SKETCHES. 249 
 
 sonable hour the next morning. Indeed, poor Alice, happy 
 as she unquestionably was in the fulfilment of her own true 
 wishes, and the gratification of her heart s dearest feelings, 
 actually needed consolation and support, which only such a 
 mother as Mrs. Atherton could afford; and, dearly as Alice 
 loved Shirland, the idea of a future separation from those, 
 who were so sacredly dear to each other as the members of 
 her father s household, whenever it presented itself to her 
 mind, came upon it like a shock almost too painful to be 
 endured. 
 
 Domestic feelings, however, of this excellent description, 
 nature gradually softens in the formation and progress of new 
 relations ; but in their very purity and intenseness they form 
 the best of all foundations for the future peace and happiness 
 of wedded love. The engagement of Shirland and Alice was 
 fully sanctioned by the parents of that lovely girl, and his 
 own family ; and to all the numerous friends of the several 
 parties it really seemed one of those matches which are some 
 times said to be made in heaven. Her brother was highly 
 gratified, of course, for his sister s sake, and that of his 
 friend ; and, indeed, the charming period of courtship seemed 
 to be running very agreeably away. 
 
 We wish we were able to say as much, for the prosperous 
 course of affairs between George Atherton and Mary May. 
 It often happens, strangely enough, that those who, one would 
 think, ought to fall deeply in love with each other, and to 
 whom every opportunity occurs to bring this issue about, 
 utterly fail in meeting the expectations of their judicious 
 friends. Just as we think everything is going on as well 
 as could be expected, something unforeseen and inoppor 
 tune " doth lay siege to it ;" or we learn, to our entire sur 
 prise, that those, for whom we had" anticipated an unbounded 
 store of mutual happiness, do not themselves enter into our 
 plans at all. But, whatever might be the cause, matters 
 remained much in the same condition as before, so far as Ath- 
 
250 EASTFORD; OR, 
 
 erton and Mary May were concerned. The intercourse of 
 their families was so intimate, and they had grown up 
 together in such very close relations, that, perhaps, after all, 
 they seemed to each other more like brother and sister, than 
 the subjects of any closer tie, to say nothing of the myste 
 rious adventure at Indian Spring. Still, although there were 
 young gentlemen, amongst the residents of Eastford, or those 
 who occasionally returned to their native town as casual vis 
 itors, who would have given their eyes for one smile of favor 
 from the bright and beautiful girl, they never got anything of 
 the sort. In the routine of her avocations, the time passed 
 almost as if there were no such existences as the ordinary 
 young gentlemen of the world. She worked and often walked 
 with her usual companions, and with them she frequently 
 read, at Mrs. Atherton s or Aunt Sibyl s, quite as commonly 
 as at home. Amongst these companions George Atherton is, 
 of course, included ; but he had seemed very much devoted 
 to his legal studies, and now engaged with earnestness in the 
 duties of his profession, upon which he had recently entered, in 
 connection with his instructor, Mr. May. Some persons pre 
 tended and, we have remarked, that people are very 
 observant in small places that Mary seemed more than 
 usually sober after the engagement of Alice. But could this 
 have been anything more than mere fancy? since this engage 
 ment certainly gave her unalloyed pleasure, and no change 
 whatever had taken place in her own pursuits and relations. 
 
 We shall not deny, however, that the speculations we have 
 suggested may have had some foundation in fact ; for, one 
 evening, when Alice and her brother were sitting together, he 
 deeply engaged in a book, and she apparently given up to 
 revery, which threw a shade of thought over her open brow, 
 she suddenly addressed him : 
 
 " George, I wish to speak to you very much." 
 
 "Speak to me, Ally? Why, that s really a great privi- 
 
HOUSEHOLD SKETCHES. 251 
 
 lege, which you need, of course, special permission to indulge 
 in." 
 
 " No, but something very particular." 
 
 " Indeed ! " laying down his book with great formality, 
 and assuming an attitude of attention " the permission is 
 granted, fairest of messengers, who can bring no ill tidings. 
 Yet, I think I will receive the communication in state. I 
 will be a sultan, or, at least, a pacha, and you shall come as 
 ambassador from some friendly or hostile power, I don t 
 know which, or shall you approach as a suppliant ? That, 
 I think, is better. Speak, I hear." 
 
 " 0, I can t speak, dear, when you talk in that manner." 
 
 " To hear is to obey ! No, that s what you ought to say. 
 What wouldst thou, loveliest and humblest of suppliants ? " 
 
 "0 no ; you only just confuse me. I never could say any 
 thing, when you put on this style. I declare, if you were 
 talking to me so, I don t believe I could master force enough 
 to say * I m innocent, if you ordered me to execution." 
 
 " What is it, Ally, you have to say to me ? " said he, 
 taking her hand in his, and softly kissing the tips of her rosy 
 fingers. 
 
 " Well, you know I wish to speak to you about Mary." 
 
 " No, I was not aware of the fact ; but now I m really 
 serious; say on, Ally." 
 
 " Well, you know, George, that you have known Mary a 
 good while." 
 
 " Yes, that is a fact certainly within my knowledge." 
 
 " Don t you think that in fact that you love her?" 
 
 " Love her ! to be sure I do. How can you .ask such a 
 question ? Who could help loving her ? Everybody loves her." 
 
 " 0, but you know what I mean ! " blushing deeply. 
 
 " You are a very artful cross-questioner, Ally, qualified to 
 wring the very soul of a perjured witness. What a lawyer 
 you would make ! Portia would be nothing to you." 
 
252 EASTFORD; OR, 
 
 " 0, Gcorgy, darling, I really feel the deepest interest m 
 her happiness." 
 
 " Why, that s what lovers say. I suppose you are so 
 happy yourself, you foolish little thing, you want to put 
 everybody else in the same condition. However, your expe 
 rience of such matters is so great, after a few weeks engage 
 ment, that I suppose I must place myself under your 
 tutorage." 
 
 " You are a real lawyer ; you just evade my question, 
 George." 
 
 " No ; but to reply explicitly, Ally, you know the law is, 
 and " (sighing deeply) " I fear must be, for a good while, my 
 only mistress." 
 
 " George, I fear Mary is far from well." 
 
 " You do not seriously mean so, Ally ! What is the matter 
 with her?" 
 
 " Indeed, she often seems sad, for all her general good 
 spirits." 
 
 11 Sadness is an affection of the mind, not the body, of 
 the mental or moral, not of the physical nature." 
 
 " The body is affected by the mind. Indeed, her condition 
 pains me. I do not know that you have ever talked to her 
 of love, George ; but your intercourse has been one of affec 
 tion, and I think you have not been with her so much of 
 late, as formerly, and, I am sure, she suffers." 
 
 " Has Mary ever spoken to you on this subject, Ally ? " 
 
 " Never ! She is not one to make her griefs or sufferings 
 common; the inference is my own." 
 
 " You depreciate yourself, my sweet sister, to call such a 
 confidence common. Mary is a noble noble girl ! " 
 
 " Ah, now you speak of her as I like to have you." 
 
 " Do you suppose me a stock or a stone, Ally, that I could 
 be insensible towards a girl like Mary May ? " 
 
 " No, darling, I know you could not but be just to her, 
 and feel towards her as, indeed, she deserves; but do you 
 
HOUSEHOLD SKETCHES. 253 
 
 not think yourself that you ought to be on more explicit terms 
 with her, and that there ought to be no doubts or hesitations 
 between you ? " 
 
 " It is because I wish to be just, that I should avoid entan 
 gling her in my own unsettled prospects, even supposing I 
 might have the presumption to ask her consent. I speak not 
 so much of fortune ; but, before making such declarations as 
 you recommend, I feel that I ought to have some name and 
 position, not entirely unworthy the acceptance of a girl like 
 Mary May." 
 
 " In the mean time, you sacrifice the happiness of both. Is 
 this wise ? You may defer your happiness until it is too late. 
 Better let her share your struggles, and help you to endure 
 whatever is between you and the position I am sure you will 
 obtain." 
 
 " 0, wise young judge ! What an advocate you are for 
 love in a cottage, Ally ! " 
 
 " I am an advocate for happiness, George, and I do not 
 regard the silly sneers of the world on this subject. I believe 
 there is generally more happiness in cottages than in palaces. 
 Neither you nor Mary are given to mere fashion, or require 
 fictions and frivolities for your comfort, and absolute poverty 
 is certainly not your prospect." 
 
 "No, I trust not; but what an unworldly young lady 
 you are, Ally ! You deserve fortune ; you regard it so con 
 temptuously." 
 
 " I hope not to make my happiness depend upon things so 
 very slippery, and which I have seen are so very unsatisfac 
 tory." 
 
 " I know not what would become of the world, if it were 
 not for the generous spirit which often actuates your sex, 
 Ally. It would become as brutal, as it is really unreflect 
 ing." 
 
 4< A young gentleman who does us so much justice, 
 deserves his fair reward; so take my kiss, darling, and do, 
 22 
 
254 EASTFORD ; OR, 
 
 pray, see Mary to-morrow; and so good-night, my dear 
 brother." 
 
 " Stop a moment, Ally, now ; I have a question for you." 
 
 " Indeed ! what is it, George ? " 
 
 ** You have been so plain with me, my dear sister, that I 
 feel bound to be equally open with you. Now, let me tell 
 you, I have had some reason to suppose, that Mary has re 
 ceived attentions of some serious character from another 
 gentleman." 
 
 " Indeed ! from whom ? We have not so many beaux in 
 Eastford that there could be much room for selection, I 
 think." 
 
 " And yet this has been a very dark affair to me. Ah, 
 Ally, you blush ! You know to what I allude. Who was the 
 mysterious stranger at Indian Spring?" 
 
 " Mr. Cobstalk, George." 
 
 " Cobstalk ! impossible ! I never suspected such a thing." 
 
 " It is true, nevertheless. Mary confided the interview to 
 me, but of course not to be revealed ; besides, she was afraid 
 of being laughed at, and, I presume, especially by you. Of 
 course, she had no suspicion of his purpose. Mr. Cobstalk 
 had come over the fields to the spring, and the meeting was 
 entirely accidental, at least on her part." 
 
 11 Cobstalk ! that is a joke I And to think I should not 
 have recognized him, or had the least suspicion of the affair ! 
 Cob is a good fellow, and I like his plainness much ; but to 
 fancy him pretending love to Mary! Why, he hasn t the 
 slightest faculty of understanding such a girl. This is too 
 presumptuous ! " 
 
 " 0, no ! our sex like devotion, they say, from however 
 humble a source. I dare say he fancied he loved her ; but it 
 was probably only a passing delusion of the imagination, and 
 no doubt he has got over it long ago. Go see Mary 
 to-morrow, Georgy dear, and nOw really good-night." 
 
 Uut, whatever might have been Atherton s determination 
 
HOUSEHOLD SKETCHES. 255 
 
 on this subject, and certainly his mind was now relieved from 
 a burden which he had hardly acknowledged, a call of a pro 
 fessional nature, early the next day, seemed likely to occupy 
 his attention during at least the morning hours. For he had 
 scarcely arrived at his office, when an old fellow, whom he 
 had long known by the name of Arey, and whom he had 
 often seen on his drives to the beach, and elsewhere about the 
 town, came in and demanded his services. This man was one 
 of those persons, frequently to be met with ia the neighbor 
 hood of seaport towns, who pick up a precarious living by 
 performing a variety of odd jobs. In his early life he had 
 been a sailor ; but the evil habits, in which men of his class 
 too often indulge, but less now, we would fain hope, than 
 formerly, had prevented his ever getting what Yankees call 
 " forehanded." As years advanced, he had been upon occa 
 sional fishing voyages, his " lay " decreasing as his activity 
 diminished ; and of later years he had sold lobsters and other 
 fish from a wheelbarrow, about the streets, or found some 
 such light employment as the charity or necessities of his 
 neighbors induced them to require of him. With all this, 
 the old man had a good deal of sturdiness as well as shrewd 
 ness of character, and if he did not maintain entire inde 
 pendence, it was not for want of setting up a fair show of 
 pretension on that score. He was remarkable for an immense 
 shock of long white hair, and usually appeared abroad in a 
 light drab pea-jacket and a round-topped hat with a broad 
 brim. He occupied a small house near the water, at some 
 distance from the town ; indeed, not far from the dwelling of 
 our old acquaintance, Mr. Joslin, who, by the way, never 
 went to the Ohio. His daughter, a rather hard-favored sin 
 gle woman, herself in declining years, was the sole inmate of 
 his house, and made honest and decent efforts to keep her 
 vagrant father as comfortable as his nature and disposition 
 would allow ; for his habits, it must be confessed, were irreg 
 ular, and inclining a good deal to vagabondism. Upon the 
 
256 EASTFORD; OR, 
 
 present occasion he appeared in his shirt-sleeves, carrying his 
 coat upon his arm, and the white stubble, or rather crop, upon 
 his face, was of at least a week s growth. 
 
 "Lawyer Atherton, this is, I believe," said he. "Squire, 
 I want you to go over to Squire Barnard s, to defend me ag in 
 a complaint he s got ag in me." 
 
 Mr. Atherton, of course, though the client was not one of 
 singular promise, looked as grave as a young lawyer ought, 
 and inquired into the nature of the accusation ; at the same 
 time expressing his surprise and regret, that a man so aged 
 should be the subject of any criminal complaint whatever. 
 
 " Well, you see, squire, that an t neither here nor there; truth 
 is, I ve got a complaint afore the justice, so I must defend. 
 Fact, don t hardly want no lawyer, if I wan t afraid o bein 
 tripped up by some o their plaguy lingo ; so thinks, says I, it s 
 best to be all ready, and I ve heern an extreme good account 
 of you, squire." 
 
 "Thank you, Mr. Arey; what is this complaint about?" 
 
 " Breaking Sunday, squire." 
 
 " Sabbath-breach ! I in really sorry to hear this of a per 
 son of your years, Mr. Arey." 
 
 " No matter ; tell you they can t prove it." 
 
 " Ah, that s another affair, if you are not guilty ! But 
 how came such a complaint to be made, then?" 
 
 " That they must tell themselves, squire. I ve got wit 
 nesses strong enough to day and date ; there s our Peggy, and 
 Mr. Joslin, and little Johnny Cheney, all over to court now ; 
 and they was all ready to go on, right away, when I came in 
 arter you. Now, if you 11 take up for me, squire, I in an 
 old man and don t want to be abused, and I could n t expect 
 to get an old lawyer, Squire May, now, belike, and I thought 
 I d rather have you than any o these ere young ones." 
 
 " Well, I suppose I must step over with you. You seem 
 to have good testimony," said Atherton. " I m quite flat- 
 
HOUSEHOLD SKETCHES. 257 
 
 tered by your marked preference, Mr. Arey ; and we can talk 
 it over a little, as we go across the street." 
 
 Accordingly, Atherton and his client proceeded together 
 towards the office of the justice, which was close at hand, and 
 the old man informed his counsel, on the way, that the com 
 plaint, on which he had been arrested, was entered " out of 
 spite," as he said, by one of his neighbors, and that he should 
 have no difficulty in contradicting the whole matter, off-hand, 
 by the testimony of sufficient witnesses. 
 
 Upon entering the office of the magistrate, who greeted the 
 young lawyer with a cordial good-morning, though with much 
 official dignity, he was also accosted by an excellent friend 
 of his family, one of the deacons of his father s church in 
 fact, Deacon Seabright himself, a most worthy man, who 
 resided upon his farm, in the immediate vicinity of Mr. Jos 
 pin s and of Arey s own house. He was surprised to learn 
 from the deacon, that he was the complainant in this case, and 
 the good man said, that he had made this accusation with 
 much regret against old Arey, whom he often employed in 
 light work ; but that really his habits of frequent drunken 
 ness were such, and his neglect of religious ordinances, and 
 especially a wilful disregard of the Sabbath, against constant 
 remonstrance, had so grieved him, that there seemed no course 
 left, but this public mode of correction. 
 
 Although Atherton certainly felt nervous about his case, 
 being assured that the deacon was not a person to commence 
 a groundless prosecution, or one " out of spite," or, indeed, to 
 stir up any strife very willingly ; still, it was no time now to 
 flinch from his aged client, disreputable as he seemed to be. 
 All that remained for him, therefore, was to put the best face 
 he could upon the cause he had undertaken, entirely out of 
 compassion for a poor old man, who professed that he had 
 been unjustly accused, and needed the assistance of counsel. 
 
 As the parties were all ready to proceed, the magistrate 
 read the complaint to Arey, who seemed quite unconcerned, 
 
258 EASTFORD; OR, 
 
 and recorded his plea of "Not guilty." The complaint 
 formally set forth, that the defendant, at, &c., on, etc., the 
 same being, then and there, the Lord s day, unlawfully did 
 and performed certain labor, business and work, the same not 
 being, then and there, works of necessity and charity, to wit, 
 the labor, business, and work of fishing, in a certain river or 
 stream, then and there known and called by the name of 
 Mill River." 
 
 A second count set forth, that the defendant, at the same 
 place and time, and under the same circumstances, unlawfully 
 took part in a certain sport, to wit, the sport of fishing and 
 angling, &c. &c. &c. 
 
 Deacon Seabright, who, it seemed, was the sole witness 
 for the prosecution, having been duly sworn, gave in his tes 
 timony. 
 
 " I was really sorry," he began by saying, " to make a 
 complaint against so old a man as Mr. Arey ; but I ve had 
 occasion often to speak to him about his way of life, par 
 ticularly his habit of drinking, so awful in a man of his 
 years" 
 
 " This complaint is for working on the Lord s day, deacon," 
 said George. 
 
 " Yes, Mr. Atherton, for breaking Sabbath day. I do no s 
 there s anything really bad about him, xcept he will drink 
 most always when he can get it, and never will go to 
 meetin ." 
 
 " Mr. Seabright," interposed the magistrate, " you will 
 please confine your testimony to the particular cause of com 
 plaint." 
 
 "Yes, your honor; I ve often talked to Arey about his 
 ways of going on " 
 
 "This complaint, Deacon Seabright," said the justice, 
 bringing down his spectacles, and lifting up the document, 
 " is for working on the Lord s day, and sporting on the day 
 aforesaid." 
 
HOUSEHOLD SKETCHES. 259 
 
 "Yes, your honor, I m coming to that, right away. I 
 talked to Arey about this ere, only a day or two before, 
 about the sin and the offence to the neighborhood, of his car 
 ryings on, and all to no airthly purpose; and finally I told 
 him, up and down, says I, If I find you fishing in the stream 
 ag inof a Sabba day, I 11 certainly complain of you, that you 
 may be sure of; so, as I was tackling up to go to meetin , 
 who should I see but Mr. Arey there, fishing away jest as if 
 t was nothin but a week-day, and payin no more attention 
 to what I said to him, than if I had n t a said it. And I 
 would n t put up with it no longer ; for it s really too scandal 
 ous for a decent neighborhood to have such things a-goin 
 on." 
 
 " How far is your house from the place where you saw the 
 defendant ? " inquired Atherton. 
 
 " Not more n a hundred rods ; and then I saw him again, 
 when I drove down the road, and that brought me consider 
 able nearer to him." 
 
 " Did you speak to him, deacon? " 
 
 " No, I did n t ; he was some ways off. I did n t wish 
 to holler to him, Sunday; besides twas n t o no use, and 
 I wanted to think o somethin else, goin to meetin ." 
 
 " Are you sure it was last Sunday ? " 
 
 "Couldn t, of course, be in any mistake about that, 
 it was no longer ago than day before yesterday, that ever 
 was." 
 
