StandishthePuritan 10120986 PDF

(DAN S TAC K
E n t er ed , ac c o r di n g t o A ct of C o ngr es s , in t h e y e ar on e t hou san d

e ight h d d a
u n re n d fif t y, by
HA R PE R B R O THE RS ,
in t he C l er k s O ffice o f t he Di st r ic t
’
C ou r t o f t he S o u t he rn Di st r i ct
of N ew Y or k .
LE WIS G A Y LO R D C LA R K E , E S Q .
MY EA R
D S IR ,
First and foremost let me thank you fo r your kin d per
,
mission to dedicate this effor t in the way of literatu re to

you and particularly for the kind m anner in which that
,
permission was expressed A s you h ave never se en the

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manuscript , I hope should the work prove a failure that

, ,
the public will attribute the interest you felt for its suc ces s
rather to a desire f or the cause of literatu r e generally t h an ,
from any mistaken merit that you may have suppo sed th at
these volumes pos sessed .
Many years ago when engaged in an arduous and sla v

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ish profession my m ind often became oppressed in invest i

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gating the a fla ir s of others I was wont at such times t o

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disenthrall myself b yemploying my pen upon subj ects mo r e

congenial to my tastes Crude an d undigested as they
.
were you gave them a consequence by publishing them in

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your valuable peri o dical whi ch oth erwise they never would
,
have attaine d The kind manner in which their im p er fec

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tions were overlooked and the encomiums you were pleased

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to bestow upon them are the chief inducement that prompt

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ed me to write a work more in detail and at least with an

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endeavor to render it more worthy the attention of the pub

lic My first recollections are fixed upon s cenes of our R ev
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iv D E DI C A T I O N .
l t io n
o u as recounted by a gr and parent who se r ved in the
,
-
war and whose two brothers were kill ed at the battle of

,
Wyoming There were certai n characters that he was in

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the habit of d escribing who became im portant per sonages

in my memory and I have long felt that I would like to
,
have the time , that I might be enabled t o group them in the

vesture I s aw them in in my youth I commenced the fol .
lowing pages during a short sojourn with my connections at

their rural abode in Georgia a n d have written the remain
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der at different periods and at various places and I should ,
not at all be surprised if a want of succinctness should be

the consequence The history of those times and the va
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,
r io u s actors engaged therein belong to the public and to

, ,
them I be queath them—the latter to be dealt with accord

in g to their deserts ; and as they have long since passed
away I must ask that charity be extended to such of them
,
a s would seem to merit disapprobation , for after all , per ,
h aps I may have done them injustice .
’
With sentiments of great respect your and the public s ,
obed ient servant ,
THE A U T H O R .
N w Y k J
e or y 1 8 50
,
an u ar , .
S TA N DIS H THE P U R I TA N
’
!
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C HA P TE R I .
TH E R E is pe riod in early life when sensations oc cur

n o
so varied i n th e ir c haracter so painfu l yet so pleasing so

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full o f hop e s a n d fears as when k in dred spirits in a senior

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class at college ; meet together for the l ast time prior to

going into the world a n d enterin g into its busy scenes .
The t ies of friendship which are formed in four years in

—
the same pursuits the investigation of the same sciences ,
a n d t he co n t in u ed in terchange of thought and sentiment

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int er weave as it were the a ffections upon our natures

, ,
which endure as long as we live ; and if it so happen tha t

t hey become dimmed in the pursuit of fame or fortune yet ,
there are seasons in our lives when they return back to us

in their original freshness and we yearn after those friends
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of early life with a subdued and religiou s feelin g that shows ,
how much purer and nobler they are th an any friendships

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which are formed thereafter

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Just before the breakin g out of the Am erican war a ,
few friends of the senior class of “ W College met to take

their final l eave of each other The anticipations of going
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back to their parents the meeting of brothers and sisters

,
whom they would fin d there the bright eyes that would

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glance upon them at the vil lage church upon the coming
Sabbath and perhaps too , from one whose heart had been
wont to be at q uicker than usual when in his presence—a ll
, ,
6 STANDI SH THE PU RITAN .
aided in dispelling the gloom for the moment that awaited

”
the last God bless you .
George De l E u r had received the first honors of the

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college and had a discerning eye seen hi m with his fel

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lows though a str anger he would have been selected as in

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t el l ec t u al l y superior to the rest H is compact forehea d .

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quick clear hazel §3Y 6 shaded by brown hair with a stu

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dent like carelessness ih t he arrangement with an erect

- —
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and manly person of five feet t e n stamped him with a su ,
e r io r it y the for c e of whi ch m os t of his fellows a c kn o w l

p
~
edged .
A s George De l E u r was con f ess edly at the h ead o f his

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class morall y as well as intell ectuall y so was Julius Caesar

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Snif fing a t its foot physically mentally and m orally

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Smal l in stature With little , quick an d s erpent like eyes

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denoting a degree of low cunning and hypocrisy , and at ,
the same time an incapacity for friendship or an y o f the
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nobler instincts of man , he fancied De l E u r or r ather he ’

, , ,
followed him , the same as inferior animals are found in the
track of the more noble So long as there was any thing to .
gain he would crin ge and fawn ; yet De l E u r owned t he

,
’
influence of nature : he had tolerated him aided him in ,
his studies and when others were disposed to pass him b y

, ,
h is influence wou l d insure him at least a decent reception .
E ven S n ifl in g s nature had relaxed from its natural s el fish

’
ness by a long association with nobler minds in t he pursuit

of a liberalizing e ducation ; and he too felt to some ex , , ,
tent the desolating eff ects of breaking u p the social com

, ,
pact inferior as he felt himself to be to the master spirits

,
which reigned in the halls of Ai r n a Mater ”

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Wil liam Standish was another of the graduates and he ,
was De l E u r s friend and would have b e en his peer had

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he had his friend s application H e was the son of a wealthy

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farmer an d as he was an only son an d intended to succeed

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h im in his rural pursuits he did n o t see why he shoul d ,
s pend all his time over the Latin and Greek authors the
,
more especially as they had been already rendered into far

STANDISH T HE PURITAN .
better E nglish than he co uld ever hope to accomplish H e .
was almost intuitively a mathematician and quite the equal ,
of De l E u r with h al f the study ; and thou gh Sta ndish was

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gay and sometimes almost reckless , yet k indness was his

,
essential characteristic Saxon blood was traceable in every

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line of his features : light hair florid complexion sangu in , ,
e o u s in hi s temperament as brave as a lion i n his wrath , ,
but with a heart like a child s when misfortune claimed his ’
attention ; and though De l E u r s temp er in the main was

,
’ ’
the op p osite of his digni fied in deportment reserved in con

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versation fond of retirement yet at times there was an

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outbreak of t he same imp assio ned and intense feelings in

common wi t h the two upon an exciting subject min gling ,
their two characters together as if derived from the same

fountain of intellect There were times in their disputa
.
tions when a word would escape that could be construed

as sinister and then it was fearful to see the blood mount
,
upon the c hec k of t he other as he rose to repel it Th e .
tremor of the lips and the agitated yet equal beau t y and
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harmony of the voice the person drawn to its utmost height

, ,
and the eye piercing its vict i m with the keen rebuke of in
jured friendship were scenes that often occurred and which
, ,
proved that though very di ff erent in their every day attire

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-
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t heir elements were the same But the sun never was .
su ff ered to set with ill feelings to the other : it would have

been a sacrifice that neither would h ave submitted to at
so cheap a rate It is true that the dearer one is to us
.
, , ,
whether it b e from ties of blood or of marriage or old habits , ,
of friendship the more sensitive we are to real or im a ginary

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inj u ry But the heart if a good one with a few in vo l u n

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, ,
tary throbs will throw o ff the acids which would soon canker
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it if left alone to the animal passions .
The three pe rsonages named had met in t h e evening pri

or t o the day of their separation in a pa th which led to a
wo od a mil e or so from the co llege a favorite retreat for the ,
students on a ho t day T he broken hills the d eep forest

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, ,
and the singing of birds a r e only really appreciated when,

STAN DI S H T HE PURITAN .
the mind either by study or deep contempl ation is with

, ,
drawn from artificial objects Man is rarely wicked when .
surrounded by N ature s works and rarely good when sub ’
servient to conventional rules and arbitrary etiquette In .
the o n e his influences are all n ew from his Maker ; in the

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other from the cruel influenc es of m a n In t he one he IS

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in his natural state from the hands of his Creator and par ,
takes of his character ; in the other a perversion of his ,
destiny a dressing u p of a hecatomb of in fir m it ies pleas

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ing perhaps to the eye at a distance but upon inspection ,

, , , ,
the depravity becomes visible through the scanty folds

which were intended to hide it .
“ ” “
T here , said Standish to his friend is poor S n ifl in g , ,
making his way t o us I pity the poor c reature I do not . .
know what he will do when he l eses you a n d goes into the ,
world with his natural propensities to look after That he .
will become morally degraded is certain H is disposition .
to tra ff ic may make him rich , but his selfishness must make
” “
him despised I fear so too replied De l E u r ; and
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,
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with a smile continued he has already made me an o ff er

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for a number of articles pertaining to my toilet Good .
morning Mr De l E u r ! good morning Mr St andish ! said

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, .
S n ifl in g as he joined them with aver t ed eyes and who

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really seemed to feel the dreariness of his situation “ I .
” “
can hardly realize continued he that this is the last
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time that we in all human probability , are ever to meet

—
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again a t all events never in the ch aracter of students I , .
have heard you say De l E u r that your father ha s destin

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ed you for the law , and intends that you shall p r a c t ic e in

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N ew York I hope it is so ; for , as m y mi n d is bent on

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merchandise I intend to go there too and shall have the

, ,
opportunity of seeing you often , and we may be of mutual

”
advantage to each othe r .
“
For Heaven s sake S n iflin g said Standish interrupt
’
, , ,
i n g him do
, not pr ofane the sanctity of this place by mak
i n g it the grave yard of disinterested a ff ection It 1 s time .
enough to sacrifice to Mammon when we are fairly launched

S TANDI SH T HE P UR I TAN .
9
into the vortex of bu s iness , where the frozen bosom of self

i shn ess is only thawed by a qu id p r o qu o in exchange for
”
i t s charities . George de l E u r took the arm of Standish ’
“ ” “
and walked on You ought n ot said he
. to hurt the , ,
feelings of S n ifl in g H e really looks more subdued than I

.
h ave ever seen him Besides he has been with us for four
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,
years and I can not but think his feeling is that of kind
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ness for us especial ly when he contrasts our treatment of

,
him with that of others H e certainly would be u n g r a t e.
” “ ”
ful if it were not so Grateful ! repeated Standish
.
,
“
catching up half of the word ; why he has no more idea ,
of grati t u de than a wolf has of humanity I would not .
trust him with my house sooner than I would with my

” “
purse and (laughingly ) sooner tha n I would with your
,
chattels personal that you spoke of .
S n ifl in g was seen g az ing vacantly upon scenes that even

to him had had their charms H e thought to himself Is .
,
this the last time I sh all ever see thi s old oak under whose ,
branches I have so often listened to the gay robin , or yon

der path that win ds down the hill to the brook where the
speckl ed trout dispor t s himself under the shade of the broad
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ced ar ? But his thoughts c ould not be long occupied with
the past ; and as he contempla t ed the future store houses
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a n d m erchandise of every hue an d tex ure soon drove real

t
ities of the p ast out of his mind to be occupied with visions ,
that w er e f as t to become realities H e had sense enough .
to know that money in that money loving age would cure

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a number n o t only of his mental but physical defects

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T he thought in spired the poor little creature with a mo

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mentary importance in his own estim ation , an d he felt im

patient for his career to begin .
“ ”
I am o ff h all oed he , to the two fr iends impatiently
, , ,
who seemed a little s m itten in conscience at the neglec t

they had showed to their mercenary friend Stop Sni .
,
” “ ’
fling stop I cal led they , simultaneous ly ; don t go with
,
out a farewe l l ”
S n ifl in g s hopes for the fu ture had quite
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erased his sentiment for the p ast an d each moment now ,

10 STANDISH THE PURITAN .
seemed to him as so much lost time Good b y l good .

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b y l answered he with more animation than he had ever

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shown before “ I ll cross over the Styx with Charon and

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pay you a visit one of these days provided he is not too ,

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extravagant in his ferriage and he h u rri edly walked away
,
and disappeared in the distance .
“
Well said De l E u r to his friend , I did not know
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S n ifl in g had accomplished so much knowledge of the clas

sics as to make a reference to so ugly a place The trut h .
is he has but one wish in the world , and that is to g et

, ,
m oney ; an d get it he will There is no diff iculty

. in ob ;
taining it ; the only question is its price I mean by that , .
ho w many of the nobler faculties are to be sacrificed for it ;

ho w much of the food of old age or virtuous honorable , , ,
and useful life is to be bartered away These are c o n sid .
o rations that should be well weighed .
“
P shaw ! replied Standish
”
what noble faculties has ,
?
he to exchange What kind of a store house 1 s his to gar -
? H e is made to
n er up knowledge or virtue for old age
traffic and if he should not succeed in that it is quite cer

, ,
tain that he would succeed in nothin g I think he knows .
enough to get money and if so his conscience will never

, ,
be in the way ; but I doubt much if he knows enough to

keep it A grasping desire to accumulate requires a good
.
j udgment for its success or the very means m ade use of in

,
the adventure may be the cause of wrecking the ship whic h

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was to bear to the warehouse its tre asure a little too much
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freight and she m ay founder
, .
De l E u r and Standi sh n o w found themselves alone upon

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what to them was truly classic g round S n iflin g had

, , .
gone The students could be seen in the distance hurry,

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ing to and fro in preparation for their departure Fathers

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and mothers were in waiting to receive the p ride of their ,
l ives and the hopes of their old age Carriages were rolling .
onward w ith their happy freight Yet still they lingered . .
The wood was deserted ; the very birds h ad ceased their

carols and the two were silent They could not depart ; a
, .
STA N DI S H T HE PURITAN . 11
ki n d of spell bound them to the pl ace—that wonderful agen t

which attracts kindred souls together — t ha t somethin g
which influences controls and assures us of the existence
, ,
of the immaterial world .
De l E u r broke silence by addressing Mr Standish a s

’
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follows : Since soon We part and perhaps forever I am , ,
solicitous to know y o ur opinion in relation to the troubles

at Boston H igh handed measures have been taken there
.
by its inhabitants in resisting the public authorities and ,
government is bound to punish those acts or it will be a ,
q u a si admission of their own wrong A discussion here of .
political subjects has been prohibited and very properly ,
too ; but now we are before the world and the time I , ,
‘
think is fast coming when sides must be taken It will b e

, .
an unnatural contest and I fear a bloody one Give me, , , .
your views Standish and if we disagree in judgment the

, ,
solemnity of the hour and our long communion are a suf

, ,
fic ien t guarantee of our sincerity and where i t forms the ,
basis of our conduct it excuses a thousand errors of the

,
head Come Standish give me your views But stay !

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, , .
this is unfa ir I have no right to call for yours without in

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,
the first place giving you mine and I will frankly tell you
, ,
that there is abundant at home to c ondemn ; yet still I ,
think I see the old leaven at work that has divided Old
E ngland politically and religiously in fact an d which cost ,
Charles his head I have a great horror of a religious war

. .
I do not believe in a Bible in one hand and a dagger in the

other The truth is the P ilgrims always hated the E stab
.
,
l ished Church as much as Cromwell did Besides the de .

,
s c en d a n t s of the first settler s have been taught to dislike
the mother country and the cruelties exercised by the Ma

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l ign an t s as they yet term the communicants of the E stab

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l ished Church are learned as nursery tales

,
With such .
an education the people can h ardly be supposed to weigh

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with an even balan c e the merits or demerits of the exis ting

matters in di fference What say you , Sta ndish , do you
.
? ”
a gree with me or not
12 S T A N D I S H T H E P U RI T A N .
Stan dish looked at his friend with regret an d replied ,

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A n honest di ff erence of opinion shall I trust in after life , , ,
h ave nothing to do with our friendship ; but it will require

watching T he pride of opinion is a furnace few can face
.
. .
E mpires have been dissolved in it and from its fountains ,

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seas of blood h ave flowed We di ffer De l E u r and de .
, , ,
pend upon it it will re quire al l our philosophy to avoid the

,
contagion There is tr uth much truth in what you sa y ;

.
, ,
yet there are other causes which conspire with those you
n ame which have a more immediate e ff ect in dissolving the
natural ties which should bind us to our kinsmen at home .
Whether it be climate the manner of living or our insu

, ,
lated situation in regar d to E urope whi ch has n o t only ,

'
changed our m anner s and h abits but our very physical ap ,
e ar a n c e I am at a loss to determine ; but true it is there

p , ,
are no two people more unlike u n der the sun than the peo
ple at home and those here Our simple habits are r idic u l .
ed by persons with fair exteriors assuming a consequence ,
which they are n ot entitled to either by habit or education .
T hey manage to le ave behind them an unfavorable impres

sion magnified by an assumed importance and the really
, ,
respectable at home su ffer in reputation by t hi s class of

persons They are for the most part shopmen or needy
.
, , ,
adventurers who m ake up in pretension what they really

,
want in respectability These unworthy representative s

.
have not only made themselves odious but hated ; and I ,
am sorry to say that th e same spirit of bravado is to be o b

served in the higher classes although not so o ff en sive ; ,
and coloring up to the eye s and with a raised voice Stand , ,

“
is h exclaimed H ang me De l E u r if I do n o t ache to
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” “
thrash them ! and then laughingly continued Father s ,
’
old sword , which he used in the French war sh all not b e ,
made a prun ing hook of as long as I can use it as it is

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” “
It is tr u e Standish s aid De l E u r that the phenom
, ,
’
,
ena you mention have often occurred to me that we should

lose t he habits manners a n d appearance of our kinsmen ,
, ,
experie n ce shows and a kno wle dge of physics teaches us

, .
STANDISH THE PURITA N . 13
Climate has much to do in our or g anization and temper ;

and as our country in all its appliances is di ff erent from
, ,
the home of our ancestors it fel l o ws as a natural couse

, ,
q u e n c e,that our habits and ma n ners should be di ff erent ;

and although the E nglish are indiscreet in giving way to
their ever grumblin g propensities yet I can well under
-
,
stand that , in a new country like our own they see and ,
feel many dis comforts peculiar to a new settled country -
which habit has not only reconciled us to but in m any , ,
in stances have become sources of pleasure We shou l d

,
‘
n ot commit a great wrong to remed y a small evil n o r ,
endeavor to make individual indiscretions national ones .
Time will correct many evil s but eau never c a ll from the
'
ground th e blood which a murd erous war will shed You .
must remember that the world has only begun to be li ber

a l ized ; that the chain of darkness h as hardly been severed
from the car of su perstition ; that yesterday as it were the , ,
inquisition was smoking with the blood of its victims and .
the fire is hardly quenched that consumed the martyr for

opinion s sake and in our own land the gibbet is fresh in
’
,
the memory of those who live w hich p u t an en d to dealers '
in supern atural agencies War is n o t the time to heal such

.
diseases ; our fathers have labored too hard to free us from

error and our institutions are too well formed to be thrown
,
back into chaos to gratify an instinctive predilection for

,
war Instinctive I admit with savages but wh ich I deny

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, , ,
in civilized and refined life ; and the time I believe is at , ,
hand when the promoter of a war will b e l ooked at as a mon

,
ster n o t fit to live upon the earth or a lunatic whose free ,

”
dom should be controlled by sanitary laws .
“ “
Yes De l E u r replied Standish you say truly ; but
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’
, ,
the millennium 1 s n o t at hand or at lea st, it 1 s n o t yet To

, , .
avoid m isan t hr o p hy we must take the world as we find it

, .
N ature has provided all animals with a means of defense ,
which presupposes that at some time they wil l b e objects

of attack and which al so presu p pos es a contest Here is
,
.
~
an instinctive or natural wa r to b egin with , and as Gr ea t

14 STANDI SH THE PURITAN .
Britain has begun it by taxing us without representation ,
and forcing commodities upon u s w hic h we do not want I , ,
for one will resist and they shall receive blow for blow
, , .
“ Stay Standish “
,
De l E u r ; I am S orry
,
’
to fin d you compelled t o r eso r t to a p arallel b et w e en m a n

and beast in proving a theory which I admit is in conso , ,
nance with our incl inations in a natu ral state but God has
g ive n us the means a n d the ability to divest ourselves of
the baser passions and assume that which I truly believe
will be the destiny of man—to live in charity with the
,
”
world . The two friends saw the necessity of hastening
back as it was getting dark
, They had said enough to .
be convinced th at fur t her disc uss ion would be of n o avail ,

and each in hi s heart hoped that the di sputes would be
passed over and that the struggle would end in a war of
,
words only Standish accepted an invitation to spend a

.
few d ays at Oakford the residence of De l E u r s father , in

,
’ ’
a distant section of the colony .
C HA P TE R II .
THE father of George De l E u r was a fin e sample of e n

’
, t
E nglish gentleman and had settled in the colony of Con

,
n ec t ic u t in early life Hi s father was one of the E nglish

.
gentry but having a large family the son preferred coming

, , ,
to t he New World with what could be spared him to r e

, ,
m aining at home which would be poverty in the one case

, ,
a n d a ffluence in the other
; besides he had married a young ,
l ady selected by himself and not by his parents They had .
loved each other so much better than they loved the rest
of the world that their h appiness seemed only full when
,
they were away from it , in some nook where nature could be

STANDISH THE PURITAN . 15
seen apart from the haunts of men : their passions a n d their

vices were descried by both of them and only necessary to ,
render their happiness supreme ; and , without regret they ,
bade adieu to their native shore .
A s De l E u r and his friend rolled onward in the stage

’
coach to Oakford the conversation turn ed on an u n fo r t u i

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'
nate love a ff air that had been broken o ff between a stu ;

dent and a young lady of the n eighborhood and had term ,
in a t ed in the dissipated habits of the gentleman “

I re .
“
, gret , said Standish that E gerton should have ,
no more strength of mind than to pursue such a course ,
especially for a lady for whom he never showed much a t

t a c hm en t until he f ound he could n o t get her ”
.
“
This was a redeemin g trait in poor E gerto n s charac ’
” “
t er
, said De l E u r ; I mean his fondness for ladies so
’
,
’
clety ; and n o one regrets more than I do th at his disa p, ,
poin tment should a ff ect him in the m anner it does This .
passion is a m yst er iou s one It e m bodies in it all that is

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worth l iving fer In it s p u r it y it c eases t o be sensual and

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,
.
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elevates man beyond his condition here Wi ckedness nev .
er intrudes upon its altar Charity is its handmaid It . .
would love parent and bro t her and sister ; but it is too far
, ,
removed from earthly ties a n d can commune but with na ,
tu re and natur e s God What is this divine agency that is

’
.
so unl ike the rest of life and why so evaii es cen t ? Why
?
is it that when we cease to love n ature a n d i t s works the

, ,
?
ten der pas sion leaves with it Is it n o t then in proof, that , ,
the affections are ingrafted upon this love of natu r e a n d ,
the more intense our ad m iration for it the deeper the for ,
-
mer lies buried in the heart ? H ad E gerton been true to

her she probably wou l d h ave loved him
, A female has .
but one pas sion that can conquer a ffection and that is the , ,
indignation which is engendered by trifling with it When .
she reall y bestows her love upon a m a n she surren ders all
—
,
of self nay her very name is blotted ou t ; and when her

,
life is over her history is bri efly told upon the tombstone
—
,
her age her death n o not her death but that the wife of
, , ,
16 STANDI SH THE PUR ITAN .
somebody is dead ; an d when a woman has so much to sur

rende r ih the sacrifice she makes , it should n ever be treat
”
ed lightly .
I agree with you De l E u r , replied Standish ; E g

,
’
erton has many good points and much manly beauty ; he ,
has re li ed upon it t oo much an d I do n ot regret that his ,
conceit has received a blow which I had hoped would be of

servic e to him Vanity is bad enough in a wom an but
“
.
,
intolerable in a m an and yet , of the two , there is more of

"
that concomitant in the latter than in the former ; perhaps

the man has a littl e more address in concealing it but that ,
such is the fac t is in accordan ce with all of my experience .
” “
I am told continu ed he tha t the In di an chief generally
, , ,
known as King P hil i p was the greatest coxcomb of all his

,
tribe b u t I never y et heard of a coquette among the sa v

ages and I doubt if there would be an y in civilized lif e if
,
the men did not make them so .
The stage coach about ten in the evenin g d r ove through

-
, ,
a cops e , then emerged into an ope n plain then through a ,
private way lined with sycamore and elm and drew up b e ,
fore a large house A reverend looking gentleman and a

.
-
,
matron who bore the impress of one of the olden time , and
a young lady who had seen so m e six t een summers sud
‘
d en l y threw themselves into the arms of G eorge De l E u r ’

.
“
My s on how do you do
, s ai d the father ; the mother
sobbed her hearty welcome and E dith kissed her brother ,
as she lustily pulled him toward the doo r As soon as the .
first transpo rt of w el c o m e w as over George introduced his

'
, ,
friend they all gave him a hearty welcome and E dith

‘
said You must stay with us several days ; wefhave pleas

,
ant drives to the village and the road to the mountain is

,
”
beautiful .
” “
Stay E di th ! said her father ; young gentlemen are
,
apt to take too much for gr anted when invitations proceed

”
from young ladies .
“ ” “
P erhaps said she , a little vexed Mr Standish may
, '
, .
”
think so since you have suggested it
, But it was said so .
18 S TANDI SH THE PUR ITAN .
m other and was uncontaminated by t he vulgarity an d fals

,
ity that so generally attend a boarding school education -

.
Fresh and beautiful as the first blush of the morning she ,
had yet seen naught to love save her parents and brother ;
they , to her were the who le world and she to them the
, , , ,
bright star upon which they de l ighted to gaze The ih .
s t in c t of the very birds taught them that with her there
was protect ion and they would flit by her and a r b u n d her
,
when she wandered into the meadow that showed that even ,
they could understand a n d a p p r ec ia t e innocence /

.
A fter supper the family separated , and Mr Standish was .
shown to his room It ov erlooked a lawn t hrough which

.
,
were intersper sed the tall elm the branches towering into ,
the clear sky ; the wind slightly touched the leaves ; a l l else
was silent Standish seated h imself by the wainscot his
.
,
head upon his hand It was n ew to him ; he felt himself

.
surrounded by a refinement an elegance and an aristo , ,
cratic tone , di ff erent far di fferent from what he was a o

,
customed to at his own home .
H is father was wealthy thou gh a plain simple P uritan ; , ,
but now the unaccustomed sight of heraldic devices and ,
family pictures of armed knights and stately dames sur ,
rounded him o n all sides H e remarked th at the silv er bore

.
the impress of the family crest ; and when he was dismissed to

his room by Mr De l E u r it was with a grace and good breed
.
’
,
-
ing that assured him of his hearty welcome While thus .
musing in pleasing soberness his transit from the bustle of ,
college to this pe aceful place seemed to him a k ind of m agic

that he could n o t realize—Miss De l E u r a phantom that ’
he could not understand , a dr eam a taste of the spiritual , ,
a reflection of a being who dwells in a purer and better

world E xcited and feverish , he threw himself upon the
.
b e d ; he dreamed of battling armies of the wounded the

”
, ,
dead ; and he d r eamed of the De l E u r s p ersecuted for ’

,
opinion s sake and of Miss De l E u r fleeing i n terror from

’
,
’
the savages Morning came to his relief but he was fever

.
,
ish and agitated H e felt that he was doing his father and
.
S TANDISH THE PURITAN . 19
sister injustice by not proce eding at once ho m e A ccord .
in g l y as soo n as breakfast was over Mr De l E u r and his

’
, , .
son accomp anied him at his request to the village a couple

, , ,
of miles o ff where after promising them t o repeat his visit

, , ,
he bade them adieu H e occupied himself at his father s

.
‘
’
house in rural sports an d r u r al pursuits for some mon t hs ,

occasionally engaging in political discussions and in cor ,
responding with his friend George and he began to suspect ,
himself of b eing more punctual in such correspondence than

he would have been if he Mr De l E u r was the only party ’
l
“
, .
,
at Oa kfo r d in whom he felt an interest .
C HAPTE R 1 11 .
IN Hanover S quare the city of N ew Y ork among the

, in ,
smaller shops was one of Dutch origin It s steep roof and .
gable end to the street were sufficient proofs of its l eg it i

macy Its window—for it had but one in front—was filled
.
with a medley in the way of merchandise : j ack knives -

,
gin ger marbles pipes and tobacco and real nutmegs and
, , , ,
over which was a sign in yellow paint Julius C ae sar Sni ,

”
fling Co s wholesale and retail stor e
.
’
The stock in .
trade was chiefly in the window and if there were many ,
partners which formed the ho u se the capital of each must ,
h ave b ee n l imited S n ifl in g upon goin g home had borrow

.
, ,
ed a little money from his father and had forthwith started ,

“
for N ew York and rented the premises in qu estion Time .
is money s aid Dr , Franklin an d so thou ght S n ifl in g and

”
, , ,
he determined to lose as little of it as pos sible .
A little ba refooted negress was seen to enter the st o r e

with something wrapped in a paper Missus says said .
,
“
the girl , that she wants ginger a n d this here you guv me ,
is Injun m eel , and she won t hab it , and so I must hab my ’

money This was a poser to poo r S n iflin g H is store

.
”
.
had been opened that morning for the first time and the ,
g inger was the first sale made by S n iflin

g Co It may .
“ ”
be premised that t he Co were i maginary personages .
,
created by him to give importance to the establishment .
H is cupidit y had been so excessive in th e admixt u re of the

m eal with the ginger that the fraud was too apparent ; and
,
to get rid of the imputation something must b e done or the , ,
firm would be a very unstable a ff air ; so he p r etended that

he hi mself was the injured man , and by an itinerant rogue
“
had been imposed upon and the first time T he Weekly
Journal and A dvertiser was issued , the following adver
t isem en t made its appearance
£ 1 RE WA R D .
The above reward will be paid f o r the apprehension and

conviction of the fellow who sold us a keg of spurious gin
ger H e is about six feet high H is hair is long light
‘
.
, ,
.
and lank ; small gr ay eyes , sharp nose and when walking ,
his knees are always bent H is speech is slow and mark .

,'
ed by a strong nasal twang and he is eviden t l y fr o m York

, ,
shire or Massachusetts .
S NIF LIN G C c , H anover S quare . .
That day and the next , and the next after that of the
,
aforesaid sale the women of Duke street were at war with

,
-
the house of S n iflin g Co Not a penny worth did he sell . .
The fraud was echoed from housewife to housewife a n d ,
the fir m were declared to be cheats and unworthy t he pat

‘
r o n a g e of an unsuspe cting and generous co mmun ity The .
star of S n iflin g was inauspicious , and som et hing must be

done or his commercial prospects were blighted forever A t
,
.
last the paper was issued and t he a dver t isem en t appeared '
One pound reward ! Generous o ff er ! The neighborhood

was agog a n d the direst vengeance was threatened upon
,
the cheat if detected, .
It was about eight o clock in the evenin g and Mr Sni

’
,
.
fl in g could be seen in his store A tallow candle threw its .

STANDI SH THE PURITAN . 21
dim light from the window but deep sha dows covered t he ,
empty boxes which tempt people sometimes to believe that

all is gold that glitters H is mind was agitated n o t on
.
,
account of the fraud but its want of su c ce ss In the midst

,
.
of his ruminations a noise was heard at the other end of

,
the street ; a mob ; a confusion of tongues It appe ared .
n earer . The windows over the shops were thrown open in

rapid succession , and in a m oment appeared in the front of
the stor e —ushered by two strong fellows a n d followed b y
the mob—an individual answering the above advertisement
,
H e was lean and tall with small light eyes and long thin
, ,
h air down to his shoulders and with a nasal twang of u n ,
mistakable origin N o sooner had S n ifl in g seen how near

.
l y he answered the description contained in the advertise

ment than he felt himself in a dilemma Should he a o
, .
cuse him he , of course , would be acquitted and his own

, ,
ruin would be the conse q uence Should he declare him not .
to be t he individual then his own conscience told him that

,
he would be suspected of being t he ro g u e himself ; so for ,
further reflection , he ordered him to be put in prison for the

night T he culprit s name w as Zim r i Freeborn H e lived
.
’ ‘
near the confines of the line which divided the colony of

Connecticut from that of N ew York , and this was his first
adventure into the great city A t t he time of his ap p r e .
h en sio n he had come to town t o p r oc u r e a patent for a p e r

,
'
et u al motion which he asserted he had then recently dis

p ,
covered H is model h ad a diversity of machi nery within

.
it consisting of wheels el l ip t ic s and springs rigged to the

, , , ,
handle of a churn in order to prove to the world how much

,
labor had been lost prior to his discovery But the damn .
in g evidence of his guilt consiste d n o t only of his remark

able appearance as describ ed in the advertisement but his
, ,
churn was fil led with yellow me al and a handful of which

being shown to Mrs Tweaks—thus far the only customer
.
of S n ifli n g Cc she declared that it was of the same

.
-
color and musty smell as that of her late purchase .
If matters could h ave rested here and Zim r i s mouth ,

’
closed forever , the reputation of S n ifl in g could have been

repaired ; but , alas ! one piece of roguery leads to another ,
and the sin of selling Indian meal for ginger was a gg r a ~~
v a t ed by perhaps blighting the mecha n ical genius of a mod
ern A rchimedes by con fining it in extremely n a rrow apart

ments .
S n iflin g s sleep
’ “
at the Witching hour of night wa s in
”
t er r u p t ed by sad forebodings T he dilemma in proving hi s

.
c a se was the trouble ; and if a m an ever felt the necessity
of legal consolation a n d to have imparted the m od u s Op e

,
”
r a n d z of getting out of his di fficulty , it was the senior part
'
ner in the aforesaid firm A t that time there were but five
.
lawyers in the city , and the astutest among them was G a

briel Dexter , E sq late of Gray s In n London , althou gh his
.
,
’
,
dubious compee rs reported that t he in n he graduated fro m

w as a tavern .T his however was scan dal ; and the onl y
, ,
ground for such a construction was his habit of spending

an evenin g oc casionally over his glass at an in n in the neigh
b o r hood . T he whole town considered these reports to pro
o ecd from envy ; and Gabriel Dexter and the King of E u
gland were by litigants supposed to be the greatest men of

the age the na m es of whom always appearing side by side
,
i n m em e p r o c ess S n ifl in g pale and trembling arose from

.
, ,
h is bed at an early hour ; but he was somewh at consoled

when he made up his mind to fee Mr Dexter ; he felt himself .
relieved by even walking to and f r o past his off ice Hour .
after hour passed b efore the great man came At length .
he was seen statelily and steadil y c ro ssin g from his house

to hi s o ffice S n ifl in g was n o w to state his case to t he
.
“ ”
man who held the even scales of justice in his right hand ,
an d who from day to day expounded the wisdom of past
ages to a delighted and wondering multitude Mr Dexter . . .
was a po rtly gentleman of fifty and perhaps would have ,
been a li ttle more had he not been a widower H is clean .
linen polished shoes and well made breeches gave hi m a

, ,
-
c onsequence to the il l conditioned that fully compensated

-
for such extra e xpenditure

'
.
Mr S n iflin g put on al l the assurance that he was mas

.
ter of a s he enter ed the office , an d looked the victim in the

most satisfactory man ner A fte r a few preliminaries Mr .
, .
“ ”
De xter cautioned him to state the truth ; for said he , ,
“
it is dangerous puttin g your legal adviser on a wrong
sc en t We are cautioned in the Scriptures against the
.
.
blind leading the blind l est the y fa l l into the pit There , .
”
is n o reason continued he as he looked at him steadil y
, ,
“
thr ough his spectacles why a client should cheat his ,
counsel My Lord Coke and after him Sir William

.
, , ,
Blackstone h ave declar ed t hat what 1s not reason is n o t

,
”
law ; you therefore , said he see the danger of mislead ,
in g us I wish to ask you a few questions and I want di

rect answers No equivocation—no evasion Mr S n ifli n g
,
.
,
. . .
I go for my clients right or wro ng continued Mr Dexter ;

”
, , .
for if they are wrong it is my duty to set them right b e

, ,
fore the world Did you Mr S n ifl in g ever buy any gin

.
, .
,
? ”
ger of the defenda n t A severe rebuke at his hesitation
“ ”
brought out an emphatic N o sir ! The barrister loc ked ,
f or a moment at his client with professional a dmiration ,
took from his pocket a cambric handkerchi ef then from hi s ,
no se his gold spectacles wiped them carefully and then r e , ,
turned them to their place A t last he remarked with .

,
gr ea t kindness “
My friend you are one among the few
, ,
sincere men that I have fou nd in thirty years practice at ’
the bar Where did you become acquainted with the de

.
fendant
Taking c ourage by the favor found 111 his former answer ,
“
S n ifl in g replied I never sa w him until the night before ,
,
”
in my life .
“
Very good ! very good Mr S n ifl in g ! we are comin g to , .
the po int ; a fair i ssue for the country to pass upon ; but ,
pray Mr S n ifl in g from whom did you purchase the gin

, .
,
7 ”
g
.
el
“ “
I pu r c hase d he replied o n e pound of pure gin ger of
, ,
Spicer C c an d added twenty poun ds of Indian meal

.
,
”
.
“ ” “
This said the barris t er , i s usually done , I presume ,
,
24 S TANDI SH THE PUR ITAN .
to make it merchantable ; although it strikes me that ten

pounds of meal to one of gi n ger would have made it stro n 0
g
” “
er. I generally disapprove of stimulants said he a n d , ,
have but little doubt if we consulted our health that the , ,
admixture of yours would be more conducive to longevity

than when taken in its raw state P ray sir 1 n qu ir ed ”
.
, ,
“
Mr Dexter . upon what cause of action have you i m p r i s
,
on ed Mr Freeborn . .
” “ ”
I do not know was the reply I thin k said S u if,
.
,
“
l in g I heard o n e of the men who took him say that they
,
would procure a warrant for obtaining the money u nder ‘
false pretenses and put him in Bridewell I think I heard

,
”
subsequently that they had done so .
“ ”
Mr Dexter made a hem ! when he said with great
.
,
“
gravity That will never do ; that is a mi sdemeanor and
, ,
you will subject yourself to be made a witness of and to , ,
i nsure conviction you would be compelled to com mit per ,
jury ; though I hold Mr S n ifl in g tha t m an bein g a creat ,

.
, ,
ure of circumstances he is at all times control led by them , .
“
P erjury he continued becomes inevitable under p ec u l
”
, ,
iar and I am happy to say rare circumstances ; and under

, , ,
that true and old adage , that self preservation 1 s the first
‘ -
law of N ature it is under such circumstances if not just

,
’
, ,
ifia b l e excusable and then rising with much indignation

, ,
“
and earnestness exclaimed Mr S n iflin g ! I consider the
, , .
man who will stand by and see h is poor client commit will
ful and corrupt perjury when there is no necessity for it as , ,
”
an exhi bition of depravity that is disgraceful ! Mr Dex .
ter sat down much exhausted at the outpourin gs of his

,
‘
honest convictions ; but as soon as his i ndignation had a

little subsided at the thoughts of the depravity of man he ,
“ “
resumed his counsel : I shall immediately said he o r ,
’
,
der a nolle prosequi to be entered as to the misdemean or ,
an d shall direct my partner to issue a capias a d ies er a n

p
dum and hold the defendant to bail in the sum of £ 5 00
, ,
in a special action on the case This form of action , said .
“
he, exclude s you from being a witne ss ; and , as you have
and it w a s as plain he said as a man s nose that upon all

'
, ,
’
,
scientific principles the thing ou ght to go whether or no ; ,
that the whole machine was perfect except that the wheel ,
within the main wheel did not go , as yet , as well as he ha d

ex p ected .
Zimri was certainly of the gen u s ho m e but in thought ,
and looks assimilated as little to his sp ecies as it were pos

sible for a man to do H e was never known to laugh
.
,
but there was something in the twinkle of his little gray

eyes that showed he wa s willing to amuse o t her s although ,
he would not take t he trouble to be amused himself '

.
The architecture of the old j ail a s m o st people may rec :

,
o l l ec t
, was of olden times The eternal darkness which
.
rei gned upon the first fl o o r — the massive chain attached to

the huge door—convinc ed the prisoner at first sight of the , ,
f o l l y of breaking j ail in th at quarter The d esolation of .
the second floor divided o ff into huge compartments the

, ,
windows triple barred with massive iron bars and the hooks ,
which lined the outsid e of the building admonished all who ,
were dissatisfied with even handed justice the danger of

-
proceeding that way Its rude and cold exterior made it

.
an obj ect that few would forget who had ever seen it .
Zimri Freeborn and his machine were impr i soned in one of

'
t he upper wards having for his b r o t her ho od some forty

,
~
others who h ad sinned contrary to law There were to be .
seen there painters poets gentlemen an d politicians so

, , , ,
that Zimri had no r eason to complain for t he want of so c if

ety or the absence o f genius D ay after d ay passed and
-
.
,
he cared little how his law suit went provided his machine
-
,
would go upon which he tinkered from early dawn until

,
night ; nor would he have stopp ed then had n o t a rebel ,
lion broken out with the prisoners , occasioned by his dis

t u r b in g their n octurnal rest .
Mr Dexter was occupie d during the vacat ion with pre

.
, ,
paring his brie fs an d S n iflin g was e n gaged in his mer

,
c h an d ise the former congratulating himself upon the ho ld

,
he had in the confidence of the people and the latter upon ,

S T A N DI S H T H E P U R I T A N .
27
the profits of his trade enhan ced as they were by the sym
, , ,
pathy of the public Occasionally howe ver a cl oud would

.
, , ,
come over his prospects in case Freeborn should be acquit

ted—and how he was to be found guilty was more than h e
could make out— a n d at times he was almost incli n ed to
doubt Mr Dexter s sincerity ; an d then again when he
.
’
, ,
took into account his excell ent moral character enhance d , ,
as it recently had bee n by his bei n g run for a vestry m a n

,
-
,
and by being beat by only three votes he would not do him ,
the injustice to doubt his sincerity Indeed it h ad been .

,
f o b ser ved of late that Mr Dexter had almost if n o t entire

.
,
l y abando n ed the taverns and that he was al w ays found

, ,
in his seat at church on Sundays His fin el y made and .

-
neatly dressed person his large S ignet ring upon the last
-
,
-
finger of his left hand and his richly bound books made
,
-
,
him n o t only an example in his atten d ance at church but ,
this evidence of his taste a n d his heraldic devices rendered

, , ,
the solemnity of the occasion the more apparent So Mr . .
S n iflin g came to the conclusion to abandon doubts so u n

j ust to Mr Dexter and so clearly 1 n derogation
.
, D
to his a
p
parent sincerity H e w ent to his o ffic e: in all the con
.
s c i o u s n ess of i n ured 1 n n o cen c e to inquire of him when the

j ,
cause would come on ; but Mr Thu r w o o d the partner of .

,
Mr Dexter as usual was out making his morning calls

.
, ,
the extent of the business of the o ffice did n o t allow Mr

Dexter to attend at all to the attorney s departmen t —se he
.
said he would call again in the afternoon Mr Dexter com , .
forting his seeming anxiety by assuring him of the a b u n d

a n t evidence that existed in the advertisement n o t only to
insure a conviction but exemplary damages S n ifl in g had

,
.
heard of t he glorious uncertainty of the law and he could ,
n o t reconcile the maxim to the certain ty of the legal a d
vice the m ore especially when he took into consideration

,
that the d efendant might get up some evidence as a r e ‘
butter to the advertisement the only evidence relied on by ,
Mr Dexter
. .
Mr S n ifl in g was s u ccess ful in finding Mr Thu r wo od in

. .
28 STANDISH T HE PURITAN .
in the afternoon who assured him that t he cause was at

,
issue and would unquestionably be tried the coming term ;

,
that he coincided with his partner as to the merits of the

case and that it rarely occurred in their practice when cir
,
c u m s t a n t ia l evidence was so conclusive as that of the pres
ent and his only fear was that Mr Freeborn woul d n o t b e

, , .
able to respo n d to the amount of damages laid in the d ee

“
l ar a t ien “
Well said S n ifl in g to himself it is queer
.
”
, ,
that both the attorne y a n d counsel should feel so much con

fiden c e in a case the merits of which they knew all about .
But Mr Thu r wo od inquired S n ifl in g

, .
,
“
suppose Mr ,
.
Freeb orn should apply to a court of equity for relief : I

am fearful that a difficult rule of justice might prevail and ,
in that case I should be lost

Not at all n o t at all said Mr Thu r w o o d w
.
”
,
ith a half
, .
,
“
impatient air The d i ff erence and the only di ff erence
.
, ,
in a court of equity an d one of law is that in exceedingly ,
obscure cases we deem it safer to proceed in C hancery , for

it is t he business of that co u rt to investigate cases which
m ay properly be termed the ph enomena of the law ; a n d ,
strange as it m ay seem all experience has shown , from ,
Lord H ardwick down to the present time th at decisions ,
made upon logical inferences assumed for the occasion h ave , ,
always given great satisfaction to l itigants without refer ,

”
ence to the facts of the case But Mr S n ifl in g contin .
, .
,
ued Mr Thu r w o o d I am e n gaged out and you mus t ex

.
“
, ,
cuse me ”
Mr Thu r wo od suddenly withdrew one way
. .
,
while his client withdrew the other the latter scratchi n g ,
his head 1 n his perplexity m trying to comprehend the laby

r in t h m which he found hims elf placed .
Mr T hu r wo o d was a young E nglish gentleman w hohad

.
,
“
united himself l n practice with Mr Dexter and since the .

, ,
rapid increase of the b u sin ess o f the o ffice , h ad given his

'
at t ention solely to the attorney s department H e was ’

.
young in years but a decided genius H e had never been

, .
known to open a law book or to investigate a case though

-
it was s a id in the neighborhood that it must be tha t he

STA NDISH THE PURITA N . 29
studied at n ight when others were asleep or it were im

, ,
possible that any thing short o f inspiration could familiar

ize him so thoroughly with t ex t s, p r om u l g a t ed b y oracles *
of the l a w a thousand years ago He was al so a fashion

-
.
able m an tenaciously observant of every rule of etiquette

, ,
and his ca se was fr equently cited as negativin g the absurd

idea that fashion and folly were inseparable companions .
H e was connected at home t o some of the most respectable

of the aristocracy which might ha ve been one of the rea
,
sons that gave a charm to all he did and supplied excuses ,
for his em issio n s T he char a ct er or rather h abits of these

.
, , ,
two law partners had in a very short space assimilated them

much , both of them being naturally aff able and generous ;
a n d while neither seemed to feel or understand the p e c u n
i a r y embarr a ssments of their clients yet they were quite ,
indiff erent of w hat became of their money when they got

it ; an d no man s heart was sooner melted than Mr Dex
’
.
ter s toward misfortu n e provided that misfortune did not

’
,
pres ent itself in the shape of a client .
Mr S n ifl in g had been engaged in his store attending to

.
his merchandise for som e ti m e p ast an d he felt himself in ,
a fair way t o fortune and perhaps to fa me H is equ an im

, .
ity was a little dis t urbed however from receiving a note

’
, ,
from the office announcing that the case of S n iflin g vs

,
.
Freeborn was N o 4 on the calendar an d would be tried

.
,
the comin g week .
“ ” “
Very well said he ; any thing is better than sus
,
pense and he said to himself that it would be far better

to get beat than to remain so a n y longer H is first flush .
of happiness upon being informed of the certainty of his

,
success had given way to misgivings and he revolved over

, ,
and over again the old saw The l a w s uncertainty and ,

‘ ’
”
the law s delay
’
A s for the delay the lo n ger the better
.
, ,
provided it could be delayed long enough ; but to be ex

,
p ec t in
g trouble d aily was too much for his nerves .
A t last came the d ay of trial and Mr S n iflin g was in , .
at t endance long befor e the appointed hour H e was nerv .

30 S T A N DI S H T H E P U R I T A N .
ous and fidg et y he looked wistfully at the crier an d at the

’
clerk and then to the comers in as they seated themselves

,
-
,
upon the long row of benches near th e bar A lthough the .
Dutch are a working people and good husbanders of their ,
time yet they do not so far depart from the instincts of the
,
rest of the human family as not to h ave in common with ,
t hem a little of i dle curiosity ; and as Yankeedom w a s the n

,
making some inroads upon their long established customs , -
they were pr ep ared with a hearty g ood will to visit t he

,
,
-
,
statute in such case ma de and pr ovided upon the most of

, ,
them whether they came within it or n o t ; and as the free

,
holders and their descendants were for the most part Dutch
or of D u tch origin the jury which had been im p a n n el ed
'
were mainly if not entirely made up of that interesting

, ,
class of people H ad it b een a question merely b etween the

.
plaintiff and the defendant they would had it been pos , ,
sible have convicted both of them ; but as the customers

,
of the plainti ff were the real su fferers c onsequent u pon

the frau d , it produced a little sympathy in favor o f the
‘
”
(6
fir m .
The j udge at length arrive d and soon afterward the room ,
was filled with the stanch rubicund faced yeomen o f the ,

-
neighborhood S n ifl in g looked upon the multitude with

.
awe ; b u t if his m isgivings were great upon looking at

them what must they have been when Mr Zimri Freeborn
, .
a n d his machine were ushered in t o court betwe e n two ath
letio officers each of whom could as easily and as ir r et r iev

,
ably have embraced the pri soner at the bar as a Norwegian

bear could an infant But his nerves were s omewhat quiet
ed u p en discovering Mr Dexter slowly and with measured .
step approach the bar : he bowed to the bench and then to

the bar and occupied some time in passing around and a f
,
f ec t io n a t el y taking by the hand all of those whom he sup - f
posed were summoned as j urors This was an honor which .
fell to their lot on n o other occasion and consequently they , , ,

r e c ia t ed it t he more Too much familiarity breeds
a
pp
'
”
contempt This maxim they had heard of and they there
.
,
STANDI SH THE PUR ITAN . 31
fore put it down to his credit explanatory of the neglect he ,
showed them on all o t her o c c a sio n s '

.
The crier opened the court by the calling out at the top
of his voice O y ez & c b u t either way the court a i
”
, ,
.
, ,
ways considered itself opened an d ready to proceed to bu si

ness A fter t he panel had been called and sworn in sev
.
,
era l inquests were t aken and at length N o 4 was called , . .
“
A cold shiver came ov er Mr S n iflin g If I get through . .
” “
this short of the whipping post , said he to himself, I shall -
be careful hereafter how I get into law suits -

.
Mr Dexter after carefully searchin g through a mass

.
,
of papers in his green bag gravel y han ded up the rec ,
ord T he ju dge glanced hastily through it and remark

.
,
“
ed, It appears that the default of the defendant has bee n
”
ta ken .
“
Yes your lords hip such IS t he case said the counse l
, , ,
“
for the plaintiff H is guilt is too apparent even for a
.
”
knave like himself to deny .
Mr F reeborn said the ju dge

”
.
“
h ave you counsel t o
, ,
”
cross exam i ne the witnesses of the plainti ff ?
“ “
N o said Zimri in a shrill squeaking tone ; I didn l , ,
’
”
sell ginger ; I am an engineer .
The j udge named a young gentleman who had recently

“ ”
been called to the bar to see that the trial proceeded with
” “
regularity Mr Dexter said the j u dge proceed with
.
, ,
the case .
Mr Dexter arose and bowed to the court and then to the

.
,
” “
jury May it please your lordship said he it is t r u e
.
, ,
th at the present case will be but an inquest ; but as the

damages are unliquidated and t he ca u se one of so a ggr a ,
v a t ed a n d w ic ked a character I think that you gentlemen

'
, , ,
will agree wi t h me ; when you hear t he testimony in say ,
in g that the defendant should be made an example of It .
is true gentlemen that the evid ence which we rely on is

, ,
circumstantial ; and when you shall hear it you will at ,
once see the hand of P rovidence interposed in sending to

justice a ch eat who if he had but half of his deserts would
, , ,
32 S T A N D I S II THE PURI TA N .
h ave been whipped naked throu gh t he world long ago , as

”
better men than himself have been .
H ere one of the j u rors among other oaths was heard to

, ,
”
utter the significant donner u n d blitzen at the same ,
time shaking his head at Zimri ; another inquired of his

“
right hand neighbor vich vas de schea t
- .
M r Dext er ?after pausing for a moment continu e

o
. d ,
Gentlemen , I said to yo u a mome n t ago th at the testi

m ony in this case was m ade up of circum stances ; n e w ,
mark me gentlemen it has been said by that i n spired j ur i s

, ,
prudent my Lord Coke when he was attorney general ,

, ,
that men may lie but circum stances c an not

‘
T his r e ’
'
, .
mark gentle m en from the day of its utterance to the pres

, ,
ent time has become part and parcel of the common l aw

,
of E ngland ; and m any a culpri t in doubtful case s would

h ave escaped the halter had not this precept been fastened
upon the minds of j urors w ho virtuous themselves a r e
, , ,
often disposed to acquit the accused judging t he standard ,
of the honesty of the world by the virtue they feel to exist

~
in their own pure bosoms .
H ere several of the jurors much excited arose from their

, ,
seats and exchanged places with each other ; and two of the
number still more d esperate than the rest made signs to
, ,
Mr Dexter denoting that they wished to retire The coun

.
, '
.
sel made known to the court t he r equ es t of the two jurors ,

“ ”
remarking that necessity has n o law ha s always been
deemed a sound maxim a n d upon this view of their case
, , ,
they were permitted to retire T he cause was suspended .

,
as is cus t omary in such cases until the absentees returned , .
Mr Dexter resu med

.
”
Gentlemen said he
.
“ though , ,
an E n glis hm an , Saxon blood runs i n m y veins an I can ,
fu lly appreciate the indignation that fill your bosoms We .
are of the same blood ; our ancestry were the same Integ .
rity marked their progress .
H ere one of the j urors had quieted his excitement by

getti n g into a doze ; but as there were eleven who had not ,
Mr Dexter was about to p 1 0 C eed ; but the j udge who was
.
,
” “
inal It was true he further said , that the advertise
.
,
ment described some o n e who answered the appearance of

the defendant A ny body could be convicte d , if such testi
.
mony should have any weight T he testimony of Mrs . .
T w eaks may have a little bearing 1 n the case She says .
the ginger she bought of Mr S n iflin g smelled like the meal .
” “
found with the defendant ; but said the j udge I sup , ,
pose all musty meal smells alike T he cause is with you , .
”
gentlemen .
“
The clerk called an officer who was sworn t o keep the ,
jury in some safe and convenient place ; to suffer them to

h ave neither meat n o r dr in k to p ermit no o n e to speak to
‘
them n or to speak to th em himself— u nless it was to ask

them if they had agre ed u po n their verdict —
,
until they had

”
agreed The j urors were accordingly taken to an adjoin
.
, ,
ing a p artment and locked up .
The juror who was selec t ed as foreman was exceedingly

short and fat a n d phrenologically considered had more
, , ,
reverence than perception and more combativeness than ,
either H e entered upon the disch arge of his duty by a

.
“ ” “
short exordium : Thish cashe said he ish for us to , ,
c o n sc hider fedder de meal vash c hin er or fedder de chin

g
ger vash meal Tish mine opinion tish meal and de
.
’ ’
,
‘
”
r i shen er musht be vi ed
p pp .
The foreman n o w called to the offi cer for fire to l igh t

the 1 r p i pe s each j uror carrying one under his hat band to
,
meet emergencies like the present Being furnished with .
the means of ignition they silently and thoughtfully sm o k

, , ,
ed till the little ro e m in which they were locked was filled

with it ; and one emptying his pipe sooner than the rest was
, ,
the first to break silence

“ ” “
I have c o n sc hider ed de cashe, said he ; he musht b e
v ip p ed one hundred s b l o w s and each man as he emp
p ,
tied his pipe broke silence accordingly and all agreed he

, ,
must be whippe d but all di ff ering as to the number of

,
lashes to be inflicted They sat in a row upon a large .
bench , their hands in their breeches pockets their legs ,

'
STANDISH T HE PUR I TAN . 5
stretched to their utmost tension their cheeks i nordinate ! y ,
protruding and red and their pipes placed under their r e

,
s ec t ive hat bands as before presented a uniformity equal

p
-
,
to so many painted warriors but n o t so ferocious ,

.
A fter sitting for upward of an hour in this m anner with

out breaking silence the 0 ffic er came in and asked them i f
,
‘
they had agreed “

Mind your b ishn ess said o n e a n d all ;
.
then every thing w as still again A fter remaining so until .
“
late in the afternoon t he foreman s aid We musht a g ree , ,
as to the sp b l o w s and after he had called each o n e by

n ame and asked him if he would agree to any other num
,
ber was most emphatically answered Shn e by o n e and

,
-
all of them .
The court had now tried the last case u p o n t he d ay s ’
ca l en dar ni ght was coming on and Mr S n ifl in g was very

, , .
u neasy He t ho u ght to himself this does n o t look l ike

.
,
the re covering £ 500 ; and even £1 0 would be better than

n othing—j us t enough to convince people of his innocence
He began to doubt also Mr Dexter s sincerity—n a y a l

.
’
a
, , .
,
most his huma nity— for he had gone on with h is other busi
ness before the court just as calmly as if his (the plainti ff s ) ’
character—his very fortune in fac t —was not at stake The ,

.
“
court finally adjourned and th e jury were still out Hope ,
.
”
de ferred maketh the heart sick saith the proverb and Mr , , .
S n ifl in g was a living witness to certify its truth .
T his headstrong jury m ight never have agreed had not

a bright thought o c curred to the foreman the next day , '
which was favorably receiv ed by his brethren A s it was

-
.
,
they sat moodily upon the before mentioned ben c h ; as for -
retracting or altering one iota it was qu ite out of the ques ,
tion A t length one went to sleep then another and a n

.
, ,
other u ntil H ans Van Tripe the foreman was the only
, , ,
one left awake H ans was a m an of good feelings and

.
'
some romance of character A s he looked out of the win .
dow of his room upon t he bright stars sleeping upon the

bay a n d t he pe bbly shore going do wn to the wate r as a lover
would to his mistress he thought of his boyhood —o f some
,
,
36 STANDI SH T HE PU R I TAN .
pleasing but ma n y sad o ccu r r en ces w hic h had happened ;

'
and of the latter his robbing a roost of its inhabitants was

,
one which gave him great concern :

“ ” —
Vat ! said he t lking aloud a n innate rogue never
a ,
muses aloud I had n o f a dd er , no mudder I vash a b eer .
poy and shn o vun do tell me var I vash right or var I vash
,
wrong Vun could push and a n n u dder could push , and

.
,
say Get ava y yo u p oo r fedder ! vat b ishn ess you to come

, ,
'
in my vay So I vent about and vash in every p o die s ’

,
vay ; and I couldn t k eep out of de vay ; Santa C l o o sh

’
never come daun de shim n ey to me ; and ven he did he ,
v o u l d put a vi p t o s chw it c h me in my stocking Se I .

-
v e n l d go to de river ven de o s who had f a dd er and mud

p y
der vash gone an d see d o little vishes swim and look so
, ,
happy ven do b ig vishes was after them and d o little p ir ds ,
in de pushes sung and I vent a shl eep I dr eem ed m y boor

, .
mudder came to m e and said H a n s my b ee r poy be hap

, , , ,
If you be hungry you m u sht n t sht ea l ; but be a goot

’
py .
,
poy and you ll have enough t o eat A little time , Hans ,

,
’
.
and you ll p e old and if you are goot you ll come to vere
’
, ,
’
be ffery pody is happy and heff er y pody is goot .

