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+The Project Gutenberg EBook of The Crayon Papers, by Washington Irving
+
+This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere at no cost and with
+almost no restrictions whatsoever.  You may copy it, give it away or
+re-use it under the terms of the Project Gutenberg License included
+with this eBook or online at www.gutenberg.org
+
+
+Title: The Crayon Papers
+
+Author: Washington Irving
+
+Posting Date: October 8, 2012 [EBook #7994]
+Release Date: April, 2005
+First Posted: June 10, 2003
+
+Language: English
+
+Character set encoding: ISO-8859-1
+
+*** START OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK THE CRAYON PAPERS ***
+
+
+
+
+Produced by Charles Aldarondo, Tiffany Vergon, William
+Craig, Charles Franks, and the Online Distributed
+Proofreading Team
+
+
+
+
+
+
+
+
+
+
+
+THE CRAYON PAPERS
+
+by GEOFFREY CRAYON, GENT.
+
+
+
+
+
+
+
+MOUNTJOY: or Some Passages out of the Life of a Castle-Builder
+
+THE GREAT MISSISSIPPI BUBBLE--"A Time of Unexampled Prosperity"
+
+DON JUAN: A Spectral Research
+
+BROEK: or the Dutch Paradise
+
+SKETCHES IN PARIS IN 1825--From the Traveling Note-Book of Geoffrey Crayon,
+Gent.
+
+My French Neighbor The Englishman at Paris English and French Character The
+Tuileries and Windsor Castle The Field of Waterloo Paris at the Restoration
+
+AMERICAN RESEARCHES IN ITALY--Life of Tasso: Recovery of a Lost Portrait of
+Dante
+
+THE TAKING OF THE VEIL The Charming Letorières
+
+THE EARLY EXPERIENCES OF RALPH RINGWOOD--Noted Down from his Conversations
+
+THE SEMINOLES
+
+ORIGIN OF THE WHITE, THE RED, AND THE BLACK MEN--A Seminole Tradition
+
+THE CONSPIRACY OF NEAMATHLA--An Authentic Sketch
+
+LETTER FROM GRANADA
+
+ABDERAHMAN: Founder of the Dynasty of the Ommiades in Spain
+
+THE WIDOW'S ORDEAL: or a Judicial Trial by Combat
+
+THE CREOLE VILLAGE: A Sketch from a Steamboat
+
+A CONTENTED MAN
+
+
+
+
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+MOUNTJOY
+OR SOME PASSAGES OUT OF THE LIFE OF A CASTLE-BUILDER
+
+I was born among romantic scenery, in one of the wildest parts of the
+Hudson, which at that time was not so thickly settled as at present. My
+father was descended from one of the old Huguenot families that came over
+to this country on the revocation of the edict of Nantz. He lived in a
+style of easy, rural independence, on a patrimonial estate that had been
+for two or three generations in the family. He was an indolent,
+good-natured man, who took the world as it went, and had a kind of laughing
+philosophy, that parried all rubs and mishaps, and served him in the place
+of wisdom. This was the part of his character least to my taste; for I was
+of an enthusiastic, excitable temperament, prone to kindle up with new
+schemes and projects, and he was apt to dash my sallying enthusiasm by some
+unlucky joke; so that whenever I was in a glow with any sudden excitement,
+I stood in mortal dread of his good-humor.
+
+Yet he indulged me in every vagary; for I was an only son, and of course a
+personage of importance in the household. I had two sisters older than
+myself, and one younger. The former were educated at New York, under the
+eye of a maiden aunt; the latter remained at home, and was my cherished
+playmate, the companion of my thoughts. We were two imaginative little
+beings, of quick susceptibility, and prone to see wonders and mysteries in
+everything around us. Scarce had we learned to read, when our mother made
+us holiday presents of all the nursery literature of the day; which at that
+time consisted of little books covered with gilt paper, adorned with
+"cuts," and filled with tales of fairies, giants, and enchanters. What
+draughts of delightful fiction did we then inhale! My sister Sophy was of a
+soft and tender nature. She would weep over the woes of the Children in the
+Wood, or quake at the dark romance of Blue-Beard, and the terrible
+mysteries of the blue chamber. But I was all for enterprise and adventure.
+I burned to emulate the deeds of that heroic prince who delivered the white
+cat from her enchantment; or he of no less royal blood, and doughty
+enterprise, who broke the charmed slumber of the Beauty in the Wood!
+
+The house in which we lived was just the kind of place to foster such
+propensities. It was a venerable mansion, half villa, half farmhouse. The
+oldest part was of stone, with loop-holes for musketry, having served as a
+family fortress in the time of the Indians. To this there had been made
+various additions, some of brick, some of wood, according to the exigencies
+of the moment; so that it was full of nooks and crooks, and chambers of all
+sorts and sizes. It was buried among willows, elms, and cherry trees, and
+surrounded with roses and hollyhocks, with honeysuckle and sweetbrier
+clambering about every window. A brood of hereditary pigeons sunned
+themselves upon the roof; hereditary swallows and martins built about the
+eaves and chimneys; and hereditary bees hummed about the flower-beds.
+
+Under the influence of our story-books every object around us now assumed a
+new character, and a charmed interest. The wild flowers were no longer the
+mere ornaments of the fields, or the resorts of the toilful bee; they were
+the lurking-places of fairies. We would watch the humming-bird, as it
+hovered around the trumpet creeper at our porch, and the butterfly as it
+flitted up into the blue air, above the sunny tree-tops, and fancy them
+some of the tiny beings from fairyland. I would call to mind all that I had
+read of Robin Goodfellow and his power of transformation. Oh, how I envied
+him that power! How I longed to be able to compress my form into utter
+littleness; to ride the bold dragonfly; swing on the tall bearded grass;
+follow the ant into his subterraneous habitation, or dive into the
+cavernous depths of the honeysuckle!
+
+While I was yet a mere child I was sent to a daily school, about two miles
+distant. The schoolhouse was on the edge of a wood, close by a brook
+overhung with birches, alders, and dwarf willows. We of the school who
+lived at some distance came with our dinners put up in little baskets. In
+the intervals of school hours we would gather round a spring, under a tuft
+of hazel-bushes, and have a kind of picnic; interchanging the rustic
+dainties with which our provident mothers had fitted us out. Then, when our
+joyous repast was over, and my companions were disposed for play, I would
+draw forth one of my cherished story-books, stretch myself on the green
+sward, and soon lose myself in its bewitching contents.
+
+I became an oracle among my schoolmates on account of my superior
+erudition, and soon imparted to them the contagion of my infected fancy.
+Often in the evening, after school hours, we would sit on the trunk of some
+fallen tree in the woods, and vie with each other in telling extravagant
+stories, until the whip-poor-will began his nightly moaning, and the
+fireflies sparkled in the gloom. Then came the perilous journey homeward.
+What delight we would take in getting up wanton panics in some dusky part
+of the wood; scampering like frightened deer; pausing to take breath;
+renewing the panic, and scampering off again, wild with fictitious terror!
+
+Our greatest trial was to pass a dark, lonely pool, covered with
+pond-lilies, peopled with bullfrogs and water snakes, and haunted by two
+white cranes. Oh! the terrors of that pond! How our little hearts would
+beat as we approached it; what fearful glances we would throw around! And
+if by chance a plash of a wild duck, or the guttural twang of a bullfrog,
+struck our ears, as we stole quietly by--away we sped, nor paused until
+completely out of the woods. Then, when I reached home, what a world of
+adventures and imaginary terrors would I have to relate to my sister Sophy!
+
+As I advanced in years, this turn of mind increased upon me, and became
+more confirmed. I abandoned myself to the impulses of a romantic
+imagination, which controlled my studies, and gave a bias to all my habits.
+My father observed me continually with a book in my hand, and satisfied
+himself that I was a profound student; but what were my studies? Works of
+fiction; tales of chivalry; voyages of discovery; travels in the East;
+everything, in short, that partook of adventure and romance. I well
+remember with what zest I entered upon that part of my studies which
+treated of the heathen mythology, and particularly of the sylvan deities.
+Then indeed my school books became dear to me. The neighborhood was well
+calculated to foster the reveries of a mind like mine. It abounded with
+solitary retreats, wild streams, solemn forests, and silent valleys. I
+would ramble about for a whole day with a volume of Ovid's Metamorphoses in
+my pocket, and work myself into a kind of self-delusion, so as to identify
+the surrounding scenes with those of which I had just been reading. I would
+loiter about a brook that glided through the shadowy depths of the forest,
+picturing it to myself the haunt of Naiads. I would steal round some bushy
+copse that opened upon a glade, as if I expected to come suddenly upon
+Diana and her nymphs, or to behold Pan and his satyrs bounding, with whoop
+and halloo, through the woodland. I would throw myself, during the panting
+heats of a summer noon, under the shade of some wide-spreading tree, and
+muse and dream away the hours, in a state of mental intoxication. I drank
+in the very light of day, as nectar, and my soul seemed to bathe with
+ecstasy in the deep blue of a summer sky.
+
+In these wanderings nothing occurred to jar my feelings, or bring me back
+to the realities of life. There is a repose in our mighty forests that
+gives full scope to the imagination. Now and then I would hear the distant
+sound of the woodcutter's ax, or the crash of some tree which he had laid
+low; but these noises, echoing along the quiet landscape, could easily be
+wrought by fancy into harmony with its illusions. In general, however, the
+woody recesses of the neighborhood were peculiarly wild and unfrequented. I
+could ramble for a whole day, without coming upon any traces of
+cultivation. The partridge of the wood scarcely seemed to shun my path, and
+the squirrel, from his nut-tree, would gaze at me for an instant, with
+sparkling eye, as if wondering at the unwonted intrusion.
+
+I cannot help dwelling on this delicious period of my life; when as yet I
+had known no sorrow, nor experienced any worldly care. I have since studied
+much, both of books and men, and of course have grown too wise to be so
+easily pleased; yet with all my wisdom, I must confess I look back with a
+secret feeling of regret to the days of happy ignorance before I had begun
+to be a philosopher.
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+It must be evident that I was in a hopeful training for one who was to
+descend into the arena of life, and wrestle with the world. The tutor,
+also, who superintended my studies in the more advanced stage of my
+education, was just fitted to complete the _fata morgana_ which was
+forming in my mind. His name was Glencoe. He was a pale, melancholy-looking
+man, about forty years of age; a native of Scotland, liberally educated,
+and who had devoted himself to the instruction of youth from taste rather
+than necessity; for, as he said, he loved the human heart, and delighted to
+study it in its earlier impulses. My two elder sisters, having returned
+home from a city boarding-school, were likewise placed under his care, to
+direct their reading in history and belles-lettres.
+
+We all soon became attached to Glencoe. It is true, we were at first
+somewhat prepossessed against him. His meager, pallid countenance, his
+broad pronunciation, his inattention to the little forms of society, and an
+awkward and embarrassed manner, on first acquaintance, were much against
+him; but we soon discovered that under this unpromising exterior existed
+the kindest urbanity of temper; the warmest sympathies; the most
+enthusiastic benevolence. His mind was ingenious and acute. His reading had
+been various, but more abstruse than profound; his memory was stored, on
+all subjects, with facts, theories, and quotations, and crowded with crude
+materials for thinking. These, in a moment of excitement, would be, as it
+were, melted down, and poured forth in the lava of a heated imagination. At
+such moments, the change in the whole man was wonderful. His meager form
+would acquire a dignity and grace; his long, pale visage would flash with a
+hectic glow; his eyes would beam with intense speculation; and there would
+be pathetic tones and deep modulations in his voice, that delighted the
+ear, and spoke movingly to the heart.
+
+But what most endeared him to us was the kindness and sympathy with which
+he entered into all our interests and wishes. Instead of curbing and
+checking our young imaginations with the reins of sober reason, he was a
+little too apt to catch the impulse and be hurried away with us. He could
+not withstand the excitement of any sally of feeling or fancy, and was
+prone to lend heightening tints to the illusive coloring of youthful
+anticipation.
+
+Under his guidance my sisters and myself soon entered upon a more extended
+range of studies; but while they wandered, with delighted minds, through
+the wide field of history and belles-lettres, a nobler walk was opened to
+my superior intellect.
+
+The mind of Glencoe presented a singular mixture of philosophy and poetry.
+He was fond of metaphysics and prone to indulge in abstract speculations,
+though his metaphysics were somewhat fine spun and fanciful, and his
+speculations were apt to partake of what my father most irreverently termed
+"humbug." For my part, I delighted in them, and the more especially because
+they set my father to sleep and completely confounded my sisters. I entered
+with my accustomed eagerness into this new branch of study. Metaphysics
+were now my passion. My sisters attempted to accompany me, but they soon
+faltered, and gave out before they had got half way through Smith's Theory
+of the Moral Sentiments. I, however, went on, exulting in my strength.
+Glencoe supplied me with books, and I devoured them with appetite, if not
+digestion. We walked and talked together under the trees before the house,
+or sat apart, like Milton's angels, and held high converse upon themes
+beyond the grasp of ordinary intellects. Glencoe possessed a kind of
+philosophic chivalry, in imitation of the old peripatetic sages, and was
+continually dreaming of romantic enterprises in morals, and splendid
+systems for the improvement of society. He had a fanciful mode of
+illustrating abstract subjects, peculiarly to my taste; clothing them with
+the language of poetry, and throwing round them almost the magic hues of
+fiction. "How charming," thought I, "is divine philosophy;" not harsh and
+crabbed, as dull fools suppose,
+
+  "But a perpetual feast of nectar'd sweets,
+   Where no crude surfeit reigns."
+
+I felt a wonderful self-complacency at being on such excellent terms with a
+man whom I considered on a parallel with the sages of antiquity, and looked
+down with a sentiment of pity on the feebler intellects of my sisters, who
+could comprehend nothing of metaphysics. It is true, when I attempted to
+study them by myself, I was apt to get in a fog; but when Glencoe came to
+my aid, everything was soon as clear to me as day. My ear drank in the
+beauty of his words; my imagination was dazzled with the splendor of his
+illustrations. It caught up the sparkling sands of poetry that glittered
+through his speculations, and mistook them for the golden ore of wisdom.
+Struck with the facility with which I seemed to imbibe and relish the most
+abstract doctrines, I conceived a still higher opinion of my mental powers,
+and was convinced that I also was a philosopher.
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+I was now verging toward man's estate, and though my education had been
+extremely irregular--following the caprices of my humor, which I mistook
+for the impulses of my genius--yet I was regarded with wonder and delight
+by my mother and sisters, who considered me almost as wise and infallible
+as I considered myself. This high opinion of me was strengthened by a
+declamatory habit, which made me an oracle and orator at the domestic
+board. The time was now at hand, however, that was to put my philosophy to
+the test.
+
+We had passed through a long winter, and the spring at length opened upon
+us with unusual sweetness. The soft serenity of the weather; the beauty of
+the surrounding country; the joyous notes of the birds; the balmy breath of
+flower and blossom, all combined to fill my bosom with indistinct
+sensations, and nameless wishes. Amid the soft seductions of the season, I
+lapsed into a state of utter indolence, both of body and mind.
+
+Philosophy had lost its charms for me. Metaphysics--faugh! I tried to
+study; took down volume after volume, ran my eye vacantly over a few pages,
+and threw them by with distaste. I loitered about the house, with my hands
+in my pockets, and an air of complete vacancy. Something was necessary to
+make me happy; but what was that something? I sauntered to the apartments
+of my sisters, hoping their conversation might amuse me. They had walked
+out, and the room was vacant. On the table lay a volume which they had been
+reading. It was a novel. I had never read a novel, having conceived a
+contempt for works of the kind, from hearing them universally condemned. It
+is true, I had remarked that they were as universally read; but I
+considered them beneath the attention of a philosopher, and never would
+venture to read them, lest I should lessen my mental superiority in the
+eyes of my sisters. Nay, I had taken up a work of the kind now and then,
+when I knew my sisters were observing me, looked into it for a moment, and
+then laid it down, with a slight supercilious smile. On the present
+occasion, out of mere listlessness, I took up the volume and turned over a
+few of the first pages. I thought I heard some one coming, and laid it
+down. I was mistaken; no one was near, and what I had read tempted my
+curiosity to read a little further. I leaned against a window-frame, and in
+a few minutes was completely lost in the story. How long I stood there
+reading I know not, but I believe for nearly two hours. Suddenly I heard my
+sisters on the stairs, when I thrust the book into my bosom, and the two
+other volumes which lay near into my pockets, and hurried out of the house
+to my beloved woods. Here I remained all day beneath the trees, bewildered,
+bewitched, devouring the contents of these delicious volumes, and only
+returned to the house when it was too dark to peruse their pages.
+
+This novel finished, I replaced it in my sisters' apartment, and looked for
+others. Their stock was ample, for they had brought home all that were
+current in the city; but my appetite demanded an immense supply. All this
+course of reading was carried on clandestinely, for I was a little ashamed
+of it, and fearful that my wisdom might be called in question; but this
+very privacy gave it additional zest. It was "bread eaten in secret"; it
+had the charm of a private amour.
+
+But think what must have been the effect of such a course of reading on a
+youth of my temperament and turn of mind; indulged, too, amid romantic
+scenery and in the romantic season of the year. It seemed as if I had
+entered upon a new scene of existence. A train of combustible feelings were
+lighted up in me, and my soul was all tenderness and passion. Never was
+youth more completely love-sick, though as yet it was a mere general
+sentiment, and wanted a definite object. Unfortunately, our neighborhood
+was particularly deficient in female society, and I languished in vain for
+some divinity to whom I might offer up this most uneasy burden of
+affections. I was at one time seriously enamored of a lady whom I saw
+occasionally in my rides, reading at the window of a country-seat; and
+actually serenaded her with my flute; when, to my confusion, I discovered
+that she was old enough to be my mother. It was a sad damper to my romance;
+especially as my father heard of it, and made it the subject of one of
+those household jokes which he was apt to serve up at every meal-time.
+
+I soon recovered from this check, however, but it was only to relapse into
+a state of amorous excitement. I passed whole days in the fields, and along
+the brooks; for there is something in the tender passion that makes us
+alive to the beauties of nature. A soft sunshiny morning infused a sort of
+rapture into my breast. I flung open my arms, like the Grecian youth in
+Ovid, as if I would take in and embrace the balmy atmosphere. [Footnote:
+Ovid's Metamorphoses, Book vii] The song of the birds melted me to
+tenderness. I would lie by the side of some rivulet for hours, and form
+garlands of the flowers on its banks, and muse on ideal beauties, and sigh
+from the crowd of undefined emotions that swelled my bosom.
+
+In this state of amorous delirium, I was strolling one morning along a
+beautiful wild brook, which I had discovered in a glen. There was one place
+where a small waterfall, leaping from among rocks into a natural basin,
+made a scene such as a poet might have chosen as the haunt of some shy
+Naiad. It was here I usually retired to banquet on my novels. In visiting
+the place this morning I traced distinctly, on the margin of the basin,
+which was of fine clear sand, the prints of a female foot of the most
+slender and delicate proportions. This was sufficient for an imagination
+like mine. Robinson Crusoe himself, when he discovered the print of a
+savage foot on the beach of his lonely island, could not have been more
+suddenly assailed with thick-coming fancies.
+
+I endeavored to track the steps, but they only passed for a few paces along
+the fine sand, and then were lost among the herbage. I remained gazing in
+reverie upon this passing trace of loveliness. It evidently was not made by
+any of my sisters, for they knew nothing of this haunt; besides, the foot
+was smaller than theirs; it was remarkable for its beautiful delicacy.
+
+My eye accidentally caught two or three half-withered wild flowers lying on
+the ground. The unknown nymph had doubtless dropped them from her bosom!
+Here was a new document of taste and sentiment. I treasured them up as
+invaluable relics. The place, too, where I found them, was remarkably
+picturesque, and the most beautiful part of the brook. It was overhung with
+a fine elm, entwined with grapevines. She who could select such a spot, who
+could delight in wild brooks, and wild flowers, and silent solitudes, must
+have fancy, and feeling, and tenderness; and with all these qualities, she
+must be beautiful!
+
+But who could be this Unknown, that had thus passed by, as in a morning
+dream, leaving merely flowers and fairy footsteps to tell of her
+loveliness? There was a mystery in it that bewildered me. It was so vague
+and disembodied, like those "airy tongues that syllable men's names" in
+solitude. Every attempt to solve the mystery was vain. I could hear of no
+being in the neighborhood to whom this trace could be ascribed. I haunted
+the spot, and became daily more and more enamored. Never, surely, was
+passion more pure and spiritual, and never lover in more dubious situation.
+My case could be compared only to that of the amorous prince in the fairy
+tale of Cinderella; but he had a glass slipper on which to lavish his
+tenderness. I, alas! was in love with a footstep!
+
+The imagination is alternately a cheat and a dupe; nay, more, it is the
+most subtle of cheats, for it cheats itself and becomes the dupe of its own
+delusions. It conjures up "airy nothings," gives to them a "local
+habitation and a name," and then bows to their control as implicitly as
+though they were realities. Such was now my case. The good Numa could not
+more thoroughly have persuaded himself that the nymph Egeria hovered about
+her sacred fountain and communed with him in spirit than I had deceived
+myself into a kind of visionary intercourse with the airy phantom
+fabricated in my brain. I constructed a rustic seat at the foot of the tree
+where I had discovered the footsteps. I made a kind of bower there, where I
+used to pass my mornings reading poetry and romances. I carved hearts and
+darts on the tree, and hung it with garlands. My heart was full to
+overflowing, and wanted some faithful bosom into which it might relieve
+itself. What is a lover without a confidante? I thought at once of my
+sister Sophy, my early playmate, the sister of my affections. She was so
+reasonable, too, and of such correct feelings, always listening to my words
+as oracular sayings, and admiring my scraps of poetry as the very
+inspirations of the muse. From such a devoted, such a rational being, what
+secrets could I have?
+
+I accordingly took her one morning to my favorite retreat. She looked
+around, with delighted surprise, upon the rustic seat, the bower, the tree
+carved with emblems of the tender passion. She turned her eyes upon me to
+inquire the meaning.
+
+"Oh, Sophy," exclaimed I, clasping both her hands in mine, and looking
+earnestly in her face, "I am in love."
+
+She started with surprise.
+
+"Sit down," said I, "and I will tell you all."
+
+She seated herself upon the rustic bench, and I went into a full history of
+the footstep, with all the associations of idea that had been conjured up
+by my imagination.
+
+Sophy was enchanted; it was like a fairy tale; she had read of such
+mysterious visitations in books, and the loves thus conceived were always
+for beings of superior order, and were always happy. She caught the
+illusion in all its force; her cheek glowed; her eye brightened.
+
+"I daresay she's pretty," said Sophy.
+
+"Pretty!" echoed I, "she is beautiful." I went through all the reasoning by
+which I had logically proved the fact to my own satisfaction. I dwelt upon
+the evidences of her taste, her sensibility to the beauties of nature; her
+soft meditative habit that delighted in solitude. "Oh," said I, clasping my
+hands, "to have such a companion to wander through these scenes; to sit
+with her by this murmuring stream; to wreathe garlands round her brows; to
+hear the music of her voice mingling with the whisperings of these groves;
+to--"
+
+"Delightful! delightful!" cried Sophy; "what a sweet creature she must be!
+She is just the friend I want. How I shall dote upon her! Oh, my dear
+brother! you must not keep her all to yourself. You must let _me_ have
+some share of her!"
+
+I caught her to my bosom: "You shall--you shall!" cried I, "my dear Sophy;
+we will all live for each other!"
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+The conversation with Sophy heightened the illusions of my mind; and the
+manner in which she had treated my daydream identified it with facts and
+persons and gave it still more the stamp of reality. I walked about as one
+in a trance, heedless of the world around and lapped in an elysium of the
+fancy.
+
+In this mood I met one morning with Glencoe. He accosted me with his usual
+smile, and was proceeding with some general observations, but paused and
+fixed on me an inquiring eye.
+
+"What is the matter with you?" said he, "you seem agitated; has anything in
+particular happened?"
+
+"Nothing," said I, hesitating; "at least nothing worth communicating to
+you."
+
+"Nay, my dear young friend," said he, "whatever is of sufficient importance
+to agitate you is worthy of being communicated to me."
+
+"Well; but my thoughts are running on what you would think a frivolous
+subject."
+
+"No subject is frivolous that has the power to awaken strong feelings."
+
+"What think you," said I, hesitating, "what think you of love?"
+
+Glencoe almost started at the question. "Do you call that a frivolous
+subject?" replied he. "Believe me, there is none fraught with such deep,
+such vital interest. If you talk, indeed, of the capricious inclination
+awakened by the mere charm of perishable beauty, I grant it to be idle in
+the extreme; but that love which springs from the concordant sympathies of
+virtuous hearts; that love which is awakened by the perception of moral
+excellence, and fed by meditation on intellectual as well as personal
+beauty; that is a passion which refines and ennobles the human heart. Oh,
+where is there a sight more nearly approaching to the intercourse of
+angels, than that of two young beings, free from the sins and follies of
+the world, mingling pure thoughts, and looks, and feelings, and becoming,
+as it were, soul of one soul and heart of one heart! How exquisite the
+silent converse that they hold; the soft devotion of the eye, that needs no
+words to make it eloquent! Yes, my friend, if there be anything in this
+weary world worthy of heaven, it is the pure bliss of such a mutual
+affection!"