 " May you not have been mistaken in the person ? " 
 
 " Couldn t be possible ; if I know anybody, I, know him ; 
 he had on his old dress, same he always wears ; what he s 
 got on now, couldn t possibly be any mistake; nobody else 
 ever does fish there Sundays, and there he was standin in just 
 the same place, stock still, as if he did it o purpose to rile 
 me up, Sunday. I ve seen him too often doin the same thing, 
 right there, not to know who t was." 
 
260 EASTFOUD; OK, 
 
 "Part of your statement is inference, deacon. Are you 
 willing to swear positively it was Arey, and no one else ? " 
 
 " I am, and I do swear it was Arey I saw fishin there, day 
 fore yesterday, with my own eyes." 
 
 Old Arey nudged his daughter here, who sat by him, 
 and winked at Atherton with rather a knowing look. These 
 manifestations, however, seemed rather inopportune, and, 
 indeed, the magistrate looked at Atherton, as he asked if he 
 had anything to offer in defence, as if he presumed there 
 could hardly exist testimony to meet a complaint so posi 
 tively sustained. Atherton, however, rather tremulously called 
 his witnesses. The first was the daughter of Arey, Miss 
 Peggy, who testified positively, and with considerable deco 
 rum, that her father was not out of the house, from an early 
 hour in the morning until afternoon of the day in question. 
 The deacon threw up his eyes, and seemed horror-struck at 
 such wilful perjury, as he, no doubt, conceived it to be. 
 The next witness made it worse and worse. This was our 
 acquaintance, Mr. Joslin, now quite advanced in years, who 
 said that he went down to Mr. Arey s that morning of Sun 
 day, about nine o clock. " I had the rheumatiz bad," said he, 
 " so I could n t go to meetin ; and thinks, says I, I may just 
 as well step out a bit, and seein Arey s door open, as I went 
 down the lane, I went in, and staid chattin with him, well, 
 nigh onto leven o clock at any rate, a good while after 
 meetin time ; and I can say for certain, he did n t go out once 
 all the time I was there; and, now I think on t, what 
 seemed to me kind o strange, he hadn t on his old pea-jacket, 
 no, nor his common hat neither; but I believe I thought them 
 he had on was his Sunday clo es." 
 
 In reply to the justice, who inquired how he could be so 
 positive about the time, he said that Arey asked him, as soon 
 as he went in, and he looked at his watch, and so he did 
 just before he left ; besides, he heard the town bells ring for 
 meeting. It came out, in the course of his further cxamina- 
 
HOUSEHOLD SKETCHES. 261 
 
 tion, though Mr. Joslin declared he had forgotten all about it 
 at first, that Peggy Arey had gone over to his house, on the 
 Sunday morning, and had asked him if he would step over and 
 see her father, before meeting, as he was not very well. He 
 now recollected the circumstance quite distinctly. 
 
 The final witness, who gave the finishing blow to Deacon 
 Seabright s complaint, was " little Johny Cheney," as old 
 Arey called him, who testified, that he was coming up from 
 the beach, on Sunday morning, and, seeing Mr. Arey, as he 
 thought, standing on a rock in the stream fishing, he had gone 
 across the fields to speak to him, and see what luck he had ; 
 " But when I got close up," said he, with a burst of laughter, 
 which the respect due to the court hardly restrained, " what 
 should I see but some sticks stuck up, and old Mr. Arey s 
 pea-jacket on em, and his old hat on top o that, and a fish 
 ing-pole tied to the whole, so s to make it look edzackly like 
 him." 
 
 This narration brought the case to a speedy conclusion, 
 amidst the inextinguishable laughter of the parties principally 
 concerned, and of the hangers-on and large crowd of listeners, 
 who had been attracted by the fame of such a hearing. 
 George Atherton, however, felt it necessary to apologize to the 
 magistrate for his part in the transaction, and assured him 
 that he had been entirely unacquainted with the trick played 
 upon Mr. Seabright, and with the nature of the testimony 
 developed in the case, which he had been called upon so sud 
 denly to manage. But old Arey did not, by any means, see 
 the matter in this light. He had no idea of losing all the 
 advantages of his cunning contrivance, and pressed so hard to 
 turn the tables upon Mr. Seabright, by a complaint against 
 him for perjury, that the good-natured and somewhat per 
 plexed deacon was fain to pay him some trifling matter, by way 
 of composition, though we really think counsel might have ad 
 vised him, that no prosecution could actually be maintained 
 against him under those circumstances. 
 
2G2 EASTFORD; OR, HOUSEHOLD SKETCHES. 
 
 As for George Atherton, himself the soul of honor, he was 
 so provoked at the part he had been made to play in this 
 transaction, by the cunning old vagabond, that he gave him a 
 schooling so energetic, as may have been of more service to 
 him than the milder expostulations of good Deacon Seabright, 
 who probably looked sharper on another occasion. 
 
CHAPTER XXV. 
 
 " Alas ! mankind are unco weak, 
 
 And seldom to be trusted ; 
 If self the wavering balance shake, 
 
 It s rarely right adjusted." BURNS. 
 
 " Pcrdiccas said to Alexander, My lord, what do you reserve for 
 yourself? He replied, Hope. " GOLDSMITH S HISTORY. 
 
 THE transaction, which we have recorded in the preceding 
 chapter, was the occasion of a good deal of comment. There 
 were those who really thought the whole affair was contrived 
 by Atherton, and who winked slyly, as they pronounced him a 
 " deuced shrewd fellow," and made their minds np to seek his 
 aid in their future difficulties ; while the public generally, and 
 especially those who knew old Arey pretty well, did more 
 justice to the honorable character of the young lawyer. His 
 own immediate friends and family circle were quite entertained 
 with the incident, and even Deacon Seabright admitted that 
 the old rascal had shown a wit and skill in planning and car 
 rying out a practical joke, worthy of a better cause and a 
 more suitable day. And, although Master George was some 
 what mortified and provoked at such a let-down to his theories 
 of honorable ambition, yet, to him also, the ludicrous side 
 of the question irresistibly presented itself. In either event, 
 he hardly felt in a fit frame of mind, on that particular day, 
 to make serious love ; though we should sincerely hope he 
 would meet with nothing but generous sympathy certainly, 
 from Mary, under any circumstances whatever. 
 
264 EASTFORD ; OR, 
 
 On the following morning, a visitor of a different charac 
 ter from old Arey entered the law-office of Messrs. May and 
 Atherton. This was our friend, Mr. Joslin, who seemed to 
 have something on his mind, which he proceeded, after his 
 own fashion, to unfold. 
 
 " I was wanting to see Squire May," said he, taking the 
 chair, which Atherton offered, " but, as he s away, I s pose I 
 can tell t you jest as well. Squire, old Arey, he s an 
 onprincipled old dog, he got off mighty well yesterday, 
 there, twas a cur ous sort o scrape, all round. The deacon, 
 he thought he d got him, sure enough ; but there s no catch 
 ing sich a cunniri old fox. " 
 
 " I hope you have had no difficulty with him, Mr. Joslin," 
 said Atherton. 
 
 " Not I ! I know him too well for that ; he lives close to 
 me; our housen s only a stone s throw, as twere, away, and 
 when I want him, I jest pays him, and there s an eend on t; 
 he an t good for nothin , only small chores." 
 
 " What is the matter, then, Mr. Joslin ? " 
 
 " Wai, I think the lecter you give him yesterday did the 
 old critter a mint o good ; brought him more round to his 
 senses n ever I see him afore." 
 
 " I m very happy indeed to hear it. How did he show it, 
 Mr. Joslin?" 
 
 " Squire, you remember Miss May, Squire May s lady, was 
 saved from the wreck down below our house, a good many 
 years ago ? wust storm I ever see." 
 
 " I hardly remember it, Mr. Joslin, as I was but two or 
 ; hree years old ; still I am acquainted with the fact of course ; 
 but what has it to do with old Arey ? " 
 
 " I was g wine to tell you,- it s very cur ous; strange sort 
 o folks in this world of our n, squire. Your father, he was 
 down there that very day." 
 
 " Yes, I have often heard the whole story talked over, 
 
HOUSEHOLD SKETCHES. 265 
 
 as you may suppose ; not by my father, however, who seldom 
 alludes to such matters." 
 
 " Do tell ! Want to know ! Miss May, she was a pooty 
 creatur . I remember all about it, jest as if t was only yes 
 terday, when she was brought up to our house. But, as I 
 was g wine to say, old Arey, he used to go down on to the 
 beach, after the wreck, he always was sort o shoolin round, 
 though I never had no idee he picked up anything of any 
 account ; but there, you can t . tell nothin about sich 
 people." 
 
 " You surprise me very much, Mr. Joslin ! Do you mean 
 to say that Arey saved any property from that vessel ? " 
 
 " Why, about property, I don no. I was g wine to tell 
 you. I m kind o cur ous about papers myself, and always 
 put em away careful, in the locker over my old woman s 
 oven, out the way. Hows ever, last night old Arey, he come 
 into our us, and I was smokin my pipe, and felt e ena most 
 wore out, for I in gettin to be an old man, Mr. Atherton, 
 and I d bin up to town and sort o jobbed round all day, 
 and so down he sot, and seemed kind o heavy, I thought. 
 And he says, says he, That young Squire Atherton, he 
 talked to me like a father; why, Parson Atherton, that 
 boy s own father, xcuse me squire, could n t ha talked 
 better ; and I in afraid I am an old sinner. And then he 
 axed me if I knew whether or no deeds was good fur anything 
 after twenty years, in case they re lost and then found again ; 
 and I told him I did n t know for sartin, and he d better ax 
 you, as you was his lawyer, or Squire May, and then he kind 
 o started ; but I did n t mistrust nothin ; and so he sot, 
 and sot, and sot ; and my wife she got tired o waitin , and 
 she- got up and went and hapsed the fore-door, though t ari t 
 often we do think to hapse it ; and she told me I might open 
 it ag in, when folks was ready to go home, and so she kind o 
 flung off to bed. And arter she was gone, he begins to edge 
 on to the old wrack story ; and axed me if I knew whether 
 23 
 
266 EASTFORD; OR, 
 
 there was any law ag in pickin up papers, like, on the shore, 
 when you did n t know for sartin where they come from, nor 
 nothin about the valley on em ; and then I told him right 
 out, * You ve got somethin that s worried you, old fellow, 
 and you d better out with it plump, and make your mind 
 easy, first as last ; and so he said he had. And up he got 
 and would n t say no more about it ; but he told me if I d 
 go up to town and tell Squire May, he believed he d got 
 somethin that might be o valley, though he did n t know, I 
 might and welcome ; and that s the upshot o the story, 
 squire, as nigh as I can tell it." 
 
 " And a very extraordinary story it is, Mr. Joslin. Much 
 obliged to you for coming up, though I am unable to make 
 much of it, I confess ; nor have I any reason to believe this 
 old fellow can have anything of consequence in his possession. 
 Still, it may be so ; but, whether it turns out anything or not, 
 I, and I am sure Mr. May, will feel extremely obliged to you 
 for your trouble." 
 
 Mr. Joslin professed his pleasure at doing any kindness for 
 " folks he liked so well," and took his departure with a hint, 
 that with such people as old Arey, it was always " best to 
 strike while the iron was hot ; " and he had scarcely left the 
 door, when Mr. May himself entered the office. To him, 
 Atherton at once related the main facts of Mr. Joslin s rather 
 circumlocutory narration. He thought a moment. 
 
 " Papers ! " said he ; " there may be something in it. This 
 Arcy is an ignorant old dog, but crafty, as far as he knows. 
 Such people often are. Did he say * papers or deeds, did 
 I understand you ? " 
 
 11 Both. He asked Mr. Joslin first, if a lost deed would be 
 valid, if found after twenty years ; and then, in the subse 
 quent conversation, spoke of finding papers." 
 
 " Right ; there may be something in it, but doubtful, 
 doubtful. There certainly were deeds amongst my effects in 
 the vessel, of some probable value at that time, and possible 
 
HOUSEHOLD SKETCHES. 267 
 
 now. At all events, my dear boy, it s worth looking up, and 
 as I am excessively engaged this morning, I 11 be obliged, if 
 you 11 drive down to this old fellow s quarters, and see what 
 you can make of him." 
 
 It was a very short time after this conversation, when 
 Atherton drove up to the door of Arey s house, and found 
 both him and his daughter at home. Upon his entering the 
 room, in which they were sitting, the old man appeared much 
 as usual, but Miss Peggy seemed a good deal distressed and 
 agitated. 
 
 " I in very glad you re come, Mr. Atherton," she said. 
 " I ve always tried to get an honest living, and do the best 
 I could for father, though it s terrible hard for poor folks to 
 get along. Rich folks don no nothin about it ; and I ve had 
 to slave, and slave, and slave, and father don t always do as 
 I want him to, don t you say nothin , father, but I want 
 to have a good name, if I am poor. I an t got nothin else ; 
 and father han t done right about these papers. If they an t 
 worth nothin , they an t his n ; but I did n t know he had 
 any sich things in the house, not till yesterday, that ever was. 
 And, ! you must consider, Mr. Atherton, he s a poor old 
 man, and an t been so well taught as other folks has ; and 
 whatever else he is, he s always kind to me when he has his 
 worst tantrums, and always did well by me, when he had 
 anything to do with ; and, after all, he s my father, and all 
 the friends I ve got in the world !" and the poor woman 
 wept bitterly. 
 
 Atherton did his best to soothe her, and old Arey went on 
 to say : 
 
 " Now, Peggy, don t take on so, t an t o no use. I 
 don no s these papers" and he took out an old pocket- 
 book "are reely worth anything; but they ve gin me a 
 good deal o worry. I wan t to blame about gettin em. I 
 was down on the beach that day after the wrack, and see 
 some fellows have hold o something, and when I come up 
 
268 EASTFORD J OR, 
 
 towards em, they jest run away ; and the trunk had n t noth- 
 in in it when I got up to it, and was battered all to pieces. 
 And I see somethin drop, and I followed on and picked up 
 this little bundle, done up in a newspaper. And so I brought 
 it home and dried it in the sun ; and, as nigh as I could make 
 out, t was deeds o land. And I did n t know who the signer 
 was, nor nothin about it, and s posed it belonged to some o 
 the drownded people ; and I kept studyin it over and over, 
 and did n t know but I might get somethin out on t, if the 
 owners was all lost; till, finally, I heerd, into neighbor Jos- 
 lin s, one day, that Miss May s father was named Bell, and 
 then I meant to bring it up ; and then I kept it on till I 
 was most ashamed to, and I most forgot all about it, though 
 it used to come up, sometimes ; till, when you talked to me 
 so yesterday, squire, it kind o flashed on me all t once, 
 what an old reprobate I was, to keep another man s honest 
 rights away from him, that wan t o no good to me either, 
 and I could n t stand it no longer ; " and he handed Ather- 
 ton the package. 
 
 Upon glancing hastily over its contents, amongst other 
 papers, more or less defaced by exposure to the water, was 
 evidently a deed entirely legible, though a good deal stained, 
 duly executed by one Samuel Gammon, of Axeville, in the Dis 
 trict of Maine, and, for a valuable consideration, conveying a 
 considerable tract of land, in fact, an entire township in 
 
 county, in said District of Maine, to Langdon Bell, of 
 
 Colesville, in county and State of Pennsylvania ; and 
 
 another deed of the same land from Mr. Bell to his daughter 
 Susan, of a subsequent date. 
 
 Athcrton comforted Miss Peggy, with an assurance of per 
 fect immunity from any of those consequences she dreaded for 
 her father, and, taking a kind leave of both, made the best of 
 his way to the office. 
 
 " It is, in fact, the lost deeds, sir," said he, handing the 
 package to Mr. May. 
 
HOUSEHOLD SKETCHES. 269 
 
 " Indeed ! Sure enough, sure enough ! " said the cool and 
 sharp senior, glancing over the instrument; " this is indeed 
 a marvellous recovery ! The other deed is also here ; but this 
 requires consideration and examination. By the way, what 
 did this old villain say about his possession of the docu 
 ments ? " And Atherton proceeded to explain the account 
 which Arey had seen fit to give of the matter, not forgetting 
 Peggy Arey s distress. 
 
 " Yes, like enough," said Mr. May ; " poor woman ! poor 
 woman ! We must do something for her, George. I dare 
 say she helped the old fellow to his senses. These women are 
 often angels to the worthless of our sex, George." 
 
 " We have both been highly favored in our own relations 
 with them, sir," replied Atherton, modestly. 
 
 "Yes, indeed! God bless them! We ll trust that we 
 have given them little occasion to try the hard experiences 
 of life. But I have known, often enough, in my professional 
 experience, when nothing on earth, certainly, but some ill- 
 used but true-hearted wife, or a daughter, or sister, or, above 
 all, a mother s untiring love, has stood between some wretch 
 of a scape-grace and utter perdition. But about this deed, 
 let us see " 
 
 " I suppose you have no knowledge, sir, of the value of the 
 lands conveyed by it ? " 
 
 " Not in the least. I only know, what we all know, that 
 the timber-tracts in Maine are the subject of vast speculations 
 now, and that many of them have increased amazingly in value. 
 When this deed was passed to Mr. Bell, they were worth 
 comparatively little, and a township could often be bought 
 for little more than a nominal consideration, especially in 
 the interior. What a pity he did not have his deed recorded, 
 or enter upon the purchase- by some agent, since he could not 
 go down there in person ! But I suppose he thought it hardly 
 worth troubling himself about, at that time." 
 23* 
 
270 EASTFORD; OR, HOUSEHOLD SKETCHES. 
 
 " What do you think of the chance of making good your 
 title, Mr. May ? " 
 
 " Really, I am unable to say. The title is good, of course, 
 against the grantor and his heirs ; and if it has not changed 
 hands, which is hardly to be hoped, in these shifting times, I 
 do not see but we stand well enough yet. I 11 tell you, 
 George, I can t be spared from home at present, suppose 
 you run down at once, and try your fortune in this adventure ? 
 It s a pretty case, a very pretty case, what say you, my 
 boy ? " 
 
 " I shall be most happy to do so. I have quite a desire to 
 see something of Maine." 
 
 " When can you get ready to go ? " 
 
 " By the mail to-night." 
 
 " Ilight ; at midnight it starts. I like your spirit ; and I 
 shall leave the management of this business very much in your 
 hands. In the mean time, I will put a few hints on paper for 
 you, as they occur to me; and write you a letter to an old 
 legal friend of mine, in Axeville, where I see this old Gammon 
 lives, or lived, and where you 11 be in the very vortex of land 
 speculations, and can learn something about the condition of 
 the affair, if anywhere. Your first point, undoubtedly, will 
 be to get this deed on record as soon as may be; because, then, 
 you know, we shall have our evidence of seizin, running back 
 to the time the deed was executed, unless there should prove 
 to be a subsequent purchaser without notice. But in all these 
 matters you can have no better counsel than my old friend, 
 Kutledge." 
 
CHAPTER XXVI. 
 
 " Alas, Love ! I would thou couldst as well defend thyself as thou 
 canst offend others ! I would those on whom thou dost attend could 
 either put thee away, or yield good reason why they keep thee ! " 
 
 SIR PHILIP SIDNEY. 
 