’
P oor H ans sob b ed for all he knew of father or mother

,
was in his dreams ; but this was a c o n so l a t ien to him ; and

in the morning he would go bravely ou t among the boys ,
and talk of his mother as well as the best of them A n d .
H ans grew on and waxed strong and fat and no one knew
, ,
ho w w ho had n o t a good conscience like himself ; for it was

out of mere hunger he had m ade an onslaught on the roost ;
-
althou gh his enemies never found it out , yet after he ,
ha d been admonished by his mother in his dreams he would ,
n o t for the worl d have been dishonest

, , H e h ad taken up . .
the trade of a cobbler and upon it he throve E arly and , .
late the h ammer was heard upon the lap stone ; and the -
more he hammered the more thirsty he was and the more

, ,
beer he drank , un til but few of his compeers requ i red more
cloth for a waistcoat than himself A nd after thus running .
on t hrough early life he also went to sleep and he snored , ,

like t he rest of them and as dishonest men never talk -
aloud in the ir musings so unamiable men seldom snore as , ,
any one can witness who has seen their equa n imity when
found fault with on such occasions Hans wa s stubborn , .
however for a l l that

,
Morning at last threw its light upon the t w

.
elve jurors
through a window which looked to the east an d their cho r us ,
was n o t yet ended ; but had they and coul d they at al l ,
have anticipated the excitement which h ad existed through

out the town and p a r t ic u l a r l y t hr o u gh Du ke str eet as to
'
-
, ,
.
the result of their dubitations they would have been aston ,
ished at their own importance A s it was , upon being .
fairly r eused the great object of their concern was the keen
,
"
demands o f appetite ; an d although thi s was a point of at

ta ck o n which the y felt themselves the most vulnerable ,
yet with all its terrors , it was of little importance when

contrasted with t he ir ruling passion—the disinclination of
,
yield ing when beaten It was a sublime sight to see in

—
.
them the workings of that passion to see their eyes roll

in g at ea c h o t her —not deignin g to speak nor to en l ighten
‘
, ,
“
n o r b e enlightened : as much as to say
. I like this place ; I ,
would rather be here th an not ; I am not hungry n or ex ,
ec t to be ; every thin g is going on well at home ; and if it

p ”
.
isn t I don t care

’
,
’
A t last H ans spoke
.
“
I d u shen t think we shall agree as to de number of .
sp b l o w s and I p r o p o s he to leave that to de c h u d e ; and

, g
upon putting the question and after a lo n g pause they , , ,
“ ”
each in turn , replied Y a ! This settled the question ;
and after waiting till the judge came they were conducted ,
by the officer into court Their names were all called a n d .
n oted ; and when asked by the clerk if they had agreed

“
upon their verdict H ans answered Ya ! ,
”
“ ?
How find you , gentlemen for the plaintiff or the de
fendant
“ That de defendant be v i ed and de c hu d e to tell
pp g ,
”
them ve n to stop !
“
What did he say i nquired the j udge
? ”
.
38 S T A N D I sH THE PURITAN .
“ ”
The clerk could hardly keep his gravity Sir said he .
, ,
they say he is to be whipped , and you are to tell the e x e

e n t ic n er when to stop
The judge was q uite as muc h disposed to lau gh as the

clerk but his st a t io n w o u l d not allow of any external sign of
'
his inclination H e with great gravity told the jury that

.
, ,
the case befo re them was a civil action and that their verdict ,
should have been for a sum of mo n ey if they supposed ,
that the evidence could havew a r r a n t ed it ; if not then their '
verdict should have been under the default sixpence ; but , ,
as the cou r t w o u l d a dj o u r n that day h e Would disch arge ,
them from a n y further consideration of the case and would ,
continue it over to the next ter m of the court , each party to

pay his own costs .
Zimri a n d his machine were compelled to occupy their

“
old quar t ers If the costs that had accrued in consequence

.
,
of the Cause going o ff for the term ha d been the only con ,
sideration it would h ave mattered little— these mishaps b e

ing frequent and therefore to be expected—but it was
, , ,
said that the gentlemen composing the jury never spoke to

each other after and that the feuds that subsequently b e
\
,
‘
came frequent in the neighborhood and about H anover an d ,
Duke streets had their origin the night the jurors were out
, ,
each one blaming the other for n o t paying more attention

“
to the address of M r Dex t er in the opening of the case

'
. .
C HA P TE R r v .
O N the side of a hill and probably the spot on the Con ,
n e c t ic u t R iver where the regicides Major general Whalley ,

-
,
Major general Goff e and Brigadier general Dix w el l found

-
,
-
shelter in the time of the secon d Charles with the aid of a ,
little art a roo m of considerable dimensions had been made

,
S TANDISH T HE P U R I T A N . 39
in the midst of hu ge rocks which formed its irregular sides ,
and roofed by a bo w lder projecting ou t of the hill the whole

, ,
was sheltered by p rimeval trees a n d surrounded b y thick -
brambles , and its only approach was the u pper side of the
hil l by a narro w and ci rcuitous path whic h led partly to
,
'
t he c a ve or apartment .
The moon was in its second quarter and was near the ,
west ern horizon as foo tsteps were heard c autiously a p

,
pr e achi n g the door or aperture formed by the irregu larity

of the rocks which co m posed one of its sides A t length .
a light was sce n to em anate from the spot A tall figure “
.
,
wrapped in a gray c l o a k r a p idl y advanced to the door

,
~
where he entered and the aperture was immediately closed ,

,
and all was still a n d hushed but the rustling of the leaves
a n d the barking of the fox It was a fitting place for deeds
.
of daring or conceiving them Shut out fr om the world and

'
its passions the mind was untrammeled by excitement and

,
unbiased from the prejudices of others ; and as the m atters

t o be discussed if revealed to the world would be h ighly
, ,
treasonable the nature of the place n o t only fitted the mind

,
for cool discussion but sheltered the occupants from the ear
~
of the R oyalists
’
The person who entered the cave last sat in one corner
sile nt and moody A sigh escaped him so deep that it a t
.
tracted t he a t t e n t io n of the others ; which caused the r e

.
“
mark to be made that if there was a n y member who at
,
all doubted or regretted the propriety of the meeting he ,
had the privilege of retiring as soon as the member s were

”
sworn .The gentleman who ha d caused the remark drew
his cloak tighter a r ound him and by a nod recogn ized the , , ,
intimation as being made to himself The members were .
called to order and a presiding officer selected A fter this

, .
had been done every thing was still E ach member as

, .
,
the time of action approached seemed to quail u nder the ,
responsibility of committing an overt act of treason .
The force of education with m any ha d rendered t he pre

rogative of the k ing inviolate ; and , with the E piscopalians ,
40 S T A N DI S H '
THE PURITAN .
his holy office as head of the Church had rendered his cause
sacred For a few moments silence reign ed within , a n d
.
the winds whistled drearily t hrou gh the crev i ces of the

rocks which contained some of the m aste r spirits of the
bloody scenes that followed .
There were there that night many gallant men w ho

would have sacr ificed their lives freely for their king in a
good cause as their fathers before them had done ; and
n o w to sever themselves from him—o n e whom they had
,
—
been tau ght to love and rever e f rom the glory of E ngland ,
and many friends of their youth were reflections which ,
burst upon them in all their force at a moment when George

the Th ird was about to be declared guilty of acts which
justified them in withdrawing their allegiance N ot until .
the others refused to respond did the personage in the gray

cloak arise for that purpose In a steady an d clear tone he
.
,
addressed the chairman as follows

“
The history of colonizing the provi nces of N ew E ngland
is too well known for me to spend time i n repeating Our .
ancestors had hoped to have obtained here a resti ng place -
for themselves and their posterity after bein g hunted from

,
E ngland for di ff ering in their creed from the E stablished

Church Their blood had hardly ceased to flo w from the
.
assaults of the savages when they were plunged into a war

,
with the French and their Indian allies , which thinned the
population and de moralized their habits ; and when the de
mand for blood had ceased the acquisitions of our labo r are
,
called for to pay expenses which we never crea t ed and mer ,
c ha n dise is thrust upon us that we do not want a n d in the , ,
opinion of many things which are unwholesome as a diet

, ,
and too expensive for the simple habit s of our peop le and
the means which th ey have to pay with To coerce us to .
submission we are n o w hunted as wild beasts with fire and

, ,
sword by a mercenary soldiery whenever we resist the vas

, ,
salage that 1 8 attempted to be forced u p on us Withou t

goin g continued b e into the detai l s of our W
.
” “
, , . rongs it ,
seems evident that we ar e recogni zed by E ngland , n o t as

42 STANDI S H THE PUR I TAN .
l E
’
u r with very natural curiosity asked of the stranger
, ,
the nature of the burden he bor e upon his back .
The individual answered in a most e flem l n a t e voice It s

'
“ ’
.
a perpetual motion marm ,

.
“ ”
A what inquired she
? .
A perpetual motion marm answered t he m a n whom , , ,
the reader will now recogn ize as Zimri Freeborn formerly

.
n ear the confines of Connecticut , but more lately of the j ail
of the city of N ew York .
Just before the c ause of S n iflin g vs Freeb orn was reach .
ed upon the docket news had been received o f the contest ,
whic h had taken place at Le xington a n d the wh ole cou n ' '
try was in a blaze Several houses of the Tories had been .
attacked the p r isoners in the j ail had be en turn ed loose

, ,
with d ivers other acts of aggressi on which s howed that a l ,
most the entire o f the l o wer c l asses were ready for the fray '
Secre t meetings were held nightly and the e ffects were ,
seen from day to d a y in the total disregard whic h the pop

u l a c e showed the public authorities .
The elder Mr De l E u r and his son soon joined his wife

.
’
a n d daughter who very naturally in q uired of the stranger

'
,
“ ”
where he was last from .
A j ail he replied
”
, .
A j ail feelingly inquired Mr Del E u r ; an d may I

? ”
.
’
inquire the cause of your imprisonment ? ”
“ ”
I don t know feebly answered Zimri
’
, .
” “
Don t know ! exclaimed Mr De l E u r ; and pray ,
’ ’
,
.
”
who put you there ?
“ ”
Mr S n iflin g was the answer
.
, .
Mr S n ifl in g said the younger De l E u r with aston

. .
’
,
“ “
ishm en t P ray said he do you recollect his Christian
.
, ,
name
“
Julius C aesar was the response ,
”
Good heavens ! exclaimed George what 1 s S n ifl in g ,
? ” “
about now You will excuse me said he but Mr Sni , , .
fling Wa s a school fellow of m i ne for m any years It is .
hardly six months since we left school together , and I am

interested in all my late companions I hope you will n o t .
”
deem me inquisitive .
”
‘
Jis t so said Zimri , .
Then will you allow m e t o ask what business Mr S n i .
”
fl in g is engaged in in N ew York ?
“ ”
H e s a merchant
’
.
“ ? ”
But why did he 1 m p r 1 so n you
“
It was somethin g about gi nger or Indian m eal , I don t
’
”
k now which he solemnly answered , .
Ginger or Indian meal ? Did you ever deal with Mr .
S n ifl in g 9”
”
N o s 1 r he replied
, , .
Then do I understand yo u to say that Mr S n ifl in g .
? ”
caused you to be imprisoned without any cause of action
“ ”
J is t so he answered patiently
, , .
“
George turned to his parents and said I believe it ; h e ,
is a strange man and knowing him as I do I ca n believe , , ,
an
y thing he may attempt if the end which he has l n view ,
is gain H ow strangely con t inued he , IS the character

.
”
,
”
of man diversified .
“ ”
Yes said his father ; and if ther e b e any thin g which
,
I h ave fervently prayed for it is t ha t you may remain free ,
from many of the blemishes wh ich d eform so great a por

tion of the human race ; ble m ishes which nature seems so
ind eli b ly t o have fix ed up on them that it appears par t of ,
their natures ; a curse which God has stamped upon the m

i n his wisdom for so m e g r e a t end which we poor finite
‘ ‘
creatures are n o t permitted to understand .
“
Ho w did you get releas ed from prison in q uired the
? ”
elder Mr De l E u r .
’
.
“ ” “
I don t know he replied ; but the Liberty men helped
’
,
me I suppose , seeing as how we were all Liberty men in

,
side .
That 1 8 to say said the elder Mr De l E u r smilingl y , , .

’
,
you al l preferred being ou tside of the prison t o bein g 1 n

”
side .
“
E xactly so said Zimri , accompanied wi th a twinkle
,
44 S T A N D I S H T H E P U R I TA N .
of hislittle gray eyes Mr Standish made a speech about

—
. .
”
tea and liberty that did the business .
The whole family seemed confoun ded at the mention of

Standish s name ’
Is it possi b le , said the elder Dc l E u r
”
.
’
,
“
that he has been guilty of treason to his king and impiety
to his God and that he is trying to create a rebellion
,
a g ain st his anointed ? Did you ever suspect him said ”

, .
“ ? ”
he of being infected with treasonable intentions
,
“ “
I k n ow replied his so n
”
,
that he bore our people at ,
*
home n o good will but I was n o t prepared to find him l n ,
open rebellion We have discussed the ma t ter t o some ex

.
tent and to do him justice I b el ieve he is sincere in b e

, , ,
lieving that the government is pursuin g an u nnecessarily

”
harsh course toward us .
Mrs De l E u r had stepp ed out into the garden for a few

.
’
moments and on her return , told her husband that E dith

, ,
was there an d in tears .
“
P oor little thing ! said he ; she dislikes to see her fa
”
t her s friend jeopardin g his character and perhaps his life ,

’ “
in a ca use that will b ring ruin u po n h ims elf and disgrace

”
to his family .
The day waxed 0 11 but the De l E u r s were sad They ,

’
.
h ad lived mostly to themselves and the few friends which ,
they recognized as such they took to their hearts and loved

as themselves ; and although they felt and knew the folly
of what the world calls exclusiveness yet they , at the ,
same time fully understood the violence which cultivated

,
and refined intellects are subj ected to when brought into ,
too near contact with the coarse and vulgar D

They would .
far rather have lived entirely alone t ha n to have subjected ,
themselves n o t only to the pain , but the disgust that

,
coarseness inflicts .
The charm of soc iety consists in as nearly as may be an ,

-
,
equality of ed u catio n and a similarity of pursui t s ; and the

philanthropist may talk of equality , and of bringing the
”
It is t he p r ac t c e , i e ven a t t he p r e se n t day , w ith m an y Ne w E n
gl an d
pe o pl "
e, to s p k ea of E n
gl a n d as h om e
STANDI SH THE PU RITAN . 45
'
d ifle r en tclasses into one great household , but he will lear n ,

before he gets through that the admixture of oil and water
,
is j ust as natural as the reformation he would force upon

the world .
A n d it is well that it should be so T he struggle of as .
c en den cy is not without its beneficial e ff ects and altho u gh

it may crea t e a smile to see an irrede emably vulgar man
pretend to taste and refinement yet its course is not with
,
out its good results If he begin t oo late in li fe himself, or

.
is natural l y u n fit t e d for the society he aspires to he would ,
b e very a p t to culti vate and re fine his children , or at least

'
do wh at education could for them .
The tenden cy of a very considerable portion of the com

munity is downward not only of the plebeian , but of the
,
aristocrat ; and if this tendency were n o t counteracted by

an opposite impulse with another portion of the same co m
munity t he earth would soon be filled with savages A n
, .
aristocracy of intellect and refin ement will always exist ,

when that of power and position founded on m oney alone, ,
shall be scouted at and be made to feel its nothingness

, .
When aristocracy ceases t o be founded o n the former he ,
who claims it will find very few so abject as to follow in ‘
the wake of those who are a jest and a b y word with the -
vulgar and of pity an d contempt to those who possess the

,
merit of seeming what th ey really are The De l E u r s .

’
felt a n d understood thi s They were pr o u d of their family

.
escutcheon be cause there was no crime connected with it

, ,
whose motto had been the watchword of a dozen genera

tions and whose conduct in life had been stj u a r ed by it
, .
But allegiance to t heir king they considered their first duty ;

and ha d they known that all their broad acres would have
b een forfeited by it , it would not have weighed with the m
one atom .
A fter they had recovered a little from their astonishment

as t o t he c o u r se pursued by Mr Standish Mr De l E u r r e
.
, .
’
marked to his son that they ha d a high d u ty to perform ,
and if it shou l d become necessary the latter mus t d r aw

, ,
“
his sword in defense of the g overnment A nd sh ould .
” “
you he continued be sacrificed in the struggle I shall
, , ,
h ave the consolation of knowing that the last of my race

”
h as ended life as the first began it .
A hammering and bending of Wires in the yard attr act

“
ed the attention of the family What 1 s the traveler do .
? ”
in g with that machine said Mr De l E u r to a servant .
’
.
H e says sir that he is regulating his perpetual mo

, ,
tion was the reply

,
.
“
Is the man crazy ? ”
i n quired M r De l E u r of his son \
.
’
.
H e may be a genius in his way but he will never dis ,
cover a self mov i ng agent in perpetuity until some of t he

-
”
laws of nature are reversed .
“ “
H e 1 s a singular being replied his son but his ma , ,
n ia is n o t uncommon in this land of invention H e certain .
l y seems satisfied with the results of his lab ors and if he ,
is happy in the deception the obj ect of life seems to be a o ,
complished .
“ ”
I understand said t he elder De l E u r to him as b e
,
’
,
advanced to the y ard where he was hammering that yo u “

,
? ”
h ave got a perpetual motion there
J ist so said Zimri
, .
” “
But I fear said Mr De l E u r that it will never go
, .
’
, .
It is contrary to all the kno wn laws of motion ”

.
“ ”
No it ain t said he ; and he continued hammering
’
, (
and sawing at his machine , without ever raising h is eyes ”
to his interrogator Mr De l E u r withdrew from the con

. .
’
test and told his wife that he could not make the travele r
,
out but was f ear fu l t ha t he was a little demented upon the

, fi
subject that seemed to engross his entire time and attention .
A horseman was now seen winding his way rapidly

through the trees toward the house an d before any time ,
had elapsed for comment upon who it cou ld be Mr Stand , .
ish sprang from his saddle and knocked at th e door Mr . .
De l E u r perceiving who it was from the window directed

’
, ,
“
a servant to inform Mr Standish that he was n o t in the .
habit of receivi n g rebels , and that he would greatly oblige

STANDI SH THE PURITAN .
him in the future by not intrudi n g upon his privacy but ,
before the me ssage was delivered George begged of hi s f a ,

“
ther t o suspe nd it until they were satisfied that he in
tended to commit some overt act P erhaps he did not in .
”
tend it .
“
I can not see him I will withdraw You can do as
. .
”
you please replied his father
, .
Standish , acco rdingly , was admitted They approached .
each other George s manner was warm but Standish

.
’
,
was pale and broken down with grief and he trembl ed in ,

“ ” “
every limb George said he , I would not have in
.
,
t r u d ed upon you in these times under any circumstances

, ,
that could h ave occurred to myself I know and respect .
your feelings You have been taught that the king can do
.
n o wrong ; I that he rarely does any thing right

, The .
schoolmaster 1 s an a r b it r a1 y being he rules the body 1n its .
youth and ingrafts his prej u dices upon the yo u ng shoo t

, ,
and it blossoms o n and controls the parent stem ; and if

, ,
perchance a sh o ot from the latter shoul d pu t out arid bloom

, ,
in its native truth yet the intruder will soon overshadow

,
it Its petals will close a n d it is seen no more So error

.
, .
stalks on through the world dazzling the eyes of the b e ,
h older with splendor not its own and then , with a deep
“
sigh he cont inued I h ave sworn over the corpse of a mur
, ,
dered father and a dishonored sister to pursue the minions

of E ngland until this arm s hall be nerveless a n d my f a ,
t her s fate be mine or the accursed throng be expe lled from

’
,
” “
our fair land George said he I am h ere to save you
.
, ,
from a fate like my o wn Your father s politics are known .

’
about our district and the destruction the Tories have

,
caused has excited our people beyond all control I had .
secret intelligence that they were to come this way in force ,
and although I am their nominal commander they are yet

, ,
acting in detachments and can n o t be controlled until they ,

”
h ave some discipline
Standish s eyes were red and his fac elooked feverish
.
’
, .
” “ ?
Where , continued he 1 s your sister I w ish to see ,
48 S T AN D I S H T HE IU R I T A N
’
.
her . I have nothing else left I am here to save her from .
harm ”
H e sank upon a ch air
. I am ill , I am ill , .
“
George said he ,
N ature has never made me for scenes .
”
of blood yet still I feel that such 1 s my destiny
,
My friend said George at the same time a ffection

”
, ,
ately taking his hand what fear ful tale 1 s this you relate
“ ?
,
Did I understand you to speak o f the murder of you r fa

—
ther of your sister 7 What does all t his mean 7 You . .
are feverish my friend ,

.
“
Oh yes ! I am Yet , st ill you have the t ru th T he .
,
.
legions of E ngland have murdered burned , destroyed Oh , ,

.
my sister ! would to God that British steel had sav ed the

”
poisoned cup from your lips !
George became alarmed , and sent fo r his father , inform
in g him that Mr Standish was ill and req u ired his attend .
,
ance T his put a new feature upon the visit Mr ; Stand

. .
ish was ill H e was at the ho m e o f a Christian and a man

.
‘ ‘
who fe ared God M r De l E u r therefore cam e to his as .

~
.
’
s ist a n c e as Standish had swooned

, H e grasped his hand , .
and with calm but d eep emotion , in quired the cau se of his
illness H is son briefly related to him what had fallen fro m
.
“ ”
his lips I hope , said he , God in his mercy may sh ow
.
”
this to be a mistake My son said he , kindly addressin g .
,
Mr Standish , you are ill and feverish You must remain

. .
q uiet under my roof until it shall pleas e G od to restore y o u

”
to your family .
M family ! repeated Standish ; my family ! I have

” “
y
none I h ad ; but t he assassin in his cruel might has
.
slaughtered the ho ary and the innocent The one wa s .
slain ; the other could n o t n ay she should n o t live She , , .
inherited none of the blandishments of life to shield her

memory and has sought the cold grave to hide her from the
,
”
shame the world would have heaped upon her H e sank .
again exhaus t ed It was now seen that he was Wounded

, .
in the arm The bl ood came dripping u pon his hand

. .
“
You are wounded , said Mr a n d Mrs De l E u r , 1 n the
”
. .
’
same breath .
50 STANDISH THE
pain me too My father and sister thought as I do Oh
, . .
,
do not censure them through me

“ ” “
I do not she replied censu re you or yours I only
, , .
censure the cause you are engaged in I k n ow it is wrong .

,
for my father says it is Besides h ave we n o t been happy .

,
as we are 7 The fields yield to us their bounty and our ,

.
peace is secured against the world and what do we want ,
more ? I recollect in my infancy , visiting our friends in

,
E ngland and seeing their parks their castles and their

, , ,
dependen ts but I am sure that I am far h appier S eparated ,
as we are from the world and ev en o u r kinsmen in look ,
ing at our primeval fore s

, j
ts and the birds which inhabit ,
them fresh from the hand of their Maker I read of wick

, .
e d n e ss that exists in the Old World th at I am s u re does
not exi st her e Do not oh do not ! she continued as she

”
.
, ,
“
timidly glan ced her eyes at him do n o t further bring ,
”
down the wrath of God upon our beautiful land !
“
Mr Standish sighed heavily as he said E dith I am
.
, ,
faint yet comforted ; miserable y et con soled

, , .
“
To morrow said she as she withdrew
”
,
“
with m y , ,
mother s consent I will see you again and as she t urned

’
, ,
to leave the room this innocent c hild who had known b e

, ,
'
fore n o so rrow groaned from the depths of her hear t She

, .
had never before seen o n e a ff licted and did not expect to ,
see one so young su ff ering from the loss of connections ;

but 1 n her j udg m ent it was retributive j ustice .
E very care was taken of Mr Sta n dish Upon an exam . .
i m ation of his arm it was found to be b u t a fle sh wo und

, ,
and had proceeded from a musket ball A s they were clos .
ing the door upon his chamber he reminded them that if , ,
they heard any noise about the house in the night they ,
had better awaken him as the patrolling parties might ,
commit some a c t of aggression .
A fter Mr S t andish had retired the family gathered to

.
,
“ ” “
gether Is it come to this said Mr De l E u r that we
.
,
.
’
,
are in danger of an enemy in our quiet abode and th at our ,
lives are threatened for expressing sentiments which seem

S T A N D I S II T II E P U R I T A N . 51
to me every honest man must feel d he then ex c l a im l 7” a n

.
ed,
“
God s will be done !
’ ”
H e a ff ectionatel y d rew his
dau ghter to him and kissed her tenderly and as he gazed
, , ,
“
upon her exclaimed No ! n o ! m an is a fallen being ; he
, , '
is guilty of almost every vice treachery a n d falsehood cru ,

'
,
o lty a n d revenge but sur ely he is n o t fallen so low as to

,
”
i n jure this poor child .
The family after commending themselves to H eaven r e

, ,
t ired to their several apartments .
The whole countr y was in a state of alarm Blood had .
been spilled and the struggle had n o w fairly begun The

, .
term rebel associated with it all that was bad an d arous

”
,
ed in the adverse side the bitterest elements of revenge .
”
The term Tory co n veyed with it all that was cruel and
accursed , and the ho u seS o f the vanquished were seen in a '
blaze thr oughout the land Dea t h to the tyrants ! ”
“
Death to the rebels ! were the wat chwords which seem
”
ed to actuate ei ther party .
T he elder Mr Standish a n d his family had been attack

.
ed by the Tories H e lustily defe n ded himself and them

.
until he was slain and then all which had been intimated
,
by young Standish occurred but too truly .
The night waned on and the cricket w as chanting mer ,
rily away upon the hearth and the stars looked down u pon ,
earth as bri ght and serene as if smiling upon a world that

,
knew n o sin The winds were hushed and the silvery

.
,
music of the S pheres floated on the air as the h eavenly choir

rolled on in the eternal depths of space .
When we look abroad upon this beautiful world and the ,
millions of worlds beside th at go on in their ceaseless round ,
a n d see and feel their sublimity does it n o t see m m ir a c u ,
lous that man in his in t elligence will allow the baser pas
, ,
sions of envy malice and reve n ge to find a resting place -
—
, ,
in his bosom ? A n d oh ! the contras t the sublimity of

,
n ature ; the utter littleness of the heart where dwells such
passions Yet the mass of men possess them a n d po ssess

.
, ,
ing them , go on in their mad career a n d affix upon a goal ,

52 STAN DI SH THE PURITAN
‘
the world calls fame ; while the truly great look upon it as
the abode of a d a y and that day sacred to thought a n d
,
medit ation in fitting themselves for a higher e state when

,
they sh all leave this .
Such was the turn of mind of Mr De l E u r an d he had

’
.
,
s t ron gly imbued hi s philosophy into the min ds of his chil

d ren H is highest pleasure was to teach the m the relig 1 on
of nature—to dwell upon its vast sublimity This per
.
.
,
h aps had given a tinge of so b erness to their character ; but

it was the soberness of truth—the sob er n ess o f divine as
,
'
piration s— a confidence in their virtue , an d a sat isfaction

,
in its contemplation that none but the righteous feel or can

,
understand In his latter years he h ad never laid his head

’
u pon his il l o w b u t t hat h e f elt tha t he was in the arms

‘
p
of his G o d—a c onfidence in his power and will that could
n o t be mistaken and if he had known that th at night wa s
to have been his last he would ha ve c l o sed his eyes as calm
,
‘
l y upon the world as if his sleep had been but for an hour .
The old oaken clock 1 n the library went clicking o n in ,
the dist inctness that n ight gave it and as it struck four , , ,
a bugle was heard in the distance so soft an d sweet that ,
it seemed an echo to the tones of the lute t hen a l l was

still A gain it sounded in the stillness of the nigh t —i t
l
came upon the c a r a s the summer s breeze upon the ZE o l ia n

’
harp— and again the silence was dee p and fearful , an d the
.
clock ticked and th e cricket chirped on as befor e

, .
Mr De l E u r arose from his bed and a lit tle way fr o m

.
’
,
the door upon the lawn he perceived a soldier 1 n the Brit

, ,
ish uniform with measured step carefully pacing to and

,
fro and as he dr ew near , the man presented his musket

, ,
and demanded him t o stand .
7 ”
Who and what are you said Mr De l E u r ’
—
. . .
A private in his maj esty s t h infantry ” ’

was the ,
reply .
“ ”
Who sent you , a n d upon wh at errand inquired Mr7 . .
De l E u r ’
.
“
The o fficer of the gu ard responded the soldier , r e
”
,
s TA N D 1 S H T H E P U R I T A N . 53
“ ”
sp e c t fu l ly
It is sup p osed added he that an attempt
.
, ,
will be made upon this house to night a n d a body of men -

,
are encamped in the gr ove yon der to repel them should

’
such be the case My orders were not to d isturb you sir .

, ,
u nless it should be necess ary ; and , if I ve got ears I heard

’
,
a bugle away yonder in the hills I shouldn t wonder if .

’
”
they be here fore long
’
’
.
Mr De l E u r withdrew and the S entinel conti n ued on

.
’
,
his weary round H e had slept until his usual hour and
.
,
, when he arose had lighted a candle as he was in the habit

, ,
of doing and was readin g his allotted portion of the Scrip

,
tures He r ead and weighed them liberally ; a n d that por

‘
tion which to him seemed historic , he treated as such and

,
that port ion which appeared allegoric he gave to it a con ,
struction consistent with the times a n d the condition of ,
the people for whose rule of conduct it was given but that
portion which suited all times and all pe ople he adopted as
his infallible guide regulating and brin ging down any a s ,
er it ies which he found rising in his breast to the ad m o n i

p
tions and requir ements m et with there But he wo u ld not .
yield u p the talent that God had given him by treatin g

.
allegory as fact or his tory as inspiration H e knew well

, .
that la n guage when n ew is made up of signs and com

, ,
parisons and th at in its mos t perfect state it is only di

, , ,
vested o f them because those signs and comparisons are for

gotten ; and while he wit h revere n tial awe looked to rev , ,
elation as his sheet anchor of hope yet he claimed the priv ,
ilege as an intelligent and responsible being of ju dging for

, ,
himself ; responsible because he was created to know good ,
from evil truth from falsehood virtue from vice ; and he

, ,
claimed to exercise that very intelligence for the reason

that he wa s responsible should he err in a passive obedi ,
ence to the teaching of feebler intellects than his own .
A fter carefully weighing in his m ind the chapter which he

had read he went to the room of Mr Standish H e found
, . .
him sleeping soundly ; and as the waning moon reflected

its light upon the head of the bed , and exposed his high , in
54 STANDI SH THE PU R ITAN .
t el l ec t u forehead the light curl u p On his temple and his

al , ,
musc u lar and well adjusted shoulders combining sym m e ,
try with strength and the light flush upo n his cheek he , ,
felt that he was cast in nature s noblest mold There was ’
something in his features which told of generosity—o f hon

.
esty of purpose ; yet his lofty brow denoted that pride in ,
depe n dence and a proper estimate of his own character

’
controlled all these H e saw a man before him that in a .

,
natural state of society could own no superior , .
The sound of the bugle was n e w a ga i n hear d and near ,
er than before ; and as Mr De l E u r looked to the course .

’
from whence it came he heard the tramp of horses rapidly ,
approaching the house but a short distance from it and in ,
a few moments after several dischar ges of fir e ar m s in rap ,
id succession For a moment all was again still except

.
,
What appeared to be the groan s of wounded m en and the ,
quick flight of horses without their riders then cheers all

at once rang through the w
,
, ood as if uttered by the vic ,
t or io u s party .
The sentinel however without relaxing h1 s pace moved

, , ,
on in the same mechanical way as before Mr De l E u r . .

’
went to the door and questioned the man as to the mean

’
ing of th e firing .
A mbushed the r ebels sir was the reply , , .
” “
I fear said Mr De l E u r
, that some of them are .
’
,
”
slain
No doubt sir rep lied the sentinel
.
, , .
H ow many men are there i n the grove inquired Mr

7 ”
. .
De l E u r
’
.
One full company sir rank and file , , .
How long are you to stay here ? ”
Until relieved he replied

”
was Mr D
, .
Who will relieve you 7 ”

e l E u r s next in . .
’ ’
quiry n o t understanding the military expression

, .
“
The officer of the guard was the reply
”
, .
Zimri upon the first alarm had made o ff with his ma

, ,
chine ; not that he had any fear for his own safety only ,
but he was not altogether unambitious of leaving behind

him a monument of his ingenuity as well as other men of ,
perhaps less merit Besides the smell of gunpowder had

.
, ,
on sever a l o c c a sio n s brought on a turn of asthma an a ffl ic

, ,
tion to which he was subject H e applied saltpeter some .
tim es to cure it a n d it was he who first used the unrefined

,
“
saying that it was the hair of the same dog that cured
”
the disease but which in modern times has been ren
, , ,
“ ”
dered into like cur es like .
Mr De I E u r hurried back to the room and there he

.
’
,
found Mr Standish dressed a n d busy in reprimin g his pis

.
,
tols H e was surprised when he had been informed of

.
what had happened and that a sentinel was before the d oor
, .
H e suspected that the Tories had received information of

“
his whereabouts as they certainly ha d of the move
~
”
,
ments of the party which had been repul se d H e was very .
a n xious to ascertain whether it was a detachment of his

own men They had as yet little or no discipline and
.
, , ,
acted more upon impulse originating among themselves

-
than by any orders .
Mr Standish h ad been appointed a colonel but had n o t

.
,
been assigne d to any particular command H is bearing .

,
however in several a ff airs a n d particularly the last where

, , ,
he was wounded had made h i m conspicuous as a leader ,

,
and one whose capture would have been a point gained by ,
striking dismay into the daring a n d turbulent spirits which

seemed to rise U p on every side Mr Stan d ish n o w a sked . .
Mr De l E u r whether he intended to give him up to the

.
’
“ ” “
British ; for said b e if such is your intention I shall
, , ,
endeavor at once to make my escape a n d if unsuccessful , , ,

”
will sell my life dearly rather than be captured Mr De . .
l E u r assured him that as he h ad received his hospitality

’
, ,
it should continue until he could get safely away ; and e

more especially as he came to protect himself and family ,
he had n o option and would therefore do all in his power

, , ,
“ ” “
to secrete him Daylight he added is n e w approach
.
, ,
in g A demand may be made for you You h ad better

. .
,
6 S TA NDI SH THE PU RI TA iv
.
t herefore , go in the shadow of th e house to the barn . It

is filled with hay and grain You can easily shelter you r .
self there until a favorable moment shall arrive t o le ave

‘
It 1 s my desire after tha t for yo u t o leave u s to our fate ,

, ,
‘
Whatever it rfiay be ”
.
Upon l ooking out of his cham ber window he p erce i ved ,
sever al officers in British unifor m advancing toward the

house Mr De l E u r then rapidly Withdre w accompanied
. .
’
,
by Mr Standish and showing him a back door , p ointed a

.
, ,
way to his exit .
In a few moments after the latter had made goo d his r é

treat the officers approached and as they came up to the
, , ,
sentinel he made them the cust omary salute by presen t

,
in g arms T hey inquired of him if he had seen any one

'
about the house to which he replied No one but the eld , ,
erly gentleman Whom he susp ected of being the proprietor

,
”
.
Shortly afterward a sergeant came from the grove wi t h ,
a file of men and stationed t hem at several point s com

,
manding the entire grounds around the house The three .
officers at the head of whom was a Captain Millbank , then

,
introduced themselves to Mr De l E u r .
’
.
Captain Millbank was a gen tlem an of perhaps thirty f -
eight with polished manners , an d at different periods had

, , ,
been stat i oned in almost every portion of his majesty s do ’
minions ; but the life of fashion which he had led and t he

'
somewhat di ssipated care er which almost necessarily had , ,
followed gave him an older appearanc e an d a r u ddiness of

, ,
complexion incompatible with a life of study and thought .
Much blood l n the face is sure to pale the heart A cor .
oner s jury should neve r bring in a verdict of de ath from

’
over aff ection of one whose blushes h ave aris en from such
-
causes .
C aptain Millbank however , w a s every in ch a soldier , .
Tall and athletic his black hai r contrasted we l l with his ,
r uddy complexion a n d with his self s at isfied a ir and his , ,

-
,
general appreciation of the sex he was a da n gerous c o m é

‘
’
petitor in a love aff air It is one of the misfortunes of a

'
.
58 S T A N D I S H T H E P U RIT A N .
ed . The brothers husbands and children of such vso m en

, ,
”
are n o t easily conquered .
“
A s to what you have related said C ap t a in M il l b a n k
”
,
'
I know nothing , for I was n o t t her e but I understand '
that t hi s Mr Standish is a prominent m an in the rebellion

.
,
and it has been thought be st to make an exa mple of him ;

and i f I catch him I will hang the would b e colonel on a
, ,
-
limb of the first tree A s for the outrage u pon Miss S t an d

.
ish it is denied ; and although the doctors say she took

, ,
‘
poison it is supposed that i t w a s through grief for the

,
‘
death of her father and the alleged death of her br other

, ,
w ho was known to have been wounded in a charge he m ade

”
with cavalry upon a colum n of infantry I could n o t con .
,
“
tinned the captain hel p e dm ir in g the fellow n o t w it h
"
, ,
standing he s a r ebel for the reckless way he made at us

’
,
.
H e s a n u g l y bird that , a n d I should m u c h l ike to cage

’
. ,
him B u t r e a l l y Mr De l E u r continued he I have “

'
’
, , ,
. .
positive information that he 1 s in your house and you must ,

”
excuse me for insisting that y o u show me his chamber .
“
Captain Millbank said Mr De l E u r coloring to the , .
’
,
“
temples this is the first ti m e my word has ever been
,
”
doubted and I beg of yo u not to repeat these doubts
, This .
was said in so much truth that the captain apologized but ,
a dded that the information c ame so straight that he

”
though t he could rely on it .
“ “
I do n o t deny but admit said Mr D e l E u r
”
, th at , .
’
,
he passed a p o r t i o n of the night l n my house ; but I again

”
assure you he is not in it now '
Captain Millb ank was now satisfied a n d in a courteou s ,
manner expressed his regret that his orders h ad been so «
“
peremptory We w il l r et u r n to the camp said he ;
”
’
.
,
a n d if it i s convenient would like to be favored with some ,
lin e n for bandages Several of our men added he

'
.
” “ are , ,
”
too badly wounded to be sent back .
“ ”
I hope none are d a n g er ou sl y so said Mr De l E u r
7 . .
’
.
Those who are not a l r ea dy dead may perchance r e

”
c over replied the captain
, .
Then you h ave lost some of t hem rejoined the for

mer much agitated
, .
“ ”
Only four said the captain carelessly We have
, , .
already buried them supposin g that the occurrence might ,

”
be unpleas ant to your family .
7 ”
But what has become of the rebels inquired Mr De . .
l E
’
u r .
They were two hundr e d strong and they have carried ,
o ff their dead and wounded

”
was the reply We thought ,
.
it not prudent to leave the grove in the face of such a force

”
of cavalry .
Mr De l E u r could h ardlybelieve his sen ses n o r could

.
’
,
he realiz e the fact that a fearful flow of blood ha d been

shed within a few hun dred yards of his own house H e .
would gladly have retired from th e haunts of m en to spend ,
the remainder of his d a ys in some sheltered n o o k of the .
worl d where human ambition a n d passions could n o t reac h

,
him H e had left E ngland partly to get rid of the excite

.
ment of politics and the influence of demago gues , and as ,
he supposed had found shelter from them 1 n the quiet val

,
“ ”
ley where he had reared his children B u t alas ! sai d .
“
'
he there is n o peace for the sons of men We h a ve a l l

, .
sinned and dreadful 1 s the penalty To day the fields yield

, .
their harvest and the fruit from t he bending trees tempt

,
the senses The fragrance of the meadow is wafted to our

.
chambers by the gales of the evening and those we love are ,
with us to enjoy the blessing But to morrow ! and where .
”
are they ? Oh memory ! memory ! he said in ang u i sh
, , ,
“
thou art a weapon to tortu re when all are destroyed ! ”
T he o fficers had retired to their quarters after dispatch

ing a soldier with what linen they want ed for the wounded .
In the mean time Mr De l E u r s household ha d arisen , .

’ ’
,
entirely ignorant of the events of the night E dith r e .

,
freshed by her slumbers was the first to make her appear ,
ance and the sadness sh e had exhi b ited the day before had
,
given place to the usual smile that played u pon her feat
ures Her father took her to his arms , and pressed her to
.
HE a
“
60 S T A N DI S H T m am .
his heart n ot k n owin g ho wsoon the horro r s of an in tes t ine

,
war would part them

Why
.
“
“ Father ”
s aid she t enderly g azm g upon him ,
, ,
look you so sad ? I hope Mr St andish s Wound is n o ’
worse and then she hesitatin gly added , Have yo u s een

.
? ” “ ‘
? ”
him this morning
Yes daughter sa id he ; “he is much better , an d; s1 n c e
'
“ ”
, ,
he has lost his o wn pare n ts I Wo u ld even b e as a p arent to ,

”
him
and I Wo u l d be as a
.
i“
“ Than
k you , father said she;
‘
sister to him You must influence him to discontinu e his

.
‘
misg u ided co u rse and live with u s It su r ely Would add

‘ ‘
,
.
much to G eorge s happiness to h av e a co m p anio n here in

’
our soli t ude ; one too Whos e talents he so much ap p r e , ,

”
ciates and respects .
Mr Del E u r h ad said n othing of what had o ccu r red dur

’
in g the nigh t u ntil t he morni n g s devotio n s Were over W

.
hen ’
,
he told every thi n g that had take n place a n d enjoi n ed upon ,
them al l the n ecessity of not even men tioning the na m e of

S tandish .
Mr De l E u r an d his son r esolved to go t o the little eu

.
’
c a m p m en t and see for themselves the r esult o f t he nigh t s

’
,
a ff air and upon reaching the groun d a s mall tent at t ract

’
’
, ,
ed their attention and here they found the Wounded lyin g, .
T he surgeon w a s busily a t work dressing their wounds ,
and though one was evidently dying yet there was no oo m

, ,
plaint H is glazed eyes showed that deat h was at han d

. .
H e looked for a moment wistfully at the part y and then ,
talked wildly about his home a n d c al l ed for his mother , ,
while he endeavored to raise his head .
Mr De l E u r begged of the surgeon to p ermit him to

“
’
.
send after beds for the poo r fellows ; but the surgeon laugh
ed outright as did even some of the wou n ded men them
,
"
” “
selves . Why , sir said the military leech they would , ,
a bed N othing would be m ore fatal

'
n o t live an hour o n . .
Fact said he while he continued his Work

”
, ,
When .
you n g tried it They all died except a few recruits who

, .
STANDISH THE P U R IT A N . 61
had n o t seen service Strange , but tru e I assur e you

T ried it on myself—had the i heu m at ism e ver sinc e—fact !
.
, .
'
strange but true , .
“
There corpora l continue d he as he fin ished dress n
”
, , ,
“
the wounds of the man he was employed upon , there cor ,
poral Very near done for A ll right n o w ; can t die if

. ;
’
you try .
“
Thank ee said t he corporal , al l but fainting
’
, .
7 ”
you think I ll live ’
.
“ “
Didn t I tell you said t he surgeon , that you couldn t
’ ’
‘
d ie if you tried P retty soldier , you not to obey orders ! ”

'
Oh I didn t understand sir Thank ee—thank you

, .
,
“ ’ ’
, , .
”
kindly d octor said the poor corpo ral , gaspin g for breath
, , .
Mr De l E u r a n d his so n sickened at the sight thus pre

.
’
s ented to the ir eyes in the camp ; yet all they would h ave
“
done for the poor wounded soldie rs was instantly rejected

'
as being unmilitary They could do n o less however than .
, ,
t o invite the o flic er s to brea kfas t , an d t his invitation was

‘
cordially accepted In t he cours e o f an ho u r the whole .
arty ha d assembled r ound t he b r e a kfast tabl e The fli

p o .
cers ate voracio u sly a n d s eemed t o en jo y their meal much ,
but t hey were t he o nly h ap p y p erson s at the board The

‘
capt ai n sat o p posite t o Miss De l E u r , and said in his ’ ‘
blandest manner , many complime nt ar y t hin gs to all of ,
which she replied with he r innate good breeding but in -

,
sadness She ate nothing nor could she e at while he who

.
,
‘
in s eme strange w ay , o c cupied a l l her thoug hts , Wa s

wounded and m danger .
A fter breakfa st the capt ain sought an opportunity of

fall ing into conversation with her aga in but b e merely r e ,
c eived polite answers to all of his questi o ns and to all his ,
remarks that gracious ac knowledgment which refined per

sons always show Beyond this he could elicit nothing ; .
'
and he was too much a man of the world and had seen too ,
much of good society to mistake the terms in which polite ,
ne ss expr esses itself for any thing l ik e partiality for himself

or profession .
A fter the o fficers had again retired to t heir quarters ,
t heir co n versation ran upon the beauty and good sense of -
Miss De l E u r and the hospitality of her father

’
,
.
“ “
a n d too
”
She is too pretty said Captain Millbank , ,
accomplishe d to be shut out from the world in this s ec l u d

,
”
ed place I say Dick continued he addressing his lieu
.
, , ,
“
tenant call the orderly and ask h im to see if our t raps
‘
, ,
are in the baggage wagon We must put on our uniforms . .
This fatigue d ress will never do in the f ace of our fair

”
enemy .
We made a sad mistake captain in goi n g to t h e house , ,

”
look i n g as we do said the lieutenant but as for me it
is a l l one —m y market is made I am sorry , however for
, ,
,
.
‘
”
y ou , captai n I saw you were .ambushed .
“ ” “
Yes said he with a loud lau gh as true as Gene sis
, , , ,
D ick . Who thought of finding suc h a bea u tiful enemy ?

” “
Only see p ointing to his coat
, this poor miserable old , ,
frock It has been from E ngland to India and p anther

.
,
hunti n g lion hunting and H indoo hunting I am afraid

,
”
, .
,
“
added he with a mock solemnity , that it is too late now
, .
Hard to get over first 1 m p r essio n s But if the old gentle .

,
man invites u s to dinner I ll make amen ds I say Sam ,

’
.
, ,
’
“
said he a ddressing his servant is m y dress coat with the
, ,
? ”
luggage linen all right
?
“ ”
Yes sir replied the servant
, , .
”
Very well said the capt ain gayly , , .
Mr Standish must be attended to said Mrs De l E u r

.
”
, .
’
.
H e will su ff er Where he 1 s .
Yes indeed he will rejoined E dith The guard

around the house have a
, , .
ll gone to the camp , and he can

”
quite safely return .
While however , they were in consulta t ion respecting

,
him he entered the house and was at once conducted to a

, ,
cha m ber which opened from that usually occu p ied by the
mo ther a n d dau ghter .
Both Mr and Mrs De l E u r looked at him now wi th a l

. .
’
m ost the a ffection o f parents Since the cruel d eath of his .

father and sister they felt in a measure responsible for

, , ,
his present welfare and hoped that his generous and hu

,
mane disposition would revolt a t taking any further part in

a cause that seemed a doomed one B u t they little knew .
of the fire that burned in his bosom H e felt that human .
ity itself was aggrieved , and that the rest of his life must
be devoted to assist in fre eing his country from the inter
meddling tyra n ny whi ch affl ict ed it Breakfast was sent
to his roo m ; and George—who had been entirely passive at
.
the strange incidents of the day knowing n o t what to ,
make of them and looking upon them as a kind of dr eam

which he could not realize—together with E dith aecom
,
a n ied him there

p .
She sat by his side as he ate and she ate too helping
, ,
him when his w o u n d ed arm would n o t do its of fice But

'
that young heart knew not th at it loved She only knew .
"
t hat she was happier when he formed o n e o f the family cir

cle than she felt in his absence P erhaps it was in c o n se
.
q u e n c e of his misfortunes , o r that he was the friend of her

brother ; an d she would gaze in his face for whole minutes ,
and examine every feature , and a s innocent with respect

to any knowledge of the reason of her inclination to do so
as if she had been gazing into the face of an infant A n d .
if he looked upon her it mattered not It was that passive .
obedience to the law of her nature unrebuked by any con ,
sc io u s n e ss of wrong and unrestrained by custo ms r eg u l a t

,
in g the licentious . H e too found his happiness depended

, ,
upon her presence but was it b eea u se he now had n o other

female to commune with Was it that she was of his sis
ter s age when that sister died a n d that in the desolation
’
, ,
?
of his heart he sought her on that account Be that as it
,
may he felt that his happiness depended upon her and that
, , ,
should any calamity befall her , desolate indeed would be his

pilgrimage on earth .
But the time was n o w at hand when he was to meet his

friends at the appointed place n d during the coming night
he must take his departure T he room i n which they were
.
64 S T AN D I S H T H E P U R I T A N .
fro nted the grove where the company of s oldiers we r e en

c amped a n d every thing appeared to be quiet there
,
E dith .
l istened with delight to the conversation between he r broth

er and their guest They recounte d many a j uvenile a d
.
ventu re and many a fraud practiced upon the professor of

,
m athematics when they were in fault in demonstrating a

,
problem in E uclid or o btaining a result in algebra ; a n d ,

,
‘
although E dith entered into the spirit of the thing she ,
lau ghi n gly said it was wick ed a n d she was ashamed of ,

”
them both T hus buoyant 1 s youth Its sun will set eu
. .
v el op ed in gusty clouds and all 1 8 d r ear and bleak in the

,
horizon ; but it will rise in the morning in all its splendor ,
the fit fu l cloud dispersed and the sorrows of the evening ,
forgotten .
A t this moment t he s hrill fife w as heard , accompanied

by the drum in t he di r ec tion of the encampment and as
, , ,
they looked that way , the y saw the compa ny filing rapidly
out of the wood to the tune of Wha ll be King but Ch ar ’
”
lie ? and E d it h t a kin g up the air continued it keeping
,
~
, ,
time with her head and with a merry laug h , marc hed b e
, ,
low t o tell her parents that the soldiers were go n e .
The poor captain aft er taking t he utmost p ains at his

,
toilet received an order from his colonel ten miles distant

, , ,
informing him that they ex p ected an attack from the r eb

els a n d directing him to j oin the regiment without delay
, .
“ ” “
Well said Mr Standish addressing E dith , I see that
, .
,
you have military blood in your veins aft er al l There is ,

“
somethin g ins piring l n the fife an d dr u m , i s there n ot 7 ”

.
“
Yes said she there is when the ide a is separated
”
, , ,
from the ravages o f war A s a spe ctacle the ord er , the ,
gay attire of the military , I admit is pleasing ”
—
, .
But E dith and may I call you thus said h e ; sup

7 ”
pose a case : suppose you were p artial to a n o ffic er —say if

, .
you please to C a ptain Millbank, "
“ “
Stop there ! she exclaimed ; that i s n ot a supposable
”
”
case .
“ “
Well t h en , continued S tandish , suppose your b roth
”
,
I wo u l d t his moment relinquish all of my resolves ; a n d

, , , ,
more than that had I supposed that it would have pained

,
you I never would have taken the oath which I have I

, .
know that you would not have me turn traitor to my friends ,

”
or perjure myself before my God .
She rem ained silent for some moments and as she rais , ,
“
ed her eyes and met his she exclai m ed My peace I fear , , , ,
is gone forever ! Oh what would I give if my childhood ,
had not passed away ! Then I loved my parents and m y ,
brother and my little sister , now in heaven We had none

,
.
other to divide our a ff ections with T his peaceful valley .
was the world to me every bush and every flower had its
recollections I wished then for nothing m ore Now you
.
, , .
a r e t o ar r a
y
,
yourself in the habiliments of war Oh how .
.
,
”
I shudder when I think of what is to follow !
Mr Standish felt that this la st a ffliction of p arting with
.
,
one who engrossed his entire thoughts would consummate ,
his misery and when he found he had hesitated in his own

heart as to his future course he shuddered as his oath
‘
,
passed across his mind They both silently withdrew to .
the house and then to t heir own apartments

, .
The conflicting emotions which occupied those under

'
that roof were many But hope for the f u t u r e is a spiri t

.
o
of light and joy which comes in to the aid of misfortune

, ,
no matter how great that misfortune may be or how se ,
vere its consummation Were it not for this mysterious . .
agent which lights up the dark path — which bedecks the

,
tomb with flowers and throws into the gloomy sky of the
future it s genial ray—o h ho w b lank a n d fearfu l wou l d the
,
world appear ! how desolate the condition of man ! H is in

t el l ig en c e would be a curse his aspirations a torture and , ,
the present an abyss from which there would be n o escape .
T his emanation of heaven b u oyed them up They reaso n .
ed to themselves that the rebellion would be of short dura

tion n a y that it would be quelled before harm could arise
, ,
that if Mr Standish was taken prisoner the interest th at

, .
,
Mr De l E u r could exercise in E n g l a n d would insure a

.
’
pardon , and that , after all , it m ight be for the best O . s.

N ight was a p p r o ac hin g a n d Mr Standish began to make

'
,
.
ready for his departure They had dined in silence and

.
,
were prepared for the separation His friend George ha d .
r ec o vered from the shock which the events of the past few
days had produced but E dith looke d wistfully round ,
striving to hide the emotions which she felt every moment

to arise with additional force She had been in the habit .
,
all her life of taking an interest in every thing her parents

,
were concerned in and she had also been so m u ch in the

,
habit of seconding them that they were slo w to beli eve ,
t hat her heart was truant ; but they could not help but see
a certai n perturbation a fl u r r ied movement which showed
, ,
that she w as far from being at peace with herself .
“
Nonsense ! said Mr De l E u r to his wi fe as she sug
”
.
’
,
gested to him that she was fearful of a growin g attachment

“
bet ween the two nonsense ! It is time enough to draw
,
such surmises five years hence The child has seen our .
interest in him , and she feels and commiserates his mis -
”
fortunes .
'
B u t Mr De l E u r had his misgivings t ho u g h he could

.
’
,
n o t inflict the pain upon himself which he would h ave done
by admitting it He felt however that the departure of

.
r
, ,
Mr Standish would be a relief to him n o r did he regret it

.
,
when he ordered his horse It was saddled and standing .
by the door j u st as the sun had dis appeared in the west .
They all came to the front of the house as he was ready to

take his departure Mr De l E u r gave him his blessing
. .
’
,
as did Mrs De l E u r George a ff ectionately bade him God

.
’
.
speed but E dith stood motionless N o marble statue was .
paler She could not bid him adieu ; and as he lingered

.
,
and gazed a stupor seemed to come upon her She ex

, .
pressed neither joy nor sorrow In a moment he was in .
“ “
the saddle . God protect thee said he and accursed , ,
be he who would o ff end thee In a f ew moments more he

was far away from her who was the bright star of his life ,
and to which he looked to cheer him through the fearful

peril s which he knew he was to encounter ; the righteous
68 S T A N DI S H T HE P U R IT A N .
ness of which he felt assured and its a ccomplishment he ,
intrusted to Him who has said th at the race is not to the

“
”
swift , n o r the battle to the strong .
C HAP TE R v .
THE s ame deep cavern whi ch more than a hundre d years

,
before had sheltered the regicides who had fled from E n

,
gland a t the R estoration was again occupied by men of

,
-
the same stock with similar obj ects in view , and for causes
,
n o t unlike those complained of by their ancestors T hough .
the long arms o f E n gl an d had stretched themselves three

thousand miles in grasping what belonge d to others , yet it
m ade thei r depredations not the less objectionable The .
same indomitable will and innate pride which led the P u

r it an s to spurn dictation found sympathy in their descend
,
ants The broad field a n d the deep forest are poorly c a l c u

.
lated to learn fealty in or for teachi n g youth the divine

,
right of kings .
Notwithstanding the fearful s t orm the darkness of the ,
night and the swaying of the trees yet each man was true
, ,
to his appointment a n d at the call of the roll n o t only an

,
s w er ed m a vo i ce which told of his presence , but of his de
termination Many an arm was i n a sli n g a n d several

.
,
were there who h ad been maimed since thei 1 first a ss em

bling A fire was lighted in a corner of t he room ; but the
.
moaning of the winds and the peals of thunder which came

,
rolling down from the black clouds stayed their procee d ,
ings and directed their thoughts to Him to whom they had

,
appealed for the justice of their cause .
For a time their passions were allayed and t he rancor ,
that burned l n their breasts gave place to calmer and more

gentle thou gh t s Many there , who would have faced the
.
S I A N DI S
' ‘
H THE P U R IT A N .
69
cannon s mouth , a n d who would have yielded their hearts

’
up willingly at t he altar of freedom quailed be fo re t he ,
maj esty of omnipo t ence a n d when p eal aft er peal ech oe d

through the caverns of the deep forest they felt how littl e
‘
,
and insignificant is the exertion of m an when opposed t o

H is laws In deed it s eemed as if the latter in the ir g rand
.
, ,
,
eur mocked the puny eff orts of the former

, ,
A mong those who were there wa s Zimri Freeborn H e

‘
alone seemed unmoved—neith er elevat ed n o r depressed ;

.
but the re he sat in t he darkest corner of the room m akin g

, ,
up in the twinkling of his eyes what he lost b y the statue

like immobility of hi s form Zimri had b een invited to a t
.
tend the mee t ing ih order that arrangements mi ght be

m ade with him in gaining intelligence of the m ove m ents
of the enemy H is rambling habits his simple a p p earance

.
, ,
his attachment to his machine a n d his reputed mon omania ,
upon his late discovery of the perpetual motion ga ve him ,
a kind of privileged character , and excited t he sympathy of

all who knew hi m .
The storm at last began to subside , a n d t he m e m b ers to

proceed to the business of the night They n o w fel t th em .
selves stronger than ever Their report s sh o wed that as

.
,
far as the common class of people d are e xpress themse lves ,

it was in oppos ition to the pretenses of the mother cou ntry .
,
and th at they would be Sa ti sfi e d wi th n o t hi ng l es s than that

the higher grade o f colonial o fficers should at le a st be resi
dents o f the colonies and understand somewhat of the g e
,
nius of the people over wh o m they exercised authority .
Yet the more re c ent se t tlers a n d especia l ly t he off icer s o f

,
the crown petty officers and t he ir dependents together

, ,
with the m ore we althy classes f ormed a powerful and da n ,
e r o u s oppo siti on the more esp ecially as they were pretty

g ,
e qually scattered about the coun try .
The members of the E piscopal Church though n o t n u ,
m er o u s had men of much learning a mon g them a n d they

, ,
an d their preachers were generall y loyal to the k ing They .
insisted that the grievances complained of were more im ~

a
g in
y
ar than real and that the small excise
,
the home gov .
e r n m en t called for w a s right ; for as the mother country ,
annually expended large sums in a ff ording protection she ,
ought to be reimbursed This argument seemed s a t isfa c .
tory and reasonable to many of the tax p a yers but quite ,
the contrary to another portion of the community and p ar ,
t ic u l a r l y to those who paid n o taxes at all T he parent .
land n o t only the wealthiest but the mo st po werful in the

world — whose territories stretched into every zone and
, ,
whose artillery flashed on every sea— aided too by the , ,
greater proportion of the respectability of the Sou t h and ,
n o t an inconsiderable portion of them at the N orth and mid
dle provinces rendered any opposition to its rule an under

,
taking rash o f itself had not its political character in the

, ,
‘
first place taken fre m it a n y ulterior belliger ent design

,
‘
Tories in the provinces were sympathized with by Tories

at home and Whigs at home were sympathized with by
,
Whigs here and it mattered little what flagrant acts were

,
committed so long as they bore upon their face the stamp

,
of party Their violence was sure to find full j ustificat ion

.
somewhere .
P rofessed politicians seemed unconscious of the mischief

they were producing ; and while in public speeches they
inflamed the minds of the multitude particularly the m ore ,
ignorant portion of them the better classes were forced to ,
arrange themselves on the side of that p ar t y w hic h app eared

'
the least objectionable They often met at the convivial .