+
+The words of my worthy tutor overcame all further reserve. "Mr. Glencoe,"
+cried I, blushing still deeper, "I am in love."
+
+"And is that what you were ashamed to tell me? Oh, never seek to conceal
+from your friend so important a secret. If your passion be unworthy, it is
+for the steady hand of friendship to pluck it forth; if honorable, none but
+an enemy would seek to stifle it. On nothing does the character and
+happiness so much depend as on the first affection of the heart. Were you
+caught by some fleeting and superficial charm--a bright eye, a blooming
+cheek, a soft voice, or a voluptuous form--I would warn you to beware; I
+would tell you that beauty is but a passing gleam of the morning, a
+perishable flower; that accident may becloud and blight it, and that at
+best it must soon pass away. But were you in love with such a one as I
+could describe; young in years, but still younger in feelings; lovely in
+person, but as a type of the mind's beauty; soft in voice, in token of
+gentleness of spirit; blooming in countenance, like the rosy tints of
+morning kindling with the promise of a genial day; an eye beaming with the
+benignity of a happy heart; a cheerful temper, alive to all kind impulses,
+and frankly diffusing its own felicity; a self-poised mind, that needs not
+lean on others for support; an elegant taste, that can embellish solitude,
+and furnish out its own enjoyments--"
+
+"My dear sir," cried I, for I could contain myself no longer, "you have
+described the very person!"
+
+"Why, then, my dear young friend," said he, affectionately pressing my
+hand, "in God's name, love on!"
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+For the remainder of the day I was in some such state of dreamy beatitude
+as a Turk is said to enjoy when under the influence of opium. It must be
+already manifest how prone I was to bewilder myself with picturings of the
+fancy, so as to confound them with existing realities. In the present
+instance, Sophy and Glencoe had contributed to promote the transient
+delusion. Sophy, dear girl, had as usual joined with me in my
+castle-building, and indulged in the same train of imaginings, while
+Glencoe, duped by my enthusiasm, firmly believed that I spoke of a being I
+had seen and known. By their sympathy with my feelings they in a manner
+became associated with the Unknown in my mind, and thus linked her with the
+circle of my intimacy.
+
+In the evening, our family party was assembled in the hall, to enjoy the
+refreshing breeze. Sophy was playing some favorite Scotch airs on the
+piano, while Glencoe, seated apart, with his forehead resting on his hand,
+was buried in one of those pensive reveries that made him so interesting to
+me.
+
+"What a fortunate being I am!" thought I, "blessed with such a sister and
+such a friend! I have only to find out this amiable Unknown, to wed her,
+and be happy! What a paradise will be my home, graced with a partner of
+such exquisite refinement! It will be a perfect fairy bower, buried among
+sweets and roses. Sophy shall live with us, and be the companion of all our
+enjoyments. Glencoe, too, shall no more be the solitary being that he now
+appears. He shall have a home with us. He shall have his study, where, when
+he pleases, he may shut himself up from the world, and bury himself in his
+own reflections. His retreat shall be sacred; no one shall intrude there;
+no one but myself, who will visit him now and then, in his seclusion, where
+we will devise grand schemes together for the improvement of mankind. How
+delightfully our days will pass, in a round of rational pleasures and
+elegant employments! Sometimes we will have music; sometimes we will read;
+sometimes we will wander through the flower garden, when I will smile with
+complacency on every flower my wife has planted; while in the long winter
+evenings the ladies will sit at their work, and listen with hushed
+attention to Glencoe and myself, as we discuss the abstruse doctrines of
+metaphysics."
+
+From this delectable reverie, I was startled by my father's slapping me on
+the shoulder. "What possesses the lad?" cried he; "here have I been
+speaking to you half a dozen times, without receiving an answer."
+
+"Pardon me, sir," replied I; "I was so completely lost in thought, that I
+did not hear you."
+
+"Lost in thought! And pray what were you thinking of? Some of your
+philosophy, I suppose."
+
+"Upon my word," said my sister Charlotte, with an arch laugh, "I suspect
+Harry's in love again."
+
+"And if were in love, Charlotte," said I, somewhat nettled, and
+recollecting Glencoe's enthusiastic eulogy of the passion, "if I were in
+love, is that a matter of jest and laughter? Is the tenderest and most
+fervid affection that can animate the human breast to be made a matter of
+cold-hearted ridicule?"
+
+My sister colored. "Certainly not, brother!--nor did I mean to make it so,
+or to say anything that should wound your feelings. Had I really suspected
+you had formed some genuine attachment, it would have been sacred in my
+eyes; but--but," said she, smiling, as if at some whimsical recollection,
+"I thought that you--you might be indulging in another little freak of the
+imagination."
+
+"Ill wager any money," cried my father, "he has fallen in love again with
+some old lady at a window!"
+
+"Oh, no!" cried my dear sister Sophy, with the most gracious warmth; "she
+is young and beautiful."
+
+"From what I understand," said Glencoe, rousing himself, "she must be
+lovely in mind as in person."
+
+I found my friends were getting me into a fine scrape. I began to perspire
+at every pore, and felt my ears tingle.
+
+"Well, but," cried my father, "who is she?--what is she? Let us hear
+something about her."
+
+This was no time to explain so delicate a matter. I caught up my hat, and
+vanished out of the house.
+
+The moment I was in the open air, and alone, my heart upbraided me. Was
+this respectful treatment to my father--to _such_ a father, too--who
+had always regarded me as the pride of his age--the staff of his hopes? It
+is true, he was apt sometimes to laugh at my enthusiastic flights, and did
+not treat my philosophy with due respect; but when had he ever thwarted a
+wish of my heart? Was I then to act with reserve toward him, in a matter
+which might affect the whole current of my future life? "I have done
+wrong," thought I; "but it is not too late to remedy it. I will hasten back
+and open my whole heart to my father!"
+
+I returned accordingly, and was just on the point of entering the house,
+with my heart full of filial piety and a contrite speech upon my lips, when
+I heard a burst of obstreperous laughter from my father, and a loud titter
+from my two elder sisters.
+
+"A footstep!" shouted he, as soon as he could recover himself; "in love
+with a footstep! Why, this beats the old lady at the window!" And then
+there was another appalling burst of laughter. Had it been a clap of
+thunder, it could hardly have astounded me more completely. Sophy, in the
+simplicity of her heart, had told all, and had set my father's risible
+propensities in full action.
+
+Never was poor mortal so thoroughly crestfallen as myself. The whole
+delusion was at an end. I drew off silently from the house, shrinking
+smaller and smaller at every fresh peal of laughter; and, wandering about
+until the family had retired, stole quietly to my bed. Scarce any sleep,
+however, visited my eyes that night! I lay overwhelmed with mortification,
+and meditating how I might meet the family in the morning. The idea of
+ridicule was always intolerable to me; but to endure it on a subject by
+which my feelings had been so much excited seemed worse than death. I
+almost determined, at one time, to get up, saddle my horse, and ride off, I
+knew not whither.
+
+At length I came to a resolution. Before going down to breakfast, I sent
+for Sophy, and employed her as embassador to treat formally in the matter.
+I insisted that the subject should be buried in oblivion; otherwise I would
+not show my face at table. It was readily agreed to; for not one of the
+family would have given me pain for the world. They faithfully kept their
+promise. Not a word was said of the matter; but there were wry faces, and
+suppressed titters, that went to my soul; and whenever my father looked me
+in the face, it was with such a tragi-comical leer--such an attempt to pull
+down a serious brow upon a whimsical mouth--that I had a thousand times
+rather he had laughed outright.
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+For a day or two after the mortifying occurrence just related, I kept as
+much as possible out of the way of the family, and wandered about the
+fields and woods by myself. I was sadly out of tune; my feelings were all
+jarred and unstrung. The birds sang from every grove, but I took no
+pleasure in their melody; and the flowers of the field bloomed unheeded
+around me. To be crossed in love is bad enough; but then one can fly to
+poetry for relief, and turn one's woes to account in soul-subduing stanzas.
+But to have one's whole passion, object and all, annihilated, dispelled,
+proved to be such stuff as dreams are made of--or, worse than all, to be
+turned into a proverb and a jest--what consolation is there in such a case?
+
+I avoided the fatal brook where I had seen the footstep. My favorite resort
+was now the banks of the Hudson, where I sat upon the rocks and mused upon
+the current that dimpled by, or the waves that laved the shore; or watched
+the bright mutations of the clouds, and the shifting lights and shadows of
+the distant mountain. By degrees a returning serenity stole over my
+feelings; and a sigh now and then, gentle and easy, and unattended by pain,
+showed that my heart was recovering its susceptibility.
+
+As I was sitting in this musing mood my eye became gradually fixed upon an
+object that was borne along by the tide. It proved to be a little pinnace,
+beautifully modeled, and gayly painted and decorated. It was an unusual
+sight in this neighborhood, which was rather lonely; indeed, it was rare to
+see any pleasure-barks in this part of the river. As it drew nearer, I
+perceived that there was no one on board; it had apparently drifted from
+its anchorage. There was not a breath of air; the little bark came floating
+along on the glassy stream, wheeling about with the eddies. At length it
+ran aground, almost at the foot of the rock on which I was seated. I
+descended to the margin of the river, and drawing the bark to shore,
+admired its light and elegant proportions and the taste with which it was
+fitted up. The benches were covered with cushions, and its long streamer
+was of silk. On one of the cushion's lay a lady's glove, of delicate size
+and shape, with beautifully tapered fingers. I instantly seized it and
+thrust it in my bosom; it seemed a match for the fairy footstep that had so
+fascinated me.
+
+In a moment all the romance of my bosom was again in a glow. Here was one
+of the very incidents of fairy tale; a bark sent by some invisible power,
+some good genius, or benevolent fairy, to waft me to some delectable
+adventure. I recollected something of an enchanted bark, drawn by white
+swans, that conveyed a knight down the current of the Rhine, on some
+enterprise connected with love and beauty. The glove, too, showed that
+there was a lady fair concerned in the present adventure. It might be a
+gauntlet of defiance, to dare me to the enterprise.
+
+In the spirit of romance and the whim of the moment, I sprang on board,
+hoisted the light sail, and pushed from shore. As if breathed by some
+presiding power, a light breeze at that moment sprang up, swelled out the
+sail, and dallied with the silken streamer. For a time I glided along under
+steep umbrageous banks, or across deep sequestered bays; and then stood out
+over a wide expansion of the river toward a high rocky promontory. It was a
+lovely evening; the sun was setting in a congregation of clouds that threw
+the whole heavens in a glow, and were reflected in the river. I delighted
+myself with all kinds of fantastic fancies, as to what enchanted island, or
+mystic bower, or necromantic palace, I was to be conveyed by the fairy
+bark.
+
+In the revel of my fancy I had not noticed that the gorgeous congregation
+of clouds which had so much delighted me was in fact a gathering thunder
+gust. I perceived the truth too late. The clouds came hurrying on,
+darkening as they advanced. The whole face of nature was suddenly changed,
+and assumed that baleful and livid tint, predictive of a storm. I tried to
+gain the shore, but before I could reach it a blast of wind struck the
+water and lashed it at once into foam. The next moment it overtook the
+boat. Alas! I was nothing of a sailor; and my protecting fairy forsook me
+in the moment of peril. I endeavored to lower the sail; but in so doing I
+had to quit the helm; the bark was overturned in an instant, and I was
+thrown into the water. I endeavored to cling to the wreck, but missed my
+hold; being a poor swimmer I soon found myself sinking, but grasped a light
+oar that was floating by me. It was not sufficient for my support; I again
+sank beneath the surface; there was a rushing and bubbling sound in my
+ears, and all sense forsook me.
+
+How long I remained insensible, I know not. I had a confused notion of
+being moved and tossed about, and of hearing strange beings and strange
+voices around me; but all this was like a hideous dream. When I at length
+recovered full consciousness and perception, I found myself in bed in a
+spacious chamber, furnished with more taste than I had been accustomed to.
+The bright rays of a morning sun were intercepted by curtains of a delicate
+rose color, that gave a soft, voluptuous tinge to every object. Not far
+from my bed, on a classic tripod, was a basket of beautiful exotic flowers,
+breathing the sweetest fragrance.
+
+"Where am I? How came I here?"
+
+I tasked my mind to catch at some previous event, from which I might trace
+up the thread of existence to the present moment. By degrees I called to
+mind the fairy pinnace, my daring embarkation, my adventurous voyage, and
+my disastrous shipwreck. Beyond that, all was chaos. How came I here? What
+unknown region had I landed upon? The people that inhabited it must be
+gentle and amiable, and of elegant tastes, for they loved downy beds,
+fragrant flowers, and rose-colored curtains.
+
+While I lay thus musing, the tones of a harp reached my ear. Presently they
+were accompanied by a female voice. It came from the room below; but in the
+profound stillness of my chamber not a modulation was lost. My sisters were
+all considered good musicians, and sang very tolerably; but I had never
+heard a voice like this. There was no attempt at difficult execution, or
+striking effect; but there were exquisite inflections, and tender turns,
+which art could not reach. Nothing but feeling and sentiment could produce
+them. It was soul breathed forth in sound. I was always alive to the
+influence of music; indeed, I was susceptible of voluptuous influences of
+every kind--sounds, colors, shapes, and fragrant odors. I was the very
+slave of sensation.
+
+I lay mute and breathless, and drank in every note of this siren strain. It
+thrilled through my whole frame, and filled my soul with melody and love. I
+pictured to myself, with curious logic, the form of the unseen musician.
+Such melodious sounds and exquisite inflections could only be produced by
+organs of the most delicate flexibility. Such organs do not belong to
+coarse, vulgar forms; they are the harmonious results of fair proportions,
+and admirable symmetry. A being so organized must be lovely.
+
+Again my busy imagination was at work. I called to mind the Arabian story
+of a prince, borne away during sleep by a good genius, to the distant abode
+of a princess of ravishing beauty. I do not pretend to say that I believed
+in having experienced a similar transportation; but it was my inveterate
+habit to cheat myself with fancies of the kind, and to give the tinge of
+illusion to surrounding realities.
+
+The witching sound had ceased, but its vibrations still played round my
+heart, and filled it with a tumult of soft emotions. At this moment, a
+self-upbraiding pang shot through my bosom. "Ah, recreant!" a voice seemed
+to exclaim, "is this the stability of thine affections? What! hast thou so
+soon forgotten the nymph of the fountain? Has one song, idly piped in thine
+ear, been sufficient to charm away the cherished tenderness of a whole
+summer?"
+
+The wise may smile--but I am in a confiding mood, and must confess my
+weakness. I felt a degree of compunction at this sudden infidelity, yet I
+could not resist the power of present fascination. My peace of mind was
+destroyed by conflicting claims. The nymph of the fountain came over my
+memory, with all the associations of fairy footsteps, shady groves, soft
+echoes, and wild streamlets; but this new passion was produced by a strain
+of soul-subduing melody, still lingering in my ear, aided by a downy bed,
+fragrant flowers, and rose-colored curtains. "Unhappy youth!" sighed I to
+myself, "distracted by such rival passions, and the empire of thy heart
+thus violently contested by the sound of a voice, and the print of a
+footstep!"
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+I had not remained long in this mood, when I heard the door of the room
+gently opened. I turned my head to see what inhabitant of this enchanted
+palace should appear; whether page in green, a hideous dwarf, or haggard
+fairy. It was my own man Scipio. He advanced with cautious step, and was
+delighted, as he said, to find me so much myself again. My first questions
+were as to where I was and how I came there? Scipio told me a long story of
+his having been fishing in a canoe at the time of my hare-brained cruise;
+of his noticing the gathering squall, and my impending danger; of his
+hastening to join me, but arriving just in time to snatch me from a watery
+grave; of the great difficulty in restoring me to animation; and of my
+being subsequently conveyed, in a state of insensibility, to this mansion.
+
+"But where am I?" was the reiterated demand.
+
+"In the house of Mr. Somerville."
+
+"Somerville--Somerville!" I recollected to have heard that a gentleman of
+that name had recently taken up his residence at some distance from my
+father's abode, on the opposite side of the Hudson. He was commonly known
+by the name of "French Somerville," from having passed part of his early
+life in France, and from his exhibiting traces of French taste in his mode
+of living, and the arrangements of his house. In fact, it was in his
+pleasure-boat, which had got adrift, that I had made my fanciful and
+disastrous cruise. All this was simple, straightforward matter of fact, and
+threatened to demolish all the cobweb romance I had been spinning, when
+fortunately I again heard the tinkling of a harp. I raised myself in bed
+and listened.
+
+"Scipio," said I, with some little hesitation, "I heard some one singing
+just now. Who was it?"
+
+"Oh, that was Miss Julia."
+
+"Julia! Julia! Delightful! what a name! And, Scipio--is she--is she
+pretty?"
+
+Scipio grinned from ear to ear. "Except Miss Sophy, she was the most
+beautiful young lady he had ever seen."
+
+I should observe, that my sister Sophia was considered by all the servants
+a paragon of perfection.
+
+Scipio now offered to remove the basket of flowers; he was afraid their
+odor might be too powerful; but Miss Julia had given them that morning to
+be placed in my room.
+
+These flowers, then, had been gathered by the fairy fingers of my unseen
+beauty; that sweet breath which had filled my ear with melody had passed
+over them. I made Scipio hand them to me, culled several of the most
+delicate, and laid them on my bosom.
+
+Mr. Somerville paid me a visit not long afterward. He was an interesting
+study for me, for he was the father of my unseen beauty, and probably
+resembled her. I scanned him closely. He was a tall and elegant man, with
+an open, affable manner, and an erect and graceful carriage. His eyes were
+bluish-gray, and, though not dark, yet at times were sparkling and
+expressive. His hair was dressed and powdered, and being lightly combed up
+from his forehead, added to the loftiness of his aspect. He was fluent in
+discourse, but his conversation had the quiet tone of polished society,
+without any of those bold flights of thought, and picturings of fancy,
+which I so much admired.
+
+My imagination was a little puzzled, at first, to make out of this
+assemblage of personal and mental qualities a picture that should harmonize
+with my previous idea of the fair unseen. By dint, however, of selecting
+what it liked, and giving a touch here and a touch there, it soon furnished
+out a satisfactory portrait.
+
+"Julia must be tall," thought I, "and of exquisite grace and dignity. She
+is not quite so courtly as her father, for she has been brought up in the
+retirement of the country. Neither is she of such vivacious deportment; for
+the tones of her voice are soft and plaintive, and she loves pathetic
+music. She is rather pensive--yet not too pensive; just what is called
+interesting. Her eyes are like her father's, except that they are of a
+purer blue, and more tender and languishing. She has light hair--not
+exactly flaxen, for I do not like flaxen hair, but between that and auburn.
+In a word, she is a tall, elegant, imposing, languishing blue-eyed,
+romantic-looking beauty." And having thus finished her picture, I felt ten
+times more in love with her than ever.
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+I felt so much recovered that I would at once have left my room, but Mr.
+Somerville objected to it. He had sent early word to my family of my
+safety; and my father arrived in the course of the morning. He was shocked
+at learning the risk I had run, but rejoiced to find me so much restored,
+and was warm in his thanks to Mr. Somerville for his kindness. The other
+only required, in return, that I might remain two or three days as his
+guest, to give time for my recovery, and for our forming a closer
+acquaintance; a request which my father readily granted. Scipio accordingly
+accompanied my father home, and returned with a supply of clothes, and with
+affectionate letters from my mother and sisters.
+
+The next morning, aided by Scipio, I made my toilet with rather more care
+than usual, and descended the stairs with some trepidation, eager to see
+the original of the portrait which had been so completely pictured in my
+imagination.
+
+On entering the parlor, I found it deserted. Like the rest of the house, it
+was furnished in a foreign style. The curtains were of French silk; there
+were Grecian couches, marble tables, pier-glasses, and chandeliers. What
+chiefly attracted my eye, were documents of female taste that I saw around
+me; a piano, with an ample stock of Italian music: a book of poetry lying
+on the sofa; a vase of fresh flowers on a table, and a portfolio open with
+a skillful and half-finished sketch of them. In the window was a canary
+bird, in a gilt cage, and near by, the harp that had been in Julia's arms.
+Happy harp! But where was the being that reigned in this little empire of
+delicacies?--that breathed poetry and song, and dwelt among birds and
+flowers, and rose-colored curtains?
+
+Suddenly I heard the hall door fly open, the quick pattering of light
+steps, a wild, capricious strain of music, and the shrill barking of a dog.
+A light, frolic nymph of fifteen came tripping into the room, playing on a
+flageolet, with a little spaniel romping after her. Her gypsy hat had
+fallen back upon her shoulders; a profusion of glossy brown hair was blown
+in rich ringlets about her face, which beamed through them with the
+brightness of smiles and dimples.
+
+At sight of me she stopped short, in the most beautiful confusion,
+stammered out a word or two about looking for her father, glided out of the
+door, and I heard her bounding up the staircase, like a frightened fawn,
+with the little dog barking after her.
+
+When Miss Somerville returned to the parlor, she was quite a different
+being. She entered, stealing along by her mother's side with noiseless
+step, and sweet timidity; her hair was prettily adjusted, and a soft blush
+mantled on her damask cheek. Mr. Somerville accompanied the ladies, and
+introduced me regularly to them. There were many kind inquiries and much
+sympathy expressed, on the subject of my nautical accident, and some
+remarks upon the wild scenery of the neighborhood, with which the ladies
+seemed perfectly acquainted.
+
+"You must know," said Mr. Somerville, "that we are great navigators, and
+delight in exploring every nook and corner of the river. My daughter, too,
+is a great hunter of the picturesque, and transfers every rock and glen to
+her portfolio. By the way, my dear, show Mr. Mountjoy that pretty scene you
+have lately sketched." Julia complied, blushing, and drew from her
+portfolio a colored sketch. I almost started at the sight. It was my
+favorite brook. A sudden thought darted across my mind. I glanced down my
+eye, and beheld the divinest little foot in the world. Oh, blissful
+conviction! The struggle of my affections was at an end. The voice and the
+footstep were no longer at variance. Julia Somerville was the nymph of the
+fountain!
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+What conversation passed during breakfast I do not recollect, and hardly
+was conscious of at the time, for my thoughts were in complete confusion. I
+wished to gaze on Miss Somerville, but did not dare. Once, indeed, I
+ventured a glance. She was at that moment darting a similar one from under
+a covert of ringlets. Our eyes seemed shocked by the rencontre, and fell;
+hers through the natural modesty of her sex, mine through a bashfulness
+produced by the previous workings of my imagination. That glance, however,
+went like a sunbeam to my heart.
+
+A convenient mirror favored my diffidence, and gave me the reflection of
+Miss Somerville's form. It is true it only presented the back of her head,
+but she had the merit of an ancient statue; contemplate her from any point
+of view, she was beautiful. And yet she was totally different from
+everything I had before conceived of beauty. She was not the serene,
+meditative maid that I had pictured the nymph of the fountain; nor the
+tall, soft, languishing, blue-eyed, dignified being that I had fancied the
+minstrel of the harp. There was nothing of dignity about her: she was
+girlish in her appearance, and scarcely of the middle size; but then there
+was the tenderness of budding youth; the sweetness of the half-blown rose,
+when not a tint of perfume has been withered or exhaled; there were smiles
+and dimples, and all the soft witcheries of ever-varying expression. I
+wondered that I could ever have admired any other style of beauty.
+
+After breakfast, Mr. Somerville departed to attend to the concerns of his
+estate, and gave me in charge of the ladies. Mrs. Somerville also was
+called away by her household cares, and I was left alone with Julia! Here,
+then, was the situation which of all others I had most coveted. I was in
+the presence of the lovely being that had so long been the desire of my
+heart. We were alone; propitious opportunity for a lover! Did I seize upon
+it? Did I break out in one of my accustomed rhapsodies? No such thing!
+Never was being more awkwardly embarrassed.
+
+"What can be the cause of this?" thought I. "Surely, I cannot stand in awe
+of this young girl. I am of course her superior in intellect, and am never
+embarrassed in company with my tutor, notwithstanding all his wisdom."
+
+It was passing strange. I felt that if she were an old woman, I should be
+quite at my ease; if she were even an ugly woman, I should make out very
+well: it was her beauty that overpowered me. How little do lovely women
+know what awful beings they are, in the eyes of inexperienced youth! Young
+men brought up in the fashionable circles of our cities will smile at all
+this. Accustomed to mingle incessantly in female society, and to have the
+romance of the heart deadened by a thousand frivolous flirtations, women
+are nothing but women in their eyes; but to a susceptible youth like
+myself, brought up in the country, they are perfect divinities.
+
+Miss Somerville was at first a little embarrassed herself; but, somehow or
+other, women have a natural adroitness in recovering their self-possession;
+they are more alert in their minds, and graceful in their manners. Besides,
+I was but an ordinary personage in Miss Somerville's eyes; she was not
+under Hie influence of such a singular course of imaginings as had
+surrounded her, in my eyes, with the illusions of romance. Perhaps, too,
+she saw the confusion in the opposite camp and gained courage from the
+discovery. At any rate she was the first to take the field.