 TUB transition from love to law is often found more easy 
 and natural than from law to love; yet, singularly enough, 
 at the instant this discussion of legal points was concluded, 
 the mind of George Atherton reverted with peculiar tender 
 ness to his charming friend, Miss Mary May. We pretend 
 to no exclusive information on these points ; but this one cir 
 cumstance we have frequently observed, that people of 
 opposite sexes, who have lived along, for considerable periods 
 of time, on very agreeable and friendly terms, apparently 
 without thinking of any more tender relation, all at once dis 
 cover they feel a sincere affection, which they had not pre 
 viously imagined, just as they are about to part from each 
 other, and to lose the opportunity of indulging that gentle 
 feeling, for which propinquity is supposed to afford the fairest 
 advantages. 
 
 It is not strange, therefore, that, having made all necessary 
 preparations for his journey, Atherton should have found 
 himself, on the preceding evening, at the house of Mr. May. 
 Indeed, as the evening was soft and moonlit, and the inviting 
 air was loaded with the balm of flowers, he had strolled with 
 Mary into the garden, and the two were soon seated in a rus 
 tic arbor, overrun with roses, which crowned a pretty knoll, 
 
272 EASTFORD; OR, 
 
 at some distance from the house. Alice, of course, had 
 walked up with her brother, but had perversely insisted upon 
 sitting within doors to keep Mrs. May company ; that lady 
 generally dreading exposure to the night air. 
 
 After continuing silent a considerable time, for people who 
 generally had a good deal to say to each other, Atherton 
 addressed his companion. Her eyes, in the mean while, had 
 been steadfastly gazing on the full moon, apparently sailing 
 through the heavens ; now and then shadowed by thin, light 
 clouds, which rapidly flitted over and scarcely veiled its 
 bright and lovely face. 
 
 " I am about to leave you for a time, Mary," said he, 
 " and it makes me sad enough." 
 
 " Yes, so my father has informed us ; but not for a very 
 long period, George." 
 
 " It may be a week, or a fortnight, or even more ; but, I 
 assure you, it will seem very long to me." 
 
 " O, you will have much to interest you ! Besides your 
 business, you will visit new scenes and enjoy new pleasures. 
 How I should like to roam through those noble old woods, 
 and feel the freshness of nature breathing upon me ! " 
 
 " I know it is generally imagined, that those who remain 
 behind feel the absence of friends more keenly than they who 
 leave them ; but, then, they have the routine of their daily 
 occupations, and the ordinary current of their feelings, dis 
 turbed only by occasional remembrance of the absent ; while 
 he who parts must drag, often heavily enough, 
 
 c a lengthening chain, 
 
 as Byron says. 
 
 * At leaving even the most unpleasant people 
 And places, one keeps looking at the steeple. " 
 
 " Yes, that is natural enough, certainly ; still, it s hardly 
 worth while to indulge such melancholy feelings, when we 
 expect to meet again so soon. I sincerely hope you will be 
 
HOUSEHOLD SKETCHES. 273 
 
 successful in this business, George, though I paid little atten 
 tion to its merits." 
 
 " It may be of very considerable consequence to you, 
 Mary, for your father has quite a stake in the result of the 
 venture." 
 
 " Why, there s nothing to lose, is there? " 
 
 " No ; but there may be a great deal to gain." 
 
 " That I can better spare, however, it was not on that 
 account I spoke of it, but for your own sake." 
 
 " Indeed ! why so ? My interest in the business is, of 
 course, entirely of a friendly nature." 
 
 " And yet, I think that success in something of conse 
 quence, something out of the common course of events, 
 would tend to settle and satisfy your mind." 
 
 " I am really mortified, Mary, at your opinion of me. Do 
 you indeed think me unsettled in disposition, or over-ambi 
 tious ? " 
 
 " Not exactly so, my friend ; perhaps, I did not choose the 
 right language. I think your mind preys upon itself too 
 much, and is restless and dissatisfied with present good, and 
 looking constantly forward to something future and unknown." 
 
 " Indeed ! you have looked at me rather closely. I had 
 conceived myself to be more than usually composed ; other 
 friends have sometimes told me so." 
 
 " Your manners are quiet, but you are thoughtful and far- 
 seeking ; in a word, under a calm exterior, your mind seems 
 to me active, and your temperament ardent." 
 
 " In one respect, Mary, you have rightly defined my quali 
 ties." 
 
 " How do you mean ? " 
 
 " My feelings are ardent towards yourself." 
 
 " I do not doubt it, George; our friendship has been cordial 
 and unbroken from our childhood," said Mary, looking down. 
 
 " You do me injustice, Mary, by giving so cold a name 
 to my my emotions." 
 
274 EASTFORD; OR, 
 
 " I think not ; you must be careful not to do great injustice 
 both to yourself and me, by calling our intimacy something 
 which it does not deserve." 
 
 " I am pained beyond measure, dearest, dearest Mary," 
 replied Atherton, taking her unresisting hand, " my oldest, 
 best and truest friend, to find you cold, where I had hoped 
 you would be what shall I say ? otherwise ! " 
 
 " And expected, I suppose, that I should be so at your 
 bidding ? No, George, I shall take no high tone with you, 
 I honor and value you too much for that ; but do not expect 
 me to say I love you, because the momentary pain of parting 
 with friends has made you fancy your feelings warmer than 
 they are. Such love as this does not satisfy the demands of 
 my nature." 
 
 " 0, Mary, how can I satisfy you that I dearly, fondly, 
 truly love you?" 
 
 " Not, certainly, by a momentary burst of passion. 0, 
 to be loved by one whom she can herself love in return, what 
 would not a true-hearted woman give? This is her life, her 
 all ; without it she is nothing; for it she would sacrifice, like 
 dust, whatever the world holds most valuable, and yield all 
 but her immortal hope ! I will not dishonor the privileges or 
 character of my sex, without which they are neglected toys 
 or trivial castaways. I cannot be satisfied with half a 
 heart ! " 
 
 If, in the thoughtless familiarity of daily intercourse, Ath 
 erton never felt it fully before, at least now this noble girl 
 stood before him revealed in a character claiming and deserv 
 ing the highest devotion of the truest and most manly heart. 
 As her real value became apparent, the distance between 
 them seemed sensibly to increase; emotions scarcely defined 
 before rushed in a mingled current upon his soul, shame, 
 at his previous coldness, a sense of almost selfish neglect 
 of a nature so noble in a person so lovely, traitorous 
 doubts, rising now that hope was essential to his happiness, 
 
HOUSEHOLD SKETCHES. 275 
 
 some gleam of consciousness that she really loved him, and 
 yet held him subject to her will, with a pride superior even to 
 love itself, and before him, the gloom of a lowering heaven, 
 where he had fondly imagined the serenest smiles of only 
 summer skies. This burning and soul-sickening flood of jar 
 ring thought and feeling met and struggled at his heart, and 
 he flung himself at her feet, in a transport of shame, and 
 agony, and love. 
 
 " 0, Mary ! " he cried ; " I feel deeply, deeply, how un 
 worthy I am of one whom I senseless fool that I have 
 been ! ought to have known so much better; but, 0, if love, 
 even you might value, if the truest, most devoted affec 
 tion " 
 
 " Still, one thing might even then be wanting, George." 
 
 " What is it ? 0, tell me what it is ! " 
 
 " Mine in return. Our affections are not at our own dis 
 posal ; our wills cannot, at our pleasure, bend our hearts. If 
 you love me, as you now feel that you do, you would your 
 self despise me, if I yielded only to your entreaties what my 
 own heart might refuse to ratify. I cannot fully confide in 
 the love which grows up in a day, and has borne no test of 
 time." 
 
 " 0, Mary ! no time would be too long, no condition too 
 hard, if you do not utterly drive me mad, by refusing hope 
 in some future, however remote." 
 
 " George, I will be frank with you. I trust and believe 
 that you deserve this avowal now, however painful it may be 
 to me, as well as to you. I might have loved you perhaps 
 I did, as a girl loves, when I thought you only waited for 
 the time when you might honorably open your own heart to 
 me. Since then, I have had struggles, which it were only 
 vain to recall. Other objects seemed to fill your mind " 
 
 " Not other persons, Mary, do not believe that ! " 
 
 " Perhaps not ; but maidenly pride and modesty taught me 
 to control, and, I thought, to conquer a girlish fancy, which 
 
276 EASTFORD; OB, HOUSEHOLD SKETCHES. 
 
 you disregarded. 0, to endure again what I have suffered ! " 
 and she held her hand to her heart. 
 
 " Mary, Mary, you are weeping ! how can I bear to see 
 your tears ?" 
 
 "Let us go in, George; we have been absent too long." 
 
 " Say one word to me, dearest Mary, say you are sorry 
 to have me go ! " 
 
 " Indeed, I am. I shall be most happy to see you return 
 successful." 
 
 " Say one word to me more, one kind word, sweetest, 
 do not, 0, do not send me away wretched as I am now ! " 
 
 " I will say * good-night to you, George, very kindly." 
 
 " Mary, Mary, I will, I must believe you do not mean 
 utterly to reject, utterly to destroy me." 
 
 " You are too presumptuous. Beware how you deceive 
 yourself. Good-night, George," giving him her hand, which he 
 kissed passionately, again and again, under the impulse of 
 some reviving hope. 
 
CHAPTER XXVII. 
 
 " A letter forged ! St. Jude to speed ! " 
 
 MARMION. 
 
 " All that gives gloss to sin, all gay, 
 Light folly past with youth away, 
 And rooted stood, in manhood s hour, 
 The weeds of vice, without their flower." 
 
 ROKEBY. 
 
 UPON their way home that evening, her brother seemed so 
 really out of sorts, that Alice, kind little thing that she was, 
 made no allusion to his interview with Mary ; but, on the 
 contrary, made a variety of those efforts, which seem so dis 
 mal to the subject, when in actual distress, to amuse him by 
 conversation upon indifferent topics. The whole family, in 
 the old homely fashion, remained up to see him off; and 
 through suffering under a complication of uncomfortable feel 
 ings, probably as trying as any which the human heart is 
 called upon to endure, he was compelled to struggle against 
 his emotions, and to talk and to smile, while really sick at 
 heart and half-distracted in mind. In some sense, it was a 
 relief, therefore, when the coach called for him, and, after 
 his hasty farewells, he could throw himself into a corner of 
 the carriage, and pull his travelling-cap over his brows, with 
 out feeling under any obligation to be agreeable to whomso 
 ever might prove to be the companions of his journey. In 
 deed, he deigned no further reply, than a rather sullen and 
 scarcely perceptible nod, to one polite old gentleman, who 
 
278 EASTFORD; OR, 
 
 welcomed his introduction into the stage-coach by an interest 
 ing remark upon the fineness of the night ; and a pretty girl, 
 who had caught a glimpse of him, by the lights at the door, 
 felt her sympathies a good deal excited for the cause, what 
 ever it might be, of the manifestly engrossing reflections of 
 the handsome young man. 
 
 The only public means of conveyance, at that period, from 
 Eastford into Maine, was by the stage-coach, so that the jour 
 ney afforded neither the rapid movement of the railway car, 
 as at present, nor could the traveller enjoy, as he now may, 
 from the deck of a gallant steamer, the enchanting scenery of 
 the Kennebec, or the still bolder and wilder prospects which 
 open upon his view, along the shores of the broad and noble 
 Penobscot. Indeed, a journey of more than two hundred 
 miles, by the mail, is a thing to be got over as comfortably as 
 circumstances will permit, even when the horses are good, the 
 coaches comfortable, the roads in fair condition, and the coun 
 try is interesting; and it is certain that our traveller was 
 well content, when the carriage, conveying the mail of the 
 United States and divers miscellaneous passengers, drove up 
 to its accustomed hotel in the thriving little town of Axeville, 
 upon the second morning after he left home. 
 
 As soon as propriety allowed, after enjoying the refresh 
 ment of a substantial breakfast, Atherton waited upon the 
 correspondent of Mr. May, and was received by him with the 
 old-fashioned politeness of a class of lawyers and men, now 
 almost gone off the stage. Mr. Kutledge was a gentleman, 
 considerably advanced in life, of sound early education, and 
 >omewhat formal manners, of one of the old respectable 
 . amilies of Massachusetts; and had emigrated, many years 
 before, into what was then an appanage of his native state, 
 under the style of " the District of Maine," and a territory 
 almost wild, for the purpose of pursuing his profession and 
 coming forward with those who were led, by similar inclina 
 tions, into the same new Held of enterprise to their various 
 
HOUSEHOLD SKETCHES. 279 
 
 occupations. The senior looked with interest upon the young 
 gentleman. 
 
 " Mr. Atherton," said he, shaking him cordially by the 
 hand, " I am most happy to see you in Maine. I have never 
 seen your father, sir, but I had the pleasure to meet your 
 grandfather, Colonel Atherton, when I was a young man, and 
 went down once with my own father to the General Court of 
 Massachusetts. We see few such persons, now-a-days, as 
 Colonel Atherton ; he was a very hale and noble specimen of 
 a man ; he can hardly be living, surely, no, that would 
 be a very advanced age." 
 
 * No," George informed him, " his grandfather had been 
 dead quite a number of years." 
 
 " Yes, so we go, Mr. Atherton. You are looking finely, sir ; 
 you left your friends all well, I trust, in the old state, and 
 my good friend, Mr. May." 
 
 " All extremely well, sir, I thank you. Mr. May desired 
 his special regards to you. I assure you I feel quite anxious 
 in regard to this business, in which he has so deep an 
 interest." 
 
 " Ah, it s his own interest, is it ? Bless my soul ! I did 
 no-t observe that," looking once more at the letter, which 
 Atherton had handed him. "Yes, yes, I see, let me run 
 over this deed, if you please, let me see, why, it s twenty- 
 four years ago this September coming, that s a long time 
 for a deed to go unrecorded, of course, you can prove the 
 manner of its loss and the strange way it turned up again. 
 However, nobody s bound to put his deed on record, unless he 
 chooses, that s a matter between him and his grantor, un 
 less the grantor s a rogue, and a second purchaser intervenes 
 
 that s what I m afraid of. This old Gammon is dead, 
 and I haven t much opinion of his, boys, if they ve found the 
 deed is unrecorded. Let me look at the survey of this tract," 
 
 taking down a roll of surveys or plans of territory. " We 
 have to keep posted up in these matters, Mr. Atherton. 
 
280 EASTFORD; OR, 
 
 Let me see, this is not in the Waldo Patent, or the Bing- 
 ham Purchase west of the north-easterly line of the 
 state, yes, this is the Holton Grant, Township number 
 Four, first range west of the north-easterly line of the 
 state, yes, sir," taking off his spectacles and pointing with 
 them, folded, to the proper place upon the plan, " the 
 
 registry is in county, town of . Now, our best 
 
 course is, to send the deed forthwith for record ; you are too 
 much fatigued, for another hundred miles through our rough 
 country ; I will forward this, at once, by a trusty messenger, 
 and, in the mean time, we can consult upon further proceed 
 ings." 
 
 Atherton professed his readiness to undertake the journey; 
 but this proposition Mr. Rutledge overruled, as not likely to 
 expedite the business, seeing he was a stranger to the coun 
 try. Accordingly, the old gentleman soon procured a suit 
 able agent, whom he despatched forthwith to the shire town 
 
 of county, with instructions to see the instrument 
 
 put on record, and to bring it back with him with the least 
 possible delay. 
 
 " Now, my dear sir," said he, " you are in my hands, and 
 I shall keep you pretty close till Rank in gets back. A sus 
 picion of our purpose, in certain quarters, might defeat all 
 our hopes. We have some pretty sharp folks amongst us down- 
 easters, and when all the world is head-over-heels in specula 
 tion, amid so many conflicting interests, one scarcely knows 
 what ground he s treading on. I assure you, it s something 
 like walking over a mine, and the next minute, you may be 
 sky-high. By the way, did you enter your name at the 
 hotel ? " 
 
 * I did not, sir. I knew there were people here likely to 
 know me ; and though I have moved so rapidly, it is very 
 improbable any knowledge or suspicion could exist as to my 
 business, I thought it best to avoid curiosity or inquiry, and 
 pref erred to sec you, before I set down my name or residence." 
 
HOUSEHOLD SKETCHES. 281 
 
 " That was a shrewd move ! Now, you shall go to my 
 house; I ll get your trunk away from the hotel, no, no, 
 sir, I shall take no refusal, Mrs. Rutledge will be delighted 
 to see you, we are not fashionable enough, in this new 
 country, to forget hospitality, and then, you see, we shall 
 be fighting the enemy behind a masked battery." 
 
 Upon being introduced to the wife of his host, Atherton 
 found Mrs. Rutledge to be one of those charming old ladies, 
 who, to the dignity proper to age, united the vivacity of an 
 earlier period of life. She had a great deal to say about the 
 old families of Massachusetts, with whom her own family had 
 had much intercourse, during her youth, before she accom 
 panied her husband into the wild settlements of the District 
 of Maine ; and she had a thousand recollections and stories 
 of people and events of the old time, in regard to which Ather 
 ton had been in the habit of hearing much conversation, in 
 his grandfather s day, and subsequently at his father s house 
 and that of Miss Dudley. With all this, Mrs. llutledge was 
 extremely well read ; and we have observed that persons of 
 taste and intelligence, who reside apparently quite out of what 
 is somewhat impertinently called "the world," are apt to be 
 at least as well informed, and quite as thoroughly abreast of 
 the current literature of the day, as inhabitants of the most 
 enlightened metropolis. And not unfrequently it will be found, 
 that they have reflected full as profoundly and judiciously 
 upon life and letters, as those who, perhaps, regard them as 
 little better than mere rustics. At all events, the society of 
 these intelligent and excellent people was highly agreeable to 
 Atherton; for, youthful as he was, his mind revelled in the 
 past, as much as Mary May had intimated it bounded towards 
 the future ; and he held that he who disregarded the lessons 
 of history was not likely to be very wise for himself, or very 
 serviceable towards his country. The several days, therefore, 
 which elapsed before the return of Rankin, passed away pleas 
 antly enough ; and, in the afternoons, Mr. Rutledge would 
 
282 EASTFORD ; OR, 
 
 take his guest agreeable drives around the interesting and only 
 partially cultivated neighborhood, to some broad pond, with its 
 wooded parks and lovely islands, it may be, which in other 
 countries would be accounted a considerable lake ; or up the 
 beautiful river, to the Indian settlement ; offering scenes of 
 no little novelty and interest to a resident of a state, from 
 which almost all traces of the aboriginal inhabitants had long 
 since past away. 
 
 Upon the return of Mr. Rankin, with the instrument suit 
 ably recorded, he informed Mr. Rutledge, that he met a sur 
 veyor of his acquaintance at the Registry of Deeds, who stated 
 that he knew this particular tract very well, and had visited it 
 within a recent period ; and that "operations," as he called 
 it, were now going forward upon the land, and, in case of a 
 freshet, there would be a large run of logs this very season. 
 The surveyor had made no particular inquiries, he said, as he 
 was hurrying along, but he believed the gang employed in 
 lumbering were in the service of Mr. Gammon. 
 
 " We must put a stop to this at once," cried Mr. Rutledge ; 
 " and now we ve got our title safe and sound, we 11 have a 
 little interview with this same Mr. Gammon, and see what 
 account he gives of himself." 
 