, .
board politicians of the opposite side on terms o f p erfect

,
amity and friendship while their p oor proselytes were break

,
ing the heads of each other in the way of exhibiting their

zeal for their respective leaders ; and thus the war began ,
a n d the means perhaps was justified by its consum m ation

, ,
.
While the leaders were thus writing inflammato r y

speeches for the eye of the public n o t only at home but in , ,
the provinces their poor disciples were murdering and p l u n

,
dering each other The animal passions being thus ex c it

.
ed they ravaged the country with fire and sword until the
, ,
STANDISH THE PUR ITAN .
71
flashy gibberish of paid d emagogues became sublimated .
by its unanticipated results and the m aj esty of its c on se

qu en c es .
Several inquiries were made of Zimri as to his recent

travels about the country and whether he knew Gabriel ,
“
Dexter E sq of N ew York
,
Yes ; well acquainted with
He was Mr S n iflin g s lawyer about the
. .
”
him he replied ’
'
,
.
”
ginger .
H e was the n asked whether Mr Dexter was a Whig or .
Tor
“ XI hat
‘
would I gu ess depend upon his
s a id
'
'
Z im ri,
“
, , ,
9 ”
fee It s n a t r a l to wish for pay isn t it
.
’ ’
,
’
.
Colonel Standish who knew that all Zimri could do well ,
w as to co n vey letters and he could do that perhaps better , , ,
than a n y one else for the reasons before given , here said to ,
him in a side whisper

, ,
“
Will you convey a message to Miss De l E u r ’
“
J ist so was the reply of Zimri ; who also added , P retty
”
,
”
gal that colonel
, ,
.
“ “
Very well then exclaimed Stan dish you must start
, , ,
with one ; and min d you be as ex peditious as possible ! ”
A ccordin gly Zimri made immediate preparation by buck

,
ling straps upon his machine ; but the colonel , perceiving it ,
said ,
“
You had better leave t h at behind until you return .
Zimri looked at the c olonel l n silen ce ; his eyes twinkled

more rapidly than ever ; until at le ngth he managed to ex
claim ,
“
It don t go yet but twill on e of these days ; and then
’ ’
,
he fell into a fit of abstraction H e heard nothing further .
that was said to him ; his all absorbing machine had again -
occupied his mind ; the pupils of his eyes became contract

ed and he began bending his wires in all m anner of con
,
c e i va b l e shapes In th e mean time Colonel Standish pre .
pared the message and Zimri shouldering his perpetual , ,
motion departed from the wood long before the break of d ay

, .
A fter conferring together upon future operations it w as ,

72 STANDI SH THE PUR ITAN .
determined that several regiments should ta ke the field and ,
t hat the enlistments s hould b e for thr ee years or during the ,
war ; but as every movement was watched by the Tories

, ,
it was necessary that som e plac e for assembling t ogether

should r emai n secret from them a n d n one seem ed to o ffer
,
greater advantages than the pre sent one Its r ocky a n d .
sterile hills ha d hit h erto held out no inducemen t s fo r man

to frequent them ; the wild beasts of the forest had been
the undisputed masters of it s fastnesses , and still held over
it entire sway
w
.
A next d elica te and necessary task to p erform , a n d hich

gave them muc h concern , was to k n ow the bes t way to dis
pose o f their Tory c onnections and friends , for scar cely a
member p resent but h ad either t he one or the other belong
ing to them Many acts of aggression and cru elt y h ad
.
been exercised upon each respectively by the pa rt i san s of

the other o f the m ost p ainful n ature which a cts were depre
’
c a t ed but found impossibl e to prevent ; an d when the forces

,
should be increased , and men fro m distant sections of the

colony sh ould be e n liste d, they felt that so m ething wo u ld
h ave to be do n e to stay t he hand of violence from the u n o f
fending But ho w th at was t o be b r ought about w as a
.
difficult q uestion to settl e If they remained at their hom es ,

.
'
they were unsafe ; if they should leave for sections less in

f ec t e d, they would have n o me ans o f living It was n o u n
. .
common o r extraordin ary exhibition to fin d a father on one

side a n d a son or brother on t he other , the one girding on
,
the cutlass for the fray whi le the other was sharpening his
,
t o r ep el it ; and the mother in a p aro x ysm of grief at the

,
u nnatural str u ggle praying to H eaven , l n the agon y of her

,
soul for the preservatio n of her off spr in g N or was it an

, .
uncommon sight to see me m bers of the sa m e c ongregation ,
who had partaken of the sacrame n t at the same a ltar bap ,
t ized at the same font , and confirmed by the same hands ,
arraying themselves on different sides in hostile battalions ,
imbued with t he same spirit as the warriors of old when

obeying the inspired voice of their prophe t s .
74 S TAN DI SH THE PUR II A N
' ‘
.
that preyed upon my vitals and the storm t hat raged within
,
my unhappy bos om ; and though , when I turned to leave

‘
you my m isery was complete yet the duty I o wed my poor

, ,
co untry was paramount to all ; a n d I feel that in the per ,
f o r m an c e of that duty I have yielded all else of earth that

,
to m a was worth preserving In taking my leave of you

'
.
,
‘
a n d I fear , forever I would ask that , should you hear of

, ,
m y fall let it n o t afflict you ; f o r I can not b u t b elieve that

,
wh en the g reat m ystery of the Book o f N ature shall be

opened it will reveal a world for those on earth to in h abit
,
whose souls in this were knitted together by th e m yst er i

ous sympathy that can be naught but an emanation of
H im who has created nothing in vain No r can I believe .
that those souls p artakin g here on earth of the Divine es

,
sence will be permitted to change their character but th at

, ,
they will go on through all time in the perfection of love ,
proclaiming their felicity and the goodness of the Creator .
It is unnecessary for me to add that whatever may be my ,
destiny your happiness will be paramount to al l other con

, ,
siderations ; and I freely admit th at should I receive intel ,
l ig en c e hereafter of yo u r marriage it would require a l l my ,
philosophy to avoid the canker that would faste n u pon my

”
heart .
S u c h w er e the conflicting elements which while they

_
,
destroyed the peace , nerved t he arm of Colonel Standish

Whil d he yielded up , on the one hand the greatest boon
.
,
’
given to man to cheer him on in life s dreary way without ,
an exertion to secure t he prize h e grasped , on the other , ,
with all of the tenacity of ambition one of se c ondary con ,
sideration fraught with peril , and to be attained onl y

,
through seas of blood severing t he ties of youth which in

, , ,
age can never be supplied It is true that he deemed it a

, .
duty to hi s country ; nor did he after the fir st flush of a n ,
guish was over harbor a single sentiment of reven ge o n

,
account of the in humanity exer c ised by the Tories toward

his relative s H e mourned , but it was the mourning of
’
.
a son for a parent ; hi s cheek paled , but it was the pallor

STANDI SH THE PUR ITAN . 75
of a heart sick and wretched for the loss of a beloved sist er

—a sister wh o se smile would light up as she proudly looked
“
u pon him and in her hear t said Where 1 8 there in a l l ,
our land so elegant and accomplish ed a gentl eman as my

, ,
brother ? ”
She was proud of him and we l l she might be , .
he was the last of his rac e ; and if his birth was humble ,
that humbleness was the product of independence ; if his

ancestors were n o t noble neither had they been ignoble by , ,
‘
pandering to the vices of royalty or playing the sycophant

. to titled l ieen t io u sn ess .
The night was well nigh at a close an d scintillations of

-
,
the morning were seen in the east The wolf went ru stlin g .
to his covert and the owl fl it t ed by t o its hiding place b e

,
-
,
fore the business to be tran sacted had been fully dispatched ;

and after it was finished they stealthily returned to the ,
country and employed themselves in disciplinin g recruit

, ,
in g an d preparing for t he struggle

, .
A ye ar or more had passed away Large armies had .
b een organized many a h ard b attle had ensued and the

, ,
patriots wer e worsted on every side ; yet by great ex er

.
tions they remained in the ascendant in the colony of Con

,
n ec t ic u t most all of the principa l to wns elsewhere having

,
fallen into the hands of the enemy .
It was a hot day in summer after the defeat of his ,
troo ps that Colonel Standish an d a number of superior

, ,
officers found t hemse lves in their favorite retreat of the

,
R egicides Cave In the in t ea which had passed he had

’
.
much alte red : more decided manhood had settled upon his
featur es ; he had been continually exposed to the weather .
,
and had been much sun burned He looked every inch -

.
the soldier h is heavy cutlass by his side , and the blue

,
and buff uniform set o ff by a figure of ex act proportions .
”
Well said he addressin g an offi cer of his own ran k
, , ,
who had rece ived advices that the E nglish were about to
send a strong force up to reco m mence o ff e n sive operation s ,
well , if we c a n do no better we c an fall b ack into the m ,
t er io r . The enemy are pretty well ou t up , an d if we h av e

been worsted the y h ave but little to b oast of My regi

,
.
ment numbers but three hundred in the saddle ; but they ‘
are worth a whole brigade of r a w recruits I am going .
down after the Cow Boys i n a few days There is n o

‘ ’
.
reliance to be placed upon them They rob and plunder .
”
both sides .
The men of Colonel Standish were encamped a mile or

more o ff intending to remain several days for the purpose
,
of resting Zimri was expected that evening having been

.
,
sent to N ew York for the purpose if possible of ascertaining , ,
whether another invasion was expected and the number of ,
troops which had a few days before arrived in N ew York

, ,
from E ngland .
A t last as the day was drawing to a close Zimri was

, ,
seen slowly wending his way with his m a c hin e upon his ,
'
back through the brambles and underbrush toward the a p

,
pointed place The o ffi cers went out to meet him and as
.
sist him forward as the day was sultry and he seemed

, ,
something the worse for his j ourney H is hair appeared .
“
thinner longer and lanker than ever H e was barefoote d
, , .
,
and his nether garment had lost much of its length A s .
for a coat or waistcoat they would not only h ave been su ,
p e r fl u o u s but oppressive H e
-
put down his machine in c
the most careful manner—nay he looked at it with a de

, .
gree of a ff ection equal to what he would hav e shown a pet

'
dog A thing that was destined to go of itself h e insisted

.
,
’
e next in the scale of beings to an animal of the higher

ora
w l er .
It is well to p r em 1 se here that from the time Zimri had ,
been first sent out he ha d o f t en returned an d given such

, ,
information as he had collected H e had delivered his mes .
sage to the De l E u r s but n o answer was returned E dith

’
, .
had lost some of her bloom , and was pale and anx ious a n d ,
m ade many inquiries as t o Colonel Standish s wound but ’
;
it was done in a timid man n er and she was cautious lest ,
her parents should detect her in so doing But the next -

.
t1 me Zimri went he found the house and outer buildin gs

,
STANDISH THE PUR ITAN .
burned to the ground The trees which had decorated the .
lawn were blackened and sc ar ed by the fir e The picture .
presented to the view was a melancholy o n e The winds .
moaned drearily through the dead li mbs of the tr ees and ,
even the little birds which formed part of the household of

,
Oakford had been scared away by the s adness of the place

, .
?
But where were its inhabitants H ad they perished in the
flames wh ich had destroyed their home ? H ad they fallen
?
by the hand of the assa ssin or h ad they made good their
way to some safer asylum ? These were questions which
Colonel Standish had left n o means untri ed to solve Mes .
se n e r s had been dispatched in every quarter with the o ff er

g
of large rewards to obtain if possible some information in
, , .
relation to them but without success A ll that was known

, .
of th em in their own neighborh ood was that they had been ,
seen as usual in their house the day before its destruction

, , .
Colonel Standish and the principal officers in the colony .
had given positive orders that the persons and property o f

the De l E u r s should be respected But orders availed lit
’
.
'
tle in those t imes The love of retaliation is t oo strong

.
among men whose passions h ave n o contr ol except th at of

in stinct to enable them to look at any case impartially a n d
,
with proper equity ; N o sooner was a house seen on fire

belongi ng to a Whig than another belonging to a Tory was,
doomed without regard to any overt act committed by its

,
i n habitants It was quite en ough to justi fy the act that

.
,
they dared to think for themselves .
It was well for Colonel Standish that he had been con

s t a n t l y on active duty H is feelings were t o o much inter
.
es t ed to have permitted the fate of the De l E u r s to remain

’
a secret without jeopardizing his own safety to solve it .
H e had hope s of their safety ; and to remove if possible all , ,
unce rtainty (the road being n e w open ) he resolved before , ,
he went upon his expedition aft e r the Cow Boys that he * ,
A n k i d f b di t t i b
o an e t w ee n t he ou t p o st s o f t h e Am er can i ar m i e s, an d
w ho w e r e p t i t l yali
a r o s, o st s , o r re b
e s,l as
-
i
c r c u m s t an c es m a d e it t he m o st
a dv
an t a geo u s t o t h em .
would go to Oakford and make a tho rough examinatio n of

,
the premises and ascertain if possible their fate

, , , .
A nd now that he had a few days for thought the a n

, ,
guish of his heart became insupportable The bright form .
of E dith was with him as a part of his existence and whe n ,
he su ffered his mind to wander it wandered until he found ,
her . At times he saw her strugglin g as if for life , in the ,
hands of a brutal soldiery ; then e sc aping and se eking an

'
honorable death in the flames wh ich consumed her home .
When he suffered these thoughts to possess him, his only

relief from the torturing agony they produced was to fly
into the saddle ; the bugle was ordered to sound the ch arge ,
and bloody was the contest that followed The bla ck p lume .
which encircled his helmet and rose higher than the rest , ,
was always seen in the advance now co mbati n g thick hosts ,
around him and striking r ight and left with a cutlass of

,
extraordinary weight and dimensions H e seemed to an .

,
enemy more like a Winged messenger of death than a hu

,
man form The fire of his eye the deadly paleness o f his
.
,
face and the compressed m o u t h, t o l d in advance the fear

, ,
ful struggle th a t was to ensue ; and when the hosts of the

enemy were closing around him and apparently bearing ,
him down by numb ers his well disciplin ed troop s came to ,

-
the relief of their favorite chief like a torrent fro m the

mountain gorge .
Struggles like these became his pastime ; and so frequent

had they been that his thousand men h ad dwindled down
,
to three hundred Yet notwithstanding the smallness of

.
,
their numbe r they were the terror of the enemy s outposts

,
’
,
whic h were kept by them , in a constant state of harassin g

,
a l arm .
This remnant of a regiment had been lying by for sev

eral days near a field where a supply of grass ha d been
found for their horses The men were sauntering in the .
forest or stretched upon the side of some stream basking

, ,
in the sun ; others were amusing themselves in fis hing ;
when a note from the bu g le called them to the camp , where
S T A N DI S H THE PURITAN . 79
they were given to understand that in a couple of hour .
they m u st b e prepared to march ; but where to or upon

\
,
what service was no co n cern of theirs ; and if they could , ,

“
n o t find out from the b ar b er fi they remained in ignorance
u ntil the conflict began The bugle was again sounded .

,
and in the twi n klin g of a n eye every man was in his sad
dle and they slowly wen ded their way , in double file
,
'
,
t hr o u gh t h e glades of the forest A ll day they continued .
their m a r ch through b y ways and b eside s t ream s in orde r

,
-
,
that their plac e of destination should remain unknown .
A t night they rested and the next morning renewed ,
their march and it was nearly night again before they ,
reached Oakford It w as now necessary th at the horses .
should have food and rest an d the former was easily foun d ,
in the rich meadows that stretched their ample bosoms far

o ff in the valleys To Colonel Standish the night which .
,
succeeded was a cr u el one N othing but the ruins of the .
noble building denoted the sp ot where he had spent the hap

piest hou rs of his l ife ; and though some of them were n u
der cir cumstances pain ful of themselves yet they h ad been ,
softened by the genius which presided there into a deep

, ,
sentiment of contentednes s and submission to the decrees

of Fate .
T he bright eye of the gentle E dith and the smile wh ich ,
at all times had greeted him had imbued the place with ,
her sp irit H er brother , the companion of his youth and

.
the friend of his manhood was identified with it ; and that ,
fine old gentleman Mr De l E u r in whose face b en evo , .

’
,
lence generosity and humani ty dwelt gave assurance of

, , ,
the good will he bore to all men ; and Mrs De l E u r too .

’
, ,
the placid meek and quiet lady whose chief pleasure con
, , ,
sisted in the happiness of those around her and instilling ,
into the minds of her ch ildren the du t ies o f a Christian a n d ,
A k th b b s w w e
g th ar l d ier f th
, as a co m m o n an s er am o n e so er s o e
Re vo ul ti wh i q i i g f h th w h t w g g
on , en Th b b
n u r n o e ac o er a as om on . e ar er ,
th en w ,
i p t tp as a n
g t t h ffi w hm h i p w d
or an w i e r so n a e o e o c er s , en a r- o er as n
re i it i
u d t h y d pp d
s on y , t
an w h ic h w ft n t l d t t he
e ro e m an se c r e s , er e o e o o
so l l et s ‘
.
t he manner in which those duties should be performed

,
.
B u t oh how desolate now A thousand recollections .
rushed upo n his mind H e rebuilt , in his imagination the .

,
house ; repeopled it with its former tenants ; sat again at

t he graceful board ; received the same smile and the assur ,
ance of the same welcome and more than all the same , , ,
i nnocent gaze that first convinced him of the love of E dith .
’
These all these imaginin gs created for him a moment s
, ,
a
pp m ess H appy i l lusion
. so much saved from t h e
quick
-
. a n d s of life But when he looked from his bivouac in the
.
n ight aided b ,y t he s ame clear moon which used to shine
brightly when he was there befo r e and by whose aid he ,
a n d E dith had gaz ed upon the lawn and into the branches ,
of the trees glistening like pearls in the dews of the night

, ,
but which n o w revealed only blackened fragm ents and the

ruins of the mansion his soul sunk within him H e blam , .
ed himself for not making his way through t he enemy who ,
h a d possessed themselves of the passes and strong holds in

‘
th e neighborhood a n d a dm o n ishin g Mr De l E u r of the n e

, .
’
c essit of leaving But h e supposed of course that t he

‘
y .
, ,
king s troops would a ff ord them protection ; and he com

’
forted himself with the possibili ty that they had gone wit h
them when the former were defeated in the neighborhood
, ,
and that the buildings had been fired after their departure .
Morning at length cam e; and he ordered a search among

the ashes for human bones but none we re found H e also , .
searched for newly made graves but with li ke success ; -

,
a n d while he was looking for t he latter he recollected vi s

, ,
i t m g with E dith the gr ave of an infant a younger sister

, , ,
o f hers A t hought suddenly broke upon him

.
There is .
‘
” “
yet said he with clinche d hands something belonging
, , , ,
to them ; and he turned and advanced to it It was a lit .
tle way in the r ear o f where the house had stood in the
‘
, ’
center of the garden The long rank grass w hic h g r ew .
U pon the little mound of earth swayed to and fro in the
wind and the rose bush which E dit h had planted by it s

,
-
“
head was choked by wee ds This proved that the place .

“ ” “ ”
alarmed , Farewell would easily bear this c on st r u c ,
tion In either c ase the probability was th at he would

.
,
never s ee or hear of them again

‘
T his sad thought came upon him with the force of a g 1

'
ant s might T here seemed nothi n g f o r him t o l o o k for

'
’
.
ward to in this world and his soul was scathed like a lone ,
tree by the lightning s flash and he said t o him sel f in his’

,
'
,
“
agony Fro m hence l et n o o n e comfort me T his heart
,
.
of mine was made for sadness and oh ! let it grieve itself ,
away into a better world than this I ll s eek it in the face .

’
of t ho se m er c en a r y foes who have destroyed all A y and

‘
.
,
if I can n o t die b y t heir hands H eaven must and will have

‘
,
”
mercy on me and hide me from the wrath of man
‘
,
7 .
“ ” “
H ow unequally thought he is h u man h appiness di
, ,
”
v ided in this world as turning to the enc a mpment he, , ,
beheld the merriment of his officers and men S ome were .
stretched upon the green grass composing themselves to ,
sleep while others were amusing themselves in teasing

,
those more soberly incl ined Many were playing at cards .

,
in di ff erent groups a r ound the encampment and s ome were ,
in the tops of trees swinging , in S portiveness from their

”
, ,
branches .
“
This comes again he thought of our becoming too
much attached to the t hin gs o f this world—this ever c ha n g
, ,
~ ~
in g world ; and though we see it in every movement of the

—
dial though we behold it from infancy to youth f r o m y o u t h
’
,
‘
to manhood , and from manhood to old age in t he rising ,
and settin g of the sun , a n d in the innumerable forms that

the ele m ents resolve and r er eso l ve themselves into yet do ,
we suffe r our affections to fasten upon them as if they were

'
‘
”
as immutable as the immaterial world .
H e now went into the fields but none of them h ad been ,
sown T he fences had been carried a way and the hedges

. .
,
had been trodden down and not a living thing could be ,
found there to mark the spot which , b u t a little time before ,

'
had given ass u rance of happi ness and plenty .
If there were n o t a ce r tain pleasure in t he conte m plation

S T A N D I S H T H E P U R IT A N . 83
of things which b ar r o w up the soul and imbitter our hap

i n e ss ho w is it that we gaze upon the lifeless face we
p ,
loved and visit year aft er year the grave of him or her
, , ,
whose a ffections once were ours , and whose heart beat in

unison with our o wn ? C an pleasure arise from the pros
a i
t r t n of all our earthly hopes
o ? from gazin g into the face
shrouded in death , which once loved us and us alone—with
,
whose happiness ours wa s so closely blended t ha t each joy

was incomplete unl es s partaken of by the other ? Yet ,
r s t r an g e to say this is even so

, Mirac u l ous interposition of
.
the Creator of all things : Inscrutable are thy ways and

past findin g out
Colonel Standish tired of life — stricken do wn in his
.
youth—with n o hopes for the future in this world—the

great obj ect of hi s life withered blasted—that which was
, ,
but is n o t H e felt as solitary as if he dwelt alone on the

.
earth and the merriment of his officers and men seemed to

,
mock at his calamity But when he thought of the in b u

.
manity that h ad been exercised toward his family , the pride

of his nature swelled in his bosom and whispered him to ,
complete the good work which he had begun and his guard ,
ian angel smiled upon him and the despondency which he

,
had given w a y to was a lit t le lighted A bri ght spot was .
in the di s tan t hori zon which shed a faint luster upon the
,
dark clouds that surrou nded it .
H e retired to his c amp H e w a s more than a monarch

.
there A t his nod there was silence and every wish

.
,
thought by him was anticipated H is tent w as made a m .
ple of better materials and the little furniture which a

, ,
soldier requires w as found there Yet the meanest of his

.
men had greater anticipations of happiness in reserve than

himself, and thought more of the opinion of the world than
he did H e sought not command ; it was thrust upon him
.
,
through the conscious knowledge an the part of the men ‘
whom he commanded of his superior fitness for that com

mand ; and the rash bravery which he ha d always shown
not only endeared him to them but m ade them proud of
'
,
84 STANDI SH THE P U R II A N
’ ‘
.
their chief H is fame was their fame his honor their hon
.
,
or ; and the confidence they ha d in him had carried them

on in many an une q ual conte st .
But we will leave for a t ime Colonel Standish and his

, ,
command and proceed to N ew York the head quarters of

, ,
-
the British army and ther e see what had been the changes
,
which had taken place i n the p ast few months : the suc
cess of the undeserving , and the misfortunes of those who
merited not m isfortune .
C HAP T E R VI .
A ST RAN G E metamorphosis had taken place in the out

w ard man of Mr Sni d ing since last we s a w him , and as
.
s trang e a o n e in his store its extent and indeed , its t o u t

, , ,
en sem b l e
. The little gable end of the building had di sa p
a r e d and a square front had been carried up in its place
p e , ,
a n d the brick work was as n e w and as red as paint and

'
-
putty could make it It had also grown larger and in the

.
,
b ack part of it was an o ffice carpeted and an easy c h a ir , ,
w a s there a n d in this easy chair with an emb r oider ed cap

, ,
o f velvet u pon his head with gold tassels appended thereto

, ,
sat Julius C wsar S n ifl in g E sq , in a s tate of quiescent o b

,
l iqu it y , watching the gracefully encircling smoke as it as

c en de d fr o m his H avana .
In the store proper were a number of clerks , busied in

heat in g with little sticks and piling away numerous pack
,
ages o f fur ; but ; from whose backs they had b een taken i t "
is here unnecessary to in quire A fair in ference however .

, ,
may be drawn from an emblazoned sign which had suc

c eed ed the former an d which had written thereon in l arge
, ,
R oman characters the following informatio n

, THE
M ANHATT AN M U SK RA T AN D B E AVE R F U R -
S TANDI SH THE PURI I A N
’ ‘
. 85
”
COM P AN Y A revolution had not only been wr ought
.
“ ”
in the appearance of the store but the house of S n ifl in g ,
Co had resolved itself into a different branch of business

. .
A stout fin e lookin g E nglishman with knee and shoe

,
-
,
buc kles neatly polished , with a well powdered an d grace -
fu lly adj usted wig in the blandest manner possibl e entered

-
,
“ ”
the counting room of the aforesaid firm and made known
-
,
t o Mr S n ifl in g that he was his maj esty s commissary for

’
.
supplying the army in N ew York and that h e Mr Sni .

, , .
flin g had been named as one of the most op u l ent merch ants
,
in town and at the s am e time one of the most liberal

, , , .
Mr S n iflin g arose but not without trepidation before an

.
, ,
official of so important a character as the commissary of

subsistence for his most gr acious majesty George t he ,
Third king of G r eat B r it a in France and Ireland , defender

, s ,
of the faith & c & c and replied , , ,
Yes sir , I am a merchant or rather was I—I now

,
. .
“
, , , , .
have withdrawn somewhat but as a pastime h ave accept , , ,
ed the presidency of the comp any indicated by the lettering

” “
over the door But he continued I am his m aj esty s
.
, ,
’
not only faithful but obedient servant and he has but to

, ,
”
command With this he put his hand upon his heart
.
,
and made a sidling bow with a face at strife between an ,
expression of satisfaction and one of awe .
”
My object sir in calling upon you observed the com
, , ,
“
missary 1 s to get your advice as to the safest and most
,
expeditious way of procuring provisions to subsist the tr0 0 ps

u on ”
e S n ifiin g replied that he would take the matter into
.
“
.
his serious consideration and at an early day report to him ,

”
accordingly H e had , by this time in a great measure ,
recovered his equani mity and proceeded t o o ff er his courtly ,
visiter a cigar , assur i ng him that it was one of a lot that

he had imported for himself at a ru inous price but the ,
commissary excused hi mself by allegin g that he never

smoked , or otherwise us ed tobacco except the preparation ,
u sually called snu ff ; and then with a low b o w took his , ,

leave Mr S n ifiin g pro m ised to call at his qu arters the

. .
next morning at the same time sidling after the commis

,
sary as a monkey would after a masti ff, ready fo r a jump

in case he should show his teeth .
His unexpected visitor h ad n o sooner gone than Mr S n i ‘
fiin g began to cogitate how he could make money out of

the operation and i t w as not long before his plan was ma
,
.
t a red The concentration of an intellect however small ,

.
, ,
upon a given subject , and pursuing its obj ect with perti
n a c it wi l l astonish o by t h keenness it will acquire '
y , n e e ,
outstripping far away in that particular instance the pro

, ,
foundest intellect Whose pursuits ar e of a general nat ure ,

and yet possessing in every o t her respect faculties d ep l o r
, ,
ably on a level almost with the brute creation A nd thus

with Mr Sniffing He thought—he dre amed of nothin g
.
. .
but how to find the shortest way of accumu lating wealth ;

knowing not e nough of the opinion of the world to restrain
his appetite or if h e did n o t carin g for it further than it
, , ,
would enure to his own advantage .
The su dd en ac quisition of wealth is the least respectable

way of any of possessing it ; beca use in the first place it , ,
is p r i m e f a cze that i t s ac quisition was by unfairness or ,
that in its display , it is contrasted by the awkwardness or

,
the insolence of its pos sessor or perhaps by both If it is ,
obtained by a long series of usefu l occupations it is open ,
to no such objection ; besides the acquisitor gene r ally b e ,
comes accustomed t o its super u it ies an d is modest in its ,
employment ; and thus p erhaps it is as respectable as if , ,
inherited and ought to be more so

, .
Mr S n iflin g had acquired great reputation , after his law

.
,
suit with Zimri Freeborn for straightforwardness in his ,
dealings and his patronage had become immense ; b u t t he

,
great demand for furs abroad and the ease with wh ich they ,
were obtained in duced him to sell out his former business

,
( the which he did to great advantage ) he h aving a c o n s id ,
crable stock on hand , purchased at Boston u pon a credit

which had been canceled by the breaking out of the war ,
without the tr ouble on his part of m aking remittances to

, ,
his creditors .
There are t wo classes of perso n s affec t ed by revolution

the cons istent and the rogue The gain of the one is cha r
that of the other c a sh—the latter however unac
.
a c t er , , ,
companied by either sym p athy or respect unless it be that ,
mock article which many will purch ase like any other mer
c han dise and which like it , is worn and t hr own o ff as con
, ,
v en i en c e may re q uire .
Mr S n iflin g was of that class as has been seen which

.
, ,
'
wa s lucratively aff ected by the war and his fortune was ,
m ade in a very short space of time H e had most rapid l y .
advance d it by his profits in the fur trade ; but a number

of ill disposed persons in the neighborhood reported that th e
-
“ ”
firm had k illed all the cats worth a n y thing on the island
for the sake of their furs which sold well in E ngland as ,
the F el zn a A m er i ca n a
'
but a s it was uttered in Dutch , ,
the slander (if it w ere so )never was talked of in commer

”
c ia l circles Be this as it may , there was a large impor
.
t a t io n a few years after , of this useful domestic to improve

, ,
the breed of those left , as it was quite certain that they had
become of late though scarce quite noisy and quarrelsome
, , , ,
an d like noisy people were good for little else

, , . .
Mr S n ifiin g had read S ha ksp e a r e and had particularly

.
,
taken care to remember that there is a tide in the a ff airs

of man which if taken at its flood leads on to fortune
, , ,
“ “
and he , is the flood tide of my li fe and ,
”
I will not wait for it to subside H is plan was laid , and .
its execution seemed as simple as he could have wish ed .
The Continental Congress had circulated for the purpose ,
of carrying on the war an i mmense issue of paper money , ,
dated and payable at no particular place , a n d executed in

the coarsest possible manner ; and if there were di ff iculties
at all in counterfeiting it it was occ asion ed by its abom ,
inable execution Some of it bore the impress of the pal

.
metto emblematic it was supposed of a people living

, , ,
where nothing else lived or grew , and whe re patriotism was

similarly exclusive Others were embellished wit h the sage

.
leaf supposed to be indicative of the wi sdom and inventive

,
gen i us of the people of N ew E ngland T he former passed .
current at the South but was refused at the N orth ; and

,
the latter for the same satisfactory reason passed at the

, ,
N orth but was eschewed at the South A s the capital

,
.
stock of a l l thes e vast issues was based upon patriotism it ,
fe l l and rose in value in proportion to the he ated or cooled

condition of the element of whi ch it was composed .
Mr S n iflin g saw n o good reason why he should n o t also

.
issue money of the like kind ; and as the insurgents com

el l e d each other to take it he could if proper agents were
p
found purchase furs and cattle a d l i b i t u m —the price to be
, ,
paid, in such a currency being of no particular con sequence ,

.
It certain ly would be a money making matter as he would -

,
be paid in gold by the E n lish commissary g .
The whole plan seemed to be so simple that he could ,
h ar dl y wait for the time to arrive to visit the commissary

of subsistence H e knew enough of the freebooters who
.
were vibrating between both arm i es pretending as circum , ,
stances made it expedient to belong fir st to one side and ,
then to the other Indeed Mr S n ifl in g contended that

.
, .
g reater opportunities now presen t ed themselves for m aking
a magnificent fortun ethan often fall to the lot of any indi

vid u al ; and so sure was he of success that that very night , ,
he sought and found an engraver competent for the manu

facture of plates equal at least to those used by t he A m er
, , l
ican authorities If the commissary himself would enter

.
into the arrangement then the thing was certain and the
‘
, ,
attempt if succes sful would ruin the whole plan of the

, ,
A merican finance But a thought suggested itself to him

.
that would be a good expedient to fall back upon if the

proposition did not meet his views H e would say to him .
that the Americans had no other dependence but this p a

per and that it might be depreciated by manufacturing a n
,
imitation of it in the city and sending it into the country ,
i n such quantities that b y and by it woul d lose its val u e

,
-
,
.
90 S TAND I S H THE PU R I TAN .
be paid in gold for the provis ions which you furnish

then he gently hi nted that in his campaign s in E urope it , ,
had always been the custom for the contractor to di vide

with the commi s sary the profits ar ising therefrom ; but
that for the present he should leave it entir el y to the honor
, ,
of Mr S n iflin g
. .
This w as understood by the lat t er an d sign i fie d a c cord ,
in gly and they parted the happiest of men re p osin g en , ,
tire co n fidence in the integrity and p atr iotism of each other .
Oh ! what golden visions p assed before Mr S n ifl in g s eyes ! ’
H ouses—no palaces of m arble ! A wife as be autiful as a

.
Mohammedan houri His doma in fixed in some sunny .
land , where the fig and pomegranate flo u rishe d the whole

year round Oh happy elysium Cou l d he have li ved for
.
,
ever h is joy would be complete

, .
In a few days package after package was sent to hi m

, ,
and all he had t o do was to forge the si gna t ures to the bills .
“ ”
T here ! exclaimed he as he signed and threw one aside , ,
“
there is one hundr ed pounds ! and there goes another bill
”
for fifty ! and thus he signed and threw o n e after another ,
in a pile unt il his eyes protruded from their s o ckets wi th

,
In a few days the arrangemen t s were comple t ed H e .
had procured at le ast fi fty go od men and true wi t h the ,
pro m ise of large wages to undertak e the purchase of cattle , .
and other provisions with just such money as he was then

man u facturing : There was an abundance of liberal mind -
ed men to b e fo u nd who co nsidered the world as one great

,
fa m ily and who were not di sposed to narrow themselves

, '
down in the c ircle of any parti cular clique an d who also ,
suppose d that one side was as right as the other They .
determ in ed that if the colonists would quarrel and des troy

eac h other they would make a profit from the circumstance
,
.
It was wonderful to see the change th at a few weeks

made in the market To an era of dearth succeed ed one .
of plenty ; and day after day droves of cattle a n d pou l try

,
-
, ,
of every description fruit in se a son and out of se ason fil led

, ,
STANDISH THE PUR ITAN . 91
.
the markets The day after a dark ni ght was sure to be

.
one of abundance The c ar at midnight co uld be heard

.
tripping in the water from the Jersey to t h e Manhattan

shore and cattle lown as they slowly m ade the ir way
,
do w n the old post road -

.
Mr S n iflin g was now a g reat man a g reat merchant

.
, ,
and more than all a great financier an d withal a loyal

, , , , ,
subj ect who by a degree of shrewdness greater th an ha s

, ,
immortaliz ed many and laid the foundation for d istin gu ish

,
ed families for succeeding generati ons (an d quite as honest ,

too ) had as good a right as they to honorable po l itical dis
,
t in c t io n s His position was such that an establi shment

.
was necessary to support the rank and res pect that he felt
hi m self entitled to H e accord ingly purchas ed one of t he
.
most elegant residences front ing that part of the town

where the waters of the E ast R iver and the H uds on unite .
Its ample lawn stretched itself to the water s edge over ’

,
looking perhaps the finest view in the world To the

, , .
s outh the H ighlands of N eversink reared their lofty he a ds ;

,
to the east the green and hill y shore of Long Island ; and
,
to the west the sunny land whi ch the tr a dition of the Ih

,
“
di a n s had inves t ed with inter est as the fair world where
the sun never sets an d where departed spirits live in peace
,
”
and happiness amid the radiance of eter nal summer T he .
islands of the bay spring up from its bosom reflecting their ,
emerald hues upon its golden sur fa c e aff ording a prospect ,
that falls to the lot of but few to witne ss The mightiest .
e ffort of the pa inter is futile when he draws fr om the im

a g in a t io n scenes of fairy land and tries t o invest them w ith,
glories surpass ing these .
Mr S n iflin g had sense enough to leave t o some extent

.
, ,
the furnishin g of his house t o his upholsterer an d beautiful ,
woul d h ave b een the arran gement had he yielded a l t o get h

er his own taste to h is ; but to show his a ffluence he add , ,
ed a great quantity of additional furnitu re out of taste out , ,
of place and inconvenient ; g iving his rooms more the ap

,
a r a n ce of a general furnishing store than the parlors of a

pe
gentleman B ut what mattered it , so far as his happiness

.
was concerned , whether he lived in a palace or a hovel ?
H is mind was occupied in accumulation—another dollar to

the other another estate and yet another
, , .
A fter the house had been arranged he invited the few ,
lady acquaintances he had to visit and inspect it and h e ,
appeared proud of his knowle dge with the useful portion of

the establishment the culinary in particular and he point
, ,
ed out to them the arrangements for cooking washing and , ,
i roning together with the other conveniences particularly

,
within the province of the hou sekeeper .
The minuteness with which he dwelt upon all these mat

ters would recommend him he supposed to all mothers , ,
who had daughter s to settle in life H e also with pride .

, ,
threw open the doors of his chamber The rich tapestry .
which covered the beds the elegant dressin g mirrors and , ,
other furniture pertaining to it were marred by hideous ,
portraits hanging around the room b adly visaged and bad ,
l y executed and would have passed for brigands had the

,
artistical talent employed upon them been as good as is

u sually shown upon such figures Where he got them was .
never known ; but it was supposed by some that he pro

cured them of a Jew a dealer in such wares who could , ,
furnish any quantity at the shor t est notice all of which ,
were warranted to be the production of the old masters .
The next item was a carriage ; for the general officers ,
and even the quarter master had brought theirs from E n

-
,
gland and many of t he dashing young subalterns had their

,
o n e horse
-
establishments wit h them Mr S n ifl in g had . .
gro w n enormously rich he had his private residence and , ,
of course a carriage would be in keeping ; and so it had

,
been solemnly decided by Mr D exter who as has been .

, ,
seen Wa s the legal adviser , and , consequently the friend

, ,
of Mr S n iflin g and t o whose skill and tact the latter owed

.
,
so much A carriage without a coat of arms would be an

.
anomaly among the proud aristo crats an d as he had but a ,
faint idea of heraldry he would have left the whole matter

,
S T A N DI S H T H E P U R I T A N
~
. 93
to the taste of his carriage maker had not his attention ,
been called by the merchant who furnished his silver for

, ,
the production of his family device in order to enstamp ,
upo n it his crest H e had cunning enough not to expose

.
his ignorance u pon a subj ect that every gentleman is sup

posed to know something of and now rendered important ,
as he was about making his en t r é into fashionable life ,
There was a lapidary in town who mi ght he su p p o sed '
, ,
po ssess the necessary in formation and who h ad b een em

‘
f l
p y o ed by Mr Dexter for a similar purpose
. This lapidary .
kept a large book upo n heraldry and from it were produced ,
quarterings of an ancient as well as a novel character H e .
impressed upon Mr S n ifl in g the necessity of every gentle

.
man possessing a genealogical tree exhibiting his descent ,
as far back at least as H enry the E ighth a period when

, , ,
heraldry r ec ei ved a n ew impulse from the fact that many

of the nobility and gentry who had resided in Spain on
, ,
returning home had adopted motto es congenial to their am

b it io n. H e also added that the name of S n iflin g had been
distin guished and well known as far back as the Crusades ,
and had even flourished in the days of William the N or

man M r S n iflin g was delighted and generously paid
. .
,
something in advance for such an account as he could gath ;

er of the fami ly of S n ifl in g s .
T his lapidary was n o f ool and he knew his customer ; ,
and he resolved that if his li b erality was equ al to the di

,
versity of emblems he intended to arrange as the test of the

m agn ificence of the family anterior to the Conquest he ,
would add considerably to the purse already pret t y well

suppl ied by those who had in the same manner been the
f o u n d er s o
f f a m i l i es without the
, trouble of doin g many
dirty transactions in the acquisition leaving to romance ,
and poste rity through the mist of time , to give it a tinge

,
that tru th and the present never co ntemplated .
Mr S n iflin g called day after day and always found the

.
,
crafty artist poring over the huge volume and making fig ,
ures an d hieroglyphics upon pie ces of paper , the v alue of

94 STANDISH HE P U R I T A N
'
‘
T .
which seemed to b e enhanced as the impossibility increased

of his ever being enabled to decipher them T he artist .
t ook go o d care to be busy at the p articular time that he

‘
was c a l l ed u p on thus not o n l y giving assurance of his in

'
d ef a t ig ab il it y , but at the same time , additional value to

,
his discoveries
A t last the drawing was complete , and out of it his fam
ily coat of arms that was to endure as long as his money
,
lasted was engraved upon his watch seal and also a die
, ,
cast for his serv i ce of plate But the cupidity of the artist .
and the ambition of his customer had gone beyond all

bounds To the coat of arms that belonged to H enry the
.
E ighth were added the q uarterings of hal f a dozen German ,
French , and Spanish princes , the whole being surmounted

by a bird wh ich looked very much like a buzzard with a ,
mott o in French wh ich co uld well be render ed into veni

—vidi —
,
vici . T he lapidary insiste d that the motto was

strong evide n ce that C aesar i n his invasion of Gau l had
.
, ,
made the ac q uaintance of some of Mr S n iflin g s maternal .

’
ancestors .
“
It is only by such coincidences said the artist that , ,
we are enabled to draw fair inferences from the well of

time and generally they are conclusive so remarkable are
, ,
the blending of circumstances proved by the wonderful con

t in u it y of blo od the last descendant , after the lapse of
,
”
ages oft en bein g a fac simile of his great progenitor
,
-
The .
lapidary also added that with all of these evidences of his

, ,
ancient des cent his Christian n ame was n o t the least r e

,
markable proving that his immediate ancestors were n o t

,
i gnorant of some supposed a fli n it y to t h e great family of

the C aesars .
Mr S n iflin g , however , call ed to his memory the wonder

.
ful statement , in a question of title that he h ad heard Mr , .
Dexter make in an argument before a j ury and which he ,
demonstrate d t o be true H e argued that every person had

t wo ancestors in the ascending degree—his own parents ;
.
f o u r in the se c ond — the paren t s of his father and the par

STANDI SH T HE PUR I TAN . 95
cu of his mother ; eig ht

ts —
in the third the parents of his
two grandfathers and the parents of his two grandmothers ;
and by the same rule o f p rogr ession argued he a man
, , ,
h ath a hundred and twenty eight in the seventh a thou

-
,
sand and twenty four in the tenth , an d at the twentieth

-
degree or at the distance of twenty generations every man

, ,
hath above a million of ancestors To place the matter b e

.
yond a doubt Mr Dexter handed to the judge a p iece of

, .
paper to demonstrate his pos ition , w hich was as follows

,
Nu m b er of A n ces t o r s .
2
4
8
16
32
64
1 28
2 56
512
A nd t hu s he arithmetically proved his position to the entire

satisfaction of the judge ; but the majority of the j ury had
their mis g ivings ; and when he stated to them th at after ,
the same rule at the fortieth degree every m an had u p

, ,
ward o f a m i llion of million of ancestors they shook their ,
heads sign ificantly at him , an d it was said that from that ,
moment his character for truth had considerably d ecli ned

, .
“ ”
A m illion of millions ! thought Mr S n iflin g t o him .
“
self ; a number which can be easil y written , but d iffi
cult to be comprehended
.
and he could n o t but feel se
r io u s in contemplating the magnitude of his family connec
tions , and their immense an d almost incomprehensible num

96 '
STANDI SH THE PURITAN .
ber over whelmed him Is it possible tho u ght he

.
?” .
“
Yes figures prove it as plainly as that the direct parents
,
of a m an are two ; and allowing the average duration of a ,
generation to be twenty five year s f t hen in the space of one -

,
thousand years each man has a thousand times more a n

,
c es t o r s than there are at any one time inhabitants on the

, ,
face of the earth and if this be so it m atters little whet h ,
er C aesar was or was n o t one of them as the connection in , ,

”
such case w o uld be very distant Well continued this
, .
,
“
aristocratic aspirant the world is a funny a ff air as math
, ,
e m a t ics can at any t im e and he came to the con

p r o ve
'
elusion that after all it was very probable t hat in the

, , ,
vast number of his c onnections the C aesars could be found , .
“ ” “
But it matters little he mentally ej aculated whether, ,
he was or was n o t one of them The multitude never stop .
to inquire into the truth of a thi ng but take up the cry of ,
t he fir st they hear as easily a n d as confidently as they

_
swallow the last quack medicine offered for sale .
Under all the circumstances it was concluded between ,
the lapidary and Mr S n ifl in g that for brevity s sake it

.
,
’
,
would be best to adopt the more significant motto used by

“
the family , A n t C aesa r , a n t n u l l u s by adapting it to his
”
,
particular case ; and accordin gly , the carriage made its

,
appearance and in flaming colors distinctly were written

,
“ ”
upon the panels A n t S n ifl in g , a n t n n l l n s
, H e knew .
that by adoptin g this device he was safe at any rate inas ,
much as he was nothing when he began and at the most

‘
he could be n othing less at the end ; b e sides , he saw no

”
reason why his motto should n o t be S n ifl in g or nothi n g
“ ”
as well as C ae sar or nothing If it were egotism in the .
former , it was nothing less in the latter ; and if people

”
laughed now at S n ifl in g the probability is they laugh , ,
“ ”
ed a t C aesar then If time had sanctified and rendered
.
vanity glorious in the one case the time might come when ,
it would be sanctified and glorious in the other A t a n y .
rate if it were certain that some would laugh it was equal

, ,
l y certain that with others , it would give him additional
,
consequence .
98 S T A N D I S II - T HE . PURITAN .
t he next and most diffi cult part to a ccomplis h was to live

like a gentleman or at least to beh ave like one Sitting
, , , .
alone in his ample parlors or drivin g out daily for an hour , ,
was a monotonous aff air , and it became t he m or e tedious ,

'
’
a n d unsatisfactory as the town s people had become accus
,
t o m ed to looking at his ho u se and horses without astonish

me n t Besides t he transfer from his princely hall to his
.
,
fur store was contrasted by the od or of ea n d e C o l o g n e giv

,
in g place to the villainous ones of musk rat sk ins which

‘
-
, ,
strange to say always revived him after suff ering from the
,
e ffects of the former ; so thus far the balance of his happi , ,

‘
ness was very much the same as it was before The vast
. .
'
circulation of his c ounterfeit money rendered it qu it e u n ,
necessary that he should p ursue any other business and he ,

“ ”
made preparation to close the house so far as the fur
trade was concerned ; and aft er he had divested himself of
all vulgar employments he re solved to give a dinner party ,
to the nob ility and gentry belon ing to t he army and to g

,
them alone without regard to the merits of the other o ffi

,
cers Great preparations were made ; a mean man is al

.
ways the most profuse and wasteful after he has made up

his mind to do so The great exertion which it requires to
.
start him gives to the eff ort an impetus which overshoots

his nature a n d astonishes his friends
, .
Mr S n iflin g had a perfec t right to select his company

.
'
,
for n o person of a n y consideration had at an y time invited .
him to his house until after his preparation t o set up for ,
h imself an d h e had p er cep tion enou g h to note it an d he

.
, ,
i ntended that n o w there should be a day of reckonin g .
Cards of invitation were sent o u t and much to the a st on i , '
i sh m en t of t hose invited , many o f whom h ad never before

heard of M r f S n iflin g and the others only in some manner
'
,
in c o n n ec t io n wit h the com missary of subsistence But .

,
u pon inquiry they found that he was a man of large for

,
tune ; ha d made sacr ifices for his maj esty ; th at his knowl
edge o f the country and the p eople enabled him t o r en der
'
‘
'
m o st valuable services to t he ar m and they were a lso i

y ; n
'
STAN DISH T HE PURITAN . 99
formed confidentially that in some way best known to him ,
self he had given a death blow to the Continental curren

, ,
-
c
y; and after mature
,
de l iberation , it was agreed on all
h ands as a matter of state policy , that the invitations
,
should be accepted .
A fter the announcement Mr S n iflin g had the sat isf a c , .
tion of being envied and the d inner to be given to the no , ‘
b il it y and gentry a l o n e was the great topic of the day .
Many a n ambitious mother would have given the half of

r
her j ointure could she h ave been one of the distinguished
g u ests ; and there was many a p retty girl r esiding on Ma n
hattan Isla n d who had al l at once discovered the fine feat
ures graceful ease and distinguished manne rs of Mr Sni
, , .
fl in g and who alleged that t hey h ad insisted from the first

,
that he was altogether out of place when behind t he coun

ter and that they had readily perce ived his deep m o r t ific a
,
tion when he was in the act of weighing a po u nd of cheese

or selling a pitchfork .
A s the time drew near for the banquet it occurred to ,
him that he should never be enabled to do the honors of the

house without an in sight into the etiquette usually o b ser v
ed o n such occasions and although he had resolved in the , ,
first instance to invite neither Mr Dexter nor his partner

Thu r w o o d for two reasons— the first being that he aimed
, ,
.
at higher game and the second Mr Thu r woo d had even

, , .
,
as his counsel been h ardly civil to him ; and as for Mr

, .
Dexter , although extremely civil yet he never had o ff ered ,
to introduce him to his daughter or to invite him to his ,
house although Mr S n ifl in g had hinted to him on several

,
.
,
occasions that it would be most acceptable to form her a o

quaintance—yet , as the ti m e gre w nearer , his anxiety b e
,
gan more and more to increase , and the day before the din
n er party was to come off, he made up h is mind to send in
v it a t io n s to both of the last mentioned gentlemen , and als o -
to Miss Dexter who was a very prett y and benevolent girl ,

,
and upon whom Mr S n iflin g had lo oked for some time not
.
with indi fference .

1 00 sT A N D 1 S H T H E
‘
HTT A H
‘ ‘ ’
PU
Mr Dex t er after receiving the invitation expres sed in

.
, , ,
his blandest m anner the pleasure he should d erive in meet

,
ing the c hivalry of E ngland upon so distin guished an occa

sion ; adding that he had learned t hr ou gh Mr Thu r wo o d
, ,
'
.
,
that the home government had been informed of and full y ,
appreciated the distinguished services he had performed in

,
giving a death blow to the finances of the rebels an d that

-
,
h e intended t o agitate the question in order to induce the ,
government to confer on him a title as a reward fo r his

services A n d so eloquently did he portray them a s he n u
.
”
d er st o o d them in high circles that Mr S n ifl in g was in , .
w
d u c ed to reply A fter thanking him for the encomiums

.
“ ”
which he was pleased to besto w upon his poor ex ertions
“
to serve the king he added that he had Supposed at an
, ,
early stage of the rebellion that it would soon dic as a mat'

,
~
ter of c oil r se b u t t h a t wh en the Congr ess had agreed upon

'
the infamous plan of issuing a p a p er currency that he was ‘
then for the first ti m e apprehensive that the war would be

, ,
procrast inated indefinitely when he hit upon a plan , though ,
at great p ecu n i a r y sa cr ifices to put an en d to it in his own ,
way ; and he was happy to hear from reliable sou r c es that

it had succeeded and also that the re b els were in the g r eat
,
“
est possible distr ess and he continued by saying th at
if what he had alre ady done was n o t su fficient he ha d a ,
plan in view which the world would become ac quainted

”
with at a future day .
Mr Dexter complimented him over and over again for

.
what he h ad already done and finally o ff ered his ser vices ,
t o him in any manner that might be acceptable in advising

in the arrangement for the important day now at hand .
Mr S n iflin g thanked his friend and accepted his services

.
,
and they were engaged to a very late hour in arr anging the
etiquette to be observed the coming day .
Mr Dexter as he was about taking leave hinted to Mr

.
, , .
S n ifl in g that Mr Thu r wo o d was quite at home in all such

.
matters and he would b e there at an early hour to give such

,
hints as might be necessary Mr S n ifl in g thought that it . .

1 02 STANDI SH T HE PURITAN .
expanse without he thought he heard o ar s dip p in g in the

,
i
“ ” “
water s H a ha ! said he to himself ; so m e of m y men
,
with provisions for the army and stepping to t he shore , ,
he was there j ust in time to meet a person hau hn g a light

ski ff pa rtly out of th e water
Who are you said Mr S n iflin g to the stranger ; w ho
.
“ ? ”
.
is it trespassing upon my ground at this time of nigh t ? ”
“ ”
Z imri Freeborn , was the reply , made in the gentlest
accents .
H ad it n o t been dark , o n e could have s een the confusion

of Mr S n iflin g T here w a s no person in this world that he
. .
wou ld not have rather seen He might h ave known that

'
there was little to fear fr om this strange eccentric Whethe r

~
.
the agitation created was in consequence of the injustice

‘
'
he had done him o r whether it brought up recollections of

,
his former poverty or whether it was a r evival of the agony

,
he endured pen din g the trial he did not ask himself ; but ,
the appearance of his former antago n ist m ade him uneasy .
Mr S n iflin g inquired of Zimri in an authoritative tone

.
, ,
wh at he wanted .
“
N othing p a r t i c l ar
u You don t know Mr De l E r
’
.u ? .
’
? ”
he isn t l n these p arts is he
’
inquired Zimri
”
, .
“
Why do you i n quire here ? H e IS at home I suppose , ,
said S n ifl in g .
“
No he ain t ! it s all burned as black as a coal
’ ’
.
” “
Burned ! repeated Mr S n iflin g ; burned ! and where .
are the famil y

“
That s what I d like to know said Zimri ; an d so
’ ’ “
‘
,
would Colonel Standish like to know a b out Miss De l E u r ’

,
but he can t find ou t ’

She s a hand some gal c ontinu ed
”
.
’
,
“
he ; and the colonel s very c r o ss sin c e she s gone ; and the
’ ’
sogers are kept a fit i n all the ti m e : Then you don t know ’ ’
nothing about em ’
and , without saying any thing more
.
,
he sl id his canoe back from the shore int o deep water a n d

»
,
disappeared l n the dark .
Mr S n iflin g retired to his room and tried to compose

.
,
hims elf to sleep ; but he was feverish , and could n o t sleep
S TANDI SH THE PUR I TA N . 1 03
and he had n o sooner closed his eyes than there spra n g be ;

' '
fore his vision young demons a n d old d a n c in g u p o n his table , ,
and throwing summ ersets lod gin g u pon forms of ices ; and
,
fishes with voracious j aws swim m ing in his tureens of soup ;

and then plates and forks t aking u p a minuet and derang
,
,
ing every thing as fast as grim visaged servants C ould put -
them in place ; and even they seemed to t a ke d el ig ht in the

confusion which ensued ; and he had n o sooner shaken ‘
away these monstrosities than he beheld his visitors in pan

0 ply arrayed severe rigid and unearthly looking more
, , , ,
l ike the effigies of remote times than the creatures of flesh

and blo o d of the prese nt day ; and so in such company , ,
passed the night of the millionaire ; and when rosy dawn

appeared he sprang f rom his bed as if to escape from the ,
fetters which the busy phantoms of his dreams had mana

cled him in .
A ll that day there was a running of s ervants cooks and , ,
lackeys of all degrees , and such hurrying to and fro had n o t

be en seen since the rearing of the Tower of Babel A nd .
Mr S n iflin g was almost cr azy

. What with a ll of his .
dreams and the excitement of the day he resolved that this ,
would be the l ast dinner that he w o u l d ever make himself

'
u nhappy with especially to per son s with w

,
hom he h ad n o
kind of acquaintance ; but at last the cook an n ounced to
the butler and the valets announced to Mr S n ifl in g that
,
.
,
the dinner would be ready for the table as soon as the com
p any assembled .
In a few moments numerous carriages were seen to ap

proach the lodge well appointed every way : coachmen
‘
and gr ooms in small clothes ruffles around their wrists ,

-
,
.
and their wigs well powdered The harness of the horses .
sparkled with gold and t h e rich livery of servants gave the

,
whole a most imposing e ff ect They were soon at the door .
of the most elegant mansion in town Its ample court a n d .

,
the lawn of several acres in terspersed with s t ately prime

,
val trees stretched itself gracefully to the w ater s edge

,
’
.
N ature appeared to h ave expended itself in its decorations

1 04 STANDI SH THE PURITAN .
preparatory to the h abitation of m an , an dhi s ingenuity had

exerted itself to the utmost to make it o n e worthy of the
s it e .
Mr S n ifl in g was on the por t ico steps to receive his dis

.
t in g u ished guests ; and soon thereafter matrons and maid ,
ens old and yo ung but all of high degree were ushered
, , ,
i nto the house by him in the same mann er as a shepherd

would gather his fold i n a small inclosure viz by heading ,
.
,
them o ff when they gave signs of dodging his intent ions .
Mr S n ifl in g was much relieved by Mr Thu r wo o d who

. .
,
k new most of the company He showed the m through the .
’
grounds where they amused themselves at the water s edge
,
watching the boats as th ey dashed by filled with o ff icer s ,
who were returning from some aquatic a m usement .
A mong the guests who had arrived was General Lord

Lu m b er l eg s H e was in full feather and cover ed with gilt
.
,
and gold H is ancestor in selecting his title upon h is b e

.
,
in g created a peer of t he realm was unfortunate so far as ,
his descendant the present Lord Lu m b er l eg s was concern

, ,
ed however appropriate it m ight have been to himself

, .
The present peer was a stout bullet headed gentleman , ,

-
with short and thin nether limbs and great capacity of ah ,
domen which with the outward manner in which he car

, ,
ried his arms gave him the appearance of an inclination to

,
fly with an unconsciousness of estimate of his own p r ep on

,
d er ab l e habit His face was very re d and his eyes were

.
,
very light and his little low unintellectual forehead would

, , ,
be ve ry likely to solicit an i nquiry upon the policy of m a k

i n g a great man by act of P arliament H e showed very .
little curiosity as to the appearance of the grounds the ,
house or the beaut iful view from it but a strong inclina

, ,
tion to see what was going on in the dinin g room -

.
Mr S n iflin g did all he could to make himself gracious

.
,
but in his over zeal to do so was continually taken for one

,
-
,
of the domestics until some sad mistakes were made l n the

m ann er of r e l m to him
p y g .
The try ing moment n o w arrived Dinner was an n o u n c .

or as incidental to his occupati on ; but h e who seemed the

best satisfied as to the truth of Mr S n iflin g s statements .
’
was General Lord Lu m b er l egs, if t he qu antity he drank

was evidence of his credulity .
E very thing went on in the m o st sat isfa c t o r y manner

‘
and with great propriety until the ladies and some of t he

, ,
more abstemious of the gentlemen , had withdrawn Some .
of them were dancing in the drawing m oms others ven -
t a red a short distance from the shore aided by the light of ,
the new moon ; others were promenading and sentimental

izing in the pia zza fr onti n g the water Those at t he tabl e .
were still drinking and doing the honors of the house Mr

,
. .
S n ifl in g had drank more than he had ever drank befor e ,
and his lordship , the general had emptied mor e than three ,
bottles .
‘
It was now proposed that Mr S n ifl in g should name a .
t oast though his intellect was evidently much obscured

, .
B ut the t o a st m u st be drunk H e hesitated some time

'
.
,
and in hesit at in g he hicco u ghed ; and the lon ger he hesi

,
'
t a t ed the more he hiccoughed ; but the t oast w a s lo u dly

, ’
called for and in a second e ffort he arose st eadyirig him

'
i
, ,
self by grasping the collar of his lordship with one hand ,
and holding o n to the table with the other

H iccough — hiccough — gentlemen—hiccough —I give
.
you her ladyship—hiccough—m y Lady Tim b er t o es—hic

cough ; and the toast w a s drunk with appla u se though ,
they did n o t k n ow precisely what it meant and therefore ,
loudly called fo r an explanation which he endeavored to

— —
,
“
H er ladyship is the a o com p l ished
'
give by saying
wife of my friend—hicco u gh—o n my left
, .
54
“
Mistake ! m i stak e ! mistake ! was echoed on all sides
”
It is Lu m b er l egs—m Lady Lu m b er l egs s aid a dozen

.
“ ”
voices at once Drink it over again !
‘
B u t Mr S n ifl in g grew n o better E very thing was in a

I beg pardon —hi c cou g h
. .
“
state of obliquity to him ’
said he ; here s to—hiccough —t o Lady Lu m b er heel s

. .
“ ’
hiccough .
STA NDISH T HE
'
P U R IT A N . 1 07
This is too much ! t his is too much said his lordship ,
rising ; but he required the aid of the table in maintaining

his balance With swimming eyes he looked at Mr Sni
. .
fl in g and both of them had to hold each other by t he collar

,
to steady themselves “
I am a s oldier said his l ordship
.
”
, .
“
H ere there was a long pause but at le n gth he added I , ,
demand satisfaction ! ”
A hiccough followed and then the ,
”
words Draw , instantly !
,
They n o w made a n a t t em p t to separ a te but in this in

~
,
stance they found s afety in unity Valor however was in .

, ,
the ascendant ; and by some pro c e s s not easily e xplaine d

, ,
they did draw their swords a n d the first c a t his lordship ,

'
‘
m ad e demolished several d ecanters o f wine ; and Mr S n i .
fl in g in returnin g t he blow was the cause of Mr Dexter

, , .
narrowly escapin g decapitation The sober part of the co m .
pany seein g t hat every body and every thing was in dan
, ,
ger exc ept the c omb atants themselves sep arated them
, , ,
which prove d t o be the easiest thing i n the world A fter

“
“
they were seated e ach looked at the oth er like the solemn
,
”
bird o f n ight with its head turned t o w a r d t he sun
, . .
In a few minutes more t he g en er a l was s noring away

i
,
the evening ; but Mr S n iflin g was t o o m u ch o f a novice

'
—
.
‘
e ven to do that H e was most emph atica l ly if the gross

expression can be used—very drunk
,
.
Midnight had ar .
rived ; b u t t he dancing and card playin g were n o t ended -

,
neither were the slumbers of t h e combatants They wer e .
n o w left alone in the dinin g room , and the lights w ere fl ic k -
ering in their sockets E ach party and particularl y Mr .

, .
S n iflin g having shown his metal the latter s u ddenly b e

'
, ,
o a m e a fa vo r ite of a niece of his l o r dship s who regretted

’
'
e r
f il
,
f ha t the hospitalities devolving upon him sho u l d have u n

'
fit t ed him for the society of the ladies the balance of the

e vening .
The whole party before they retired , ex p r ess ed t heir

,
~
grati fication at their sumptuous repast and the good taste ,

'
Mr S n ifl in g had exhibi t ed in its arrangement and of the

.
,
dignity and ease with which h e had presided and even if

‘
1 08 S T A N D I S II THE PURITAN .
some little symptoms of the shop had shown itself the rich ,
profusion made ample amends .
T he gen eral just before daylight was rem oved to his

, ,
quarters without damage n o t car i ng much whi ch sid e wa s

,
up but poor Mr S n ifl in g was put to bed , where he l ay the

.
whole of the following day half unconsciou s going through

, ,
the ordeal which all a m bitious people are destined to when

in a chrysalis s tate .
Misfortune or pain certainly softens the human heart ;

and in his dozin gs Mr S n ifl in g s dreams were terrific H e
, , .
’
.
saw the ghosts O f the ten s of t hous ands of otters beavers

musk rats and raccoons wh ic h he had been p a r t i cep s cr im
, ,
.
i n i s in destroying merely f o r t h e sake o f their skins ; and

,
he saw them writhing in agony with their legs lacerated ,
a n d broken in the iron j aws of the st eel t r ap many of -

,
w hich remained m th at state until they d ie d with pai n or

starvation their eyes p r otruding from their so c kets from
,
the terrible agony they endured ; and he saw t he poor

creatures in their misery , with reason which men cal l l n
, ,
s t in c t gnawing their legs o ff above the teeth of the trap 1 1

, 1 ,
order to effect their escape ; and Mr S n iflin g cursed fro m .
h is heart when in terror , he awoke the mercenary pro

, , ,
en sit ie s which indu c ed him to inflict such cruel pain upo n

p
any of God s creatures possessin g in common as they do
’
, , ,
the several senses which man has been endowed with the ,
great Creator intendin g that the little span of their lives

should be lived out and enjoyed only subject to the decay ,
that age brings wit h it .
The second day he was enabled to sit in an easy chair ,

bolstered up , an d the numerous cards which were left in
the mean time gave him no satisfaction A t last his val efi fi .
announced a note from General Lord Lu m b er l egs The .
sick man was sufficiently himself t o be a little alarmed .
H e had some indistinct recollection of an altercation with

his lordship , but the particulars whereo f he was quite l n the
dark ; his servants had also told him that swords had been
drawn , a n d he had no doubt that the contents in question
1 10 STANDISH THE PURITAN
‘
scription of the banqu et g 1 ven by the millionaire the ,
names and dress of the prominent ladie s but alluded to the ,
difficulties that through misconception had arisen between

, ,
Mr S n iflin g and his lordship ; a n d it went on to state that

.
,
“
thereupon both with great decision an d gallantry , drew
,
their swords and that for a few m oments the company

, , ,
were held in dreadfu l suspense expecting to see o n e or bot h ,
annihilated ; th at the skill that each displayed was truly ’
won derfu l in receiving and parrying the dreadful thrusts

made and returned ; but in a moment the excite ment pass
ed away mutual explanations were made and the distin
, ,
u ish ed gentlemen we are happy to inform our readers are

g , ,
the bes t friends in the world H ad the combat terminated .
f a t a l l y a s at one time there was reason to fear his majesty

,
'
Would have lost one of his bravest officers and at the same , ,
time in Mr S n iflin g the most skillful a n d ac complished

, .
,
”
of his financiers .
The ladies who were not invited were at first di sposed

to be a little vicious upon Mr S n ifl in g ; but they w ere given .
to und erstand that the dinner was a matter of state eti

'
q u et t e given
, to the leading o fficers of the a r my u pon ,
which they softened down the high tone they at fir st assum ‘
ed and canvassed very favorab ly the spirit and gall antry

,
he had sho wn on this momentous occasion A s for t he .
general they awarded no particular merit to him , as a s o l

,
dier 1 s presumed always to have a ready made set of grave

clothes on hand to meet any sudden emergency 1 n .
It was n o w very rare for Mr S n iflin g to be seen in the .
streets without attracting general attention , not by the c a

n a i l l e alone , but by the patricians as a m a n in whom was ,
u nited every great quality : educated delicate in expres : ,
sion adroit 1 n all his dealings yet strictly honest and hon
, ,
crable withal ; and lastly r ic h as Croe sus and as brave , , ,
as U lysses The malcontents a m ong the ladies admitted

.
that Miss Dexter was a v ery pretty a n d a very good girl ,
but it was a pity th at she was so ambitious Yet the re .
were a great many others who were ambitious and who ,

STA NDI SH
’
T HE ‘
PURITAN . 111
would have sat for a week in the most uncomfortable place

in a S p a n ish in qu isit io ri if they had thought that thereby
‘
it would have insured his favorable consideration ; and woe

to the backslidings of an y one of them who had excited the
j ealousy of the others Tr u e they would make no specific .
,
charges themselves neither would they vouch for the cor ,
r e c t n e ss of what had been said ; but thus much th ey felt

“
bound to say that what every body said wa s true T hey
, .
Q
”
hoped Mi S n iflin g would n o t hear of it ; they did n o t wish

'
.
to injure her yet they felt that they owed a certain duty
to society ; and the question then arose whether Mr S n i , .
”
fl in g should not be put u pon his guard But when she .
became no longer an object of envy the insinuations were ,
transferred as a kind of heir loom to her successor and

,
-
, ,
the character of the former was bols tered up upon t he fu

n eral pile of the latter .
Mr S n iflin g s p atronage to legal gentlemen was n o w

.
’
very great H e invested large su m s in real estate and Mr

’
.
, .
Dexter and his partner and clerks were k ept busy in mak
, ,
in g out abstracts of title drawing deed s and mortgages in ,
the investment of the large sums of gold which S eemed to

flow in u po n him from all quarters The commissary and .
Mr S n iflin g ha d continual business with each other yet

.
'
,
t hey d e e m ed it prudent to b e seen but little together lest -
‘
,
il l natu red peopl e should i nvent stories that would be d et r i

-
mental to the public service a n d perchance to themselves , .
A call now upon Miss Dexter wa s soon concl u ded upon ,
n o t for the reason that he admired her particula r ly but that ,
he felt more at ease in her company from the obligations

her father was under to him than with thos e more inde
’
pendently situated T he deference she consequently would

.
, ,
pay to his opinion and the littl e exertion it would require

,
on his p art to make himself agreeable was a point highly ,
desirable For money , he was at all times read y to watch

.
by night and to wor k by day yet for a n y thing else he ,
liked his leisur e an d his independence as well as the most .
of men ; so he accordingly called upon the lady in question .