+
+Her conversation, however, was only on commonplace topics, and in an easy,
+well-bred style. I endeavored to respond in the same manner; but I was
+strangely incompetent to the task. My ideas were frozen up; even words
+seemed to fail me. I was excessively vexed at myself, for I wished to be
+uncommonly elegant. I tried two or three times to turn a pretty thought, or
+to utter a fine sentiment; but it would come forth so trite, so forced, so
+mawkish, that I was ashamed of it. My very voice sounded discordantly,
+though I sought to modulate it into the softest tones. "The truth is,"
+thought I to myself, "I cannot bring my mind down to the small talk
+necessary for young girls; it is too masculine and robust for the mincing
+measure of parlor gossip. I am a philosopher--and that accounts for it."
+
+The entrance of Mrs. Somerville at length gave me relief. I at once
+breathed freely, and felt a vast deal of confidence come over me. "This is
+strange," thought I, "that the appearance of another woman should revive my
+courage; that I should be a better match for two women than one. However,
+since it is so, I will take advantage of the circumstance, and let this
+young lady see that I am not so great a simpleton as she probably thinks
+me."
+
+I accordingly took up the book of poetry which lay upon the sofa. It was
+Milton's Paradise Lost. Nothing could have been more fortunate; it afforded
+a fine scope for my favorite vein of grandiloquence. I went largely into a
+discussion of its merits, or rather an enthusiastic eulogy of them. My
+observations were addressed to Mrs. Somerville, for I found I could talk to
+her with more ease than to her daughter. She appeared alive to the beauties
+of the poet and disposed to meet me in the discussion; but it was not my
+object to hear her talk; it was to talk myself. I anticipated all she had
+to say, overpowered her with the copiousness of my ideas, and supported and
+illustrated them by long citations from the author.
+
+While thus holding forth, I cast a side glance to see how Miss Somerville
+was affected. She had some embroidery stretched on a frame before her, but
+had paused in her labor, and was looking down as if lost in mute attention.
+I felt a glow of self-satisfaction, but I recollected, at the same time,
+with a kind of pique, the advantage she had enjoyed over me in our
+tete-a-tete. I determined to push my triumph, and accordingly kept on with
+redoubled ardor, until I had fairly exhausted my subject, or rather my
+thoughts.
+
+I had scarce come to a full stop, when Miss Somerville raised her eyes from
+the work on which they had been fixed, and turning to her mother, observed:
+"I have been considering, mamma, whether to work these flowers plain, or in
+colors."
+
+Had an ice-bolt shot to my heart, it could not have chilled me more
+effectually. "What a fool," thought I, "have I been making
+myself--squandering away fine thoughts, and fine language, upon a light
+mind and an ignorant ear! This girl knows nothing of poetry. She has no
+soul, I fear, for its beauties. Can any one have real sensibility of heart,
+and not be alive to poetry? However, she is young; this part of her
+education has been neglected; there is time enough to remedy it. I will be
+her preceptor. I will kindle in her mind the sacred flame, and lead her
+through the fairy land of song. But after all, it is rather unfortunate
+that I should have fallen in love with a woman who knows nothing of
+poetry."
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+I passed a day not altogether satisfactory. I was a little disappointed
+that Miss Somerville did not show more poetical feeling. "I am afraid,
+after all," said I to myself, "she is light and girlish, and more fitted to
+pluck wild flowers, play on the flageolet, and romp with little dogs than
+to converse with a man of my turn."
+
+I believe, however, to tell the truth, I was more out of humor with myself.
+I thought I had made the worst first appearance that ever hero made, either
+in novel or fairy tale. I was out of all patience, when I called to mind my
+awkward attempts at ease and elegance, in the tete-a-tete. And then my
+intolerable long lecture about poetry to catch the applause of a heedless
+auditor! But there I was not to blame. I had certainly been eloquent: it
+was her fault that the eloquence was wasted. To meditate upon the
+embroidery of a flower, when I was expatiating on the beauties of Milton!
+She might at least have admired the poetry, if she did not relish the
+manner in which it was delivered: though that was not despicable, for I had
+recited passages in my best style, which my mother and sisters had always
+considered equal to a play. "Oh, it is evident," thought I, "Miss
+Somerville has very little soul!"
+
+Such were my fancies and cogitations during the day, the greater part of
+which was spent in my chamber, for I was still languid. My evening was
+passed in the drawing-room, where I overlooked Miss Somerville's portfolio
+of sketches. They were executed with great taste, and showed a nice
+observation of the peculiarities of nature. They were all her own, and free
+from those cunning tints and touches of the drawing-master, by which young
+ladies' drawings, like their heads, are dressed up for company. There was
+no garish and vulgar trick of colors, either; all was executed with
+singular truth and simplicity.
+
+"And yet," thought I, "this little being, who has so pure an eye to take
+in, as in a limpid brook, all the graceful forms and magic tints of nature,
+has no soul for poetry!"
+
+Mr. Somerville, toward the latter part of the evening, observing my eye to
+wander occasionally to the harp, interpreted and met my wishes with his
+accustomed civility.
+
+"Julia, my dear," said he, "Mr. Mountjoy would like to hear a little music
+from your harp; let us hear, too, the sound of your voice."
+
+Julia immediately complied, without any of that hesitation and difficulty,
+by which young ladies are apt to make company pay dear for bad music. She
+sang a sprightly strain, in a brilliant style, that came trilling playfully
+over the ear; and the bright eye and dimpling smile showed that her little
+heart danced with the song. Her pet canary bird, who hung close by, was
+awakened by the music, and burst forth into an emulating strain. Julia
+smiled with a pretty air of defiance, and played louder.
+
+After some time the music changed, and ran into a plaintive strain, in a
+minor key. Then it was that all the former witchery of her voice came over
+me; then it was that she seemed to sing from the heart and to the heart.
+Her fingers moved about the chords as if they scarcely touched them. Her
+whole manner and appearance changed; her eyes beamed with the softest
+expression; her countenance, her frame, all seemed subdued into tenderness.
+She rose from the harp, leaving it still vibrating with sweet sounds, and
+moved toward her father, to bid him good-night.
+
+His eyes had been fixed on her intently during her performance. As she came
+before him he parted her shining ringlets with both his hands, and looked
+down with the fondness of a father on her innocent face. The music seemed
+still lingering in its lineaments, and the action of her father brought a
+moist gleam in her eye. He kissed her fair forehead, after the French mode
+of parental caressing: "Goodnight, and God bless you," said he, "my good
+little girl!"
+
+Julia tripped away, with a tear in her eye, a dimple in her cheek, and a
+light heart in her bosom. I thought it the prettiest picture of paternal
+and filial affection I had ever seen.
+
+When I retired to bed, a new train of thoughts crowded into my brain.
+"After all," said I to myself, "it is clear this girl has a soul, though
+she was not moved by my eloquence. She has all the outward signs and
+evidences of poetic feeling. She paints well, and has an eye for nature.
+She is a fine musician, and enters into the very soul of song. What a pity
+that she knows nothing of poetry! But we will see what is to be done? I am
+irretrievably in love with her; what then am I to do? Come down to the
+level of her mind, or endeavor to raise her to some kind of intellectual
+equality with myself? That is the most generous course. She will look up to
+me as a benefactor. I shall become associated in her mind with the lofty
+thoughts and harmonious graces of poetry. She is apparently docile: besides
+the difference of our ages will give me an ascendency over her. She cannot
+be above sixteen years of age, and I am full turned to twenty." So, having
+built this most delectable of air castles, I fell asleep.
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+The next morning I was quite a different being. I no longer felt fearful of
+stealing a glance at Julia; on the contrary, I contemplated her steadily,
+with the benignant eye of a benefactor. Shortly after breakfast I found
+myself alone with her, as I had on the preceding morning; but I felt
+nothing of the awkwardness of our previous tete-a-tete. I was elevated by
+the consciousness of my intellectual superiority and should almost have
+felt a sentiment of pity for the ignorance of the lovely little being, if I
+had not felt also the assurance that I should be able to dispel it. "But it
+is time," thought I, "to open school."
+
+Julia was occupied in arranging some music on her piano. I looked over two
+or three songs; they were Moore's Irish melodies.
+
+"These are pretty things!" said I, flirting the leaves over lightly, and
+giving a slight shrug, by way of qualifying the opinion.
+
+"Oh, I love them of all things," said Julia, "they're so touching!"
+
+"Then you like them for the poetry," said I, with an encouraging smile.
+
+"Oh, yes; she thought them charmingly written."
+
+Now was my time. "Poetry," said I, assuming a didactic attitude and air,
+"poetry is one of the most pleasing studies that can occupy a youthful
+mind. It renders us susceptible of the gentle impulses of humanity, and
+cherishes a delicate perception of all that is virtuous and elevated in
+morals, and graceful and beautiful in physics. It--"
+
+I was going on in a style that would have graced a professor of rhetoric,
+when I saw a light smile playing about Miss Somerville's mouth, and that
+she began to turn over the leaves of a music-book. I recollected her
+inattention to my discourse of the preceding morning. "There is no fixing
+her light mind," thought I, "by abstract theory; we will proceed
+practically." As it happened, the identical volume of Milton's Paradise
+Lost was lying at hand.
+
+"Let me recommend to you, my young friend," said I, in one of those tones
+of persuasive admonition, which I had so often loved in Glencoe, "let me
+recommend to you this admirable poem; you will find in it sources of
+intellectual enjoyment far superior to those songs which have delighted
+you." Julia looked at the book, and then at me, with a whimsically dubious
+air. "Milton's Paradise Lost?" said she; "oh, I know the greater part of
+that by heart."
+
+I had not expected to find my pupil so far advanced; however, the Paradise
+Lost is a kind of school book, and its finest passages are given to young
+ladies as tasks.
+
+"I find," said I to myself, "I must not treat her as so complete a novice;
+her inattention yesterday could not have proceeded from absolute ignorance,
+but merely from a want of poetic feeling. I'll try her again."
+
+I now determined to dazzle her with my own erudition, and launched into a
+harangue that would have done honor to an institute. Pope, Spenser,
+Chaucer, and the old dramatic writers were all dipped into, with the
+excursive flight of a swallow. I did not confine myself to English poets,
+but gave a glance at the French and Italian schools; I passed over Ariosto
+in full wing, but paused on Tasso's Jerusalem Delivered. I dwelt on the
+character of Clorinda: "There's a character," said I, "that you will find
+well worthy a woman's study. It shows to what exalted heights of heroism
+the sex can rise, how gloriously they may share even in the stern concerns
+of men."
+
+"For my part," said Julia, gently taking advantage of a pause, "for my
+part, I prefer the character of Sophronia."
+
+I was thunderstruck. She then had read Tasso! This girl that I had been
+treating as an ignoramus in poetry! She proceeded with a slight glow of the
+cheek, summoned up perhaps by a casual glow of feeling:
+
+"I do not admire those masculine heroines," said she, "who aim at the bold
+qualities of the opposite sex. Now Sophronia only exhibits the real
+qualities of a woman, wrought up to their highest excitement. She is
+modest, gentle, and retiring, as it becomes a woman to be; but she has all
+the strength of affection proper to a woman. She cannot fight for her
+people as Clorinda does, but she can offer herself up, and die to serve
+them. You may admire Clorinda, but you surely would be more apt to love
+Sophronia; at least," added she, suddenly appearing to recollect herself,
+and blushing at having launched into such a discussion, "at least that is
+what papa observed when we read the poem together."
+
+"Indeed," said I, dryly, for I felt disconcerted and nettled at being
+unexpectedly lectured by my pupil; "indeed, I do not exactly recollect the
+passage."
+
+"Oh," said Julia, "I can repeat it to you;" and she immediately gave it in
+Italian.
+
+Heavens and earth!--here was a situation! I knew no more of Italian than I
+did of the language of Psalmanazar. What a dilemma for a would-be-wise man
+to be placed in! I saw Julia waited for my opinion.
+
+"In fact," said I, hesitating, "I--I do not exactly understand Italian."
+
+"Oh," said Julia, with the utmost naivete, "I have no doubt it is very
+beautiful in the translation."
+
+I was glad to break up school, and get back to my chamber, full of the
+mortification which a wise man in love experiences on finding his mistress
+wiser than himself. "Translation! translation!" muttered I to myself, as I
+jerked the door shut behind me: "I am surprised my father has never had me
+instructed in the modern languages. They are all important. What is the
+use of Latin and Greek? No one speaks them; but here, the moment I make my
+appearance in the world, a little girl slaps Italian in my face. However,
+thank heaven, a language is easily learned. The moment I return home, I'll
+set about studying Italian; and to prevent future surprise, I will study
+Spanish and German at the same time; and if any young lady attempts to
+quote Italian upon me again, I'll bury her under a heap of High Dutch
+poetry!"
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+I felt now like some mighty chieftain, who has carried the war into a weak
+country, with full confidence of success, and been repulsed and obliged to
+draw off his forces from before some inconsiderable fortress.
+
+"However," thought I, "I have as yet brought only my light artillery into
+action; we shall see what is to be done with my heavy ordnance. Julia is
+evidently well versed in poetry; but it is natural she should be so; it is
+allied to painting and music, and is congenial to the light graces of the
+female character. We will try her on graver themes."
+
+I felt all my pride awakened; it even for a time swelled higher than my
+love. I was determined completely to establish my mental superiority, and
+subdue the intellect of this little being; it would then be time to sway
+the scepter of gentle empire, and win the affections of her heart.
+
+Accordingly, at dinner I again took the field, _en potence._ I now
+addressed myself to Mr. Somerville, for I was about to enter upon topics in
+which a young girl like her could not be well versed. I led, or rather
+forced, the conversation into a vein of historical erudition, discussing
+several of the most prominent facts of ancient history, and accompanying
+them with sound, indisputable apothegms.
+
+Mr. Somerville listened to me with the air of a man receiving information.
+I was encouraged, and went on gloriously from theme to theme of school
+declamation. I sat with Marius on the ruins of Carthage; I defended the
+bridge with Horatius Cocles; thrust my hand into the flame with Martius
+Scaevola, and plunged with Curtius into the yawning gulf; I fought side by
+side with Leonidas, at the straits of Thermopylae; and was going full drive
+into the battle of Plataea, when my memory, which is the worst in the
+world, failed me, just as I wanted the name of the Lacedemonian commander.
+
+"Julia, my dear," said Mr. Somerville, "perhaps you may recollect the name
+of which Mr. Mountjoy is in quest?"
+
+Julia colored slightly. "I believe," said she, in a low voice, "I believe
+it was Pausanius."
+
+This unexpected sally, instead of re-enforcing me, threw my whole scheme of
+battle into confusion, and the Athenians remained unmolested in the field.
+
+I am half inclined, since, to think Mr. Somerville meant this as a sly hit
+at my schoolboy pedantry; but he was too well bred not to seek to relieve
+me from my mortification. "Oh!" said he, "Julia is our family book of
+reference for names, dates, and distances, and has an excellent memory for
+history and geography."
+
+I now became desperate; as a last resource I turned to metaphysics. "If she
+is a philosopher in petticoats," thought I, "it is all over with me." Here,
+however, I had the field to myself. I gave chapter and verse of my tutor's
+lectures, heightened by all his poetical illustrations; I even went further
+than he had ever ventured, and plunged into such depths of metaphysics that
+I was in danger of sticking in the mire at the bottom. Fortunately, I had
+auditors who apparently could not detect my flounderings. Neither Mr.
+Somerville nor his daughter offered the least interruption.
+
+When the ladies had retired, Mr. Somerville sat some time with me; and as I
+was no longer anxious to astonish, I permitted myself to listen, and found
+that he was really agreeable. He was quite communicative, and from his
+conversation I was enabled to form a juster idea of his daughter's
+character, and the mode in which she had been brought up. Mr. Somerville
+had mingled much with the world, and with what is termed fashionable
+society. He had experienced its cold elegances and gay insincerities; its
+dissipation of the spirits and squanderings of the heart. Like many men of
+the world, though he had wandered too far from nature ever to return to it,
+yet he had the good taste and good feeling to look back fondly to its
+simple delights, and to determine that his child, if possible, should never
+leave them. He had superintended her education with scrupulous care,
+storing her mind with the graces of polite literature, and with such
+knowledge as would enable it to furnish its own amusement and occupation,
+and giving her all the accomplishments that sweeten and enliven the circle
+of domestic life. He had been particularly sedulous to exclude all
+fashionable affectations; all false sentiment, false sensibility, and false
+romance. "Whatever advantages she may possess," said he, "she is quite
+unconscious of them. She is a capricious little being, in everything but
+her affections; she is, however, free from art; simple, ingenuous, amiable,
+and, I thank God! happy."
+
+Such was the eulogy of a fond father, delivered with a tenderness that
+touched me. I could not help making a casual inquiry, whether, among the
+graces of polite literature, he had included a slight tincture of
+metaphysics. He smiled, and told me he had not.
+
+On the whole, when, as usual, that night, I summed up the day's
+observations on my pillow, I was not altogether dissatisfied. "Miss
+Somerville," said I, "loves poetry, and I like her the better for it. She
+has the advantage of me in Italian; agreed; what is it to know a variety of
+languages, but merely to have a variety of sounds to express the same idea?
+Original thought is the ore of the mind; language is but the accidental
+stamp and coinage by which it is put into circulation. If I can furnish an
+original idea, what care I how many languages she can translate it into?
+She may be able also to quote names and dates and latitudes better than I;
+but that is a mere effort of the memory. I admit she is more accurate in
+history and geography than I; but then she knows nothing of metaphysics."
+
+I had now sufficiently recovered to return home; yet I could not think of
+leaving Mr. Somerville's without having a little further conversation with
+him on the subject of his daughter's education.
+
+"This Mr. Somerville," thought I, "is a very accomplished, elegant man; he
+has seen a good deal of the world, and, upon the whole, has profited by
+what he has seen. He is not without information, and, as far as he thinks,
+appears to think correctly; but, after all, he is rather superficial, and
+does not think profoundly. He seems to take no delight in those
+metaphysical abstractions that are the proper aliment of masculine minds. I
+called to mind various occasions in which I had indulged largely in
+metaphysical discussions, but could recollect no instance where I had been
+able to draw him out. He had listened, it is true, with attention, and
+smiled as if in acquiescence, but had always appeared to avoid reply.
+Besides, I had made several sad blunders in the glow of eloquent
+declamation; but he had never interrupted me, to notice and correct them,
+as he would have done had he been versed in the theme.
+
+"Now, it is really a great pity," resumed I, "that he should have the
+entire management of Miss Somerville's education. What a vast advantage it
+would be if she could be put for a little time under the superintendence of
+Glencoe. He would throw some deeper shades of thought into her mind, which
+at present is all sunshine; not but that Mr. Somerville has done very well,
+as far as he has gone; but then he has merely prepared the soil for the
+strong plants of useful knowledge. She is well versed in the leading facts
+of history, and the general course of belles-lettres," said I; "a little
+more philosophy would do wonders."
+
+I accordingly took occasion to ask Mr. Somerville for a few moments'
+conversation in his study, the morning I was to depart. When we were alone
+I opened the matter fully to him. I commenced with the warmest eulogium of
+Glencoe's powers of mind and vast acquirements, and ascribed to him all my
+proficiency in the higher branches of knowledge. I begged, therefore, to
+recommend him as a friend calculated to direct the studies of Miss
+Somerville; to lead her mind, by degrees, to the contemplation of abstract
+principles, and to produce habits of philosophical analysis; "which," added
+I, gently smiling, "are not often cultivated by young ladies." I ventured
+to hint, in addition, that he would find Mr. Glencoe a most valuable and
+interesting acquaintance for himself; one who would stimulate and evolve
+the powers of his mind; and who might open to him tracts of inquiry and
+speculation to which perhaps he had hitherto been a stranger.
+
+Mr. Somerville listened with grave attention. When I had finished, he
+thanked me in the politest manner for the interest I took in the welfare of
+his daughter and himself. He observed that, as it regarded himself, he was
+afraid he was too old to benefit by the instruction of Mr. Glencoe, and
+that as to his daughter, he was afraid her mind was but little fitted for
+the study of metaphysics. "I do not wish," continued he, "to strain her
+intellects with subjects they cannot grasp, but to make her familiarly
+acquainted with those that are within the limits of her capacity. I do not
+pretend to prescribe the boundaries of female genius, and am far from
+indulging the vulgar opinion that women are unfitted by nature for the
+highest intellectual pursuits. I speak only with reference to my daughter's
+tastes and talents. She will never make a learned woman; nor, in truth, do
+I desire it; for such is the jealousy of our sex, as to mental as well as
+physical ascendency, that a learned woman is not always the happiest. I do
+not wish my daughter to excite envy, or to battle with the prejudices of
+the world; but to glide peaceably through life, on the good will and kind
+opinions of her friends. She has ample employment for her little head, in
+the course I have marked out for her; and is busy at present with some
+branches of natural history, calculated to awaken her perceptions to the
+beauties and wonders of nature, and to the inexhaustible volume of wisdom
+constantly spread open before her eyes. I consider that woman most likely
+to make an agreeable companion, who can draw topics of pleasing remark from
+every natural object; and most likely to be cheerful and contented, who is
+continually sensible of the order, the harmony, and the invariable
+beneficence that reign throughout the beautiful world we inhabit."
+
+"But," added he, smiling, "I am betraying myself into a lecture, instead of
+merely giving a reply to your kind offer. Permit me to take the liberty, in
+return, of inquiring a little about your own pursuits. You speak of having
+finished your education; but of course you have a line of private study and
+mental occupation marked out; for you must know the importance, both in
+point of interest and happiness, of keeping the mind employed. May I ask
+what system you observe in your intellectual exercises?"
+
+"Oh, as to system," I observed, "I could never bring myself into anything
+of the kind. I thought it best to let my genius take it own course, as it
+always acted the most vigorously when stimulated by inclination."
+
+Mr. Somerville shook his head. "This same genius," said he, "is a wild
+quality that runs away with our most promising young men. It has become so
+much the fashion, too, to give it the reins that it is now thought an
+animal of too noble and generous a nature to be brought to harness. But it
+is all a mistake. Nature never designed these high endowments to run riot
+through society, and throw the whole system into confusion. No, my dear
+sir, genius, unless it acts upon system, is very apt to be a useless
+quality to society; sometimes an injurious, and certainly a very
+uncomfortable one, to its possessor. I have had many opportunities of
+seeing the progress through life of young men who were accounted geniuses,
+and have found it too often end in early exhaustion and bitter
+disappointment; and have as often noticed that these effects might be
+traced to a total want of system. There were no habits of business, of
+steady purpose, and regular application, superinduced upon the mind;
+everything was left to chance and impulse, and native luxuriance, and
+everything of course ran to waste and wild entanglement. Excuse me if I am
+tedious on this point, for I feel solicitous to impress it upon you, being
+an error extremely prevalent in our country and one into which too many of
+our youth have fallen. I am happy, however, to observe the zeal which still
+appears to actuate you for the acquisition of knowledge, and augur every
+good from the elevated bent of your ambition. May I ask what has been your
+course of study for the last six months?"
+
+Never was question more unluckily timed. For the last six months I had been
+absolutely buried in novels and romances.
+
+Mr. Somerville perceived that the question was embarrassing, and, with his
+invariable good breeding, immediately resumed the conversation, without
+waiting for a reply. He took care, however, to turn it in such a way as to
+draw from me an account of the whole manner in which I had been educated,
+and the various currents of reading into which my mind had run. He then
+went on to discuss, briefly but impressively, the different branches of
+knowledge most important to a young man in my situation; and to my surprise
+I found him a complete master of those studies on which I had supposed him
+ignorant, and on which I had been descanting so confidently.
+
+He complimented me, however, very graciously, upon the progress I had made,
+but advised me for the present to turn my attention to the physical rather
+than the moral sciences. "These studies," said he, "store a man's mind with
+valuable facts, and at the same time repress self-confidence, by letting
+him know how boundless are the realms of knowledge, and how little we can
+possibly know. Whereas metaphysical studies, though of an ingenious order
+of intellectual employment, are apt to bewilder some minds with vague
+speculations. They never know how far they have advanced, or what may be
+the correctness of their favorite theory. They render many of our young men
+verbose and declamatory, and prone to mistake the aberrations of their
+fancy for the inspirations of divine philosophy."
+
+I could not but interrupt him, to assent to the truth of these remarks, and
+to say that it had been my lot, in the course of my limited experience, to
+encounter young men of the kind, who had overwhelmed me by their verbosity.
+
+Mr. Somerville smiled. "I trust," said he, kindly, "that you will guard
+against these errors. Avoid the eagerness with which a young man is apt to
+hurry into conversation, and to utter the crude and ill-digested notions
+which he has picked up in his recent studies. Be assured that extensive and
+accurate knowledge is the slow acquisition of a studious lifetime; that a
+young man, however pregnant his wit, and prompt his talent, can have
+mastered but the rudiments of learning, and, in a manner, attained the
+implements of study. Whatever may have been your past assiduity, you must
+be sensible that as yet you have but reached the threshold of true
+knowledge; but at the same time you have the advantage that you are still
+very young, and have ample time to learn."