 To the counting-house or store of that person they at once 
 proceeded. This active and enterprising citizen was a person 
 extensively engaged in speculation and lumbering "opera 
 tions." Connected with his office, or counting-roorn, was a 
 store, supplied with a considerable variety of domestic and 
 foreign goods, with which he was in the habit of fitting out 
 his lumbermen for their expeditions " into the woods," and 
 which afforded also the ordinary means of settling with them 
 for their services, at the close of the season, reserving, no 
 doubt, some fair commission for the purchase and exchange of 
 commodities and labor. Quite a number of these rough-look 
 ing personages, with sunburnt vi.siges and unkempt locks, were 
 hanging about the store, wearing round-topped hats, and shirts 
 
HOUSEHOLD SKETCHES. 283 
 
 of red baize, or else of blue material, wrought over the 
 breast with various fanciful devices, in white colors, probably 
 by the fair hands of each one s special sweetheart; and a few 
 Indian women were also trading at the counter, in a very 
 mingled jargon, their black eyes gleaming beneath broad- 
 brimmed and high-crowned manly hats, which surmounted 
 their swarthy features, and long, shining locks of midnight- 
 colored blackness. In other respects, their calico dresses 
 assimilated somewhat in fashion to the usual garments of their 
 sex, and over their necks they wore divers broad ornaments 
 of silver, and often long pendants of the same metal in their 
 ears. As Atherton paused a moment, holding Mr. Hut- 
 ledge s arm, to gaze upon these singular and always interest 
 ing human beings, one of the Indian women good-naturedly 
 addressed an unusually pale-faced and ordinary-looking 
 American female, who had entered the store to make some 
 trifling purchase. 
 
 " Seec, seester ? " in a very soft and musical voice. 
 
 " No ! " replied the female, rather repulsively. 
 
 " Sorry, seester ? " persisted the savage. 
 
 " No, guess not," said the female ; whereupon the Indian 
 women gabbled away to each other, in a very animated but 
 somewhat guttural and unintelligible manner and form of 
 speech. Mr. Gammon was found within his inner store, whit 
 tling away with a jack-knife at a good-sized shingle, and was 
 engaged, no doubt, in reflections upon some promising specu 
 lation. He descended from a high stool, upon which he was 
 perched, for the purpose of receiving his visitors, arid glanced 
 from Mr. llutledge to his companion with a small, sharp, dark 
 and rather restless eye. As soon as the ceremony of intro 
 duction was completed, the old lawyer summarily opened the 
 business. 
 
 "We have called, Mr. Gammon," said he, "for the pur 
 pose of exhibiting to you a deed of a tract of land conveyed 
 
284 EASTFORD; OR, 
 
 by your late father, upon which you are said to be now getting 
 off the stumpage." 
 
 " Deed ! You an t got no deed o mine, have you, squire? 
 I got so much o this plaguy stuff on my shoulders, don no 
 half the time where I am." 
 
 " No ; this is a conveyance to another party." 
 
 " Want to know ! guess not. Father was pretty sharp and 
 mighty reg lar in all his matters. Fact is, squire, he knew 
 what he was about ; don t believe there s any lot you can 
 show a deed in afore mine. What survey s this ere in ? " 
 
 " I think we can satisfy you, Mr. Gammon, that there has 
 been some misapprehension about this matter. This is in the 
 Holton purchase, township number four, first range west of 
 the north-easterly line of the state ; and was conveyed by 
 your father, by deed duly executed, to Mr. Langdon Bell, 
 formerly of Eastford, and more lately of Colesville, Pennsyl 
 vania, for a valuable consideration, in the year 18-; which 
 interest is now represented by Henry May, Esquire, of East- 
 ford, and his wife, sole surviving daughter of Mr. Bell ; and 
 on their behalf our friend, Mr. Atherton, now appears." 
 
 " Never heerd nothin about it afore ; pretty piece o busi 
 ness that would be, when I ve bought and paid for it, high 
 figure, too. Deed recorded, squire?" fumbling amongst a 
 file of papers in his safe. " If I m operating on the stump- 
 age, rely on t the lot s mine." 
 
 ** Here is the minute of the record, Mr. Gammon. You 
 will perceive it is long subsequent to the execution of the 
 deed. in fact, only within a few days. The deed, sir, was 
 long supposed to be lost, but has recently come back to our 
 possession by a very singular accident." 
 
 " Accidents will happen, squire. People ought to have 
 their deeds recorded. Yourn would certainly be good, if 
 t wan t for this ere. What do you say to that ere document, 
 Squire Rutlodgo ? " handing that gentleman a paper, which, 
 upon looking it over, he found to be a conveyance of the tract 
 
HOUSEHOLD SKETCHES. 285 
 
 in question, for the sum of twenty thousand dollars, executed 
 by old Mr. Gammon to his son Ramble Gammon, the present 
 claimant, about five years before, and duly recorded at the 
 time. 
 
 " I think yoir ll find that co-rect, squire. Father was 
 always particular bout these ere things." 
 
 "Mr. Gammon," said Mr. Rutledge, " nothing can be more 
 certain, than that your late father must have been aware of 
 his previous conveyance of this township to Mr. Bell. Men 
 of business could hardly be subject to such extraordinary for- 
 getfulness in those times; even supposing it possible they could 
 overlook the conveyance of such a considerable tract of land, 
 now, when affairs are so much more mixed up. As to your 
 own knowledge of this fact, you, of course, possess the most 
 accurate information." 
 
 " Do you suppose me such a fool as to pay twenty 
 thousand dollars for a tract of land, where I could n t get no 
 title ? " 
 
 " I do not, Mr. Gammon ; and, since it is very unlikely 
 that your father conveyed this to you, without explaining the 
 whole transaction, I will propose to you, for the sake of a 
 quiet settlement of the affair, that you abandon this land to 
 its rightful owners, for the actual consideration paid by you, 
 which I need riot name; in that case, I think I may say, Mr. 
 Atherton, we will make no claim against you for stumpage 
 already secured, which I understand is of small amount, 
 nor institute any other proceedings against you, for the 
 trespass." 
 
 " Trespass, squire, on my own land, hey ! Likely story, 
 when 1 ve got a deed ! I guess that gives me title 
 enough." 
 
 " 1 doubt whether you have even a colorable title, Mr. 
 Gammon. Can you, and will you, inform me, sir, where the 
 witnesses to this former deed of your father s may be 
 found?" 
 
286 EASTFORD; OR, 
 
 " Who are they ? John Tapp, and Richard Fassett," 
 glancing at the deed; "don no notion about em believe 
 Tapp s dead, and Fassett went off said he wan t o no more 
 use haw, haw, haw ! " 
 
 Our friends left the premises of Mr. Gammon, with little 
 show of ceremony. 
 
 44 It is as I feared," said Mr. Rutledge, on their way to 
 his office ; " old Gammon somehow discovered the Bell deed 
 was not recorded, when interest began to be excited in these 
 lands, and has made a conveyance to the younger rascal, 
 which is unquestionably fraudulent ; for, though rogues prey on 
 each other, I suppose it would be too violent a presumption to 
 think a father would cheat his own son in this way." 
 
 " But how can we trace notice home to Gammon ? " inquired 
 Atherton. 
 
 44 Ah, that s the question ! We 11 see the magistrate, forth 
 with, before whom this deed was acknowledged ; he may 
 possibly remember something about it, though it is a good 
 while ago, and these witnesses, if living, must be looked 
 up. If anybody on earth can find them, it is Hankin." 
 
 Upon calling in the services of Mr. Rankin, who, it seemed, 
 was a kind of half-surveyor and agent for the purchasers and 
 sellers of lands, in a small way, and the general runner, in 
 miscellaneous jobs of business, for Mr. Rutledge and others, 
 and accounted a person of much honesty as well as shrewd 
 ness, it appeared that he had formerly known all about 
 the witnesses to the Bell deed. 
 
 44 Tapp and Fassett," said he, " I remember them very 
 well; they were both lumbermen, in the employ of old Gam 
 mon, and used to witness his deeds quite often. I ve not seen 
 either of them, for a good while, I think scarcely since the 
 old man died ; and now I remember hearing one or the other 
 of them, perhaps both, went off to the Kennebec, several years 
 ago. I think they might be found, if they re alive." 
 
 It was Ikially determined, that Atherton should accompany 
 
HOUSEHOLD SKETCHES. 287 
 
 Rankin across the country, in search of the errant witnesses, 
 while Mr. Hutledge should make such investigations as he 
 could, at home, and especially should institute immediate 
 proceedings against Gammon, to stay waste. 
 
 In the mean time, Atherton s letters to his friends at home 
 were constant and interesting. Those to Mr. May contained 
 little besides the details of business ; but to Alice he wrote 
 much more particularly. 
 
 " As to the progress of our legal matters, my dear sister, 
 you will learn this from our friend, Mr. May ; but I have 
 enjoyed my visit to this part of the country, as much as is 
 possible for one absent from dear friends, and who is in a 
 rather uneasy state of mind. The weather, generally, has been 
 perfectly delicious ; and you would have been enchanted with 
 the drives I have had, along these quiet roads and through the 
 still woods, in which the soft repose of the summer day is un 
 broken, except, perhaps, by the distant call of some strange 
 bird, or, as I have often fancied, by the cry of some unknown 
 and wild creature of the forest. Then, the very smell of these 
 pine woods is reviving, especially where they are inter 
 spersed, as is often the case, with the cedar of this region, 
 the fragrance of which is peculiarly balmy and grateful. 
 
 " In many respects, this is a very odd-looking country to 
 an eye accustomed to the more regular and uniform signs of 
 cultivation, in an older-settled territory. The villages are 
 more distant from each other, and the intervening space will 
 present, perhaps, scarcely a solitary farm-house ; or, you 
 may drive through some very pretty and neat, though quiet- 
 looking town, the houses bright with paint and its whole as 
 pect exhibiting every mark of civilized life, and then turn a 
 corner in the well-made road, on the very skirts of the town, 
 into the depths of the primeval forest ! 
 
 " I gave you a hint, in my last, of my visit, with Mr. llut 
 ledge, to the pretty island, in the Penobscot, which the rem- 
 
288 EASTFOUD; OR, 
 
 nant of the Indians, who rejoice in the name of that river, 
 still hold in possession, and under a sort of government of 
 their own, though subject to the guardianship of the State of 
 Maine. I regret to say, that, with some of the vices of civil 
 ization, these children of nature have also imitated, non pari 
 passu, certain of its modes of life, and, strange to say, inhabit 
 houses instead of wigwams ! Some of these houses are neat 
 enough, but their want of aptitude for this style of existence 
 is obvious. We paid our respects to the Governor, whose 
 residence is, by no means, a palace. In fact, we found his 
 excellency, who is rather hors-du-comlat, by reason of 
 advanced . age, and therefore less able to maintain his estab 
 lishment in prosperous condition, inhabiting one of the least 
 inviting of all the residences on the island. The Governor is 
 a short, stout, but still powerful old Indian, reminding me 
 very much, by his color, rotundity, and even now the litheness 
 of his movements, of an India-rubber ball. As we entered, 
 he was curled up in bed, or rather upon a not very clean 
 blanket, which constituted the entire bed furniture ; from which 
 the venerable man rolled, with singular agility, upon observ 
 ing our informal approach ; since, without the ceremony of 
 knocking, we lifted the latch of his chamber of presence. A 
 table, a cracked looking-glass, a bed in the opposite corner, 
 and, to the best of my recollection, a single low chair, upon 
 which was seated the fair daughter of his house and heart, 
 weaving a willow-basket, after the domestic fashion of the an 
 cient kings and rulers of the earth, constituted the only 
 other furniture of the apartment. Had there been any really 
 responsible party, as we were much fatigued with our long 
 stroll, I think I should have been tempted to apply the poet s 
 objurgation, in gude braid Scots, 
 
 Baron O Bucklivic, 
 The foul fiend drive ye, 
 And a to pieces rive ye, 
 
HOUSEHOLD SKETCHES. 289 
 
 For building sic a town, 
 
 Where there s neither horse-meat nor man s meat, 
 Nor a chair to sit down. 
 
 " At all events, we stood, during the brief period passed by 
 us, in the presence of this great dignity. His age we took 
 the liberty to inquire, on which point he professed to have 
 no exact information, but thought he was more than 
 eighty ; others, we found, pronounced him nearer a hun 
 dred, judging by what they had learned of his early history ; 
 and, looking upon him, we thought this well might be, notwith 
 standing, his hair was black as night, and his eye like an 
 eagle s. 
 
 " Of the fashions, Ally, in this metropolis of savagedom, 1 
 could give you no useful account, were I to attempt their 
 description. Certain it is, that the prevailing color is blue, 
 agreeably diversified with red and often yelloto, both of which 
 brilliant and striking tints, I could not help thinking, suited 
 well with the bronzed complexions and dark gleaming masses 
 of hair, which distinguish 
 
 Their feathered-cinctured chiefs and dusky loves. 
 
 " Absolute personal beauty, I am told, is not a very com 
 mon characteristic of these Indian damsels ; but I certainly 
 caught a glimpse of one, through an open window, who struck 
 me as extremely pretty, in this particular style, namely, black 
 hair, low forehead, complexion 
 
 The shadowed livery of the burnished sun, 
 
 eyes shining black, teeth really brilliant in whiteness, 
 rounded face, features exquisitely moulded, and the sweetest- 
 formed mouth you ever saw, except in the mirror, dear, and 
 in one other countenance. Put me down for an expert in 
 making out beauty s schedule ! The name of this charmer, we 
 were told, was Blanche. The tribe receives religious instruc 
 tion occasionally from a French Catholic priest. 
 25 
 
290 EASTFORD ; OK, 
 
 " The tenor of your news from home, my dear little sister, 
 makes me impatient of an absence which, I fear, may be in 
 definitely prolonged. The sobriety of one of our nearest 
 friends pains and at the same time stimulates me. The pic 
 ture of her face, as I saw it, on that last evening, is so im 
 printed on my heart, I may as well say, that no chance nor 
 change, nor any length of absence, can alter it. Write, dar 
 ling write in full, and * haste haste post haste, to 
 " Your most affectionate brother, 
 
 " GEORGE." 
 
 Although many interesting events occurred, before the re 
 ception of Alice s reply to this epistle, yet, as we deem this 
 the most convenient place to set down an extract from the 
 letter of that young lady, and as this letter is without date, 
 no objection can exist to our inserting a portion of it here. 
 
 " I cannot pretend to oifer anything in return, George, for 
 the fresher scenes which you so happily describe. Affairs in 
 poor old Eastford run on in their usual quiet way, and I 
 doubt if anything has occurred here, either of a public or 
 private nature, which it would be particularly interesting to 
 you to know. Our solid and sober newspaper, which you used 
 to laugh at so, for limping along, as you alleged, behind the 
 times, but which you always read over sedulously, I believe, 
 from beginning to end, at breakfast-time, favoring your 
 father s family with your sage remarks upon its contents, may 
 have had ever so much learned ami profound disquisition on 
 the most important matters, for aught I know ; but, for want 
 of an expositor, poor I have lost the benefit of it altogether. 
 Father glances it over, I believe, sometimes ; but, as I often 
 find it folded, as if it had not been disturbed, upon his table, 
 when I arrange his study for the day, I think he now relics 
 entirely upon mother to keep him acquainted with the course 
 of outer events, and she usually finds time to run it over in 
 the course of the morning. 
 
HOUSEHOLD SKETCHES. 291 
 
 " All our friends are well as usual. Aunt Sibyl, of course, 
 I see constantly, and went up to-day to present her with a 
 copy of the new edition of * Saturday Evcjiiny, for her 
 birth-day present. She had read over my copy with so 
 much pleasure, that I thought I could not gratify her more 
 than to present her with this delightful book. Perhaps we 
 should not agree with every one of the ideas of this admirable 
 writer ; but I am sure no reflecting person could read such a 
 book without improvement, or without gaining some actual 
 elevation of character. And this puts me in mind that we 
 have had an event, after all. What do you think of a look- 
 auction, dear ? How sorry you will be that you were away ! 
 Some former resident of Eastford a Mr. Kawson has 
 lately died, somewhere at a distance, who had been rather a 
 curious collector of books, I believe, and many of them were 
 here, and have now been sold. I assure you the sale made 
 quite a sensation amongst the few who take much interest in 
 such matters. Father attended, and bought such as he thought 
 he could afford ; and Mr. May bought quite a large collec 
 tion. Walton s Lives, and Whartorfs History of English 
 Poetry? a London Edition, in four volumes, what do 
 you think of that, sir ? are amongst our acquisitions ; and 
 father, I don t think he 11 half like my telling you, but 
 he bought for you a very handsome edition of Plutarch ; for 
 he said you were so fond of poring over the old volume, it 
 muist gratify you to sec your old friend with a new face. 
 
 " I have just dipped into the * Lives, and read a few pages 
 in Wharton ; but these we will keep till the long evenings ; 
 and Mary and I are depending upon having the benefit of 
 your learning and literature to aid us in our studies. There ! 
 I declare I ve told something again; and Mary did not wish 
 me to say that we had spoken of this; but I never could keep 
 anything from you, George, and I do not desire to have any 
 secrets from a brother who loves me so fondly, and whom I 
 love dearly dearly, Georgy, you know that. 
 
292 EASTFORD; OR, HOUSEHOLD SKETCHES. 
 
 " What I coidd have said in my letter about sobriety I m 
 sure I do not know; it must have been a mere casual remark. 
 You would scarcely have thought us very sober, if you had 
 heard Mary and me shouting over some parts of your letter. 
 Perhaps you intended to rouse somebody s jealousy, by your 
 rather warm description of the Indian belle ; but it won t go 
 down, sir. Your true lover is a person too much overwhelmed 
 and dazzled by the tout ensemble of his mistress charms, to be 
 able to go into such an auctioneer s catalogue of particulars ; 
 on the contrary, he rather holds, with such worthies, * particu 
 lars too numerous to mention. 
 
 " And now, my darling brother, pray come home; that is, 
 as soon as you get your business settled satisfactorily, and 0, 
 I do hope, on many accounts, successfully ! We quite pine 
 for you ; that is, I do, dear. Father and mother are quite 
 anxious for your success. Mother wishes me to ask you to 
 guard against the night air, which, she understands, is rather 
 damp near those large eastern rivers. All send love, Aunt 
 Sibyl particularly, and Mary wishes to be kindly remem 
 bered to you in return for your message. Ever, dearest, your 
 affectionate sister, ALICE." 
 
CHAPTER XXVIII. 
 
 " Lear, Bring in the evidence, 
 
 Thou robed man of justice, take thy place, 
 And thou, his yoke-fellow of equity." 
 
 KING LEAR. 
 
 " Dofjb. 0, villain ! thou wilt be condemned into everlasting redemp 
 tion for this." MUCH ADO ABOUT NOTHING. 
 
 WHILE Atherton and his companion were looking up Messrs. 
 Tapp and Fassett, on the Kennebec, Mr. llutledge at home, 
 besides his writ of entry, had instituted summary process 
 against Gammon. The bill in this case, which was drawn up 
 with particular care and skill, it would give us pleasure to 
 cite, but we fear it would not prove interesting to the general 
 ity of our readers. At all events, its recital, together with 
 the production of the deeds of conveyance and the admitted 
 fact that Gammon was " operating " upon the premises, proved 
 satisfactory to the court; so that it directed temporary decree 
 of injunction to issue to restrain waste, and ordered process 
 returnable at an early date, requiring the respondent to come 
 in and show cause why the rule should not be made absolute. 
 Happily the return-day coincided with a regular term of the 
 court. 
 
 In the mean time, our friend Atherton, aided by the un 
 wearied exertions and skilful management of Rankin, had 
 traced the recreant Fassett, from one point to another, and 
 he seemed a person without any settled domicile, having 
 followed him from liisingtown to Cathaunts, and so on to 
 25* 
 
294 EASTFORi) ; OR, 
 
 Wolfsbridge, and thence to Moose-camp, where they were 
 compelled to strike across the country again towards the 
 Penobscot ; until at length they came upon that worthy, in 
 charge of logs for some mills down the river, at a place called 
 Newtown Dead Water. 
 