1 12 STANDI SH THE R URITAN .
Her agitation could evidently be perceived at th e almost u n

ex p e cted condescension The internal arrangements of the .
house were in good taste a n d keeping Mr S n ifl in g at . .

,
first app ared to unusual advantage for he was for the

,
e , ,
reasons g iven quite at his ease ; and where a man is so if

, ,
unaccompanied by pedantry with a tolerable u se of lan ,
guage he can get on very well , save and except always the
presumption of coxcombry .
What with being i n the front rank among the inhabit

ants proper the very considerable fortune her father had
,
accumulated 1n his professio n , together with his reputation ,

Miss Dext er was a desirable m atch for the best young man
about town She was fair with b lue eyes an d a very good
.
, ,
person Kindnes s of manner and condescension were con

.
s t it u t io n a l with her and the agitation she showed upon the

,
call of Mr S n iflin g was n o t occasioned so much by any par

.
t ia l it y she entertained for him as for the great reputation ,
he had acquired his name bein g constantly on the lips of

,
every one She soon recover ed her self possession as a su

.
-
,
per ior intellect always does when coming in contact with

an in ferior one no matter how much over estim ated at first
,
-
the latter may be It IS one of the fixed l aw s of nature

.
that mind should influence and control matter .
Miss Dexter brought a beautiful piece of embroidery from

“
a drawer and pleasantly said You a r e n o t a judge I sup
, , ,
pose Mr S n iflin g of the excell ence of the workmanship ?

, .
,
Such t r ifles are more within our pro vince than with your
sex I purch ased it y esterday at a shop for a sampler I
. .
think it ex quisit ely beautiful an d shoul d feel willing to ,
serve a long appren t iceship if I th ought thereby I could a t

tain to any thing so perfect I am the more surprised an d .
” “
interested continued she , as the shopkeeper informe d ,
me that it was wrought by a very young woman from t he

country whose father was killed by the rebels , and her
,
brother taken prisoner ” Mr S n iflin g smiled si gnificantly .

,
.
and looked knowingly “

Why do you s mile , sir.
? ”
said
“
s he
. 1 8 it at my credulity .
“ ”
Miss Dexter dropped her h ead W hat ! thought she ; .
is that so ? Would the shop keep er n o t pay over t o her -
”
all that she received for it ? The idea seemed to give her
“
mu ch pain What do you su ppose Said she seriously
;
”
, , ,
“
that the shop keepe r would ask for selli n g so trifling a
-
thin g
“
Well let us see responded S n iflin g at the same time
, , ,
“
taking and exam i n i ng the article and turning it over I , .
think about two h u ndred per cent That to be sure would

,
.
, ,
be a l a r g e p r o fit but about a fair average where the vender

l
,
”
is in distressed circumstances .
“
H ow much is two hundred p er cent she 1 n qu 1r ed ,
gravely .
”
f Just twice as much as it cost said he calculatin g the
‘
, ,
.
inter est on the invoice up to the day of sale .
Miss Dexter started up from her seat with the exclama

“
tion Twice the a m ount of cost ! Then t he poor creature
,
w ho has done this work ha s go t but two shillin gs out of the

'
'
”
six I paid fo r it ?
“ ” “
Very likely replied S n iflin g It is an ordinary mer
, .
”
cantil s transaction These things occur continually . .
Then replied Miss Dexter if these things occur c o n

1
“ ” “
t in u a l l y—if the distressed are separated from t he rest of the

.
, ,
world to be taken advantage of in order to fill the pockets

of the unfeeling I want nothing to do with such a class of
,
people ; and they rea l ly Ought not to re ceive the patronage

of the public .
’
“
That is answered Mr S n iflin g just what I said at
”
,
“
.
,
first that the shop keeper would be the only person b en efit
,
ed and he sa id it as u nblushingly as if he had n ever been

behind a counter him self .
Mi ss Dexter looked puzzle d for a reply but took the c c :
casion before he left to intimate that she would take every

, ,
pains to find the person out whoever she migh t be and , ,
make her purchases d irectly from her for the future The .
conversation n o w turned upon other subjects ; at least ,
she had the address to introduce oth er topics where her feel ,
STANDI SH T HE PUR ITAN . 1 15
ings w er e l ess interested ; and when Mr S n ifl in g took his

~
.
leave it was with a higher estimate of Miss Dexter than

,
he had entertained when first introduced to her even pity ,
in g as he did her commercial ignorance ; and a much lower

, ,
one o f him by her than she ever expe cted to entertain

, , ,
aft er the high encomiums she had been in the habit of hear
in g lavished upon him fi
T he mother of Miss Dexter who had b e en decea sed for ,
some years was a pious woman of fair acquirements and

, , ,
had an instinctive knowledge of right and wrong T hese .
sentiments she had taught her daughter and from them

.
flowed the benevolence which is the great charm of th e

female heart Besides Mr Dexter was in his f a m il y a
.
, .
, ,
kind hearted man ; and wh atever may be thought of his

professional sincerity the a ff ection he felt for his daughter
,
was undoubted .
Many a fond parent and husb and have done that which
they b l u shed fo r at the time the wrong was committed in
, ,
order to acquire food and raiment for their families and ,
w ho rather than do a mean action for them selves alone

, ,
would have suff e red the torments of h u n ge r or the chill of

the wintery blast and would have breasted the storms of
,
adversity with true hearts a n d sp o t l ess hands But the '
man who loves his family is in o n e r esp ec t the greatest , ,
moral coward in the world T hey are the center around .
which his a flec t ion s revolve and t he rest of the world to ,
him is of but little consideration beyond the aid it m ay

a flo r d him in their preservation ; and whether the world
is sacrificed to it , his instincts wi l l not allow him t o in
qu 1 re .
When Mr Dexter came home in the evening he was the

.
,
happiest of fathers when he heard of the visit Mr S n iflin g .
had made to his daughter H e himself had been busy a l l .
the day l n the investment of some money for him From .
the rapid accumulation of his fortune and his est ablished

reputation Mr Dexter had but little do u bt that the home
, .
government would create Mr S n iflin g a peer of the realm . .

1 16 S T ANDISH T HE P U R I TA N .
H e in his delight drew his daughter to him , and with p a

, ,
rental fond n ess sat her upon his k nee .
“
Mary s aid he I un derstand that Mr S n iflin g has
”
,
“
, .
m a d e you a call to day H e 1 8 a remarkable man and of

.
,
an age when most yo u ng m en begin the world By his in .
d u s t r y and shrewdness he has not only accumulated a large

fortune but he ha s by his inventive genius I u nderstand
, , , ,
d estroyed t he finances of the rebels and minis t ers are about ,
to thank him publicly fo r his p atriotism I hope m y dear .

,
d aughter that you endeavored to ent ertain h im

, Did you .
”
sing for him ? he a ffectionately inquire d .
” “
N o , father , she answe r ed I could n ot volunteer , .
Besides I asked him if he was fond of music and he r e

,
-
plied , Not much

‘
H e ask ed me if I sung Mear or Old
.
’
H undred ; but , unfortunate ly not u nderstanding Church ,

”
music I had to decline
, .
“ ”
I am sorry for that said her father You have a
good voice and I am pr e
, .
, ,nd to say , you always show good

taste i n your selections ”
.
Thank you father for your good o p 1 n 1 o n

, , A s you feel .
anxious that I should accomplish myself in that depart

ment I have endeavored to do so to the best of my ability ;
,
but the ladies who have com e out with the army have had
so many more advantages than could b e had here , you must
be prepared to find me far behind th em .
H er father was silent H e did n o t wish to admit , even .
to her , that she had a su p er 1 o r l n any thing She was all .
he had to boast of of kith or kin l n this world ; a n d what

, , ,
ever others might think of her s he was to him perfect ; and , ,
like other fathers , he was ambitious n o t for his own sake , ,
but for hers .
“
What do you thin k of him Mary
,
? ”
said her f a ,
In what respect she inquired ?” .
Oh ! his powers of conversation his 1 n t el l ig en c e his , ,
manner You must not expect too much of him H e 1 s a

. .
self made m a n , and his li fe thus far has been engrossed 1 n

1 18 S T A N Dr S H THE P U R IT A N:
opinion but expecting that he i s to fall into t hen V1 ew s, n o
,
m atter h o w absurd or erroneous they m ay be For the first .
three years they shunn ed me as a bird of ill omen ; and it

was n o t until I saw you in the cr adle , and your mother in
need of the necessaries o f life that I came to th e conclusion
,
of takin g t he w orld as I fo u nd it ; a n d in thus adaptin g

myself to the temper a n d the inclin ation of my clients I ,
have succeeded , and generally given satisfaction N o one .

,
it is true has been much benefited 1 n going to law wher e I

,
h ave been concerned , n either has any one been much in

jured They hav e enjoyed the hop es of benefits ahead and
when defeated their ow n reasons have convinced theui that
.
, ,
it was 1 n eV1 t ab l e A m ong the sensible portion of my cli

.
ents I have e n deavored to addr ess to the in plain common

sense ; with the foolish portion my time was better em ,
-
v
ployed than to waste it upon them They were answered . .
in accordance with their own folly Clients generally put .
th emselves into a pre di cament to get into the law before

they employ counsel A s to the particular case of Zimri
.
Freeborn he was in prison befo r e I was employe d and ,

, ,
had I not interfered by changing t he form of action they ,
would have prosecuted him criminally The falsity of lit

,
.
ig a n t s the perjury of witnesses , the frequent stupidity of

,
and the sophistry o f j u dg es places the lawyer no

_ , ,
matter how sincere himself continually in a false position

, .
To overthrow sophistry he must attack it by sop hist r y t o

,
detect perj ury he must lead witnesses on to further per

,
juries ; and , to enligh t en the ignorant arg u ment must be ,
laid down by the cr u de estimate that forms t he channel m

which their thoughts have been in the ha b it of flowing ,
otherwis e the advocate w ould never be un derst ood To .
practice the profession of the law with succes s a man must ,
be a thorough judge of human nature with a capacity to ,
change hi s posit ion as re adily as a chameleon would its col

or Yet even with these drawbacks it is the most ho n or
.
, ,
able of all occupations ; for t he end aimed at n o matter

with w
,
hat wea p on is truth , and , through that right If

,
.
ST A N D I SH THE .
PURITAN . 1 19
the l awyer is seemingly pursuing error , he is dragged there

by the wickedness of his clients and blinded by misplaced ,
confidence Deceptions are practiced l n all occupations

.
.
T he dealer in merchandise will commend his worthless

'
wares an d t hey have nothing to redeem them from the

,
falsity The m eans m ade u se of are false and the thing ‘
—
.
,
itself is false ; it had no merit in its origin or its end a

”
cold premeditated baseness
,
.
g A sigh escaped his daughter H e pressed her cheek u pon .
his ; he felt the warm tear upon his face ; yet she made no
re p 1b
l Iave I pained y o u m y beloved child said he in
a
- ” “
, , ,
this sad picture of the strife of man and wh at he is drawn ,
into in order to obtain the means of support for those he .
? ”
loves
Do not say any thing more about these t hings my dear ,
fath er It pains me indeed it does I do not continued

.
”
, .
,
“ ”
she wish to form so low an estimate of the world
, .
“ ”
I would n ot have mentioned the m to you said he , ,
but I committed myself inadvertently and having done

‘
, ,
so I was desirous to explain the difficulties men h ave to

,
encounter in th e world or else you might blame me ”

, .
“ ”
Blame my father ! blame you ! she ex claimed as she ,
“
tenderly kissed him ; no ! n o ! when he has made all of
these sacrific es for n ie B lame him no ! n o ! I am ready
? f
t o obey him love him nay to die for him, Blame you , , . .
,
”
my father ! and she threw her ar m s around the neck of
that worldly man His gray hair mingled with her brown
.
tresses ; his iron features relaxed themselves and , for the ,
first time in h is life tears flowed down his face The r e , .
proof though sil ent was understood and he felt how much
, , ,
better it would be fo r m an to live in a wild state to roam ,
over the broad and fertile prairie unrestrained by limits ,
and freed from the canker th at gnaws the heart , than to

purchase consideration at such sacrifices .
Mr Dexter perceiving how much pained his daughter

.
,
wa s dropped the conversation and in quired of her if S he

, ,
1 20 sr '
A N DI S H THE ru m i n a nt .
knew w ho h ad worked the pretty piece of embroidery that

she had p u rchased She replied that she did not but that
.
,
she intended to find out if p ossible , who it was and that "
, ,
she hoped if deserv ing that he would be willing that she

, ,
might assist her .
“ ”
Certainly replied her father
, you must be my a l ,
m oner . Do as you please l n all cases of the kind I shall .
”
rely upon your judgment .
H e left his daughter a n d the f ol l owing day went to his

,
o ffice as usual ; but his accustomed buoyancy of spirits

seemed to desert him—so much so indeed that his friends , ,
supposed him ill ; and they were not a little surprised when
they heard him refusing a fee after heari n g the statement ,
of a client shaking his he ad and telling the party that he

,
could not recover ; and he continued grave ; but when he

smiled it was expressi ve of t he feelin gs of the heart as if
, ,
,
its thoughts could be read : A t church his manner was -
,
.
reverent sober thou ghtful ; his quick gray eye wandered

, ,
no more but w a s intent upon the preacher H e spent

,
.
much of his time at his office but it w a s em p l o yed in a la ,
b o r io u s examinati on of his cases advising his clients as his ,
conscience di ctate d, but generally to their d issatisfaction .
In the mean time his daughter was intent upon her er

,
rand of m ercy ; b u t the shop keeper fearing that if foun d ,
out it would put a stop to the supp ly which she received

,
each week from the fair artist , was backward i n affording

a n y information and only upon her promising to give her
,
a handsome S u m did she at”L ength go so far as to s ay that
s he had promised
"I
a f t er the most urgent soli citations n o t
, ,
to reveal or inti mate to any o n e who the party might be .
Miss Dexter therefore after attemptin g every thin g that

, ,
might lead to a discovery , at last gave it up as utterly

hopeless .
daughter and which even he can not describe It partakes

,
.
too little of earth to be understood here but stands always ,
bright upon the records of heaven A loud rappin g was .
n o w heard at the door .
“ There ” exclaimed Miss Dexter “ perhaps some poor

! ,
creature is looking for a shelter and she sprang from her

seat a n d without waiting for a servant rushed to the door
, , , .
Upon opening it an old negress stepped into t he h al l drip

, ,
“ ”
ping with rain You poor s o ul s aid M iss Dexter
.
, ,
? ”
where have you come from this dreary night
“
Y oung missus send me wid dis let t er fore it ra ined -
,
” “ ”
m arm answered she ; and dis in de paper too
,
T he .
note w a s ne atly and carefully S ealed and writ t en upon the ,
fin est of paper and the su p erscription in the hand of a lady ,

,
and was as follows
M ISS DE X TER ,
It is after much hesitation that my mother has con

sented to ask a favor of yo u Nothing but our necessi t ies
.
would j ustify it We are in much want of five guineas

. .
The article s ent is worth twenty It is a piece of plate .
that has been in the family some centuries I think it will .
be called for in time Your kind inquiries to fin d us out

.
h ave been heard of hence the reason of our now troubling

you hoping that it may not be inconvenie n t to you to loan
“
,
”
u s that sum .
The note was without date or name Miss Dexter hand .
ed it to her father and stood silent while he put on his

,
spectacles and conned it over What shal l I say to the

.
-
woman said she .
“ ? ”
What would you say he inquired , gravely .
“ ”
I would send the money , she answered , rath er timid
“
l y and intently watching him at the s ame time ,
, but I
”
have n ot so much about me .
“ ”
There said he taking out of his pocket the amount
, ,
“
inqu ired for , give that to the woma n and tell her to take ,
S TANDI SH THE PUR I TAN . 1 23
the plate home , and that we will send after it when we

”
want security .
M iss Dexte r took the money to the woman , and told her
“
th at her mistress was welcome to it , and that they de
”
c l i n ed havi n g the plate left as a security .
Missus won t hab um den I knows wery well ; did so

’
, ,
”
w u n c e afore and 150 had to go straight b ac k
, .
“ ”
B u t you can go back and try urged Miss Dexter , .
“
O h la ! fal l a l grumbled the woman Y oun g mis .
”
s u s onl y cry if I does .
“
Wh a t is your mistress s name , an d where does she
’
? ”
five
Missus says Ise m u sn t te ll I m inds missus if da be ’
.
” ’ ’
poor I m young missus s mammy She s dear good chile
.
’
. .
H er mother repeated Miss Dexter You her

mother
“
N o ! fal lal ! her m a m m y n o t her mudder ; she s vite ,
’
.
Da t r in g her up No not her mudder ! Y ah , yah , yah

.
,
and before Mis s Dexter had time to ask her to wait until
the storm abated she d arted into the n ight leaving the
, ,
piece of pla t e behind

W
.
“
hy did you let the woman go without the plate my ,
? ”
dear inquired Mr Dexte r .
“
She refused it an d said such were the orders of her
,
”
mistress replied h is daugh t e r
, .
“
Strange this very strange said he as he too k it for
, ,
the fir st time lookin g at it carefully and then handing it to

, ,
“
Mr Thu r woo d The latter attentively examin ed it
. . T he .
” “
edges are gold continued Mr Dexter , and it is very an
, .
cient an d if I recollect at all right it has the arms of the

, , ,
late Lord S t even da l e ; and I remember hearing before I ,
l eft home , that the branch of the family which it of right

belonged to had emigrated to A merica They must be .
“
found out he added ; it may be of consequen c e to them
, .
?
Where 18 the woman I ll follow her home notwithst anding ’
,
the storm a n d he arose for that purpo se but u pon look , ,
i n g out found that he could not see two fee t be fore him
, .
1 24 STANDISH THE PURITAN -
.
“
Mr Thu r wo od observed that he also was certain with
.
respect to the arms and the next day he would examin e ,
some work of the E ng lish peerage , and ascertain more

”
clearly .
Th e incident made a deep impression upon the whol e

’
party ; and when Miss Dexter recalled to her father s no
tice the purchase of the sampler and the injunction of se ,
crecy as to where it came from or the name of the person ,
who de signed and worked it they all came to the conclu ,
sion that the work and the plate were fro m the same par
t y ; and although it was evident th at secrecy was their
,
object yet it was equally evident that it was poverty which

,
induced them to shrink from the world .
Mr Thu r w o o d s curiosity was excited but Miss Dexter s

’ ’
‘
.
,
pity and a sincere desire to aid comfort and cherish them ;

, , ,
a n d being seconded heartily by her father she suggested

, ,
several expedients th at she intended to resort to in order to ‘
“
fi nd them out and added thought fully that she was sure
, , ,
”
they were deserving .
“ ”
I feel convinced of that said Mr Dexter A ll of my , . .
experience has driven me to the concl usio n that in the a d ,
m inistration o f charity the object of it should be so u ght ,
after True merit and poverty th at su ff ers most shrinks

.
, ,
from the world and withdraws itself within its own dark
,
and cheerless abode there to su ff er in silence I am sorry , .
that I h ave done so little to relieve this class of people and ,
that what I did g ive was to those who begged the loudest ,
as the worthless always do O n e object to accomplish was .
to buy off from their i m p ortunities and the other (with ,
sha m e I say it ) the giving in such cases is the more p u b

, , ,
lic and therefore generally the more sat isfactory to those

, , ,
who give for the purposes that I have named But my .

,
beloved daughter you h ave opened my eyes to my situa

,
tion and the rest of my life shall be consecrated 1 n doing

,
what good I can to the world Kiss your father ; and n o w .

,
my dear good n ight ,

-
.
The j oy and satis faction felt by father and child can not
1 26 STANDI SH THE PUR I TAN .
knowing ho w much her father s vie ws were changed , and ’
fearing it would be o ff ensive to him .
“ I wonder ” said she to her father playfully looking him

,
I wonder if it is the curiosity of the Woman

,
“
in the face , ,
or some better motive which makes me so anxious to find ,

? ”
out who it was that sent the no te to me last night
“ I suspect it may be a littl e of both ” he repl ied smil
, ,
in g l y We all have a little of t he blood of Mother E ve

.
l n us .
“
Well she replied I know I have, and feel it daily ;
”
, ,
yet still I think that our mother E ve after all that has
, , ,
been said of her was as good as our father A dam ,

and
she laughed aloud at her own repartee , at the same time
stopping and adjusting her father s cravat which had go t ’
,
“
ten a lit t le out of place What a beautiful morning for .
N ovember said she How fresh the earth looks I love . .
the autumn : there is something serene , though solemn

”
in it
Yes answered he ; a fitting emblem of life—a put
.
“ “
,
ting o n of the cerements of decay I h ave often noticed .
that the fall of the year is a favorite season with the young ;
” “
but with us a n d he shuddered its w inds tell a tale of
, ,
”
destiny E ach year urges us the more
. .
“
Yes dear father ; though winte r follows , and the tree
,
is stripped of its verd ure yet it is not dead ; animation is ,
merely s u spend ed In S pring it r evives again and spreads .

,
:
”
out to the broad he avens it s r en ewed youth .
.
“
It is true and beautifully emblematic of our destiny
, ,
he replied ; but the chill grave even for a season , is a sad ,

”
contemplation .
“ ? ”
Why so said she It is nothing more than sleep . .
All that is val u able to us is removed to H im who cares for

us here H e who has made for us this earth and created
.
,
its enjoym ent s and constituted us to be thus attached to

,
it can a n d should we doubt that he will prepare us for

, ,
‘
an other ab ode applic able to our n ew condition.

”
.
“ ” “
Yes it must b e so he replied else all things are
, , ,
STANDI SH THE PURITAN . 1 27
created in vain Yet our natures revolt at change ; we are

.
what we are ; and as we can not understand how we can ,
be an y thing else , any change affecting the body does vio

”
lence to our instincts for th ese are for its preservation , .
Befo re she had time to reply she saw a colored woman ,

”
a little way o ff walking toward the city , There ! said .
“
she taking her father s arm walk faster T hat woman
,
’
, .
l ooks to me , of a l l the world most like the black woman ,
who brought the letter last night F aster father ! we shall .

,
”
lose sight of her .
“
You forget , E vy , said he that I am gett ing old and , ,
”
c an not walk as fast as I once could .
She looked up to him with a sly wink occasioned by ,

“
the n ew nam e given her and sa id to herself Find out I , ,
Mr Dexter was quite as curious and anxious as his

.
daughter, and they walked rapidly on ; but the woman

quickened her pace until it became al most a race They .
had now arrived upon the pavement , and she w as still ahead
of the pursuit .
Miss Dexte r espied Mr Thu r wo od a short way o ff and .

,
she desired her father to call him and ask him to go after ,
the woman Mr Thu r w oo d heard the call and Mary then

. .
,
“
pointed out to him the negress There ! there said she .
,
“
half out of breath Mr Thu r wo o d L am sure it is t he , .
,
”
same woman In a moment he was in pursuit dodgin g
.
,
from corner to corner as the black tried to evade him n o t ,
knowing why so many persons were i n tent upon her cap

ture A t last he came up with her a n d at once asked if
.
,
she was the person who had taken a letter to Miss Dexter
on the previous night .
Yes I s p o se I toc ked dem dar replied the negress

,
’
’
, ,
rather sulkily and out of breath , .
? ”
Who sent the letter he inquired
W y , missus I s pose sent um — young m issus my
.
’ ’
, , ,
”
chile .
“ ? ” ? ”
Your what said he ; your child did you say ,
1 28 S TANDI S H T H E PU R I TAN .
Y es my chile ; I is her mammy

,
.
“
Mr Thu r wo o d was somewhat confounded
. Your young .
“
mistress exclaimed he , your child ! you her mother
”
,
Why is she black

,
”
Oh yah ! fal lal ! said she , grinning from ear to ear
N o ! dis nigger brings her up She s my chile—m y mis
.
’
.
”
sus.
“ ?”
Where does you r mistress live my good woman he ,
inquired .
“ ”
She lib whar she lib was her reply , rather sullenly ,
.
Whar you lib yo u s el f ’
Mr Thu r wo o d finding he could get no further informa

.
,
tion left her though he determined to keep his eye upon

, ,
her movements and follow her home H e kept out of her

, .
sight but she went from one street to another without a n y

, ,
apparent purpose when , taking a survey all around she

,
, ,
made her way toward the country an d n o t far from the ,
point from which s he c a me E very few moments she would .
stop and take a gen eral sweep around the horizon as the
, ,
buffalo on the prairie is in the habit of doing when p ursued

by the hunter and aft er satisfying herself that all was safe
, , ,
she would take another stretch until at last she turned , , ,
down a lane lined with sycamore and en t ered a small but ,
n eat looking cottage on the banks of the river

-
shel t ered ,
from the east by a hill and from the west by a thick clump
"
, ,
of trees .
Mr Thu r w oo d sa t isfied h im sel f that he had n o w fou n d

.
the place sought for and he carefully made his way home ,
ward to give the in fo r m at io n t o Mr and Miss Dexter , in

'
tending that they should j oin h im up on his next visit So .
much mystery had attached itself to the persons i n co gn ,
that Miss Dexter could h ardly persuade herself that Mr .
T hu r wo o d was not mistaken ; b u t they resolved that the

next day immediately after breakfast they would go to
, ,
gather Upon further reflection however bearing in mind

.
, ,
ho w solicitous the party was to remain unknown they ,
c a m e to the co n clusion that it would b e indelicate for m o r e

13 0 STANDISH THE PURITAN .
dead ; nothing to break the awful silence but the beating

of her own heart B y and b y she heard a gentle step a p
.
- -
pre aching a n d a moment after there entered in deep

, , , ,
mo u rni n g a tall and beautiful girl She was as pale as

,
.
alabaster ; her light hair was plainly but neatly arra n ge d ,
and although her manner was solemnly imposing yet her

, ,
d ark blue eye gave her a softness of expression that soon

dissipated the want of confidence that Miss Dexter at first
f elt
. The latter introduced herself by saying that she
.
sought the interview in consequence of having against her ,
own wishes and also her father s had left with them a ’
,
piece of plate for a small su m of money which they would ,
h ave a ff o i ded with far greater pleasure without the s ec u r

'
ity than with it .
She was answered in the kindest possible manner ; and

the young lady excused herself for the loan her mother had
asked for as expressed in the note she had sent She fur
,
‘
“
ther remarked th a t she h ad been in hopes that her nee
dle would have met their wants ; but the very little that it
brought had ren d ered it necessary to dispo se of some of
their plate and that the first of it had been sent to her
, ,
feeling assured from the kind inquiries she had made that
,
'
, .
her father would allow its return when they were enabled
”
to redeem it .
’
Miss Dexter s eyes were swimming in tears and in vo l , ,
u n t ar il embracing her h sobbed aloud The lady in

y s e , .
'
question who m the reader before this will ha ve r ec o g n iz

, , ,
ed as Miss De l E u r took her h and astonished at the feel

’
, ,
ing she displayed She ha d so long been retired from the

.
world , except from tho se who had received her work , and
from them had met so much heartlessness that she began ,
to suspect that sympathy was a mere name , and that in ,
reality it did n o t exist Upon each n ew piece being sent

, .
,
they reduced the little which they had given for the other ,
assuring her over and over again as people always do who

, ,
have no confidence in themselves that they got n o profit by ,

i t ; that it was merely t o obl ige her that induced th em to
STANDISH THE PURITAN . 13 1
‘
take it ; though the fact was that Mr S n ifiin g was not far , .
out of the way in his estimate of the profits which they

received .
“
We are deeply indebted to you , said Miss De l E u r '
’
,
still retaining her hand not only by the promptness wit h ,
which you loaned the money but still more so by the kind ,
expression of sympathy for us strangers as we are to you , .
Misfortune seems to h ave s ingled us out to expend its wrath

upon but we doubt not that it is for some good purpose
,
hereafter an d we bow in submission to our fate whatever

, ,
”
it may be .
Miss Dexter felt herself unequal to reply as she ought .
So much wis dom in so much youth such resignation a n d

such dignity of expression—so much womanly beauty and
, ,
sweetness with the calmness of despair Miss Dexter had

, ,
never before seen or contempl ated Fearing that she was .
detainin g her too long from her mother she prepared to ,
leave begging permission to call again the next day Miss

, .
“
De l E u r assured her that she would be ever happy in r e
’
c eivi n
g her ; but for a brief period if her visits
,
could be ,
made alone it would be preferred alleging that they were

, ,
su ff ering under a severe dispensation which ti me alone ,

”
could mitigate .
Miss Dexter after taking an a ff ectionate parting drove

”
, ,
to her home with fee lin gs she had never felt before P ity .
was no stranger to her bosom ; she had seen squalid pov

er t y loud begging and had felt and given ; but she h ad
never see n su c h pover t y—if poverty it could be called—in
, ,
dependent poverty A self reliance for what they needed in

.
-
this world and a reliance upon the justice and ultimate

,
goodness of P rovidence in the world hereafter Instead of .
be stowing a favor she felt that she was obliged for the,
condesce nsion which had been bestowed and she felt that ,
she had stood upon consecrated ground which made her a l ,
most hesitate whether she should renew her visit the next
day as she had promised .
Mr Dexter and Mr Thu r woo d were a n x io u s l v awaiting

. .
132 STANDI S H THE PU RITAN .
the return of the daughter of the former Wheh she a r .
rived , and after she had related to them all which occurred ,
and announced the name , Mr Thu r wo o d re fl ected for a .
moment as if trying to recall something to his mind th at

,
“ ”
was partly forgotten I think it is , said he musingly ; .
,
“
De l E u r is the hereditary name of the branch of the
’
family that is s u p p o sed t o be e n titled to the baronetage of

‘
S t e ven d a l e If I recollect right however it descends but in

‘
.
, ,
”
the male line Did you understand in quir ed he anxious.
, ,
“ ? ”
ly,
whether they h ave any male relations in A merica
” “
I made n o inquiries replied Miss Dexter I felt that ,
.
it would have been an unpardonable intrusion to have done

”
so and I almost fear it is so as it is
, .
While they were conversin g u pon the events of t he

morning Mr S n ifiin g came in to make a call H e was in
, . .
fu ll ball dress an d since he had set up as a man of fash

, ,
ion overd id every thing in that way that h e u ndertook

, .
H e was ci villy and politely received and that was all H e , .
h a d the deference paid him of an ordinary acquaintance ,
and no m o r e A ft e1 saying the usual things that people

.
do who have nothing in particular to say he remarked , in

”—
,
a simpering manner th at she meaning Miss Dexter ,

“
was early in taking an airing To which she replied .
,
“
that she ha d been to see an interesting family of the name
of De l E u r a s hort distance out o f town
’
,
”
.
Oh ! ah ! yes ! Mrs and Miss De l E u r , ej acula t ed ’

'
Mr S n ifl in g making most shocking work at an att empt to

.
,
“
imitate fashion able lassitude I feel , I do indeed , that I .
”
have neglected them .
They simultaneously a n d with surprise in q uired if he

knew them
Y es—no
.
said he I can hardly answer you The

, . .
son of Mrs De l E u r was a school fellow of mine for several

.
’
years and upon their arrival in town I had a note from

, , ,
h im H e 1 s n o w a prisoner with the rebels H e wished
. .
m e to aid his mother a n d sister until he could make ar
ra n gements for them or g et released I of co u r s e ca l l ed

'
, .
, ,
ify it but the presumption that they were necessitous and , ,
at the same time they had sho wed entire independence

,
;
a d e t e r m in a t ion t o ask for nothing that was not for value
received She had promised to go however and in the

.
, , ,
space of half an ho u r her carriage drove up to the door ,

.
On her ar r ival at t he cottage she found that the shutters ,
were now open and the smoke was curling from the chim
,
n ey top and there seemed more animation within

,
The .
old negress w a s quick in ope n ing the doo r She showed

‘
Miss Dexter t o the little parlor in which she had been con
ducted the da y before and in a few moments the same ,
light foot was heard approa c hing t he room .
A s soon as Miss De l E u r saw her , she rapidly and grace ’
fully approached kindly inquiring after her health and her

,
father s a n d after being inquired of in return st ated that

’
, , ,
her mother was much revived and that she herself had ,
just come in from a stroll along the bank s of the river feel
.
ing all the better for it her rest h aving been much broken ,
in watchin g by her mother T he exercise she h ad taken .
had brought out the color upo n her cheek , and her clear
blue eye was the brighter for it .
“ ? ”
Is your mother able to sit up inquired Miss Dexter .
Oh yes ! She will be here in a few moments If I .
could induce her to take a little exerci se , I am sure that she

”
would be well .
Miss Dexter remarked that she was goin g to drive a few

miles into the c o u n t r y a n d that she would esteem i t a favor
,
'
“
if they would accompany her It is so dreary to be .
” “
alone she added in these little excursions , that I can
, ,
”
seldom mak e up my mind to encounter one .
Miss De l E u r hesitated a moment at what was proper

’
to say In the mean time her mother came in clad in

.
, ,
deep mourning She was intr oduced t o Miss Dexter , whom

.
she approached with gr eat d ignity but evidently with a ,
broken heart and after making inquiries concerning the

,
health of herself and father thanked her for the favor she ,
had done her in the loan of the money, a n d for the interest
STANDISH THE PUR ITAN . 13 5
she had taken in her dau ghter U po n the mention of the .
loan Mi ss Dexter could n o t restrain her feelings which

, ,
the former perceiving turned the conversation , and com ,
m en c ed remark ing upo n the beauty of the morning ; that
it was a season in consonance with her present feeli ngs ;

and that she derived a pleasure though a melancholy o n e , ,
at the fall of the withered leaf the wintery winds and the , ,
driftin g sno w Miss Dexte r wa s received with much dig

.
n it,y though tempered with so much condescension and

kindness that while the former added consequence to her
, ,
visit the latter assured her of her welcome

,
.
“
I wish , Mrs De l E u r th at you and your daughter
.
’
,
would do me a favor I am going to drive a little further

.
”
into the country , and I dislike to go alone .
Mrs De l E u r looked at her daughter knowing hardly

.
’
,
how to refuse the invitation it being put in such a manner ,
that a refusal would seem to be the denying of a favor .
“
I would like to oblige Daughter you had better go I .
, ,
”
think The exercise will benefit you
. But Miss Dexter .
“
said You will really oblige me It will be but a short
, .
way .
It was pressed so hard that she assented ; and after the

you n g ladies had guarded her well against the possibility
of taking cold they all got in t o the carriage and the coach
, ,
man drove o n keeping close to the river The excitement

, .
prod uced by the motion and the clear and cold atmosphere , ,
with the natural buoyancy of youth made the young ladies ,
forget the events of the past few days and the glorious f u ,
ture brightened as they whi rled o n , until the sunn y smile

sat u p on the lips of Miss De l E u r and the mother was ’
,
h appy aga in in the contemplation of the pleasure it gave

her daughter .
They drove on an d the graceful sloop glided by ; the

,
dark and frowning man o f war sat upon the water in moody
- -
—
defiance the sea bi r d intent upon its prey skimmed along
-
,
'
,
the surface of the bay a l l o f which add ed interest to the

drive and they each felt reg r et when it was ended
, .
13 6 STANDI SH THE '‘
PU R II A N .
Thank you sa id Mrs De l E u r as the party alight

,
.
’
,
ed, for t he pleasure we have derived from your kindness .
I have not felt so well m a year as I do n ow .
A fter passing some t ime i n conversation Miss Dexter ,
said that n o w she h ad a little bus iness matter to settle a n d ,
that if they had a n y regard for her , they must permit her
,
‘ f
to leave the plate and also five guineas besides adding

, ,
“
You can return it at your convenience knowing that
they would receive it upon no other terms if they did upon ,
those She then laid the plate and the money upon t he
.
table .
The mother an d daughter both colored an d were about ,
peremptorily refusing either ; but Miss Dexter looked so

beseechingly and so mu ch hurt that they assented upon
, , ,
the condition however t hat she should receive a m emo

, ,
r a n du m for its repayment in six months

. and as those we re
the only te rms which their assent could be obtained upon ,
it was taken , and Miss Dexter with a light heart sprang , ,
into her carr i age telling them playfully that they mus t
, , ,
not expect very easily to get rid o f her and that i n two or ,
thre e days she should return .
Miss De l E u r replied that if they were n o t aware

’
,
that t hey ha d nothing to o ff er as a n induce m ent for the

.
trouble she h ad taken they should urge her company as ,
often as she could at all m ake it convenient ; as it was .
they would leave it t o her own option at the same time ,
assuring her of the pleasure and the great obligations th ey ,
were under for her gratuitous kindness .
T hey parted mutually pleased ; and Miss Dexter regard:

ed the acqu aintance she had forme d as not only the most
pleasing but the most valuable which she had ever made ;
,
valuable because she ha d discovered the diff erence between

,
the rapacious indigent and the retiring needy the latter of ,
whom would rather su ffer death than the degradatio n of

asking charity ; and for the first time it occurred to her
, ,
that a thousand cases of a similar character might be fo u n d

“
if they should be sought out with a ctivity This 1 s t r u e .
The winter passed away without much to relieve its m e

n ot c n y except the accounts of the forays , which were some
,
times made b y one and then the other of the belligerent

,
parties Mrs De l E u r and her daughter were frequently

. .
’
sent for by Miss Dexter to spend the day with her and , ,
upo n their retu rn home she generally accompani ed them , ,
and in the most delicate manner would usually manage to

leave someth ing which added t o their comfort but as the ,
avails produced by the work of Miss De l E u r seemed to ’
give them far more pleasure , Miss Dex t er and her friends
receive d what she made and paid the same prices they did ,
when purchased at the shop s This alone was sufficient . .
for their necessities e c onomical as they were, .
One day when t he two young ladies w ere walkin g to

,
gether they were espied by Mr S n iflin g who , after o n e of

, .
,
his own peculiar bows remarked that he had just received ,
a lett er from the rebel call ed C olonel Standish which had ‘
been brought m by a fl ag under co ver t o his friend General , ,
Lord Lu m b er l eg s a n d that it had at that moment been

,
sent to him by his lordship ; and as it had reference to mat

ters in which Miss De l E u r was concerned he would hand ’
,
the letter to her H e then with an awk ward imitation o f

.
,
a man of fashion walked o ff , .
NIiss De l E u r caught at the letter impu lsively coloring

’
,
to the eyes and as Miss Dexter s carriage w as p assin g

, ,
’ ’
asked her the privilege of entering it The two young la .
dies entered it together Miss De l E u r with a trembling .

’
,
hand held the paper There was the same bold , dashing
ha n d—the same paper which he had held—an d she w as
, .
,
sure that it related to herself and t o hers She leane d ba ck

—the paper fell from her hands The recollection of years
.
gone by rushed upo n her memory It was from him t o .
whom she had pledged her love an d he like herself had , , ,
been left desolate by the h ands of the assa ssin whose pas ,
sions had been excited by mercenary demagogues .
Miss Dex t er took a seat by her side and held her head ,
u pon her bosom u ntil her faintness had passed away She .
,
STANDISH T HE PURITAN . 13 9
“ ?”
half unconscious looked up Where am I she asked
,
.
,
and again swooned H er extremities were cold and her .

,
face was like m arble Miss Dexter hurried the coachman .
to an apothecary s and u pon the application of some restor

’
,
atives she revived by degrees but was too unwell to pro

, ,
o ecd home Mrs De l E u r was sent for ; and she remained

. .
’
a t Mr Dexter s several days be fore she had quite recovered

’
. .
The letter had been sent to Mr S n i fl in g b y Colonel .

-
Standish who claimed from him the favor of his finding

,
out if possible where Mrs and Miss De l E u r could be

, , .
’
found alleging that he had been enabled to trace them to

,
N ew York and that it was only within the last few days
,
that he had ascertained where they were H e als o stated .
that he had had scouts out for more than a year to asoer ,
tain if they were still in the hands of the Indians having ,
satisfied himself that at one time they were in their pos

session .
H e implored him if possible to find them out , and to ad , ,
minister to their wants should they require aid That he ,

. .
Colonel Standish had possess ed himself of co n siderable of

,
their e ffects found in the h ands of those w ho were supposed

,
to be engaged in the assassination of Mr De l E u r an d in .

’
the destruction of his house and that funds would be for ,
warded thr o ugh the intervention of a flag as soon as he

, ,
could learn their add ress H e also stated in his letter to .

,
Mr Sni ff ing that with all of the in fluence he co uld bring

.
, ,
to hea r he could n o t succeed as yet in the liberation of Mr

, .
De l E u r as it was insisted that he should be retained as a

’
,
hostage not allo wing him to correspond with any one open
,
l y and that it was only very recently that he knew w het h

er he was living o r dead ; and that he would have been in
ignorance of the fate of an y of them h ad it not been th r ou gh ,
the confession of a deserter who was about to be executed ,
a n d who admitte d that he had been concerned in the in
c e n d ia r
y aff air H e concluded his letter
. by a fervent pray
er for their health , and that they would be sustained in al l
their a fflictions .
1 40 S T A N DI S H T H E P UR I T AN .
C HA P T E R VIII .
THE rebellion had n o w assumed all of the importance of

a war existing between two independent powers a n d in , ,
order te avoid the extreme penalties attached to treason

.
,
the ordinary rules and regulations according to the law of

nations were concede d by the E nglish and abided by by the
A mericans except in irresponsible cases where banditti
, , ,
assuming the appearance of soldiers for the more successful

prosecution of their designs committed depredations for the
,
sake of the plunder without regard to either civil or mili

,
tary usage .
P atriots were found of foreign origin willing to serve for

f r ee d o m s sake
’
if thereby ,they could be placed in com
mands beyond any pretensions whi ch they would dream of
assuming in their own country ; but it is not on record if ,
in fact it existed that this class of patriots ever consented

,
to serve without rank h igher than they had ever attained

before or without ample remuneration in the shape of
,
pounds shillings and pence A nd although Colonel Stand

, , .
ish had been in the field from the first outbreak and con ,
t in u a l l y engaged with such of the enemy as the smallness

'
of his command would permit an d had always showed ,
much strategy which with his determined bravery gen

, , ,
o rally carried every thing before it yet as he had too much , ,
modesty to push his pretensions before his superiors he was ,
invariably outranked by foreigners , such as is before me ri

t io n ed or by those who expended more time in claiming a
,
higher rank than they did in the field before the enemy .
H is operations were therefore limited to a kind of parti

san warfare in or near the boundaries of his native place ;
,
yet he was considered by the E nglish as one of their most

annoying enemies a n d they were determ ined therefore if
, , ,
Upon the opposite side of the river Table Mountains , t he

stretched themselves away to the northward until they
were lost by their melting away in the cl oudy d istance .
To the north , on the same bank whe r e th ey were encamp

ed , mountain arose upon mountain enveloped in an atmos ,
h er e of da r k gray and blue , an d terminated m the cloudy

p
m ist that hung upon its summit ; the broad river runnin g
between as calml y an d serene reflecting the smalles t s tar ,
from its depths , as if given by the Creator as a fit emblem

of peace and quietness to tran quilize the storms a n d p as
,
sions of poor human nature Deep silence reigned through .
out the camp except fr om the inse ct tribe , which chattered

,
out the language of nature in slumbering monotony in vit ,
ing to repose Many a poor fellow who had never borne

.
,
h ate or malice to any livin g creature was there in the c a ,
p a c it
y of a soldier and as such was bound
,
to
,
sla y so m e ,
adversary equally harmless perhaps as himself the argu

, , , ,
ment used being the sound of the trumpet to the c harge .
Others separated in youth from parents from sisters n ay

, ,
-
,
more from her whose life—whose existence was part and

,
parcel of his o wn and in that separation breathed a n d

,
moved yet still but in part existed ; and as he lay upon

, ,
the cold ground begirt with his cutlass h is very soul would
, ,
shr ink within him fearing that he might be call ed upon to

,
give an account to his Creator before the rising of another

sun and perhaps , for the last time breathed a prayer for
, ,
those whom he had left behind .
Colonel Standish was not ignorant of the movements of

the enemy nor their object A n open engagement in the
, .
field was to be avoided : in the first place the chance of the ,
issue would be against him ; and in t he second place he , ,
had too few men to lose from any advantage he could h ope
to gain from a detachment without a military chest or mili
tary stores He therefore , soon determined to surprise them
.
,
in their camp .
H e set his ba ttalion 1n motion about mid n ight and when ,
within a mi l e or so of the enemy s encampment dismoun t ’

,
ed his men , tied his horses a n d left a small guard to look ,
after them ; and while in doubt as to the exact position of

,
the king s troo ps fortun a t ely for him a deserter from the
’
, ,
camp making his way into the interior was encountered ,

, ,
and from him the enemy s position was ascertain ed ’

.
Colonel Standish was n o t only informed of the enemy s ’
precise strength but was l ed to the spo t where the deserter

,
'
h a d been stati oned a s a sentinel and where an approach to ,
the camp could be had with a reasonable expectation of

‘
penetrating without alarming them .
It w as about three o clock in the morni n g when the men

’
”
were ordered forward in double file T hey proceeded .
with great caution on the upper side of the hill u n p e r ce iv ,

~
ed ; they then were faced to the left two deep and in order , ,
of battle and thus they slowly and cautiously approached

,
the unsuspecting enemy They at length came upon a sen .
tinel who fired without hailin g In a moment the whole

,
.
camp was alarmed and in the utmost confusion n o t know ,
i n g which way to look for an enemy when to their sur

. , ,
prise they were ch arged upon from the quar t er least ex

,
p ec t ed The
. conflict was of but few moments duration ’
.
The l o ss of life consequently was n o t large A consider

, ,
.
able number however were made prisoners and the rest

, , ,
took advan t age of the darkness and mad e their esc ape Of .
the party of Co l onel S t andish none were killed and but few ,
wounded .
When daylight appeared , the off i cers who had been made
pr isoners were ordered into the presence of the America n ’
commander They were much surprised to fin d so old a

.
soldier so young a m an The last year however had much

.
, ,
changed him H is constant exposure to all weathers had

.
given him a hardy appearance H e was sunburned to such .
a degree that a former ac q uain tance would hardly have

known him H e had too , received a cutlass wound in the
.
,
face which had left a deep and u gly scar His strong a n d
, .
j ust m ade frame the gra vity of his mann er and the black
-
, ,
plume which he always wore in ba t tle gave him the a p ,

1 44 STANDI SH T HE
“
P URITAN .
p of
ear a n c e determined courage , which the m ost hardy were
n o t inclined to dispute .
A fter questioning each officer they were ordere d into the ,
rear with the exception of Mr Thu r wood who had among

, .
, ,
others been m ade prisoner

, .
“ ”
Sir said the colonel to him in a somewhat softened
, ,
“ ”
manner I wish to see yo u alone I understand contin
, .
,
“
ued he that you are a resident of N ew York , t hou g h a
,
‘
”
n ative of E ngland ?
“ ” “
Yes , Mr Thu r wood replied it is so .
, .
A re you acquainted with a person of the name of Sni

flin g in q uired Colonel Standish .
“
I know him well H e has been a client of Mr Dex . .
”
ter s a n d myself ever since he has resided there
’
.
“
Are you acquainted with a lady an d her dau ghter of ‘
the name of De l E u r he again inquired ’

.
“
I have recently been much interested in a lady and her
dau ghter bearing that name in consequence of their n ec es ,
sities They evidently belong to the higher classes

. .
’
“ ”
In distressed circumstances ! exclaimed Standish col ,
oring to the eyes ; in distressed circumstances , sir ! D o

“
? ”
I understand you right T hen after pausing for a mo
'
,
“ ”
ment he added , Oh that accursed S n ifl in g ! and in a
, , ,
less audible tone thou wilt yet reap t hy reward for this
,
H e took Mr Thu r wo o d b y the arm and hurried him to the

.
,
“
Did yo u t el l me he i n quir ed for the third
”
'
river side .
,
“
ti m e in a whisper and gasping for breath , that Mrs De
, ,
.
l E u r a n d h er daughter were in want

’ ?
Mr T hu r wo o d perceiving how pained and agitated C ol

.
,
o n el Standish was modified som e what the tones i n which

, , ,
he had expressed hi m sel f and said P erhaps sir , I have

“
, , ,
u sed too strong terms I merely meant to say that before .

,
any one was aware of the fact Miss De l E u r saw fit to r e ,

’
sort to her need le ra t her than ask aid or assistance from

any one They were so u ght out by the daughter of my
.
partner a n d in the most delicate manner reli eved from

, , ,
any pecuniary embarr a ssment ”

.
1 46 S TAND I S H THE P U R I TA N
‘
H e could say n o more ; the tears ran in silen c e down his

scarred and weather beaten face A fter he had given way
-
.
to his feelings he settled down in melancholy calmness an d

, ,
inquired e ach particular in relation to the character of

S n ifl in g of the place of residence of Mrs De l E u r and the
’
,
.
extent of th eir wants ; and added th at he had repeatedly ,
written him begging him to supply them w it hf ever y thin g

,
they needed , and that he had full assurance from him that
they needed nothing Mr Thu r wo o d then in quired whet h
. .
er he had lately heard from Mr De l E u r .

’
.
“
Yes said Standish ; he is on his way from the in
,
t er ior to meet me , when I shall forward him t o N ew York .
” “
I h ave had , he continued great difficulty in getting him ,
rel eased H e has been held as a hostage Many of our

. .
men , until lately have been treated as rebels and su ff ered

, ,
the extreme p en alty ; and it has been with great difficulty

that Mr De l E u r has been spared from the f ury of the
.
’
populace H is poor father paid the penalty of de ath for

.
”
daring to think aloud .
“
I had n o t supposed before that he had made himself, ,
”
obnoxious to them , or open to their displeasure replied ,
Mr Thu r wo o d
. .
“
N either had he if reason had had any thing to do with
,
the matter ; but the many massacres whi ch the Tories had
committed in cold blood rendered the Whigs fu r ious upon ,
all those who dared to express an opinion not in accordance

w it h t heir own When r eason is gone , the demon is at
.
'
”
large .
At th is moment the adjutant , who had been for the last

half hour in search of Standish came up to ascertain whet h ,
er he intended to parole the officers or send them into the

interior If the l at t er t hen he would like to receive orders
'
.
, .
Send them back to the old encampment well guarded ,

”
I have especial use for them, was the reply .
”
Do your orders , sir , include the gentleman with you ?
The colonel h esitated for a moment and then replied , ,
No sir I will take car e of him myself

, .
”
.
A fter the adjutant had retired for the purpo s e of se e ing

the orders of the colonel execu t ed , the latter a ddressed Mr .
“
Thu r w ood as follows : I desire to thank yo u , sir for the ,
kindness that you and you r friends have be s t owed upon the
personages heretofore alluded to but it is out of my power ,
at present to reward you You must look for that in a .
quiet conscience an d , for the rest , tr ust to the God of the

,
”
widow and the orphan .
“
Mr Thu r woo d bowed
. It is all that I had expecte d
.
”
, ,
“
he remarked But I am fu lly requited by the favors
.
shown me in my present pos ition , an d the satisfaction it

”
has given you .
1
“ Do you promis e sir not again to serve in this war ? ” -

, ,
demanded Colonel Standish .
“
I do answered Mr Thu r wo od in a dolorous manner
”
,
.
, .
“
With what I h ave achieved , it will las t me the rest of my
”
life
.
Standish could hardly su ppress a smile at the ludicrous

air he assum ed when he promised no longe r to be a soldier ,
“
but he said , You are , then at liberty Mr Thu r woo d , , .
an d he at once sat down and wrote him a passport t o the

”
outposts of the E nglish army There said he h anding .
, ,
“
hi m a paper that will protect you fr om all but your
,
” “
friends : beware of them N ow he continued you will .
, ,
do me a favor by remaining with me as my guest for a few

days De l E u r will be in camp , an d I wish you to re t urn
.
’
”
together .
“ I shou d
l b e most happy to see him was the reply , ,
and am quite at your service I have underta ken to sat .
is fy myse l f whether he is not entitled to a peerage as Vis

co unt S t e ven da l e I have every reason to believe that such
.
is the fact , and I am in hopes that three or four months at

most will settle the question Whether there is an estate
,
,
.
attached to the title I am n o t yet apprised but presume ,
there is as large grants of land were made to t he first lord

,
by James the Second in f ee t a il m a l e, and u n less there has

been su ff ered a fin e and co m mon recovery they still be long ,
to the heir .
1 48 STANDI SH THE PU RITAN .
Colo nel Standish heard witho u t emotion the statement , ,
of Mr Thu r w o o d ; yet he had reason to believe the r e was

.
so mething in it as he had on several occasions heard

, , ,
G eorge de l E u r while at school regret that his father

’
, ,
would n o t take the trouble to invest igate that which the .
former conceived to deeply concern t he interests of the fam

ily But as it has be en before stated , his father looked at
.
,
the world as a mere stopping place for a day ; that his first -
care aft er securing a competence of this world s goods

,
’
,
was , th at there should be n o field for ambition thrown b e

fore them 1 n their way that would be likely to unfit them
for th eir final exit H e therefore had felt too indi ff erent
.
, ,
u pon the subj ect t o investigate it for the sake of the prop
er t
y alone and as for ,the title in the abstract (it being
Scotch and therefore not of itself entitling the holder to a
, , ,
seat in P arliament ) it was in his eye a mere bawble and , , , , ,
in fact of no more dignity than other posses sions of lan d s

,
“ ” “
to the same extent It is true he used to say that a
.
, ,
Scotch peer is eligible to a seat i n the H ouse of Lords if he

is fortunate enough to be elected by his brother peers ”
B ut Mr De l E u r was conscious—and that was one reason

.
—
.
ff
of his indi erence that the present noblemen of E ngland ,
of a l l men in the world had little to boast of in the way of ,
parentage and that the assumptio n on that score was im

,
pudent to the last

H e must have kno w
.
n th at he s t ood i n consan guinity near

to the S t even da l e title a n d he resolved that if he did suc ,
o ec d to it it should be with a proper estimate of its

,
“
worth ; for he was heard to say th at he rejoiced th at the
blo o d had become nearly extinct of those who claimed dig
n it
y from the fo l lowers of William the N orman , for that
they were mere banditti made u p of the refuse of all n a , _
tions of who m thieves and vagab onds predominated and

,
he asser t ed that , for the most part the ancestors of the no ,
b l e m en of the present day wer e m er e parasites to some

or besotted king yielding up their o wn self ,
respect in administering to his viciou s

1 50 S TANDI SH THE PUR ITAN
’
.
an d if any of the men lagged behind a look of reproof from ,
him they loved and feared was sufficient to put them in

their proper places They encamped for t he n ig ht near a
.
‘
living spring their resting place the green grass , and their
,
-
coverin g the canopy of heaven .
Mr Thu r w o o d had n o w experienced som ewh at the de

.
lights o f a so l dier s l ife ; and w hen he awoke in the night

’ ‘
'
with aching limbs and wet with d ew he could not but , ,
think that it was rather a cold and cheerless hospitality ;

yet he found the men in groups sleeping as quietly as i f ,
they were reposing on beds of do wn covered with the pur , .
ple of royalty A saddle was Standish s pillow yet he

.
‘
’
,
slept soundly ; and as the moon shone clear and bright u p on

the armor as the warrior l a y t her e in the fu l l devel o p m en t
,
' x
‘
of his manhood he for the first time began to suspect that

, , , ,
if such were the men that Great Britain had t o combat ,

well might she be alarmed for the is sue .
As he could n o t sle ep he ar ose in the early part of the ,
night and would have spent a part of it in walking abo u t

,
the encampment ; but upon his first experiment he was , ,

’
brought to a stand by a hoarse and sullen voice demanding ,

“ ”
Who comes there ?
“
The answer was Mr Thu r woo d on parole , .
, .
Mr Th u r wo od on parole advance and give the coun

.
,
t er s ig n was the categorical command

, .
“
I do not know what it is ; I will go back and inquire
.
was the unpracticed reply ; an d suiting the action to the ,
word was about to procee d , when the same harsh voice r e

,
s
p on ded ,
“ ”
Mr Thu r woo d o n h is parole stand !
.
,
Suspecting that a ball throug h his heart might in suc h ,
cases be the etiqu ette of t he camp h e s urrendered at dis

, ,
cretion and was in a most unceremonious manner , hand

, ,
ed over to the marshal of the provost guard ; but as the ,
pri son was commensurate with the colony , e xcepting a

drawn cutlass that gleamed in the moonlight which he sus ,
poo ted might circum sc ri b e his movements he very discreet ,

ly waited with patience till the morning when the deliu ,

“
quent was reported a t hea d qu ar t er s a n d Mr Thu rwo od
~ -
,
. .
”
on parole was discharged as a matter of course .
No sooner had daybreak fairly set in than each man was

in h is saddle as fresh and as ready for a day s march as if
,
’
they had reste d a week ; but poor Mr Thu r woo d was all .
but in a s tate to be put upon t hesick list H is color was

'
gone , and he could h ardly drag one leg after the other ; a n d
as for riding through another day s m a r ch , he felt that it ’
was q uit e out of the question and he begged permission to ,
make his way back as fast as the s evere service he had seen
would permit hi m H e made known to the colonel hi s in
.
ability to proceed and begged to be allowed t o return home

, .
His wishes were granted ; but as he could not ride further ,
on horseback arrangements were made with a ne ighboring

,
farmer to take him back in a wagon .
Mr Thu r wo od , in taking leave thanked the o fficers fo

their hospit ality and the fl a t t er i n g r ecep t i o n which he ha d
.
,
‘
met with and as the last dragoon filed away from his vi
'
sion among t he winding defil es of the country , b e thank ed

his stars for his h air breadth escapes and the riddance of
-
,
men who , in what ; to them would have been a task of

'
pleasure w ould have broken half the bo nes of his body

, .
Mr Thu r w oo d felt himself unable to proceed and fin d

.
, ,
in g qui t e comfortable quar ters at the farmer s he made up ’

,
during the day what usually belo n gs to the night ; nor ha d

he awakened when dinner Was announced The pangs of .
hunger had yielded to the drowsy god ; but the farmer in

sisted that he must eat else he would die ; and feelin g u n
,
will ing to s u rrender the bright prospects of hfe an d, at the ,
same time , his dinner after divers grimace s thrown upon

,
his frontal and after a ff e ctionately as sisting one nether

,
limb and then the other he at last found himself more

, ,
nearly vertical than his most sanguine anticipations allow

ed him t o hope for ; and after he had convinced himself
that he was fairly awake his d inner be came to him of more
,
im p o r t ance than he had apprehended his bill of f are the ,

day before having consisted of a very small and very lean

piece of salt pork ; and half of a biscuit
But the next morning a l l things were p repared for his
journey and with the assistance o f his rustic friend on one
,
-
side and his son on the other t he veteran Mr Thu r w o od

, , .
succeeded in scaling the box of t he wagon and was happy ,
to find himself on his way home , to astonish his frien d s at

the service he had seen During the day they repeatedly
.
met with parties of the P rovincials but the passport was ,
always respected and they were civilly permit ted to pro

,
c eed on their way . H e breathed more freely when ab out ,
ten of the clock the n ext morning he was handed over to an

,
officer of one of the outposts of the British army .
The latter had been informed of the failure and disc o m

fit u r e of the expedition by the stragglers who from time to
time came in They were exceedi n g l y mortified and were
.
,
inclined to attach all of the blame to the s tupidity of the

effic er in command .For an expedition to be fit t é d out ex
pressly t o make capture of a party of m en , and then to be
captured by that very party was a little mortifying not
, ,
only as to the generalship displayed on the occasion , but

also to the prowess of the corps employed for such service .
But the inquiry on all h ands was Did you see the rebel ,
,
? ” “ ? ” “
Standish Is he not quite a savage Can he read
? ”
and write and m any other q uestions den o t in g t heir ig
, .
n o r an c e of a class of men striking for freedom .
The late prisoner lost n o time in making his way to th e

city and his friends and the officers generally felt requited
,
for the loss the nation had sustained in the grotesque p hg ht

,
of the stragglers as they ca m e in and the quiet humor o f

,
Mr Thu r wo o d in describing the manner in which they had

.
intended to capture the rebels and the certainty of su ccess

, ,
had they n ot been surprised themselves .
H e felt mos t anxious to inform Miss De l E u r that in a ’

,
few days at most she might expect her brother and as soon
, ,
as he could answer the hundred and on e questions that were

put to him in relation to his recent adventures b e under , ,
1 54 STANDI SH THE PUR ITAN .
“
of Mr Thu r wo o d s coat Thank you said she , for t he
’
. .
,
'
good news you bring me The joy could be seen in her .
clear blue eye which filled the heart so late tenanted by

sadness .
The kind hearted Miss Dexter sat by mute

- It was .
enough for her th at othe r s were happy T hou bright a n gel .
of light ! surely thy mission is from Heaven .
It is difficult to say when they took their leave which

were the happier The contrast was a strong one—with
, ,
-
.
the De l E u r s as strong a s light a n d shade could m ake it

’
, .
But Miss Dexter was so constituted that she could not be

happy as long as she knew of the u nh appiness of others ;
wh ile there are many in the world who can only be so while
they can contrast to advantage their own situation with
the situation of others ; from which division of character ,
virtue piety and charity is the symbol of the one d iscon

, , ,
tent envy and hatred that of the other

, , .
An d now to have se e n the occupants of t he little cottage ,

/
‘
when they were alone making their arrangements for the ,
reception of a long lost brother who had been buried and -

,
mourned over but who yet lived ! and among the rest poor
Diana must n o t be forgot t en—a faithful slave who never
, ,
.
,
had a wish of her o wn but was always happy when exe ,
c u t in the wishes of her m istress She had seen the first

g .
smile which had lit up the features of her mistress as the ,
former stood with the broom in her hand and her ear t o , ,
the door listening to the conversation which s eemed to

, .
please them so much .
“ ”
Come in Diana s aid E dith , A nd who would yo u
, .
like to see the most in the world , if yo u could as well as

‘
not
H er eyes dilated a s she look ed around and then at her ,
young mistress to see b y her looks what al l of this meant ,

’
,
“ W’ ”
before she replied , y , Massa George , missus .
“ ”
And who next said E dith
?
—
W y ho ! yah ! yah ! I won t te l l
.
’ ’ ”
.
? ’
‘
Why , Diana what is the mat t er why c an t you t ell

,
”
C os ’
I won t answered Diana She like other domes
, .
,
tic slaves had a good deal of her own way the m u m m y of

, ,
the children b e n always a privileged charac t er .
”
But said Miss De l E u r
, you will tell m e Come , ’
, .
’
that s a dear old mammy .
”
Oh shaw ! Ise don t want to tell ’
.
Well you don t want to see George

,
’
.
“
Not want to see Massa George ! Oh , God dy bless dis
nigger ! I does ; and if Ise to tel l w ho Ise li ke to se e next
best , Ise say Massa Standi sh Oh yah ! yah ! ej aculated
”
.
,
Diana , in great delight at her wit , at the same time mak

in g her exit an d b en din g herself nearly double in trying to
‘
suppress her expressions of ecstasy .
“ ”
You saucy thing ! said E dith , as the other left the
room at the same time colorn to the eyes her mother
, ,
meanwhile smiling at the manner in whi ch she h ad caught

herself .
E dith stepp ed up to the doo r and speaking louder than , ,
her usual tone , said , “Mammy , do n o t let me see you agai n

”
for a week but all that was seen or heard of mammy
”
was an occasional he , he he ! as she was lookin g after ,
her a ff airs in t he k it chen S he h ad overheard whil e list en .