+
+Here our conference ended. I walked out of the study a very different being
+from what I was on entering it. I had gone in with the air of a professor
+about to deliver a lecture; I came out like a student who had failed in his
+examination, and been degraded in his class.
+
+"Very young," and "on the threshold of knowledge!" This was extremely
+flattering to one who had considererd himself an accomplished scholar and a
+profound philosopher.
+
+"It is singular," thought I; "there seems to have been a spell upon my
+faculties, ever since I have been in this house. I certainly have not been
+able to do myself justice. Whenever I have undertaken to advise, I have had
+the tables turned upon me. It must be that I am strange and diffident among
+people I am not accustomed to. I wish they could hear me talk at home!"
+
+"After all," added I, on further reflection, "after all there is a great
+deal of force in what Mr. Somerville has said. Somehow or other, these men
+of the world do now and then hit upon remarks that would do credit to a
+philosopher. Some of his general observations came so home that I almost
+thought they were meant for myself. His advice about adopting a system of
+study is very judicious. I will immediately put it hi practice. My mind
+shall operate henceforward with the regularity of clock-work."
+
+How far I succeeded in adopting this plan, how I fared in the further
+pursuit of knowledge, and how I succeeded in my suit to Julia Somerville,
+may afford matter for a further communication to the public, if this simple
+record of my early life is fortunate enough to excite any curiosity.
+
+
+
+
+
+THE GREAT MISSISSIPPI BUBBLE
+
+"A TIME OF UNEXAMPLED PROSPERITY"
+
+
+In the course of a voyage from England, I once fell in with a convoy of
+merchant ships bound for the West Indies. The weather was uncommonly bland;
+and the ships vied with each other in spreading sail to catch a light,
+favoring breeze, until their hulls were almost hidden beneath a cloud of
+canvas. The breeze went down with the sun, and his last yellow rays shone
+upon a thousand sails, idly flapping against the masts.
+
+I exulted in the beauty of the scene, and augured a prosperous voyage; but
+the veteran master of the ship shook his head, and pronounced this halcyon
+calm a "weather-breeder." And so it proved. A storm burst forth in the
+night; the sea roared and raged; and when the day broke, I beheld the late
+gallant convoy scattered in every direction; some dismasted, others
+scudding under bare poles, and many firing signals of distress.
+
+I have since been occasionally reminded of this scene, by those calm, sunny
+seasons in the commercial world, which are known by the name of "times of
+unexampled prosperity." They are the sure weather-breeders of traffic.
+Every now and then the world is visited by one of these delusive seasons,
+when "the credit system," as it is called, expands to full luxuriance,
+everybody trusts everybody; a bad debt is a thing unheard of; the broad way
+to certain and sudden wealth lies plain and open; and men are tempted to
+dash forward boldly, from the facility of borrowing.
+
+Promissory notes, interchanged between scheming individuals, are liberally
+discounted at the banks, which become so many mints to coin words into
+cash; and as the supply of words is inexhaustible, it may readily be
+supposed what a vast amount of promissory capital is soon in circulation.
+Every one now talks in thousands; nothing is heard but gigantic operations
+in trade; great purchases and sales of real property, and immense sums made
+at every transfer. All, to be sure, as yet exists in promise; but the
+believer in promises calculates the aggregate as solid capital, and falls
+back in amazement at the amount of public wealth, the "unexampled state of
+public prosperity."
+
+Now is the time for speculative and dreaming or designing men. They relate
+their dreams and projects to the ignorant and credulous, dazzle them with
+golden visions, and set them madding after shadows. The example of one
+stimulates another; speculation rises on speculation; bubble rises on
+bubble; every one helps with his breath to swell the windy superstructure,
+and admires and wonders at the magnitude of the inflation he has
+contributed to produce.
+
+Speculation is the romance of trade, and casts contempt upon all its sober
+realities. It renders the stock-jobber a magician, and the exchange a
+region of enchantment. It elevates the merchant into a kind of
+knight-errant, or rather a commercial Quixote. The slow but sure gains of
+snug percentage become despicable in his eyes; no "operation" is thought
+worthy of attention that does not double or treble the investment. No
+business is worth following that does not promise an immediate fortune. As
+he sits musing over his ledger, with pen behind his ear, he is like La
+Mancha's hero in his study, dreaming over his books of chivalry. His dusty
+counting-house fades before his eyes, or changes into a Spanish mine; he
+gropes after diamonds, or dives after pearls. The subterranean garden of
+Aladdin is nothing to the realms of wealth that break upon his imagination.
+
+Could this delusion always last, the life of a merchant would indeed be a
+golden dream; but it is as short as it is brilliant. Let but a doubt enter,
+and the "season of unexampled prosperity" is at end. The coinage of words
+is suddenly curtailed; the promissory capital begins to vanish into smoke;
+a panic succeeds, and the whole superstructure, built upon credit and
+reared by speculation, crumbles to the ground, leaving scarce a wreck
+behind:
+
+  "It is such stuff as dreams are made of."
+
+When a man of business, therefore, hears on every side rumors of fortunes
+suddenly acquired; when he finds banks liberal, and brokers busy; when he
+sees adventurers flush of paper capital, and full of scheme and enterprise;
+when he perceives a greater disposition to buy than to sell; when trade
+overflows its accustomed channels and deluges the country; when he hears of
+new regions of commercial adventure; of distant marts and distant mines,
+swallowing merchandise and disgorging gold; when he finds joint-stock
+companies of all kinds forming; railroads, canals, and locomotive engines,
+springing up on every side; when idlers suddenly become men of business,
+and dash into the game of commerce as they would into the hazards of the
+faro table; when he beholds the streets glittering with new equipages,
+palaces conjured up by the magic of speculation; tradesmen flushed with
+sudden success, and vying with each other in ostentatious expense; in a
+word, when he hears the whole community joining in the theme of "unexampled
+prosperity," let him look upon the whole as a "weather-breeder," and
+prepare for the impending storm.
+
+The foregoing remarks are intended merely as a prelude to a narrative I am
+about to lay before the public, of one of the most memorable instances of
+the infatuation of gain to be found in the whole history of commerce. I
+allude to the famous Mississippi Bubble. It is a matter that has passed
+into a proverb, and become a phrase in every one's mouth, yet of which not
+one merchant in ten has probably a distinct idea. I have therefore thought
+that an authentic account of it would be interesting and salutary, at the
+present moment, when we are suffering under the effects of a severe access
+of the credit system, and just recovering from one of its ruinous
+delusions.
+
+Before entering into the story of this famous chimera, it is proper to give
+a few particulars concerning the individual who engendered it. John Law was
+born in Edinburgh in 1671. His father, William Law, was a rich goldsmith,
+and left his son an estate of considerable value, called Lauriston,
+situated about four miles from Edinburgh. Goldsmiths, in those days, acted
+occasionally as bankers, and his father's operations, under this character,
+may have originally turned the thoughts of the youth to the science of
+calculation, in which he became an adept; so that at an early age he
+excelled in playing at all games of combination.
+
+In 1694 he appeared in London, where a handsome person, and an easy and
+insinuating address, gained him currency in the first circles and the
+nickname of "Beau Law." The same personal advantages gave him success in
+the world of gallantry, until he became involved in a quarrel with Beau
+Wilson, his rival in fashion, whom he killed in a duel, and then fled to
+France, to avoid prosecution.
+
+He returned to Edinburgh in 1700, and remained there several years; during
+which time he first broached his great credit system, offering to supply
+the deficiency of coin by the establishment of a bank, which, according to
+his views, might emit a paper currency equivalent to the whole landed
+estate of the kingdom.
+
+His scheme excited great astonishment in Edinburgh; but, though the
+government was not sufficiently advanced in financial knowledge to detect
+the fallacies upon which it was founded, Scottish caution and suspicion
+served in the place of wisdom, and the project was rejected. Law met with
+no better success with the English Parliament; and the fatal affair of the
+death of Wilson still hanging over him, for which he had never been able to
+procure a pardon, he again went to France.
+
+The financial affairs of France were at this time in a deplorable
+condition. The wars, the pomp and profusion, of Louis XIV., and his
+religious persecutions of whole classes of the most industrious of his
+subjects, had exhausted his treasury, and overwhelmed the nation with debt.
+The old monarch clung to his selfish magnificence, and could not be induced
+to diminish his enormous expenditure; and his minister of finance was
+driven to his wits' end to devise all kinds of disastrous expedients to
+keep up the royal state, and to extricate the nation from its
+embarrassments.
+
+In this state of things, Law ventured to bring forward his financial
+project. It was founded on the plan of the Bank of England, which had
+already been in successful operation several years. He met with immediate
+patronage, and a congenial spirit, in the Duke of Orleans, who had married
+a natural daughter of the king. The duke had been astonished at the
+facility with which England had supported the burden of a public debt,
+created by the wars of Anne and William, and which exceeded in amount that
+under which France was groaning. The whole matter was soon explained by Law
+to his satisfaction. The latter maintained that England had stopped at the
+mere threshold of an art capable of creating unlimited sources of national
+wealth. The duke was dazzled with his splendid views and specious
+reasonings, and thought he clearly comprehended his system. Demarets, the
+Comptroller-General of Finance, was not so easily deceived. He pronounced
+the plan of Law more pernicious than any of the disastrous expedients that
+the government had yet been driven to. The old king also, Louis XIV.,
+detested all innovations, especially those which came from a rival nation;
+the project of a bank, therefore, was utterly rejected.
+
+Law remained for a while in Paris, leading a gay and affluent existence,
+owing to his handsome person, easy manners, flexible temper, and a
+faro-bank which he had set up. His agreeable career was interrupted by a
+message from D'Argenson, Lieutenant-General of Police, ordering him to quit
+Paris, alleging that he was "_rather too skillful at the game which he
+had introduced_."
+
+For several succeeding years he shifted his residence from state to state
+of Italy and Germany; offering his scheme of finance to every court that he
+visited, but without success. The Duke of Savoy, Victor Amadeus, afterward
+king of Sardinia, was much struck with his project; but after considering
+it for a time, replied, _"I am not sufficiently powerful to ruin
+myself."_
+
+The shifting, adventurous life of Law, and the equivocal means by which he
+appeared to live, playing high, and always with great success, threw a
+cloud of suspicion over him wherever he went, and caused him to be expelled
+by the magistracy from the semi-commercial, semi-aristocratical cities of
+Venice and Genoa.
+
+The events of 1715 brought Law back again to Paris. Louis XIV. was dead.
+Louis XV. was a mere child, and during his minority the Duke of Orleans
+held the reins of government as Regent. Law had at length found his man.
+
+The Duke of Orleans has been differently represented by different
+contemporaries. He appears to have had excellent natural qualities,
+perverted by a bad education. He was of the middle size, easy and graceful,
+with an agreeable countenance, and open, affable demeanor. His mind was
+quick and sagacious, rather than profound; and his quickness of intellect,
+and excellence of memory, supplied the lack of studious application. His
+wit was prompt and pungent; he expressed himself with vivacity and
+precision; his imagination was vivid, his temperament sanguine and joyous;
+his courage daring. His mother, the Duchess of Orleans, expressed his
+character in a jeu d'esprit. "The fairies," said she, "were invited to be
+present at his birth, and each one conferring a talent on my son, he
+possesses them all. Unfortunately, we had forgotten to invite an old fairy,
+who, arriving after all the others, exclaimed, 'He shall have all the
+talents, excepting that to make a good use of them.'"
+
+Under proper tuition, the duke might have risen to real greatness; but in
+his early years he was put under the tutelage of the Abbe Dubois, one of
+the subtlest and basest spirits that ever intrigued its way into eminent
+place and power. The abbe was of low origin and despicable exterior,
+totally destitute of morals, and perfidious in the extreme; but with a
+supple, insinuating address, and an accommodating spirit, tolerant of all
+kinds of profligacy in others. Conscious of his own inherent baseness, he
+sought to secure an influence over his pupil, by corrupting his principles
+and fostering his vices; he debased him, to keep himself from being
+despised. Unfortunately he succeeded. To the early precepts of this
+infamous pander have been attributed those excesses that disgraced the
+manhood of the regent, and gave a licentious character to his whole course
+of government. His love of pleasure, quickened and indulged by those who
+should have restrained it, led him into all kinds of sensual indulgence. He
+had been taught to think lightly of the most serious duties and sacred
+ties; to turn virtue into a jest, and consider religion mere hypocrisy. He
+was a gay misanthrope, that had a sovereign but sportive contempt for
+mankind; believed that his most devoted servant would be his enemy, if
+interest prompted; and maintained that an honest man was he who had the art
+to conceal that he was the contrary.
+
+He surrounded himself with a set of dissolute men like himself; who, let
+loose from the restraint under which they had been held, during the latter
+hypocritical days of Louis XIV., now gave way to every kind of debauchery.
+With these men the regent used to shut himself up, after the hours of
+business, and excluding all graver persons and graver concerns, celebrate
+the most drunken and disgusting orgies; where obscenity and blasphemy
+formed the seasoning of conversation. For the profligate companions of
+these revels, he invented the appellation of his _roués_, the literal
+meaning of which is men broken on the wheel; intended, no doubt, to express
+their broken-down characters and dislocated fortunes; although a
+contemporary asserts that it designated the punishment that most of them
+merited. Madame de Labran, who was present at one of the regent's suppers,
+was disgusted by the conduct and conversation of the host and his guests,
+and observed, at table, that God, after he had created man, took the refuse
+clay that was left, and made of it the souls of lackeys and princes.
+
+Such was the man that now ruled the destinies of France. Law found him full
+of perplexities, from the disastrous state of the finances. He had already
+tampered with the coinage, calling in the coin of the nation, restamping
+it, and issuing it at a nominal increase of one-fifth; thus defrauding the
+nation out of twenty per cent of its capital. He was not likely, therefore,
+to be scrupulous about any means likely to relieve him from financial
+difficulties; he had even been led to listen to the cruel alternative of a
+national bankruptcy.
+
+Under these circumstances, Law confidently brought forward his scheme of a
+bank, that was to pay off the national debt, increase the revenue, and at
+the same time diminish the taxes. The following is stated as the theory by
+which he recommended his system to the regent. The credit enjoyed by a
+banker or a merchant, he observed, increases his capital tenfold; that is
+to say, he who has a capital of one thousand livres, may, if he possess
+sufficient credit, extend his operations to a million, and reap profits to
+that amount. In like manner, a state that can collect into a bank all the
+current coin of the kingdom, would be as powerful as if its capital were
+increased tenfold. The specie must be drawn into the bank, not by way of
+loan, or by taxations, but in the way of deposit. This might be effected in
+different modes, either by inspiring confidence or by exerting authority.
+One mode, he observed, had already been in use. Each time that a state
+makes a recoinage, it becomes momentarily the depositary of all the money
+called in, belonging to the subjects of that state. His bank was to effect
+the same purpose; that is to say, to receive in deposit all the coin of the
+kingdom, but to give in exchange its bills, which, being of an invariable
+value, bearing an interest, and being payable on demand, would not only
+supply the place of coin, but prove a better and more profitable currency.
+
+The regent caught with avidity at the scheme. It suited his bold, reckless
+spirit, and his grasping extravagance. Not that he was altogether the dupe
+of Law's specious projects; still he was apt, like many other men,
+unskilled in the arcana of finance, to mistake the multiplication of money
+for the multiplication of wealth; not understanding that it was a mere
+agent or instrument in the interchange of traffic, to represent the value
+of the various productions of industry; and that an increased circulation
+of coin or bank bills, in the shape of currency, only adds a proportionably
+increased and fictitious value to such productions. Law enlisted the vanity
+of the regent in his cause. He persuaded him that he saw more clearly than
+others into sublime theories of finance, which were quite above the
+ordinary apprehension. He used to declare that, excepting the regent and
+the Duke of Savoy, no one had thoroughly comprehended his system.
+
+It is certain that it met with strong opposition from the regent's
+ministers, the Duke de Noailles and the Chancellor d'Anguesseau; and it was
+no less strenuously opposed by the Parliament of Paris. Law, however, had a
+potent though secret coadjutor in the Abbe Dubois, now rising, during the
+regency, into great political power, and who retained a baneful influence
+over the mind of the regent. This wily priest, as avaricious as he was
+ambitious, drew large sums from Law as subsidies, and aided him greatly in
+many of his most pernicious operations. He aided him, in the present
+instance, to fortify the mind of the regent against all the remonstrances
+of his ministers and the parliament.
+
+Accordingly, on the 2d of May, 1716, letters patent were granted to Law, to
+establish a bank of deposit, discount, and circulation, under the firm of
+"Law & Company," to continue for twenty years. The capital was fixed at six
+millions of livres, divided into shares of five hundred livres each, which
+were to be sold for twenty-five per cent of the regent's debased coin, and
+seventy-five per cent of the public securities; which were then at a great
+reduction from their nominal value, and which then amounted to nineteen
+hundred millions. The ostensible object of the bank, as set forth in the
+patent, was to encourage the commerce and manufactures of France. The louis
+d'ors and crowns of the bank were always to retain the same standard of
+value, and its bills to be payable in them on demand.
+
+At the outset, while the bank was limited in its operations, and while its
+paper really represented the specie in its vaults, it seemed to realize all
+that had been promised from it. It rapidly acquired public confidence, and
+an extended circulation, and produced an activity in commerce unknown under
+the baneful government of Louis XIV. As the bills of the bank bore an
+interest, and as it was stipulated they would be of invariable value, and
+as hints had been artfully circulated that the coin would experience
+successive diminution, everybody hastened to the bank to exchange gold and
+silver for paper. So great became the throng of depositors, and so intense
+their eagerness, that there was quite a press and struggle at the bank
+door, and a ludicrous panic was awakened, as if there was danger of their
+not being admitted. An anecdote of the time relates that one of the clerks,
+with an ominous smile, called out to the struggling multitude, "Have a
+little patience, my friends; we mean to take all your money;" an assertion
+disastrously verified in the sequel.
+
+Thus, by the simple establishment of a bank, Law and the regent obtained
+pledges of confidence for the consummation of further and more complicated
+schemes, as yet hidden from the public. In a little while, the bank shares
+rose enormously, and the amount of its notes in circulation exceeded one
+hundred and ten millions of livres. A subtle stroke of policy had rendered
+it popular with the aristocracy. Louis XIV. had several years previously
+imposed an income tax of a tenth, giving his royal word that it should
+cease in 1717. This tax had been exceedingly irksome to the privileged
+orders; and in the present disastrous times they had dreaded an
+augmentation of it. In consequence of the successful operation of Law's
+scheme, however, the tax was abolished, and now nothing was to be heard
+among the nobility and clergy but praises of the regent and the bank.
+
+Hitherto all had gone well, and all might have continued to go well, had
+not the paper system been further expanded. But Law had yet the grandest
+part of his scheme to develop. He had to open his ideal world of
+speculation, his El Dorado of unbounded wealth. The English had brought the
+vast imaginary commerce of the South Seas in aid of their banking
+operations. Law sought to bring, as an immense auxiliary of his bank, the
+whole trade of the Mississippi. Under this name was included not merely the
+river so called, but the vast region known as Louisiana, extending from
+north latitude 29° up to Canada in north latitude 40°. This country had
+been granted by Louis XIV. to the Sieur Crozat, but he had been induced to
+resign his patent. In conformity to the plea of Mr. Law, letters patent
+were granted in August, 1717, for the creation of a commercial company,
+which was to have the colonizing of this country, and the monopoly of its
+trade and resources, and of the beaver or fur trade with Canada. It was
+called the Western, but became better known as the Mississippi Company. The
+capital was fixed at one hundred millions of livres, divided into shares,
+bearing an Interest of four per cent, which were subscribed for in the
+public securities. As the bank was to co-operate with the company, the
+regent ordered that its bills should be received the same as coin, in all
+payments of the public revenue. Law was appointed chief director of this
+company, which was an exact copy of the Earl of Oxford's South Sea Company,
+set on foot in 1711, and which distracted all England with the frenzy of
+speculation. In like manner with the delusive picturings given in that
+memorable scheme of the sources of rich trade to be opened in the South Sea
+countries, Law held forth magnificent prospects of the fortunes to be made
+in colonizing Louisiana, which was represented as a veritable land of
+promise, capable of yielding every variety of the most precious produce.
+Reports, too, were artfully circulated, with great mystery, as if to the
+"chosen few," of mines of gold and silver recently discovered in Louisiana,
+and which would insure instant wealth to the early purchasers. These
+confidential whispers of course soon became public; and were confirmed by
+travelers fresh from the Mississippi, and doubtless bribed, who had seen
+the mines in question, and declared them superior in richness to those of
+Mexico and Peru. Nay, more, ocular proof was furnished to public credulity,
+in ingots of gold conveyed to the mint, as if just brought from the mines
+of Louisiana.
+
+Extraordinary measures were adopted to force a colonization. An edict was
+issued to collect and transport settlers to the Mississippi. The police
+lent its aid. The streets and prisons of Paris, and of the provincial
+cities, were swept of mendicants and vagabonds of all kinds, who were
+conveyed to Havre de Grace. About six thousand were crowded into ships,
+where no precautions had been taken for their health or accommodation.
+Instruments of all kinds proper for the working of mines were
+ostentatiously paraded in public, and put on board the vessels; and the
+whole set sail for this fabled El Dorado, which was to prove the grave of
+the greater part of its wretched colonists.
+
+D'Anguesseau, the chancellor, a man of probity and integrity, still lifted
+his voice against the paper system of Law, and his project of colonization,
+and was eloquent and prophetic in picturing the evils they were calculated
+to produce; the private distress and public degradation; the corruption of
+morals and manners; the triumph of knaves and schemers; the ruin of
+fortunes, and downfall of families. He was incited more and more to this
+opposition by the Duke de Noailles, the Minister of Finance, who was
+jealous of the growing ascendency of Law over the mind of the regent, but
+was less honest than the chancellor in his opposition. The regent was
+excessively annoyed by the difficulties they conjured up in the way of his
+darling schemes of finance, and the countenance they gave to the opposition
+of parliament; which body, disgusted more and more with the abuses of the
+regency, and the system of Law, had gone so far as to carry its
+remonstrances to the very foot of the throne.
+
+He determined to relieve himself from these two ministers, who, either
+through honesty or policy, interfered with all his plans. Accordingly, on
+the 28th of January, 1718, he dismissed the chancellor from office, and
+exiled him to his estate in the country; and shortly afterward removed the
+Duke de Noailles from the administration of the finances.
+
+The opposition of parliament to the regent and his measures was carried on
+with increasing violence. That body aspired to an equal authority with the
+regent in the administration of affairs, and pretended, by its decree, to
+suspend an edict of the regency, ordering a new coinage and altering the
+value of the currency. But its chief hostility was leveled against Law, a
+foreigner and a heretic, and one who was considered by a majority of the
+members in the light of a malefactor. In fact, so far was this hostility
+carried, that secret measures were taken to investigate his malversations,
+and to collect evidence against him; and it was resolved in parliament
+that, should the testimony collected justify their suspicions, they would
+have him seized and brought before them; would give him a brief trial, and,
+if convicted, would hang him in the courtyard of the palace, and throw open
+the gates after the execution, that the public might behold his corpse!
+
+Law received intimation of the danger hanging over him, and was in terrible
+trepidation. He took refuge in the Palais Royal, the residence of the
+regent, and implored his protection. The regent himself was embarrassed by
+the sturdy opposition of parliament, which contemplated nothing less than a
+decree reversing most of his public measures, especially those of finance.
+His indecision kept Law for a time in an agony of terror and suspense.
+Finally, by assembling a board of justice, and bringing to his aid the
+absolute authority of the king, he triumphed over parliament and relieved
+Law from his dread of being hanged.
+
+The system now went on with flowing sail. The Western or Mississippi
+Company, being identified with the bank, rapidly increased in power and
+privileges. One monopoly after another was granted to it; the trade of the
+Indian seas; the slave trade with Senegal and Guinea; the farming of
+tobacco; the national coinage, etc. Each new privilege was made a pretext
+for issuing more bills, and caused an immense advance in the price of
+stock. At length, on the 4th of December, 1718, the regent gave the
+establishment the imposing title of "The Royal Bank," and proclaimed that
+he had effected the purchase of all the shares, the proceeds of which he
+had added to its capital This measure seemed to shock the public feeling
+more than any other connected with the system, and roused the indignation
+of parliament. The French nation had been so accustomed to attach an idea
+of everything noble, lofty, and magnificent to the royal name and person,
+especially during the stately and sumptuous reign of Louis XIV., that they
+could not at first tolerate the idea of royalty being in any degree mingled
+with matters of traffic and finance, and the king being in a manner a
+banker. It was one of the downward steps, however, by which royalty lost
+its illusive splendor in France, and became gradually cheapened in the
+public mind.
+
+Arbitrary measures now began to be taken to force the bills of the bank
+into artificial currency. On the 27th of December appeared an order in
+council, forbidding, under severe penalties, the payment of any sum above
+six hundred livres in gold or silver. This decree rendered bank bills
+necessary in all transactions of purchase and sale, and called for a new
+emission. The prohibition was occasionally evaded or opposed; confiscations
+were the consequence; informers were rewarded, and spies and traitors began
+to spring up in all the domestic walks of life.