 Mr. Fassett was decidedly what is sometimes called " a 
 rough customer," that is, in external appearance ; and exhib 
 ited all the rude characteristics which, at that time, distin 
 guished the lumbermen who frequented our eastern rivers. 
 He was an elderly man, of bronzed complexion, but iron frame, 
 and was arrayed in the usual habiliments of his class, to wit: 
 a red baize shirt, though the weather was that of summer, 
 without any outside garment, and wearing a broad-brimmed 
 chip hat upon his shaggy head, which was well covered with 
 reddish-gray hair. He looked reckless and daring, yet any 
 thing but a designing character, and had, indeed, rather an 
 air of frankness, correspondent with the bold and hardy pur 
 suits of his life. He greeted Mr. Rankin as an old acquaint 
 ance, and laughed loud and long, when that gentleman 
 promptly made known the object of the visit. His reply to 
 Atherton s inquiry was characteristic and a little ejaculatory. 
 
 " Wall, now, thunder ! I told him so; t a n t no use to go 
 to cheat m bout land; cause why? there tis, can t put 
 a township in your breeches pocket ; ef any owner is to be, 
 he 11 turn up. This Ramble s devilish sly, but no sort of 
 item to the old man, squire." 
 
 " You remember about this deed, then, Mr. Fassett ? " 
 
 " Parfikly, squire. Squire, I calk late to do about right. 
 I a n t a-goin to tell no lies for nobody. If you or your 
 folks has got the title, I m parfikly willin to tell all I know 
 about this ere land." 
 
 " We have a deed, Mr. Fassett, executed by old Mr. Gam- 
 rnon more than twenty years ago." 
 
 " Edzackly. Ramble s a n t more n five years old." 
 
 * What we wish to ascertain, Mr. Fassett, is, if you know 
 
HOUSEHOLD SKETCHES. 295 
 
 that Mr. Ramble Gammon was aware of this conveyance by 
 his father to Mr. Bell." 
 
 " Sartain I do, squire. Perhaps I should n t be so partic 
 ular about it, only I heered it talked on in the store. Ram 
 ble, he insisted this ere deed was lost, or somethin or other ; 
 cause why ? t wa n t on record ; the old man he was sort o 
 backward about inakin out a new deed, but Ramble overper- 
 suaded him. Old man Gammon said it must be gi n up, ef 
 ever t other deed come to light." 
 
 44 They seem to have talked pretty freely before you, Mr. 
 Fassett," said Atherton. 
 
 44 Never minded me much. Ye see, I was out and in there 
 most all the time, when I wa n t off in the woods." 
 
 44 You do not appear to have witnessed the last deed ; how 
 is that, Mr. Fassett?" 
 
 4 Don no ; never axed me." 
 
 44 How came you up here ? " inquired Rankin ; " I thought 
 they did pretty well by you." 
 
 44 Wall, that s the most cur ous part on t. Don no what 
 you call pretty well, Mr. Rankin ; I call em pretty hard 
 ones ; never could get forehanded, nor more n hold my own. 
 Hows ever, arter the old man died, says Ramble, says he, 
 4 Fassett, why don t you go over to the Kennebec ? I believe 
 you d get a better livin there than anywheres hereabouts. 
 Thinks says I, what s in the wind now ? for I mistrusted 
 something ; hows ever, I speaks up, and says I, 4 What s the 
 encouragement, Ramble? I always called him Ramble, for 
 I ve know d him ever since he was so high. So says I, 4 1 
 know you want to get rid o me for somethin or other ; but 
 what s the encouragement, Ramble ? And so he says, says 
 he, 4 That s neither here nor there ; but if you 11 go over t 
 the Kennebec, or anywheres else out of the way, and stay 
 there, I 11 move your folks over, and give you a hundred dol 
 lars. 4 Plank your money, says I, and he did, if he never 
 was up t the mark afore, he was then, and so I went over, 
 
296 EASTFORD; OR, 
 
 squire ; but I could n t do so well there, so I come up here, 
 and here I am." 
 
 " And, I suppose, you have no objection to going back, for 
 a while, have you, Mr. Fassett?" 
 
 "Wall, I don no. Honor bright ! I promised to stay ; not 
 forever, though; not encouragement enough for that, squire. 
 Now if I was only summonsed like, should have to go over, 
 you know," with rather a knowing look. 
 
 "Very well," said Rankin, "here s your summons ; I have 
 brought it with me ; I m a deputy sheriff, you know, and 
 here s your fees. See, it s all right, Fassett." 
 
 " Ah, that s another matter ! Could n t think o disobeying 
 the summons o the Supreme Court o the State o Maine," 
 looking carefully at the precept. " I 11 be all ready, soon as 
 I see our Mr. Hubbart, and tell him where I m agoin to." 
 
 The latter part of their journey had been performed in a 
 wagon, driven by Mr. Rankin, and in the same vehicle the 
 whole party were speedily conveyed to the nearest stage-sta 
 tion ; and, with as little delay as possible, down the river to 
 the brisk city of Axeville. Mr. llutledge, in the mean time, 
 had had many conferences with the magistrate, before whom 
 the deed to Mr. Bell had been acknowledged, and now, forti 
 fied by the statement of Fassett, he pronounced it, rubbing 
 his hands joyfully, a perfectly clear case. 
 
 In due time the court came to its session, and, by a happy 
 chance, and some disposition to accommodate a stranger, as 
 Atherton was, not to mention a general desire to witness the 
 hoped-for result against a person so little esteemed as Ram 
 ble Gammon, the great case of May et al, vs. Gammon was 
 called for hearing. It was opened in a very handsome man 
 ner by Atherton himself, permitted to appear ex comitate for 
 this purpose, although he held, in fact, a special power of 
 attorney, which it was unnecessary for him to exhibit; and 
 thereupon the court directed an issue to be framed, in order 
 that the jury might ascertain the fact of notice or no notice, 
 
HOUSEHOLD SKETCHES. 297 
 
 to Gammon, of the previous conveyance by his father to Mr. 
 Bell. When the witnesses were called, Ramble turned very 
 pale, upon seeing Fassett, of whose arrival, it seemed, he had 
 not been aware, and held a whispered conference with his 
 attorney, who was observed to shake his head, and to look 
 rather flustered. They appeared to have determined, how 
 ever, to let things take their course, and the first witness was 
 put upon the stand. This was Mr. Hayford, the magistrate 
 above referred to ; who testified, in brief, that he well remem 
 bered the transaction to which his attention was called. 
 14 At first," he said, " he had forgotten some of the particu 
 lars ; but upon referring to his books of account and papers 
 on file, he believed there was nothing of consequence, to which 
 he would be unable to testify. His interest had been more 
 especially excited in regard to this affair, because it was one 
 of the earliest, if not absolutely the first attempt to introduce 
 Pennsylvania coal into that region, where they had enjoyed 
 such an abundance of fire-wood, for fuel. He had discov 
 ered, upon reference, and well remembered the fact, that a 
 bond had been executed to Mr. Bell by old Mr. Gammon, 
 covenanting for the conveyance, by deed of warranty, of the 
 tract of land in question, upon the delivery of a certain quan 
 tity of coal at Axeville, how much, he did not remember, or 
 never knew ; but several cargoes. This bond, by agreement, 
 had remained in his own possession, until the completion of 
 the contract ; and he had then gone to the house of Mr. 
 Gammon, who was ill at the time, for the purpose of taking 
 acknowledgment of the deed ; and Ramble Gammon had 
 accompanied him to his office to take up the bond, upon the 
 delivery of the deed to Mr. Bell s attorney. He had found 
 upon his book a memorandum of the delivery of this bond to 
 Ramble in person, and also, on file, the receipt of that indi 
 vidual for the document in question." Some faint attempt 
 to cross-question this respectable gentleman proved entirely 
 futile. 
 
298 EASTFORD; OR, 
 
 The only other witness was Mr. Fassett, who, with much 
 plainness of speech, testified to the purport of what he had 
 previously signified to Atherton, at Newtown Dead Water. 
 The evidence submitted by him possessed this additional 
 weight, that he had heard the affair talked over, more or less, 
 by llanible Gammon and his late father, at a comparatively 
 recent period. Any attempt to meet testimony such as this, 
 was, of course, idle ; and the jury found, without leaving 
 their seats, under the brief instructions of the court, that, at 
 the time of his pretended purchase of the land in question, 
 liamble Gammon had notice of, and well knew, the fact of the 
 conveyance by his grantor to a previous purchaser. 
 
 The conveyance to Gammon, therefore, was pronounced 
 fraudulent by the court ; the transaction was properly char 
 acterized in a few severe words, and the decree of injunction 
 was made absolute. 
 
 There seemed so desperate a prospect of making any change 
 in this result, that Gammon s counsel did not even intimate a 
 purpose of attempting any further proceedings, but bundled 
 up his papers, and deliberately walked out of the court 
 house. Before Atherton and Mr. Rutledge, however, could 
 reach the office of the latter gentleman, after having received 
 the warm congratulations of their friends, they were over 
 taken by Mr. Gammon. 
 
 " Now the case is gone ag in me, squire," said that worthy, 
 " in this court, seems to me, should like to make some sort o 
 compromise ; I m willin to do this thing on fair terms, and 
 not go no furder with it." 
 
 " How much further do you expect to go in this matter, 
 Mr. Gammon ? " inquired Mr. llutledge. 
 
 " Why, this, don t settle no title, does it ? only stops my 
 operatin ; got a good many folks up there ; should like to go 
 ahead." 
 
 ; Be sure your re right first, Mr. Gammon, I 11 give 
 you that piece of advice now, and then, as to the title, if 
 
HOUSEHOLD SKETCHES. 299 
 
 you dare to commit the slightest trespass on this land, or 
 attempt any negotiation about it, after this decree, I 11 give 
 you the information, that you 11 be in a tighter place than 
 you ever saw before." 
 
 " O, ts o no sort o use to be wrathy, squire ! I on y 
 want what the law gives me a right to. I m willin to give a 
 fair price for this ere land." 
 
 " Your previous conduct gives us reason to expect all fair 
 ness from you, Mr. Gammon," said Atherton ; " but I wish 
 you to understand, once for all, that I desire no sort of deal 
 ing or conversation with you." 
 
 " Well, well, I guess you 11 find it not so easy to git pos 
 session ; there s more n one squatter on the premises, I can 
 tell ye. Now I calc late I can manage them sort o critters 
 decently well, I m used to em; you ll find that ere 
 another guess matter, I m a thinkin ." 
 
 " Very well, sir, we shall see," said Atherton. 
 
 In his letter to Mr. May, by the next mail, Atherton in 
 formed that gentleman of his success. 
 
 " After all our trouble, my dear sir, this result is 
 
 most happy. Our triumph is complete in really establishing 
 our title, besides exposing a scoundrel, which is always a 
 good work. I congratulate you most sincerely upon your 
 success, which is of no small pecuniary consequence. Mr. 
 llutledge assures me, from the best information he can obtain, 
 that this land, though not so accessible as many other tracts, 
 is valuable, and will become more so ; and would now readily 
 command, say, a dollar and a half, and perhaps more, an 
 acre, of a substantial purchaser. There is a vast deal of land 
 here, floating in the market, so to speak, and constantly 
 changing hands. A great many of the older settlers, I find, 
 are disposed to hold on, in expectation of higher >prices; but 
 this is a subject, upon which I hardly feel myself qualified to 
 form an accurate judgment. Without your opinion, and abso- 
 
300 EASTFORD J OR, 
 
 lute instructions, notwithstanding your full power to me, and 
 your constant and flattering abandonment of the whole mat 
 ter to my charge, in your several letters, I shall do nothing, 
 as to the conveyance, or agreement for conveyance, of the 
 premises. 
 
 " The time has slipped away here rapidly, though I am 
 surprised, upon looking back, to observe how many weeks I 
 have been absent from home. I am now getting impatient 
 for my return ; but I have determined, while awaiting your 
 reply to this letter, to make one other journey, for the pur 
 pose of going upon this land and seeing its actual condition ; 
 particularly, as Gammon threw out some intimations of diffi 
 culties we might have with squatters. I pay little regard to 
 this, but think it best to employ the few days before I can 
 hear from you in this expedition. Ilankin, the surveyor and 
 deputy sheriff, who accompanied me to the Kennebec, and 
 who is a most efficient and intelligent person, will go with me. 
 I trust soon to rejoin our friends at home, to whom I beg my 
 best remembrances, and am, dear sir, 
 
 " Most faithfully yours, 
 
 " GEORGE ATIIERTON." 
 
 Mr. May s reply arrived during the absence of Atherton, 
 but the letter was opened by Mr. Rutledge, in accordance 
 with the request of his young friend. We quote a part : 
 
 " The news of your complete success, my dear George (I 
 say your success, for I do not know what / have had to do 
 with it, though you call it mine), gratifies me exceedingly. 
 This Gammon must be a precious rascal, though, unluckily, 
 our profession brings us acquainted with too many such. As 
 for the land, sell it at once. In regard to details, of course, 
 you can have no better adviser than my old friend llutledge ; 
 but of the prudence of disposing of it forthwith, even at some 
 apparent sacrifice, I have no sort of question. Our object 
 
HOUSEHOLD SKETCHES. 301 
 
 should be to avoid all future concern with it. I should pre 
 fer cash, therefore, at some loss ; or, if this mode of sale be 
 not possible, at least, obtain such securities, at short date, as 
 can easily be realized, without our own liability. I am anx 
 ious, you perceive, to bring our own connection with the affair 
 to an entire conclusion. There can be no difficulty in this, 
 for old Gammon s title being good, as you say you have fully 
 ascertained, our own, of course, is perfect. Sell, therefore, 
 my dear boy, and come home, as soon as you get back from this 
 rather wild excursion, on which you have now started ; for I 
 see no reason why we should go to war with the squatters, if 
 there are any, at our own charges, instead of leaving the 
 fight, problematical or otherwise, to our respected successors, 
 who are nearer the seat of war, and better understand the 
 enemy. 
 
 "All my family are well, and anxious to see you Aunt 
 Sibyl really pines for you, and your mother and the rest 
 really look on me with some suspicion, as the wicked cause 
 of your protracted absence. But all desire their congratu 
 lations, and none more than 
 
 " Your friend and servant, 
 26 HENRY MAY." 
 
CHAPTER XXIX. 
 
 "On the affairs of Egypt, brother." 
 
 BIBLE IN SPAIN. 
 
 " Much in the stranger s mien appears 
 To justify suspicious fears." 
 
 ROKEBY. 
 
 IN pursuance of the purpose, indicated in the letter from 
 which we have been enabled to quote in the last chapter, our 
 travellers started betimes the next morning upon their jour 
 ney to the upper country. Towards evening of the second 
 day, they had arrived within a few miles of their place of 
 destination. For a considerable portion of the way, their 
 road had lain through the native forest, undisturbed, probably, 
 by human footstep, since the birth of nature, until the more 
 recent convenience of man had required this path to pene 
 trate its depths. Mile after mile of this shaded track seemed 
 to lead them through a never-ending vista of foliage. 
 
 Very silent and solitary lay the road before them, especially 
 during the journey of the second day. So perfect was the 
 repose, which brooded along the forest-path, that one felt 
 almost as if imperceptibly wafted through a region of the 
 sphere of dreams, instead of moving, by mere mechanical 
 agency, along one of the highways of this living and breath 
 ing world. The very roll of the wheels seemed almost like 
 an intrusion and a molestation. Occasionally, they would 
 overtake a heavily-loaded team or two, in company, drawn 
 by four and sometimes by six horses, stoutly harnessed, as if 
 
EASTFORD J OR, HOUSEHOLD SKETCHES. 303 
 
 for hard service, conveying ample supplies of the substantial 
 necessaries of life to some remote village, it may be, or quite 
 as likely to the camp of the lumbermen ; or would meet 
 similar teams upon their return from their distant journeys, 
 freighted with the material furnished by some mill of the 
 woods. Occasionally, a quiet village would burst upon them 
 at a turn of the road, but not a single human being would 
 be visible ; all the men, very likely, absent logging, and the 
 women, possibly, " huckleberry ing." At all events, in spite of 
 Yankee curiosity, not a face would show itself at any door 
 or window. It was like that city described in the Arabian 
 Nights, which was full of the builded works of man, but with 
 out apparent inhabitants. As you drove by the silent dwell 
 ings, you felt that your arrival and passage must constitute 
 the one great event of the long, drowsy summer day ; and yet 
 here was no one to witness or communicate the fact. One 
 country-tavern, at which the stage-coach drew up, seemed 
 actually so deserted. A very vigorous effort to wake up 
 something availed, at length, to bring forward a small boy of 
 the vicinity, from whom they learned that the whole family 
 had gone to spend the day with a distant neighbor, and an 
 equally faithful examination of the house produced no more 
 flattering results than some very unsubstantial cake, and not 
 a very liberal supply of milk, for the hungry and weary 
 travellers, who left their money upon the table. 
 
 The country through which they passed, as they caught 
 glimpses of it from hills, over which the road ascended, or 
 through partial clearings of the forest, presented scenes of 
 great beauty and fertility. It was richly watered by exten 
 sive ponds, fringed with foliage and flowers, and sleeping in 
 shadows, and by streams, often of romantic sweetness ; it was 
 agreeably diversified with lovely valleys and wooded summits ; 
 while, at a distance, majestically rose long mountain ranges, 
 or some bare and solitary peak, giving dignity and grandeur 
 to the noble and enchanting landscape. 
 
304 EASTFORD ; OR, 
 
 At length, as the evening drew on, they arrived at a 
 tavern, situated amidst a group of half-a-dozen houses, quite 
 at the highest elevation of a very considerable hill ; and 
 Atherton thought, as he looked abroad upon the extended 
 prospect, lying fresh and verdant beneath the setting sun, that 
 such a scene well repaid him for the somewhat toilsome jour 
 ney which had led to its enjoyment. From this point, they 
 proposed to strike off in the morning, by a bridle-path, into 
 the woods, and the landlord readily engaged to supply them 
 with horses for the excursion. Instead of the bustle which 
 sets a hotel in town, and sometimes a country-inn, by the ears, 
 that air of profound quiet, which we have already noticed, 
 pervaded the establishment. In fact, they learned, at the 
 supper-table where they partook of their evening meal, in 
 company of the landlord and his family, that they were his 
 only guests. Their supper, we may as well remark, consisted, 
 besides a cup of very indifferent tea, of fried bacon and eggs, 
 doughnuts and huckleberries, and that indigestible bread, 
 which spoils New England stomachs and makes the whole 
 population bilious. Pickles, of course, constituted an ele 
 ment of the repast. 
 
 The landlord proved to be a person of no little intelligence 
 and importance. He was, in fact, the most substantial per 
 son of the neighborhood, and held the best farm. He was, 
 besides, the only justice of the peace for many miles around, 
 and a militia-officer, and was quite looked up to by the scat 
 tered inhabitants of the quarter, who yielded him a voluntary 
 and ready respect. Upon making some inquiries of him, 
 after supper, in regard to the land which they proposed to 
 visit, he quite derided the idea of squatters. 
 