,
in g that her yb u n g master was coming home and her cup

, ,
of happiness was full This faithful creature k nowing of .

,
their wants many a day had she slipped out and gone into
,
t he to wn and upon her knees earned a shilling and then

, , , ,
thrown it into the lap of her mistress on her return ; nei

ther would she have abstracted from that sh ill ing one p e n
n y to have saved her hfe had she supposed that her m is ,
tress would have su ffered for the want of it She was n o w .
at work settin g her little househol d in order for th e recep

tion of her master and the mother an d her daughter were
,
employing their scanty means in the way that it would a p

pear to the greatest advan t age .
Mr Thu r woo d was n o w somewhat of a lion abo ut town

. .
H e had achi eved more tha n the rest of the o fficers for he ,
had got back safe and sound while the few who had r e ,
1 56 S TANDI SH THE PU R ITA N .
turned showed signs of harsh u sage B esides he fought as .

,
a matter of choic e as volunteers always do the regulars

,
were paid for their chivalry and each broken head was ,
merely in a stat e of liquidation .
The droll thi n gs which a l awyer has to encounter i n his

practice tinges every thing which happens to others with
,
rather a farcical appearance and he could not for the life , ,
of him think of the solemn manner of the late expedition

,
with any certainty of preserving his gravity The mo .
m e n t ou s self mportance of the young subaltern the meas

i -
,
u r ed step and nice angles to be turned and the t r em en

, ,
d ous noise which the trumpets made might be a fine field

’
for the Knight of Salamanca to exhibit in , but a b arren one

for the philosopher It was evident that Mr Thu r w o o d
; .
was not qualified for a mil itary life and it was said th at he .
ha d whispered among his friends after his return that a

~
, ,
soldier was sm g en em s a phrase the lawyer sometimes u ses

’ ’
when he can n o t satisfactorily express himself in E nglish .
In the evening he dropped in at Mr Dext er s and soon .

’
, ,
after was foll owed by Mr S n iflin g a n d the less the socie

, .
,
t y of the latter was courted the more solicitous he was t o ,
be noticed and the more urbane he appeared to M iss Dex

,
ter H is calls were more frequent his attentions more

.
,
marked ; but the more agreeable he tried to mak e himsel f ,
the less he succeeded H e found h is o wn home a more .
lonely a ff air than he had expected H e had read in some

‘
. .
book but in what one he could not recollect that it was

, ,
”
n o t good for man to be alone It appeared so true to him , .
.
that he doubted n o t the sentence had been writt en by a

bachelor who had experience in su c h a ff airs He argued
'
to h imself also that he had paid Mr Dexter a go od deal

, , . .
of money in the way of his profession and that if he could , ,
get the money back b y his marriage with his daughte r a n d

.
,
at his death the balance of his fortune it would be n o t only ,

'
a fair business transaction but a domestic arrangement in ,
c ide n t a l th ereto
”
the kil l ing of two b irds with o n e sto n e ,
a s he expres s ed i
t .
58 S TA N b rsH THE PURITAN .
an d amo n g the ladies t his w as every thing T his app arent

'
inhum anity is at first a little anomalous in the female char

acter but is su ff iciently explained when it is taken into
,
«
c onsideration that a h ero rarely if ever , gets hurt while ,
m any ill informed persons of the male sex sup p ose th a

,
-
t they
prefer to run into danger rather than from i t This among .
,
other things 1 s evidence of the intuitive knowledge of the

,
l adies and the stupidity of that part o f the ani mal kingdom
,
“ ”
p leasantly named by th emselves the lords of creation .
Mr Dexter as he withdrew from business or rather , as

.
, , ,
business withdrew from him occupied hims elf more and ,
more in t he w ell being of t he C hu r c h, inculcating a n d dif

fusing moral precepts amon g the poor , and endeavoring al l
in his power to atone for t he ab sen c e of those duties l n the ‘
former part of hi s li fe Y et the excit em ent was wanted .
which he had been accustomed to and the remorse he felt ,
f o r spe n ding so much of hi s time for selfish purposes and ,
f o r allowing his own naturally fine mind to be a thing of

m erchandise at the dispo sal of the highest bidder , rendered
,
his hours , wh ich he would have d evo t ed t o relaxation any j

,
thing but agreeable A t such t im es he w ould examine the

’
characters of those that in his practice he had become a o

u a in t ed with and among a class which he sifted from the
q ,
rest was Mr S n iflin g ; and he determined in that p ar t icu

.
l a r c a s e to atone for the o ff ense all in his power

’
-
T he m en .
which he had received from Mr S n ifl in in the prose

e
y g .
,
c u t io n of Zimri Freeborn he was determined to send to the ,
latter together with the interest shou l d he ever be enable d

, ,
to find him A s time passed on , the appearance of Mr

. .
S n iflin g became o di ous to him it revived r ecollections .
which humbled him to the earth ; an d , alt hough wil l ing to

atone for his error , he wished its memory buried l n the abyss
of time .
Mr Dexter h ad very gre at doubts , drawn from his o wn

.
experience whether a perfectly candid and conscientious

,
lawyer could ever have a very great practice Yet he knew .
many who had great reputation and wealth With m any .

S TANDISH THE PURITAN . 1 59
of those gentlemen he had often been associate counsel a n d ,
some of their cases he put down in the same category with

his client S n ifl in g s Out of court they would often meet
’
.
together , and amuse themselves with the stupidity ign e ,
rance and wicked ness of their clients wit hout seeming to

, ,
reflect that they themselves were their aiders and abettors , '
or to use their own language were p a r t i cep s cr i m i m s

, ,
.
Mr Thu r wo od was looked upon as one of the family of

.
Mr Dexter ; but S n ifli n g regarded hi m as a rival though

.
,
not a dangerous one ; for he could not conceive that a gen

t l e m a n of wealth a n d fashion like himself should not be , ,
preferred to a gentleman of fashion without wealth an d in ,
one of his visi t s he gave M r Thu r wood to understand the .
vast space that separated them .
“
Mr Thu r wo od could ha r dl y b el ieve his senses
. The ‘
.
”
presumptuous li ttle wretch said he to himself half in anger , ,
“
and h alf in jest is i t conscious of zt s own in sig n ific an c e
°
-
A n d he soon came to the conclusion that the best way he

c o u l d deal wi th him was to let him know his opinion at
once and his r eadiness to meet the consequences whenever

,
and wherever he pleased The next morning after this u n .
pleasant event occurred he caused a n ote to be conveyed ,
to him couched in the followin g terms

,
M R J ULIU S C E S AR S N IF LIN G
S 1 R , —The
.
in sult you o ff ered me last evening has not

been forgotten if insolence o ff ered by you dese r ves such a
,
n ame The object o f this note is merely to inform you

.
.
that I am quite unambitious of an y notoriety in which you

would p articipate , and that it is my desire that hereafter
o u would in n o manner obtrude yourself upon me ; and I
y
think I can venture to say t hat your presence is not more
agreeable to Mr Dexter or his daughter than to myself
. .
Yours , & c , ‘
WI LLIA M THU Hw oo n .
D k t r e t W dn sd y o i g
u e- s e , e e a m rn n .
Mr S n iflin g was astonished when he had

. r ead the note .
1 60 S TANDISH THE PURITAN .
” “
What ! said he , this from the j unior partner of a firm
I have so long p atronized ! In solence ! downright inso
lence ! I will see Mr Dexter and unless he forthwith dis.
, ,
charges this fellow I will withdraw my business from the

,
concern and accordin gly he sought for and found him

, ,
at his office expl a ining to some unhappy gentlemen how

,
much better it would be to settle their a ff airs upon equ it

able terms than go to law A fter he had failed to con .
vi n ce them an d they had retired Mr S n ifl in g without

, , .
,
saying a word laid the note upon the t able before Mr Dex
,
.
ter The latter read it carefully through and then inform

.
,
ed him that he had entire confidence in his partner a n d ,
that he had no doubt that Mr Thu r wood had ample occa .
sion for writing it an d then h anded back to him the no t e

,
.
Mr S n ifl in g began to t hink that the senior partner must

.
be deranged i n taking a view of a case so detrimental to

his business , as he surely would withdraw it from his office
forthwith .
Then I un derstand you M e ex t er said Mr S n iflin g , , .

,
“
that you st ill intend to retain Mr Thu r wo od as yo u r .
partner .
“
I surely shall do so so long a s he conduc t s hims elf as,
an honorable man .
Then , sir I shall transfer my business to another o ffi ce

, .
Well Mr S n iflin g I h ave n o t the least obje ction I do

, .
, .
’
not know the cause you have given him to call for so severe
a note but I presume there 1 s a sufficient o n e He 1 s ami
, .
able to the last , and would have offended no o n ewithout a

”
cause .
Mr S n iflin g left the office quite nonplused at the recep

.
tion he met with H e expected Mr Dexter would have

. .
yi elded at once to any demand which he m ight have made

rather than lose his business H is entire indifference had
-
.
astonished him He felt that he must either relinquish his

.
d arling project to wit t he hand and fortune of Miss Dex

, ,
ter or he mu st relieve himself from the dilemma he w as in

, ,
a n d to d o so he saw that he m u st be the apo l ogist himse lf ;

,
tentions H is great mistake lay in suppo sing that it W

. as
his duty to prosecute or defend any matter in litigation

’
presented to him , without regard to the merits leaving that ,
entirely to the conscience of his clients H e reason ed th at .
h e was a mere o fficer of the court and felt himself as much ,
bound t o p r o sec u t e or defend the a ction as the judge was

'
bound to hear it But Mr Dexter had discovered this to

. .
be false reasoning and he had of late taught him that the

, .
lawyer had a higher duty t o p erform than to b e a mere a u

t o m a t o n in the h an ds of his client H e insisted that his .
station as a lawyer was one not only of great respon sibility ,

b u t of great dignity and that it should be independently ,
and honorably administered , and that he was in no w i se

bo u nd either to prosecute or defend a case , knowin g it to b e
wrong .
Mr S n ifli n g h ad the e ffrontery to visit Miss Dexter t he

.
evening after he had sent his note to Mr Thu r w o o d ; and .

,
although it w a s n o t in her nature to offend any human b e

‘
in g yet she could n ot with an y exertion in her po wer , r e

, ,
c e ive him with cordiality Indeed , his constant calls now .
showed too clearly his intentions , and it distressed her very

much She felt boun d to consult her father as to what
.
was to be done although from several intimations which

, ,
had fallen fro m him , she felt not the least doubt but that
he would rather forego any adventitious importance ema
nating from Mr S n ifl in g 3 great reputation for wealth a n d
.
’
far sightedness , than to incur the hazard of a family con

.
n ec t io n .
Matters continued thus for some time in an unsettled

way a n d hardly a day passed but Miss Dext er drove to
,
the cottage , and spent an ho Ur with her friends They .
heard from day to day of Mr De l E u r , and that he and .

’
his friend Standish were gathering together as much of t he

scattered property of t he family as they could find and in ,
doing which he had b een detained longer than he at first

intended H e sent a message to Mr Thu r w o o d thankin g
. .
,
him for lookin g into his family affairs l n E n g l a n d ft an d

ex
p ressing a gratitude to Mr and Miss Dext e

.r wh ich he could
never repay for the timely aid and the delicate manner in
, ,
which it was rendered H e said that so far as the amount

.
,
f itself was concerned it would be discharged as so on as he

,
arrived in the city ; as to the rest he doubted not that the ,
satisfaction which their own consciences a ff orded would be

ample remuneration .
In the mean time Mr Thu r woo d received a number of

,
.
letters in answer to his inquiries as to the S t even d a l e title ,
from which he l earn ed that it was n o w only necessary to

prove that the elder De l E u r , who emigrated to this coun
’
try was grand nephew to Stephen de l E u r w ho had been

,
’
,
deceased some ten years and who h ad never taken out his
,
pate nt from the proper office Mr T hu r wo od now felt con

. .
fiden t that it would b e no difficult thing for George to be

put in the way to secure to himself n o t only a title to a
very respectable old peerage but , at the same time—a m a t
_
ter of n o little imp ortance—the fortune attached to it and

,
now controlled by the Court of Chancery H e was impa .
tient for his return and he could not help as the prospect ,
brightened feeling a little selfishness which some p h il o so

, ,
p h er s say is at the bottom of all ph ilanthropy Miss De .
l E u r was a most interesting young lady and of a fitting

’
,
a g e to be the wife of M T h w oo d She would beyond

r u r . .
,
all qu estion in a shor t time b e the sister of Lord Steven

,
dale ; and as his ambition was stimu l ated he felt hims elf ,
in love which latter passion he entirely confounded with

,
the former and honestly t oo and might have never found

, ,
his mista ke had matters gone on as he would have h ad

them H e felt assured that in so me of the reckless con
.
fl ic t s which S t andish was so frequently engaged in , he

would be killed and after th at the field would be left open
, .
Out of deference to Miss Dexter s suggestion Mr T hur ’

, .
wood rarely visited the cottage and when Miss De l E u r ,

’
was at the house of the former she w as gener al ly in her ,
own room and avoided s ociety of every description but he

,
construed this as emanating from causes which had now

ceased to exist It had never until his capture , occ u rre d

.
,
to him the possibility of an attachment existing between

,
Colonel Stand ish and Miss De l E u r H e had attributed ’
the excitement she was under a t th e reception of the letter '
before alluded to , as caused by some info rmation in relation

to her b rother or other relations in the vicinity of their
,
fo r mer residence A t any rate , even if an a t tachment did

.
exist between them he saw n o way of their ever getting

,
together ; and judging from his own amours presumed

, ,
that a year at most would dispel every thing of the k ind .
O n e bright mornin g as he was going to his office he , ,
met Miss Dexter who invited him to a walk l n the coun

,
“
try remarking playfully that i f he would put himself
,
u pon his good be havior she would take him to see Miss De
,
l E ur
’
. Althou gh she was aware that she herself would
thereafter be of n o consideration yet she was always will ,
”
ing to sacrifice herself to the good of her friends . .
Mr Thu r woo d whose precepts as well as practice was

.
,
pleasure first and business after acted upo n it on this cc ,
casion , as h e did upon most others and very gladly accept ,

“
ed the invitation gallantly remarking that he could not
,
decline although half of his clien t s shou ld be hanged in the

,
“
mean time and jocosely adding P robably society would ,
”
be benefited if they we re .
They h ad not proceeded far when they espied the lady

sought for a n d mammy in company the latter some dis
, ,
tance be hin d but both looking equall y happy A s soon as

, .
they came near Miss Dexter a dvanced a little before her

,
companion and the two young friends embraced w ith girl

,
ish cordiality .
“
My dear Miss D exter , said Miss D e l E u r ’ “
my ,
brother will be here in three or four days I know that

you w
.
ill like him H e 1 s tall and A ll at once she hes

.
“
it at ed and said
, P ardon me ; I have only him I do n o t
, .
often commit so great an ind iscretion .
Mr T hu r w o o d in the mean time came up H e was r e

.
, , .
ce ived with the greatest courtesy and k indness and , at t he ,

and Illyric too , and if it pleases you , I think I can a da t it

p
/ -
to m u sic .
Th e n , vo c al w t ih h ar m on i ou s l ays ,
ydi fl t f h f l To L d an u es o c ee r u so u n ,
At t p d w t l y w h ll i em er e s ee , e s a r a se
Th l i t d d f hi f w
e va d; an ee s o c e s r en o n e
O ld T y A hi d t h g d li k ro ,
n c se s, an e o e r ace
Of V b l in g w i t h i t l g
e n u s, oo m m m or a r ac e .
’
? ”
Do you like songs composed of wa r l ike chiefs said he .
“ ”
Yes she replied looking at him attentively , to see if
, ,
he had any allusion to her or hers ; but he preserved h is

countenance without moving a muscle Indeed , he felt .
himself too much interested to wish to p erceive it , i n u ch

less to be merry u pon the subj ect H e went , therefore , .
through the verse in a m anner that told upon her heart, al

though she struggled to conceal it .
A s soon as he had finished mammy came u p and in , ,
quite an authoritative way said Missus must stay ha r ,
n o longer Old m issus will scole , and den Diana will be

.
blame Come along chile

.
, .
Time ha d passed rapidly an d it was an hour later than ,
they s u pposed and the old negress was obeyed Mr Thur

, . .
w ood and Miss Dexter stopped at the cottage T he former .
h a d determined n o t to mention either to Mrs De l E u r or .

’
h er daughter the good news which he had in store for them

'
from the other side of the A tlantic deeming it possible that ,
the u ncle of the late Mr De l E u r might have l eft issue in .

’
Scotland where he S pent the most of his time , and where

, ‘
,
al so the law in relation to the solemn ization of marriage

,
wa s very loose and where frauds in that respect were oft en

,
pr acticed That was the on l y question , and he was san

.
guine in believing that no di fficulty would exist in that r e

spect no allusions having been made to it in any record
,
that could be found .
After resting themselves , they took their leave m utually ,
pleased and all in good spirit s Mr Dexte r having occ a

, . .
sion for Mr T hu r wo o d s services had sent all over the

.
’
,
/
n eighbo r hood aft er him an d was not a l it t l e an noyed upo n s

,
“ ”
learning his whereabouts , and th at he should persevere
”
“
in his favorite maxim , pleasure first business next Bu t ,
.
as Mr Dexter could n o t i n any wise imagine that his

.
d aughter could do wrong he extended the charitable con ,
elusion to all of her friends ; but as to every body el se he , ,
was a little prone to reverse the maxim an d from the ,
w rongs which he had seen he was inclined to beli eve that ,
they could do little that was right , and so the matter pass
ed over as u sual .
The business alluded to th a t required attention was a

proposition from Mr S n iflin g to purchase the farm of the
.
De l E u r s i n Connecticut , he n o t doubting that their pres

’
ent distresses would induce them to sell cheap H e had of .
late invested very largely in property belonging to the To

ries great numbers of whom h aving b een driven in from
, ,
the country and generally in very distressed circumstances

, ,
were compelled to sell any thin g they had to procure bread

with H e had his eye upon the De l E u r s plantation from
.
’ ’
the very first ; and the more necessitous they were , the
cheaper it could of cours e be purchased H e was about
, , .
sending an agent to the fa m il y to learn if they were dispos

ed to sell it and to ascerta in the encumbrances if any there
, ,
were and the amount of such encumbrances

, .
Mr T hu r w o o d told Mr Dexter at once that if his opin

. .
,
ion was asked in relation to the selling of Oakford he should ,
advise it for certain reasons of his o wn

, Mr Dexte r r e . .
plied that he would n o t advis e the selling of their property

u nless some bett er reasons could be adduced than the want
of means of l iving for he should supply them with what

,
ever they might need H e then inquired o f Mr Thu r woo d

. .
the reasons he had for recommending the sale of the farm .
“ ” “
I wi l l tell you , sir , said Mr Thu r wo o d This war . .
has continued for several years , and what have we gain ed ?
It is true that we have , on several occasions defea t ed the ,
rebels ; b u t in a few weeks other armies were raised in

, ,
their stead stronger than the first ; and from w h t little I

,
h ave seen of t he A mericans , I do n o t think that t ey have

1 68 S T A N D I S H T H E P U R I T A N:
any more idea of giving up the contest short of obtainin g
their f reedom than I h ave of turning rebel myself ; a n d
,
S hould they s u cceed , the property of the Tories will all be

‘
”
confiscated .
“ “
This is fair arguing replied Mr Dexter a n d the , .
,
same thing has crossed my own mind I have promised .
S n iflin g to make the proposition and as he seemed a n x ,
ious to commence the negotiation I meant to h ave asked ,
o u to see Mrs De l E u r to day and ascertain if she feels

’
y .
-
,
disposed to rec eive the pro p osition .
Mr Thu r wo o d promised that he would see Mrs De l E u r

. .
’
upon the subj ect b u t the p r ob ability was that she would
,
n o t consent to a sale without consulting her son the more ,
especially as no title could be made without his sign ature .
H e accordingly paid her a visit and f ound her not only

‘
willing but desirous to part with a place where in her old

, ,
days she had seen so much grief although the first part
, ,
of her married life and up to the breakin g out of the war

, ,
she had spent with as much peace and quietness as gen er

ally falls to the lot of mortals to enjoy She however told .
, '
,
him that she could say nothing definite upon t he su b j ec t

until the arrival of her so n whom they were now expect ,
ing hourly , observing that S he herself had only her dower

in the property ; all of which Mr Dexter knew perfectly .
well but Supposed that her son would be controlled by the

,
wishes of his mother Mr Thu r wo od accordin gly left with

. .
out seeing Miss De l E u r a n d r et u r n ed to the o ffice H e

’
,
~
.
there informed Mr Dex t er t ha t Mrs De l E u r would be

.
~
.
’
glad to part with the p lantation , reservi ng however the , ,
little inclosure where her infant child was buried .
Time passed on as usual , with o ut any thing to mark the

events of one day from another Mrs De l E u r was almost . .
’
desponding about her son s procrastinated absence when

’
, ,
jus t at twilight he threw himself into the arms of his

,
mother The eloquence of language was exh austed in the

.
“ ” “
exclamation My mother !, My so n ! m y son ! ”
The ,
mother embraced a son w ho m fo r a time she had burie d

‘
.
, , ,
1 70 .
STANDI SH T HE
‘
PURI TAN .
teeting him by her gu idance from the t hous and accide n ts

'
that infancy is subjected to H e perceiv ed her standing at .
the door fraught with j oy and h appiness and when he took

—
,
her h ard bl,a ck h and chaliced with toil the h and which
,
knew n o rest nor desired any so long as aught was to be

done to serve them—her cup of h appiness was full ; it was
,
not expressed in tears or sighs , but with j oy depicted in

every feature .
“
“
Mammy said Mr D e l E u r
,
I am glad to see you .
’
,
looking so well and I fear we can never repay you for what
,
”
you have done for us .
“
Oh ! gol la ! , M assa Ge orge ! who Ise work for if n o t
for my c hil u n s
“
You h ave worked for us almost past human endurance ,
and now Diana I will work for you as long as m y life

, , , .
”
and yours shall be spared
H o ! ho ! Mass a George ! Ise die i f Ise didn t Wo rk
.
.
’
‘
Oh golly , don t talk so ! ” ’
Diana hurried into the kitchen , and as if by magic pre , ,
pared tea Once more all that remained of them sat a t

'
.
, .
the family board in the little parlor and Diana in at t end ,
ance She had saved many nice things for her master s
.
’
return , and the repast was a multitudinous aff air and a s ,
di ffu se in its elements as a country landlord could wish fo r .
It refreshed them and r eviv ed many a plea sant recollection ,

,
and banished many a melancholy one . .
Though it is sad to lo o k abro ad into the w ide world , ,

Z
w hen by casualty our friends h ave departed f r o m it a n d
, , ,
we see but two or three w hic h ar e left the loss is partiall y

'
,
_ ,
compensat ed by the super ior hold the few h ave upon each
other The love which they bore the many is concentrated
.
there and if in that few , there be parent and child t he

, , ,
band that binds them though it be a S ilken one its tenaci , ,
t y will only yield to the scy the of Death Slander m ay ‘
detract—poverty may pale the c heekf en em ies may p l u n

.
der , but t he a ffectio n s are triumphant A nd yet there was .
one ab sent and he a compara t ive stra n ger w ho was n eces

, , k
S T A NDI S H T H E P U R I T A N . 171
sa ry to p erfect the exis t ence of one of thi s little group “
Strange order of nature ! that that on e should have a su

perior hold upon the affections to mother , brother and all ,
the world beside ! Y et t he mother was loved none the less ,

n o r the brother less but d ifier en i l y ; yet as enduringly
, ,
and as affectionately perhaps more d evou t l y but n o t so

, ,
en t hu si a st i c a l l y A brother can never understand this

.
strange love in a sister and its contemplation always leaves

,
-
a pang behind H e conversed freely of his capture by the

.
rebels ; his treatment at di ff erent stages of h is imprison

ment ; the great exertions h is friend Standish had made for
his release and the success which he had met in saving a
,
considerable s u m of money o wing to his father .
E dith s ilently drank in all that was said and at last tim ,
“
idl y ventur ed to inquire if Colonel Standish was muc h
”
a ltered .
“
Yes was the reply he is greatly altered although
, , ,
there are times when he appears much as he did at school .
H e is very impul sive but soon settles down in a half de

,
-
sp e iring attitude The loss of his father and sister h ave

.
been a dreadful blow to him an d I doubt if he ever fully

'
,
”
recovers his for m er bu oyancy of spirits .
“ ? ”
I unders t a nd that he h as been wounded said she in ,
qu ir in g l y .
“
Yes he has several times H e rarely goes into an en
, ,
.
g ga e m en t that he esc apes without a woun d H e has r e

”
ce ived a sa ber cut in the face Y o u will th ink said he , .
,
“
sm ilin gly and yet w ith a brother s jealousy that he has
,
’
,
l o st his b eauty ; yet he looks now the very im p ersonation

”
of a soldier But I am tired added he , look ing up at his
.
,
mother who had been intently listening to what pass ed

, .
“
H ere is a few hundred pounds , w hich he has saved of ,
”
ours (at the same t ime h andi ng to his mother a small bag ) .
“
Can you put it away where it wil l be safe for I know
?
n o t how any more is to b e gotten after th is is go e unless

— p
I think that is his n ame — has
, ,
indeed , Mr T h u r woo d .
something in store for me But I fear that what he told .

S TANDI SH T HE PURITAN .
Stan dish has no s u fficient foundati on A n d n ow said he , ;

,
“
suppose we retire I have ridden forty miles to day . .
To morrow E dith I have a message from Standish to you ,

-
, ,
”
which I s hall disclose at the same time patting his sister ,
under the chin Good night mother ; good night E dy

.
-
,
-
,
and looking back as Diana was sh owing him to his cham

,
“
b er
,
your friend Thu r w o od ins ists th a t I am a vi sco u ht
in short ; no less a personage th an Lord S t even d al e But .
,
if my father cared nothing for it I do n o t k n ew w hy I . .

,
should trouble myself in grasping at more than I can hold .
Mr De l E u r and E dith were up betimes in the morn

.
’
_
in g
. It was clear an d b eautiful without an d the little
.
f eathered so n gsters sat in the b ranches of the clumps of

trees near the r i ver side and sung the same notes and as , ,
j oyfully too as they were wont to do at Oakford an d E dith

, ,
fancied that she saw upon them marks which were u pon .
her former little favorites a n d that it were possible they ,
m ight be the sa m e .
This is a very pretty place ; and to whom are we in

7 ”
debt ed for it De l E u r inquired ’
A n officer who
. .
”
I do n o t know replied his sister , .
cond u cted us to town found it for us after we had been at ,
lod gings for some ti me a n d said that in due s eason we ,
would be made acquainted with the owner ; but not to

trouble ourselves about it as it was quite a t our service , .
From that t im e t her e h as been n o inquiries m a de .
” “
Th is is str ange , said he and a generosity that must
‘
,
”
rem ain I told you he continued , ,
l as t night th at I have a: message fo r you and I will k eep

«
, ,
you no longer in suspense The mes sa ge is th at Colonel .

,
Standish sends h is kindest regards to you and says that he .
w il l m a ke the attempt to b e here this nigh t a week The .
moo n w ill then h ave declined ; and he intends to take a d

vant age o f t he darkness and descend the river I have ,
.
“
agreed to have a light m a tree near the house that he may ,
know where to land ”

.
E d ith colored and then gr ew pale She felt a variety

, .
1 74 s S T A N DI S H THE PURITAN .
his previous knowledge of S n ifiin g even th ink of his b e ,
stowing a favor ; and as for Oakford if he would purchase ,
it he would consent , as it was qu ite useless to them and

, ,
they would want the money ere long .
De l E u r and his sister after spending an hour in c o n

’
,
versation had taken a walk to t he bank s of the river when

, ,
they perceived a carriage windi n g its way to the house

“
There George e xclaimed E dith there is Miss Dexter

, ,
now making us one of her ever welcome visit s She will

,
-
.
be surprised when she sees yo u , although she knows that

’
”
o u ha ve been long expe c ted
y .
George felt a deep pleasure in becoming acquainted with

one who had stepped out from the rest of the world 1n her
“ ” “
benevolence I sometimes think said he , that God has
.
,
his especial agents scattered over the earth sent here to aid ,
,
and comfort the distressed They seem to be divested of .
the i n sane ide a that the little time encompass ed in their

own lives is unlike the m easure of time meted out to the (
rest of their fellow men , b y actin g as if it had n o end -

“
T hey look at life as it is , and see and understand their

ephemeral existence .
Miss Dexter without perceiving the littl e party s p rang

, ,
from her carriage her bright and happy face radiant l n its ,
benevolence and was about proceeding to the door of the

,
cottage when she saw Miss De l E u r with extended arms

,
’
, ,
rapidly advancing toward her and a tall young gentleman , ,
habited in black , following after T he gr eeting as ever ,

'
.
,
was warm and enthusiastic Miss Dexter involuntari l y .
receded a few steps as he came up and was introd uced by

his sister She had heard the latter so often speak of and
.
describe hi m that she almost felt an acquaintance before

,
hand and with the aid of a little enthusiasm had drawn

, , ,
an image in her own mind which she was fond of contem

plating ; and that image was so far above the st andard of
those around her that her heart preferred its own creation
,
to any which she had yet seen .
Mr De l E u r after he perceived tha t the first flush was

.
’
,
STANDISH T HE
’
P U R I TA N . 1 75
“
o ff her face remarked that as the brother of E dith he
, , ,
felt bound to thank her for the many acts of kindness which
she had be stowed u p on his m other and sister an d that he -
would almost consider his release from imprisonment a

misfortune to them if he should be a hin derance to the con
’
t in u a n c e of her visits to the cottage .
Miss Dexter promptly replied that the pleasu re which -

cc
she had derived from her acquaintance which she ha d ,

"
sought and indeed thrust u pon his mother and sister wa s

, , , ,
of itself ample compensation if a n y were wanting ”

, Al .
though she wa s able to reply firmly to the compliment thus

paid her yet she was not quite self possessed T he color
,
-
.
came and went more rapidly than usual for there was the ,
impersonation before her of that which she had created her

self ; for though she was familiar with the latter its im
, ,
bo diment in the re ality was a littl e un expected . .
A ft er remainin g a short time she excused herself for the ,
u ntimely visit she had made at a mome nt when Mr De , .
l E u r had a demand u pon their time ; and althou gh she was

’
“
urg ed to p rolong her stay , she said that she could not ex
”
cuse herself by fu rther appropriating it at present Mr . .
De l E u r handed her into her carriage She thanked him

’
.
gracefully for his politeness and in a moment the whip , , ,
cracked and she was rapidly on her»way home

,
.
“ ”
What do you think of her George said E dith In
?
, .
“
the absence of an answer she continued She is n o t strict
, ,
l y handsome or striking in her appearance ; but I wis h

,
that you could see her 1 11 the performance of some du t y

in the act of relieving the a ffl icted—her tact in conferring
an ob l igation so as almost to make it appear that she was
the recipien t —to see the angel in her face at such times !
,
Oh George ! how a man can resist such lo veliness I c a n

, ,
”
n o t understand .
“
I ca n well u n d er st a n d your partiality She is certain .
l y well bred and has all the de l icacy of the wom a n

, But .
” “
you must pardon me , E d ith said he smilingly for not , , ,
falli n g in love at first sight or presumi n g m u c hm n t il I am

,
1 76 S T A N D I SH T HE PURITAN
'
. . .
least i n dependent ; so f a r as mon ey 1 s concerne d t o en a

'
at ,
ble me to cancel every obli g ation For the p r o m p t it u dei .
the deli cacy wit h which it w a s incurred that can never be ,
repa id and it would be c ruel to divest her of the sa t isfa c

,
”
tion it has a ff orde d if we could ,
.
Miss Dexter immediately upon her arriving home , l n

,
formed her father of the arrival of Mr De l E u r , and sug .

’
gested to him the propriety of his calling and payin g his

'
respects She said but little to him in relation to her i m

.
pressions but stated that he was a courteou s and well in

,
-
formed young gentleman with whom she pre sumed her fa ,
ther would be pleased Mr Dex t er ac c o r din g l y resolved

. .
l
that the next day he would call t o congratulate Mrs De .
l E u r upon the safe arrival of her son and , at the same

’
,
time pay his respects to him

, .
Miss Dext er had so long been in the habit o f hearin g

George de l E u r d escribed by his sis t e r that she fel t ao
i
.
,
q u a in t e d b e f o r e she had seen hi m and feeling so she was , ,

'
striving in her own b osom to reconcile the idea l w it h t he .
a c t u aL H er first imp ression s were greatly l n his favor ,

'
a n d she felt solicitous when again they met to appear

, , ,
herself to great er advantage than she had ln h er accidental

,
meeting with him .
We will n ow follow C o l o n el S t a n dish for a while in some ‘
of the expeditions in which b e de l ighted to adventure ; the

excitement o f whi ch and even the expo sure to da nger was
, ,
far preferable to the hours of anguish when he had nothing

to do but to bode over the p ast and despair of the future .
1 1 78 . S TANDI SH THE PURITAN
‘
He knew well that it was full of danger ; for besides sev ,
eral ships of war that lay anchored i n the stream , g uard

boats were continually plying around the harbor l n order to
avoid surprise H e accordingly as soon as it was dark
.
, ,
started for the Hudso n and after riding fast all night came
, , ,
to a deep ravine near the river , which was so completely

s heltered by high cliffs a n d trees that it a fforded him a safe
ret r eat for the following day during which he disguised ,
one of his men in the clothes of a fa rmer which he h ad tak ,
en the precaution to bring with him , and sent him up the

r iver with instructions to purchase a boat .
A fte r an absence of an hour or so the soldier returned ,
with one that he h ad purchased of a fi sherman and which ,
was well calculated fo r the enterprise intended H e had .
c alc u lated t he tides beforehand which would comm ence ,
r unning down a bout dark Four stout fellows were select “

~
.
e d as oarsmen and the rest were a rmed with pistols cut

, ,
l asses a n d carbines
, A s soon as the hour arrived in which
.
the tide would serve , they took their seats in the l ittle bark ,
a fter mu i ng their c a r s and silently made for the middle

,
of the river E very thing seemed to favor t he expedition

. .
T hey had n o t proceeded h alf way when a thick fog sprung

u p , that made i t difficult t o see twenty feet ahead of the ‘
boat ; but , as they approached the island of Man hattan it ,
cleared a w ay a n d was succeed ed by dark clouds at short

,
.
distances from the e arth Still , the bo atmen silently plied

.
their c a r s and the little craft at eve r y stroke , sprang almos t

, ,
out of the water in obed ience to the “brawny arms th at

wielded them Its ho w was illumined with phosphorescent
. _
sparks that gathered and rolled on in front of it lighting

, ,
its way in the darkness to the object that inspired the mas
t e r spirit there to peril himself in once more beholding it .
One of the men in the boat knew every inch of the shore .
The hour of half past eleven h ad arrived and a man w as ,
stationed in the bow to l oo k for the light that Mr De l E u r c

.
’
was to place in a tree by the wa t er s edge to di rect their ’

,
course T hey lay by on t heir c ar s, and were drifting down

.
,
S TANDI SH THE PURITAN .
79
near t he shore when the light agreed upon was d iscovered

, .
It was within a few minutes of twelve and there was a

heart o n that shore that had but one impulse—the safety
,
of him without whom death would be a relief

, .
A s the boat was rounding to , in order t o m a ke direct for

'
the beach they passed just under the stern of a sloop o f

,
-
war t hat had been anchored there that day The senti n el .
on du t y h ailed the boat but it returning n o answer he

'
, ,
fired a shot ; t hen all was still and the little bark was rap ,
idly makin g its way through the water The alarm was
“
-
.
_
given A number of attempts had been made by means of

.
,
submarine agents to destroy several E nglish ships o f war

, ,
and every thing was consternation on board Supposing the ,
boat) in questi o n was on some such ex p edition The jolly .
boat was immed iately lowered fill ed with marines , and sent ,
in pursuit a n d at the same time they commenc ed sweep

, , ,
”
i n g the bottom of the ship f o r e a n d aft with a cable to ,
detach a n y thing that might have been fas tened upon it .
Colonel S t a ndish had got within a few hundred feet of

t he light , and he already saw the white dres s of Miss De
l E u r upon the water s brink and with extended arms to
’ ’ ‘
receive him It was a moment to him wor th all t he res t

. .
of his life of pain and toil of fear a n d suffering T he wom , .
an with whose heart he had long years been wedded w a s ,
near him ; her mother a n d brother had remained behind ,
that the first transports of joy should be unrestrained by

their presence A moment more and Standish would have
.
,
sprung upon the shore an d he was about doing so when he , ,

“ ”
heard oars rapidly giving way toward him If he land .
ed he knew his capture was certain ; he put his helm hard

,
d own and as the boat was coming round he was within a

, , ,
“
few feet of M iss De l E u r H e exclaimed God bless you ’
.
, ,
”
E dith ! I a m p u r su ed H e , at the same time threw .
,
upon the shore a small bag con t ainin g an additional sum

of money that h ad been sen t to him aft er t he departure of
,
Mr De l E u r by some cons cientious persons who were in

.
’
debted to his father .

80 H
S T A N DI S H THE PUR ITAN .
In a mo m ent t he head of t he boat w as directed up t he

,
river ; directly after a flash from the boat pursuing w as

‘
,
-
seen then a sharp report then another and another in

, , , ,
quick succession and then a dozen at the same ti me ; but

,
all was blackness in front and yet n o reply In a few mo , .
ments another volley was poured into t he retreating party ,
when shortly after a sheet o f fire was ret u rned from the
, ,
'
men of Standish so i nstantaneou s that it brightened the

,
very fir m a m en t and for a moment , by its light his whole

, ,
figure could be seen in the stern of t he boat cutlass i n ,
h and and in full uniform let come wh at would he never

, ,
disguised himself H e was a soldier and his h abiliments

'
.
,
belonged t o i su ch The pursuing boat was within a few .
feet of him and from i t went up fearful crie s of an guish

,
from the wounded a n d d readful i mprecations too from ,

’
, ,
those who were dying Anot her volley rapidly followed .
from Standish s m en a n d other S c rea m s rent the air ; the n

’
,
all was silent again The pursuin g p ar ty drop p ed b ehin d , . n
while the other failing in its obj ec t made its way u p the
'
,
‘
river The sloop o f war w a s p r even t ed from firin g lest her

‘
- -
.
,
guns sho u l d b e fatal to her own boat s crew

~
’
.
Miss De l E u r st o o d g azing upon the scene immovable

’ '
as a statue ; neither did she leave until she was joined by

her mother and brother She spoke not nor did she show .
,
signs of grief or fear and after remaining passive for some

time she laughed outright but t he woi o e was as sepulchr al
, ,
as if it c ame from the tombs There was an absenc e o f .
the passion s displayed i n the f ace cold an d rigid yet beau , ,
tifu l in the ou tlin e and as white as if ou t from P arian ,
marble .
“
E dith my da ughter said her mother tenderly , speak !
, , ,
”
a r e you ill ? Mr Standish is n o t hurt . .
“ ” “
Mother , he s de ad ! said she ; I saw his spirit ascend
’
to he ave n H e took mine with him I am dead— dead—i

. .
dead ! an d t he se words she repeated ove r and over ; but

” “
oh ! do n o t »b u r y me ; I do not w ish to leave y ou But I do

.
.
iWar d
n o t live here my ho e is yonder pointing p
”
; m u , .
1 82 STANDISH THE PUR ITAN .
this day look u pon me as a broth er ; and you said he a d , ,

“
dressing her son , esteem me as a fa t her ; whatsoever is l
”
mine is yours
, H e had hardly finished the sentenc e when
.
a sergeant and t wo men entere d the house T he former .

,
a ddressing Mr De l E u r , S aid to him ,

.
“ Sir , you are a pris
’
oner
Mr Dexter was so as t onis hed that he could with diffic u l
.
t y speak Mr De -l E u r calmly in qu ir ed w ha t wer e the

’
' '
~
. .
c harges against him .
“ ”
H igh treason answered the sergeant ,
.
” “
Well , do your duty , said he ; I am ready to meet ‘
the charge .
O n e grie f sometimes will break through the strongest

ne r ves ; but when they multiply , and fall thick and fast "
a round often the same individual will bear the many when
, ,
one would h ave ove r whelm ed him ; and he who had to call
every feeling of manhood to h is aid when he discovered the
misfortune of his sister w as n o w a s collected as if he was
‘
arraying himself for a dinner party instead of a prison .
A fter he had spent a few moments comforting his mother ,
a n d commending her and his sister to Mr Dexter he told .

,
the sergeant that he was ready Mr Dexter however , . .

,
would not all ow of his proceeding on foot and took them ,
bot h in his carriag e leaving his daughter to await his r e

,
turn and the men t o follow after

, .
Mr De l E u r was committed to close cu s t od y an d as he

.
’
,
was to be tried by a court martial , Mr Dexter proc eeded .
at onc e to the office of the judge advocate and expressed ,
to him his unqualified conviction that there was some m l s

take in the matte r and that he could not conceive it possi
,
ble how a charge could be presumed against him to warrant

his imprisonment The judg e advocate replied for answer
.
-
that he had the most ample testimony of the fact and that ,
he would as speedily as possible bring t he matter before

the court .
Mr Dexter left without knowin g hardly what to think

. .
It was true that he was almost an entire stranger to him ,

S TANDISH THE PURITAN . 1 83
but if it was tr u e that he had been fo r a long time im p r is

o n ed as a To r y and that his fathe r h ad been ki ll ed b y the
,
rebels because he was a Tory , it wo u l d seem very strange

that he coul d almost in the midst of all be guilty of high
-
, ,
t reason Full o f these reflections he extended h is hand to

.
,
t he prisoner “
B e o f good chee r ; I shall see you again ere
.
”
long said he
, .
Mr Dexter speedily returned to the cottage ; but oh

.
'
what a house of sorrow ! This last affliction was more

than Mrs De l E u r could bear She had been put to bed
.
’
.
,
in a high fever by Diana who in the performance of her , , ,
duty was proof against all the ills of life

, .
Miss De l E u r was up and dressed She had ad orned

’
.
herself in her richest attire (an d she h ad much that belo n g

e d to other and happier days ) an d had made a garland of
'
,
“
flowers and put it on her head saying that she was to
, ,
be buried in her wedding garments ; t hat her husband was

waiting and she wished they would hurry
,
”
She pointed .
to a little knoll within th e s hadow of a large tree , and said

,
”
her g r ave must be there She had in her hand a prayer
'
book opened at t he b u r ia l service ; and with her eyes di

,
‘
r ec t e d to heaven she proceeded slowly to read I am the

‘
, ,
resurrec tion and the life s aith the Lord H e that b el iev , .
e t h in me though he were dead yet shall he live For

‘ ’
, , .
when thou art angry all our d ays are gone : we bring our ,
years to an end a n d as it were a tale th at is told ‘

, I , ,
‘
.
’
heard a voice from heaven saying unto me Write from , , ,
henceforth blessed are the dead "who die in the Lord ! even
so saith the Spirit and then she broke o ff suddenly and ,
“
said in sweet and angelic tones Yes I shall be ready in
, , , ,
”
a moment t o come to you She plucked a few wild flo w
, .
ers that grew in the shade and ran to Miss Dex t er w it h

'
,
“
them and said Sweet Ma r y thes e are for you See
, , , .
,
“
continued she they are still wet with the tears of pitying
,
H eaven We shall wait for you and brother , and we can

.
not be entirely happy until you come .
’
Miss De xter s heart gave way , and she b u r st in t o a flood
‘
1 84 S TA N DI SH THE P UR ITAN .
?” “
of tears Do I dream said she , or is it that truth is
.
9 ”
stranger than fiction .
“
Do not cry replied the beautif ul mani ac ; there are
”
n o tears where we are going—no n o

,
an d she tenderly , .
embraced her Do n o t cry but b e happy as I am ; tears

.
,
”
are made for those of this world ; a n d she smiled again
'
u p on her , and carefull y pla ced the little b ouquet that she
had made in her hair .
Miss Dexter sa n k exhausted with emotions painful b e ,
yond her utmost conception ; consciousness for a moment

left her and as Mr Dexter drove rapidly up to the cot t age
, ,
.
,
wh at a scene was there to behold ! H is own beloved child

sensele ss a n d the deranged one soothing her , as one infant
,
would soothe another and busily emp l oyed in plac ing flo w

”
, .
ers in her hair H e seized his daughter in his arms a n d

.
‘ ,
“
in the a gony of his heart he cried Mary ! Mary ! oh , an , ,
”
swer your father , or he c an n o t live !
T he voice that had ever been one of soo thing kindness ,
,
“
was heard and she faintly answered I am not ill dear
, , ,
father but am a little faint I shall be better in a mo

,
.
ment ; do not be alarmed and she threw her ar m s around

“ ”
his neck and relieved herself in tears
, Father said Miss .
,
“
Dexter I wish to go home but I can not l eave her She
, , .
must go with us and by soothing her she may in a short

, , ,
time be restored Mrs De l E u r must have another serv ’
a n t — poor old Diana is near ly worn down—a n d a

. .
p hysician . .
,
m ust be sent for She has a raging fever but yet do es n o t

.
,
”
complain .
“ ”
Yes said Mr Dexter , as he tenderly supported his
,
.
“
daughter I have anticipated all thi s A faithful nurse
,
. .
”
an d a
g ood physician will be h ere directly ; but I f ea r
,
'
,
“
continued he that you are not strong enough to a dm in is
ter to her w a
,
”
nts You are not well daugh t er
Miss Dexter replied and told her fa
.
, .
ther that she shoul d

“
, .
be unhappy u nless he permitted them to b e together I .
“
feel said she th at her society is necessary for me even
, , ,
if she remains as she l a ; but I doubt not that

recover ”
.
1 86 S T A N DI S H T HE PURITAN
‘
.
.
of displeasure from t he neglect of a man from whose heart

nothing but selfishness had ever been known to emanate .
P erhaps it was guilt ; for s t olid as he was he knew enough

, ,
to know that he never did an act in his life without it had

direct reference t o benefit himself without regard to the ,
injury it might inflict upon others .
It was kno wn by several offi cers a t the g ar r 1 son th at Mr .
S n ifl in g had an ac quaintance with Mr De l E u r while he .

’
“
lived in t he country The light in the tree had attracted
. .
the atte n tion of those in the sloop o f war a n d from the time - -
,
it was put up it was closely watched , and every thin g was

m ade ready for any exigency that might occur Inquiries .
we re made then as to the names o f the residents at the c o t ,
tage and their history M r S n iflin g affected to know but

'
, . .
little of them The younger D e l E u r he said , had been a

.
’
,
classmate of his b u t otherwise he knew nothing more tha n

,
that h is father lived m a section of the country well known

for its numerous rebels ; th at he had been very intimate
with the n ot orious Standish who was at the same school ,
with him and De l E u r and that he had very good author

’
,
ity for saying that he kept up the intimacy after the break
in g out of the rebellion ; and further that h e had been a p ,
plied to by both of them to make advances of money to the

mother and sister of De l E u r but all of which he had’
,
evaded , not wishi ng to m ix himself up l n matters that

“ ”
might t u rn out dis l oyal to his king a n d , perchance , 1 n j u r i ,
ous to the country .
Mr S n ifl in g al so caused a marine who had been engaged

.
,
in the boat i n the attack , to be brought before him and ,
asked him if he had been near enough t o distin guish any

persons in the boat that had attempted to go on shore The .
“
marine replied that he was i n the bow of the boat in the
pursuit a n d at the time they received their fire was n o t
, , ,
m ore than ten feet from their ste m and by the light of the ,
mu sketry he distinctly saw t he commanding ofli c er an d
when a sked t o describe him he replied that he was s t a n d

“
,
ing with a pistol l n one hand an d a cutlass in the other ,

-
S TAN D I SH T HE P UR I TAN ' ‘
. 1 87
that he should th ink him nearly if not quit e , six feet high ,
and he distinctly saw a deep wo u nd as if made by a cut ‘

,
”
l ass across his cheek
,
This settled the matter as to the
.
identity of Colonel Standish and the criminality of De

“
l E u r as Mr S n ifl in g said
’
, . that it answered his desc r ip
”
t ion as to height and the scar on hi s,
face was well known
to all the o fficers of the pl ace .
The indignation of the offi cers was increased at the se

vere loss sustained by the boat s cre w It was reported i n ’
.
the morning that five were dead and seven wounded U pon .
’
these charges and this evidence was G eorge de l E u r to be ’
put upon his trial and General Lord Lu m b er l eg s was to

be the presiding offi cer
,
Immediately upon the arrival of Colonel Standish at his

camp he prepared a letter to Miss De l E u r to quiet a n y ’
,
fear she might entertain for his safety and dispatched Zimr i ,
in charge of it A fter describing the situation of the cot

. .
tage an d enjoining upon him secrecy , tellin g him that it

,
was to be delivered to n o o n e except to her self her mother , ,
or brother Zimri was promised a good reward fo r the speedy

,
performance of the duty assigned him

“
H e was soon on .
his way machine and all A couple of days after he was

, .
,
in and about the head quarters of the British army ; talk -
ing to himself and adj usti n g from shoulder to shoulder the

,
result of his perseverance a n d mechanical skill Mr Sni .
fling would a t any time as soo n h ave seen his evil genius
as to have seen him It was n o t that he regretted that he
had put him i n prison without cause or that he su ff ered for “
food there—f o r he h ad never , co ncerning the lat t er made

,
even an inqui ry—yet still it annoyed him H is proverbial

,
aberration of mind—his harmles s manner—told in reproof

.
even upon hi s base and abject m ind ; and as he was arm

in arm with General Lord Lu m b e r l eg s in a mornin g s
-
,
’
*
walk who should he meet plump in the str eet but the iden
,
tical Zimri Freeborn T he latter never spoke , but his lit

.
tle eyes t winkled as he pe ered down at him It wa s to .
Mr S n iflin g a demon s loo k

.
’
.
1 88 . S T A N D I S H T H E P UR I T A N '
The l atter exc u sed himself upon t he sc ore of an engage -

,
‘
ment for the r est of t he m or n in g ; but the truth was the

,
'
me eting of Zimri h ad d isturbed him H e was uneasy and .
worried H e felt that the world would at last find out the
.
dishonest and hypocritical t rick that he had played u p o n

this afflicted creature —af flicted with a monomania that ,
m ade him the slave of the merest chimera in the world .
Zimri had lost the diagram that Colonel Standish had

given him a n d he knew n o t where to go to find the cot
,
tage ; but as good luck would h ave it he m et M r Thur

, , t
.
wood who very kindly accosted him and asked him where
, ,
h e was going .
“
Don t know ” said he
’
, .
Where have you been for a long ti me past ? ”
With the in im y he replied Mr Thu r woo d could n o t

”
, . .
help smiling at the simplicity of the answer .
H ave you seen Colonel Standish lately ? ”
Yes ; day before yesterday

”
A h ! said Mr Thu r wo o d I hope he IS well
.
? ”
.
Yees only hit l n t other leg ; t isn t bad

,
” ’ ’ ’
.
That will be good news for his friends here .
Yees I s pose so What friends inquired Zimri

’ ? ”
'
, . .
”
Mr De l E u r , was the reply
.
’
.
? ”
Can I see him
No ; he IS i n p r l so n ” '
.
A h said Z imri .
You can see his mother , if you wish .
“ ”
Well said he , .
Mr Thu r wo o d gave him dir ec t ions to find her ; an d in

.
,
.
an hour a fter Zimri had delivered h is message, and wa s on

,
his way ba ck to the camp .
Mr Dexter had , in the mean time fitt ed up spacious

.
,
apartments for his poor patie n t , and a nurs e was em ployed

to be i n c onstant attendance upon her H is daughter need .
ed medical aid
190 '
s r a n n rsn T HE P U R I T AN ’
.
Mr Dexter h a d learn ed from Mr De l E u r the whole

. . -
’
cause o f the charges alleged against him and was quite , .
satisfied of his innocence and the entire truth of his state ,
ment Colonel Standish had not only been his schoolfellow

.
for a number of years but his intimate friend Mr De , . .
l E u r had been for several years a prisoner o f th e A mer

’
ic an s Yet the case was not without difficulty The only

. .
acquaintance he had there was Mr S n iflin g and the equiv .

,
ocal manne r in which he expres sed himself n o t only inj ure d

h im but was the cause of his imprisonment : The light in
the tree—the clearly established fact o f the notorious Sta n d
,
ish being seen and in the act of landin g—and a consider a

,
ble sum of gold and silver that ha d been picked u p by men

sent early in the morning to make investigatio n s alon g the
shore all had their difficulties a n d these difficulties were
not to be tried b y a jury but by a court martial—b y m en
, ,
“ ’
who ha d b een taught to j udge of acts rather than the in

‘ '
tentions by w hich th ese acts were committed The reck .
less character o f Standish was known and it was a fair in ,
ference that he intended to seize and carry away some o fli

cer of note in the to wn or to attach a t o r p edo t o some of
‘
,
'
the ships and blow them u p and t hat Mr De l E u r for a , .

’
,
sum of money was aiding and abetting him To get u m

, .
prejudiced testimony from the neighborhood of M r De .
l E u r s f o r m er home wa s out of the question and even if

’ ’
.
,
it could be obtained it would come from the A mericans ;

,
and t heir t est im on y would be taken but with great cau

ti on The case n o t only h ad di fficulties , but the strongest
.
presumption was again st him It was even doubtful whet h .
er the court would allow counsel a t all The more Mr . . .

‘
Dexter thought of it the more perplexin g it seeme d , .
While he was in this state of anxiety about Mr De l E u r .

’
,
his attention a n d time were n o t only demanded by t he s e

' ’
vere illness of Mrs De l E u r ; but his own daughter was a

.
’
.
source of constant anxiety to him It was evident that she .
strove i n her father s presence to appear better than she r e

’
’
ally was and in sisit ed that she was certain that her fri end s
, .
S T A N D I S H T H E P U RI T AN . 191 .
health was better and that , at times , ,

S he thought she rea
so n ed .
Mr Thu r wo od s time had , in the absence of Mr Dexter

.
’
.
,
been taken up at the office but he left nothing undone to ,
render what assistance he c ould to all It was at last a n .
n o u n c ed in General Orders that a court martial would be
c onvened that day two weeks for the trial of George de

'
l E u r his majesty s su b ject for treason in conspiring with

’
,
’
, ,
enemies of the crown to enable them to e ff ect a landin g

n ea r the head q u arters of the army for felonious purposes
-
,
to wit : l et The destru ction of t he lives and property of the

.
king s subjects ; 2d The conspiring to abduct certain gen

’
.
eral o ff icers of his m ajesty s service t o be carried into the ’

,
lines of the enemy ; 3 d To enable the enemy to obtain in .
formation o f the strength of the place and the position of ,
his majesty s forces ; 4 t h To hold communication with cer

’
.
tain evil disposed persons and thereby to entice them to

-
-
,
desert to the enemy 5t h By means of some infernal ma .
chine to blow up the ships of war in the harbor

, .
Zimri had in the mean time returned to camp with in

, ,
formation o f the imprisonment of Mr De l E u r the cause .

’
,
for which Colonel Standish readily imagined B u t u n fo r .

,
t u n a t el y while at the cottage he left his machine in the

, ,
cou r t while he was making the necessary inquiries of Di

a n a ih d oors
-
It was seen by a sentinel w ho was station
.
,
ed in the neighborhood an d seiz ed upon and s e n t to head , ,
quarters as a trophy presuming it to be some d estructive ,
mis s ile left by Colonel Sta ndish in his flight Zimri upon .
,
missing his mach ine was in great tribulation but as he , , ,

.
had the principle in his head he consoled h imself that he ,
could make another and there fore bore hi s loss with as ,
much ph ilosophy as so me Benedicts have been known to

bear theirs when bereft of all their joys and several troubles
, , ,
by the loss of their b etter halves But he had learn ed noth .
in g of the illness of Mrs De l E u r or the insanity of her .

’
,
daughter .
Colonel Standish at once de t erm ined that , should an y ill

befall Mr De l E . i co n se quence of his trial he would

’
u r I n
-
a
,
retaliate by p u tting to death every B ritish officer that he

had under his c o n t r o l , and there were some t wenty of th em
‘
: .
H e accordingly addressed a letter to the commanding c ffi

cer admitting freely that it was he who was in command
,
of t he b o at on the night in q u est io n , but at the same time , ,
he pledged his honor as an officer th at t he expedition h ad l
nothing to do in any manner with any thing in a m il it ar y

, ,
point of View , but his business was solely private , and with
a private person , and that if he had n o t been attacked he , ,
would have quietly returned home ; and further that Mr , .
De l E u r and himself had been intimate friends from their

’
early youth , and that through and by mea n s of the u n fo r

t u n a t e war each had lost a parent had had their property ,
destroyed , and all social ties had been broken up a n d that

it could not be wonder ed at if he and his should be of suf
"
fic ien t interest to run the risk he ha d incurred as it was the
'
“
only means left him of seeing them ; an d he closed his let

ter by o ff er in g t o certify un der oath the truth of his asser
'
, ,
“
tion ; and he concluded thus that , however strange it
might s eem to i n t er fer e in saving the life of an enemy
'
“
for continued he
,
”
in a national point of view the rela
, ,
t ion in which we s tand to each other is of th at nature

e t for the caus e of truth and justice and of private friend
y , ,
ship I a m bound to say thus much and having said it I

, , , ,
trust it may b e b el ieved but , sh ould my veracity be doubt

"
ed ; after having pled g ed my word for the truth of what I -
have stated ; and in co n sequence thereof m y fr ien d shall

su ffer not for any fault o f his but of my o wn , r em em b e
, ,
and I n ow pledg e you the word t hat has al ready b

pled ged—that a t er r ib l e v en ge an ce awaits t he o ffic er s of
'
your army n o w prisoners of mine an d t hat eac h one of

‘
i
,
them shall receive the same punishment that you shall

mete out to my fri end and d epend u pon it that I think
‘
eno u gh of your good o p in ion n O t to sacrifice m y word o n

” '
th is occasion .
7
T his lette r w a s l t he s u b j ec t o f a goo d d aal of commen t

’
194 s m u vn r s n T H E P UR I T A N .
in possession of all the facts which the former had become

acquainted with Mr Dexter to ok the papers and careful
. .
l y examined them , and was surpr is ed to find the evidence so

conclusive ; and the only link that appe ared to him to be
wanting in the chain of evidence was a recognition of the
nephew by the u ncle l n wri t ing or otherwise the place of
,
.
birth of the latter and the legality of the marriage of his

, o
parents as also of the parents of the younger De l E u r

,
’
,
n o w in prison .
It occurred to Mr Dexter that Mr De l E u r would know

. .
’
whether there was any correspondence i n existence between

his father and the uncl e of the latter and he accordi n gly ,
m ade his way to see the prisoner a n d to gather what l n ,
form ation he c o u l d in r elation thereto Mr Dexter was a . .
shrewd man a n d he n ot only wish ed to establish his clai m

,
to the peerage of S t even d a l e as desirable of itself but for

the purposes of t he trial If his cl aim could be fairly es
, ,
t ab l ished although a p at ent to th at effect might n o t have

,
been is sued y et he had a right t o clai m to be tried by his

,
peers and d emanding that tho se peers should be of the de

gree of Viscounts—the privilege being on e of courtesy in
,
cases that were undoubted—and by these means he hop ed

to gain time .
While Mr Dexter was preparing himself to aid in his

.
defen se a secret council of war was held upon the d isco v

,
ery of the accumulative evid ence , to wit Zimri s machine ,

’
,
which had been sent to head qu a r t er s fiz zU p o n carefully l n

specting it and p u l ling a cert ain wire a qu ick ticking
, , ,
no i se was heard General Lord Lu m b er l egs d ecl ared that

.
in th at lay the damning evidence of t he priso n er s guilt ’

,
even in the absence of all others ; for it wa s clea r ly an ih '
f er n al machine meant to blow up his majes t y s shipp iug in

,
’
v
the h arbor and he rec ommended that it should be removed

,
to some distant place for fear it might explode It would

’
, .
have been unm ilitary for him to have hesit a t e d in the ex i s

-
amin ation of its inte r nal organization yet when it clicked ,

there was evidently a l ittle nervous excita bility le st there
should be a catastrophe plainly to be seen in the increase ,

’
of the white of the general s eyes .
It was concluded that this disco very should be kept a

profound secret and that it should be the last piece of evi
,
dence introduced at the trial in order the better to take .