+
+The worst effect of this illusive system was the mania for gain, or rather
+for gambling in stocks, that now seized upon the whole nation. Under the
+exciting effects of lying reports, and the forcing effects of government
+decrees, the shares of the company went on rising in value until they
+reached thirteen hundred per cent. Nothing was now spoken of but the price
+of shares, and the immense fortunes suddenly made by lucky speculators.
+Those whom Law had deluded used every means to delude others. The most
+extravagant dreams were indulged, concerning the wealth to flow in upon the
+company from its colonies, its trade, and its various monopolies. It is
+true nothing as yet had been realized, nor could in some time be realized,
+from these distant sources, even if productive; but the imaginations of
+speculators are ever in the advance, and their conjectures are immediately
+converted into facts. Lying reports now flew from mouth to month, of sure
+avenues to fortune suddenly thrown open. The more extravagant the fable,
+the more readily was it believed. To doubt was to awaken anger, or incur
+ridicule. In a time of public infatuation, it requires no small exercise of
+courage to doubt a popular fallacy.
+
+Paris now became the center of attraction for the adventurous and the
+avaricious, who flocked to it, not merely from the provinces, but from
+neighboring countries. A stock exchange was established in a house in the
+Rue Quincampoix, and became immediately the gathering place of
+stock-jobbers. The exchange opened at seven o'clock, with the beat of drum
+and sound of bell, and closed at night with the same signals. Guards were
+stationed at each end of the street, to maintain order and exclude
+carriages and horses. The whole street swarmed throughout the day like a
+bee-hive. Bargains of all kinds were seized upon with avidity. Shares of
+stock passed from hand to hand, mounting in value, one knew not why.
+Fortunes were made in a moment, as if by magic; and every lucky bargain
+prompted those around to a more desperate throw of the die. The fever went
+on, increasing in intensity as the day declined; and when the drum beat,
+and the bell rang, at night, to close the exchange, there were exclamations
+of impatience and despair, as if the wheel of fortune had suddenly been
+stopped when about to make its luckiest evolution.
+
+To engulf all classes in this ruinous vortex, Law now split the shares of
+fifty millions of stock each into one hundred shares; thus, as in the
+splitting of lottery tickets, accommodating the venture to the humblest
+purse. Society was thus stirred up to its very dregs, and adventurers of
+the lowest order hurried to the stock market. All honest, industrious
+pursuits, and modest gains, were now despised. Wealth was to be obtained
+instantly, without labor and without stint. The upper classes were as base
+in their venality as the lower. The highest and most powerful nobles,
+abandoning all generous pursuits and lofty aims, engaged in the vile
+scuffle for gam. They were even baser than the lower classes; for some of
+them, who were members of the council of the regency, abused their station
+and their influence, and promoted measures by which shares rose while in
+their hands, and they made immense profits.
+
+The Duke de Bourbon, the prince of Conti, the Dukes de la Force and D'Antin
+were among the foremost of these illustrious stock-jobbers. They were
+nicknamed the Mississippi Lords, and they smiled at the sneering title. In
+fact, the usual distinctions of society had lost their consequence, under
+the reign of this new passion. Bank, talent, military fame, no longer
+inspired deference. All respect for others, all self-respect, were
+forgotten in the mercenary struggle of the stock-market. Even prelates and
+ecclesiastical corporations, forgetting their true objects of devotion,
+mingled among the votaries of Mammon. They were not behind those who
+wielded the civil power in fabricating ordinances suited to their
+avaricious purposes. Theological decisions forthwith appeared, in which the
+anathema launched by the Church against usury was conveniently construed as
+not extending to the traffic in bank shares!
+
+The Abbe Dubois entered into the mysteries of stockjobbing with all the
+zeal of an apostle, and enriched himself by the spoils of the credulous;
+and he continually drew large sums from Law, as considerations for his
+political influence. Faithless to his country, in the course of his
+gambling speculations he transferred to England a great amount of specie,
+which had been paid into the royal treasury; thus contributing to the
+subsequent dearth of the precious metals.
+
+The female sex participated in this sordid frenzy. Princesses of the blood,
+and ladies of the highest nobility, were among the most rapacious of
+stock-jobbers. The regent seemed to have the riches of Croesus at his
+command, and lavished money by hundreds of thousands upon his female
+relatives and favorites, as well as upon his _roués_, the dissolute
+companions of his debauches. "My son," writes the regent's mother, in her
+correspondence, "gave me shares to the amount of two millions, which I
+distributed among my household. The king also took several millions for his
+own household. All the royal family have had them; all the children and
+grandchildren of France, and the princes of the blood."
+
+Luxury and extravagance kept pace with this sudden inflation of fancied
+wealth. The hereditary palaces of nobles were pulled down, and rebuilt on a
+scale of augmented splendor. Entertainments were given of incredible cost
+and magnificence. Never before had been such display in houses, furniture,
+equipages, and amusements. This was particularly the case among persons of
+the lower ranks, who had suddenly become possessed of millions. Ludicrous
+anecdotes are related of some of these upstarts. One, who had just launched
+a splendid carriage, when about to use it for the first time, instead of
+getting in at the door, mounted, through habitude, to his accustomed place
+behind. Some ladies of quality, seeing a well-dressed woman covered with
+diamonds, but whom nobody knew, alight from a very handsome carriage,
+inquired who she was of the footman. He replied, with a sneer: "It is a
+lady who has recently tumbled from a garret into this carriage." Mr. Law's
+domestics were said to become in like manner suddenly enriched by the
+crumbs that fell from his table. His coachman, having made his fortune,
+retired from his service. Mr. Law requested him to procure a coachman in
+his place. He appeared the next day with two, whom he pronounced equally
+good, and told Mr. Law: "Take which of them you choose, and I will take the
+other!"
+
+Nor were these _novi homini_ treated with the distance and disdain
+they would formerly have experienced from the haughty aristocracy of
+France. The pride of the old noblesse had been stifled by the stronger
+instinct of avarice. They rather sought the intimacy and confidence of
+these lucky upstarts; and it has been observed that a nobleman would gladly
+take his seat at the table of the fortunate lackey of yesterday, in hopes
+of learning from him the secret of growing rich!
+
+Law now went about with a countenance radiant with success and apparently
+dispensing wealth on every side. "He is admirably skilled in all that
+relates to finance," writes the Duchess of Orleans, the regent's mother,
+"and has put the affairs of the state in such good order that all the
+king's debts have been paid. He is so much run after that he has no repose
+night or day. A duchess even kissed his hand publicly. If a duchess can do
+this, what will other ladies do?"
+
+Wherever he went, his path, we are told, was beset by a sordid throng, who
+waited to see him pass, and sought to obtain the favor of a word, a nod, or
+smile, as if a mere glance from him would bestow fortune. When at home, his
+house was absolutely besieged by furious candidates for fortune. "They
+forced the doors," says the Duke de St. Simon; "they scaled his windows
+from the garden; they made their way into his cabinet down the chimney!"
+
+The same venal court was paid by all classes to his family. The highest
+ladies of the court vied with each other in meannesses to purchase the
+lucrative friendship of Mrs. Law and her daughter. They waited upon them
+with as much assiduity and adulation as if they had been princesses of the
+blood. The regent one day expressed a desire that some duchess should
+accompany his daughter to Genoa. "My lord," said some one present, "if you
+would have a choice from among the duchesses, you need but send to Mrs.
+Law's, you will find them all assembled there."
+
+The wealth of Law rapidly increased with the expansion of the bubble. In
+the course of a few months he purchased fourteen titled estates, paying for
+them in paper; and the public hailed these sudden and vast acquisitions of
+landed property as so many proofs of the soundness of his system. In one
+instance he met with a shrewd bargainer, who had not the general faith in
+his paper money. The President de Novion insisted on being paid for an
+estate in hard coin. Law accordingly brought the amount, four hundred
+thousand livres, in specie, saying, with a sarcastic smile, that he
+preferred paying in money as its weight rendered it a mere encumbrance. As
+it happened, the president could give no clear title to the land, and the
+money had to be refunded. He paid it back _in paper_, which Law dared
+not refuse, lest he should depreciate it in the market.
+
+The course of illusory credit went on triumphantly for eighteen months. Law
+had nearly fulfilled one of his promises, for the greater part of the
+public debt had been paid off; but how paid? In bank shares, which had been
+trumped up several hundred per cent above their value, and which were to
+vanish like smoke in the hands of the holders.
+
+One of the most striking attributes of Law was the imperturbable assurance
+and self-possession with which he replied to every objection, and found a
+solution for every problem. He had the dexterity of a juggler in evading
+difficulties; and what was peculiar, made figures themselves, which are the
+very elements of exact demonstration, the means to dazzle and bewilder.
+
+Toward the latter end of 1719 the Mississippi scheme had reached its
+highest point of glory. Half a million of strangers had crowded into Paris
+in quest of fortune. The hotels and lodging-houses were overflowing;
+lodgings were procured with excessive difficulty; granaries were turned
+into bedrooms; provisions had risen enormously in price; splendid houses
+were multiplying on every side; the streets were crowded with carriages;
+above a thousand new equipages had been launched.
+
+On the eleventh of December, Law obtained another prohibitory decree, for
+the purpose of sweeping all the remaining specie in circulation into the
+bank. By this it was forbidden to make any payment in silver above ten
+livres, or in gold above three hundred.
+
+The repeated decrees of this nature, the object of which was to depreciate
+the value of gold, and increase the illusive credit of paper, began to
+awaken doubts of a system which required such bolstering. Capitalists
+gradually awoke from their bewilderment. Sound and able financiers
+consulted together, and agreed to make common cause against this continual
+expansion of a paper system. The shares of the bank and of the company
+began to decline in value. Wary men took the alarm, and began to
+_realize_, a word now first brought into use, to express the
+conversion of _ideal_ property into something _real_.
+
+The prince of Conti, one of the most prominent and grasping of the
+Mississippi lords, was the first to give a blow to the credit of the bank.
+There was a mixture of ingratitude in his conduct that characterized the
+venal baseness of the times. He had received from time to time enormous
+sums from Law, as the price of his influence and patronage. His avarice had
+increased with every acquisition, until Law was compelled to refuse one of
+his exactions. In revenge the prince immediately sent such an amount of
+paper to the bank to be cashed that it required four wagons to bring away
+the silver, and he had the meanness to loll out of the window of his hotel
+and jest and exult as it was trundled into his portecochère.
+
+This was the signal for other drains of like nature. The English and Dutch
+merchants, who had purchased a great amount of bank paper at low prices,
+cashed them at the bank, and carried the money out of the country. Other
+strangers did the like, thus draining the kingdom of its specie, and
+leaving paper in its place.
+
+The regent, perceiving these symptoms of decay in the system, sought to
+restore it to public confidence by conferring marks of confidence upon its
+author.
+
+He accordingly resolved to make Law Comptroller General of the Finances of
+France. There was a material obstacle in his way. Law was a Protestant, and
+the regent, unscrupulous as he was himself, did not dare publicly to
+outrage the severe edicts which Louis XIV., in his bigot days, had
+fulminated against all heretics. Law soon let him know that there would be
+no difficulty on that head. He was ready at any moment to abjure his
+religion in the way of business. For decency's sake, however, it was judged
+proper he should previously be convinced and converted. A ghostly
+instructor was soon found, ready to accomplish his conversion in the
+shortest possible time. This was the Abbe Tencin, a profligate creature of
+the profligate Dubois, and like him working his way to ecclesiastical
+promotion and temporal wealth, by the basest means.
+
+Under the instructions of the Abbe Tencin, Law soon mastered the mysteries
+and dogmas of the Catholic doctrine; and, after a brief course of ghostly
+training, declared himself thoroughly convinced and converted. To avoid the
+sneers and jests of the Parisian public the ceremony of abjuration took
+place at Melun. Law made a pious present of one hundred thousand livres to
+the Church of St. Roque, and the Abbe Tencin was rewarded for his edifying
+labors by sundry shares and bank bills; which he shrewdly took care to
+convert into cash, having as little faith in the system as in the piety of
+his new convert. A more grave and moral community might have been outraged
+by this scandalous farce; but the Parisians laughed at it with their usual
+levity, and contented themselves with making it the subject of a number of
+songs and epigrams.
+
+Law now being orthodox in his faith, took out letters of naturalization,
+and having thus surmounted the intervening obstacles, was elevated by the
+regent to the post of comptroller-general. So accustomed had the community
+become to all juggles and transmutations in this hero of finance, that no
+one seemed shocked or astonished at his sudden elevation. On the contrary,
+being now considered perfectly established in place and power, he became
+more than ever the object of venal adoration. Men of rank and dignity
+thronged his antechamber, waiting patiently their turn for an audience; and
+titled dames demeaned themselves to take the front seats of the carriages
+of his wife and daughter, as if they had been riding with princesses of the
+blood royal. Law's head grew giddy with his elevation, and he began to
+aspire after aristocratical distinction. There was to be a court ball, at
+which several of the young noblemen were to dance in a ballet with the
+youthful king. Law requested that his son might be admitted into the
+ballet, and the regent consented. The young scions of nobility, however,
+were indignant and scouted the "intruding upstart." Their more worldly
+parents, fearful of displeasing the modern Midas, reprimanded them in vain.
+The striplings had not yet imbibed the passion for gain, and still held to
+their high blood. The son of the banker received slights and annoyances on
+all sides, and the public applauded them for their spirit. A fit of illness
+came opportunely to relieve the youth from an honor which would have cost
+him a world of vexations and affronts.
+
+In February, 1720, shortly after Law's installment in office, a decree came
+out uniting the bank to the India Company, by which last name the whole
+establishment was now known. The decree stated that as the bank was royal,
+the king was bound to make good the value of its bills; that he committed
+to the company the government of the bank for fifty years, and sold to it
+fifty millions of stock belonging to him, for nine hundred millions; a
+simple advance of eighteen hundred per cent. The decree further declared,
+in the king's name, that he would never draw on the bank until the value of
+his drafts had first been lodged in it by his receivers-general.
+
+The bank, it was said, had by this time issued notes to the amount of one
+thousand millions; being more paper than all the banks of Europe were able
+to circulate. To aid its credit, the receivers of the revenue were directed
+to take bank notes of the sub-receivers. All payments, also, of one hundred
+livres and upward were ordered to be made in banknotes. These compulsory
+measures for a short time gave a false credit to the bank, which proceeded
+to discount merchants' notes, to lend money on jewels, plate, and other
+valuables, as well as on mortgages.
+
+Still further to force on the system an edict next appeared, forbidding any
+individual, or any corporate body, civil or religious, to hold in
+possession more than five hundred livres in current coin; that is to say,
+about seven louis d'ors: the value of the louis-d'or in paper being, at the
+time, seventy-two livres. All the gold and silver they might have above
+this pittance was to be brought to the royal bank and exchanged either for
+shares or bills.
+
+As confiscation was the penalty of disobedience to this decree, and
+informers were assured a share of the forfeitures, a bounty was in a manner
+held out to domestic spies and traitors; and the most odious scrutiny was
+awakened into the pecuniary affairs of families and individuals. The very
+confidence between friends and relatives was unpaired, and all the domestic
+ties and virtues of society were threatened, until a general sentiment of
+indignation broke forth, that compelled the regent to rescind the odious
+decree. Lord Stairs, the British embassador, speaking of the system of
+espionage encouraged by this edict, observed that it was impossible to
+doubt that Law was a thorough Catholic, since he had thus established the
+_inquisition_, after having already proved _transubstantiation_,
+by changing specie into paper.
+
+Equal abuses had taken place under the colonizing project. In his thousand
+expedients to amass capital, Law had sold parcels of land in Mississippi,
+at the rate of three thousand livres for a league square. Many capitalists
+had purchased estates large enough to constitute almost a principality; the
+only evil was, Law had sold a property which he could not deliver. The
+agents of police, who aided in recruiting the ranks of the colonists, had
+been guilty of scandalous impositions. Under pretense of taking up
+mendicants and vagabonds, they had scoured the streets at night, seizing
+upon honest mechanics, or their sons, and hurrying them to their
+crimping-houses, for the sole purpose of extorting money from them as a
+ransom. The populace was roused to indignation by these abuses. The
+officers of police were mobbed in the exercise of their odious functions,
+and several of them were killed; which put an end to this flagrant abuse of
+power.
+
+In March, a most extraordinary decree of the council fixed the price of
+shares of the India Company at nine thousand livres each. All
+ecclesiastical communities and hospitals were now prohibited from investing
+money at interest, in anything but India stock. With all these props and
+stays, the system continued to totter. How could it be otherwise, under a
+despotic government that could alter the value of property at every moment?
+The very compulsory measures that were adopted to establish the credit of
+the bank hastened its fall; plainly showing there was a want of solid
+security.
+
+Law caused pamphlets to be published, setting forth, in eloquent language,
+the vast profits that must accrue to holders of the stock, and the
+impossibility of the king's ever doing it any harm. On the very back of
+these assertions came forth an edict of the king, dated the 22d of May,
+wherein, under pretense of having reduced the value of his coin, it was
+declared necessary to reduce the value of his bank-notes one-half, and of
+the India shares from nine thousand to five thousand livres.
+
+This decree came like a clap of thunder upon shareholders. They found
+one-half of the pretended value of the paper in their hands annihilated in
+an instant; and what certainty had they with respect to the other half? The
+rich considered themselves ruined; those in humbler circumstances looked
+forward to abject beggary.
+
+The parliament seized the occasion to stand forth as the protector of the
+public, and refused to register the decree. It gained the credit of
+compelling the regent to retrace his step, though it is more probable he
+yielded to the universal burst of public astonishment and reprobation. On
+the 27th of May the edict was revoked, and bank bills were restored to
+their previous value. But the fatal blow had been struck; the delusion was
+at an end. Government itself had lost all public confidence, equally with
+the bank it had engendered, and which its own arbitrary acts had brought
+into discredit. "All Paris," says the regent's mother, in her letters, "has
+been mourning at the cursed decree which Law has persuaded my son to make.
+I have received anonymous letters stating that I have nothing to fear on my
+own account, but that my son shall be pursued with fire and sword."
+
+The regent now endeavored to avert the odium of his ruinous schemes from
+himself. He affected to have suddenly lost confidence in Law, and, on the
+29th of May, discharged bin from his employ as comptroller-general, and
+stationed a Swiss guard of sixteen men in his house. He even refused to see
+him, when, on the following day, he applied at the portal of the Palais
+Royal for admission; but having played off this farce before the public, he
+admitted him secretly the same night, by a private door, and continued as
+before to co-operate with him in his financial schemes.
+
+On the first of June the regent issued a decree, permitting persons to have
+as much money as they pleased in their possession. Few, however, were in a
+state to benefit by this permission. There was a run upon the bank, but a
+royal ordinance immediately suspended payment, until further orders. To
+relieve the public mind, a city stock was created, of twenty-five millions,
+bearing an interest of two and a half per cent, for which bank notes were
+taken in exchange. The bank notes thus withdrawn from circulation were
+publicly burned before the Hotel de Ville. The public, however, had lost
+confidence in everything and everybody, and suspected fraud and collusion
+in those who pretended to burn the bills.
+
+A general confusion now took place hi the financial world. Families who had
+lived in opulence found themselves suddenly reduced to indigence. Schemers
+who had been reveling in the delusion of princely fortune found their
+estates vanishing into thin air. Those who had any property remaining
+sought to secure it against reverses. Cautious persons found there was no
+safety for property in a country where the coin was continually shifting in
+value, and where a despotism was exercised over public securities, and even
+over the private purses of individuals. They began to send their effects
+into other countries; when lo! on the 20th of June a royal edict commanded
+them to bring back their effects, under penalty of forfeiting twice their
+value; and forbade them, under like penalty, from investing their money in
+foreign stocks. This was soon followed by another decree, forbidding any
+one to retain precious stones in his possession, or to sell them to
+foreigners; all must be deposited in the bank, in exchange for depreciating
+paper!
+
+Execrations were now poured out on all sides against Law, and menaces of
+vengeance. What a contrast, in a short time, to the venal incense that was
+offered up to him! "This person," writes the regent's mother, "who was
+formerly worshiped as a god, is now not sure of his life. It is astonishing
+how greatly terrified he is. He is as a dead man; he is pale as a sheet,
+and it is said he can never get over it. My son is not dismayed, though he
+is threatened on all sides; and is very much amused with Law's terrors."
+
+About the middle of July the last grand attempt was made by Law and the
+regent to keep up the system and provide for the immense emission of paper.
+A decree was fabricated, giving the India Company the entire monopoly of
+commerce, on condition that it would, in the course of a year, reimburse
+six hundred millions of livres of its bills, at the rate of fifty millions
+per month.
+
+On the 17th this decree was sent to parliament to be registered. It at once
+raised a storm of opposition in that assembly, and a vehement discussion
+took place. While that was going on a disastrous scene was passing out of
+doors.
+
+The calamitous effects of the system had reached the humblest concerns of
+human life. Provisions had risen to an enormous price; paper money was
+refused at all the shops; the people had not wherewithal to buy bread. It
+had been found absolutely indispensable to relax a little from the
+suspension of specie payments, and to allow small sums to be scantily
+exchanged for paper. The doors of the bank and the neighboring streets were
+immediately thronged with a famishing multitude, seeking cash for bank
+notes of ten livres. So great was the press and struggle that several
+persons were stifled and crushed to death. The mob carried three of the
+bodies to the courtyard of the Palais Royal. Some cried for the regent to
+come forth and behold the effect of his system; others demanded the death
+of Law, the impostor, who had brought this misery and rum upon the nation.
+
+The moment was critical, the popular fury was rising to a tempest, when Le
+Blanc, the Secretary of State, stepped forth. He had previously sent for
+the military, and now only sought to gain tune. Singling out six or seven
+stout fellows, who seemed to be the ringleaders of the mob: "My good
+fellows," said he, calmly, "carry away these bodies and place them in some
+church, and then come back quickly to me for your pay." They immediately
+obeyed; a kind of funeral procession was formed; the arrival of troops
+dispersed those who lingered behind; and Paris was probably saved from an
+insurrection.
+
+About ten o'clock in the morning, all being quiet, Law ventured to go in
+his carriage to the Palais Royal. He was saluted with cries and curses, as
+he passed along the streets; and he reached the Palais Royal in a terrible
+fright. The regent amused himself with his fears, but retained him with
+him, and sent off his carriage, which was assailed by the mob, pelted with
+stones, and the glasses shivered. The news of this outrage was communicated
+to parliament in the midst of a furious discussion of the decree for the
+commercial monopoly. The first president, who had been absent for a short
+time, re-entered, and communicated the tidings in a whimsical couplet:
+
+  "Messieurs, Messieurs! bonne nouvelle!
+  Le carrosse de Law est reduite en carrelle!"
+
+  "Gentlemen, Gentlemen! good news!
+  The carriage of Law is shivered to atoms!"
+
+The members sprang up with joy; "And Law!" exclaimed they, "has he been
+torn to pieces?" The president was ignorant of the result of the tumult;
+whereupon the debate was cut short, the decree rejected, and the house
+adjourned; the members hurrying to learn the particulars. Such was the
+levity with which public affairs were treated at that dissolute and
+disastrous period.
+
+On the following day there was an ordinance from the king, prohibiting all
+popular assemblages; and troops were stationed at various points, and in
+all public places. The regiment of guards was ordered to hold itself in
+readiness; and the musketeers to be at their hotels, with their horses
+ready saddled. A number of small offices were opened, where people might
+cash small notes, though with great delay and difficulty. An edict was also
+issued declaring that whoever should refuse to take bank notes in the
+course of trade should forfeit double the amount!
+
+The continued and vehement opposition of parliament to the whole delusive
+system of finance had been a constant source of annoyance to the regent;
+but this obstinate rejection of his last grand expedient of a commercial
+monopoly was not to be tolerated. He determined to punish that intractable
+body. The Abbe Dubois and Law suggested a simple mode; it was to suppress
+the parliament altogether, being, as they observed, so far from useful that
+it was a constant impediment to the march of public affairs. The regent was
+half inclined to listen to their advice; but upon calmer consideration, and
+the advice of friends, he adopted a more moderate course. On the 20th of
+July, early in the morning, all the doors of the parliament-house were
+taken possession of by troops. Others were sent to surround the house of
+the first president, and others to the houses of the various members; who
+were all at first in great alarm, until an order from the king was put into
+their hands, to render themselves at Pontoise, in the course of two days,
+to which place the parliament was thus suddenly and arbitrarily
+transferred.
+
+This despotic act, says Voltaire, would at any other time have caused an
+insurrection; but one half of the Parisians were occupied by their ruin,
+and the other half by their fancied riches, which were soon to vanish. The
+president and members of parliament acquiesced in the mandate without a
+murmur; they even went as if on a party of pleasure, and made every
+preparation to lead a joyous life in their exile. The musketeers, who held
+possession of the vacated parliament-house, a gay corps of fashionable
+young fellows, amused themselves with making songs and pasquinades, at the
+expense of the exiled legislators; and at length, to pass away time, formed
+themselves into a mock parliament; elected their presidents, kings,
+ministers, and advocates; took their seats in due form, arraigned a cat at
+their bar, in place of the Sieur Law, and, after giving it a "fair trial,"
+condemned it to be hanged. In this manner public affairs and public
+institutions were lightly turned to jest.