 " No such things, now-a-days," said he ; " there a n t no 
 body on the place, as I know of, but McQuillen ; he lives if 
 you can call it living on a bit he s cleared up there ; but he 
 holds under Gammon, that s llamble, not the old man, 
 least-ways, I always thought so ; but he s sort o crazy, to my 
 
HOUSEHOLD SKETCHES. 305 
 
 thinking ; never see him over t our us, not more n once a 
 year, or so, when he wants some notions, powder, or like 
 o that. But if you talk about squatters, Mr. llankin, when 
 I was a young man, over on the Kennebec, I ve seen the 
 times when poor people gin a good deal o trouble, and had a 
 good deal, I guess. Ah, t was wild times over there, I can 
 tell you! We never see such now-a-days, and I hope to massy 
 we never shall again." 
 
 " 0, yes," said Mr. Rankin, " I ve heard a great deal 
 about that ; they had the militia out, did n t they ? " 
 
 " Lord bless your soul ! yes, why," opening his eyes very 
 wide, " why, they shot a surveyor, and got taken up for the 
 murder, and, the talk was, they was going to rescue him from 
 the law. All the country round was up in arms ; the military 
 turned out to protect the court, you see, and kept out, better 
 part o two months, till the trial was all over. 0, I tell you, 
 folks was sceart enough then ! " 
 
 " Why did they shoot this person, Mr. Redfield ? " inquired 
 Atherton. " I should hardly suppose a land quarrel would 
 come to such desperate extremities." 
 
 " Lor ! you can t tell nothin about it ; you re a young 
 man, and ha n t seen no such doins. I forget what he called 
 your name, Atherton? yes. They were dreadful times, 
 Mr. Atherton ; things was more confused than you ve any 
 idee. You see, land titles in that territory, atween the Ken 
 nebec and the Penobscot, was all unsettled ; there was the 
 Bingham Purchase, and the Waldo Patent, and the Vassall 
 Grant, and the Pejipscot Purchase, and the Browne Right, and 
 the Plymouth Company, and the Boston Association, and I 
 don t know how many more, all mixed up together, and no 
 body up there to look after any of them. You see, they wan t 
 available, then, so nobody took no care on ern ; and so, settlers 
 they went on, and some had deeds from somebody, Lord 
 knows who, and some, I s pose, had ri t no deeds from no 
 body. But there they settled, and cleared up their lots, and 
 26* 
 
306 EASTFORD; OR, 
 
 built log-housen, and reared up their families. And t was 
 kind o hard, to be turned off arter all, and some on em 
 had been there a good many years ; and they fit and fit, and 
 had law-suit arter law-suit ; and, whenever a case come on, 
 all the old men, out o th back settlements used to be sum 
 monsed in ; and some was pretty wild-looking characters, and 
 some was old men with silvery hair, squire, leaning on their 
 staffs, and looked as if they did come out the woods, or some 
 stranger place, sartain. They were a wild set, I tell you, and 
 some on em got terrible savage, and they used to threat 
 en and swear ; and a good many people got shot at, when 
 they went through there. Why, Squire Brimblecora come 
 down through the thicket once, and said t was jess like runniu 
 a gauntlet. His old square-top shay was fairly riddled. He 
 put his mare through, though a smart critter she was ! But 
 0, t was rough times over there ! " 
 
 " What was the fate of the men who were arrested, Mr. 
 Redfield ? " 
 
 " Well, you couldn t do nothin with em; they had the 
 best lawyers, of course, and got well defended ; and a good 
 many people kind o pitied ? em, and some thought t waift 
 real murder, they d got sort o riled up and believed they 
 were defendin their rights; and t was all so mixed up, the 
 jury, they concluded to let em off; though, in all reason, 
 they were guilty o killin the man, to my mind, accordin to 
 law. What s your idee, squire? I think Mr. llankin, here, 
 said you was a lawyer from the Bay State." 
 
 " I can hardly judge of it, without knowing all the facts, 
 Mr. lledfield ; but it seems a pity they should not have been 
 convicted of such a crime, if the evidence was sufficient." 
 
 " Why, they were all disguised like Injuns and so, but I 
 guess the evidence was straight enough. Hows ever, people 
 settled down, they d better call it a kind o chance-medley ; 
 but that was the eerid of all such carryings-on. People 
 
HOUSEHOLD SKETCHES. 307 
 
 found there was law, and t would n t do to have many more 
 such capers." 
 
 At a good hour on the following morning, Squire Redfield 
 furnished our travellers with the promised nags, and over Mr. 
 llankin s hung a pair of saddle-bags, supplied with some neces 
 sary refreshments, in case of extraordinary detention ; and, 
 cheered by the breath of the early air, and the promise of a 
 beautiful day, they set off upon their expedition. A sharp 
 ride of eight or ten miles, brought them to a drift-way into the 
 woods, following the course of a small stream, which, Rankin 
 said, would soon bring them to the scene of Gammon s " oper 
 ations," and would, no doubt, conduct them to the vicinity 
 of McQuillen s cabin. They found a good deal of timber had 
 been felled in the neighborhood of the path, and partially pre 
 pared to be rolled into the stream, and so floated down to the 
 main river, whenever a freshet rendered this operation prac 
 ticable. They soon came upon a very rough bridle-path, 
 along which they advanced for no great distance, when the 
 clearing, of which they were in quest, suddenly presented 
 itself. 
 
 Atherton and his companion pulled up their horses to con 
 template, a moment, the lovely scene before their eyes. The 
 clearing occupied a space of from thirty to forty acres of land, 
 of quite an undulating character. At its farthest extremity, 
 it ascended in a considerable hill, thickly covered with wood. 
 It was surrounded by the dense forest, consisting of various 
 descriptions of trees, in which, however, some species of ever 
 green, and often pines of majestic height and dimensions, pre 
 dominated. Within this lay, thickly spread, the folded shad 
 ows, strongly contrasting with the morning sunshine, which 
 glowed and revelled over the open ground. The luxuriant 
 grass, tossing gently in the summer breeze, rose high around 
 and above the blackened stumps of trees, relics of former 
 burnings, and, interspersed with the flaming fire-weed and 
 other gaudy flowers, partially veiled the uptorn roots of vari- 
 
308 EASTFORD; OR, 
 
 ous fantastic shapes, which, under a dimmer light, might seem 
 almost like the dark coats and uplifted paws of some shaggy 
 and lurking denizens of the wild. At the foot of the wooded 
 hill ran a brawling brook, whitening, here and there, as it 
 rippled over many a rock upon its bed, and between deep 
 banks, evidently accustomed to swellings of its waters, which, 
 at times, converted it into a much broader stream. Not far 
 above the upper edge of the verdant bank, and near the base 
 of the hill, stood a small and rude log cabin, overlooking the 
 entire clearing. Hitching their horses in the shade, Atherton 
 and his companion advanced towards the house, and passed 
 across the brook upon stepping-stones, which now answered 
 their purpose, although, when the stream was full, certain long 
 planks, which lay upon the shore, apparently served as a rough 
 bridge over its higher and more turbulent waters. 
 
 As they walked along the narrow path, which was nearly 
 concealed by the bending grass, whose tall spires met and 
 mingled above it, almost breast high, some of the smaller 
 birds would start from their nests, or a gay and glittering 
 insect fluttered by. Except such slight sounds, or perhaps the 
 faintest tinkle of a distant cow-bell from the forest depths, 
 universal silence reigned ; save the murmur of that breath of 
 life which, in the most perfect solitude, always animates the 
 atmosphere by day, and, growing softer and softer, as the 
 evening hours proceed, is at length hushed into the unbroken 
 stillness of midnight. The fall of their footsteps could scarcely 
 be distinguished upon the soft and verdant path ; but when, 
 finally, they stood upon the broad stone at the door of the 
 house, and made their presence known by a rap, a deep and 
 furious barking within, and the command of a stern voice, 
 " Down, Stormer, down ! " announced that the master was at 
 home. 
 
 Upon this summons, the cabin-door was suddenly flung open, 
 and the proprietor, shutting it behind him, stood with our 
 
HOUSEHOLD SKETCHES. 309 
 
 friends upon the broad, flat stone at the threshold, leaving his 
 dog whining and scratching within. 
 
 " Who are you, and what are you after here ? " he uttered, 
 in a deep voice, as his visitors drew back a step or two from 
 the presence of a person so striking in his aspect, and whose 
 welcome evinced so little of the cordiality, or, at least, civility, 
 which usually marks the manners of our country people. Of 
 a height exceeding six feet by one or two inches, and of cor 
 respondent breadth of bone and muscle, these personal advan 
 tages constituted but a part of Mr. McQuillen s remarkable 
 characteristics. His age, it would seem, was a good deal 
 under the middle period of life. His features were prominent 
 and manly, and his complexion, naturally ruddy, was dark 
 ened by exposure to the sun and weather. An immense mass 
 of waving chestnut hair fell, in careless locks, upon his shoul 
 ders, and shaded a forehead which was fair in tint, compared 
 with the rest of his skin. A thick and unshorn beard, of 
 lighter hue than his hair, hung over his exposed neck and 
 breast. A shirt, open at the collar, and rolled above his 
 elbows, displayed arms of no common proportions ; and coarse 
 trousers descending to his bare feet, constituted his entire 
 garb. His deep-set, but well-opened, hazel eyes, of somewhat 
 unsteady lustre, glanced rapidly from one to the other of his 
 guests. Both of these were men of calm and undaunted reso 
 lution, but probably both together would have declined seeking 
 an encounter with such an antagonist. 
 
 Their purpose, however, being of a character entirely 
 pacific, Atherton endeavored, as well as he was able, to 
 soothe the evidently excited feelings, to which their presence 
 had given rise. 
 
 " We had no intention of intruding upon you, Mr. McQuil- 
 len," he said ; " and do not desire to give you any annoyance. 
 You live so out of the world here, that I should suppose the 
 occasional call of a visitor might be agreeable." 
 
 " That depends on what they come for," he spoke quickly 
 
310 EASTFORD; OR, 
 
 and sternly. " The solitude I live in, I have chosen for my 
 self. When I wish to see men, I can seek them. Such as I 
 do see, want nothing of me, nor I of them. I live away from 
 them, because I hate them ; I hate their envy, and mean 
 ness, and falsehood, and selfishness. They have cheated, and 
 wronged, and robbed me ; the peace I ask, they have no 
 power and no wish to give. Once I lived with them, as you 
 do; but now I desire of them nothing, and claim only the right 
 of nature, to live and die by myself. Would you deprive me 
 of that ? Begone, I say, and leave me untroubled by thoughts 
 I would only too gladly forget ! " 
 
 " We are extremely sorry to disturb you," said Atherton. 
 " We were attracted by the beauty of your situation, and 
 meant to rest a while in your house. I regret to learn, from 
 your language, that you are not happy as I could wish, and 
 would be glad to " 
 
 " Unhappy ! " he broke in ; " who says I am unhappy ? 
 No doubt you call it happy to grovel in the gutters of the 
 world ! Why should I be unhappy ? Nobody disturbs me, 
 and I live as I please. But your speech rings well, young 
 man, who are you ? I do not know you ; this man " 
 bringing his hand down heavily on Kankin s shoulder "this 
 man I know. What are you come here for, Hankin ? " 
 
 " I in very glad you remember, me, McQuillen," said llan- 
 kin, laughing. " 1 was afraid, at first, you had forgotten an 
 old acquaintance. I never did you any harm, my good fel 
 low. The fact is, we have been looking after some land 
 here, of Mr. Atherton s. We want to see if anybody else 
 makes claim, and how our titles stand, in this wild 
 country." 
 
 "Wild, hey? perhaps you want to see mine. I ll tell 
 you what it is. Look above us, Rankin, how blue ! Look 
 down, how green! I claim from God Almighty, let me 
 tell you deep as the forest depths, high as heaven ! All I 
 ever loved, is under this sod ; when I am there, let the wolf 
 
HOUSEHOLD SKETCHES. 311 
 
 howl over it, or men with hearts like wolves ! Till then, let 
 me see the man who dares dispute my right ! " 
 
 " 0, we make no such pretence ! " answered llankin ; 
 " in fact, I have always understood you had a deed from 
 Gammon." 
 
 "You did, did you? Strong as deviltry can make it, then! 
 Yes, Gammon s the man to give deeds for a valuable consid 
 eration; and the courts will stand by him, the law will 
 uphold his title, llankin, else, how is it he s rich and I live 
 by the little wit I ve got, and a strong arm, llankin, and a 
 sharp shot? This is my title, look here, Rankin!" and, 
 seizing him by the arm, he rapidly led him along a path worn 
 in the grass, towards the rear of the house, while Atherton 
 closely followed in their steps. 
 
 In half a minute, they had reached a small enclosure, set 
 round with rude pales, and within its bound the raised and 
 rounded turf disclosed the grave, apparently, of a grown per 
 son, and by its side another of smaller size. Some wild flowers 
 had been transplanted into the borders ; a rose-bush grew at the 
 head of the larger grave, and one or two dark-leaved forest 
 trees hung drooping over the pales. 
 
 " This," cried he, pointing with his right hand to the en 
 closure, " this is my inheritance ; of which, I tell you, death 
 * death has given me possession ! Let me see who will inter 
 fere with my right ! " 
 
 He leaned, a moment, upon the fence, and then, as if over 
 come by some sudden revulsion of feeling, turned and moved 
 with hasty strides towards his cabin, which he entered and 
 shut the door. Whether his mind was absolutely deranged 
 beyond that point to which concentrated passion, long indulged 
 and brooded over in solitude, may lead the intellect, it was dif 
 ficult to judge. His language seemed coherent, though fiery 
 and extravagant, and his action was impetuous and little cal 
 culated to inspire confidence in his conduct. At all events, 
 no good purpose could be answered by further conference with 
 
312 EASTFORD; OR, 
 
 a man subject to such moods, and our travellers turned from 
 this simple and affecting place of solitary burial, in order to seek 
 their horses and proceed at once to the inn. But they were sur 
 prised to perceive, as they turned, that McQuillcn had left his 
 cabin, and was moving quickly down the path, at some distance 
 in front of them, with a gun in his hand, and an immense black 
 Newfoundland dog gambolling in advance. 
 
 " By Heaven ! he means mischief," said llankin. " He has 
 got possession of our only road, and is going to take to the 
 woods and lie in ambush for us like an Indian." 
 
 " I trust he has only started on some gunning excursion," 
 replied Atherton ; " but no doubt we had better be mounted and 
 away. Do you know anything of his real history, Mr. llankin? " 
 
 " Not much ; I have heard he was a person of more educa 
 tion than is common in these parts; but it s long since I ve seen 
 him, and I had forgotten all about anything particular till he 
 took us to see those graves ; and then I remembered some story, 
 of his being turned off a place he had, rather harshly, in bad 
 weather, and losing his wife and child. She was said to be 
 quite a beauty, and a good deal above the country girls here 
 abouts. But he has lived a strange sort of life ever since. I 
 have heard of his going into the lumbermen s camps, some 
 times, and helping when they had trouble ; but he lives mostly 
 by himself, and easily raises what he wants, and now and then 
 hunts for game." 
 
 " He is a desperate fellow to meet with a gun in his hand, 
 Mr. Rankin, and we without weapons," said Atherton, as 
 they reached their horses. 
 
 " 0, my dear sir, I never travel without pistols ! They re 
 sometimes convenient," replied llankin, taking a pair from 
 his saddle-bags. " I ll divide our artillery with you," offering 
 one to his companion. 
 
 " No, I think I 11 leave them with you, and trust to pacific 
 measures," said Atherton, as they mounted and moved on 
 as briskly as the nature of the path would permit. It was 
 
HOUSEHOLD SKETCHES. 313 
 
 no great distance through the wood to the drift-way of 
 which we have before spoken, into which the bridle-path 
 descended by a slope beneath quite a high bank. As they 
 approached, a growl from this bank showed them the dog, 
 lying at length, with his head upon his paws, from which 
 attitude he arose as they came nearer ; and at the top of the 
 descent to the open way stood McQuillen himself, so as entirely 
 to obstruct the road. Indeed, there was scarcely room here 
 for the travellers to ride abreast. The looks of McQuillen, it 
 must be confessed, were rather lowering. He was drawn 
 up to his full height; his gun rested upon the ground, and 
 with outstretched arm his hand grasped it near the muzzle. 
 
 " You came upon my premises without leave from me," 
 said he ; " that is easier than to go off. I don t like tres 
 passers, and here I make the laws. You are the people who 
 break them." 
 
 " I beg your pardon, Mr. McQuillen," said Atherton 
 coolly, and humoring him ; " it is hardly a trespass to ride 
 over an open path to make a civil call. The laws of your 
 kingdom cannot surely be so strict as that." 
 
 McQuillen eyed the young man with a somewhat doubtful 
 expression. 
 
 ** I don t know you, sir," said he, " nor what your business 
 here is. I don t believe Rankin came all the way up here 
 just to make a civil call " (rather sneeringly). " I do know 
 he s a civil officer, or used to be, and I believe he s got 
 some process against my farm ; and I mean to understand 
 this before you leave the spot, or I 11 know the reason 
 why ! " 
 
 " Come, come, McQuillen ! " cried Rankin, " this is non 
 sense. Don t attempt to obstruct the road, man ! " 
 
 " Move at your peril ! " said McQuillen, in a deep and 
 passionate voice. The dog, in the mean time, had jumped 
 into the road, and, roused, by his master s excited tone, seemed 
 just about to spring. 
 27 
 
314 EASTFORD; OR, 
 
 " This is insufferable ! " said Atherton, who was slightly in 
 advance. " I am here on my own business. We will see if 
 we are to be stopped. Stand out of the way, McQuillen ! " 
 and at the same time pressed his horse forward. The dog in 
 stantly made a fierce spring at the horse s head, which the ani 
 mal avoided by rearing. Rankin as instantly levelled his pis 
 tol and drew the trigger, and the ball taking effect in his head, 
 poor Stormer lay stretched struggling at their feet. At the 
 same moment, McQuillen raised his gun and fired ; but per 
 haps the fate of his canine friend partially distracted his 
 attention, for his aim was rather wavering, and the ball passed 
 through llankin s hat without injuring him. In an instant he 
 had clubbed his rifle, and dashing at Atherton, whose horse 
 was just upon him, struck him a quick and strong blow upon 
 the head, under which our poor friend reeled in his saddle and 
 fell heavily upon the turf. 
 
 " Scoundrel ! " cried Rankin. , " You have killed a man 
 worth a thousand of you ! " and, without waiting to draw his 
 other pistol, he lifted his heavy riding-whip, and, suddenly 
 wheeling his horse towards McQuillen, he gave the animal 
 the spur. The horse bounded forward, but McQuillen actively 
 evaded his charge, and, catching by the projecting roots of a 
 tree, swung himself up the bank, rushed into the thicket, and 
 disappeared with a wild shout. It was in vain to fire after, 
 or to pursue him there ; and Rankin, springing from the saddle, 
 and ascertaining by the distant crash of the bushes that 
 McQuillen was really retreating, proceeded to attend to his 
 unfortunate companion. 
 