,
the prisoner by surprise ; for General Lu m b er l egs was n o t

only a tactician i n the fi eld but out of the field ; and he ,
held that if there was glory l n decoyin g the enemy in fight

'
o
in g that it was equally glorious to decoy him b e fo r e h e

,
fought and thus prevent the effusion of blood A t least

, .
humanity would seem to dictate such a course ; and as he

was never known to remain long in a place where there
was much carnage , this , at least, was a fair presumption
of his discretion .
In the mean time things remained pretty much as they ,
were Both Mr Dexter and M r Thu r wo o d daily visited . .
Mrs De l E u r consoling her by t he almost certain advance

.
’
,
m ent of her son to on e of the highest positions recognized
in t hekingdom , and that they had good reason to hope for

the speedy recovery of her daughter She evidently w a s .
better through the judicious arra n gements of her physician

, o ,
who n o t only performed the du t ies pert aining to his p ro fes

sion but administered the consolations of a C hristian A l
, .
though Mr Dexter had told him that his ch arges should be

made t o him yet the same at t ention would have been ren
.
dered by Dr Manly if he ha d known that his remuneration

.
would have consis t ed alo n e i n the satisfying of his o wn c o n

science H e m ade his visits twice each day , and prolonged
.
them as long as he found his society agree able to her ;

withdrawing her mind as much as possible from its brood , ,
in g tendency over the a fflictions of her children .
H e would then visit her unh appy daughter By gentle .
and persuasive means he entir ely obtained her co nfidence ,
and thought he co u l d p er c eive , from day to day a le ss

’
pa ssive appearance , and greater c onsistency in her manner

toward himself a n d those around her ; a n d he was by no
means without hope that her reason would soon return the ,
‘
1 T HE PU R I T A N
'
f
H
'
s T A N DI S
-
.
m ore especially as her mother ha d assured him that this

was the first instance of insanity that had ever s ho wn it -
self either in her own or her husband s family

’
.
Dr Manly had ascertained from Mrs De l E u r the true

. .
’
cause o f her derangement a n d he fel t m o st so l ic it o u s i f

'
- '
, ,
possible , as soon a s her re ason sh ould be partially restored ,
in some manner to bring herself and Colonel Standish to ~
gether The evidence of her own eyes that he w a s still

.
living he knew , would be wort h a l l t he other m eans in the

,
'
-
world to restore her again to reason A s it was out of the .
question that Colonel S t andish could visit her in N ew York ,
he came to t h e conclusion th at as soon as she would be en ,
abled to endure a short journey he himself would under ,
take to escort her s o me fifty miles back into the coun try .
H e had n o doubt that he could get such passports as would

furnish him a safe c o n vey a n c e t o the lines of the A mer '
,
ic a n s and after that he felt as if all danger was over ; a n d

,
the more he thought of it t he more determined he was to ,
carry out his project ; and as Mr Dexter was in civil life .

,
he saw no reason why he and perhaps hi s d a u ght er y sho u l d

,
not join the little party T hey had been hemmed up on .
the island of Manhattan for a long ti me and although their ,
aspirations of their own volition might never h ave r equ ir

, ,
ed more s p ace yet the doctor , i n common with the rest of

,
the world felt an itching to go a little be yond where he

,
could easily get The only difficulty l n the way n ow was

.
to get his passport s , and to get throu g h with the trial of

Mr De l E u r
.
’
.
198 S TANDI SH THE PUR ITAN ‘
ladies on all occasions l a wf u l l y or u n l a wf u l l y ; b u t you

,
do not seem to be aware of the firmness of your uncle .
Firmness Mr S n iflin g ! oh pshaw ! you must n o t think

, .
,
because he is fat and red in the face that that is firmness , .
A n d since you won t yo u c r u el m an , I ll just interfere m y

‘
’ ’
,
self and if uncle does n o t get him pardoned oh , ho w I will

, ,
1»
cry
The conve rsation here turn ed upon other subj ects and ,
poor De l E u r was no further thought of They continued

’
.
their walk , and the young lady was full of sentim ent and ,
Mr S n iflin g full of resentm ent at the entire neglect he had

.
of late been treat ed with by Mr Dexter an d his daughter . .
H e could not understand it “ What said he musingly . .

, ,
am not I the richest man in A merica ? Ho w is this that ,
the first ladies o f E ngland court my society and these peo ,
ple treat me with contumely 9 ”

H e was too uneasy to a p .
r e c ia t e the unequivocal attentions bestowed u pon him

p .
The general came up b lowing l ike a porpoise delighted

, ,
with the t é t e cl t é t e Mr S n iflin g had had wit h his n iece

‘
- -
. .
”
Stay by your uncle you little minx said he to her patting
, , ,
“
her under the chin ; you m ust not wander o ff too far wit h
” “
young gentlemen Mr S n ifl in g s aid t he general this
is a beautiful nigh t — —
, ,
. . k
f a glorious n ight su perlative ! mag

“
n ificen t
(the general breathing very hard ) I t puts me .
in mind of the night in H indostan after the great bat t le o f

'
Boodle R umble But before h e had time for describing

,
further either the battle or the night , a luminous body i n ,
the direction of the magazine burst forth li ke a cloud of , ,
sand before the sirocco It t hi ew up in h u ge curls fir e

.
, ,
and flame to the very heavens and in a moment all was as ,
light as noon day ; and the thunder of a thousand pieces of

-
artillery could n o t have exc eeded t he fearful crash that fol

lowed and from fragments , thrown high into the clou ds
, ,
serpent like cor u scations were emitted intertwini n g them ,
selves into a variety of shapes and ; high above the rest a , ,
dark mass was seen pois ing itself 1 11 the red flam e around
it , preparing for its d esc ent , a n d then with a graceful curve ,
STANDI SH THE PURITAN . 199 .
toward where the party were walking de fin ed by the lurid ,
flame came in fearful descent

,
.
“
R etr eat ! r etre at cried the general ; there comes the
'
“
'
infernal machine ! ”
But alas for generalship on such a n ,
occasion ! for had the general s nether limbs been longer

,
’
,
he cer t a in l y wo u l d h ave b een d em o l ished ; for it came hiss

'
f
in g d ow
'
n an d fell but a few feet in f fr o n t of his lordship

,
and the rest of the party who wer e close in his rear sca t , ,
te ring its fragments in a variety of ways This to use a '
,
.
military expression brought them all to a dead halt : The

,
general after waitin g a mom ent t o b r ea t he in declared

' ’
, .
,
“
profanely that he would hang the villains w ho ha d p l a c ed v
”
the m achine in the magazine It was p ainful t o hear him .
s wear a n d h e frequently did so u nwittingly for he ha d in

, .
, ,
early life been accustomed to hear it his father for many

,
"
, ,
years havin g served in Flanders where that vic e was pro

, ,
ve r b ia l .
The pleasure of the eve n ing s walk was destroyed by ’
this unlo c ked for casualty The party hurried home , a n d

-
.
took a hasty leave of each other not knowing how soon a n , ,
other eruption would transpire The t o w n w a s in great .

'
alarm not excepting among it s inhabitants his lordship

, ,
“
who said he was willing to fight an enemy fairly face to ,
face in open day ; but to be surrounded by torpedoes and

, ,
oth er contriv ances eman ating f r o m t he in fer n a l r eg io n s and

' ’
' ‘
liable to be blown out of existence in a moment he fel t ,
himself bound to say that the contrivance was none othe r

than the invention of a poltroon and coward , who was reck
”
less o f life if assured of his o wn
A s for Mr S n iflin g his heart sunk within him
.
, H ow .
” “
long he th ought to hims elf am I to be pursued by that
, ,
? ”
creature and he shuddered as he thou ght of him Those
—and those skeleton
.
little gray ey es
limbs a n d that s wi nging gait ; like Time at work with his
,
scythe ! and worse than a ll the subdued and meek face;

, ,
whew and the blood again crept slowly through his veins .
“ ”
Oh that I had never seen h im ! articulate d he as he
, ,
2 00 STANDI SH T HE
‘
PURITAN .
looked from his princ ely hall upon the broad bay spread out
”
before him “ A h ! th at machine ! said he and he shook
.
,
his head ; it came fro m the clouds as if sent by the venge ,

”
ance of H eaven to kill and annihilate me H e retired to .
his bed feverish dej ected and unh appy and could n o t
, , ,
sleep The wind moaned through the lattice , an d he called

.
a servant to fasten it The leaves o f the trees rustled in .

-
the fresh breeze ; but instead of so othing it nearly crazed ,
him ; there was no music to him there T he wailings of .
a mother over her deceased infant could not have been more
p ainful to his ear A nd thus he passed the night , losing
.
himself but a few moment s at a time in slee p if porten ,
tous dreams and fearful forebod ings could be calle d sleep .
A t la st morning came but it brought with it n o peace , .
H is breakfast was brought to his roo m but he loathed it ; ,
a n d a few minutes after he had sent it away a valet pale , ,
and out of breath announced in a hurried manner that

, , ,
General Lord Lu m b er l eg s was dead ! Like a specter he

sprung from his bed H e ran his fingers up the si des of.
his temples through his hair and , compressing his head with ,
“ ” “
both his hands Dead ! he exclaimed in terror ; am I
, ,
”
dead say ! say ! said he t o his valet ; and then in more
? ‘
,
“
subdued tones I wonder that I am not , pursued as I am
,
“
by that accursed creature ” .
“
“ ”
N o sir said his valet
, , it is not you b u t his lord , ,
s hip my Lord Lu m b er l eg s who is dead

,
”
, .
“
A h ! Well said he he i s older than I am I never
” “
, , .
made any money out of him and probably never would had , ,
”
he lived to be as old as Methu selah Joe said he to a .
,
servant bring me some brandy and a pitcher of water ”

‘
, .
It was brought to him and h e drank freely “ Ther e! ”

, .
“
said he there is consolation in that and he drank again
, .
“ ” “
What a fool I was , continued he , to s u fler myself to
”
be haunted in th at manner A nd , ere long he replenished .
,
his glass and drank that als o ; and shortly his eyes droop
I don t car e if he is dead — hic
,
cd and he muttered “ ’
— — —
,
cough he d never die y o younger hicco u gh I—I

,
’ “ .
202 STANDISH THE PURITAN
"
.
moment entered his head that it was the harmless m a c hl n e

of the still more harmless Zimri Freeborn H e sought ih .
formation o f the prisoner and he saw at once from his , ,
frank and open m anner that he was equally ignorant with

himself Mr Thu r w
,
. .
g
o o d also sou ht an interview wit h h im
in his prison in relation to the proof wanting to connect

him with the S t even da l e title , De l E u r remembered that ’
there had been a long correspondence between his great

u ncle and his father , but he was afraid at the time the ,
rebels set fire to their hous e that they were all destroyed ; ,
but requested him as soon as his mother got able to as

'
, ,
certain if any were saved P erhaps Diana might know if .
there were any and he Mr Thu r wo o d , could consult his , .
own leisure in comparing any thing of the kind with the

‘
one he had received from London A s for the marriage of .
his father and mother he presumed that it was legal and , ,
in conformity with the usages of the Church and the se v ,
eral statutes in relation thereto H e also gave him the .
place of their birth and the name of the minister who sol
,
e m n ized the marriage .
Mr Thu r w o o d at once proceeded to the c ottage H e

.
:
‘
.
f ound Mrs De l E u r mor e comfortable , and sitting in an

’
.
easy ch air H e at once informed her of his er rand when

.
,
she said she feared that every thing of consequence to .
them had perished in the flames but that she would call ,
Diana and if she did n ot know any thing about them they
, ,
probably had all been destr oyed ! The bell was rung a n d ,
Diana , i n an instant w as at h and When asked about , .
any p apers that might h ave been saved she s eemed to rec ,
o l l ec t what she had befor epartly forg otten as they had not ,
been inquired fo r before She sh owed her delight by show .
ing her teeth when she said th at she bury massa s pap
“ ’
in de garden close to de baby when da burn ole house .
T h is was good news to our am ateur of genealogical r e

searches H e ha stened home a n d informed Mr Dexter of
w hat Dia na had done and the y had strong hopes now of
,
. .
estab l ishing the corres pondence b eyond t he possibility of

STANDI SH THE PU RITAN . 2 03
quibbling Dr Manly had given Mr Dexter an intimation

. . .
of the benefit that both his daughter and Miss De l E u r ’
would derive from a trip into the country and as s oon as ,
Mr Dexter had told Mr Thu r wo o d of the hiding of the p a

. .
pers he resolved as so on as the funeral obsequies of the

, ,
general were over th at he would m ake the adventure a s

,
pro p osed by the doctor .
It was now the third day since the general s demise and ’
,
the bells from the steeples were uttering their plaints in

'
slow and measured time that told that a member of the ,

“
human family had passed away to be seen n o more of , .
”
men . Crowds of servants were in waiting with the sign “
of their vocatio n bound to the arm ” The general s war ’
s t eed was there with the trappings of his master arranged

,
in the saddle a n d the military came wheeling into column

,
with reversed arms The whole co r t ég e started in the sol

.
e m u step measured by music arranged for the march that

, ,
accompanied the soldier to his final home His l a st rest

'
in g place was soon approached the burial serv i ce w a s read ,

-
,
a n d he was lowered in to the grave A fe wvolleys of mus . ‘
ket r y were fired over his c offin an d all was over Th e ’
.
,
forms were all gone through wi t h and he who but three

—
,
days before had given law to p t q i u e t t e whose frown would

—
,
h ave paled the poor soldi er s cheek who would have sign
’
ed his dea t hgw a r r an t fo r disobedience of his will as freely

— , ,
as he would have p u t on his glove who was singled out as

'
o n e of the great and honorable of the earth was n o w r e ,
d u c ed to t he leve l of all those howeve r poor and a ffl ic t ed in ,
life who had gone before him and all that was left was
, , '
in the frail memory of t ho se w ho had been su fler ed to r e

main b ehind to be resolved into the same elements in a few
,
brief years .
Mr S n ifl in g was not at the funeral n o r had he been seen

. ,
o u t sin ce the evening of the accident Th e shock that he .
i d h night the death of his friend and the l i

'
re c e v e t a t ,
a
pp , ,
cation to the bottle for relief had been too m u c h fo r his , ,
nerves , though the servants when questioned , r e p b r t ed him ,

2 04 S T A N D I SH .
T HE PUR ITAN .
quite c omfortable H e insisted upon h aving no physician

.
,
for he ha d taken it into his head that attempts were to be

m a de u o n his life in order to obtain his m o n ey L a n d th at
'
p
they the doctors , were to be the executors of the plot
, .
H is lordship , who had j ust paid the last debt of n ature ,

h ad after his return to his q uarters su ffered himself to be
, ,
much ex cited at the o fficer who had placed the machine

near the powder m agazin e an d being short a n d corpulent , ,
, ,
a n d apoplectically inclined ha d been seized in the n ight , ,
a n d after a few struggles had left a vacancy in the army,
to be supplied by one of his pall bearers ; but how much - '
this junior in his heart mourned it would , perhaps be u n , ,
fair to infer , an d indelicate to allude to yet it has always

been observed that promotion is acceptable and the recip ,
ien t not disposed to criticise the ways of P rovidence in suc h

cases .
N othing was n ow wanting t o p revent the projected visit ,
and it was speedily arranged that Mr a n d Miss Dexter the .

,
doctor and his p atient should form the party A pplicatio n

, .
was made to the commandin o fficer —for passports throug h g
the lines of the E nglish outposts a n d also letters for the f a

.
v or ab l e consi d eration of who msoever s han ds they might fall

’
into a n d a day was set when they were to un dertake their

,
short j ourney The doctor in or der t o prepare his f air p a

.
,
tient frequently in his vis it s in t r od u c ed the subject a n d ‘
»
, , , , ,
u pon the mention of O a k fo r d she reco n ized the sound a t
g ,_
once .
“ ” “
Oh yes ! she said I wish to go to Oakford tc sec
, . ,
my little sister ; she has been waiting a long ti m e and must

be tired It is a cold place where we left her Oh how
,
. .
it blows there in the winter and the white snow whirls ,
around her in the night and the winds howl and scream , .
’
Oh doctor twas cruel to leave her there all alone ! and
, ,
”
“
she shuddere d and said Doctor was it n o t wicked for
, ,
?
mother to leave my father when he was pale a n d dying
Bu t ”
,
“
said she with emph asis it was n o t Colonel Stand
, ,
I h who killed him
s -
We never harmed any o n e It was

.
‘
.
E dith was prepared for it as it might have the opposite,
tendency to that intended , and that if he was in the n eigh ,
b o r ho o d he would receive a note instructin g him when she

,
was prepared to receive him .
Miss Dexter and her friend retired early the latter sho w ,
ing signs of fatigue T heir room was on the g able end of

.
the house The apartment was low but su ffic ien t l y sp a

.
,
'
c io u s a n d gave a pleasant view o f a n ew mown meado w

,
-
.
It was clear and not a cloud to be seen and in a short ti m e

, .
,
the family had all retired Silence became almost oppress

.
ive to those accustomed to live amid the bustle and noise

of a town It was n o t long however before the insect
.
, ,
tribe in the meadow commenced their serenad e : first a

short gra ting note ; then another , at a distance , softer an d
,
longer co ntinued ; then a sharp shrill plaint from the tree ,

“
top and then Katy did and Katy didn t began a n d
,
” “ ” ’
, ,
in a short time the whole chorus as if their l ives dep en ded

, ,
u pon the success of the e ff or t ; and thus they went o n ,
through the livelong night enjoying with all t heir m ight

, , ‘ ,
the little time left before a fro st should silence them forever .
But who knows how far the instincts of these little crea
?
tures extend Who dares say that it ends with their lives ?
The divine impress i s surely there and , despi t e of man s

_ ,
’
assumption it may teach him a l ess o n that may detract

’
much from his va n it y a n d complacent conceit How is it .
that their chants begi n in the autumn of the year and the ,
nearer they approach the end of their lives the more ar dent ,
l y they pour forth their thanks to the Creator for the brief
summer they have been permitted to enjoy ? H ow is it ,
that their sweet music sh ould influenc e and incline t he

hea r t o f man to serious meditation ; t o dissipate the a sp er i
ties that arise between him and his brother ; to soothe an d '
compose his thoughts and finally , to make him a better

, ,
?
m an than when he first laid his head u pon his p il l o w ,
z
There are sermons tha t thus proceed from these lit t l e crea
tures which thank Heaven there are but few who can not
,
appreciate ; and doubly unfortunate gm u st he b e who has ~

210 S TAN D I S H T H E HI T A
‘
PU N .
They are at home , a n d A s she hesitated Miss De ,
l E u r qui ckly added

’
,
A nd what ! are they ill ? I must return I can t stay .

’
from them Who brought us here

.
‘
? Oh ! d ear Mary ,
”
continued she sobbing audibly do let us return
,
Miss , .
Dexter soothed her as well as she could by letting her know

tha t her m other was getting much better and that her ,
“ ”
broth e r had not been ill Oh ! s aid she , perfectly r a .
“
t ic n a l
, if my poo r mother sho u l d die what should I do in ,
this dreary world I h ave n o father like yourself to p r o

”
.
, ,
teet me from its ill s ; I am t o o you n g t o ha ve drunk so

deeply of the cup of affliction I feel that my m ind has
”
been wandering—a dreamy u ncertainty of where I am or

.
wh at I hav e been abo u t ” ,
The busy housewife had been since the first dawn of ,
day engaged in preparin g breakfast for her own household

, ,
and had already dispatched the male p or t io n o f them to '
their labor in the fields where with sickle in ha n d they , , ,
were gatherin g in the golden sheaf A nd now she was busy .
at wo rk preparing for her guests The table cloth was .

-
S pread upon the boar d which for the others had been naked , ,
and the Horn of P lenty was transferred upon it without r e ,
gard to a n y particular m eal fo r which it was inten ded .
The two gentlemen had arisen e arly and had gone forth ,
to the fields they came back cheered by the beauty of the

m orning and the romance of their walk The orchard wa s .
bending benea t h the ripened fruit ; t he bees were at work

i n the white clover with the eagerness of misers ; the cattle
were busy with the grass while yet the dew aided i n its
mastication and the whole distance from the city wo u ld
,
h ave b een as beautiful and i t s people as happy and as hos

a b l e , but armed men had been there —hospitality had not
,
p it
been respected The fields were sown by their owners a n d
’
"
,
.
'
reaped by strangers It s in ha b it a n t s had dared to be of

.
an op i nion which others had seen fit to thi n k they had no

,
right to have and h aving it they were fit subjects to be

, ,
robbed and often murdered a n d peopl e too who would —

,
w
, ,
STANDI SH THE PURITAN . ~ 11
cheerfully have given in ch arity and extended to their de ,
stroyers the rights of good fellowship Such means m ay .
co n quer men but never the heart and the potentate who
, ,
rules n o t by that has a hard task to perform , and is a n y

thing but an object of envy .
The breakfast was announced and the young ladies made ,
their appearance They were attired in white robes for the

.
morning : they had rested well The doctor looked a n x .
io u sl y upo n his patient to see what change of scene and air

had produced There was a little uncertain ty of expres
. .
sion wh ich showed itself in the le ss lustrous eye than was

, ,
quite natural Her b eauty was supreme yet statue like

.
,
-
it had n o t quite the entire play of life It showed that the .
soul was still chilled ; yet she freely recognized Mr Dexte r .
and the doctor and thanked them for their kindness and
, ,
expressed herself as better She retained the hand of Mis s

.
Dexter and it was rar e that she relinquished it ; while she

,
had it in her grasp she felt herself safe a n d happy ; but

,
the moment she parted with it she trembled lest some o n e

,
wo u ld do her harm ; and as they sat down to breakfast ,
she nestled close to her side and her a ff ection was always
,
returned by a look of benignity that assured her of love

and inspired her with confidence She ate more heartily .
than she had done for months and the good d octor felt him
,
sel f amply repaid at the sure evidence of the improvement

of his beautiful patient .
They had hardly fin ished their repast when the tramp

.
of horses was he ard ; T hey all went to the door and a mile ,
or so in the distance they saw enveloped in dust a troo p of

cavalry coming down the road at a very fast pace In a .
moment after they drew up and a man was sent to inform

,
the gentlemen that General Standish was with the troop

'
and would remain beh ind in ac cordance with the request

made but would be very glad if they would at once proceed
,
. .
Miss Dexter was co gnizant of what was going o n but ,
nothing had been intimated to the invalid of the kin d ; she

looked at the men as they came down the road , and al so
212 S TANDISH THE PURITAN .
U pon the messenger with but little c u riosity H e m ade .
known his errand an d they m a de r eady to go as requested

, d
.
They proceeded on foot and when a little distance on their ,
way an o fficer mounted on an iron gray charger with but

, ,
-
,
a single attendant advanced to meet them They knew ,

.
by the description that they h ad so often received of him

that it could be none other than the general himself The .
tall and well m a d e figu r e the scar on his f ac e and the

-
,
'
black p l u m e t o w er in g above the others was su ffic ien t evi ,

-
dence that it was the renowned chief of whose rec kless a n d ,
d aring courage they h ad so often heard H e w as much .
sunburned and notwithstanding the deep scar u pon his

, ,
face his r egu l a r features a n d his noble b ea r in g y t ho u g h

,
'
saddened and grieved gave him an interest and at the same , , ,
time a dignity of character t h at el ic it ed their respect a n d

,
‘
admiration A t their approach he dismounted and g ave

.
,
the bridle of his horse to the man who accompanied him ,

and then directed him to retir e .
General Standish received t he m with great courtesy a n d

kindness thanked them with a l l his heart for the interest
,
they had taken for Mr and Mrs D e l E u r and as he was . .

’
,
about naming E dith this lion hearted man , who had court -
ed death in a hundred battles—who se sword had so often

,
drank deep of the blood of the enemies of his country , turned

away H e put his handkerchief to his eyes as he walked
.
several steps from them , the better to hide his emotions .
H e took t he doctor as he returned affectionately by the

, ,
“ ”
h and and looked him full in the face
, I thou ght sir .
, ,
“
said he that the many afflictions that have befallen me in
,
my career thus far in life had prepared me for any suffering ,
that might be in store f o r me But this last I was not pre .
”
p ared for H e could proceed no further for some moments
. .
A t length he asked as he turned his face to the farm house

,
-
,
Who are those two young ladies sta n di n g in the door

y onder ? ”
Mr D exter replied One sir is my d aughter the oth

.
, , ,
er the l ady we are spe akin of

,
g .
214 THE PURITAN
‘
s r xxm sn .
the p r o b ab il it y o f the recovery of Miss De l E u r from her

,
’
mental estrangement While he inquire d in relation to

.
the latter his agitation was apparent T hey gave him all
, .
the informati on in their power and impressed upon him ,
the necessity of recovering the papers buried by Diana as

speedily as pos sible The conference en ded by advising
.
him not to see Miss De l E u r until after their return from

’
the search for the papers It was arranged that t he fo l l o w

.
ing morn ing they should proceed on horseback in company ,
with a gu ard of fifty men upon their errand , it being a dis

,
tance of about forty miles

A s soon as t he day dawn ed horses were sent from the ,
camp with a guide to accompany them , to the place wher e

,
the gentlemen were informed the general would j o i n them .
T hey were soon in the saddle and on their way Less .
than an hour brought them to it where they alighted and , ,
in the tent of Standish they rested and partook of their

breakfast So early and unusual a ride to them had sharp
.
e ned their ap etites and thus far it was a novel as well

p , , ,
as a pleasant trip General Standish early as it w as was

.
, ,
on parade at the period of their arrival but im mediatel y ,
returned , and in a short time the three with a guard of ,
fifty m en were in full gallop for the interior They h ad

,
.
n o t proceeded far when a long line of posts with cross pieces -
pre sented themselves to their view Mr Dexter and the . .
docto r after expending much curiosity and many surmises

,
as to t he purposes for which they were intended and arriv ,
in g at n o satisfactory result at last questioned t hegeneral

3 ,
o f their use General Standish without he sit at ing a mo

.
,
ment replied tha t they were ere cted for the purpose (if
,
han ging a British officer u pon each gallowsif a hai r of the

“
head of Mr De l E u r was hurt
.
’
I have written to the .
“
com m an ding officer at N ew York continued he to that -
, ,
e ff ect and at the same time pledging my honor that Mr

,
.
De l E u r is innocent of the charges alleged again st him

’
,
to my certain knowledge To punish him under such c i r.
”
c u m s t a n c es there can be n o excuse
, .
STANDI SH THE PURITAN "
. 15
Would n o t that be punish ing the innocent for the

? ”
wrongs of the gu ilty inquired Mr Dexter . .
“ ”
I am not in the habit sir he replie d rather severely
'
, , , ,
”
of havin g my j ustice or my motives questioned .
“ I beg ” “
'
a thousand pardons said Mr Dex t er ; it was , .
by no means my intention to q u estion either It was merely .
”
the hardship of the case I referred to .
General Standish bowed an assent to the explanation .
They rod e on so m e miles in silence The general seemed

'
. .
lost in thought ; but every few miles he drew his glass from
his pocket an d with it swept the horizon A lieutenant
'
, ,
.
upon being questioned as to the cause of this precaution ,

said that there were a good many Tories in the neighbor
hood and that they sometime s appeared in force and had
, ,
committed a number of murders ; but since the general had

caused a brace of them to be hanged they had been quiet , .
They came to a halt about eleven o clock at a small tav ’
ern on the road kept by a man said to be a Tory They

, .
d ismounted and were served with some refreshment ; and

,
at the end of half an hour , the bugle sounded and th e m en

.
, ,
in an inst ant were in marching order T he horses of the

, . .
.
doctor and Mr D ext er w er e before the door qu ite fresh for

.
‘
.
,
they were so acc u stomed to these trips that it was noth

in g to them ; but quite d iff erent was it with their riders .
It was with a kind of hop and j ump that they got beside
their beasts ; but when they came to put foot in stirrup it '
,
seemed quite out of the q u estion ; several attempts were

‘
mad e, but to raise the foot more than a few inches from
“
.
the gro u nd was quite im p ossible The men n o t w it hst a n d . .

,
in g their discipline showed symptoms of relaxing the mus

,
.
cle s of the m o u t h as they turn ed their eyes askance at the

’
abortive at t empts prese rvin g their d iscipl ine however in not

, , ,
turning their heads t he h u n dr ed t h part of an inch , though

t he t em p t a t io n from t he : co n t o r t io n s of face of t he t wo r e
,
c r u i t s was a strong one

, T he lieu t enant repo rted their dis
.
ability to the quarter

'
. in a few momen had

the horses harnessed t o a wa gon bel on ging to the t avern
21 6 H T HE
"
S T A N DIS P U R IT A N
'
keeper who was too hap p y in granting an accommodation

,
'
which he knew would quite as f reely h ave been taken

withou t his assent as with it Thus newly equipped they
. .
, ,
proceeded quite comfortably along excepting an occasional ,
bump which a traveler in a country wagon without spri n gs ,

over a bad road , is subject to
-
Nothing occurred throughout the day deserving of notice ,
except the occasional appearance of the blackened r emains

of a house which an unlucky T ory might have inhabited ,
who had been indiscreet in his expressions or , perchance , ,
once the residence of a Whig who had also been unwise in

,
condemning his neighbors whose principles were the reverse

of his o wn A lthough the day w a s well nigh spent , and
.
-
even the wagon had become irksome yet neither t he g u ard ,
n o r the horses showed the least symptoms of uneasiness ,
but still swept over the country at the rate of eight miles
an hour only occasionally haltin g for a short time for the
,
benefit of Messrs Dexter and Manly The lie utenant kept

. .
.
up their spirits by occasionally in forming th em of the di

minished distance they had to overcome .
A s the day was drawing to a close they entered a rath ,
er hilly country spotted with groves of trees and matured

,
orchards watered by a variety of small rivulets issuing

,
from the gorges of the hills A s the sun set it cast it s sub
.
,
dued light into the dark foliage revealing the in numerable ,
hues of t he leaves : green and gold ; russet edged with ,
orange ; a d eep sc ar l et sprinkled with pink were a m o n g

, ,
the most p rominent colors that attracted the eye For a

. .
m o ment they were m aking their way around the base of a
w ooded hill , then along the embankment of a rivulet until ,
at last the sun set behin d the hills and the beautiful s cen ,
ery faded from the view .
The lieutenant dropped beh in d and informed them that ,
they were n o w on the grounds of Oakford , and that in a "
few minutes they would en c

-
for the night They pro .
c e ede d at a slow p ace T he whippowill began his plaints

.
,
and occasionally a fox or a hare could be seen spr in ging

218 H THE PURITAN
‘
S I A N DI S
'‘
.
tried again with but little better success Their repast was .
no sooner ended than preparations were made to search

for the buried papers A spade was p rocured a n d with a .
,
man to u se it , they proceeded to the spot to begin the

'
search .
The same desolate appearance surrounded every thing as

when General Standish was there before H e led them .
d irectly to the place designated A s he stoo d for a moment .
to look upon the little mound form er times rushed upon his ,
m emory E ach foot of earth seeme d to him consecrated

.
groun d and each withered leaf rife with a fond but mourn
,
ful recollection The t wo gentlemen saw the war that was

.
going on in his b reast ; and though at times ste m a n d harsh

in manner they had seen too m uch of the world not to
,
know and respect the sentiments and feelings which were

t hen passing there A sigh involuntarily escaped him
. .
“ “
H and me the sh avel he said to the man sternly ; the , ,
”
dead lies here The man spran g to obey him H e seized
. .
it and planted it in the ea rth ; again and again he buried

,
it deep and m a few moment s the shovel struck something

,
that sounded like metal A nother shovelful of earth and .

,
a t in case that the faithful Diana had placed there was

, ,
taken from its hiding place .
Mr Dex t er took it in his h ands and said to General

.
,
Standish In th at sir I feel is contained the full evidence

“
, , , ,
of the right of your friend George del E u r to the baronet ’
age o f S t even d a l e The doctor could hardly restrain his

.
f
expressions of delight .
—
“
If it contains said Sta ndish wit h great gravity
aught that will 1 estore t he br oken heart—relieve the pr i s
, , ,
oner assuage deep rooted grief—then then th ere may be ,
f o r me a little light B u t all 1 s dark n e ss now

. T he gr ave .
itself 1 s al l I hO p e for .
“
It 1 s not always , I trust replied Mr De xter kindly
”
, .
, ,
“
that this darkness i s to continue There 1 s a bright spo t .
ab ove which if we will but keep our eye upon it will guide
, , ,
us through the tempe st and finally lead us from the many ,

STANDI SH THE PURITAN
‘
. 21 9
quicksands that obstruct our way in our journey here : You

are young yet and should n o t despond L ife is full of vi
, .
c iss it u de s and they should be met with philosophy

, .
“ “
Talk n o t said S t an dish fir m l y of philosophy to me
, , , , .
A s well might you talk of the return of spri n g to the oak ,
whose li m bs have been riven b y t he winds its trunk scath

'
ed by lightning and its roots dried up for the want of nou r

,
” “
ishm en t H ave you not learn ed said he that your king
.
, ,
h as left me without a relative in the world ? has burned

?
and destroyed all that would have been mine maimed me
?
in my limbs and deformed me in my pe rson and that his
,
base representatives are threatening a family in whose m e m ,

? ”
ory I only live with death a n d ruin , Do not said he , ,
“
fiercely talk to me of philosophy but go back to your
, ,
k ing s minions and tell them to burn torture and de

’
, , ,
“
stroy ; and then in a low and sole m n voice added There
, , ,
is a day of reckonin g coming Your land of ty r ants will .
yet feel t he P uritan s prayer if n o t his steel ’

, .
H is manner was so earnest , and almost threatening that ,
no reply was made They returned to the guard a n d as

they dre wnear they saw them all m a circle with their
,
.
, ,
lieutenant l n the center singing a psalm In a moment,

.
Standish took his cap from his head and reverently stood ,
in silence until they had finished When that was over .

,
t hey kn el t and one of the men made a p r a yer to which the

'
, ,
others responded When these services were o ver Stand

.
,
ish told Mr Dexter and the doctor th at he only waited their

.
pleasure and would return at their convenience H is m an

,
.
ner was now gentle though 1 m p r ess1 ve A nother half hour

, .
,
and they were on their return They stopped for the night .
at the little tavern where the wagon was borrowed The .
only two spare beds in the house at the request of the gen ,
eral were appropriated for the occupation of the doc t or and

,
his friend .
E arly in the morning they were awakened by the little

band in the field close by They were thus early at their . .
devotions : a psalm was su n g and a prayer said , asking to ,

220 S T A N D I S H T H E PU R IT AN .
b eled in the right way to be delivered from their O p p r es ,
s ion to be en ab l ed p r o er l to in erpret the Scriptures and

' '
, p y t , ,
finally for their enemies

, It came over the fields in the
.
c lear morning distinctly and reverently and with a solem ,
n it y that insured it f r om the heart It was a tou ching sight .
t o see and hear these poor fellows w ho for years h ad per ,
i led their lives with seldom a place to lay their heads scant
, ,
il y clad asking the G o d of battles to do good to their ene

,
m ies to protect the widow and the orphan , and to assuage

,
the calamities incident to war .
Mr Dexter and his friend were soon dre ssed The so

. . .
‘
l em n it ies that they h ad seen perform ed by these hardy and

'
w a r w o r n m en and their devout manner impre ssed t h

-
, ,
t hat if the A merican army was made u p of such m en ,
G reat Britain had as much u p on her h ands as she W

,
ould
b e enabled to dispose of and that the sooner she ma de terms , ,
th e bet t er it would be for her .
In the morning they resumed their journey leaving their ,
wagon and takin g to their saddles again and we re informed

, ,
that on their account they would go slow as they had the ,

,
day before them They returned the same way they went
.
,
a n d by the middle of the afternoon they came in sight of
the c a mp T he regime n t of d r ag oons had been joined by

.
on e of infantry al l to b e placed under the command of

,
Gener al St an dish with orders to hold himself in read iness

,
f or dis tant service it being considered that the m inu t e ,

*
men were strong enough to repel any incursions the E u
glish w ould be enabled to make the whole force having ,
moved down within a mile of the farm house The tents -

.
extended along the base of a hill to a considerable distance ,
an d groups of o ffi c ers were conversing with each other as
to t he nature of the service upon which they were destined ,
an d w hat could b e the general s business with the two

’
g entl emen most of them coming to the conclusion that they

,
were commiss ioners to make arrangements for a car t el .
C ti t
o n n ec i d i t heRe l t i
cu r a se ly
n t p f t h li h
vo u on n ear ro o s o e n e, e
si d es
g t ber s f m il i t i
r ea n u m l l e d Mi t M
o a, ca
“
n u e en .
”
222 STANDI SH THE PURII A N
'‘
.
looked at him steadily for a moment as if s triving m her ,
mind whether to place him on earth or no .
” “
To Colonel Standish said she s ol emnly I am a f , , ,
.
fia n c e d ; but— but it seems to me i t was not to be c o n su m

.
'
'
-
”
m ated until I a m dead It is so strange said she as if
’
.
, ,
in pain ,
that I c an n o t collect my thoughts Why does .
? ”
he n o t come to me
“ ”
H e will come if you wish it ,
.
Wish it ! wish to s e e my husband that is to be ! Ho w

‘
” “ ”
strange she r eplied
,
that you should ask , .
Mr Dext er came n o w to greet her but she turned from

.
,
“
him and said showing a little j ealousy
,
Doctor Manly ,
”
is as kind to m e as you are to Mary
-
This a l m o st b r o ke .
~
the heart of poor Mr Dexter for he had been lavishing for.

,
some time his caresses upon his d a u ght er an d f el t a little '
, ;
guilty in n o t sooner turning his attentions to his charge for ,
whom he felt almost the kindness of a parent a n d en deav ,
ored all in his power to recover the favor he had lost ; but
'
“
du ring the whole day she seemed anxious to remai n near

the doctor This w a s the first time that she had preferred
.
in her manner any one to Miss Dexter the latter showing ,
the greatest uneasiness at being thus rivaled , and left noth

ing undone to recover her confidence .
The doctor th ought he could see very s t rong evidence of

her speedy and entire r estoration , an d h e in fo r m ed Stand
ish through the messenger that he thought he could pay
, ,
them a visit in the early part of the evening , and as near

7 o cloc k as possible ; and that he must be particularly on
’
‘
his gu ard to express no other feelin g than a warm cordial

ity at their meeting .
The brigade could be seen from the house and the party ,
amused themselves in the afternoon by looking at them

, ,
from a they were going through their evo

lutions—marching countermarching for ming squares fall
, , ,
in g into line wheeling i nto column and advancing en es

, ,
c hel o u ,the doctor familiarizin g her wit h the colonel s ex _

' ’
t d i i w hi h h w h seemed to doubt
'
p e c t ‘ ‘
e v s , c o ev e r s
, e ,
.
S TANDISH THE PURITAN . 223
?” “
Who is that she inquired away yonder , whos e , _
clothes glitter so as he r ides in front of the soldiers and ,

”
whose plume waves in the wind ?
T he doc t or replied pleasan tly Well m y daughter I

“
, , ,
”
am not so young as I once was let me see said he , as he .
,
“
put on his spectacles ; n o w point .
’
She po inted him in the d irection of the fig ure on the

side of the hill .
That ! why that if I can see rightly is General Stand

, ,
' ' '
Ge ne ral who she inquired .
”
Colonel Standish I mean said he , , .
She clasped her h ands together , and for a moment r e

“
mained silent evidently communin g with herself
, God .
be praised ! she exclaimed at last

”
.
Standish held in his hand a spy glass H e turned and -

.
put it to his eye and she was brought close to him ; she
,
extended at the same time her arms looking t ha t w a y b e ,
s eec hin g iy H e could remain no longer ; and although i t

.
was an hour earlier than the time proposed he t u rned over ,
the co mmand to a senior officer put spurs to his horse a n d , ,
advan ced toward the house .
“
H e Is coming she exclaimed he is coming
”
, ,
A s he came near he drew up his horse dismounted and

, , ,
tied him Mr and Miss Dexter were wa t ch in g with in

. .
tense anxiety the meetin g Miss De l E u r seized her by .

’
the hand instinctively Standish took off his hat as he a p

.
r o a c he d a n d with all the calmness he was master of ad

p , ,
v an c ed and took her tenderly by the hand and pressing it ,
in his o w n said , ,
E dith do you not know me

,
“ ” “
’
Tis the voice of Wil l iam Standish said she ; but ,
he was not so scarred : he was fair and did n o t wear suc h ,
clothes a n d he w as younger t o o ; yet oh , tis he ! my long

,
’
»
lost ! ”
H er strength gave way and she wo u ld have sunk upon ,
the earth but he caught her in his arms as he would a n

,
224 S TA N D I S H T HE PURITAN .
infant H e bore her to the house , and it was tho u gh t a d

.
visable to cause her to be conveyed to her apar tm ent to ,
enable her to rally somewh at .
A s soon as she was out of sight he gave vent to his feel ,
in gs H e had seen and h ad had in his arm s the beloved o f

.
his youth as b eau t ifu l a s ever ; yet not to be fully recog

,
n ize d at once was more than he could bear .
T he family of the farmer were agitated at t he app ear

ance in their house for the first time of a man who was
l o cked upon by them as the champion of freedom , and whose
name was never mentioned without reverence A lthough .
his encampment had been a long time in the neighborhood ,

yet he had never before paid them a visit T hey sa w his .
grief and did what was in their p ower to relieve him He

, .
excused himself by saying he would return in the evening ,
and then moun ted his horse and slowly rode to the enc amp '
m ent .
It is rare , yet it sometimes oc curs that death is busy ,
with a whole family at the same time , an d the circle that

in each other was gay and happy have disappeared like a ,
dream in a few month s and if perchance there is one that

, ,
h a s been spared in the spring ti m e of life , he is to be pitied

-
,
if he has a sensitive mind , far more than they who h ave '
gone be fore him H e finds himself a stranger upon the

.
earth ; he looks around at the annual festive board and

—
,
sees the gatherin g of families together the hilarity at

tending it —the a ff ections bestowed—mutual gifts and m u
tual pledges—but he sits himself down alone T he r ec o l .
lection of former days and former kindnesses oc cu py th e

mind but to freeze the soul Youth is n o t prepared for this
.
desolation of the heart N ature has n o t prepared him to

.
live without parents, or brothers or sisters ; their place can

,
n o t be supplied because at that age it is unusual and n u

,
natural ; n o matter how many professions of friendship or

kind attentions others may show they can not fill t he void ,
when the heart is thus blighted .
And thus with Stan d ish ; ardent in te mp e r a ment sin ,

s t in c t peculiar to them they would survey one par t a n d ,
then the other and were sure to reject that which was near
,
-
enough to the ground to be within his reach

, _ .
Standish soon made his appearance and the friends of

“
Miss De l E u r were as much rejoiced as surprised when

‘
’
-
with dignity a n d grace she arose to receive him The sim .
l ic it of the child or rather it s in d isc r et io n s had d is a p

p y
'
, , , ,
p ea r ed and in its place the woman stood

, H er cheek was .
p ale but the eye soft a n d ex p r essive H er tall but fragile

'
, .
figure contrasted with his powerfu l though apparently slight

m ade person The hardy soldier— his naturally fair com
.
plexion bronzed by exposure to the weather a n d his mili ,
tary costume s et o ff and fully defined the fair creatur e

,
whose hand he held grasped in his own H e led her to the .
door a n d in an under voice exclaimed

, ,
“
Heaven be praised ! I h ad supposed that I was t he
mere plaything of fortune but I a m fr o m henceforth per ,
'
”
su a d ed that I am not entirely cast o ff .
H e look ed down intently upon her as her head drooped ,
lest her mind was st ill wandering ; but his eye brightened ,
and the smile as of other days came over his features as

, ,
she replied ,
“
I feel n o w a new life and our preservation until this ,
day and our meeting here in this strange way satisfy me

, ,
that there is a P rovidence that has ch eckered our lives for

’
some good purpose and I have n o question but that his,
glory and our happiness will be the end , and that the
changes and y ieiss it u des we have felt are the means through
,
”
which it will be obtained .
They remained silent for some moments , looking into the "
expanse above them when he said to her Do you r eco l , ,
lect that star in the east E dith which you pointed out to
‘
, ,
me the first evening th at we ever p assed together ? ”
“ ” “
Yes quite distinctly she replied ; I have watched
, ,
its risings as long as I c an remember It s superior bright ~
n ess fir st attrac t ed my attention At last it became one .

,
of my familiars and I learned the; day a n d hour of its ap

,
-
ea r an c e , an
p when it setdit seem ed as if there was some
thing wanting I became uneasy until it appeared again
. .
“
I am continued she a l ittle superstitious too I do not
, , .
know how it is but when I see it obscured I feel as if

,
some evil portends some pleasin g influencesh ave gone

,
, .
Indeed I look at it a s the star of my destiny In ancient

, .
times it was believed that partic u l ar ones influenced certain

persons I have sometimes thought it mi ght be so and
.
,
that when we die some mysterious agent would carry those

”
there who ar e thus influenced by it here .
“ ”
The mysteries with which we are surrounded he r e ,
“
plied h ave prepared me to doubt noth ing where general
,
laws ar e clearly ascertained but of those la ws few of them

are within the reach of man s feeble intellect—those only
, ,
’
the most obvious to his senses I have often regretted .

,
“
said he that so many of the ob servations of the aged are
,
called superstitions , and I am n o t prepared to say that thus

the world has n o t l o st much that mere philosophy never can
attain The latter may labor on and the more it labors
.
, , ,
the fu rther the works of God recede from it until it finds ,
itself precisely where it began T he philosopher may give .
names to the elements and ascertain the relation that par ,
ticl es bear to each other but this kn owledge obtained only

tends to show how immeasura b ly the wisd om that created '
them is beyond m an ’s co m p r ehen sio n Y ou speak of your .
”
own superstition I would not said he as he pressed her
.
, ,
hand to his heart have you otherwise ; for as far as my

, ,
observations go the further we advance m the scale of m

,
t el l ec t from the mere idio t who sees as the brute sees to

,
the highest grade of man s estate so in the same ratio , the ’

, ,
more we are disposed to revel i n the sunny world of the fu

ture and invest ourselves with some of the consequence s
,
and mysteries which appertain to the state of man in the .
”
invisible world .
“ “
I am glad to hear you say so said she,
for it is u n , ,
pleasant to be di ff erent from the rest of the world ; an d I

”
should be very sorry to believe that t ha t b r ig ht spot (point
_
N 28 S T AN DI S H T HE PU R I TA N .
“
in g to the star ) was not to be our abiding place when we
~ -
shall leave this world ; and as it influences me here why ,
n o t hereafter I love to gaze upon it and to believe that

?
,
u r it an d goodness dwell there There are o t her st ar s

’
p y
‘
.
adapted to other dispositions and wishes Why should it .
? ”
n o t be so
“
The doctor now came t o the door , and said kindly , Y o u
must n o t keep my dau ghter in the op en air too long She
ha s a little flush of the che ek n o w—perhaps a little fever
.
Come in ! come in
H e had hardly repeated these wor ds whe n a horseman
dismounted and inquired for G eneral Standish and said to
, ,
him in a voice su fficiently loud to be heard that the enemy

, , ,
i n great force were advancing from below ,

In a moment .
after an aid came from the camp and gave him the same ,
information H e calmly directed that each m a n should

.
supply himself with three days provision that the baggage

,
’
,
wagons should be sent to the rear under a strong guard ,
and that all should be ready to march .
Miss De l E u r heard all this and in s ome alar m she in

’
,
quired what it all me ant H e smiled upon her and said , .

,
See ho w brightly our star of destiny shines Loo k upon .
it an hour hence as I shall do prob ably in battle I am , , .
strong in the faith that I shall b e preserved and I wish you ,
to think so too That we shall finally overcome our ene.
mies and that this beginning in time will end in the free
,
dom of a mighty empire I firmly believe Do yo u believe , .
? ”
with me said he .
“ ”
I do she replied , .
“
I must leave you now ; my count ry calls E re long I .
shall see you again never in this world , I trust to — b e sep

, ,
ar a t e d .
”
She held him firmly by the hand and went to the d oor ,
“
with him A s she raised her eyes t o the star How red
.
,
” “
it looks ! she exclaimed It portends I fea r a fearful .
, ,
struggle .
“
D o u bt n o t ! doubt n o t ! d o you promise m e
23 0 STANDISH THE PURI TAN .
t in u al
roll of musketry went o n ; u n t il G en er a l S t an dish ’
'
h ad receded as far as the eye could reach A t last the r e .
ports could be heard no longer in the distance but the b ea v ,
ens were illumined as if by an Aurora Borealis ; the fl a sh

es reflected upon the sky a t intervals denoted t he same
, ,
regularity of firin g as when they commenced , until it faintly

died a way in feeble flic ker in gs upon t he p a ssin g cloud '
Miss De l E u r bore the whole to the amazem ent of the

’
.
rest of the p a r t y , wit h quite as much fortitude as the rest

.
of them assurin g them that however much she deplored

‘
, ,
the sacrifice of li fe she f el t assured that General Standish

,
‘
was safe for she now began to believe tha t he was on a

.
,
mission that had for its end the accomplishment of a great

,
work P oor Miss Dexter felt in far greater need of conso

.
_
lation than her friend and there was litt le rest there th at
,
night and long before day they all took to their carriage
, ,
making the bes t of their way to the city leaving the poor ,
farmer and his family l n the greatest alarm expectin g , on ,
the return of the E nglish army , to have every thing de

stroyed ; even should they escape with their lives By e asy ‘
, .
stages they arrived in N ew York in less than two days

, .
The t in b o x was examined and found to contam not only ,
a long correspondence between the late Mr De l E u r and .

’
his uncle but the evidence of considerable p r o p er t y in E n

'
gland as well a s in N ew E ngland A vessel was ready to . .
sail an d Mr Thu r wo o d dispatched the additional evidence

,
.
to the proper o fficer of the lineage of the De l E u r s and their

(
’
connection with the last Lord S t even dal e .

C HAP T E R X I .
A MO N T H had elapsed afte r the arrival of the party when

a new commission was ordered for the trial of George de
l E u r upon the specifications that had before been objected
’
,
again st him H is close confinement had impaired his health

.
,
yet he utte red n o c o m p l a in t a n d was only desirous that his

,
'
trial might be proceeded with as quickly as possible Dur .
in g his imprisonment he gained e very heart that had a o

cess to him ; an d the most of his visitors whether through ,
curiosity or pious motives never went away without being

,
impressed with his innocence of a n y intentional wrong .
A fter the arrival of his sister and her comparative res

,
t o r a t io n to health a n d the improving condition of his moth

,
er he even appeared cheerful and built up in t he fu t u r e

, ,
'
many a quiet and hallowed hour such as the pensive mind ,
delights to revel in H is mind was one capable of the u t

.
,
most enjoyment ; for in it s serenity and composure the lit

tle thi ng s which disturb the many or make up t he sum ,
of their happiness passe d by him as the idle wind

, He .
found n o en j o ym en t except in the anal y zation of a p hil o s

‘
o h
p y that had for its basis the divinity which pres ented it
self in each and every atom of physical nature H e held .
that the a ffections of the sexes toward each other in mari

tal life were based upo n mutual responsibilities and moral
obligations while the former was Spontaneous in its origin
, ,
and seemed to be directly operated u p on by the great hand

that presides in the spiritual world With such sentiments , .
,
he seized hold of the broad principles of right an d wrong ,
little understanding the sophistry that a base mind will use

to make them yield to suit its pecul iar necessities ,
.
N o t conceiving or understanding how his solemn a ssev

e r a t io n of his innocence could be q ues t ion ed he was not a ,
23 2 S T A N D IS HT HE PU R f T A N .
litt le s u rprised when he was informed that his trial was at

hand a n d that the issue was one of life or death
, .
Mr Dexter upon return ing home from his short journey

.
, ,
immediately rep aired t o the prison to counsel and advise

with him H e found him self po ssessed affable a n d an x
.
-
, ,
ious that the day of trial should arrive but was equally so ,
licito n s that his sist er should remain in ignora n ce of his sit

n ation lest it might sho o k her nerves
, M r Dex t er busied . t
himself in taking notes of his convers a tion , in order to be :
come accurately ac quainted with the history of the case ,
the better to enable hi m to sift out such circumstan ces as

would be the most lik ely to make in his favor .
A t length the day of trial arrived , and the prisoner w a s

conducted under a guard to the place appointed H e was
, , .
dressed in black and was supported by t he arm of Mr D ex

,
‘
‘
ter H e bowed to those in the windows who appear ed to

.
,
look down with sorrow upon one so young and handsome ,

a n d , withal with a face so expressive of innocence
, Lo ng .
before he had arrived the spacious ro om Wa s filled with the

‘
wives and daughters of o fficers of the garrison anxious to ,
get a sight of him who had the hardihood to connive with

t he n o t o r io u s Standish in making his descent upon the
.
to wn They for the most part , had expected to se e a ruf

.
,
fian , whose exterior would comport with his blood y designs ;

but what was thei r surprise when th ey beheld led in by t he ,
soldiers a young gentleman of nob le b earing whose every

, ,
look was that of a kind and generou s nature H e Wa s pale .

,
it was true but it was the pallor occasioned by c o n fin e

,
ment, an d not by guilt H is light brown h air g ave him .
even a more j uvenile ap p earance than was really the case .
A s he en tered a buzzing noise filled the room A dozen

'
, .
“ ”
voices a t the same time in quir ed Who is that ?
while ,
a dozen other fair daughters turned to half a s many moth

“
ers and said to them , I hope it is n o t that handsome
,
young man they ar e going to hang while several m o t h ers

“
informed their daughters that handsome young men were
generall y t he worst and that they must always b e cau , ,
and those who had gone there to see a rough and uncouth ,
individu al could not repress giving utterance to their amaze

,
ment when they discovered t he va st d ifler en c e between the fi
creature of their imaginations and that wh ich they witness

ed with their own eyes H e was tired of his imprisonment
.
,
and as he felt strong in his innocence he did not n o r could , ,
he realize the consequences of a conviction The day was

, .
principally occupied l n preliminaries ; and as the material

facts with other c i rcumstances were admitted the co u rt
, , ,
adjourned for the d aa in order to allow t he prisoner to write

v
,
out his defense ; an dhe was a c c or din gl y c o n du c t ed back to

prison with a m ultitude of people pressing a ft er h im to
,
-
gratify a morbid curiosity in witnessing a fellow being in a -
co n dition worse than themselves .
A fter Mr Dexter had returned home he appeared ill at

.
,
e a se w h ic h his daughter discovered and for the first time ,

'
, , ,
b eg a n t o suspect the cause She h ad been led to suppose.
that Mr De l E u r would be released as a matter of course

.
’
,
and was fondly looking forward to the time when they

might again be t hr o wn t o g et her ; but the anxious appear
ance of her father showed too plainly his own fears She .
,
believing his j udgment to be unerring retired to her room , ,
and gave utterance to her feelings in the anguish of her

heart .
The evening was a pleasant one and her father sent for ,
her to take a walk with him Wishing to conceal her feel .

~
ings , she put on as much cheerfulness as possible and in a ,
few moments was ready They passed on from one street .
to an other in silence , u ntil th ey came to the open fields ,
and in sight o f the old j ail with its gloomy walls rusty
'
, , ,
iron barred windows and hooks of the same material fring

-
,
i n g t he eaves of the uncouth pile A little to the west of .
the pr ison was a row of half a dozen gallows furnished with ,
halters ready to meet the dem and of the hapless v ictims

,
that were almost daily consigned to them for political o f

f en ses In the second story of the southwest corner there
.
was a faint light which was dimly reflected through the

,
iron grating a n d when they had approached sufficien t ly

,
near they heard a melancholy tune from the flute It flo a t

,
.
<
ed soft and sweetly upon the air It was a sad memento .
of the past and told of thoughts borne back to happier days

, ,
while it was also tinged with fear of the future .
“
I believe Mary that you are n o t ac quainted with Mr
, ,
.
”
De l E u r are you said her father
’
,
? .
“ ”
I have se en him once only she replied timidly , , .
”
A y I forgot
, I recollect you told me
. Mr Dexter . .
breathed heavily .
“
I am informed he is on trial for treason father H e , .
c an not be guilty ? ”
No daughter he is not ; but I have n o confidence in a

, ,
court martial It is rare that one finds a well disciplined

.
-
mind in a military man They suppose humanity to be

‘
incompatible with their profession , and that t heir glory is

”
necessarily to be gaged in blood .
You do not fear H ere she faltered and was una ,

“
ble to proce ed with what she intended ; but added In ,
? ”
wh at part of the prison is he father ,
“ ” “
H e is in the room was the reply from which the
, ,
light proceeds and it is he who is playing upon the flute

,
.
”
It is a favorite instrument of his .
”
Can you not save him she asked
?
,
.
P risoners are not allowed counsel b y martial law and ,
it is a matt er of favor that I am permitted to throw out

su g g est io n s t o him ; but he appears determin ed n o t to shel
ter him self under them and has already made admi ssion s ,
that were quite unnecessary .
M iss Dexter was unable to resume the conversation , and

expressed her desire to return home H er father discover .
ed her agitation but did not suspect the true cau se which
,
produc ed it T hey returned in silence In their lonely

.
'
ra m ble they had seen the pri son that held the object of their
"
so l c it u de a n d the gallows too awaiting its victim
, They , .
ha 1 heard perhaps the last strain which told of depar t ed

, ,
h p p in ess that he was ever destined to make , and the fee

ble light that showed the cold walls to George de l E u r that ’

‘
night when closed perhaps to him was closed for the last
,
time These reflections rendered that night to t he father

.
, ,
one of anxious solicitude ; to the dau ghter one of intense ,
agony ; yet so gentle and meek was she l n her deportment ,
that no one would have suspec t ed how utterly blighted was

her heart The night w as a cru el one to bo th of the m but
.
,
the morning was more painful still for then he Was again
—
to be dragged from his prison to b e mad e a spectacle in
the streets—to confront those who seemed thirstin g fo r his
blood The public like an over zealous m an frequently
.
,
-
,
demands a victim , without much regard to his guilt or in

n o c on ce ; and there were many loyal men then in and out ,
of the a r my who thought it would be a disgrace to the

,
community if some one was n o t punished for the lives which

had been lost in preventing the attempt to land on that f a
tal night .
The clock had hardly told the hour of ten l n the morn
ing when a multitude of men was seen rapidly advancing
fro m the prison and the nearer it ap p roach ed the den ser it
,
bec ame The populace had the day be fore , been appr ised
.
,
.
of the trial and of its being adjourned over for that day
, ,
and they had at an early hour cluste red around the j ail to
, ,
witness the departure of the accu sed .
There had one taken her seat in a far o ff corner , but

.
-
where the officers who formed the court could be seen as

“
well as the prisone r and that individual was Mary Dexter

, .
The heart that shr u nk from the gaze of man and keenly ,
fel t for others had braced itself to wi tness the ordeal that
,
George de l E u r was destined to go through In the m ean

’
.
time the seats were all filled , and hundreds were at the
,
door who could not obtain an entrance The officers as on .