+
+As to the exiled parliament, it lived gayly and luxuriously at Pontoise, at
+the public expense; for the regent had furnished funds, as usual, with a
+lavish hand. The first president had the mansion of the Duke de Bouillon
+put at his disposal, already furnished, with a vast and delightful garden
+on the borders of a river. There he kept open house to all the members of
+parliament. Several tables were spread every day, all furnished luxuriously
+and splendidly; the most exquisite wines and liqueurs, the choicest fruits
+and refreshments, of all kinds, abounded. A number of small chariots for
+one and two horses were always at hand, for such ladies and old gentlemen
+as wished to take an airing after dinner, and card and billiard tables for
+such as chose to amuse themselves in that way until supper. The sister and
+the daughter of the first president did the honors of the house, and he
+himself presided there with an air of great ease, hospitality, and
+magnificence. It became a party of pleasure to drive from Paris to
+Pontoise, which was six leagues distant, and partake of the amusements and
+festivities of the place. Business was openly slighted; nothing was thought
+of but amusement. The regent and his government were laughed at, and made
+the subjects of continual pleasantries; while the enormous expenses
+incurred by this idle and lavish course of life more than doubled the
+liberal sums provided. This was the way in which the parliament resented
+their exile.
+
+During all this time the system was getting more and more involved. The
+stock exchange had some time previously been removed to the Place Vendome;
+but the tumult and noise becoming intolerable to the residents of that
+polite quarter, and especially to the chancellor, whose hotel was there,
+the Prince and Princess Carignan, both deep gamblers in Mississippi stock,
+offered the extensive garden of the Hotel de Soissons as a rallying-place
+for the worshipers of Mammon. The offer was accepted. A number of barracks
+were immediately erected in the garden, as offices for the stock-brokers,
+and an order was obtained from the regent, under pretext of police
+regulations, that no bargain should be valid unless concluded in these
+barracks. The rent of them immediately mounted to a hundred livres a month
+for each, and the whole yielded these noble proprietors an ignoble revenue
+of half a million of livres.
+
+The mania for gain, however, was now at an end. A universal panic
+succeeded. "_Sauve qui peut!_" was the watchword. Every one was
+anxious to exchange falling paper for something of intrinsic and permanent
+value. Since money was not to be had, jewels, precious stones, plate,
+porcelain, trinkets of gold and silver, all commanded any price in paper.
+Land was bought at fifty years' purchase, and he esteemed himself happy who
+could get it even at this price. Monopolies now became the rage among the
+noble holders of paper. The Duke de la Force bought up nearly all the
+tallow, grease, and soap; others the coffee and spices; others hay and
+oats. Foreign exchanges were almost impracticable. The debts of Dutch and
+English merchants were paid in this fictitious money, all the coin of the
+realm having disappeared. All the relations of debtor and creditor were
+confounded. With one thousand crowns one might pay a debt of eighteen
+thousand livres!
+
+The regent's mother, who once exulted in the affluence of bank paper, now
+wrote in a very different tone: "I have often wished," said she in her
+letters, "that these bank-notes were in the depths of the infernal regions.
+They have given my son more trouble than relief. Nobody in France has a
+penny.... My son was once popular, but since the arrival of this cursed
+Law, he is hated more and more. Not a week passes, without my receiving
+letters filled with frightful threats, and speaking of him as a tyrant. I
+have just received one threatening him with poison. When I showed it to
+him, he did nothing but laugh."
+
+In the meantime, Law was dismayed by the increasing troubles, and terrified
+at the tempest he had raised. He was not a man of real courage; and fearing
+for his personal safety, from popular tumult, or the despair of ruined
+individuals, he again took refuge in the palace of the regent. The latter,
+as usual, amused himself with his terrors, and turned every new disaster
+into a jest; but he too began to think of his own security.
+
+In pursuing the schemes of Law, he had no doubt calculated to carry through
+his term of government with ease and splendor; and to enrich himself, his
+connections, and his favorites; and had hoped that the catastrophe of the
+system would not take place until after the expiration of the regency.
+
+He now saw his mistake; that it was impossible much longer to prevent an
+explosion; and he determined at once to get Law out of the way, and then to
+charge him with the whole tissue of delusions of this paper alchemy. He
+accordingly took occasion of the recall of parliament in December, 1720, to
+suggest to Law the policy of his avoiding an encounter with that hostile
+and exasperated body. Law needed no urging to the measure. His only desire
+was to escape from Paris and its tempestuous populace. Two days before the
+return of parliament he took his sudden and secret departure. He traveled
+in a chaise bearing the arms of the regent, and was escorted by a kind of
+safeguard of servants in the duke's livery. His first place of refuge was
+an estate of the regent's, about six leagues from Paris, from whence he
+pushed forward to Bruxelles.
+
+As soon as Law was fairly out of the way, the Duke of Orleans summoned a
+council of the regency, and informed them that they were assembled to
+deliberate on the state of the finances, and the affairs of the India
+Company. Accordingly La Houssaye, comptroller-general, rendered a perfectly
+clear statement, by which it appeared that there were bank bills in
+circulation to the amount of two milliards, seven hundred millions of
+livres, without any evidence that this enormous sum had been emitted in
+virtue of any ordinance from the general assembly of the India Company,
+which alone had the right to authorize such emissions.
+
+The council was astonished at this disclosure, and looked to the regent for
+explanation. Pushed to the extreme, the regent avowed that Law had emitted
+bills to the amount of twelve hundred millions beyond what had been fixed
+by ordinances, and in contradiction to express prohibitions; that the thing
+being done, he, the regent, had legalized or rather covered the
+transaction, by decrees ordering such emissions, which decrees he had
+_antedated_.
+
+A stormy scene ensued between the regent and the Duke de Bourbon, little to
+the credit of either, both having been deeply implicated in the cabalistic
+operations of the system. In fact, the several members of the council had
+been among the most venal "beneficiaries" of the scheme, and had interests
+at stake which they were anxious to secure. From all the circumstances of
+the case, I am inclined to think that others were more to blame than Law,
+for the disastrous effects of his financial projects. His bank, had it been
+confined to its original limits, and left to the control of its own
+internal regulations, might have gone on prosperously, and been of great
+benefit to the nation. It was an institution fitted for a free country; but
+unfortunately it was subjected to the control of a despotic government,
+that could, at its pleasure, alter the value of the specie within its
+vaults, and compel the most extravagant expansions of its paper
+circulation. The vital principle of a bank is security in the regularity of
+its operations, and the immediate convertibility of its paper into coin;
+and what confidence could be reposed in an institution or its paper
+promises, when the sovereign could at any moment centuple those promises in
+the market, and seize upon all the money in the bank? The compulsory
+measures used, likewise, to force bank-notes into currency, against the
+judgment of the public, was fatal to the system; for credit must be free
+and uncontrolled as the common air. The regent was the evil spirit of the
+system, that forced Law on to an expansion of his paper currency far beyond
+what he had ever dreamed of. He it was that in a manner compelled the
+unlucky projector to devise all kinds of collateral companies and
+monopolies, by which to raise funds to meet the constantly and enormously
+increasing emissions of shares and notes. Law was but like a poor conjurer
+in the hands of a potent spirit that he has evoked, and that obliges him to
+go on, desperately and ruinously, with his conjurations. He only thought at
+the outset to raise the wind, but the regent compelled him to raise the
+whirlwind.
+
+The investigation of the affairs of the company by the council resulted in
+nothing beneficial to the public. The princes and nobles who had enriched
+themselves by all kinds of juggles and extortions, escaped unpunished, and
+retained the greater part of their spoils. Many of the "suddenly rich," who
+had risen from obscurity to a giddy height of imaginary prosperity, and had
+indulged in all kinds of vulgar and ridiculous excesses, awoke as out of a
+dream, in their original poverty, now made more galling and humiliating by
+their transient elevation.
+
+The weight of the evil, however, fell on more valuable classes of society;
+honest tradesmen and artisans, who had been seduced away from the safe
+pursuits of industry, to the specious chances of speculation. Thousands of
+meritorious families also, once opulent, had been reduced to indigence, by
+a too great confidence in government. There was a general derangement in
+the finances, that long exerted a baneful influence over the national
+prosperity; but the most disastrous effects of the system were upon the
+morals and manners of the nation. The faith of engagements, the sanctity of
+promises in affairs of business, were at an end. Every expedient to grasp
+present profit, or to evade present difficulty, was tolerated. While such
+deplorable laxity of principle was generated in the busy classes, the
+chivalry of France had soiled their pennons; and honor and glory, so long
+the idols of the Gallic nobility, had been tumbled to the earth, and
+trampled in the dirt of the stock-market.
+
+As to Law, the originator of the system, he appears eventually to have
+profited but little by his schemes. "He was a quack," says Voltaire, "to
+whom the state was given to be cured, but who poisoned it with his drugs,
+and who poisoned himself." The effects which he left behind in France were
+sold at a low price and the proceeds dissipated. His landed estates were
+confiscated. He carried away with him barely enough to maintain himself,
+his wife, and daughter, with decency. The chief relic of his immense
+fortune was a great diamond, which he was often obliged to pawn. He was in
+England in 1721, and was presented to George the First. He returned shortly
+afterward to the continent; shifting about from place to place, and died in
+Venice, in 1729. His wife and daughter, accustomed to live with the
+prodigality of princesses, could not conform to their altered fortunes, but
+dissipated the scanty means left to them, and sank into abject poverty. "I
+saw his wife," says Voltaire, "at Bruxelles, as much humiliated as she had
+been haughty and triumphant in Paris." An elder brother of Law remained in
+France, and was protected by the Duchess of Bourbon. His descendants have
+acquitted themselves honorably, in various public employments; and one of
+them is the Marquis Lauriston, some time lieutenant-general and peer of
+France.
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+
+
+
+
+DON JUAN
+
+A SPECTRAL RESEARCH
+
+
+  "I have heard of spirits walking with aerial bodies, and have been
+  wondered at by others; but I must only wonder at myself, for if they
+  be not mad, I'me come to my own buriall."--SHIRLEY's _Witty Fairie
+  One_
+
+Everybody has heard of the fate of Don Juan, the famous libertine of
+Seville, who for his sins against the fair sex and other minor peccadilloes
+was hurried away to the infernal regions. His story has been illustrated in
+play, in pantomime, and farce, on every stage in Christendom; until at
+length it has been rendered the theme of the operas, and embalmed to
+endless duration in the glorious music of Mozart. I well recollect the
+effect of this story upon my feelings in my boyish days, though represented
+in grotesque pantomime; the awe with which I contemplated the monumental
+statue on horseback of the murdered commander, gleaming by pale moonlight
+in the convent cemetery; how my heart quaked as he bowed his marble head,
+and accepted the impious invitation of Don Juan: how each footfall of the
+statue smote upon my heart, as I heard it approach, step by step, through
+the echoing corridor, and beheld it enter, and advance, a moving figure of
+stone, to the supper table! But then the convivial scene in the
+charnel-house, where Don Juan returned the visit of the statue; was offered
+a banquet of skulls and bones, and on refusing to partake, was hurled into
+a yawning gulf, under a tremendous shower of fire! These were accumulated
+horrors enough to shake the nerves of the most pantomime-loving schoolboy.
+Many have supposed the story of Don Juan a mere fable. I myself thought so
+once; but "seeing is believing." I have since beheld the very scene where
+it took place, and now to indulge any doubt on the subject would be
+preposterous.
+
+I was one night perambulating the streets of Seville, in company with a
+Spanish friend, a curious investigator of the popular traditions and other
+good-for-nothing lore of the city, and who was kind enough to imagine he
+had met, in me, with a congenial spirit. In the course of our rambles we
+were passing by a heavy, dark gateway, opening into the courtyard of a
+convent, when he laid his hand upon my arm: "Stop!" said he, "this is the
+convent of San Francisco; there is a story connected with it which I am
+sure must be known to you. You cannot but have heard of Don Juan and the
+marble statue."
+
+"Undoubtedly," replied I, "it has been familiar to me from childhood."
+
+"Well, then, it was in the cemetery of this very convent that the events
+took place."
+
+"Why, you do not mean to say that the story is founded on fact?"
+
+"Undoubtedly it is. The circumstances of the case are said to have occurred
+during the reign of Alfonso XI. Don Juan was of the noble family of
+Tenorio, one of the most illustrious houses of Andalusia. His father, Don
+Diego Tenorio, was a favorite of the king, and his family ranked among the
+_deintecuatros_, or magistrates, of the city. Presuming on his high
+descent and powerful connections, Don Juan set no bounds to his excesses:
+no female, high or low, was sacred from his pursuit: and he soon became the
+scandal of Seville. One of his most daring outrages was, to penetrate by
+night into the palace of Don Gonzalo de Ulloa, commander of the order of
+Calatrava, and attempt to carry off his daughter. The household was
+alarmed; a scuffle in the dark took place; Don Juan escaped, but the
+unfortunate commander was found weltering in his blood, and expired without
+being able to name his murderer. Suspicions attached to Don Juan; he did
+not stop to meet the investigations of justice, and the vengeance of the
+powerful family of Ulloa, but fled from Seville, and took refuge with his
+uncle, Don Pedro Tenorio, at that time embassador at the court of Naples.
+Here he remained until the agitation occasioned by the murder of Don
+Gonzalo had time to subside; and the scandal which the affair might cause
+to both the families of Ulloa and Tenorio had induced them to hush it up.
+Don Juan, however, continued his libertine career at Naples, until at
+length his excesses forfeited the protection of his uncle, the embassador,
+and obliged him again to flee. He had made his way back to Seville,
+trusting that his past misdeeds were forgotten, or rather trusting to his
+dare-devil spirit and the power of his family to carry him through all
+difficulties.
+
+"It was shortly after his return, and while in the height of his arrogance,
+that on visiting this very convent of Francisco, he beheld on a monument
+the equestrian statue of the murdered commander, who had been buried within
+the walls of this sacred edifice, where the family of Ulloa had a chapel.
+It was on this occasion that Don Juan, in a moment of impious levity,
+invited the statue to the banquet, the awful catastrophe of which has given
+such celebrity to his story."
+
+"And pray how much of this story," said I, "is believed in Seville?"
+
+"The whole of it by the populace; with whom it has been a favorite
+tradition since time immemorial, and who crowd to the theaters to see it
+represented in dramas written long since by Tyrso de Molina, and another of
+our popular writers. Many in our higher ranks also, accustomed from
+childhood to this story, would feel somewhat indignant at hearing it
+treated with contempt. An attempt has been made to explain the whole, by
+asserting that, to put an end to the extravagances of Don Juan, and to
+pacify the family of Ulloa, without exposing the delinquent to the
+degrading penalties of justice, he was decoyed into this convent under a
+false pretext, and either plunged into a perpetual dungeon, or privately
+hurried out of existence; while the story of the statue was circulated by
+the monks, to account for his sudden disappearance. The populace, however,
+are not to be cajoled out of a ghost story by any of these plausible
+explanations; and the marble statue still strides the stage, and Don Juan
+is still plunged into the infernal regions, as an awful warning to all
+rake-helly youngsters, in like case offending."
+
+While my companion was relating these anecdotes, we had entered the
+gateway, traversed the exterior courtyard of the convent, and made our way
+into a great interior court; partly surrounded by cloisters and
+dormitories, partly by chapels, and having a large fountain in the center.
+The pile had evidently once been extensive and magnificent; but it was for
+the greater part in ruins. By the light of the stars, and of twinkling
+lamps placed here and there in the chapels and corridors, I could see that
+many of the columns and arches were broken; the walls were rent and riven;
+white burned beams and rafters showed the destructive effects of fire. The
+whole place had a desolate air; the night breeze rustled through grass and
+weeds flaunting out of the crevices of the walls, or from the shattered
+columns; the bat flitted about the vaulted passages, and the owl hooted
+from the ruined belfry. Never was any scene more completely fitted for a
+ghost story.
+
+While I was indulging in picturings of the fancy, proper to such a place,
+the deep chant of the monks from the convent church came swelling upon the
+ear. "It is the vesper service," said my companion; "follow me."
+
+Leading the way across the court of the cloisters, and through one or two
+ruined passages, he reached the distant portal of the church, and pushing
+open a wicket, cut in the folding doors, we found ourselves in the deep
+arched vestibule of the sacred edifice. To our left was the choir, forming
+one end of the church, and having a low vaulted ceiling, which gave it the
+look of a cavern. About this were ranged the monks, seated on stools, and
+chanting from immense books placed on music-stands, and having the notes
+scored in such gigantic characters as to be legible from every part of the
+choir. A few lights on these music-stands dimly illumined the choir,
+gleamed on the shaven heads of the monks and threw their shadows on the
+walls. They were gross, blue-bearded, bullet-headed men, with bass voices,
+of deep metallic tone, that reverberated out of the cavernous choir.
+
+To our right extended the great body of the church. It was spacious and
+lofty; some of the side chapels had gilded grates, and were decorated with
+images and paintings, representing the sufferings of our Saviour. Aloft was
+a great painting by Murillo, but too much in the dark to be distinguished.
+The gloom of the whole church was but faintly relieved by the reflected
+light from the choir, and the glimmering here and there of a votive lamp
+before the shrine of a saint.
+
+As my eye roamed about the shadowy pile, it was struck with the dimly seen
+figure of a man on horseback, near a distant altar. I touched my companion,
+and pointed to it: "The specter statue!" said I.
+
+"No," replied he; "it is the statue of the blessed St. Iago; the statue of
+the commander was in the cemetery of the convent, and was destroyed at the
+tune of the conflagration. But," added he, "as I see you take a proper
+interest in these kind of stories, come with me to the other end of the
+church, where our whisperings will not disturb these holy fathers at their
+devotions, and I will tell you another story that has been current for some
+generations in our city, by which you will find that Don Juan is not the
+only libertine that has been the object of supernatural castigation in
+Seville."
+
+I accordingly followed him with noiseless tread to the further part of the
+church, where we took our seats on the steps of an altar, opposite to the
+suspicious-looking figure on horseback, and there, in a low, mysterious
+voice, he related to me the following narration:
+
+"There was once in Seville a gay young fellow, Don Manuel de Manara by
+name, who, having come to a great estate by the death of his father, gave
+the reins to his passions, and plunged into all kinds of dissipation. Like
+Don Juan, whom he seemed to have taken for a model, he became famous for
+his enterprises among the fair sex, and was the cause of doors being barred
+and windows grated with more than usual strictness. All in vain. No balcony
+was too high for him to scale; no bolt nor bar was proof against his
+efforts; and his very name was a word of terror to all the jealous husbands
+and cautious fathers of Seville. His exploits extended to country as well
+as city; and in the village dependent on his castle, scarce a rural beauty
+was safe from his arts and enterprises.
+
+"As he was one day ranging the streets of Seville, with several of his
+dissolute companions, he beheld a procession about to enter the gate of a
+convent. In the center was a young female arrayed in the dress of a bride;
+it was a novice, who, having accomplished her year of probation, was about
+to take the black veil, and consecrate herself to heaven. The companions of
+Don Manuel drew back, out of respect to the sacred pageant; but he pressed
+forward, with his usual impetuosity, to gain a near view of the novice. He
+almost jostled her, in passing through the portal of the church, when, on
+her turning round, he beheld the countenance of a beautiful village girl,
+who had been the object of his ardent pursuit, but who had been spirited
+secretly out of his reach by her relatives. She recognized him at the same
+moment, and fainted; but was borne within the grate of the chapel. It was
+supposed the agitation of the ceremony and the heat of the throng had
+overcome her. After some time, the curtain which hung within the grate was
+drawn up: there stood the novice, pale and trembling, surrounded by the
+abbess and the nuns. The ceremony proceeded; the crown of flowers was taken
+from her head; she was shorn of her silken tresses, received the black
+veil, and went passively through the remainder of the ceremony.
+
+"Don Manuel de Manara, on the contrary, was roused to fury at the sight of
+this sacrifice. His passion, which had almost faded away in the absence of
+the object, now glowed with tenfold ardor, being inflamed by the
+difficulties placed in his way, and piqued by the measures which had been
+taken to defeat him. Never had the object of his pursuit appeared so lovely
+and desirable as when within the grate of the convent; and he swore to have
+her, in defiance of heaven and earth. By dint of bribing a female servant
+of the convent he contrived to convey letters to her, pleading his passion
+in the most eloquent and seductive terms. How successful they were is only
+matter of conjecture; certain it is, he undertook one night to scale the
+garden wall of the convent, either to carry off the nun or gain admission
+to her cell. Just as he was mounting the wall he was suddenly plucked back,
+and a stranger, muffled in a cloak, stood before him.
+
+"'Rash man, forbear!' cried he: 'is it not enough to have violated all
+human ties? Wouldst thou steal a bride from heaven!'
+
+"The sword of Don Manuel had been drawn on the instant, and, furious at
+this interruption, he passed it through the body of the stranger, who fell
+dead at his feet. Hearing approaching footsteps, he fled the fatal spot,
+and mounting his horse, which was at hand, retreated to his estate in the
+country, at no great distance from Seville. Here he remained throughout the
+next day, full of horror and remorse; dreading lest he should be known as
+the murderer of the deceased, and fearing each moment the arrival of the
+officers of justice.
+
+"The day passed, however, without molestation; and, as the evening
+approached, unable any longer to endure this state of uncertainty and
+apprehension, he ventured back to Seville. Irresistibly his footsteps took
+the direction of the convent; but he paused and hovered at a distance from
+the scene of blood. Several persons were gathered round the place, one of
+whom was busy nailing something against the convent wall. After a while
+they dispersed, and one passed near to Don Manuel. The latter addressed
+him, with a hesitating voice.
+
+"'Señor,' said he, 'may I ask the reason of yonder throng?'
+
+"'A cavalier,' replied the other, 'has been murdered.'
+
+"'Murdered!' echoed Don Manuel; 'and can you tell me his name?'
+
+"'Don Manuel de Manara,' replied the stranger, and passed on.
+
+"Don Manuel was startled at this mention of his own name; especially when
+applied to the murdered man. He ventured, when it was entirely deserted, to
+approach the fatal spot. A small cross had been nailed against the wall, as
+is customary in Spain, to mark the place where a murder has been committed;
+and just below it, he read, by the twinkling light of a lamp: 'Here was
+murdered Don Manuel de Manara. Pray to God for his soul!'
+
+"Still more confounded and perplexed by this inscription, he wandered about
+the streets until the night was far advanced, and all was still and lonely.
+As he entered the principal square, the light of torches suddenly broke on
+him, and he beheld a grand funeral procession moving across it. There was a
+great train of priests, and many persons of dignified appearance, in
+ancient Spanish dresses, attending as mourners, none of whom he knew.
+Accosting a servant who followed in the train, he demanded the name of the
+defunct.
+
+"'Don Manuel de Manara,' was the reply; and it went cold to his heart. He
+looked, and indeed beheld the armorial bearings of his family emblazoned on
+the funeral escutcheons. Yet not one of his family was to be seen among the
+mourners. The mystery was more and more incomprehensible.
+
+"He followed the procession as it moved on to the cathedral. The bier was
+deposited before the high altar; the funeral service was commenced, and the
+grand organ began to peal through the vaulted aisles.
+
+"Again the youth ventured to question this awful pageant. 'Father,' said
+he, with trembling voice, to one of the priests, 'who is this you are about
+to inter?'
+
+"'Don Manuel de Manara!' replied the priest.
+
+"'Father,' cried Don Manuel, impatiently, 'you are deceived. This is some
+imposture. Know that Don Manuel de Manara la alive and well, and now stands
+before you. _I_ am Don Manuel de Manara!'
+
+"'Avaunt, rash youth!' cried the priest; 'know that Don Manuel de Manara is
+dead!--is dead!--is dead!--and we are all souls from purgatory, his
+deceased relatives and ancestors, and others that have been aided by masses
+of his family, who are permitted to come here and pray for the repose of
+his soul!'
+
+"Don Manuel cast round a fearful glance upon the assemblage, in antiquated
+Spanish garbs, and recognized in their pale and ghastly countenances the
+portraits of many an ancestor that hung in the family picture-gallery. He
+now lost all self-command, rushed up to the bier, and beheld the
+counterpart of himself, but in the fixed and livid lineaments of death.
+Just at that moment the whole choir burst forth with a 'Requiescat in
+pace,' that shook the vaults of the cathedral. Don Manuel sank senseless on
+the pavement. He was found there early the next morning by the sacristan,
+and conveyed to his home. When sufficiently recovered, he sent for a friar
+and made a full confession of all that had happened.
+
+"'My son,' said the friar, 'all this is a miracle and a mystery, intended
+for thy conversion and salvation. The corpse thou hast seen was a token
+that thou hadst died to sin and the world; take warning by it, and
+henceforth live to righteousness and heaven!'
+
+"Don Manuel did take warning by it. Guided by the counsels of the worthy
+friar, he disposed of all his temporal affairs; dedicated the greater part
+of his wealth to pious uses, especially to the performance of masses for
+souls in purgatory; and finally, entering a convent, became one of the most
+zealous and exemplary monks in Seville."