 Atherton lay without apparent sense or motion. Rankin 
 brought water in his hat from a pool close at hand, and dashed 
 it in his face, and lifted his head upon his knees. George very 
 soon opened his eyes, and put his hand to his forehead. His 
 companion at once held to his lips a cup, procured from the 
 saddle-bags, containing brandy, which Major Redfield, at the 
 tavern that morning, had pronounced " a capital article," 
 
HOUSEHOLD SKETCHES. 315 
 
 mixed with a due proportion of water ; and, to llankin s 
 delight, George was soon able to sit upright and to declare 
 that he was not, as he believed, seriously injured. After rest 
 ing a while, by llankin s recommendation, that gentleman 
 proceeded to catch Atherton s horse, which had started off in 
 the melee, but soon came to a stand, and was now quietly crop 
 ping the herbage at no great distance. Binding a handker 
 chief round Atherton s head, from which considerable blood 
 had flowed, and which a strong hat undoubtedly had protected 
 a good deal, the travellers remounted. It was necessary at 
 first for Rankin to hold Atherton upon his saddle, so weak 
 had he become ; but, by moving slowly forward, and occa 
 sionally dismounting for rest, they at length reached the 
 high-road, and finally, after some hours, the hospitable house 
 of Major Redfield. 
 
 " Lord bless me ! " cried the major, " what is the matter ? " 
 Rankin gave him a rapid account of their adventure. " You 
 don t say so ! Shot by that rascally fellow, who never comes 
 over here ! I don t wonder at it. Let the poor young man lie 
 down on the sofa. Lucky the doctor s here, always stops 
 here about this hour. Where is the doctor? out in the 
 shed, getting his sulky " (looking out of the window). " Doctor, 
 doctor ! here s a patient, after all ; here s a young man shot 
 out in the woods by that McQuillen. I always thought some 
 mischief would come of him." 
 
 The physician, who was one of those country-doctors, whose 
 hard practice calls them to make extensive and daily rounds, 
 and who usually pulled up at Major Redfield s house every 
 day, to hear and communicate the news, and who was really 
 a person of a good deal of skill and experience, hastily 
 entered the apartment and carefully examined the condition 
 of his patient. He pronounced no bone broken, but recom 
 mended rest and light food, and thought that his hurt need 
 not delay his journey longer than the following day. 
 
 " You have come off cheap," said he, " Mr. Atherton; no 
 
316 EASTFORD; OR, 
 
 doubt your hat saved your head ; but this man, McQuil- 
 len, can strike a terrible hard blow. I don t see how he 
 missed doing you more injury ; but you seem to have an ex 
 cellent constitution, and with proper care you 11 soon come 
 round as bright as ever." 
 
 The prognostication of the doctor was substantially correct. 
 A good night s rest proved a wonderful restorative. Yet it 
 was not until the second succeeding day that Atherton, still a 
 good deal enfeebled, and presenting a rather ghastly appear 
 ance, felt himself able to proceed upon his homeward journey ; 
 and even then, only by easier stages, and after the lapse of 
 several days more than the upward journey had required, did 
 he eventually reach the hospitable house of Mr. llutledge. 
 His adventure in the woods secured him, of course, the ready 
 sympathy of that excellent gentleman and his good lady, who 
 would have detained him at their home for that refreshment 
 which they alleged he must need ; but Atherton was now too 
 impatient for Eastford to brook further delay. Indeed, 
 little was needed ; for Mr. May s letter, received during his 
 absence, urged the immediate sale of the property, and Mr. 
 llutledge had found a suitable purchaser willing to take it at 
 a fair price, with all its liabilities and incumbrances, as well 
 as its privileges and appurtenances. This business, therefore, 
 was speedily adjusted, and, bidding adieu to his eastern friends, 
 after a journey as rapid as the mail-coach could make it, our 
 young traveller stood once more by his father s hearth, and 
 was clasped in those heartfelt embraces, which life affords us 
 only at home. 
 
 We shall not attempt to describe the meeting, its love, 
 its interest, its sympathy, its gentle alarm (for he was still pale 
 and wore a bandage upon his head), its congratulations, its 
 pride, its happiness in the safe return of an only beloved son 
 to the arms of a father, a mother and a sister, 0, how dearly 
 loved ! 
 
 And yet there was another, seen before he slept. Will not 
 
HOUSEHOLD SKETCHES. 317 
 
 absence, which evidently had only tested and exalted his truth ; 
 will not the pale face of George Atherton, for, thank Heaven ! 
 suffering, real suffering, will melt a true woman s heart, will 
 not these touch her soul to the sweet issues of human pity and 
 love ? Will not Mary partake of some part of that simple but 
 dear enthusiasm of Alice, which had now converted her brother, 
 in her imagination, into half a hero ? We really abate tho 
 one-half ourselves, in order to save that sweet and lovely girl 
 from the senseless ridicule of an unheroic, and, therefore, an 
 unfeeling age. Nous verrons. 
 27* 
 
CHAPTER XXX. 
 
 " Our revels now are ended ; these our actors, 
 As I foretold you, were all spirits, and 
 Are melted into air, into thin air." 
 
 TEMPEST. 
 
 " Thou, who wast constant in our ills, be joyful in our joy J " 
 
 MACAULAY. 
 
 ATUERTON had been absent from home so long, that really 
 the summer was almost run away, upon his return. And 
 when we state that his recovery of health and strength was 
 extremely rapid, we need not assure our fair readers, that he 
 was prosperous in the lawful undertaking of Love; for we 
 conceive that ill success, in this respect, might have seriously 
 affected his spirits, and consequently his health. Indeed, we 
 confess ourselves believers in love, not that weak, diluted, 
 wishy-washy, milk and water potation, which a large propor 
 tion of respectable people sip lukewarm, and smack their lips, 
 and really believe to be the genuine article. In regard to 
 this, the world is right. Nobody ever sickened or died of it. 
 This dose, we make no question, may always be taken " with 
 out interfering with the ordinary avocations," and may be left 
 off, at any time, without serious inconvenience. But there is 
 another and a deeper feeling, of which such persons know 
 little or nothing, able " to subdue the cheek," to fill and con 
 trol the heart, and which, if it does not absorb the sources of 
 hope, and kill the life, makes out of human beings those nobler 
 creatures, whose thoughts and example save the world from 
 infinite degradation. 
 
EASTFORD; OR, HOUSEHOLD SKETCHES. 319 
 
 There is no doubt that Atherton s ambition had been more 
 or less gratified, by the successful result of his expedition into 
 Maine; so that his modest appreciation of himself that 
 " proud humility," which many mistook for coldness and even 
 hauteur received a slight fillip from the new sense of having 
 begun to be really useful in his day and generation. In a 
 word, he began, perhaps, to feel more sensibly the full force 
 of that great sentiment, which the Greek philosopher put 
 forth as his standing maxim, namely, "Above all things 
 reverence thyself," and which a much greater man has so 
 beautifully paraphrased and improved, 
 
 " This above all, to thino own self be true, 
 And it must follow, as the night the day, 
 Thou canst not then be false to any man." 
 
 On the other hand, Mary May, who had grown up in the 
 midst of the most affectionate relations with George Atherton, 
 and whose feelings were none the less strong, that they had 
 scarcely been defined even by her own secret thoughts, had 
 undoubtedly felt her womanly pride touched and wounded, 
 when she perceived that the ripening flower of her heart was 
 likely to be blighted by a chilling and untimely frost. 
 
 That a brief and frank conference would soon melt such 
 hearts into one, there can be no doubt ; and we rejoice to say 
 that a result so truly happy soon came to pass. Mr. May 
 cordially entered into this arrangement, when it was formally 
 announced to him, without any affected unconsciousness of 
 Mary s noble character, and congratulated Atherton upon the 
 promising prospect before him. 
 
 " We will say nothing of Mary, my dear boy," he observed. 
 " It. has always seemed to be a thing fated, and we are only 
 too happy that it is so ; but this property of Mary s, which 
 you have secured by your exertions, will give you really a very 
 handsome start in life." 
 
 " Indeed, sir," said George, surprised and much confused, 
 
320 KASTFORD J OR, 
 
 " I had no idea of that. I had no thought that Mary had 
 any particular interest in this property, except as your child. 
 I had only expected to do as well as I could with my usual 
 share of the ordinary profits of business in the office." 
 
 " Yes, yes, I have no doubt ; but in truth, as to this very 
 handsome sum of money, which really is, in some sort, the 
 spoils of your own bo\v and spear, I have never depended 
 upon it at all, and have no need of it. My wife s father con 
 veyed the land to her, before marriage, and it has just turned 
 up, at this late day, in season to prove a handsome dowry for 
 her daughter ; so say no more about it, my dear fellow, but 
 consider that matter settled." 
 
 Indeed, this turn of affairs, as propitious as it was unex 
 pected, seemed to remove all obstacles to a speedy union ; 
 and, as the marriage of Alice had been fixed upon for October, 
 now close at hand, it was concluded, with universal consent, 
 that the two weddings should be celebrated on the same day. 
 
 To Aunt Sibyl this happy consummation of events afforded 
 unalloyed pleasure. She had always found her chief earthly 
 delight in the happiness of others. These young hearts she 
 had watched from infancy, and had aided not a little to culti 
 vate and raise ; and with those whom she loved so dearly, 
 many happy meetings, during the now brief hours of court 
 ship which remained, and many sage consultations, took place 
 at her house. It was from her Atherton had learned, in a 
 little private conference one morning, that Mary had seemed 
 to suffer a good deal in her health, some months before, in 
 deed, so much as to occasion her affectionate relative much 
 alarm ; and it was in reference to this development, as we 
 suppose, that he sang that song, at her house, a few evenings 
 before the marriage, to which Aunt Sibyl listened with such 
 gentle arid sober pleasure ; while Mary hung down her head, 
 though she looked then like anything but a fading flower, if a 
 good rosy color, somewhat heightened under the circum 
 stances, afford any reliable indication. 
 
HOUSEHOLD SKETCHES. 321 
 
 SONG. 
 
 " With you, mctbinks, my every hour 
 
 Of every day and every night, 
 Like creature winged from flower to flower, 
 Were only flown for fresh delight. 
 
 ** Your bloom, not so the morning rose 
 
 Embosomed in her blushes lies, 
 Nor deep through midnight s azure glows 
 A beam to match those love-lit eyes. 
 
 And sweet as song, that faints remote, 
 
 Of evening s home-returning bird, 
 Or softer wind-harp s airy note, 
 
 Breathes to my soul your whispered word. 
 
 * Yet, like some pledge of priceless worth, 
 
 I hold you in my bosom s shrine, 
 And deem it joy too dear for earth, 
 Whene er I dare to call you mine. 
 
 " For on your charms I feel impressed 
 
 What earthly charms, alas, must prove ! 
 And, folded to a human breast, 
 Almost divine becomes my love. 
 
 " And such a love for mortal thing, 
 
 So sweet, but 0, so insecure ! 
 Broods like an angel o er the spring, 
 And keeps the troubled waters pure." 
 
 And now we have reached the closing season of the year. 
 The viewless and silent boundaries of summer are behind our 
 advancing steps. The revolution of the circling months has 
 presented us with the same infinite variety of mysterious de 
 velopments. Once more, beneath their annual course, has 
 winter opened his icy arms and released us from his cold em 
 brace. Once more our brows have bathed in the gales of 
 spring. Once more, we have sought the cooler shade, beneath 
 the blazing eye of June ; and now, again we stand amidst 
 the harvest-hour. Under the order of a beneficent Provi 
 dence, the annual hopes of man have been crowned with their 
 
322 EASTFORD J OR, 
 
 never-failing fulfilment. The fields, which so Lately cheered 
 our eyes with hues more rich and precious than the wroughtcn 
 gold, have yielded their luxuriant treasures to our teeming 
 stores. Of all the gay and gallant train, which, in the open 
 ing hour of Nature, 
 
 " Do paint the meadows with delight," 
 
 but a scattered few are lingering on the confines of the closing 
 season. The very leaves which, but yesterday, had wrapped 
 the forest in its fresh and verdant mantle above our heads, 
 are dropping from their parent stems, to lie strown and with 
 ered beneath our feet. The airs of heaven, that but lately 
 whispered to us, in soft and soothing tones, of every fragrant 
 and lovely thing, are sighing, with mournful voices, along the 
 naked ground. The insect tribe, that sported in the glitter 
 ing beams, radiant with a thousand brilliant hues, are seeking 
 their wintry resting-places, and preparing for their long repose. 
 And those gentler and brighter creatures, that filled the 
 groves and living air with melodious warblings, are spreading 
 their buoyant sails, to find another summer beneath the skies 
 of some more genial clime. 
 
 And yet, with anything but sorrow, do we look upon the 
 fading skirts of the departing year. If every returning sea 
 son possesses its own peculiar charms, surely in this we might 
 find the thoughts and suggestions, most fitted to excite the 
 nobler emotions of our hearts. Of all the vicissitudes of 
 Nature, there is no one which presents her in an aspect so 
 attractive. Not every budding promise of Spring, nor all the 
 variegated vesture of gorgeous and glowing Summer, can 
 inspire us rightfully with an equal delight. From hill, and 
 meadow, and plain, now so bare and silent, we have gathered 
 the reward of all our toil. The yellow stubble rises upon our 
 view, in testimony of our garnered hopes. We are filled with 
 food convenient for us, and Nature herself puts on triumphal 
 garments, to unite with us in celebrating the hour of plenty 
 
HOUSEHOLD SKETCHES. 323 
 
 and joy. The secret flood, which pierces the fibres of the liv 
 ing wood, has robed its drapery in gold and purple and a min 
 gled garniture of every dazzling and glorious hue. The clear 
 and frosty air folds us, like a mantle, in its elastic embrace. 
 Like the welcome grasp of some friendly arm, it seems almost 
 to support our drooping steps, and, with its animating breath, 
 awakens the sluggish current in our veins, and nerves us to 
 meet the ruder touches of the storm. 
 
 The fields, indeed, have lost their former freshness. They 
 arc no longer clad in the greenness of their early verdure. 
 The scorching sun of many a livelong summer s day has sucked 
 the vital moisture from herb and spiry grass, and all the 
 sweet, innumerous company of summer flowers have long since 
 faded upon their withered stalks. 
 
 And yet those very elements of the living atmosphere, 
 which forever fling along the western autumnal horizon those 
 richest of all magnificent and mingled dyes, melting, as the 
 twilight hour draws on, into one deep and fervid blaze of 
 glowing golden light, call also from the bosom of mother 
 Earth the perfection of whatever is brightest in her ever- vary 
 ing hues. Of all the lovely tints, which Nature has prepared 
 to refresh the eye and to cultivate the imagination of her 
 children, she offers nothing more lovely than the gorgeous 
 spike of flowering gold, which droops in luxuriant beauty by 
 the rustic roadside, or that bright flower, which hangs its 
 scarlet crown by the secret margin of some forest-brook. 
 
 As if our common mother, about to retire into her inner 
 chambers for a season, yet loth that her children should lose 
 the remembrance of perfections that bind them to her in rev 
 erence and love, had arrayed herself for her departure in her 
 most costly apparel ; to fix within our souls one last indelible 
 impression of her maternal loveliness and kindly care, until 
 she could greet us once again, led on by the rejoicing 
 spring, heralded by opening flowers, wreathed with returning 
 smiles ! 
 
324 EASTFORD J OR, 
 
 What we mean to observe is, that our autumnal season in 
 New England certainly is by far the most agreeable portion 
 of the year. Nothing can surpass the purity of our October 
 skies. And this same clearness and elasticity of the atmos 
 phere often lasts through the month of November, so gloomy 
 elsewhere, and sometimes far down the wintry domain of 
 December itself. And when the fallen leaves lie scattered in 
 gay but natural confusion, and of variegated and mingling 
 hues, no art of man has ever carpeted the floors of palaces 
 with richer colors, as the sun glances upon the gorgeous cover 
 ing which strews the forest-walk. 
 
 It was at this fitting period of the ripened and mellow year, 
 that the Reverend John Atherton united his son to the wife 
 of his choice, and his daughter to the husband of her youth, 
 in the holy bonds of matrimony. We have no intention of 
 describing the wedding. After the fashion of Presbyterianism, 
 and, shall we add, of good taste? it was strictly private. For 
 we should as soon think of asking the world to be present at 
 our first passionate declaration of love, as to summon it in, 
 with its impertinent smiles or tears, to witness the celebration 
 of our own personal nuptials. Soon after the fervent and 
 heartfelt blessing had been pronounced, it was necessary for 
 Shirland and Alice to take their departure, in order that they 
 might reach, seasonably, the pretty cottage they were to in 
 habit in the neighborhood of Oxton, with glad promises to her 
 mother and her other dear friends of a speedy visit home. 
 The presents of the bride we are unable tit present to recapitu 
 late. This we do know, however, that in one of her trunks 
 lay, neatly folded, a bedquilt " of divers colors of needle 
 work," curiously contrived in squares, and wrought by the 
 kind and industrious hands of Aunt Sibyl ; and that another, 
 of a precisely similar description, then and long afterwards 
 continued to cover the second-best bed in the pleasant " garden- 
 house " at Eastford, to which George Atherton conducted his 
 lovely bride. 
 
HOUSEHOLD SKETCHES. 325 
 
 We do not propose, in this volume, to enter into any fur 
 ther details of the lives and fortunes of these young people, 
 which, it must be confessed, were likely to prove as happy as 
 mutual love and sound principle could make them, and the 
 condition of human affairs permits. 
 
 Of some of our other characters, it is proper we should 
 afford the friendly reader such reliable information as we have 
 been able to obtain. 
 
 Place CLUX dames ! This is the law of chivalry ; and what 
 ever may be the faults of the New England character, want 
 of gallantry to the sex is not one of them. And first, of 
 our excellent friend, Miss Sibyl Dudley. She is still tho 
 object of an affection, bordering on veneration, to a select cir 
 cle of estimable friends, including not a few of the more 
 promising of the rising generation. We called upon her, 
 of course, at our last visit to Eastford. Time had gently 
 touched the pleasant face of the delightful old lady with an 
 influence " frosty but kindly." In her serene eye, age had 
 only softened and sanctified that light of heaven, which was 
 vouchsafed to the innocence of her unclouded youth. She 
 was sitting at her western window, upon which the setting sun 
 threw a pleasing and chequered light, through a trellised 
 bower of honeysuckles and roses. Her knitting-work lay 
 upon her open Bible, on the little table near her arm-chair. 
 A cross-handled cane, standing conveniently near, we regretted 
 to learn, was necessary to assist her steps, under a recent 
 attack of rheumatism, consequent, as some said, upon the 
 indulgence of her gardening habits, during a long spell of 
 extremely damp weather. We were favored with a too brief, 
 but, we trust, edifying discourse, with our old friend, upon the 
 substantial enjoyment which may, after all, be secured in this 
 vale of tears, by persons of true feeling and sound, controlling 
 rectitude of purpose. 
 
 As for Miss Poulter, she caught a terrible cold by running 
 round, early and late, to communicate and discuss the extraor- 
 28 
 
326 EASTFORD ; OR, 
 
 dinary event of two weddings in one house, " on the same 
 day, dear, and out of the same family ! " Black Nance pro 
 nounced this a judgment upon her, an opinion which Mr. 
 Atherton reproved ; alleging that it is impossible for us, in our 
 weakness, to judge of the causes and reasons of the misfor 
 tunes or afflictions of our fellow-creatures ; and that we arc 
 incapable of making any legitimate application in regard to 
 matters far above our reach ; that experience as well as Scrip 
 ture may convince us, that the prosperity of the wicked is often 
 their greatest curse, while affliction is frequently a most mer 
 ciful dispensation; repressing that pride of heart, which would 
 lead many into presumptuous sin, and moulding us by a chas 
 tening hand, and so forming the character to virtue. 
 
 Nance admitted the soundness of these views of the minis 
 ter, so far as she understood them ; but " Lor," said she, 
 " guess got too much old Adam in dis colored pusson." 
 