,
the day before had pla ced their swords upon the table and
, ,
were awaiting the a rrival of the prisoner when of a su d , ,
den a m ass of men came rushing on like a torrent and

, ,
“
those who had him in custody hoarsely called out Make ,
”
way for the prisoner ! T hose who lined the entrance to
23 8 S T A N D I S H T H E P U R I T AN .
many a handkerchief was employed 1 n Wi p m g aw ay a trib

n t e to the feelings of the b standers
y
-
.
T he su dden termination of the t r ial a n d the evident se

‘
’
tence that must follow had quite paralyzed Miss De

,
'
H er eyes became fixed u pon the prisoner ; not a n .
m oved The prevailing expression of her face was a st o n i

. s
ment ; and even yvhen the s entence was passed a n d p r o m u l

gated that he m u st die upon a g ibbet the following day
‘
,
n o other expression succeeded except a rigid al en ess w hic l1

p ,
is rarely seen except in death .
The court broke up and the prisoner was h urried back

,
in the same manner that he had been ushered into court .
From among the multitude who was leaving the place of

trial Mr S n ifl in g was seen to emerge into the open a i r
, . .
H e exhibited his satisfaction of all th at had taken place by

“
a shrug of the shoulder accompanied by the remark that
,
such was the fortune of war ”

.
A fter the first blow was over Miss Dexter recovered ,
somewhat her self possession and felt determined to do what ,
her feeble e ff orts would permit to save the p 1 iso n er s life ’

.
The morn ing was well advanced and they were in the habit ,
of executing the condemned as soon as daylight appeared .
She at once resolved to proceed to the quarters of the gen

eral in chief and th ere beg for his life ; and she imm ediately
- -
,
put her resolve into execution S he found him surrounded .
by a brill iant staff and the gay and light hearted young
,
men who c om p osed it were talkin g as cheerfully as if noth

.
“
in g had occurred It was announced that a y o u n g l a dy
'
.
”
was waiting to see the general .
“
A young l ady ! quoth he looking mockingly m yst er i
”
,
ous at his brother officers and which was carried out with
,
sly winks by them Miss Dexter saw the whole a n d u n

.
,
d er st oo d it ; the blood came indignantly into her face ; a n d

when the general b owed a n d invited her t o retire to an in
n er room she said to him with spirit and fir mness that
, , ,
of a public nature a n d required n o se ,
crecy She then look ed around indi gnantly u pon the gen
.
'
t l em who had been dispo sed to amuse themselves at her

en
expe nse in so expressive a manner that they perceived the

insult was understood and appreciated They accordingly .
“
one after another left the r oom until Miss D exter found
, ,
herse lf alone with the commander in chief She s hortly - -

.
told her story and the attachment that had long existed
,
between the sister of the prisone r and t he rebel Standish ,
and that she had good reason for saying that the visit of
‘
the latter to the town was intended expressly for her .
The general he ard her with much seeming attention and ,
appeared to sympathize with her in her distress ; and as

she dropped upon her knees a n d begged for De l E u r s life ’ ’
,
he kindly raised her up and told her that he had felt much ,
m oved for the young man and that the signing of the death ,
warrant ha d been one of the most p a in fu l a c t s of his li fe ‘

.
“ ”
But you must not forget said he kindly taking her by , ,
the hand the consequences of his rash attempt in aiding

,
to effect a lan ding of a boat s crew of armed m en thereby ’

,
occasioning the deat h o f a number of his majesty s subjects

'
’
.
” “
If the act continued he, was of a m ilitary characte r by
,
the rebel enemy then the aiding a n d abetting t he m w a s

'
one of the highest crimes that a m a n could be guilty

Miss Dexter saw that she was exp ending her time to n o
purpos e and that probably the victim s grave was already
,
’
dug She took a hurried leave with the involuntary ex

.
,
pression of Oh ! heav enly Father save him !

,
”
,
H alf frantic she proceeded home On her way she en

, .
,
co u ntered near her house Zimri Freeborn She hurriedly

, , .
asked him if he knew where General Standish was H e .
“
informed her , in his usual quiet manner that he had '
,
crossed over t o the J a r szes with his brigade and was aft er ,
”
the Hessians .
“
Can you inform General Stan di sh that George De
”
l E u r is condemned by a court martial to die
’ ?
“ ”
Yes he replied
,
.
Here y t hen is some money You must lose n o time

,
.
.
She hardly knew what she did or what she said or t he ,

2 40 S T -
ANDISH THE
object of it Distres sed to the utmost and weary with her
.
,
e ffor t s and the exci t ement of the morning she regained her ,
room and threw herself upon her bed in the grea t est de
,
s ai r
p .
S ever a l hours had el apsed while she lay in a half u n co n -
scious st a t e when she heard the do o r o p e n and her father s

,
‘
,
’
ever welcome fo otsteps enter She al so as was usu al with

- .
,
him heard his inquiries after her with a solicitude that

, .
denoted his fears that she might b e ill or that so mething ,
h ad happened as a nervous per son will on receiving a mes

,
sage from a dear friend before he has read its contents .
She soon arranged her toilet and went down to m eet hi m , .
H e was too much absorbed with the afflicting e vents of the

last two da ys to appe ar in his usual serene manner ; his
mind seemed rapidly passing from one thing to another .
H e arose from his chair walk ed a moment and then seated, ,
himself again his d ap g ht er looking a t his apparent dis

, ,
-
tress with most anxious solicitude fea ring to a s k h im a ,
question lest the answer should have n o hope She had

, .
such entire confidence in his power and resources that she

did not entirely despair of his arresting the execution of the
extreme penalty to which George De l E u r ha d been con ’
signed A t last she summoned su fficient cour age to ask

.
”
if Mr S n ifl in g had not some influence at head quarters
.
-
.
” “
That o ccurred to me an hour ago he replied I ,
.
”
have taken measures a cc ordingly .
”
Do you think there is hope ?
Not unless it be through the cupidi ty of Mr S n ifl in g /

. .
? ”
In what manner do you allude to father ,
He w ishes to buy Oakford A p art of t he fee is in the

'
prisoner ; a n d I do n o t feel boun d under the circumstances , ,
to inform him of t he escheat in consequence of h is being

”
attain ted of treason .
“
Where is Mr S n ifl in g she timidly inquired
. .
I have given him to understand that it might take a

w eek or so to make out the title deeds & c a n d t hat a ,
.
,
short reprieve would be necessary He is n o w at head .

242 STANDI SH THE PURITAN '
ing her son 7

These and a hundred other matters pain
.
, ,
fully passed through th e mind of Mr D exter and he had .

,
n o sooner resolved upon o n e course to pursue tha n a dozen
difficulties presented themselves which rendered it im p r a c ,
t ic ab l e until the afternoon of the second day had passed away .
Mr De l E u r sent a note , at t his time t o M r Dexte r r e

.
’
, .
,
questi n g him to have the papers ready to execute as his ,
mother and sister would require the avail s of the sale to

s u b sist upon and also requestin g him to accompany them
,
to the prison prior to the hour of his execution inasmuc h ,
as since his conviction they would n ot allo w him to make

, ,
his usual visits

‘
Mr Dexter an d his daughter immediately pr o ceeded to

.
the cottage to m ake known t hat which they felt convinced

,
would overwhelm them a n d it was this duty a n d nothing ,
less imperative that induced them to er fo r m the mela n

,
c ho l y task Miss Dexter passively obeyed her father s sug ’

.
gestions and seemed listless to alm o st every thing which

,
transpired A deep and settled gloo m seemed to l o c k u p

.
e very thing li ke animation in her features .
They found the mother a n d daughter walking beside the

river the l atter supporting as well as her delicate frame
, ,
Would permit the totteri n g steps of the former P er c eiv

, .
ing the carriage as it drove up they hastened back to t he ,
hou se and as E dith was about embracing her friend as

, ,
w as customary with her she involuntarily started b a c k as ,
she looked u p o n her rigid features There was n o cordial '

.
ity in re t urn but an unnatura l settling down of her frame

, .
H er father was n o t much more composed than herself .
Mrs De l E u r p erceiving the despair depicted in the

.
’
,
face of both of them in stantly divined the cause an d her , ,

“
fi rst exclamation was Oh ! what ha s hap p en ed to my , '
son R eceiving n o answer she was confirmed in her con ,
j ee t u r e that the worst had befallen him She sank upon .
“
the earth and as she gasped for breath , repeated , O h, my
,
son ! my son ! my murdered son ! ”
The situation of Mrs De l E u r required a l l the energies .

’
STANDISH T HE f P U R I T A N . 2 43
of the whole party to b e exerted to restore her to some sort

of composure Diana was inst antly a t hand an d with the
.
'
, ,
aid of Mr Dexter removed her t o her apartments She

.
, .
seemed after this quite unc onscious excepting when at

, , , ,
“
intervals she exclaimed ,
Do n o t let them murder my ,
boy H e never harmed any one in his life P oor George !

. .
c ome and comfort your old mother and do n o t let her die ,
so ! ”
E dith with almost superhuman composure went to
, ,
her bedside and taking her hand soothed her by saying

, , ,
tha t they must hope for the best ; but the only reply which
“
she was enabled to get was Oh do not let them murde r , .
him ! Good , kind people he i s my he y ; do not kill hi m ,
Mr Dexter saw that it was out of the question to con

.
vey her to the prison the coming night to take leave of her
'
son But Miss De l E u r anxiously express ed her solici t ude

.
’
to see him and arrangements were made to take her there

,
an hour before the break of day For a few moments she .
seemed lost in medit ation A solitary tear stood upon the .
ball of her large clear eye a s it was upcast in silent sup ,
plication Her light h air h ad fallen from its fastenings

.
f '
upon her n ec k and shoulders There was a look that seem .
ed not t c b el o n g to earth and the superstitious might have

r
easily believed that she was about win gin g her way t o the
Mr Dexter and his daughter left the cottage after in ti

.
mating that he would send the deed to be executed as soon

as he arrived home and would call himself to take Miss De
,
l E u r to t he pr i son at four the next morning

’
.
In the mean time Mr Thu r woo d had been busy in cir , .
c u l a t in g a petition addressed to the comm ander in chief for - -
either a pardon or commutation ; but he was met , in the

most of his app l ica t ions by indiff erence or anathemas . ,
against the prisoner H e endeavored to obta in admission.
to the commander in chief but co uld n o t succeed ; and as

- -
, ,
the sun went do wn he felt that nothing cou l d avert the

,
sentence being carried into e ff ect H e had endeavored to .
enlist the influence of Mr Snif fing but the only answer he .

,
got was that he felt delicate i n further troubling the gen

,
eral upon the sub j ect , as he had already procured a su sp en

”
sion of the execution for three days A s all hope was now .
over the d eed w a s sent to the cottage and afterward to

,
~
the prison and executed Mr Dexter demanding and r e

, ,
.
c eivin
g the purchase m oney in gold of Mr S n ifl in
g to the .
extent of five thousand pounds currency

The after part of the day becam e chilly Murky clouds
.
were flying one aft er the other from the northwest and ,
when the sun went down it was veiled i n cold blue clouds , ,
and soon afterward the whole expanse of heaven was black ;

not a star could b e seen an d the wind was pierc ingly cold-
,
,
“ l ”
It looks like a s t orm t o n ight , said Miss Beverly to
Mr S n iflin g While they were playing a game of 10 0 at the
Q
,
.
,
ho u se of the former in ueen street -

.
“ “
It feel s lik e sno w said Mr Sni ffing It is time , . . .
We have now the 20t h of December and we hav e had but ,

” “
very little B y t he b y continued he . are you fond of
- -
, , ,
sl e i hi
g r g
“
I do not know whether I a m o r n o t as we ne ver have -
snow to lay long enough in E ngland to make the ex p er i

”
ment .
“
I beg your pardon I now recollect of hearing that you
‘
do n o t Should it snow sufficiently to night , perhaps you

.
-
”
would lik e to try to morrow -
.
Miss Beverly bowed an assent They had become so

, .
much absorb ed in the game that it was near midnight b e ,
fore they were conscious of the length o f t im e that had been

consu m ed .
Neither Mr Dext er n o r his daughter had gone to bed a t

.
all The night was one of anguish They did n o t a t

. . ,
tempt as usual to console each other as when ordinary

, , ,
misfortunes had occur red ; but deep sighs alone escaped

them and these , with the waili n g of the winds out of doors
, ,
were all that broke upon the silent monotony of the night .
A s fo r the prisoner s mother she had become almost pass ’

,
ive as she lay l n her b ed A feeble exclamation occas i on .

246 S TANDISH T HE P U R I T A N .
Mr Dexter Diana to avoid det aining him had carefully

.
, , ,
wrapped Miss De l E u r up in her warmest attire She ’

.
had not waited long ere he made his appearance with his
daughter E dit h opened the front door when a huge drift
.
,
of snow that had piled itself up at the entrance came

, ,
tumbling i n upon her Mr Dex t er muffled in his great . .

,
coat , made his way through it Wret c hedness was depicted .
upon his face and h e seemed n o t to know wh at to say or

,
do H e was not a little surprised to find E dith ready to

.
encounter the storm ; and though her countenance was o n e

“
of deep sorrow yet it was n o t of despair P 0 0 1 little
‘
, .
” “
s o ul said he to himself she can not realize the horrible ‘
,
.
scene that 1 s to follow

Mr Dexter We n t to the carriage and brou g ht his dau ghter
.
in his arms E dith tenderly em b r aced her but there w a s

.
,
n o retur n of affection ; u n consciousness had come u p on he r ,
and she was in but a l it t l e b et t er sit u a t io n t ha n Mrs De ' ‘

-
.
l E u r herself
’
It became ev i dent that it would be madness
.
to attempt to take either of them to the prison .
Do I n o t hear a rapping at the door said E dith as ,
she listened attentively .
“ ”
It is the j arring of the e a sem en t b y the wind replied ,
Mr Dexter . .
“
I am sure it was a rap at the door said she , as she ,
hastily went and opened it .
“ ”
Softly , softly said a person muffled to the ears III a
, ,
great coat with a handkerchi ef tied tight round his head

-
,
the whole covered with snow E dith su r veyed him w it l i

o ,
astonishment fr om head to foo t as she saw the end of a ,
saber reachin g b elow the bottom of his coat .
“ ” “
Who an d what are you said she who are o b t r u d , ,
in g upon the afflicted at this time of night ? ”
“
I am Willia m Standish of t he Continental arm y r e , ,
plied the stranger looking E dith l n the face which he saw

, ,
by the re flection of the lamp that was burning i n the hall .
“
I am come to rescue y o u r brot her Who 1 s i n the inner
.
room he quickly asked

7 ”
. .
a
“ ”
God aid you , Will iam ! E dith feebly articulated .
” “
Show me quick t o so m e apartment he said ‘
I want ,
information and do n o t wish to incur the hazard of com

,
m u n ic a t in g wit h a n y one more than I can help

'
”
.
She opened a door to t he left of the hall , which led into

a room unoccupied an d he stepped into it , .
E dith quietly returned to the room as if n othing had c c

curred and Mr Dexter had forgotten what had called her
,
.
“ ” “ ’
to the door . It is three o clock said he and as the , ,
s now is deep we shall have to go slow

, Do you feel able .
to a ccompany me he tenderly asked of E dith

‘
“ ”
In a f e w moments I will be ready she replied w ith , ,
”
a cheerfulness that surpri sed him H ow is it thought .
,
“
he that women are never strong only when the mighty
,
? ”
are to b e vanquished Strange order of nature !
E dith excused herself for a f e w moments and then h ast ,
ily returned to Standish H e rapidly inquired of her the .
hour of execution and if she knew of any one in whom

,
she could confide who knew where t he sentinels were placed

about the prison H e was infor m ed that Diana did ; and
.
she immediately called her to the ro om Diana sta rted

‘
back as she perceived her mist r ess standing by a stra n ger

covered with snow ; her eyes r o ll ed a i1 d she threateningly
'
opened and shut her m ou t h a s she receded On tur ning .
toward him however she got a glimpse of his face , and

, ,
knew him at once .
“ ? ”
Golly Massa William where you come from
, ,
Hush ! hush ! Diana said E dith

”
, .
A s soon as Diana knew what was wanted she said she ,

.
wo u ld go along and show him t he way Sta ndish then in .

>
formed E dith that twenty confidential men had c rossed

with him from the Jersey shore ; that they were waiting
for him out of doors ; an d that he had been informed from ,
time to tim e of what was going on by Zimri H e advise d

, ,
.
her that she had better at once go to the priso n and that ,
he would follow o n and re scue her brother when he was ,
brought out for execution .

2 48 S TANDI SH THE PU RITAN 7
.
In a few minutes after Mr Dexter and Miss De l E u r .

’
h ad left Standish and his men with Diana as a guide

, ,
-
were on their way in t he darkness of the night wading to

, ,
their middle among drifts of sno w It came whirling down .
so thick that not a n o b j eet could be seen a feet before them ;

l
but there was no part of the neighboring country which

h a d not a hundred times been explored by Diana an d al ,
though the pathways were all filled u p yet she accurately ,
led them to a morass but n o w frozen over perhaps an eighth , ,

“
of a mile to the north of the prison Dar , dat way i s de .
”
j ail where Massa George be , said Diana , as she pointed
to the south .
While Standish had succeeded in making his way near

to the place he was in quest of Mr Dexter and E dith b e
.
, .
gan almost to despa ir of getti ng to the prison in the car

r ia g e
. The coachman was benumbed with cold and it was ,
with much difficulty that the road could be kept Often .
the horses were compelled to stop and floundering l n the , ,
snow threatened every mo ment to overturn the carriage

, .
A fter much difficulty and delay they succeeded i n gain ing ,
the main road ; this being wider the snow had been swept
-
by the winds to the sides of the fences in huge embank

ments in a thousand fantastic shapes In some places u n .
,
der the lee of an oak or at the corner of a fence , it would ,

'
assu m e the f orm of one of the or der s o f architecture a C c ,
r in t hian , a Doric or an Ionic capital N otwithstanding

, .
the delay they arrived at the prison at the appointed hour

, .
The lights were all out except a yell ow sickly loo king one ,
-
,
that was burning 1 n its socket l n the entrance The under .
’
keeper s room was a little to the right of the iron cased door -
which opened at the foot of the stair case that led to the -
second story , which in diff erent wards contained the pris

oners Mr Dexter and Miss De l E u r had n o t remain ed
. .
’
in the grand entrance long ere they heard a noise in the

u nder keeper s room as if some one was kindling a fire
-
’
A .
m oment after two persons were talking toge ther

, .
“ ” “
I say Jack said one of them , when do you take hi m
, .
‘
2 50 S T A N D I SH T H E P U R I T A N .
him they remained until the c x ec u t io n er sho u l d arrive

,
.
A t last a stamping was heard below as if detaching the ,
s now from the feet and t hen a n cise as if a simultaneous

‘
dropping of h alf a dozen muskets upon their ends It was .
n o w not far from daybreak , when one of the persons before

referred to came 1 nto the room with a cord and shroud across
hi s arm an d addressing E dit h sa id
, , ,
.
I am sorry , m a r m to hurry , but the guard s come Is

,
’
.
the gemman asleep what s wanted ’
Mr Dexter and E di th looked upon this preparation with

.
horror and as a piece of barbarism unworthy the age in

,
which they lived S he fell upon her brother and awoke

“
.
,
him by pressing her cheek t o his , and with m e a n in g groans .
A fter breathing deeply two or three times he awoke , and ,
his fir st exclam ation was when he looked arou n d , ,
H as not my mother come to take leave of me and t é

‘
,
”
g ive me her blessing ? A h ! well perhaps it is better thus , ,
“
h e continued ; it would overcome her ”
.
In the mean time the h angman s t oo d by much pleased ,
that the prisoner made so light an affai r of it an d several ,
times invitingly held the shroud toward him ; but Mr De .
l E u r not understanding hi m the executioner said

’
, ,
‘
T hese er e ar e y ou m You must put this on ; and ,
'
accompanying the word with the action , attempted to put

the cord over his he ad “
“ ”
S t op sir ! said Mr De l E u r to him commandingly ,
,
.
’
,
A s to the fir st , you can put it on whe n I am dead ; as

for the latter , I can do it myself as soon as you wil l want
to use
“
But it s contrary to law , said the m an
’
.
Then I ll break the ’

the p risoner , in a da d
t er m in ed m a n n er .
The executioner was ab out to cal l up the guard to assist

him in carry ing out the usages in s u ch cases when Mr ,
.
Dexter sli pped another gu inea in his hands , the virtue of ,
which overcame al l his p r evio u s scr u p l es a n d he declared ~
that it was a pity so fine a young man should deserve to

”
h ang B u t I s pose I must tie your arms
.
’
The prisoner .
was about submitting to what seemed inevitable when his ,
sister fell upon her knees and begged the h angman l n the , ,
m os t imploring manner n o t to tie her brother , .
“ ”
Why marm said he don t cry ; I won t hurt him ‘
’ ’
N ever tie my prisoners t ig l zfi—

, , , .
just to answer the law .

.
Come get up that s a pretty puss : I won t tie him n o how

, ,
’ ” ’
, .
The tap of the drum was heard bel ow which meant that ,
he should be brought down H e took leave of his sister .
and Mr Dexter , telling them that he trusted he should meet

.
them in a better world than this a n d enjoining it upon the ,
former to counsel and advise his poo r mother for that whic h
would be the best an d requested his sister n o t to injure her
,
health in mourni n g for him ; that as he felt no regret him ,
self m leaving the world n either should she ; that his fam ,
ily should feel in nowise d egraded by the manner of his

death as he died innocent and that it was the crime and
, , ,
n o t the form of punishment that constituted the stigma , .
A lthough E dith had entire confidence that General

Standish would attempt nothing that he would not e ff ect ,
yet the suspense was a c r u el o n e H e m ight n o t find his

. .
way through the darkness and storm ; a n d if he did it , ,
might be frustrated by a discovery When her brother em .
brace d her a n d as he supposed bade her adieu forever she

, , , ,
utte red a dee p groan an d fell on the bed upon which he had
,
rested during the night Mr Dexter was so entirely u n . .
manned that he was neither able to console nor aid her in

the least E dith had n o t dared t o whisper to any o n e what
.
.
had transpired before they left the house lest something ,
should escape that might frustrate the designs of General

Standish She n o w lay upo n t he bed in a half unconsc ious
.
-
state for nearly an hour , an d every thing in the prison had

been silent : daylig ht had fully made its appearance and ,
the snow had ceased to fall The head keeper now made .
his appearance in the room and asked them how long since ,
the pri soner had been removed and what they were doing ,
there Miss De l E u r gave him all the information l n her

.
’
power .
”
“ Very strange ! very strange ! said he as he t urned and ,
went below .
E dith n ow breathed again as with a new existence She .
felt certain that Standish had completed his work and then , ,
for the first time intimated to Mr Dexter what she sus

,
.
p ec t ed had taken place H e was all amaze m ent H e could

. .
hardly believe what he h a d heard an d m a de her repeat it ,

'
over to him again A s they looked out of the front gratings

.
toward the town detachments o f cavalry were seen wal

, ‘
lo w ing through the snow in every direction ; and shortly

after deep but deadened reports of artillery from the men
,
of war that lay in the H udso n were heard E very thi n g .
was so filled and choked by the fall en snow that sound b e

came unnatural and its elasticity lost ; yet the smoke that
struggled upward from the neighborhood of the shipping
ki t no doubt that it proceeded from them and that the ,
party were disco vered in their retreat to the Jersey shore .
They n o w took their d eparture for the cottage , and on

their way thither they learned th at the garrison were thrown
-
into confusion ; that the guard under keeper executioner ,

-
, ,
and the prisoner had all disappeared in the most mysterious

manner and that they were suspected of being in two boats
,
that were seen from the ships just after daybreak passing , ,
across the river Whether the guard had des erted or had
.
been surprised no one seemed to know But to show thei r

, .
‘
contempt for a broadside thrown after them , they returned

a shot from a small swivel in the st ern of one of the boats ,
a n d then displayed the rebel flag on the e n d of an ear .
Mrs De l E u r was too unwell to hear the glad tidings

.
’
but Diana who had returned long before , showed her de

, .
light in mimicking the contortions of the features of th e

gu ard , who had been gagged to insure their silence .
Miss D exter when she was told of what had occurred

, ,
appe ared like o n e recovering from a deep sleep ; but when

s he began t o realize the truth a flood of tears came to her
,
relief It was however a long time before she could shake

.
, ,
from her memory t he terrors of that fearful nig ht

-
.
2 54 STANDISH T HE PURITAN ,
“
Is it that wicked little bonnet that sets her off or is it ,
”
herself that looks so confoundedly pretty ?
Holloa Thu r wo od cried one of the party as the for

, ,
mer was espied turnin g a corner Who is that point .
"
ing to the direction in which Miss De l E u r was going ’
.
What is that you say Mr E ver in gt o n , .
Who s the lady that passed down the street as you

’
.
? ”
came round the corner
“
, Oh ! you mean I suppose the H onorable E dith de
, ,
l E u r the sister of Lord S t even d a l e

’
, .
“
Oh ho replied one of the party I thought I disc o v ,
” “
ered blood there But pray he inquired who is Lord
.
, ,
”
S t even da l e ? Is he o f the army ?
No ; he is a prisoner of the rebels at p resent but is ex ,

”
ec t ed at camp before long
p .
“
But Thu r wo o d do you k n ew the lady of whom you
, ,
speak
“ ”
Very well he repli ed , .
? ”
Will you i n troduce us
“
It will do you n o good , gentlemen She is engaged . .
“
But it must be broken o ff P ray to whom is it ? ”
.
It is a singular a ffair You could not guess unless you

.
went into the enemy s cam ’
“
Why the j ade ! She shall b e tried for treason But .
who is the h appy man

“
Well I will keep you n o longer in sus pense It is
, .
Brigadier general Standish , o f the rebel army

- .
“
Brigadier who ”they all inquire d
? N ot that outlaw .
,
? ”
whose head is valued at a thousand pounds by the king
“ ”
The sam e faith ! and none other
B u t he is a bru t e — a n il l iterate cl own Thu r Wo od
, .
“
, .
”
Y ou surprise us A h ! you joke , you rogu e , said one of
.
the party looking quizzically at him

, .
No I was never more serious in m y life Hi s true

,
.
. .
”
I speak authoritatively
The d—l ! Do you know of any o n e who has ever
.
“
'
2 :
S TA NDI SH THE PURITAN '
. 2 55
Yes replied Mr T hu r woo d looking at th em with

,
.
,
much gravity I once had the honor of being made a

.
”
prisoner of war by that very same General Standish .
Ha ! ha ! ha ! roared out all of them

” “
When were .
you a soldier ? H a ! ha ! you a prisone r of Standish s , ’
and your throat not cut ? E xcellent ! You must have

be en messing with a detachment of m a r in es o f late I ‘
”
suppose t hey believe all you say .
“ ” “
But seriously said Mr Thu r woo d I accompanied
as a sort of staff volunteer a de t a c hm erit i n an expedition
, , .
, ,
u
p the country and our whole, party was surprised and the
”
most of us made pr isoners .
The curiosity of the you n g men became much excited ,
an d they hurriedly i nquired Standish s age h is appearance

’
, ,
and if he was n o t exceedin gly illiterate Their inquiries .
were answered by assu r in g them that he was not older than

the youngest of the par t y present and that , although he ,
was t a citurn and evidently care worn yet he was a fin e

,
-
,
specimen of the soldier ; and as for his courage they had ,
had too many evidences of it , and disastrous ones too to ,
leave it at all in doubt That he had a sound education.

,
he should think if he could judge from what little he had

,
s een of h im although he smilingly said he doubted much

, , ,
if he could dance a minuet or perform a hornpipe .
Upward of three months ha d elapsed from the time

Standish had rescued Mr De l E u r , owin g to the activity .
’
of the winter campaign before he could communicate a t ,
head quarters ; but in May , there being a little cessation

-
of hostilities he took the O ppo rtunity of communicating the

,
facts at the E nglish head quarters, and stated that he had -
incurred the risk for the friendship he bore his prisoner he ,
h imself being the inn o cent cause of the terrible situation Mr .
De l E u r was in H e also stated that it was his prisoner s

’
.
’
wi sh to return to his mother and sister in N ew York but ,
that he General Standish would n o t allow it unless he had

, , ,
the assurance of his receivin g a full and complete pardon .
T he co m mand n general , upon re ceiving the A merican

256 S T ANDISH T HE PURITAN .
flag had at once dispatched a note to Mrs De l E u r , whos e

, .
’
case he seemed sincerely to commiserate informing her of ,
the above facts and ad ded that he had forwarded such

,
“
pardon to her son , and also that he congratulated her ,
upon reliable information that he was un questionably the,
heir to the baronetage of S t even dal e .
A lmost i m mediately after the onslau ght Standish had

made u pon the gu ard and his capture of his friend , Mr
, .
Thu r wo o d had received full information that the heir a t law

would have been t he elder De l E u r and upo n his demise ’
,
i t descended in m a l e t a i l to t he next of kin .
A s soon as the note had been received E dith , with a ,
light hear t hurried to her friend Mary D exter to impart

, ,
the tidings to the on l y female in t he world who had sym

p a t hiz e d with her in her misfortunes and who s h e had , ,
good reasons to believe could equally share with her m the

,
fullness of her joy H e who could ha ve witnessed that in

.
‘
t el l ig en c e could n ever have suspected the fullness of happi

ness which was shared between them It was not in tears .
,
neither was it in smiles nor in raptures of expression but

'
-
, ,
with a sigh from the bottom of the heart which brought ,
u
p with it the anguish that had long lain there and which ,
imparted to the spirit a serene influence a sense of the in ,
t er p o sit io n of P rovidence , and the thankfulness of a grate

'
ful heart .
Mr Thu r wo o d after hehad re ce ived the last in t elligence

.
,
which assured him of his success h ad c ommunicated the ,
same to head quarters together with the written evidence

-
,
p
o f the facts , for the pur os e of procuring the return of the
prisoner .
A fter a silent and warm embrace , E dith left the house ,
and returned to her mother under the protection of Mr .
T hu r wo o d , who had come in at the moment she was tak

ing her departure A fter they had walked some distance
.
,
E dith remarked to him that t he unwearied interest he h ad

taken for her brother called for some expression of grati
tude but she felt how inadequate her th anks were , a n d
.
Zimri ha d b ec o m e a favorite of Miss Dexter and when

'
:
ever a wheel was wanted a triangle out of place or a screw , ,
loose he was sure to fin d a patron in her she was ever

,
ready to foster a genius that was never at fault and an in ,
d u st r y that never tired She had heard from her father .
h is story a n d her sympathy had b een strongly enlisted

, .
Though he was taciturn on ordinary o ccasions to others , , ,
yet to her he wa s t r a c t ab l e and was happy under her in

'
fl u en c e H e would however always leave the house the

.
, ,
moment Mr Dexter came into it , although the latter took

.
every means to conciliate him and h ad frequently off ered ,
him money wh ich he invariably refused

, H e seemed fear .
ful that some trick was to be played upon him and that it ,
might be the means of his bein g locked up T his worried .
Mr Dexter and he did all i n his power to regain his c o n fi

.
,
dence but it availed nothing ; the more he tried t he shyer

, ,
he was ; and Zimri could often be seen in a morning at the

corner of the street with his machine upon his back wait , ,
in g for Mr Dexter to leave the house for his o ffice that he

.
,
might visit the only creature in the world who felt deeply ;
for his infirmity and who always received him with cor ,
d ia l it y .
Zimri was m aking one of his morning calls and was en ,
j oying himself b efore a good fire in the ante room , when Mr -

.
S n iflin g came i n for the first time in more than two months ,
and before he s a w who it was he w as close upon him , .
Zimri l o oked at him in his quiet manner , but as Mr S n iflin g .
c aught his eye he sprang for the d oor and never stopped a
,
-
rapid walk until he arrived home H e immediately bolted .
himself in or rather bol t ed others out , and , rubbing his

, , ,
head violently with both his h ands he inquired of himself ,
whether the creature he had S een was really Zimri or ,
whether it was a ghost ; a n d , being full of a subject that

had long haunted him he was induced through his heated , ,
imagination to believe that P rovidence had c r e at ed t ha t

,
.
a
strange creature to tra c k him throughout the earth and to ,

“
be present at times when otherwise he could be happy: I
“
. STANDI SH THE PURITAN . 9
”
will e m igrate thought he as soon as I ca n convert my
, ,
goods into gold a n d leave t his goblin to hau nt some one

,
? ”
else Why does he not to rment others
.
Thus thinking and ruminating upon the events of his

,
past life Mr S n iflin g aga i n called to mind the time when

, .
he had imprisoned that poor harmless creature knowing ,
h im to be innocent ; and he came to the conclusion that

the sooner he left the country the happier he would be ; ,
b u t h e seemed to brighten up as it occurred to him that

perhaps he inferred too much against himself an d that ,
pos sibly it was Mr Dexter whom he was after as he was

.
,
gu ilty too This for the time quite consoled him ; although
.
, ,
he had no confidence in resisting e vil spirits hi m self yet he ,
h ad in the ability of Mr D ex t er to do so ; and if the poor .
little crea t ure could have been certain that he would be a t

tacked j ointly with M r Dexter he would have felt quite .
,
sure t ha t t he enterpr is e would h ave failed ; but to be a t

'
tacked in d etail —oh horrible ! and he shuddered as he ,
thought of the little twinkling gray eyes of Zimri The .
b ell rang an d instantly he rang it again A servant came

~
, .
panting to the room to obey t he mand ate of his master .
“ ”
Bring me some brandy ! brandy ! quick The servant .
hurri ed to the butler and the butler ran to the cellar and
, ,
in a mo m ent the magic decanter u pon a golden salver was , ,
invitingly placed before the swimmi n g eyes of Mr S n ifl in g . .
H e clutched the neck of the decan t er with one hand while ,
with the other he grasped t he tumbler and held it with ,
tenacity enough to crush it ; he filled it to the brim and ‘
d rank it o ff at a draught .
For the space of two minutes n o t a muscle stirred neither ,
did he sit down the decanter or the tumbler , but held them
“
without altering his attitude in the least There curse .
,
him ! said he as he threw W1 t h al l his force first the

”
, , ,
tumbler and then the decanter into the fir e place The - .
servant bowed and retired A nother two minutes elapsed .

,
when he arose from his ch air an d bega n in hasty strides to ,
pace the room an d a t the same t ime t o m a ke violent gest

, , .
,
260 s r xn m sn T HE P U R I TA N .
ures Come o n , Zimri ! come on wizard ! imp of Sata n

.
, ,
o u ha ve tormented me long enough but now I am ready to

y . ,
”
meet you and all t he little devils I see around me and
, ,
Mr S n ifl in g put himself in a boxing attitude striking one

.
,
way and then the other as he saw them advancing upon

, , '
him ; but he was soon o ver p o w er ed b y the devils within as

well as those without and he sunk upon the ri ch rug b e ,
fore him and for the space o f two hours was unconscious
of the existence of his grea t est enemy—an uneasy con
, , ,
science .
While Mr S n iflin g was thus tormented hardly a day

.
,
passed that the name of General Standish was not men

t io n ed in the ga zette in connection with an attack , or an ,
encounter in some way with the R oyalists ; and the prison

e r s amo n g the o fficers who had been exchanged or set a t ,
liberty upon their parole were now loud in their praise of ,
the A merican ch ieftain , who they said w a s as human e as , ,
h e was brave and g en er ou s an d c o n fidin g to the last

,
f
.
One day while Mary Dexter and E di t h were sitting in

,
the newly furnished little p arlor at the cottage looking out

-
,
upo n the glassy river and the ships of war that l ay anchored
there Diana who had been to town upon an errand h anded
, , ,
the newspaper to E dith w et fro m t he p r ess She opened ,

'
it and soon a paragraph struck her , written by the editor ,

,
who had been commenting upon an a ff air in whi c h the

R oyalists were worsted Mi ss Dexter saw a slight tinge .
upon her cheek and wondering what could b e there to

,
cause it put her head c lose to E dith s a n d , f o l l o w in g her

,
’
,
i
'
eye hit upon the sentence which seemed t o ab so r b her

, .
A fter commenting on the a ff air that had occurred t he ,

“
editor conclud ed by remarking that he Standish , was n o ,
-
ordin ary personage A ll the o fficers agree as to his high. .
intellect his nice sense of honor his courage yet that his
, , ,
severity of m anner had impressed some unfavorably as to

his temper ; b u t t his evidently grew from the zeal he felt
~
in the cause he had undertaken and the responsibility ,
res t ing u pon him , and p erhaps a m in d_il l at e a se Had .

‘
i
2 62 STANDI SH THE H I T A iv
'
PU .
ments escape a n d go c ar eer l n g about in the flowery field

, ,
breathing upon the rose and the citron a n d then hie away ,
”
to form part a n d parcel of the new born babe -
.
They were interrupted in their conversation by a servant

in a rich livery riding up to the cottage and delivering a ,
note elegantly written and sea l ed wit h much care directed '
to Lady De l E u r , and a similar one to the H onorable

’
E dith de l E u r ’
.
“ ? ”
What can all this mean said E dith as she read and ,
“
l o c k ed with astonishment at the superscription H ave .
? ”
we made ourselves so obnoxious as to be mocked
S he opened the note directed to herself and found it was ,
an invitation to a breakfast party at the house of the gen

eral in chief She conveyed t he other not e to her mother s
- -
.
’
chamber an d found that a l so of the same import What

, .
it meant how or why they were invited was altogether a

, ,
mystery The courtesy was offered and they felt much

.
, ,
against their inclination bound t o go E dith was c on vin c , .
ed that there was some object to be attained beyond mere

civility Why were the p refixes attached to their names,
.
which they were unaccustomed to and which were any ,
thing b u t agreeable to their tastes or flat t ering to their

pride ? It w a s a strange mystery and even the curiosity ,
of E dith had been awakene d ; and although Mary Dexter

k n ew that she herself was too humble a person to be in vit
ed,
.
y et she j
r e o ic ed to see he r
I
friend noticed as she saw ,
that she was yet inclined to a tinge of melancholy

‘
Well I sha l l go my dear friend but it would give me
, k
, ,
far greater ha p p in ess t o breakfast with you in your little ‘
parlor and your good father with us who really has been
, ,
such to me , than any pleasure that I expect from a people

foreign in tastes in h abit s and interests to my own I , , .
can n o t imagine what are the inducements to this civility ,
coming from a man who s carcely six months a go s ig n ed ,

’
,
'
the death war r ant of my brother causing me more angu ish ,
than years o f happiness c a n cancel A s t he invitation is

-
.
for the da y after to morrow I will acco m pany you to town -

, ,
STAN DISH THE PURITAN .
’
2 63
and procure some little things necessary in the arrange

”
ment of my toilet .
A s Miss Dexter had already thrown her shawl on they ,
both in a few moments were on their way to the city .
Their minds ran upon the same subject and that was - .
, ,
what could have induced the greatest aristocrat in A mer

ica to seek this unknown mother and her daughter at their ,
humble dwellin g to make up a p a r t y at his own stately

,
l
“ ”
mansion . Let u s stop he r e said E dith as they came , ,
“
fiear a small shop in William street It was here I sold -
.
my work and here you bought it was it not

, ,
” “
Yes the same place was the reply and there is the
, , ,
fit t l e woman arranging her merchandise the same as when

,
”
I was a child .
“
Good mornin g Mrs Tiff any was the salutation of
, .
,
E dith as she entered the sh e p Mrs Ti ff any looked for a . .
moment and when she discovered who i t was dropped t he

, ,
smile she had worn before and at once put her mouth at a ,
dolorous angle ready to drive a bargain to the best ad va n t

,
age ; and thus she stood behind the c ounter with her head ,
already half t urned in the negative in anticipation that an ,
o ffer for sale of some of E dith s work was about being made
' ’
,
at the same time courtesying to Miss Dexter who had l ong ,
been a profitable customer to the establishment ; but what

was her surprise when sh e heard Miss De l E u r inquiring ’
for some ex p ensive laces She could hardly believe her .
ears She hesitated fo r a moment lest she had m isu n der

.
s t ood her .
“ ”
We have some she at le n gth said but the qu a l i t y
, ,
will want them the day after to morrow to go to an en -

,
t e r t a in m en t his lords hi p the co mmander in chief is to give - -

.
It s going to be a great aff air and my store would get a

’
,
bad name if my supply should fall short ”

.
Miss Dexter saw that the woman did not unders t a nd the
present situation of her friend and she was determined that ,
her feelings should no longer su ff er by her half insolence .
” “
Mrs Tiffany said she
.
, the lady who is making the
,
inquiries is the H onorable E dith de l E u r and the sister ’

,
of Lord S t even da l e and has come to purchase some laces

,
”
for the purpose of attending the party you speak of .
Mrs T iffany was speechless and E dith loo ked at her

.
,
friend half disapprovingly for the publication of what she -
kne wn o t that it existed , and ev en if it did felt not the least ,
honored by the a dventitiou s event it havin g nothing to do ,
with her own merits The p u rchases were made , while .
poor Mrs Ti ff any was so frightened that she hardly knew

.
“
what she was about The Honorable E dith de l E u r !
.
’
”
the poor girl who sold me her work ! alterna t ely ran in her
mind and puzzled her
, .
“
Good morning Mrs Tiff any said E dith in a kind
, .
, ,
but dignified manner , after she had completed per p u r c h a

“
ses and was leaving the store ; you must hereafter be
more liberal with those who labor for a living than you
h ave been with me The want of money is a great m i s
.
”
fortune but the want of feelin g is a far greater one
, .
She could make no repl y , and by her vacant gaze from .
the window it could be inferred that she felt m or e u n c om

f o r t a b l e whil e they w er e t her e th an the pleasure she had
received in the large profits she had made out of the hard
-
labor of her fair customer .
E dith parted with her friend and returned home , and em

ployed herself that day an d a portion of t he next in a r r an g
ing for the events that were to follow Mrs De l E u r was . .
’
hardly disposed to go yet for the sake of her daughter and

, , ,
to break i n upon the dull monotony o f her fife she co n c l u d ,

-f
ed to do so to enable her to se e somethin g of the gay World

,
wi t hin doors .
Long years had passed since she herself h ad seen any

thing of it though in her girlh ood she had loved the me rry
,
dance and the gay assembly and many a noble heart beat
‘
h igh when favored with her hand for the romping reel ; but
yea r s had flo wn so swiftly since the period when she w a s
r
u nited to Mr De l E u r that she had forgot t en that the

’
.
,
fashion s then were n o t the fashion s n o w a n d the he a vy

2 66 . sr x n n r sn T HE AP U R IT A N .
sh e could express They sl owly dr ove t o t o wn and le f t

'
,
.
Mary a t her house They s a id but little on their way and .

,
regretted accepting the invitation It looked cold to thus .
p art w i t h t h eir untiring war m heart ed friend f a friend to

s
.
,
- -
the fri endl ess when the act was uncorrupt ed by the hope of ‘
gain either in position o r the estimation of others freely

,
-
flowing from a pure hear t a n d a generous s oul

'
'
A s they approached the mansion there s ee med a bustling

in front of it A sentinel stood at the door an d a detach
.
,
ment of dragoons were continually passin g up a n d down

the street before the door and carriages with liveried serv ,
ants were drivi n g u p and disc harging t heir o c cupants in

rapid successi on A gentleman was in waitin g at the
.
thresh old of the house to conduc t them to the r ec ep t ion i

'
‘
r oo m s a n d to announce their na m es as fast a s they arrived

'
,
.
T he costumes o f Mrs and M iss De l E u r but more par -

.
i ’ »
,
t icu l ar l y the former attracte d general attention It savored , .
so much of the respec tabil ity an d g randeur o f the olden -
time and the indep e nden ce o f w ea r in g it t oo created such

,
‘
, ,
curiosity and , at the same ti m e respect that the inquiry

, , ,
became general who the distin guished strangers could b e u .
S om e thought them foreigners ; others that the elder was ,
some dowager who looked u pon t he fa shions of her girlhood

as the on l y costumes ever inte n d ed for a lad ‘
A lthough this w a s the first ti m e that Miss De l E u r

.
,
’
,
after she was grown had ever seen E nglish s ociety of the ,
highest ran k yet tru e to t he instin ct of h er nature she

, , ,
bore herself with peerless dign it y a n d self posse ssion though

'
-
,
the blushes of the girl were not lost in the dignity of the
woman .
T he general was seen making his fi w ay through the . .
crowded s aloon ; he w a s inquiring for , and felt a nxious to .
find his new a c qu a in t an d es H e was a in an , perhaps of

, .
,
sixty rather thick set ; he wore b y his side a dress sword

,
.
~
and under his arm he c ar r ied h is chapeau ; i m men se gold -
en buckles fa st e n ed hi s sh oes ; and over a sil ken st o c k ' ‘

'
ing displaying a fifin el y t urned leg he wore the order of

’ ’
-
, ,
S TAN DI SH THE PURI TAN . 2 67
the garter H is hair was powdered and he wore a qu eu e ;

.
,
th e amplitude of his coat and waistcoat gave him an ease

and dignity of appearanc e in s t range contrast to the scanty
made u p Frenchmen several of whom were there who had
-
,
just been paroled He was evidently a courtier ; but a .
head less than the usual size and wanting in some of the ,
requisites of mathematics , showed that he was not a great

general .
H is new visito rs were at length pointed out by the mas

ter of the ceremonies and were formally intr o duced H e , .
o ff ered an arm to each a n d conducted them to a more r e “
tired portion o f the sal o on and introdu ced them to his wife ,
an d daughters and gave himself alm ost exclusively to a t

,
tending to them ; so much so that it was remarked by most ,
of the company .
A gay young c a va fier who had his eye intent u po n ,
E dith ever since he had entered the room threw himself in ,
their way , an d was introduced as the Honorable C aptain

Devereux of the Guards H e appeared about thirty and
, .
,
was a tall and well made m an H e o ffered his arm which -

.
,
was accepted H e endeavored t o make himself agreeable

but his d ialect was so different from her o w n —gnarled
.
,
“
quick indistinct and husky that it str ongly showed its p e

, , ,
c u l ia r it y— se much so indeed that he q u ite failed in his , ,
attempts When he was told that she was reared in a se

.
cluded part of the country where she had never seen so ,
c ie t
, y properly so called he alm ost doub t ed if such could be ,
the case Do you th ink of returning back when the war

.
is over or do you in tend to go ho m e he inquir ed

,
.
“
We hard ly know what we sha l l do It wil l depend .
upon my brother and ,

“ ? ”
I suppose you feel attached to the country
It is qu i te natural It IS t he land of my birth she t e
”
plied and with it are the a t tachments of childhood—ass o

.
,
“
,
c ia t i o n s that can never b e supplied m after l ife n o matter ,
ho w fair may b e the land or how bright the s u n that shines

”
there .
I should su p pose the want of society would be an in ,
”
superable objection .
“
It depends much upon what we call society If it .
.
means honesty intelligence indust ry truth and chari t y

, , , , ,
a residence in their absence would be insupportable : if it

means the cut of a garment , a certain way of making a
bow the gilding of a carriage t he fu r n ishin g of a h ou se or
, ,
'
the grace displayed in a minuet then not h aving been , ,
much accustomed to t hese accomplishments they would be ,
b u t little missed Could these usages be united to t he vir

.
tues it would truly be desirable ; but the human heart can

,
n o t hold too much and its peculiarity seems to be to reje ct
the a c t u a l fo r the a pp arent—indeed I may say the good

,
'
, ,
”
for the worthless .
“
Your estimates seem too low of what some call the es
s e n t ia l s of life an d others even the evidences of civiliza
, ,
tion ; our happiness has much to do with external appear -
a n c es ; and even ar b itrary etiquette has its use in restrain

”
in g and refining coarseness replied Mr Devereux , . .
Yes I will admit that it has the merit of maki ng what

,
is coarse ap p ea r refined yet it has the demerit of promoting

,
d u p l i ci t y and then follows the rest of the train of evils i11

,
eident to it Would it n o t be far better to appear a e we

.
are at all times than to change ourselves as we do o u r a p

,
are l
A long table had been loaded with refreshments and upon ,
another beside it was a splendid s ervice of gold a n d silver -

.
The gentlemen were b usied in helping the ladies and Cap ,
ta in Dever eu x w as glad by helping Miss De l E u r to es, ,

’
,
cape from an argument in which he was fearful of being

worste d . In drinking a glass of wine he with perfect , ,
good breeding good naturedly and laughingly said that she

,
-
had made a proselyte of him and that when the war was ,
over he would resign his c ommission live in the country , ,

‘
and forget how to dan ce She with equal good nature .

, ,
replied that she would be most happy to rank him among

her friends , and that she shou l d take good c a r e t ha t he
27 0 STANDI SH THE PURITAN . .
I wa s so sur
'
when speaking of him to a con nection

—
.
prised a t what yo t l d me and and

'
u. o ,
“
A nd t h at I , his sist er should be here you mean I pre
, , ,
“ ”
sume ”
H e looke d at her as m uch as to say A y when
.
, ,
“
she added You a r e not more s u rprised t han I am I can .
,
only acco u nt for it upon the pres umption that they see their
error and know the agony we endured, and are thus po li te
,
”
to us in the way of reparation .
“
It is not t hat depend up on it ; t hey are so used to
,
blundering t hat it would take all their lives in doing pen

‘
ance should they begin a t the head of the category I h ave .
suspec ted for some d ay s that there was som ething afoot ”
,
he continued , proba bly as wise as the rest they have done .
The rebellion w ould have been su ppres sed long ago if mat
”
ters had been managed right .
A t this moment his lordship the gener a l (having left Mrs .
De l E u r with his lady ) came pushing his way through the

’
crowd to where E dith was standing “

I have found you .
”
at last said he playfully
, A s I am respo nsible for you
, ,
”
I shall leave you n o longer with Captain De vereux Come .
,
“
said he to him you have had your share with the young
,
lady Go and look aft er Miss E velyn

.
”
.
”
I m u st obey orders he s aid in reply ; and , bowing ,
, ,
was soon lost in the crowd .
A fter a few co m m onplac e words had passed the general ,
offered his arm and walked w ith her to a corner of the

,
room where he commenced a conversation by inquiring of

,
her if she knew Whether Ge neral Standish could be c on .
In wh at resp ect she asked .
“
In making terms with the king .
”
Of General Standish I know but little for years she ,
obs erved
“
I b eg your pa rdon—ex cus e me ; what I say is c o n fi
dential I have understood that you were a ffian ced to the
.
‘
general ; if so I wish t o , and believe that I c an , promote

,
”
your happiness .
E dith colored to the eyes and at last said that she knew ,
e nough of the general to be convinced that she had n o t the
l e ast political influ ence with hi m of any kind and th at if ,
she had she had so much respect for h is j udgment and his
, .
sense of justic e that nothing would induce her to exercise it .
“ ” “
But his lordship said I do not wish you to influence
, ,
h im I have learned that your family h ave all been loyal

.
,
an d that events of late have transpired that must always
, induce them to remain so and that possibly General Stand

,
ish might regret his hasti ness in espousing a cause that

many have reason to lament already I should dislike ex .
c ee d in l h of o n n ec t i o n s should at the end of

'
g y t a t an
y m y c
”
the war he stigmatized as rebels .
E dith looked up at him inquiri n gly and se archingly to

gather what he meant by using the word con n ec t i on s but ,
made n o reply .
“ ” “
We expect a r e enforcement he continued be fore
-
, ,
the summer is over from home of ten thousand men ; and

, ,
although we have had some reverses of late they ca n soon ,
be repaired The A mericans are without money food or

.
, ,
clothing General Standish has been wounded a num ber

.
of times and twice severely He could withdraw now

,
.
from the army an d I h ave should he choose to do so , full

, ,
authority to grant him p assports to E ngland with an ade ,
quate pension for life and my pretty little cousin can if

, ,
”
she pleases accompany him as Mrs Standish
,
. .
E dith again loo ked at him displeased , and with a degree ,
of severity that he at once understood ; and in order to coun ,
t er a c t her feelings which his enigmatical lan g uage had in

,
d a oo d quickly add ed I have the honor of being the gran d

, ,
nephew of the late Lord S t e ven dal e my grandmother b e ,
in g his sister and I deeply regret that I had not known of

it before the late events transpired I feel thankful that it .
ended as it did and t he gall ant Standish I shall ever honor

,
”
for his daring on that dreary night .
“ Is it true ” E ith inquired changing her aspect an d

, d , ,
“
looking him full in the face that you are a connection of ,
?”
ours
272 H THE PURITAN
‘
s T A N DI S .
If you are the De l E u r s connected with the Steven ’
dale title I assuredly am

,
.
’
“
Whether we are of the eldest branch or n ot one thing ,
is cer t ain , we are connected with them , and n o t remotely

”
either .
There is , I fee l it no doubt of t he fact ; and he took

,
“
her h and i n both of his and added I n e w clai m you as , ,
m y cousin I h ave no blood connections nearer than your

.
family e xcept my children an d there are times when chil

, ,
dr en can n o t feel a father s isolation he being the fountain ’

,
from which all their necessities are sup pli ed .
“
Have you told my mother what you state to me ? ”
I have but she received it so coldly that I was in d oubt

,
whether I should mention it to you .
“
My mother of late years has had so much to distr ess
, ,
her t hat I wonder almost th at she is living The death of

, .
my father by the hands of the rebels ; our subsequent pov

e r t y ; her deprivation of a l l the l uxuries and many of the
c o m fo r t s o f l if e and then the condemnation of my broth

'
j , i
er H ere she dr ew a deep sigh from t he hear t I won .
der th at either of us is living and I do not think that we ,
should be but an a d m l n l st er in g angel was sent to comfort

,
”
and to save u s .
The general for some moments was unable to r ep l y

, , .
The deep feeling that she spoke with an d the r ebuke that ,
he felt she intended gave him apparent pain and he was , ,
most anxious if possible to excuse himself but felt fearful

, , ,
“
to do so H e at length said A commanding officer has
an arduous and often a pain ful task to perform We owe
.
,
a duty to our king and country and we are b ound to exe ,
cute the trust without reference to our own inclinations or

the cal l s of h u manity A fter havin g performed wh a t I
"
then conceived was my duty I can assure you that I did ,
n o t regret what the daring Standish had done

”
. .
They then parted E dith was too full of the events of

.
t he day to notice m u ch that afterw ard passed A connec .
tion discovered i n the comm anding officer and the d ashing ,

2 74 S T A N DI S H '
T '
HF
V PURITAN .
to him in all the te n derness of a mother s heart but at the , ,

“
same time remarked that her son h ad so imbibed the
,
sentiments of his father in all the rules of moral conduct ,
t hat she doubted whether he would accept of an honor n o t

w o n b y some mer it of his o wn A s to the fortune if it
‘
.
,
rightly belonged to him that was q ui t e an other thing The ,

.
q uestion in such a c ase would be whether he would receive ,
it or whether it should escheat to the king who in the

, , ,
absence of an heir would have a legal without an equitable

,
right ; but at a n y rate her son felt the full weight of the
, ,
obligation that he w as und er to the unweari ed kindness b e

stowed upon him by Mr Thu r woo d and Mr De xter ”
. . .
Mr Thu r wo o d was invited in t c t he house whe re they

”
v
.
,
found tea had a l ready been prepared The white cloth was .
spread upon the r ound table and a bunch of flowers adorned

’
the center of it all arranged by Diana A lthough she never

, .
asked any questions and generally remained silent yet in , ,
all that pertained to the welfare of her master or mistress

she was ever on the a lert and n o t a w ord was dropped that ,
was not caught up and remembered and what seemed ,
strange was that in the most trying part o f t h eir m isfor

,
tunes when n o t only t he h ea r t s a n d e n er gies of the family

,
gave way but the few friends which had been left them
,
also she then gathered up n ew strength and seemed to b e

, ,
proof against pe ril and insensible to the slavis h toil which

,
seemed to have n o end H er happ iness was now complete ; .
her old mist ress ha d r eg ain ed her heal t h and the rose was
'
gatherin g itself upon the c hec k of her young mistress ; her

master though nominally a prisoner , had escaped from a p
,
parent dest r uction ; the little group which sat around that
table seemed to be infused with a n ew c reation ; the wi n ds
f rom the fields came softly upon t hem from the open w indo w ,
which but a few months before had been choked by the

, ,
d ift ed snow, whirled o nward and onward by the wintery

b tast .
The p ar t y wer e t o o b u sy in communing with their own

'
thoughts to h ave much to say to each other an d two of “ ,

S T A N D I S II THE PURITAN . 27 5
them lived in th e ideal ; th o se who lived in the every day -
world and took notes of the incidents which concerned the

,
busy throng a n d whose pleasure it was to live upon the

, .
smiles of the great were too meretricious for the in dep en d

,
ence of the heart w a r m ed b y a holier fla m e

'
Mary Dexter had from her infancy made a con fidant of

her father in all that a ff ected or mi ght a ff ect her She .
never before had felt the least delicacy in doing so , but now
s he could not ; s he ha d m ade several attempts but the color
‘
,
'
came to her face and she found that her emotion would
,
n o t allo w her to proceed ; and even when E dith would name
her brother to her it was ne ver responded to but she waived

, ,
the conversation she loved : it was a sentiment of her o w n ,
and she had lived upon a n d nourished it so long that it ,
became t o her a material thing ; yet n o advance had ever

been made to her by the object of her a ff ections and she ,
had not the slightest reason to suppose that he ha r dl y bore

'
the impress of her ima g e upon his memory Knowing this .
as she did s he would rather h ave gone to the grave than

,
h ave committed herself in a manner where her heart alone

was concerned u n r esp o n ded to by another
, .
Mr Thu r w oo d was too much in love with himself to b e

.
troubled much about the love of others ; and when he did

im ag ine that he felt the tender passion it was of so gen ,
eral a character among so miscellaneo us a set an d prompted

, ,
by so many adventitious circumstances as well as plans ,
arranged whereby position might be attained th at the

, ,
par t icular goddess he worshiped was as much mythologic

ally as actua l ly ex isting among the exclusive cliques where
he so meti mes supposed his heart had made a lodgment upon
a favored one H e had fancied Mary Dexter and E dith
.
,
and a score of others an d his vanity h ad in his own mind

,
made each of these at di ff erent periods reciprocate the pas

sion that he suppo se d he had felt This was enough for .
hi m : the victory was t oo e as il y obtained and the spoils

'
he felt himself entitled t o had not the charm or the glory

that they would have had in a well contested field His - .
2 76 S T ANDISH THE PURITAN .
pride was sometimes put to the test by seeing his im ag i

nary victims apparently falling in love with actual a dm ir
e rs ; but all such cases he put down as marriages of con -
v en ien ce rather than of a ff ection Yet he had a good ma n y .
fin e traits of character and he would at any time put him

,
self to inconvenience to oblige a friend as has a l r ea dy been ,
seen and he became deeply pained for the misfortunes of

,
his supposed victims H e would then speak of the im p o s

.
s ib il it
y of controlling the a ff ections , and that the heart was
a tyra n t that neither listened to reason nor duly felt for
the blighted hopes of others . V
As for Mr s D e l E u r her own existence was merged in

.
’
,
that of her children an d as the mercury is expanded by

,
the warmth of the sun so her heart now dilated at the ,
change which a few months had produced in t heir favor ‘
T he grave had been disappointed of its victim and reason ,
n o w b eamed from the cl ear blue eye of E dith as intellect
u a l l y a n d a s beautifully as before it had wandered in the

x
labyrinth of uncertainty The pallor of sculptured marble .
h ad long and painfully set upon her brow and the rigid ,
featur es of despair had taken possession of her expression .
She had appeared like one commissioned from heaven to

warn the vain and the u n godly that the end of all things
was at hand ; but n o w , the ardor of hope was prominent ,
though a little gravity softened the smile that before her

illness had been habitual Yet there was enough of the .
l atter to sho wthat if the heart was n o t entirely sure of its

,
d estiny , it had no reason to despair and enough of the ,
fo rmer to make certain of the abidin g sentiment that lay

there The eye of the mother was almost continu ally upon
.
the daughter a n d it drank in each expression that denoted

'
pleasure A s Mr Thu r w oo d cast his eyes upon an embank

. .
m ent near the house he was observed stead ily watching

,
through the window some object u nder a spreadi n g tree .
“
Who or what is that twisti n g something in a lo n g
, ,
”
box under a tree yonder he inquired
? .
The ladies all rose from th eir s eats and simultaneously ,

27 8 S TAN DI SH THE PURITA N .
d raw him into conversation by asking him where he had ,
been since he left t own ; but he paid little attention to

what was said to h im his eyes being divid ed a portion of ,
the time u pon Mr Thu r w oo d and the rest of it u pon his

.
,
n ew perpe t ual motion Mrs De l E u r , knowin g the in fl u

. .
’
ence Miss D exter h ad with him requested her to ask him ,
if he h ad lately been in t he ca m p of General Stan dish

'
-
.
“ ”
H is reply to this question was Yes marm , , .
“ ? ”
A nd where is General Standish now she further in
quired .
“
At Battle H ill in the J ar sies ,
She was then desired to ask him 1 f he had seen Mr De .
l E
’
u r .
“
Yes marm , .
It was noticed that Mary Dexter colored to the eyes and ,
h e sitated as she pronounced t he name , and Mrs De l E u r .