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+While my companion was relating this story, my eyes wandered, from time to
+time, about the dusky church. Methought the burly countenances of the monks
+in their distant choir assumed a pallid, ghastly hue, and their deep
+metallic voices had a sepulchral sound. By the time the story was ended,
+they had ended their chant; and, extinguishing their lights, glided one by
+one, like shadows, through a small door in the side of the choir. A deeper
+gloom prevailed over the church; the figure opposite me on horseback grew
+more and more spectral; and I almost expected to see it bow its head.
+
+"It is time to be off," said my companion, "unless we intend to sup with
+the statue."
+
+"I have no relish for such fare or such company," replied I; and, following
+my companion, we groped our way through the mouldering cloisters. As we
+passed by the ruined cemetery, keeping up a casual conversation, by way of
+dispelling the loneliness of the scene, I called to mind the words of the
+poet:
+
+                     "--The tombs
+  And monumental caves of death look cold,
+  And shoot a chillness to my trembling heart!
+  Give me thy hand, and let me hear thy voice;
+  Nay, speak--and let me hear thy voice;
+  My own affrights me with its echoes."
+
+There wanted nothing but the marble statue of the commander striding along
+the echoing cloisters to complete the haunted scene.
+
+Since that time I never fail to attend the theater whenever the story of
+Don Juan is represented, whether in pantomime or opera. In the sepulchral
+scene, I feel myself quite at home; and when the statue makes his
+appearance, I greet him as an old acquaintance. When the audience applaud,
+I look round upon them with a degree of compassion. "Poor souls!" I say to
+myself, "they think they are pleased; they think they enjoy this piece, and
+yet they consider the whole as a fiction! How much more would they enjoy
+it, if like me they knew it to be true--_and had seen the very
+place_!"
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+
+
+
+BROEK
+
+OF THE DUTCH PARADISE
+
+
+It has long been a matter of discussion and controversy among the pious and
+the learned, as to the situation of the terrestrial paradise from whence
+our first parents were exiled. This question has been put to rest by
+certain of the faithful in Holland, who have decided in favor of the
+village of Broek, about six miles from Amsterdam. It may not, they observe,
+correspond in all respects to the description of the Garden of Eden, handed
+down from days of yore, but it comes nearer to their ideas of a perfect
+paradise than any other place on earth.
+
+This eulogium induced me to make some inquiries as to this favored spot in
+the course of a sojourn at the city of Amsterdam, and the information I
+procured fully justified the enthusiastic praises I had heard. The village
+of Broek is situated in Waterland, in the midst of the greenest and richest
+pastures of Holland, I may say, of Europe. These pastures are the source of
+its wealth, for it is famous for its dairies, and for those oval cheeses
+which regale and perfume the whole civilized world. The population consists
+of about six hundred persons, comprising several families which have
+inhabited the place since time immemorial, and have waxed rich on the
+products of their meadows. They keep all their wealth among themselves,
+intermarrying, and keeping all strangers at a wary distance. They are a
+"hard money" people, and remarkable for turning the penny the right way. It
+is said to have been an old rule, established by one of the primitive
+financiers and legislators of Broek, that no one should leave the village
+with more than six guilders in his pocket, or return with less than ten; a
+shrewd regulation, well worthy the attention of modern political
+economists, who are so anxious to fix the balance of trade.
+
+What, however, renders Broek so perfect an elysium in the eyes of all true
+Hollanders is the matchless height to which the spirit of cleanliness is
+carried there. It amounts almost to a religion among the inhabitants, who
+pass the greater part of their time rubbing and scrubbing, and painting and
+varnishing; each housewife vies with her neighbor in her devotion to the
+scrubbing-brush, as zealous Catholics do in their devotion to the cross;
+and it is said a notable housewife of the place in days of yore is held in
+pious remembrance, and almost canonized as a saint, for having died of pure
+exhaustion and chagrin in an ineffectual attempt to scour a black man
+white.
+
+These particulars awakened my ardent curiosity to see a place which I
+pictured to myself the very fountain-head of certain hereditary habits and
+customs prevalent among the descendants of the original Dutch settlers of
+my native State. I accordingly lost no time in performing a pilgrimage to
+Broek.
+
+Before I reached the place I beheld symptoms of the tranquil character of
+its inhabitants. A little clump-built boat was in full sail along the lazy
+bosom of a canal, but its sail consisted of the blades of two paddles stood
+on end, while the navigator sat steering with a third paddle in the stern,
+crouched down like a toad, with a slouched hat drawn over his eyes. I
+presumed him to be some nautical lover on the way to his mistress. After
+proceeding a little further I came in sight of the harbor or port of
+destination of this drowsy navigator. This was the Broeken-Meer, an
+artificial basin, or sheet of olive-green water, tranquil as a mill-pond.
+On this the village of Broek is situated, and the borders are laboriously
+decorated with flower-beds, box-trees clipped into all kinds of ingenious
+shapes and fancies, and little "lust" houses, or pavilions.
+
+I alighted outside of the village, for no horse nor vehicle is permitted to
+enter its precincts, lest it should cause defilement of the well-scoured
+pavements. Shaking the dust off my feet, therefore, I prepared to enter,
+with due reverence and circumspection, this _sanctum sanctorum_ of
+Dutch cleanliness. I entered by a narrow street, paved with yellow bricks,
+laid edgewise, and so clean that one might eat from them. Indeed, they were
+actually worn deep, not by the tread of feet, but by the friction of the
+scrubbing-brush.
+
+The houses were built of wood, and all appeared to have been freshly
+painted, of green, yellow, and other bright colors. They were separated
+from each other by gardens and orchards, and stood at some little distance
+from the street, with wide areas or courtyards, paved in mosaic, with
+variegated stones, polished by frequent rubbing. The areas were divided
+from the street by curiously-wrought railings, or balustrades, of iron,
+surmounted with brass and copper balls, scoured into dazzling effulgence.
+The very trunks of the trees in front of the houses were by the same
+process made to look as if they had been varnished. The porches, doors, and
+window-frames of the houses were of exotic woods, curiously carved, and
+polished like costly furniture. The front doors are never opened, excepting
+on christenings, marriages, or funerals; on all ordinary occasions,
+visitors enter by the back door. In former times, persons when admitted had
+to put on slippers, but this Oriental ceremony is no longer insisted upon.
+
+A poor devil Frenchman, who attended upon me as cicerone, boasted with some
+degree of exultation of a triumph of his countrymen over the stern
+regulations of the place. During the time that Holland was overrun by the
+armies of the French republic, a French general, surrounded by his whole
+état major, who had come from Amsterdam to view the wonders of Broek,
+applied for admission at one of these taboo'd portals. The reply was that
+the owner never received any one who did not come introduced by some
+friend. "Very well," said the general, "take my compliments to your master,
+and tell him I will return here to-morrow with a company of soldiers,
+'_pour parler raison avec mon ami Hollandais_.'" Terrified at the idea
+of having a company of soldiers billeted upon him, the owner threw open his
+house, entertained the general and his retinue with unwonted hospitality;
+though it is said it cost the family a month's scrubbing and scouring to
+restore all things to exact order, after this military invasion. My
+vagabond informant seemed to consider this one of the greatest victories of
+the republic.
+
+I walked about the place in mute wonder and admiration. A dead stillness
+prevailed around, like that in the deserted streets of Pompeii. No sign of
+life was to be seen, excepting now and then a hand, and a long pipe, and an
+occasional puff of smoke, out of the window of some "lusthaus" overhanging
+a miniature canal; and on approaching a little nearer, the periphery in
+profile of some robustious burgher.
+
+Among the grand houses pointed out to me were those of Claes Bakker, and
+Cornelius Bakker, richly carved and gilded, with flower gardens and clipped
+shrubberies; and that of the Great Ditmus, who, my poor devil cicerone
+informed me, in a whisper, was worth two millions; all these were mansions
+shut up from the world, and only kept to be cleaned. After having been
+conducted from one wonder to another of the village, I was ushered by my
+guide into the grounds and gardens of Mynheer Broekker, another mighty
+cheese-manufacturer, worth eighty thousand guilders a year. I had
+repeatedly been struck with the similarity of all that I had seen in this
+amphibious little village to the buildings and landscapes on Chinese
+platters and tea-pots; but here I found the similarity complete; for I was
+told that these gardens were modeled upon Van Bramm's description of those
+of Yuen min Yuen, in China. Here were serpentine walks, with trellised
+borders; winding canals, with fanciful Chinese bridges; flower-beds
+resembling huge baskets, with the flower of "love lies bleeding" falling
+over to the ground. But mostly had the fancy of Mynheer Broekker been
+displayed about a stagnant little lake, on which a corpulent little pinnace
+lay at anchor. On the border was a cottage within which were a wooden man
+and woman seated at table, and a wooden dog beneath, all the size of life;
+on pressing a spring, the woman commenced spinning, and the dog barked
+furiously. On the lake were wooden swans, painted to the life; some
+floating, others on the nest among the rushes; while a wooden sportsman,
+crouched among the bushes, was preparing his gun to take deadly aim. In
+another part of the garden was a dominie in his clerical robes, with wig,
+pipe, and cocked hat; and mandarins with nodding heads, amid red lions,
+green tigers, and blue hares. Last of all, the heathen deities, in wood and
+plaster, male and female, naked and bare-faced as usual, and seeming to
+stare with wonder at finding themselves in such strange company.
+
+My shabby French guide, while he pointed out all these mechanical marvels
+of the garden, was anxious to let me see that he had too polite a taste to
+be pleased with them. At every new knick-knack he would screw down his
+mouth, shrug up his shoulders, take a pinch of snuff, and exclaim: "_Ma
+foi, Monsieur, ces Hollandais sont forts pour ces bétises là_!"
+
+To attempt to gain admission to any of these stately abodes was out of the
+question, having no company of soldiers to enforce a solicitation. I was
+fortunate enough, however, through the aid of my guide, to make my way into
+the kitchen of the illustrious Ditmus, and I question whether the parlor
+would have proved more worthy of observation. The cook, a little wiry,
+hook-nosed woman, worn thin by incessant action and friction, was bustling
+about among her kettles and saucepans, with the scullion at her heels, both
+clattering in wooden shoes, which were as clean and white as the
+milk-pails; rows of vessels, of brass and copper, regiments of pewter
+dishes, and portly porringers, gave resplendent evidence of the intensity
+of their cleanliness; the very trammels and hangers in the fireplace were
+highly scoured, and the burnished face of the good Saint Nicholas shone
+forth from the iron plate of the chimney back.
+
+Among the decorations of the kitchen was a printed sheet of woodcuts,
+representing the various holiday customs of Holland, with explanatory
+rhymes. Here I was delighted to recognize the jollities of New Year's Day;
+the festivities of Paäs and Pinkster, and all the other merry-makings
+handed down in my native place from the earliest times of New Amsterdam,
+and which had been such bright spots in the year in my childhood. I eagerly
+made myself master of this precious document for a trifling consideration,
+and bore it off as a memento of the place; though I question if, in so
+doing, I did not carry off with me the whole current literature of Broek.
+
+I must not omit to mention that this village is the paradise of cows as
+well as men; indeed you would almost suppose the cow to be as much an
+object of worship here as the bull was among the ancient Egyptians; and
+well does she merit it, for she is in fact the patroness of the place. The
+same scrupulous cleanliness, however, which pervades everything else, is
+manifested in the treatment of this venerated animal. She is not permitted
+to perambulate the place, but in winter, when she forsakes the rich
+pasture, a well-built house is provided for her, well painted, and
+maintained in the most perfect order. Her stall is of ample dimensions; the
+floor is scrubbed and polished; her hide is daily curried and brushed and
+sponged to her heart's content, and her tail is daintily tucked up to the
+ceiling, and decorated with a ribbon!
+
+On my way back through the village, I passed the house of the prediger, or
+preacher; a very comfortable mansion, which led me to augur well of the
+state of religion in the village. On inquiry, I was told that for a long
+time the inhabitants lived in a great state of indifference as to religious
+matters; it was in vain that their preachers endeavored to arouse their
+thoughts as to a future state; the joys of heaven, as commonly depicted,
+were but little to their taste. At length a dominie appeared among them who
+struck out in a different vein. He depicted the New Jerusalem as a place
+all smooth and level; with beautiful dykes, and ditches, and canals; and
+houses all shining with paint and varnish, and glazed tiles; and where
+there should never come horse, or ass, or cat, or dog, or anything that
+could make noise or dirt; but there should be nothing but rubbing and
+scrubbing, and washing and painting, and gilding and varnishing, for ever
+and ever, amen! Since that time, the good housewives of Broek have all
+turned their faces Zionward.
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+
+
+
+SKETCHES IN PARIS IN 1825
+
+FROM THE TRAVELING NOTE-BOOK OF GEOFFREY CRAYON, GENT.
+
+
+A Parisian hotel is a street set on end, the grand staircase forming the
+highway, and every floor a separate habitation. Let me describe the one in
+which I am lodged, which may serve as a specimen of its class. It is a huge
+quadrangular pile of stone, built round a spacious paved court. The ground
+floor is occupied by shops, magazines, and domestic offices. Then comes the
+_entre-sol_, with low ceilings, short windows, and dwarf chambers;
+then succeed a succession of floors, or stories, rising one above the
+other, to the number of Mahomet's heavens. Each floor is like a distinct
+mansion, complete in itself, with ante-chamber, saloons, dining and
+sleeping rooms, kitchen and other conveniences for the accommodation of a
+family. Some floors are divided into two or more suites of apartments. Each
+apartment has its main door of entrance, opening upon the staircase, or
+landing-places, and locked like a street door. Thus several families and
+numerous single persons live under the same roof, totally independent of
+each other, and may live so for years without holding more intercourse than
+is kept up in other cities by residents in the same street.
+
+Like the great world, this little microcosm has its gradations of rank and
+style and importance. The _Premier_, or first floor, with its grand
+saloons, lofty ceilings, and splendid furniture, is decidedly the
+aristocratical part of the establishment. The second floor is scarcely less
+aristocratical and magnificent; the other floors go on lessening in
+splendor as they gain in altitude, and end with the attics, the region of
+petty tailors, clerks, and sewing-girls. To make the filling up of the
+mansion complete, every odd nook and corner is fitted up as a _joli petit
+appartement à garçon_ (a pretty little bachelor's apartment), that is to
+say, some little dark inconvenient nestling-place for a poor devil of a
+bachelor.
+
+The whole domain is shut up from the street by a great
+_porte-cochère_, or portal, calculated for the admission of carriages.
+This consists of two massy folding-doors, that swing heavily open upon a
+spacious entrance, passing under the front of the edifice into the
+courtyard. On one side is a spacious staircase leading to the upper
+apartments. Immediately without the portal is the porter's lodge, a small
+room with one or two bedrooms adjacent, for the accommodation of the
+_concierge_, or porter and his family. This is one of the most
+important functionaries of the hotel. He is, in fact, the Cerberus of the
+establishment, and no one can pass in or out without his knowledge and
+consent. The _porte-cochère_ in general is fastened by a sliding bolt,
+from which a cord or wire passes into the porter's lodge. Whoever wishes to
+go out must speak to the porter, who draws the bolt. A visitor from without
+gives a single rap with the massive knocker; the bolt is immediately drawn,
+as if by an invisible hand; the door stands ajar, the visitor pushes it
+open, and enters. A face presents itself at the glass door of the porter's
+little chamber; the stranger pronounces the name of the person he comes to
+seek. If the person or family is of importance, occupying the first or
+second floor, the porter sounds a bell once or twice, to give notice that a
+visitor is at hand. The stranger in the meantime ascends the great
+staircase, the highway common to all, and arrives at the outer door,
+equivalent to a street door, of the suite of rooms inhabited by his
+friends.
+
+Beside this hangs a bell-cord, with which he rings for admittance.
+
+When the family or person inquired for is of less importance, or lives in
+some remote part of the mansion less easy to be apprised, no signal is
+given. The applicant pronounces the name at the porter's door, and is told,
+_"Montez au troisième, au quatrième; sonnez à la porte à droite ou à
+gauche."_ ("Ascend to the third or fourth story; ring the bell on the
+right or left hand door"); as the case may be.
+
+The porter and his wife act as domestics to such of the inmates of the
+mansion as do not keep servants; making their beds, arranging their rooms,
+lighting their fires, and doing other menial offices, for which they
+receive a monthly stipend. They are also in confidential intercourse with
+the servants of the other inmates, and, having an eye on all the incomers
+and outgoers, are thus enabled, by hook and by crook, to learn the secrets
+and domestic history of every member of the little territory within the
+_porte-cochère_.
+
+The porter's lodge is accordingly a great scene of gossip, where all the
+private affairs of this interior neighborhood are discussed. The courtyard,
+also, is an assembling place in the evenings for the servants of the
+different families, and a sisterhood of sewing girls from the entre-sols
+and the attics, to play at various games, and dance to the music of their
+own songs, and the echoes of their feet, at which assemblages the porter's
+daughter takes the lead; a fresh, pretty, buxom girl, generally called
+"_La Petite_," though almost as tall as a grenadier. These little
+evening gatherings, so characteristic of this gay country, are countenanced
+by the various families of the mansion, who often look down from their
+windows and balconies, on moonlight evenings, and enjoy the simple revels
+of their domestics. I must observe, however, that the hotel I am describing
+is rather a quiet, retired one, where most of the inmates are permanent
+residents from year to year, so that there is more of the spirit of
+neighborhood than in the bustling, fashionable hotels in the gay parts of
+Paris, which are continually changing their inhabitants.
+
+MY FRENCH NEIGHBOR
+
+I often amuse myself by watching from my window (which, by the bye, is
+tolerably elevated) the movements of the teeming little world below me; and
+as I am on sociable terms with the porter and his wife, I gather from them,
+as they light my fire, or serve my breakfast, anecdotes of all my fellow
+lodgers. I have been somewhat curious in studying a little antique
+Frenchman, who occupies one of the _jolie chambres à garçon_ already
+mentioned. He is one of those superannuated veterans who flourished before
+the revolution, and have weathered all the storms of Paris, in consequence,
+very probably, of being fortunately too insignificant to attract attention.
+He has a small income, which he manages with the skill of a French
+economist; appropriating so much for his lodgings, so much for his meals;
+so much for his visits to St. Cloud and Versailles, and so much for his
+seat at the theater. He has resided in the hotel for years, and always in
+the same chamber, which he furnishes at his own expense. The decorations of
+the room mark his various ages. There are some gallant pictures which he
+hung up in his younger days; with a portrait of a lady of rank, whom he
+speaks tenderly of, dressed in the old French taste; and a pretty opera
+dancer, pirouetting in a hoop petticoat, who lately died at a good old age.
+In a corner of this picture is stuck a prescription for rheumatism, and
+below it stands an easy-chair. He has a small parrot at the window, to
+amuse him when within doors, and a pug dog to accompany him in his daily
+peregrinations. While I am writing he is crossing the court to go out. He
+is attired in his best coat, of sky-blue, and is doubtless bound for the
+Tuileries. His hair is dressed in the old style, with powdered ear-locks
+and a pig-tail. His little dog trips after him, sometimes on four legs,
+sometimes on three, and looking as if his leather small-clothes were too
+tight for him. Now the old gentleman stops to have a word with an old crony
+who lives in the entre-sol, and is just returning from his promenade. Now
+they take a pinch of snuff together; now they pull out huge red cotton
+handkerchiefs (those "flags of abomination," as they have well been called)
+and blow their noses most sonorously. Now they turn to make remarks upon
+their two little dogs, who are exchanging the morning's salutation; now
+they part, and my old gentleman stops to have a passing word with the
+porter's wife; and now he sallies forth, and is fairly launched upon the
+town for the day.
+
+No man is so methodical as a complete idler, and none so scrupulous in
+measuring and portioning out his time as he whose time is worth nothing.
+The old gentleman in question has his exact hour for rising, and for
+shaving himself by a small mirror hung against his casement. He sallies
+forth at a certain hour every morning to take his cup of coffee and his
+roll at a certain cafe, where he reads the papers. He has been a regular
+admirer of the lady who presides at the bar, and always stops to have a
+little _badinage_ with her _en passant_. He has his regular walks
+on the Boulevards and in the Palais Royal, where he sets his watch by the
+petard fired off by the sun at midday. He has his daily resort in the
+Garden of the Tuileries, to meet with a knot of veteran idlers like
+himself, who talk on pretty much the same subjects whenever they meet. He
+has been present at all the sights and shows and rejoicings of Paris for
+the last fifty years; has witnessed the great events of the revolution; the
+guillotining of the king and queen; the coronation of Bonaparte; the
+capture of Paris, and the restoration of the Bourbons. All these he speaks
+of with the coolness of a theatrical critic; and I question whether he has
+not been gratified by each in its turn; not from any inherent love of
+tumult, but from that insatiable appetite for spectacle which prevails
+among the inhabitants of this metropolis. I have been amused with a farce,
+in which one of these systematic old triflers is represented. He sings a
+song detailing his whole day's round of insignificant occupations, and goes
+to bed delighted with the idea that his next day will be an exact
+repetition of the same routine:
+
+  "Je me couche le soir,
+   Enchanté de pouvoir
+   Recommencer mon train
+      Le lendemain
+         Matin."
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+
+THE ENGLISHMAN AT PARIS
+
+In another part of the hotel a handsome suite of rooms is occupied by an
+old English gentleman, of great probity, some understanding, and very
+considerable crustiness, who has come to France to live economically. He
+has a very fair property, but his wife, being of that blessed kind compared
+in Scripture to the fruitful vine, has overwhelmed him with a family of
+buxom daughters, who hang clustering about him, ready to be gathered by any
+hand. He is seldom to be seen in public without one hanging on each arm,
+and smiling on all the world, while his own mouth is drawn down at each
+corner like a mastiff's with internal growling at everything about him. He
+adheres rigidly to English fashion in dress, and trudges about in long
+gaiters and broad-brimmed hat; while his daughters almost overshadow him
+with feathers, flowers, and French bonnets.
+
+He contrives to keep up an atmosphere of English habits, opinions, and
+prejudices, and to carry a semblance of London into the very heart of
+Paris. His mornings are spent at Galignani's news-room, where he forms one
+of a knot of inveterate quidnuncs, who read the same articles over a dozen
+times in a dozen different papers. He generally dines in company with some
+of his own countrymen, and they have what is called a "comfortable sitting"
+after dinner, in the English fashion, drinking wine, discussing the news of
+the London papers, and canvassing the French character, the French
+metropolis, and the French revolution, ending with a unanimous admission of
+English courage, English morality, English cookery, English wealth, the
+magnitude of London, and the ingratitude of the French.
+
+His evenings are chiefly spent at a club of his countrymen, where the
+London papers are taken. Sometimes his daughters entice him to the
+theaters, but not often. He abuses French tragedy, as all fustian and
+bombast, Talma as a ranter, and Duchesnois as a mere termagant. It is true
+his ear is not sufficiently familiar with the language to understand French
+verse, and he generally goes to sleep during the performance. The wit of
+the French comedy is flat and pointless to him. He would not give one of
+Munden's wry faces or Liston's inexpressible looks for the whole of it.
+
+He will not admit that Paris has any advantage over London. The Seine is a
+muddy rivulet in comparison with the Thames; the West End of London
+surpasses the finest parts of the French capital; and on some one's
+observing that there was a very thick fog out of doors: "Pish!" said he,
+crustily, "it's nothing to the fogs we have in London."
+
+He has infinite trouble in bringing his table into anything like conformity
+to English rule. With his liquors, it is true, he is tolerably successful.
+He procures London porter, and a stock of port and sherry, at considerable
+expense; for he observes that he cannot stand those cursed thin French
+wines, they dilute his blood so much as to give him the rheumatism. As to
+their white wines, he stigmatizes them as mere substitutes for cider; and
+as to claret, why, "it would be port if it could." He has continual
+quarrels with his French cook, whom he renders wretched by insisting on his
+conforming to Mrs. Glass; for it is easier to convert a Frenchman from his
+religion than his cookery. The poor fellow, by dint of repeated efforts,
+once brought himself to serve up _ros bif_ sufficiently raw to suit
+what he considered the cannibal taste of his master; but then he could not
+refrain, at the last moment, adding some exquisite sauce, that put the old
+gentleman in a fury.
+
+He detests wood-fires, and has procured a quantity of coal; but not having
+a grate, he is obliged to burn it on the hearth. Here he sits poking and
+stirring the fire with one end of a tongs, while the room is as murky as a
+smithy; railing at French chimneys, French masons, and French architects;
+giving a poke at the end of every sentence, as though he were stirring up
+the very bowels of the delinquents he is anathematizing. He lives in a
+state militant with inanimate objects around him; gets into high dudgeon
+with doors and casements, because they will not come under English law, and
+has implacable feuds with sundry refractory pieces of furniture. Among
+these is one in particular with which he is sure to have a high quarrel
+every tune he goes to dress. It is a _commode_, one of those smooth,
+polished, plausible pieces of French furniture that have the perversity of
+five hundred devils. Each drawer has a will of its own, will open or not,
+just as the whim takes it, and sets lock and key at defiance. Sometimes a
+drawer will refuse to yield to either persuasion or force, and will part
+with both handles rather than yield; another will come out in the most coy
+and coquettish manner imaginable; elbowing along, zig-zag; one corner
+retreating as the other advances; making a thousand difficulties and
+objections at every move; until the old gentleman, out of all patience,
+gives a sudden jerk, and brings drawer and contents into the middle of the
+floor. His hostility to this unlucky piece of furniture increases every
+day, as if incensed that it does not grow better. He is like the fretful
+invalid who cursed his bed, that the longer he lay the harder it grew. The
+only benefit he has derived from the quarrel is that it has furnished him
+with a crusty joke, which he utters on all occasions. He swears that a
+French _commode_ is the most _incommodious_ thing in existence,
+and that although the nation cannot make a joint-stool that will stand
+steady, yet they are always talking of everything's being
+_perfectionée_.