 After a very severe time of it, Miss Poulter slowly recov 
 ered, and, upon one of his occasional visits to Eastford, it was 
 thought that Mr. Prior Date was rather making up to her. 
 But to the credit of that discreet lady be it said, she would 
 have nothing whatever to do with him, on the score of his 
 infidel notions, more especially, at least, they never got 
 further than the announcement of these. This argued well 
 for her virtuous resolution, for the temptation was certainly 
 strong ; since it is not likely she had enjoyed many opportu 
 nities of preferment in marriage, at least, of late years. But 
 she dismissed Date remorselessly, or, as she put it, " sent him 
 off with a flea in his ear," bitterly inveighing, then and after 
 wards, against the sex of the mother who bore him. 
 
 Nance herself, with a tenacity of life of which her race 
 has afforded many remarkable examples, at a very advanced 
 age, continued to keep up, as far as possible, the routine of 
 her visits, duties and labors, and, we have no doubt, did a 
 great deal of good in her humble way, and no mischief, that 
 we were ever aware of. The younger folks, whom her ap- 
 
HOUSEHOLD SKETCHES. 327 
 
 pcarancc and demeanor affected with childish apprehensions, 
 in her earlier days, got over their terrors, as they grew up. 
 As she has become older, her venerable features are hand 
 somely set off by profuse locks of silver gray, and her whole 
 figure presents a highly respectable appearance. The expres 
 sion of her intelligent face has softened very much with ad 
 vancing years, and a really good heart has left stamped on her 
 countenance the signet of amiable feelings, as the wilder pas 
 sions of her youth have decayed. The striplings of succeed 
 ing generations, however, have continued to hold her in an 
 awe which, whether absolutely wholesome or otherwise, we 
 should be glad to see substituted for that want of reverence, 
 too frequently manifested towards the aged by the youngsters 
 of our times. 
 
 Miss Elizabeth Flyter who would believe it? has 
 consented to become Mrs. Cobstalk, failing her former predi 
 lection for George Atherton. The charms of Miss Flyter 
 made an indelible impression on the heart of Cobstalk, at the 
 picnic which we have formerly described. Soon after tho 
 completion of his legal studies, that young gentleman com 
 menced the practice of his profession at Oxton, where his 
 shrewdness and perseverance soon put him in the way of suc 
 cess. And, in our opinion, Miss Flyter acted wisely, in ac 
 cepting a man of good sense, who really loved her, though of 
 unpolished manners (which are gradually losing much of their 
 uncouthness), to a mere fop, like Simcox, who had nothing 
 but fashionable manners to recommend him. Bundle s ad 
 vances, it appeared, came to nothing. From their style of 
 life, we infer that the fortune of Mrs. Cobstalk was large, as 
 might be anticipated from the penurious habits of her father. 
 For old Mr. Flyter came, at last, to that small possession, 
 (carrying nothing with him) which at length awaits both rich 
 and poor. He practised upon his " rule " to the last ; and we 
 had the satisfaction of reading upon his handsome monument, 
 not long since, an inscription, all the letters of which were 
 
328 EASTFORD; OR, HOUSEHOLD SKETCHES. 
 
 gilded, and which was really generous, the only generous 
 thing, we may say, with which his name was ever associated, 
 
 pronouncing him " a man of the strictest integrity and 
 consistency of life." Part of- it was in the Latin language, 
 of which the respected defunct never knew a word, and began, 
 " Integer vitse scelerisque purus." 
 
 A comfortable provision was made by Athcrton for Peggy 
 Arey. 
 
 The last we heard of Date, he had become deeply inter 
 ested in the ministrations of the llcv. Mr. Thumper, a gentle 
 man who emphatically sat " in the seat of the scornful," and 
 entertained a select but numerous audience, every Sunday, 
 with furious outpourings of infidelity, blasphemy and sedition, 
 
 which are but other words for " blindness of heart, pride, 
 vain-glory and hypocrisy : envy, hatred, malice and all un- 
 charitableness; " which they seemed to love, and which may, 
 for aught we know, be grateful to the natural man, and which 
 promised to be of great service in helping them down the 
 easy road to perdition. 
 
 The long and useful life of Dr. Walton closed soon after 
 the birth of his first great-grandchild, at Eastford; but not 
 before the curly-headed urchin had been often taken to the 
 residence of the benevolent old man, and held in his feeble 
 arms ; an operation which its mother watched with true mater 
 nal anxiety. 
 
 When we made our call, beforementioncd, on good Miss 
 Dudley, we had the pleasure also of visiting the elder 
 branches of the Athcrtons and the Mays; and it was delight 
 ful to witness the peaceable course of their lives, gliding on 
 wards in calm contentment and rational happiness, amidst the 
 endearments of mutual friendship and love. Undisturbed 
 by the follies and unsophisticated by the corruptions of the 
 world, it was evident their hearts were at home ; and such 
 hearts never grow old. 
 
ANDREWS SERIES OF LATIN SCHOOL BOOKS. 
 
 PUBLISHED BY CROCKER & BREVVSTER, 
 
 47 WASHINGTON STREET, BOSTON. 
 
 The Latin School Books prepared by Prof. E. A. ANDREWS, exclusive of his 
 Latin-English Lexicon, founded on the Latin-German Lexicon of Dr. Freund, 
 constitute two distinct series, adapted to different and distinct purposes. The 
 basis of the First Series is Andrews First Latin Book; of the Second, An 
 drews and Stoddard s Latin Grammar. 
 
 FIRST SERIES. 
 
 This Series is designed expressly for those who commence the study of 
 Latin at a very early age, and for such as intend to pursue it to a limited ex 
 tent only, or merely as subsidiary to the acquisition of a good English educa 
 tion. It consists of the following works, viz. : 
 
 1. Andrews First Latin Book; or Progressive Les 
 sons in Heading and Writing Latin. This small volume contains most of the 
 leading principles and grammatical forms of the Latin language, and, by the 
 logical precision of its rules and definitions, is admirably fitted to serve as an 
 introduction to the study of general grammar. The work is divided into les 
 sons of convenient length, which are so arranged that the student will, in all 
 cases, be prepared to enter upon the study of each successive lesson, by pos 
 sessing a thorough knowledge of those which preceded it. The lessons gen 
 erally consist of three parts: 1st. The statement of important principles in 
 the form of rules or definitions, or the exhibition of orthographical or etymo 
 logical forms ; 2d. Exercises, designed to illustrate such principles or forms ; 
 and 3d. Questions, intended to assist the student in preparing his lesson. In 
 addition to the grammatical lessons contained in this volume, a few pages of 
 Reading Lessons are annexed, and these are followed by a Dictionary com 
 prising all the Latin words contained in the work. This book is adapted to 
 the use of all schools above the grade of primary schools, including also 
 Academies and Female Seminaries. It is prepared in such a manner that it 
 can be used with little difficulty by any intelligent parent or teacher, with no 
 previous knowledge of the language. 
 
 2. The Latin Reader, with a Dictionary and Notes, 
 
 containing explanations of difficult idioms, and numerous references to the 
 Lessons contained in the First Latin Book. 
 
 3. The Viri Romas, with a Dictionary and Notes, re 
 ferring, like those of the Reader, to the First Latin Book. This series of 
 three small volumes, if faithfully studied according to the directions contained 
 in them, will not only render the student a very tolerable proficient in the 
 principles of the Latin language and in the knowledge of its roots, from 
 which so many words of the English language are derived, but will constitute 
 the best preparation for a thorough study of English grammar. 
 
 SECOND SERIES. 
 
 This Series is designed more especially for those who are intending to be 
 come thoroughly acquainted with the Latin language, and with the principal 
 classical authors of that language. It consists of the following works: 
 
 1. Latin Lessons. This small volume is designed for 
 
 the younger classes of Latin students, who intend ultimately to take up the 
 larger Grammar, but to whom that work would, at first, appear too formida 
 ble. It contains the prominent principles of Latin grammar, expressed iu 
 the same language as in the larger Grammar, and likewise Reading and 
 Writing Lessons, with a Dictionary of the Latin words and phrases occurring 
 in the Lessons. 
 
New Series of Latin School Books. 
 
 2. Latin Grammar. A Grammar of the Latin Lan 
 guage, for the use of Schools and Colleges. By Professors E. A. ANDKK >vs 
 and S. STODDARD. This work, which for many years has been the ttxt-book 
 in the department of Latin Grammar in a large portion of American schools 
 and colleges, and which claims the merit of having first introduced into tho 
 schools of this country the subject of grammatical analysis, which now occu 
 pies a conspicuous place in so many grammars of the English language, has 
 been recently revised and carefully corrected in every part. 
 
 3. Questions on the Grammar. This little volume 
 
 is intended to aid the student in preparing his lessons, and the teacher in 
 conducting his recitations. 
 
 4. A Synopsis of Latin Grammar, comprising the 
 
 Latin Paradigms, and the Principal Rules of Latin Etymology and Syntax. 
 The few pages composing this work contain those portions of the Grammar 
 to which the student has occasion to refer most frequently in the preparation 
 of his daily lessons. 
 
 5. Latin Reader. The Reader, by means of two sepa 
 rate and distinct sets of notes, is equally adapted for use in connection either 
 with the First Latin Book or the Latin Grammar. 
 
 6. Viri Romas. This volume, like the Reader, is fur 
 nished with notes and references, both to the First Latin Book and to the 
 Latin Grammar. The principal difference in the two sets of notes found in 
 each of these volumes consists in the somewhat greater fulness of those 
 which belong to the smaller series. 
 
 7. Latin Exercises. This work contains exercises in 
 
 every department of the Latin Grammar, and is so arranged that it may be 
 studied in connection with the Grammar through every stage of the prepara 
 tory course. It is designed to prepare the way for original composition in the 
 Latin language, both in prose and verse. 
 
 8. A Key to Latin Exercises. This Key, in which 
 
 all the exercises in the preceding volume are fully corrected, is intended for 
 the use of teachers only. 
 
 9. Caesar s Commentaries on the Gallic War, with a 
 
 Dictionary and Notes. The text of this edition of Crcsar has been formed by 
 reference to the best German editions. The Notes are principally grammati 
 cal. The Dictionary, which, like all the others in the series, was prepared 
 with great labor, contains the usual significations of the words, together with 
 an explanation of all such phrases as might otherwise perplex the student. 
 
 10. Sallust. Sallusfs Jugurthine War and Conspiracy of 
 
 Catiline, with a Dictionary and Notes. The text of this work, which was 
 based upon that of Cortius, has been modified by reference to the best modern 
 editions, especially by those of Kritz and Geriach ; and its orthography is, in 
 general, conformed to that of Pottier and Planche. The Dictionaries of 
 Caesar and Sallust connected with this scries are original works, and, in con 
 nection with the Notes in each volume, furnish a very complete and satisfac 
 tory apparatus for the study of these two authors. 
 
 11. Ovid. Selections from the Metamorphoses and Hero 
 
 ides of Ovid, with Notes, Grammatical References, and Exercises in Scanning. 
 These selections from Ovid are designed as an introduction to Latin poetry. 
 They are accompanied with numerous brief notes explanatory of difficult 
 phr-iscs, of obscure historical or mythological allusions, and especially of 
 grammatical difficulties. To these arc added such Exercises in Scanning as 
 nerve fully to introduce the student t6 a knowledge of Latin prosody, and 
 especially of the structure and laws of hexameter and pentameter verse. 
 
New Series of Latin School Books. 
 
 ANDREWS AND STODDARD S LATIN GRAMMAR has long since been intro 
 duced into the LATIN SCHOOL OF THE CITY OF BOSTON, and into most 
 of the other principal Classical Schools in this country. It is adopted by 
 all the Colleges in New England, viz., HARVARD, YALE, DARTMOUTH, 
 AMHERST, WILLIAMS, BOWDOIN, WATERVILLE, MIDDLEBURV, BURLING 
 TON, BROWN UNIVERSITY at Providence, WESLEYAN UNIVERSITY at Mid- 
 dletown,and WASHINGTON COLLEGE at Hartford; also at HAMILTON COL 
 LEGE, New York, NEW YORK UNIVERSITY, city of New York, CINCINNATI 
 COLLEGE and MARIETTA COLLEGE, Ohio, RANDOLPH MACON COLLEGE, 
 Virginia, MOUNT HOPE COLLEGE, near Baltimore, MARYLAND INSTITUTE 
 OF INSTRUCTION and ST. MARY S COLLEGE, Baltimore, and the UNIVER 
 SITIES OF MICHIGAN and ALABAMA; and has been highly recommended 
 by Professors Kingsley, Woolsey, Olmstead, and Gibbs, of Yale College; 
 Professor Beck, of Harvard College ; President Penney and Professor North, 
 of Hamilton College; Professor Packard, of Bowdoin College; Professor 
 Holland, of Washington College ; Professor Fisk, of Amherst College, and 
 by Professor Hackelt, of Brown University ; also by Messrs. Dillaway 
 and Gardner, of the Boston Latin School; Rev. Lyman Colrnan, of the 
 English High School, Andover; Hon. John Hall, Principal of the Elling 
 ton School, Conn. ; Mr. Shaler, Principal of the Connecticut Literary 
 Institution, at Suffield ; Simeon Hart, Esq., Farmington, Conn.; Pro 
 fessor Cogswell, of Round Hill School, Northampton; President Shan 
 non, of Louisiana College, and by various periodicals. 
 
 As a specimen of the communications received from the above sources, 
 the following extracts are given : 
 
 It gives me great pleasure to bear my testimony to the superior merits of the 
 Latin Grammar lately edited by Professor Andrews and Mr. Stoddnrd. I express 
 most cheerfully, unhesitatingly, and decidedly, my preference of this Grammar 
 to that of Adam, which has, for so long a time, kept almost undisputed sway 
 in our schools. Dr. C. Heck, Professor of Latin in Harvard University. 
 
 I know of no grammar published in this country, which promises to answer so 
 well the purposes of elementary classical instruction, and shall be glad to see i . 
 introduced into our best schools. Mr. Charles K. Dillaway, Master of the. 
 Public Latin School, Boston. 
 
 Your new Latin Grammar appears to me much better suited to the use of 
 students than any other grammar I am acquainted with. Professor William 
 AL Holland, Washington College, Hartford, Conn. 
 
 I can with much pleasure say that your Grammar seems to me much better 
 adapted to the present condition and wants of our schools than any one with which 
 I am acquainted, and to supply that which has long been wanted a good Latin 
 grammar for common use. Mr. F. Gardner, one of the Masters Boston Lat. &ch. 
 
 The Latin Grammar of Andrews and Stoddard is deserving, in my opinion, of 
 the approbation which so many of our ablest teachers have bestowed upon it. 
 It is believed that, of all the grammars at present before the public, tiiis has 
 greatly the advantage, in regard both to the excellence of its arrangement, ana 
 the accuracy and copiousness of its information; and it is earnestly hoped that 
 its merits will procure for it that general favor and use to which it is entitled. 
 //. B. Uar.kett, Professor of Biblical Literature in Newton Thcul. Sem. 
 
 The universal favor with which this Grammar is received was not unexpected. 
 It will bear a thorough and discriminating examination. In the use of well- 
 det uipd and expressive terms, especially in the syntax, we know of no Latin Or 
 Grr.ok grammar which is to be compared to this. Amer. Quarterly Register. 
 
 The Latin Grammar of Andrews and Stoddard I consider a work of great 
 ni-rit. I have found in it several principles of the Latin language correctly ex 
 plained which I had myself learned from a twenty years stiulv of that language, 
 but had never seen illustrated in any grammar. Andrevvs s First Lcssona I con- 
 
 3 
 
New Series of Latin School Books. 
 
 Bider a valuable work for beginners, and in the sphere which it is designed to 
 occupy, I know not that I have met its equal. Rev. James Shannon, President 
 qf College of Louisiana. 
 
 These works will furnish a series of elementary publications for the study of 
 Latin altogether in advance of any thing which has hitherto appeared, either in 
 this country or in England. American Biblical Repository. 
 
 We have made Andrews and Stoddard s Latin Grammar the subject both of 
 reference and recitation daily for several months, and I cheerfully and decidedly 
 bear testimony to its superior excellence to any manual of the kind with which 
 I am acquainted. Every part bears the impress of a careful compiler. The 
 principles of syntax are happily developed in the rules, whilst those relating to 
 the moods and tenses supply an important deficiency in our former grammars. 
 The rules of prosody are also clearly and fully exhibited. Rev. Lyman Cole- 
 man, Principal of Burr Seminary, Manchester, Vt. 
 
 1 have examined Andrews and Stoddard s Latin Grammar, and regard it as 
 superior to any thing of the kind now in use. It is what has long been needed, 
 and will undoubtedly be welcomed by every one interested in the philology of 
 the Latin language. We shall hereafter use it as a text-book in this institution. 
 Mr. Wm. H. Shaler, Principal of the Connecticut Lit. Institution at Svffield. 
 
 This work bears evident marks of great care and skill, and ripe and accurate 
 scholarship in the authors. It excels most grammars in this particular that, 
 while by its plainness it is suited to the necessities of most beginners, by its 
 fulness and detail it will satisfy the inquiries of the advanced scholar, and will 
 be a suitable companion at all stages of his progress. We cordially commend 
 it to the student and teacher. Biblical Repository. 
 
 Your Grammar is what I expected it would be an excellent book, and just tho 
 thing which was needed. We cannot hesitate a moment in hying aside the 
 books now in use, and introducing this. Rev.J. Penney, D. D., President of 
 Hamilton College, New York. 
 
 Your Grammar bears throughout evidence of original and thorough investiga 
 tion and sound criticism. I hope, and doubt not, it will be adopted in our schools 
 and colleges, it being, in my apprehension, so far as simplicity is concerned, on 
 the one hand, and philosophical views and sound scholarship on the other, far 
 preferable to other grammars ; a work at the same time highly creditable to your 
 selves and to our country. Professor A. Packard, Bowdoin College, Maine. 
 
 This Grammar appears to me to be accommodated alike to the wants of the 
 new beginner and the experienced scholar, and, as such, well fitted to supply 
 what has long been felt to be a great desideratum in the department of classical 
 learning. Professor 8. North, Hamilton College, New York. 
 
 From such an examination of this Grammar as 1 have been able to give it, 1 
 do not hesitate to pronounce it superior to any other with which I am acquainted. 
 I have never seen, any where, a greater amount of valuable matter compressed 
 within limits equally narrow. Hon. John Hall, Prin. of Ellington School, Conn. 
 
 We have no hesitation in pronouncing this Grammar decidedly superior to 
 any now in use. Boston Recorder. 
 
 I am ready to express my great satisfaction with your Grammar, and do not 
 hesitate to say, that 1 am better pleased with such portions of the syntax as 1 
 have perused, than with the corresponding portions in any other grnmmar with 
 which I am acquainted. Professor N. W. Fiske, Amherst Collect, Mm. 
 
 I know of no grammar in the Latin language so well adapted to answer the 
 purpose for which it was designed as this. The book of Questions is a valuable 
 attendant of the Grammar. Simeon Hart, Esq., Farmington, Conn. 
 
 This Grammar has received the labor of years, and is the result of much re 
 flection and experience, and mature scholarship. As such, it claim? the ntten- 
 tiou of all who are interested in the promotion of sound learning. N. ) . (>/.. 
 
 This Grammar is an ori jinnl work. Its arrangement is philosophical, and it* 
 rules clear and precise, beyond thoue of any other grammar wu IIUM: BCCII 
 Portland ( kriatittH Mirror. 
 
 4 
 
:> 3