’
a ff ectionately inquired if she were not well She hesitated

’
.
,
but at length replied that there was n othin g seriously the

m atter At this moment Zimri carelessly laid a le t ter upon
.
-
the table an d walked o ff ; an d to the surprise an d joy of

, ,
the party they found its direction to be l n the hand writin g

,
-
of Mr D e l E u r The seal was soon broken It was sure

.
’
. .
,
enough a letter from him to his mother co ntaining a note

, ,
from General Standish to E dith It simply informed his .
“
mother that he was quite well an d as he had n o w permission ,
to come within the lines of the E nglish , hi s anxiety to be

with her an d his sister E dith would have induced him to have
been there , but th at his friend Standish had been su ffering
much from an old wound and he disliked leaving him until ,
he was better , which he trusted he would be in a very few “
days ; besides his comp anionship became nec ess ary to his
,
” “
h appiness H e also stated that , notwithstanding t he gen
.
eral was often ln the saddle the wh ole day he would some ,
times spend a n evening with him recounting over the ad

ventures of their school days and that on such occ asib n s , , ,
the same hearty laugh and fr o l ic kso m e j est as then would

make the room ring again ; but the responsibilities pert ain
STANDI SH THE 27 9
in g to the camp and the recolle ction of the scenes which

,
followed the first outbreak of the war and as he suspected , , ,
the abiding love for E dith would suddenly throw over his ,
face a shadow and from the mirthfu l lau g h quickly suc

,
c eed ed deep an d gloomy abstraction and he seemed u n c o n ,

”
s cious that any one was with him The note to E dith .
was as follows
DEAR E DIT H ,
In a few moments I shall be on m y way with my ,
brigade up on special service an d as it will be hazardous

’
, , ,
I feel that I can n ot leave without informin g you thereof .
E ven your brother has not been made ac quainted with it .
I gazed long upon our star of destin y It was bright an d .
glorious as when we first saw it A s I mused and looked .
upon it every act of my life seemed to pass by me in sol

.
e m n review Y ou were by my side as in days gone by

. .
It seemed to say Strike the blo w and an empire shall live

‘
, , .
’
I resolved and doubted n o t the power of accomplishing

,
that which before seem ed too hazardous to be undertaken .
Tru st n o t General State policy and truth have

little to do with each other Overtu res of the basest nature
.
h ave been made me by t h e E nglish government but the ,
sword began the war and so it shall end it H eaven has

,
.
our mutual pledge in tru st and I believe a little more time ,
will acco m plish the work E dith will then wed not a rebel
.
, ,
but one whose faith has held out to the end t he reward of ,
Whi ch is a tyrant s overthrow and the vindication of human

’
”
righ t s Adieu
. .
A ft e r the letters had been read the conversation too k a

more chee rful tu rn and even E dith , altho u gh she knew
,
that G eneral Standis h was again risking his life after ,
r aising her eyes to heaven with a holy smile that spoke

the confidence she felt of his safety in a few moments ,
j oined the rest in a spirited conversation in relation to the

merits o f t he war c ondemning the E nglish for the non
,
conciliating tone which they assumed upon its fi rst breaking

280 STANDI SH THE PU RITAN .
out Mr Thu r woo d good n aturedly parrying the long l ist

, .
of facts which she presented one after the other and Mary ,
Dexter occasionally helping him from the many dilemmas

which he found himself l n .
“ ” “
Dear Mary said E dith I did not know you were
, ,
so much of a Tory although it is n at u r a l that you should

7
adopt your father s views When mine H ere she

’
.
pa used ; her lips became pale and a tremor seemed to come ,
over her whole frame She never could allude to her p a .
rent without producin g the most gloomy bodings .
The evening had sped much faster than they had sup
posed Mr Thu r wo o d went to the door , and came back
. . -
“ “
shivering with the cold It is ten he It is
. .
as dark a night as I ever sa w a n d not a breath of air is stir

‘
,
”
ring Is yo ur carriage com in g he inquired of Miss Dexter
.
? .
“ ” “
Yes she ans wered , It should have been here two .
” “
hours ago With that she went to the window
. Why , .
there are the lights n o w ! Ho w stupid in the coachman

n o t to let us know tha t he was wait ing T he night 1 s very '
dark Do es it thunder she 1 n qu 1 r ed loo king round up on

. J
? ”
,
“ ”
the others in a listening manner It does she contin .
,
ued as a distant booming noise from the west just reached

,
the ear .
“
It is certainly much l ike it M r Thu r wo o d replied ;
”
, .
“
yet who ever knew it thunder in so chilly a night as this ? ”
“ “
”
It must be so Miss Dexter replied P ray call the
,
.
coachman Mr Thu r w o o d and let us go befor e it rains

, .
, .
” “
N o she said to a warm invitation to spend the night ; my
, ,
”
father would b e alarmed and I fe a r i s so already ,
’
.
In the mean time Mr Thu r wo o d had gone to the coach , .
directed b y the lights and ordered the coachman to drive ,
up to the front of the door In st e a d o f obeying he inquired .

'
,
“ ?
what that strange light was in the west and the noise
that came from it too
“
Why , it is a thunder storm , I suppose -
.
No it ain t for it don t move and the light what s around

’
,
’
,
’
it looks smoky If it hain t a fight , then it s a wol c an e

’
.
’
.
She looked steadily for a few mom ents at t he p o in t indica '
ted She hardly breathed but there was no tremo r in her

.
arm and her face was as placid and serene as if view in g a

fl
landscape f amiliar to her eye when suddenly the dark ,
ened chamber became as light as noonday an d the horizon ,
and all within it seemed as if the whole light of the sun ~

,
had been gathered together an d hurled upon the earth .
E very thing for the moment w a s distinct to the eye The .
battalions in close column were upon the side of t he hil l ;

, ,
'
'
that which a few m o m en t s ib e f or e ha d been a fortification ,

‘
in black masses was high in mid air The eyeballs of a ,

.
noble charger seemed of liquid flame as they boiled in their

sockets ; the animal was in the act of leapin g a ditch and ,
for the moment was sus ended in the air T he sword blade .
-
of his rider reflected t e light a thousand di fferent ways

‘
and the high black plume w as iii somber contrast to t he

grandeur of the moment An insta nt after hundreds of souls
.
,
had passed through space to eternity It was the plum e .
that had been adopted to mourn for a father and sister and ,
that sad catastrophe was ever kept in view b y the emblem ,

as cap in hand , he cheere d his m en on to the conflict The
, .
light was succeeded by the trembling of the earth and the ,
panes of glass burst from t he c a sem en t The blaze of light .
was of momentary dur ation , and night , in all its dreari ness ,
settled upon the scene T he magazine of the fortificatio n

.
had been fired by one of thos e spirits who can not brook
defeat : a defeat too by a r eb el army was worse than death
,
“
,
'
The little p ar t y d es cen ded t o the sitting room in silence

i
-
,
Mr Thu r wo o d and Miss Dexter looking wistfully at ea ch

.
other and fearing to speak lest E dith should be frightened

, ,
and consequences as sad as before occur They wer e how

‘
.
,
ever not a little surprised and rejoic ed when she returned

,
from the window where she for a moment had surveyed

,
the heavens to hear her spe ak in the utmost confidence

,
.
that General Standish had escaped unhar m ed .
It was now nearly midnight and M r Thu r woo d a n d , .

.
h u rried to the carriage and were driven home .

They found Mr Dexter l n the utmost alarm n o t only on

.
,
account of the absence of Mary but the strange light a n d ,
the distant roar like thunder had quit e unsettled his nerves .
H is daughter s return however put every thing to rights

’
, ,
again and it mattered little to him what became of the rest

,
of t h e world so long as she was safe .
E arly the next morning barges were crossing from the

Jersey shore to the city full of soldiers under cover of the ,
men of war in the river They would occasionally throw .
a shot into their rear to che ck the adva nce of their pursuers .
Groans and imprecations came from the wounded in the

boats over the s t ill smooth water and their impo t ent threats ,
to the Y a n k ees came with an ill grace from those who were
su ffering from their steel A ll that day groups of men with .
long visage were collecte d at the corners of the streets ,
some despair ing others encouraging to resist to the last ;

,
while some among whom was Mr S n ifli n g were most a n x

, .
,
ious as to what would become of their property if the rebels

shoul d succ eed Mr S n ifl in g indeed seemed 1 n utter de
. .
, ,
spair an d he made several c fler s that day to sell his free

,
hold estates but there were so many in the same pred ica
,
men t that all were sellers and none so simple as to p u r

chase He had however got hold of an over zealous a n d
.
, ,
-
confident Tory who gave him some consolati on an d tal ked

, ,
a little about a purchase but in the midst of his solici , ,
tude an d hopes Zimri Freeborn and machine in turning a

, ,
corner came u nluckily upon him A shadow could no

,
.
more suddenly start upon moving the substance than did

“ ”
Mr S n iflin g b u t in a co ntrary way
.
, Devil s damned ! .
’
exclaimed he as in quick time he moved o ff to his mansion

,
.
A s he entered his room he turned the key inside a n d ,

“
threw himself upon his bed It s all over ! years of toil .
’
lost Zimri is a devil in disguise and he went to his cup

.
boar d where he now kept his brandy bottle and glass after
, ,
glass was tossed down his throat ; a n d after talking to ,
himself for a few moments he dozed ; an d while he slept , ,
he placed himself at t he head of a large army , to retrieve

2 84 STANDI SH THE '‘
PU R II A N .
the fortunes of the day The drum beat the flags flew his
.
, ,
men were giants and he h imself towere d above the rest ;

,
and as he ch arged the enemy the grou nd trembled under ,
the feet of his legions But lo ! when he was a b o u t c l ea r

.
‘
ing the world of his foes he perceived that Zimri was in

,
command of them H e hesitated faltered and then r an

.
, ,
away and so did his army H is responsibilities and fati g u e

,
.
awoke him and to refresh himself he drank the two third s

, , ,
left in the decanter ; after which his courage increased u n ,
til he fell from hi s chair nor did it diminish until he slept

n o r even then H e retrieved the fortunes of the day but
.
,
unluckily lost them after the space of six hours Z i1n r 1

, .
then with his shi el d upo n his back and fol lowed by a r ace
, ,
of monsters whose breath was as poisonous as the u p a s ,
annihilated his army and he alone had escap ed A fter sev

, .
eral groans he awoke but the realities that pres ented them
, ,
selves w er e b u t little better than the phantoms whic h he

’
had been engaged with during his sleep H e was satisfied .
in his cwn mind that his prop erty would be confiscated ,

“
and he comforted himself by exclaiming that it was pur
chased much belo w its intrin sic value A ll of the next .
day he occupied himself l n watchin g the actions of groups

of people 111 the streets and consulting his butler upon the
,
future prospects of the war The latter knew enough of .
his master to advise him n o t to despond at the u ntoward

events which now we r e continually occurring lest the for ,
mer , in a fit of despair , should di scharge him .

2 86 STANDISH T HE PURITAN .
that I have done so since I have been grown and truly you ,
are right when you say that a few tried friends are worth
many who are untried Indeed you h ave rendered 1 ,
°
quite happy in making me r emember the much—the

.
”
much we h ave to be thankfu l for .
“
I did n o t intend to chide you daughter I know t , . i .
young heart is an xious to realize its early dreams ; b u t it ,
by some d isappointments will be purified Would you , .
ever have known the beauty of charac t er of Mary Dexter

or the selfishness of Mr S n iflin g had not wan t —I will n o t
,
,
—
.
say mis fortune thrown you in their way ? Would you

ever have supposed that the k in g throug h his servants , ,
would h ave solicited our influence to persuade William

Standish to disgrace himself ? And have y ou n o t been
thus taught that the great are only so in common with all
who possess nobility of heart and t hat the wearing of a ,
crown is no evidence of the greatness of soul any more ,
than the decoratio n of the garter is o f the beauty of the

”
limb which it encircles .
E dith for some time remain ed silent sorely repenting , ,
that she had wounded the feelings of her mother , as other

wise she would not have t aken so much pains to illustrate
the ad vantages which their experience ha d give n them ;
and wishing to give their conversation another turn r e
, ,
“
m arked that she was disappointed that George had n o t
more admired Mary She is pretty ; her figure well turn
.
ed ; she IS thoroughly alth ough not f a shzo n a b l y educated

, .
If he knew but half of her sweetness of temper and kind

n ess of heart I trust he would value such a trea sure too
,
”
hi gh not to exert himself in possessing it .
“ ”
N othing replied her mother , in this world could give
,
me so much pleasure H ers is a character of which : there

.
are many in the world but they are so equ al l y distributed

,
'
among the infidel , the savage , and the Christian that they ,
are com paratively few am on g either ; and on e m ay journey

on through l ife without its ordinary v icissitudes a n d n ot
, ,
i n eet with one . It IS true without those vicissitudes they

,
STANDI SH T HE PURI TAN . 28 7
would n o t b e ne eded in heali ng the broken heart ; yet we

should go to the grave deceived to the last The hand of .
deceit would be grasped in gratitude at the bedside at our

departure and unpretending merit would remain u n n o t ic
,
ed for the tear that had been shed would b e wi p ed away

, ,
”
lest it should intrude itself upon the grief of others .
E vening w as now robing itself in its somber vestments ,
an d they h ad risen from their seats for the p u rpose of r e
turning to the house They delayed going until they could .
see the direction of a boat that had suddenly shot out from
a co ve on the opposite side of the river Directly they per .
c e iv ed that it was a twelve cared barge and as it neared a -

,
sloop of war and was about passing it a shot was fired

, , ,
“ ”
accompa nied with an order to come alongside The o r .
der was ob eyed and after some little delay the boat was
,
ermitted to proceed Mrs De l E r and E dith s curiosity

’ ’
p u . .
was excited as it appeared t o be heading directly toward the

,
spot where they were standin g and it had approached suf ,
fic ien t l y near for them to perceive a white flag rigged in th e

stern A moment more and the oarsmen could be seen
.
,
*
with the Continental uniform and a gentleman in a citi ,
zen s dress seated in the stern sheets

’
.
”
G o l ly missus exclaimed Dian a pointing to the boat
, , , ,
dar is Massa G eo r ge a s sure as dis world is dis world ”

'
-
, .
? ”
What do you say said her mi stress trembli n g with ,
emotion .
“
I says dar is Massa George su re ; it is him , and none ,
”
o dor I knowed him if I seed him any whar
. .
The boa t c ame on with the swiftness of an arro w and ,

“ ”
its impe t u s carried it almos t high and dry upo n the s hel v:
i n g shore The emban kment ascended and in a moment
.
,
mother and da ughte r wer e he l d in the embrace of a son '
and brother who for a series of years had been persecute d

alike by friends a n d foes They moved sil ently on to the .
cottage hi s mother holdin g him by one han d and his sis

,
-
Th A i e ldi l w y u se d t hi t r m f r t h A
m e r c an so er a i i a s s e o e m er c a n s n co n
t r a d is t in c t io n t o t h e E n gl i s h .
ter by the other wh ile Diana brought up the rear chatter

, ,
ing like a magpie occasionally turning round and shaking

,
her head in defiance to the E nglish men of war in the harbo r .
It was a long time before they could c ommand their feel ‘
ings sufficiently to enter into conversation Diana how .

,
ever unbidden in the shortest poss ible t ime had the tea
, ,
kettle singing in the kitchen and the table in the little par ,
lor covered w ith the whitest of linen the rolls prepared and , ,
the center graced with a plate of fr esh b u t t er In the ex ’
cess of j oy at meeting his mother and sister Mr De l E u r , .

’
had overlooked the poo r slave She no sooner showed her .

s
self in the hall than he took her by both her hands and
pressed them to his heart .
“ “
Faithful c reature ! he exclaimed ; surely there is
”
some blessing in store for you I can not repay you but
H eaven will A second mother i n my childh o od—the friend
.
,
of my youth and the benefactor of my manhood You are

, .
free Diana ; but let m e s erve you the rest of my life and
, ,
”
then you would n o t be half compensated The philos .
opher and Stoic gave vent to the best feelings of his heart
in the silent tear .
Why my chile who should I work for if not for my

I hab but two—you and E dy Co 1 ne Georgy
,
family ? '
‘
.
, ,
dat s a good boy don t feel so bad ; dem bad people ob er

’
,
’
de water will hab to go back agin de same way dey come ;

den we ll go back agin to Oakford , and be disturbed no
’
”
more Come dat s a good boy , eat dis supper
.
,
’
.
A s Diana seemed quite happy in discharging her duty

,
to the family under whose roof she had been born and ei ,
ther not u nderstanding or n o t wishing to understand how , ,
her situation could be bettered by separating her from thos e

'
whose a fl ec t io n s were mutual , felt herself much relieved

when her master permitted her to g o and finish the ar ,
rangement for his evening meal A fter it had been par .
taken o f and the excitement of the moment had termina

,
ted the conversation turned upon past events H e said that

, .
the w hole A merican army felt entirely confident of suc

do n o t a dmire Mary Dexter If yo u knew half as much of .
her as I do you assuredly would

,
.
“ Why my dear sister I have only seen her once or

, ,
” “
twice and then said he you know under what circum
, , ,
stances I h ave felt and must ever continue to feel a rev

.
, ,
erence for her ch aracter and shall always be under obliga ,
tions I c a n never repay The tender passion E dy is an .

, ,
arbi t rary one E xperience , philosophy or even go od taste

.
, ,
”
is not always consulted .
“ “
Yes replied E dith
”
,
and that is the reason there are,
”
so many unhappy marriages .
“ ” “
A nother one may be he replied and the chief one , ,
is that we are so unhappily constituted that we only fully

, ,
appreciate a thing in expectancy P ossession like a baw .

,
ble in the h ands of a child , is p l ay ed wit h for a while and ,
then thrown aside and forgotten We are made for a higher .
”
destiny a n d the mind looking into the fu t u re proves it
, , ,
.
The conversation was continued until eleven Mrs D e , .
l E u r gazing at her son and drinking in each word as it

’
,
passed his lips E dith smiling ta l king and blushing when , ,

“ ”
ever t he name o f William was mentioned as by that he ,
was known by them when in familiar conversation .
“
George said Mrs De l E u r as she arose and placed
”
,
.
’
,
her hand upon his forehead you are fatigued and had , ,
”
better retire for the night .
“ ”
I think I had he answered for I am a little weary
, ,
through so much late excitement We will h ave a little .
conversation about the S t even da l e a ff air in the morning ”

.
“
H ave you heard any thing of the matter sin c e you have
been from the city
“
Oh yes ! from all quarte r s and especially from head ,
quarters There is not the least doubt that I am the legal

.
representative It is a subj ect th at I h ave not made up my

.
mind how to act upon as you and E dith are indirectly ,

”
concerned .
“
That need not influence you George said h is moth , ,
“ ”
satisfy your conscience a n d we are satisfied ,
.
”
Good night mother ; good night E dy said he as b e
, , , ,
“
embraced them I must I suppose report myself at head
.
, ,
qu arters in the morning and a good night s sleep m a y be n ec ,

’
essary to prepare me for a long examination G o od night ! ”

.
The sun had hardly risen when a rap was heard at the
door and the following dialogue ensued
,
“ ? ”
Is his lordship up yet
Dar is nobody here but old missus young missus , and ,
Massa George .
“ ”
Is your master up then ? was the inquiry made by a , ,
young gentleman in the undress of a sta ff c fli c er A t that .
moment Mr De l E u r coming down stairs saw him at the

.
’
, ,
door when the inquiry was again m ade if Lord S t e ven da l e

,
was m .
“ ” “
I have assumed n o su c h title was the reply , but I ,
presume I am the person intended .
You were formerly George de l E u r E sq , of Oakford ’

,
.
“ ”
The same .
“ ’
It is his excellency s wish that if qui t e convenient you , ,
will do him the honor of attending at head quarters at one -
P M this day
. .
”
.
“
I do not know that I have a n y business with his lord
ship o r that I h ave ever received any courtesy from him
,
”
that would require a formal acknowledgment De l E u r ,
’
replied H e then p aused for a moment and before he had

.
,
time to continue the o fli c er said in a most respectful tone

, , ,
“
th at he presumed his exce l lency would have called him
”
self if etiquette permitted it
“ If that be the case ” W
.
,
a s the answer , with reat d i

g g
,
“
n it y ,
then tell his lordship I will be there at the specified
time .
“ Will you be so good ” said the visitor “ as to pre ent

s , ,
the respects of Captain Devereux to Miss De l E u r and ? ” ’

,
“
continued he I would have done myse l f the honor of call
,
in g before but the day after I made her acquaintance I

,
”
was ordered o ff upon distant service H e then , with a .
bow retired
, .
292 STAN DISH - T HE ,
PURITAN .
The captain , for certain reasons ha d bee n transferred to ,
the sta ff of the general in command H is con n ections who .

,
were persons of influence in E ngland were mostly strong ,
Whigs and he himself was n o t indisposed to mak e the

,
most of every military blunder ; and it was supposed by .
the general to be a stroke of policy to place him in a con

.
fiden t ial s ituation .
The morning passed away in the most d elightful com

munion with each other The present hour stood out in
.
bright relief from the dark and om i nous clouds which ha d

settled for a series of years on their heads Captain Dev
'
.
creux had n o sooner gone than George inquired of his sis

,
“ ”
ter where she had made his ac quaintance .
“
Did I not mention him in m y lette r when I gave you
the account of the f et e
“ ” “
I
I think n o t , he answered ; I should have recollected
the name .
She then went on and stated to her brother the freedom

with which he S poke of the 1 m p o l it ic course which had been
pursued during the war at head quarters She also r e -
.
m arked that his manner though gentlemanly had some

, ,
thin g in it she did n o t like ; yet his frankness a n d inde

en d en c e made him , upon the whole , rather agreeable than
p
otherwise .
The morning was spent i n the besto wal of the a ffec tio n s ,
in recounting the many incidents which had transpired

since they were driven from home B ut th at which gave .
them most pleasure was in t a l kin g o ver the fair fame of

William Standish ; the honor he n o w receiv ed from the
very persons who , b u t a year or t wo before had tried to ,
tarnish it H e h ad never condescended to reply to t hem

.
except in the field but thes e replies had sent m any a wail
,
over the broad Atlantic The Widow m ourn ed for her hus
.
band the orph an for its par ent and the maiden for her
, ,
lover They had come to a foreign land t o hunt m en as

.
they would the b easts of the field b u t they had be en strick

,
en down in the pride of youth and the maturity of m an

29 4 S T A N DIS H T HE PU R I TA N .
De l E u r s meditations were interrupted by a liveried

’ ’
servant entering the chamber from t he room within and ,
with a low bow announcing that the general would n o w

”
receive his lor dship H e was met with the utmost urban
.
ity by General Dangerfield who after seating him with , ,
his own hand stated that he had no particular business

,
with him , but was anxious since he had found out who he ,
was a n d prob ably h aving some of his own blood in his

,
veins to pay him every courtesy in his power and assured

, ,
h im that a n c fli c er was on the wa y to the prison on the ,
night that he was rescu ed with a p ardon and that all that , ,
was done was for the purpose of s atisfying p u b l ic opinion

. .
General Standish ha d also been inform ed that the extreme

penal ty of the sentence would not be c ar r ied in t o effect '
.
“
Yet General Standish would not incur the hazard ,
answered Mr De l E u r .
’
.
“ ”
Then the general doubts my sincerity ? Mr De l E u r .
’
“
remained silent I regret that he is not here I respect
. .
him too m uch to wish to lead him into error What force .
? ? ”
is he in H as he any artillery
Mr De l E u r looked at his lordship with a fixed gaze for
.
’
“
a moment and then answered I was not in the A meri
, ,
c an camp as a spy Under any circumstances it would be

an office that I trust I should feel u n fit t ed for .
“ ”
I beg a thousand pardons quickly answered the gen ,
“
eral . I supposed it your duty to give such information
”
as openly fell under your observation De l E u r looked .
’
at him for a moment and the curl of the lip could hardly ,
be s u ppressed ; but he did n o t deign to reply “

P erhaps .
,
“
added the general the king might feel himself disobliged
, .
H e might suspect you of not being a loyal subject ”

.
“
I do not know what obligations I am u nder to any of
the servants of the king but I will answer generally that ,
I believe the A mericans are in sufficient force to drive his

’ ”
m aj esty s army into the sea if pe ace is n o t made in a year , .
“ ”
It has been said observed the general carelessly a s , , ,
“
if he had n o t weighed what he was about to say th a t ,
every man has his price and I presume Standish is not an ,

”
exception to the rule .
“ ”
Will you allow me to withdra w said De l E u r at the
? ’
,
“
same time rising from his seat H e is my personal friend .
,
and w ha t ever may be your lordship s experience or estimate -

’
of m en mine has been formed in a school where such dog

,
”
mas have been rejected .
“
Be seated my lord be seated A s one of his majesty s
,
’
, .
subjects I am bound to obey him and do him what service

, ,
is in my power and I supposed that I might rely upon the

,
good o ff ices of a peer of the realm ”

.
“ ” “
I am not aware replied Mr De l E u r that I am a
, .
’
,
peer If it were so I do not know that obligatio ns would

.
,
”
accompany it that would disgrace a more humble su ec t
“
I see sir you were n o t educated in the camp
,
j
r you h
.
, .
had been you would n o t have taken exceptions to the very

,
”
reasonable requirements I suggested .
“
It is true I know noth ing of the camp replied De
, ,
“
l E ur
’
, or its code of honor and I felicitate myself upon ,
my ignorance if what you intimate is its standard

, .
Mr De l E u r was tried upon several other tacks with a

.
’
.
degree of forbearance deservi n g a be tter cause It was a .
desperate and dying eflo r t ; force had been overcome by

force an d pride a n d austerity yielded to dire necessity
, .
From in formation that he had of late from time to time ,
received from E ngland Mr De l E u r had no doubt that , .

’
there was a blood relationship existing between himself and

General Dangerfield ; a n d he more th an suspected that the
latter was aware of the fact before the former had been
sentence d and that all his pretenses of kindness were
,
merely feigned H e had been foiled in his designs in get

.
ting rid o f an apparent heir to considerable estates which

were then in abeyance If he had succeeded his o wn eli .
,
g ib i l it y would be unopposed ; besides the commissary of ,
subsistence and himself were too intimate n o t to have in

d u c ed the idea that the latter might h ave an interest to
portions of landed estates in the city held in the name of
29 6 S TANDI SH THE PURITAN .
the former ; and inasmuch as his fir st proj ect had failed

,
’
nothing but a successful peace would guarantee wh at he

possessed on this side the A tlantic These surmises were .
forced upon the mind of George De l E u r and he left head ’

,
quarters with a thorough disgust for the character of the

indi vidual with whom he had be en in contact for the last
hour .
On his r eturn home he was passed by gay cavaliers ;

splendid equipages rattled onward , and the occupants seem
ed as happy as if their cause was n o t ruined ; but in the
streets there were anxious faces in quiring of each other the
prospects of peace the conditions annexed to it and whether
, ,
t he A mericans would respect ac quired rights Y et among .

"
,
all he met , there were none of so much equanimity as Zimri ,

’
who under the shade of a tree was busily at work with a
, ,
faith and a zeal that might h ave removed mountains but as ,
yet n o t q uite enough to perfect the object of his ambition

Mr De l E u r knew him at first sight—and who would not
.
who had ever seen him —his hair was as long and as yel
.
low as it had been seven years before his eyes were n o ,
larger and his shou l ders were stil l smaller in girth than
,
around h is waist ; his feet were as large and his legs as ,
lean and long as ever and his walk was like a recruit s upon
,
’
“
his first trial at marking time P oor fellow ! said Mr
.
”
.
“
De l E u r ; if all men were as innocent as yourself the
’
,
world would h ave less to mourn than it has n o w Good .
” “
morning , Zimri , said he to him ; when did you come to
town
“
Jist come was the reply , without raising his eyes or
,
stopping hi s work .
“
H ad you not better go home with me than remain in
this exposed p l ace ? You can work there without bei n g
”
disturbed .
“ ”
Well , I will , he answered , in tones almost too feebl e
to be understood .
Mr De l E u r passed on , and Zimri gathered up the com

.
’
'
plicated machine slung it upon his back with a dexterity

,
member of our family should be the means of giving her

unhappiness I fear should misfortune overtake th at bright
.
,
angel that I should almost doubt t he goodness of P rovi

,
d enc ef
’
“
I think you are mistaken E dith ; we have scarcely ,
ever met an d I assure you my vanity would be excessive

,
could I think for a moment even upon my sister s author ,

’
ity that such is the case You are m istaken I am a

, .
‘
stranger to her She has n qt been accus t omed to be inter

.
”
ru t ed by a male in your intercourse with her here
p .
“
I fear George , that yo u a r e mistaken Woman u n
,
’
d er s t a n ds woman m u ch better th an man understands her .
Would you like , she continued , to pay them a visit to

”
.
? ”
morrow I have made h alf of a promise so to do .
“
Nothing would give me more pleasure ; and , where that
is connected with duty p r em ises are apt to be kept So ,
,
.
”
s ister said he smilingly
, you can count upon mine
, ,
The remainder of the day passed pleasantly in conversa

tion The ships o f war were the o nly things that seemed
.
to frown upon the world The gay soldier off duty was .
s auntering in the fields the robin redbreast was teaching -
h er young progeny the use of their wings and the vegeta ,
ble gardens were burdened with the upt urned roots of the
prolific soil and their fragrance filled the atmosphere
, .
The little family retired early to rest an d a clear sky ,
and delightful temperature greeted them with its happy in -

g
fl u en ees in the morning P leasant dreams and pleasant

.
associations had gladdened their hearts and three mo r e ,
happy faces could n o t be seen upon the island of the e m

cient Man hat t o es A large seventy four gun ship was o b
.
-
served early in the morning with all sails set coming up , ,
the bay with a fair breeze Her retaining her sails so lon g .
was unusual , and she had n o more than half stripped her e
self when a boat was put o ff to the shore in grea t haste ;
,
and as the former came abreast of the town she let fly ,
in the wind all her rema ining sails and immediately came ,
to anchor Her leviathan hull swung slowly round and

.
,
STANDIS H THE PURITAN . 9
amid the smoke of a royal salute the French flag was seen ,
in her mizzen H ardly half an hour had elapsed when the

.
bells rang and the artillery roared from every fort and ship
,
in the harbor A French man of war had arrived with the

.
glad tidings to all but a few that a peace was made Dis .
patches were immediately sent to the nearest A merican

po sts proclaiming the fact Yet among the British o fficers
.
there was a disappointed and surly look and when a fe w ,
d ays after some A merican offi cers came into the town
,
with their thr eadbare coats and iron hilted swords a look
,
-
,
o f disdain was the only welcome they received O n o n e .

,
or two occ asions it was remarked and the blades belonging ,
to those hilts flew from their scabbards a n d the favori t e ,
troops which had been kept out of harm s way were given
,
’
,
to understand that their owners had full confidence in their

arms homely as they were
, .
Visitors now became frequent at the cottage and it was ,
n o unusual sight to see several coroneted carriages stand
i n g at the door at the same time and many a young cav ,
alier of the best blood of E ngland doin g his utmost to make

h imself agreeable t o the beautiful a n d pensive E dith She .
smiled and was so much of the lady that each was satis
,
fie d th at he had succeeded in making a n impression when

Mr Thu r woo d was not the re Wh e n he was present he
. .
generally damped their conceit He was a privileged visit .
or In their distress he h ad b e en treated with reserve b e

.
,
cause there was n o way then apparent to compensate his

disinterestedness ; b u t n o w he was made at home and the ,
kind smile and cordial grasp of the hand which h e received

whenever he came n o matter how many were by made
, ,
some of the young gentlemen who were all but ready to ,
make a declaration hesitate lest they might be premature

, .
The unreserve with which he returned the hearty good

will and the cool and confident m anner with which he
,
would seat himself by the side of E dith confirmed them in ,
the suspicion that they had over estimated their o wn prowess -

.
Mr Devereux also n o w became a visitor and , to do him

.
, , ,
j ustice he was very independen t in his character H e had

,
.
just returned to the city from which he had been absent

,
for a long time ; a n d despite his conceit and disagreeable

,
manner there was something about him which pleased ,

,
and he b ec am e i n a short time a favorite H e seemed to b e .
r e c kl ess of consequences ; and of the two he preferred court , ,
i n g the ill rather than the good will of socie ty

,
Of all ,
.
meanness he d isliked duplicity and his tongue was a ready ,
lash to p u n ish su c h o ff enders and he was particularly se

i
vere upon his friends when they were d etected H is vio .
lence appeared to be aggravated particularly on that ac

count for he deemed himself a sufferer ; besides he con
, ,
s ider ed a fraud ha d been played o ff upon him in giving his
friendship There were always retailers enough about him ,

.
so that the accused had the benefit of the castigation H e .
sometimes would be cautioned by his friends , but the r e

ply they generally g et Wa s that every man had a duty
“
,
to perform to society and a m on g t he mos t p r ominent of ‘ '
those duties W
,
”
a s to expose and execrate vice ; and , he
~
“
added if there were n o t so much mawkishness among
,
men in expressing their opinions society would be upon a ,

”
much better footing than it was H e so utterly hated de .
ccit that he appe ared worse than he really was lest he ,
might unwittingly b e deemed guilty of that sin

One day as De l E u r c ame in from a W
.
’
, alk a little heat
e d as i f it had been a long one his mother inquir ed wh at
”
, ,
it was that took him to t o wn so often H is answer was .
” “
not very direct I hope she continued that you have
.
, ,
called upon Mary D exter I fear you have made yourself

.
disagreeable , as she has n o t been i n the house since she

knew of your return I hope my son , that you will correct
.
,
any unfavorable impressions you have made upon her ”

.
I wi l l endeavor to do so he replied as he cast a side

”
, ,
long glance at his mother A supposed traito r is n o t in

.
a position to make conquests if he were disposed the more , ,
especially when death is staring him in the face ”

.
“
A s she seems determined not to visit us on ordinary c c
STANDISH T HE PURITAN .
m any a star glittered upon the breasts of gay cavaliers .
T hey were all received with urbanity and kindness Mr . .
De l E u r was as much at home as if he had been at court

’
all his life Some men are by instinct gentlemen and

.
,
with such it matters little how and where they received

their education Whatever they do is done with ease a n d
.
with out pretension a n d conseq u ently it is well done ; a n d

, , ,
th u s it was with De l E u r A ll eyes were upon him ; and ’

.
n o matter if it had not been well a handsome youn g man ,
a n d a peer of the realm would h ave hid a n want of tact

y
or experience ; and even a blun der under s u ch circum ,
stances would have been adopted as the fashion of the day

,
.
The calls being e nded other amu sements succeeded yet ,

-
in the midst of those amuseme n t s there was many a heart

which throbbed for E dith and throbbed the harder as it ,
was whispered that her heart was pre engaged A n d there

!
-
.
w a s much canv ass ing by the softer sex of the estates i n

.
, ,
expectancy of G eorge de l E u r a n d he was judged the

'
’
,
more or less elegant as his title deeds were more or less

certain and his virtues more or less extol led as his heart
,
was supposed to be more or less unoccupied A ll of th is ”

.
was very well but quite understood by a fa m ily who had

,
learned their lessons in so bitter a school .
E arly in the evening of the day s e t aside to receive a“
few friends Mary Dexter was sittin g in a corner o f t he

”
, _
room at the cottage S he was silent and pensive She . .
looked wistfu lly at the gay throng as they entered Dia .
monds sparkled upon the necks a n d fingers of the fair visit

ants and she shrank within herself as they flaunted past
,
her She was dressed in plain and pure white and a sin
.
,
gle rose worn in her breast was all the artificial decoration
a b out her person De l E u r had not yet made his appear
.
’
ance and E dith was b usy in receiving her company She

, .
was surrounded by E ngland s chivalry their sister s and ’

,
daughters and she received their homage as if it wer e a

, .
boon she inherited N ature had so marked her tha t it was

.
an outpourin g perfectly natural an d due to her .

Mary Dexter sat a while unnoticed H er breast would .
occasionally heave She then became agitated a n d stro ve

.
,
to conceal her feelings ; but the lip trembled and fearing , ,
that she might n o t be able to suppress her emotions she ,
left the room In a few moments De l E u r entered it and

.
’
, ,
after paying hi s respects to the few persons whose faces he

recollected he inqu ired of his sister for Miss Dexter She
, .
looked at the seat occupied by her a moment before She .
at once went in search of her and found her in the little ,
library busy with a small volume of poems De l E u r fol

, .
’
lowed immediately after a n d tenderly in quired why she ,
was there alone at the same time looking at his sister to

, ,
see if from her he c o u l d get at the reason of her evident a p

'
ea r a n c e of unhappiness She at once understood him

p .
,
and taking Mary by the hand in the most anxious and a f ,
f ec t io n a t e manner asked if she were n o t well .
“ ”
I am not calculated for this kind of compa n y she eu ,
s wer ed and at the same time burst into a flood of tears

, .
The truth was E dith had been so surrounded by others

,
that she could not well get away H er feelings at once .
were painful almost beyond endurance ; her memory he

came crowded with recollections of t he past ; her very
dreams—when her friend h ad appeared to her as an em
blem of mercy—presented themselves b efore her as a real
ity She em b rac ed her a n d pale as ashes sank upon the
.
, , ,
“
floor and before she entirely fainted exclaimed This is
the worst of a ll ! but —but —I am not ungrateful
, , ,
Mr De l E u r applied a restorative a n d she soon r eco v

.
’
,
ered Miss Dexter was alarmed an d after embracing her

.
, , ,
“
said What weakness have I been thus guilty of in dis
,
tressing you But E dith I feel that our sphere of life has
.
, ,
”
changed and that I shall soon be forgotten
, .
T he latter gazed upo n her friend in silence and at length ,

“
replie d I do not deserve this Mary or if I do it is a p
, , , ,
”
parent a n d not actual and at the same time extended her
, ,
hand to her a d with pturned eyes ej aculated , Lord ,

n u,
“
”
keep me steadfast in my purpose !
They had now been absent some time , and Mr De l E u r .

’
,
see ing that what h ad occurred was i n consequence of the

blind devotion Miss Dexter her e his sister , led them back
to the parlor yet it was very difficult for either of them to
rally The evem n g had become pretty well spent a n d
. .
E dith had taken her seat by the side of her friend She
’
had become abstr acted from the throng an d other persons ,
and other things were passing through her mind when sud ,
den l y a tall and sunburned person entered the room in

plain attire The sleeve of the left arm hung loose by his
.
side ; he was lame in one of his limbs , and a deep sear

marked his face .
“ ”
Who is this said o n e of the gentl emen , as he meas
?
u r e d him from head to foot with his glass .
“ “
Oh ! oh exclaimed a lady it must be a robber ! How ,
”
black he is ! and he is lame !
“ ” “
A s I live said another softly , to a gentleman , he has
, ,
”
lost an arm .
Mr De l E u r was sitting at the other sid e of Mary Dexter

.
’
,
and t he company intervened between him an d the stran ger .
A s he , however pressed into view George got a glimpse of

, ,
his friend and at once rose from his seat H e g rasped hi m

, .
by his hand and with a silent pressure carried it to his

,
“ ” “
heart . A llow me he said to his company to introduce
, ,
my f riend , General Standish , of the Continental army ”

.
In a moment he was surrounded The man who had .
excited their attention had been as a shadow to all of their

plans H e h ad been at first despised then hated , and after
.
, ,
feared and respe c t had followed Captain Devereux walk

,
.
“
ed u p to him and said , Honor to the brave ! You have
given me the rheumatism 1n one of my arms but I believe ,
I had before given you just cause of co mplaint , at the”
same time scrut inizing the scar on his face .
General Standish bowed gravely , yet politely to the sal

u t a t io n and acknowledged the re c ognition
,
H e looked .
“
around and said Where is E dith ? ”
S he ha d l ef t the
,
'
room as s o on as she had recognized him She was fearful .

3 06 STAN DI SH THE PURITAN .
Because I enjoined him n o t to It would have done no .
”
good and only m ight have pained you
, .
‘
Well William I am content It will be my chief
, ,
'
.
h appiness to make up to you the loss of your members by

”
the greater use of m ine .
They spent an hour in recounting over the events of t he

last seven years a n d before they retired they were heard
,
to la u gh at a ludicro u s event that had happened when they

had first b ecome acquainted .
General Standish h ad been sent to the city to make ar

rangements for its evacuation by t he E n gl ish and he had ,
,
made up his mind to remain at the cottage until the time

should be agreed upon T he night was a beautiful one
.
,
a n d they d id not retire till a late hour n o r would they then ,
had they n o t heard a grumbling from Diana , who would

n o t sleep herself until the house was secure d .
But a few more days elapsed before arrangemen t s were

made to evacuate the town Standish h ad a l ready laid .
aside th e sword and he and De l E u r were consulti n g to

,
’
gether concerning their future proceedings It was o b .
s erved notwithstanding the former spent most of his t i m e

,
at the cottage that the latter resorted more a n d more to

,
the city H is mother accounted for it on the ground that

.
a s Standish and E dith were so much together George was ,
lonely E dith was too much absorbed in a dreamy reverie

—half conscious and half in the delightful maze of u n c er
.
tainty ; enough of th e former to know that she was soon to

possess the obj ect which now ensured her h appiness Hour .
after hour passed as they wander ed upon the river bank ,
a n d when they supposed it noon they found on examina , ,
tion that it was nearer sunset

The autumn had n o w lingered almost into W
, .
inter One .
day as Standish and E dith were in one of their rambles

, ,
De l E u r came walking rapidly up to them It was so u n

’
.
usual for him to depart from his slow straight upright gait , , ,
t hat when they first perc eived him they were n o t a little
alarmed l est some accident had occurred at the ho u se ; b u t
his p l aci d satisfied face soon rid them of appreh e n s ion
,
.
” “
E dith ! he exclaimed as soon as he saw her I have , ,
”
pleasant news .
“ ” “
I am rejoiced to hear it she replie d for I remarked , ,
of late th at you looked a little saddened I was fearful

‘
,
.
“
'
she added as she took him b y the han d , that something

,
”
unusual had a ffli cted you .
“
Indeed it has ; more if possible than all of my other , ,
”
troubles he replied , .
E dith looked at him with all of a sister s tenderness , and ’
“ ”
said What was it George
,
?
,
“ ” “
Why said he Mary Dexter refused me and with a
, , ,
steadiness of purpose which seemed t o admit of no compro

”
mise .
“
R efused you , G eorge said she with astonishment .
, ,
and as if the idea was impressed u p on her mind that it was

impossible for any la d y to refuse him , at the same time
“
denoting her ignorance of his partiality R efused you !
”
I do n o t understand .
“
Then sa id he
”
I wi l l be more explicit
, Do you
, .
s u ppose E dith that m y heart could remain passive with a

, ,
?
knowled ge of the ch aracter of that generous hearted girl -
Could I love you and n o t love her ? Did you suppose me

ignorant that her attachment to you induced her to follo w
me to the prison door to seek me out when man thirsted
?
,
for my blood a n d to beg upon her knees of them to pity

, .
and save me a n d that in your a fll ic t io n she sympathized

?
,
nursed caressed and soothed you

,
? N o E dith ; it is well
, ,
for me perhaps that the great world can n o t appreciate

, ,
such worth or I might never have obtained it But she

, .
has at length consented and her father loves her too well ,
to interfere and a short time will I trust make her my

, , ,
wi fe and I trust at the same time , you may change your

, ,
”
name .
E dith could n o t express her pleasure and surprise but ,

“
breathed a faint prayer and then exclaimed Blessed are , ,
the righteous for they shall inherit the k ingdom of God

,
The gay world in the city had ceased its fl u t t er in g s and ,

3 08 S TA N D I S H T H E P U R I TAN .
were gravely turn ing their tho u ghts in another direction ;

packing of trunks stowing of furniture and securing them
, ,
on shipboard had succeeded The truth had unawares , .

‘
come upon them , and a stern necessity pointing t o the E a st ,

urged their early departure thitherward .
One morning a person called at the cottage , and stated

that he had purchased Oakford from Mr S n ifl in g f er a very .
small sum compared with its value and havin g since de ,
t er m in ed to go to E ngland , he would be glad to sell it for

the same that he gave ; and after some little consultation
with De l E u r and Standish it was agreed to repurchase it
’
,
in the name of the latter as it would be safer in his hands , ~
than in the hands of the former A fter the settlement of .
a few preliminaries the transfer was made ,

.
“
It n o w became a matter of serious consideration whet h

er the De l E u r family should go to E ngland or return to
’
their native place Mrs De l E u r suggested that it was

. .
’
immaterial to her where she went so long as her chi ldren

went with her and she left it entirely to them to decide
, .
George said he would in the first place go home to E n , ,
gland , and see if any thing r ig ht fu l l y b el on g ed to him b e ,
fore he could come to any decision while Standish said ,
that it would be the last place in the world that he would

live in (tenderly looking at E dith for approbation ) .
“ ” “
You say right she replied My heart was with
, .
them at the first but I regret to find that they are quite
,
u ndeserving of sympathy Your home in life is my home , .

,
”
and in death I trust your grave will be my grave
, , .
I n relation to the title George fu lly coincided with his ,
mother H e wished no honors reflected upon him fr o m

.
dead men n o r privileges conferred wh ich were never earn

,
.
“ ” “
ed. If the peers , he said want their numb er in c r ea s ,
ed let them be created for their worth and wisdom and

, ,
not taken from a far off conn ection , regardless of either the
-
”
one or the other .
Mrs and Miss De l E u r lost no time in calling up on

.
’
Mary Dexter She blushed t o the eyes when she found

.
3 10 STAN DISH THE PURITAN .
firs t left the army A c r 1 m 1 n a l would n o t h ave felt him

.
self more uneasy l n the stocks than he did the first nigh t
h e took to his bed .
It was refreshing to see the warriors com ing in daily

from the army and laying aside the 1 n sig n i a of their voca
,
tion return ing again to their long neglected fields to reno

,
vate them from the weeds a n d under brush that co vered -
them H ere a soldier was to be seen who ha d n o t been

.
near his home for seven years trying to find some land ,
mark by which he could designate his acres H is cot a n d .
out ho u ses had been destroyed ; his fences were gone ; his
-
plowed lands h ad become a small forest and the little ,
m eadow which had m wm t e r supported his horse his cow , ,
and half a score of sheep had fo r want of drainage been

, , ,
con verted into a pond wher e frogs croaked and reptiles hid
_ , .
He wou l d take his stand by s ome old oak from whose

'
boughs he had swung in his youth or an old log across a ,

'
rivulet where he had pas sed to a meado w where s t r a w b er

ries grew a n d the b o b a l in k built his nest From one of .
these he would take his range and build up his fences as ,
near as he could in c onformity to those which h ad d isap

p e ar ed The smoke
. was soon seen curling upward from a
temporary hut the meadow was drained and the ax and
,
-
,
'
hoe were busy in cuttin g down and destroying unfruitful

trees and noxious w ee ds .
N ever was man more busy than was Standish , and never
was there one who had gr eater incentives to exertion : the
possession of o n e whose constancy had never drooped and ,
whose heart was never made to love another with a beau

t y of character which gave a luster throu g h the darkest
night and a reverence for the good which made proselytes
,
o f those who saw the devotion with which she worshiped .
H is time was passed as above stated ex cept when he ,
visited the city ; then he was arranging for his marriage

and he was now looking with anxiety for the return of
George or a letter that would inti mate his fu t ure intan
,
tions Six months had pass ed , and nothing had been heard
.
from him and already in the morning attended by a serv , ,
ant did Mary Dexter often go t o the bay side a n d stand

, ,
for hours looking down it for the arrival of a ship ; but

when the wind became unfair she would pensively wal k ,
back to her father s house and nothing c ould rally her u n

’
,
til he convinced her that it was unreasonable to suppose

that Mr De l E u r could h ave tr ansacted his a ff airs and
.
’
b e enabled to return in so short a time .
A nother month p as sed away and another yet no news , ,
f f o m him and a little anxiety was beginning to be felt by

,
mother and sister No portion of the day when the winds

.
,
blew from the c a st was Mary Dexter absent from some

,
point of land which would give her the first intimation of

his arrival ; but as night came o n she would retire on her
, ,
’
father s arm dis appointed and dejected They would then
, .
take a drive to the cottage a n d Mrs and Miss De l E u r , .

’
would console her by statin g that they did n o t consider

there was a n y th ing to be alarmed at .
A year had n o w nearly passed in expectations and dis

appointments The house and out buildings at Oakford -
Fences were u p —not n ew but

.
had been nearly completed .

,
made to appear just as they were immediately before their

destru ction ; and the same pains ha d been taken with the
house to disguise its n ewn ess H usband men were at work .
in the fields and pains had been taken to fill them with
,
cattle of the same breed which Mr De l E u r in his lifetime .

’
had taken much trouble to procure

It was now late in the autumn—the season of storms
.
a n d o n e day , afte r the sun had set the clouds were seud
,
ding westward with the swiftness of the kite a n d before ,
midnight the roaring of the ocean cou l d be heard from the

breakers outside of the harbor As the night advanced the .
storm increased and the dismal sounds were sent up from

,
the deep like wa ilin gs for the dead The sounds as of a

‘
thousand mu ffled drums seemed to follow in its cadence .
“
If George should be at tea to night sa id Mrs De -
.
“
l E u r to E dith
’
.
3 12 STANDIS H THE PURITAN .
The same God that has preserved him thus far I doubt ,
”
not will protect him the latter replied before her mothe r
, , ,
finished t he s entence .
Mary s anguish was so great that notwiths tanding the

’
,
severity of the gale a n d the lateness of the hour her father , ,
knowing the inf l uence that her friends had over her had ,
his carriage brought u p and proceeded to the cottage , .
N either party were the least d isposed to sleep The site .
of the house overlooked the bay and in a clear day the ,
ocean could be seen from it Mary h ad unperceived gone .

, ,
to the upper story and f rom th e window was lookin g into

,
the darkness in the direction of the outer bay She had

, .
not remained in her situation long when far o ff in the dis

tance she saw a fl ash an d then another and another in ,
'
quick succession She called the rest of the party to her

. .
“ ”
There are signals of distress in the lower bay ! she
excl aimed as she grasped with one hand her fa t her and
, ,
“ ”
with the other Mrs De l E u r Father she said in a ’
trembling and feeling voice c an you n o t save thos epoor

. .
, ,
so u l s a n d perhaps he
,
. A t this mo ment her emotions
overcame her .
Mr Dexter was alarmed for his daughter far more than

.
for any one else E dith went to another portion of the

.
apartment ; the house seemed to shake to its foundation ;

she looked to the point she was accustomed to when her
heart failed her A t first a dense blackness covered it but
‘
.
,
a moment thereafter the clouds separated and there was ,
her own beautiful star inspiring her in its beauty not to ,
despair With n ew feelings and a new spirit she went

.
ba ck an d m the most confident m an ner said to them ,

,
H ow easily we can make ours elves wretched if we con _
strue appearances only into realities Now I assure you I

'
have not the least apprehension for the safety of George ,

”
although I think it quite probable that h e m ay be there .
H er mother and Mr and Miss Dexter looked a t her with

astonishment yet as a kind of pr ophetess—one with whom
.
'
angels communed These few slight wor ds r en o va t ed the

.
Air m en T HE P C R IT A K .
sa t ifi ed t hat t hey w er e do cm ed te c en fim fio n . S t an dish

p r om isc d t ha t he w e n l d do wha t he c en l d fix him , an d l )e
fi y , w as ec t ed e ar fi ve A s De I E n r w a s wal kin g n p
’
ex
p t .
t he a ven n e whi c h l e d t e t he c et t ag e , he s nw t he fm m er
hi m , who sh ou l d he m e a f t er su c h a .
h p ss cf n m b u t hr s d d fil en d l i fi er t en He l m ked a s
sou n d n n d as ha l c a s i f he n em had had a l eve d isa p p ei n t
c f eeI M an d exp l fi n ed t o De l E ’
m t ha t t h e hm m w hic h
sr x xn rsn T HE PURI TAN . 15
of b oth had b een lent to cover the form of their beauti ful
emblem Standish maimed as he w as appeared as a kind
.
, ,
of Achilles on his return from the wars ; yet his habi t o f

command which gave a sternnes s to his expre ssion was
, ,
softened when he looked down upon his beautiful bride ,
and it was then that it could be seen that though his per
son was mutilated his heart was unharmed a n d that it
, ,
was subj ect to al l the finer feelings it had posses sed in his
y outh . Mary Dexter was the personification of happi
ness : her lip was as rich as the ripest cherry the down of ,
peach d e fined her rounded cheek and she looked up to her ,
husband with an expression displaying at the same time

her a ff ection for him and her benevolence to the world .
Mrs De l E u r Doctor Manly Colonel E gerton and M r

.
’
, , , .
Dexter were all who were present Genera l Stan dish ha d .
his scruples about being married in the church yet he was ,
not so unga l lant as to make a point of it Doctor Manly .
gave away his former patient and poor Mr Dexter parted , .
with the idol of his heart H e appeared not to understand

.
that a woman s love for her husband has nothin g to do

’
.
with her a ff ection for her parent u n less it be to strength ,
en it.
They were spe edily on their way Carriages and sad .
dl e horses had b een brought down from the country that ,
they might alternately adopt the o n e or the other as fancy ,
dicta ted The happy cavalcade ga l lope d from the city

.
,
without the least wish ever t o retu rn t o it T heir chief .
as sociations with it were any thing but p le a surable All t

.
th at they had found there of truth hn d magnanim i ty they

had with them The grea t maj er it y had so much to do 1 n
.
support of their o wn pos i tion or those who had money to,
make one that the virtu ous and inte lligent were overlook
,
ed in the pursuit a fter the shad ows which were thrown

fro m those w ho were suppos ed to exist in a better atmos
ph o re th a n their o wn ; an d thus they lived on in a degra
dation which none but t hem sel y es could have tolerated
an incubus to all the noble sentiments of the heart The .
day had been S pent in the enjoyment of the sweetest emo

tions Time had softened down the sad recollection of
.
’ '
scenes which had been e n acted at their o wn homes ; yet as ,
they approached it other hours would steal upon their mem ,
ory a n d the smile would then be less playful

”
.
,
The evening of the second day of their journey had ap

p re ached and as they n o Wsil en t l y rode along an obj ect
'
’
, ,
n o w and then reminded E dith of Oakford

“ ”
William .
,
“
said she tenderly placing her h and upon his arm is n ot
, , ,
”
this Oakford ? I recolle ct that t ree .
Standish smiled but made n o answer as he drove rap ,
idly o n In a moment more he was at the door of the

.
h o u se She looked out of the carriage as the moon shone

.
full upon it Do I dre am or am I in a tra n ce

? . said
“
she , as she grasped his hand I myself saw t he house in
flames , and falling to the grou n d How—pray explain all
.
”
this .
“ ” “
Why E dith he answered I h ave done something
, , ,
in building up an em p ire and I am sure it is less diffi c u lt to

The mystery W
,
”
build up a house a s all revealed a n d she
.
,
pressed to her heart the man who had never lost sight for a
moment of her h appiness .
George and his mother now drove up They could hard .
l y believe their senses E very thing seemed to them as i t .
h a d been before its destruction They saw in a moment .
what it was that had kept Standish so long in the country ,
a n d as they entered the house they blessed h im who had ,
taken so much pains to reconcile them to th eir former mis

fortunes and who had for so many yea r e made himself
, ,
'
,
but of secondary consideration when they w ere concerne d

_
.
Mary (as we shall still call her ) ha d t a k en a seat beside

her father as he see m ed out of S pirits
, She ca ress ed him , .
and told him how mu ch she w as pained that he could sup

pose a particle of her affection s were alienated from him ; -
and she continued c o n so l in

journey had been fatiguing
past all ,
3 18 S T A N D I S H T H E P U R IT A N ‘
seat beside magistrate and f r equ en t l y in t er f e r ed as a m

t he ,
i cu s cu r i ae which he trans l ated for the ed ific a t io n of the

, ,
“
b y standers
-
a friend of th e court which hints the just
,
ice sometimes took a n d too frequently for the dispensation

,
‘
of equity .
Mr De l E u r h ad for several years m ade t hestu d y of the

.
’
law an amusement and pastime to the great delight of his ,
father l n law a n d m process of time became a judge of the

-
, ?
h ighest tribunal in the state A s the family of General .
Standish increased so did his industry and he was one of ,
the most thriving fa

,
rmers m that part of the country H is .
neighbors ind u ced him to take upon himself the duties of

j us t ice of the peace H e administered it a ccordi n g to the.
very right of the case ; and although Mr Dexter often ,

.
“
pointed out to him his errors of law yet he w ould not ,
chan ge his decisions .
Mr Dexter would then take with him the party w ho ha d

.
lost his case and go to a lawyer l n the village and procure

,
an a
‘ pp ea l The decision
. of Standish would often go up t o
the court where De l E u r presided and n o t unfrequently ’

,
“
were his decisions reversed on account of error in law ;
and in such cases where the equ ity of the case was d ef ea t i
,
ed the costs would often amount to a considerable sum

, ,
though the matte r in dispute was only a small o n e a n d it ,
n o t unfrequently t ook the poor m an s lost cow in its liquid

’
ation A lthough it was gratifying to Mr Dexter to see the

. .
law in its maj esty ob served yet he would always make

a
,
c ie n t to compensate him fo r
g ood to the su f f erer a s u m s ffi
his loss es .
Zimri l n his ramblings some little time after the De

, ,
l E u r s had repo ssessed themselves of Oa kford had taken u p

’
,
h is abode l n the village near b y H is capital w ould become .
frequently absorbed i n his numerous experiments a n d on ,
such occasions he would take his stand at a distance but ,
sufficiently near to the house to see the ou t goings as well

as the m eo m in g s of Mr Dexter an d no sooner was b e out
of the way than he W
.
, ,
ould present hi ms elf to his form er

STANDISH THE PUR ITAN . 3 19
patroness now the younger Mrs De l E u r for t he purpose

,
.
’
,
of replenishi n g his pockets The expression of his wants “
w a s n o t ma d e in words or in tears ; he would simply look

at his patroness and then a ff ectionately at his machine
,
.
Upon b eing asked wh at was the matter ,
would be the reply ,

.
H ave you made the discovery Zimri ,

”
Yes marm , .
Then why don t it go ’
”
I ha ve b r o k en a s p r 1 n g he feebly articulated He
'
'
, .
never failed of getting a pocket full of money before he

went away and then he made straight for the village over
, ,
hedges and ditches regardless of the road when it did n o t

,
run in a direct line .
S n ifl in g had returned to his father a few years after the ,
war broken down in constitution and in fortune

, ,
The .
principal part of his property had been confiscated by the

‘
A merican government the means he had used in giving ,
discredit to the old Continental currency having come to

their knowledge H is last mercantile operations were in
.
keeping a seed s t ore and when business was dull at home

, ,
he perambulated t he coun try with a wagon and horse ; and

n o t knowi ng of Oakford or its inhabitants he hit upon that , ,
and the first man he encountered was Mr Dexter H e was . .
older sin c e they had last met and he himself was much a i ,
t er ed yet still he recollected the lawyer but had the satis

, ,
f ac t io n o f not being known in return It was in the spring

’
of the year an d Mr Dexter gladly avail ed himself of the

, .
opportunity to supply himself liberally with every vari ety

of garden seeds The purchase had hardly been c o n su m
.
m ated when Zimri hove in sight and the vendor of the ,
goods n o sooner saw him than he m ade off as fast as a very

lame horse could carry him The seeds were all sown but '
.
,
never came up ; and upo n Mr Dexter too late in the seaso n .

,
to remedy the evil , investigat in g the cause he ascertained ,
that they were of wood and a wretched garden was the r e ,
sult. It was subse quently ascertain ed by General Stand

3 20 S T A N D I S H T H E P U R I TA N '
ish that it was S n ifl in g who sold the goods, and he rather

wickedly a sked Mr Dexter how he liked the pu rchase he
.
“ ”
h ad made ; to which he me r ely replied , ad r ef er en d u m ,
“
which , when tr an slated means to b e further conside red
, , .
Doctor Manly at the urgent re q ue st of Mrs Standish

,
.
and her husband , moved into their n eighborhoo d and their ,

’
patronage with that of the De l E u r s , was a su fli c ien t en
,
do r s em en t of his reputation and he soon became the le ad

,
in g physician in that portion o f t he countr y .
A s for Mr Thu r wo od , he went home to E ngland where

.
,
“
e in time bec ame the respected h ead of the H erald O f
h06 .
7?
Time r olled on , an d G ene r al Standis h an d his wife were

fr os ted with age yet it was a green old age T hey would
, .
sit on a su mmer s eve , in t he be autiful lawn , and under

,
’
the same old oaks r e countin g the scene s of their youth ,

'
and of their middl e life , an d afte r they had looked upon

thei r f aVo r it e star they wo u l d r etir e , happ y to their cham
, ,
ber satisfied that their lives wou ld b e r en ewed in so me

,
bright world where they Would love a s well as in this u n ,
subj ected to its p e nalties .
Mrs De l E u r (the elder had lo ng paid the debt of nat ure ,

.
’
and now rested l n t he garden besid e her infant ) was sup

plied with as much money as she wished for her charities ,
and there Was n et a poor person within a d ay s ride who ’
had not reason to bless her .
Diana lived and died a sl ave , n o t to vi c e n or o f n eces

'
sit y , but to the best feelings of t he human heart .
THE E ND .

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(DAN S TAC K

E n t er ed , ac c o r di n g t o A ct of C o ngr es s , in t h e y e ar on e t hou san d

mission to dedicate this effor t in the way of literatu re to

permission was expressed A s you h ave never se en the

manuscript , I hope should the work prove a failure that

Many years ago when engaged in an arduous and sla v

ish profession my m ind often became oppressed in invest i

gating the a ﬂa ir s of others I was wont at such times t o

disenthrall myself b yemploying my pen upon subj ects mo r e

were you gave them a consequence by publishing them in

have attaine d The kind manner in which their im p er fec

tions were overlooked and the encomiums you were pleased

to bestow upon them are the chief inducement that prompt

ed me to write a work more in detail and at least with an

endeavor to render it more worthy the attention of the pub

war and whose two brothers were kill ed at the battle of

Wyoming There were certai n characters that he was in

the habit of d escribing who became im portant per sonages

have the time , that I might be enabled t o group them in the

lowing pages during a short sojourn with my connections at

der at different periods and at various places and I should ,

not at all be surprised if a want of succinctness should be

r io u s actors engaged therein belong to the public and to

them I be queath them—the latter to be dealt with accord

a s would seem to merit disapprobation , for after all , per ,

h aps I may have done them injustice .

obed ient servant ,

TH E R E is pe riod in early life when sensations oc cur

so varied i n th e ir c haracter so painfu l yet so pleasing so

full o f hop e s a n d fears as when k in dred spirits in a senior

class at college ; meet together for the l ast time prior to

The t ies of friendship which are formed in four years in

a n d t he co n t in u ed in terchange of thought and sentiment

int er weave as it were the a ffections upon our natures

which endure as long as we live ; and if it so happen tha t

there are seasons in our lives when they return back to us

of early life with a subdued and religiou s feelin g that shows ,

how much purer and nobler they are th an any friendships

which are formed thereafter

Just before the breakin g out of the Am erican war a ,

few friends of the senior class of “ W College met to take

back to their parents the meeting of brothers and sisters

whom they would ﬁn d there the bright eyes that would

aided in dispelling the gloom for the moment that awaited

George De l E u r had received the ﬁrst honors of the

college and had a discerning eye seen hi m with his fel

lows though a str anger he would have been selected as in

t el l ec t u al l y superior to the rest H is compact forehea d .

quick clear hazel §3Y 6 shaded by brown hair with a stu

dent like carelessness ih t he arrangement with an erect

and manly person of ﬁve feet t e n stamped him with a su ,

e r io r it y the for c e of whi ch m os t of his fellows a c kn o w l

A s George De l E u r was con f ess edly at the h ead o f his

class morall y as well as intell ectuall y so was Julius Caesar

Snif ﬁng a t its foot physically mentally and m orally

Smal l in stature With little , quick an d s erpent like eyes

nobler instincts of man , he fancied De l E u r or r ather he ’

gain he would crin ge and fawn ; yet De l E u r owned t he

influence of nature : he had tolerated him aided him in ,

his studies and when others were disposed to pass him b y

h is inﬂuence wou l d insure him at least a decent reception .

E ven S n ifl in g s nature had relaxed from its natural s el ﬁsh

ness by a long association with nobler minds in t he pursuit