+
+His servants understand his humor, and avail themselves of it. He was one
+day disturbed by a pertinacious rattling and shaking at one of the doors,
+and bawled out in an angry tone to know the cause of the disturbance.
+"Sir," said the footman, testily, "it's this confounded French lock!" "Ah!"
+said the old gentleman, pacified by this hit at the nation, "I thought
+there was something French at the bottom of it!"
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+
+
+
+
+ENGLISH AND FRENCH CHARACTER
+
+
+As I am a mere looker on in Europe, and hold myself as much as possible
+aloof from its quarrels and prejudices, I feel something like one
+overlooking a game, who, without any great skill of his own, can
+occasionally perceive the blunders of much abler players. This neutrality
+of feeling enables me to enjoy the contrasts of character presented in this
+time of general peace, when the various peoples of Europe, who have so long
+been sundered by wars, are brought together and placed side by side in this
+great gathering-place of nations. No greater contrast, however, is
+exhibited than that of the French and English. The peace has deluged this
+gay capital with English visitors of all ranks and conditions. They throng
+every place of curiosity and amusement; fill the public gardens, the
+galleries, the cafes, saloons, theaters; always herding together, never
+associating with the French. The two nations are like two threads of
+different colors, tangled together but never blended.
+
+In fact they present a continual antithesis, and seem to value themselves
+upon being unlike each other; yet each have their peculiar merits, which
+should entitle them to each other's esteem. The French intellect is quick
+and active. It flashes its way into a subject with the rapidity of
+lightning; seizes upon remote conclusions with a sudden bound, and its
+deductions are almost intuitive. The English intellect is less rapid, but
+more persevering; less sudden, but more sure in its deductions. The
+quickness and mobility of the French enable them to find enjoyment in the
+multiplicity of sensations. They speak and act more from immediate
+impressions than from reflection and meditation. They are therefore more
+social and communicative; more fond of society, and of places of public
+resort and amusement. An Englishman is more reflective in his habits. He
+lives in the world of his own thoughts, and seems more self-existent and
+self-dependent. He loves the quiet of his own apartment; even when abroad,
+he in a manner makes a little solitude around him by his silence and
+reserve; he moves about shy and solitary, and, as it were, buttoned up,
+body and soul.
+
+The French are great optimists; they seize upon every good as it flies, and
+revel in the passing pleasure. The Englishman is too apt to neglect the
+present good, in preparing against the possible evil. However adversities
+may lower, let the sun shine but for a moment, and forth sallies the
+mercurial Frenchman, in holiday dress and holiday spirits, gay as a
+butterfly, as though his sunshine were perpetual; but let the sun beam
+never so brightly, so there be but a cloud in the horizon, the wary
+Englishman ventures forth distrustfully, with his umbrella in his hand.
+
+The Frenchman has a wonderful facility at turning small things to
+advantage. No one can be gay and luxurious on smaller means; no one
+requires less expense to be happy. He practices a kind of gilding in his
+style of living, and hammers out every guinea into gold leaf. The
+Englishman, on the contrary, is expensive in his habits, and expensive in
+his enjoyments. He values everything, whether useful or ornamental, by what
+it costs. He has no satisfaction in show, unless it be solid and complete.
+Everything goes with him by the square foot. Whatever display he makes, the
+depth is sure to equal the surface.
+
+The Frenchman's habitation, like himself, is open, cheerful, bustling, and
+noisy. He lives in a part of a great hotel, with wide portal, paved court,
+a spacious dirty stone staircase, and a family on every floor. All is
+clatter and chatter. He is good-humored and talkative with his servants,
+sociable with his neighbors, and complaisant to all the world. Anybody has
+access to himself and his apartments; his very bedroom is open to visitors,
+whatever may be its state of confusion; and all this not from any
+peculiarly hospitable feeling, but from that communicative habit which
+predominates over his character.
+
+The Englishman, on the contrary, ensconces himself in a snug brick mansion,
+which he has all to himself; locks the front door; puts broken bottles
+along his walls, and spring guns and man-traps in his gardens; shrouds
+himself with trees and window-curtains; exults in his quiet and privacy,
+and seems disposed to keep out noise, daylight, and company. His house,
+like himself, has a reserved, inhospitable exterior; yet whoever gains
+admittance is apt to find a warm heart and warm fireside within.
+
+The French excel in wit, the English in humor; the French have gayer fancy,
+the English richer imagination. The former are full of sensibility; easily
+moved, and prone to sudden and great excitement; but their excitement is
+not durable; the English are more phlegmatic; not so readily affected, but
+capable of being aroused to great enthusiasm. The faults of these opposite
+temperaments are that the vivacity of the French is apt to sparkle up and
+be frothy, the gravity of the English to settle down and grow muddy. When
+the two characters can be fixed in a medium, the French kept from
+effervescence and the English from stagnation, both will be found
+excellent.
+
+This contrast of character may also be noticed in the great concerns of the
+two nations. The ardent Frenchman is all for military renown; he fights for
+glory, that is to say, for success in arms. For, provided the national flag
+is victorious, he cares little about the expense, the injustice, or the
+inutility of the war. It is wonderful how the poorest Frenchman will revel
+on a triumphant bulletin; a great victory is meat and drink to him; and at
+the sight of a military sovereign, bringing home captured cannon and
+captured standards, he throws up his greasy cap in the air, and is ready to
+jump out of his wooden shoes for joy.
+
+John Bull, on the contrary, is a reasoning, considerate person. If he does
+wrong, it is in the most rational way imaginable. He fights because the
+good of the world requires it. He is a moral person, and makes war upon his
+neighbor for the maintenance of peace and good order, and sound principles.
+He is a money-making personage, and fights for the prosperity of commerce
+and manufactures. Thus the two nations have been fighting, time out of
+mind, for glory and good. The French, in pursuit of glory, have had their
+capital twice taken; and John, in pursuit of good, has run himself over
+head and ears in debt.
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+
+
+
+THE TUILERIES AND WINDSOR CASTLE
+
+
+I have sometimes fancied I could discover national characteristics in
+national edifices. In the Chateau of the Tuileries, for instance, I
+perceive the same jumble of contrarieties that marks the French character;
+the same whimsical mixture of the great and the little; the splendid and
+the paltry, the sublime and the grotesque. On visiting this famous pile,
+the first thing that strikes both eye and ear is military display. The
+courts glitter with steel-clad soldiery, and resound with the tramp of
+horse, the roll of drum, and the bray of trumpet. Dismounted guardsmen
+patrol its arcades, with loaded carbines, jingling spears, and clanking
+sabers. Gigantic grenadiers are posted about its staircases; young officers
+of the guards loll from the balconies, or lounge in groups upon the
+terraces; and the gleam of bayonet from window to window, shows that
+sentinels are pacing up and down the corridors and ante-chambers. The first
+floor is brilliant with the splendors of a court. French taste has tasked
+itself in adorning the sumptuous suites of apartments; nor are the gilded
+chapel and the splendid theater forgotten, where piety and pleasure are
+next-door neighbors, and harmonize together with perfect French
+_bienseance_.
+
+Mingled up with all this regal and military magnificence is a world of
+whimsical and make-shift detail. A great part of the huge edifice is cut up
+into little chambers and nestling-places for retainers of the court,
+dependents on retainers, and hangers-on of dependents. Some are squeezed
+into narrow entre-sols, those low, dark, intermediate slices of apartments
+between floors, the inhabitants of which seem shoved in edgewise, like
+books between narrow shelves; others are perched like swallows, under the
+eaves; the high roofs, too, which are as tall and steep as a French cocked
+hat, have rows of little dormant windows, tier above tier, just large
+enough to admit light and air for some dormitory, and to enable its
+occupant to peep out at the sky. Even to the very ridge of the roof may be
+seen here and there one of these air-holes, with a stove pipe beside it, to
+carry off the smoke from the handful of fuel with which its weazen-faced
+tenant simmers his _demi-tasse_ of coffee.
+
+On approaching the palace from the Pont Royal, you take in at a glance all
+the various strata of inhabitants; the garreteer in the roof; the retainer
+in the entre-sol; the courtiers at the casements of the royal apartments;
+while on the ground-floor a steam of savory odors and a score or two of
+cooks, in white caps, bobbing their heads about the windows, betray that
+scientific and all-important laboratory, the Royal Kitchen.
+
+Go into the grand ante-chamber of the royal apartments on Sunday and see
+the mixture of Old and New France; the old emigrés, returned with the
+Bourbons; little withered, spindle-shanked old noblemen, clad in court
+dresses, that figured in these saloons before the revolution, and have been
+carefully treasured up during their exile; with the solitaires and _ailes
+de pigeon_ of former days; and the court swords strutting out behind,
+like pins stuck through dry beetles. See them haunting the scenes of their
+former splendor, in hopes of a restitution of estates, like ghosts haunting
+the vicinity of buried treasure; while around them you see the Young
+France, that have grown up in the fighting school of Napoleon; all equipped
+_en militaire_; tall, hardy, frank, vigorous, sunburned,
+fierce-whiskered; with tramping boots, towering crests, and glittering
+breast-plates.
+
+It is incredible the number of ancient and hereditary feeders on royalty
+said to be housed in this establishment. Indeed all the royal palaces
+abound with noble families returned from exile, and who have
+nestling-places allotted them while they await the restoration of their
+estates, or the much-talked-of law indemnity. Some of them have fine
+quarters, but poor living. Some families have but five or six hundred
+francs a year, and all their retinue consists of a servant-woman. With all
+this, they maintain their old aristocratical hauteur, look down with vast
+contempt upon the opulent families which have risen since the revolution;
+stigmatize them all as _parvenues_ or upstarts, and refuse to visit
+them.
+
+In regarding the exterior of the Tuileries, with all its outward signs of
+internal populousness, I have often thought what a rare sight it would be
+to see it suddenly unroofed, and all its nooks and corners laid open to the
+day. It would be like turning up the stump of an old tree, and dislodging
+the world of grubs, and ants, and beetles lodged beneath. Indeed there is a
+scandalous anecdote current that in the time of one of the petty plots,
+when petards were exploded under the windows of the Tuileries, the police
+made a sudden investigation of the palace at four o'clock in the morning;
+when a scene of the most whimsical confusion ensued. Hosts of supernumerary
+inhabitants were found foisted into the huge edifice; every rat-hole had
+its occupant; and places which had been considered as tenanted only by
+spiders were found crowded with a surreptitious population. It is added
+that many ludicrous accidents occurred; great scampering and slamming of
+doors, and whisking away in nightgowns and slippers; and several persons,
+who were found by accident in their neighbors' chambers, evinced
+indubitable astonishment at the circumstance.
+
+As I have fancied I could read the French character in the national palace
+of the Tuileries, so I have pictured to myself some of the traits of John
+Bull in his royal abode of Windsor Castle. The Tuileries, outwardly a
+peaceful palace, is in effect a swaggering military hold; while the old
+castle, on the contrary, in spite of its bullying look, is completely under
+petticoat government. Every corner and nook is built up into some snug,
+cozy nestling place, some "procreant cradle," not tenanted by meager
+expectants or whiskered warriors, but by sleek placemen; knowing realizers
+of present pay and present pudding; who seem placed there not to kill and
+destroy, but to breed and multiply. Nursery maids and children shine with
+rosy faces at the windows, and swarm about the courts and terraces. The
+very soldiers have a pacific look, and when off duty may be seen loitering
+about the place with the nursery-maids; not making love to them in the gay
+gallant style of the French soldiery, but with infinite bonhomie aiding
+them to take care of the broods of children.
+
+Though the old castle is in decay, everything about it thrives; the very
+crevices of the walls are tenanted by swallows, rooks, and pigeons, all
+sure of quiet lodgment; the ivy strikes its roots deep in the fissures, and
+flourishes about the mouldering tower. [Footnote: The above sketch was
+written before the thorough repairs and magnificent additions that have
+been made of late years to Windsor Castle.] Thus it is with honest John;
+according to his own account, he is ever going to ruin, yet everything that
+lives on him thrives and waxes fat. He would fain be a soldier, and swagger
+like his neighbors; but his domestic, quiet-loving, uxorious nature
+continually gets the upper hand; and though he may mount his helmet and
+gird on his sword, yet he is apt to sink into the plodding, painstaking
+father of a family; with a troop of children at his heels, and his
+womenkind hanging on each arm.
+
+
+
+
+
+THE FIELD OF WATERLOO
+
+
+I have spoken heretofore with some levity of the contrast that exists
+between the English and French character; but it deserves more serious
+consideration. They are the two great nations of modern times most
+diametrically opposed, and most worthy of each other's rivalry; essentially
+distinct in their characters, excelling in opposite qualities, and
+reflecting luster on each other by their very opposition. In nothing is
+this contrast more strikingly evinced than in their military conduct. For
+ages have they been contending, and for ages have they crowded each other's
+history with acts of splendid heroism. Take the Battle of Waterloo, for
+instance, the last and most memorable trial of their rival prowess. Nothing
+could surpass the brilliant daring on the one side, and the steadfast
+enduring on the other. The French cavalry broke like waves on the compact
+squares of English infantry. They were seen galloping round those serried
+walls of men, seeking in vain for an entrance; tossing their arms in the
+air, in the heat of their enthusiasm, and braving the whole front of
+battle. The British troops, on the other hand, forbidden to move or fire,
+stood firm and enduring. Their columns were ripped up by cannonry; whole
+rows were swept down at a shot; the survivors closed their ranks, and stood
+firm. In this way many columns stood through the pelting of the iron
+tempest without firing a shot; without any action to stir their blood or
+excite their spirits. Death thinned their ranks, but could not shake their
+souls.
+
+A beautiful instance of the quick and generous impulses to which the French
+are prone, is given in the case of a French cavalier, in the hottest of the
+action, charging furiously upon a British officer, but perceiving in the
+moment of assault that his adversary had lost his sword-arm, dropping the
+point of his saber, and courteously riding on. Peace be with that generous
+warrior, whatever were his fate! If he went down in the storm of battle,
+with the foundering fortunes of his chieftain, may the turf of Waterloo
+grow green above his grave! and happier far would be the fate of such a
+spirit, to sink amid the tempest, unconscious of defeat, than to survive
+and mourn over the blighted laurels of his country.
+
+In this way the two armies fought through a long and bloody day. The French
+with enthusiastic valor, the English with cool, inflexible courage, until
+Fate, as if to leave the question of superiority still undecided between
+two such adversaries, brought up the Prussians to decide the fortunes of
+the field.
+
+It was several years afterward that I visited the field of Waterloo. The
+plowshare had been busy with its oblivious labors, and the frequent harvest
+had nearly obliterated the vestiges of war. Still the blackened ruins of
+Hoguemont stood, a monumental pile, to mark the violence of this vehement
+struggle. Its broken walls, pierced by bullets, and shattered by
+explosions, showed the deadly strife that had taken place within; when Gaul
+and Briton, hemmed in between narrow walls, hand to hand and foot to foot,
+fought from garden to courtyard, from courtyard to chamber, with intense
+and concentrated rivalship. Columns of smoke turned from this vortex of
+battle as from a volcano: "it was," said my guide, "like a little hell upon
+earth." Not far off, two or three broad spots of rank, unwholesome green
+still marked the places where these rival warriors, after their fierce and
+fitful struggle, slept quietly together in the lap of their common mother
+earth. Over all the rest of the field peace had resumed its sway. The
+thoughtless whistle of the peasant floated on the air, instead of the
+trumpet's clangor; the team slowly labored up the hillside, once shaken by
+the hoofs of rushing squadrons; and wide fields of corn waved peacefully
+over the soldiers' graves, as summer seas dimple over the place where many
+a tall ship lies buried.
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+To the foregoing desultory notes on the French military character, let me
+append a few traits which I picked up verbally in one of the French
+provinces. They may have already appeared in print, but I have never met
+with them.
+
+At the breaking out of the revolution, when so many of the old families
+emigrated, a descendant of the great Turenne, by the name of De Latour
+D'Auvergne, refused to accompany his relations, and entered into the
+Republican army. He served in all the campaigns of the revolution,
+distinguished himself by his valor, his accomplishments, and his generous
+spirit, and might have risen to fortune, and to the highest honors. He
+refused, however, all rank in the army, above that of captain, and would
+receive no recompense for his achievements but a sword of honor. Napoleon,
+in testimony of his merits, gave him the title of Premier Grenadier de
+France (First Grenadier of France), which was the only title he would ever
+bear. He was killed in Germany, in 1809 or '10. To honor his memory, his
+place was always retained in his regiment, as if he still occupied it; and
+whenever the regiment was mustered, and the name of De Latour D'Auvergne
+was called out, the reply was, "Dead on the field of honor!"
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+
+
+
+PARIS AT THE RESTORATION
+
+
+Paris presented a singular aspect just after the downfall of Napoleon, and
+the restoration of the Bourbons. It was filled with a restless, roaming
+population; a dark, sallow race, with fierce mustaches, black cravats, and
+feverish, menacing looks; men suddenly thrown out of employ by the return
+of peace; officers cut short in their career, and cast loose with scanty
+means, many of them in utter indigence, upon the world; the broken elements
+of armies. They haunted the places of public resort, like restless, unhappy
+spirits, taking no pleasure; hanging about, like lowering clouds that
+linger after a storm, and giving a singular air of gloom to this otherwise
+gay metropolis.
+
+The vaunted courtesy of the old school, the smooth urbanity that prevailed
+in former days of settled government and long-established aristocracy, had
+disappeared amid the savage republicanism of the revolution and the
+military furor of the empire; recent reverses had stung the national vanity
+to the quick; and English travelers, who crowded to Paris on the return of
+peace, expecting to meet with a gay, good-humored, complaisant populace,
+such as existed in the time of the "Sentimental Journey," were surprised at
+finding them irritable and fractious, quick at fancying affronts, and not
+unapt to offer insults. They accordingly inveighed with heat and bitterness
+at the rudeness they experienced in the French metropolis; yet what better
+had they to expect? Had Charles II. been reinstated in his kingdom by the
+valor of French troops; had he been wheeled triumphantly to London over the
+trampled bodies and trampled standards of England's bravest sons; had a
+French general dictated to the English capital, and a French army been
+quartered in Hyde Park; had Paris poured forth its motley population, and
+the wealthy bourgeoise of every French trading town swarmed to London;
+crowding its squares; filling its streets with their equipages; thronging
+its fashionable hotels, and places of amusements; elbowing its impoverished
+nobility out of their palaces and opera-boxes, and looking down on the
+humiliated inhabitants as a conquered people; in such a reverse of the
+case, what degree of courtesy would the populace of London have been apt to
+exercise toward their visitors? [Footnote: The above remarks were suggested
+by a conversation with the late Mr. Canning, whom the author met in Paris,
+and who expressed himself in the most liberal way concerning the
+magnanimity of the French on the occupation of their capital by strangers.]
+
+On the contrary, I have always admired the degree of magnanimity exhibited
+by the French on the occupation of their capital by the English. When we
+consider the military ambition of this nation, its love of glory; the
+splendid height to which its renown in arms had recently been carried, and
+with these, the tremendous reverses it had just undergone; its armies
+shattered, annihilated; its capital captured, garrisoned, and overrun, and
+that too by its ancient rival, the English, toward whom it had cherished
+for centuries a jealous and almost religious hostility; could we have
+wondered if the tiger spirit of this fiery people had broken out in bloody
+feuds and deadly quarrels; and that they had sought to rid themselves in
+any way of their invaders? But it is cowardly nations only, those who dare
+not wield the sword, that revenge themselves with the lurking dagger. There
+were no assassinations in Paris. The French had fought valiantly,
+desperately, in the field; but, when valor was no longer of avail, they
+submitted like gallant men to a fate they could not withstand. Some
+instances of insult from the populace were experienced by their English
+visitors; some personal rencontres, which led to duels, did take place; but
+these smacked of open and honorable hostility. No instances of lurking and
+perfidious revenge occurred, and the British soldier patroled the streets
+of Paris safe from treacherous assault.
+
+If the English met with harshness and repulse in social intercourse, it was
+in some degree a proof that the people are more sincere than has been
+represented. The emigrants who had just returned were not yet reinstated.
+Society was constituted of those who had flourished under the late regime;
+the newly ennobled, the recently enriched, who felt their prosperity and
+their consequence endangered by this change of things. The broken-down
+officer, who saw his glory tarnished, his fortune ruined, his occupation
+gone, could not be expected to look with complacency upon the authors of
+his downfall. The English visitor, flushed with health, and wealth, and
+victory, could little enter into the feelings of the blighted warrior,
+scarred with a hundred battles, an exile from the camp, broken in
+constitution by the wars, impoverished by the peace, and cast back, a needy
+stranger in the splendid but captured metropolis of his country.
+
+  "Oh! who can tell what heroes feel,
+   When all but life and honor's lost!"
+
+And here let me notice the conduct of the French soldiery on the
+dismemberment of the army of the Loire, when two hundred thousand men were
+suddenly thrown out of employ; men who had been brought up to the camp, and
+scarce knew any other home. Few in civil, peaceful life, are aware of the
+severe trial to the feelings that takes place on the dissolution of a
+regiment. There is a fraternity in arms. The community of dangers,
+hardships, enjoyments; the participation in battles and victories; the
+companionship in adventures, at a time of life when men's feelings are most
+fresh, susceptible, and ardent, all these bind the members of a regiment
+strongly together. To them the regiment is friends, family, home. They
+identify themselves with its fortunes, its glories, its disgraces. Imagine
+this romantic tie suddenly dissolved; the regiment broken up; the
+occupation of its members gone; their military pride mortified; the career
+of glory closed behind them; that of obscurity, dependence, want, neglect,
+perhaps beggary, before them. Such was the case with the soldiers of the
+army of the Loire. They were sent off in squads, with officers, to the
+principal towns where they were to be disarmed and discharged. In this way
+they passed through the country with arms in their hands, often exposed to
+slights and scoffs, to hunger and various hardships and privations; but
+they conducted themselves magnanimously, without any of those outbreaks of
+violence and wrong that so often attend the dismemberment of armies.
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+The few years that have elapsed since the time above alluded to, have
+already had their effect. The proud and angry spirits which then roamed
+about Paris unemployed begins to recover its old channels, though worn
+deeper by recent torrents. The natural urbanity of the French begins to
+find its way, like oil, to the surface, though there still remains a degree
+of roughness and bluntness of manner, partly real, and partly affected, by
+such as imagine it to indicate force and frankness. The events of the last
+thirty years have rendered the French a more reflecting people. They have
+acquired greater independence of mind and strength of judgment, together
+with a portion of that prudence which results from experiencing the
+dangerous consequences of excesses. However that period may have been
+stained by crimes, and filled with extravagances, the French have certainly
+come out of it a greater nation than before. One of their own philosophers
+observes that in one or two generations the nation will probably combine
+the ease and elegance of the old character with force and solidity. They
+were light, he says, before the revolution; then wild and savage; they have
+become more thoughtful and reflective. It is only old Frenchmen, nowadays,
+that are gay and trivial; the young are very serious personages.
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+P.S.--In the course of a morning's walk, about the time the above remarks
+were written, I observed the Duke of Wellington, who was on a brief visit
+to Paris. He was alone, simply attired in a blue frock; with an umbrella
+under his arm, and his hat drawn over his eyes, and sauntering across the
+Place Vendome, close by the Column of Napoleon. He gave a glance up at the
+column as he passed, and continued his loitering way up the Rue de la Paix;
+stopping occasionally to gaze in at the shop-windows; elbowed now and then
+by other gazers, who little suspected that the quiet, lounging individual
+they were jostling so unceremoniously was the conqueror who had twice
+entered their capital victoriously; had controlled the destinies of the
+nation, and eclipsed the glory of the military idol, at the base of whose
+column he was thus negligently sauntering.
+
+Some years afterward I was at an evening's entertainment given by the duke
+at Apsley House, to William IV. The duke had manifested his admiration of
+his great adversary, by having portraits of him in different parts of the
+house. At the bottom of the grand staircase stood the colossal statue of
+the emperor, by Canova. It was of marble, in the antique style, with one
+arm partly extended, holding a figure of victory. Over this arm the ladies,
+in tripping upstairs to the ball, had thrown their shawls. It was a
+singular office for the statue of Napoleon to perform in the mansion of the
+Duke of Wellington!
+
+  "Imperial Caesar dead, and turned to clay," etc., etc.
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+
+
+
+AMERICAN RESEARCHES IN ITALY
+
+LIFE OF TASSO: RECOVERY OF A LOST PORTRAIT OF DANTE
+
+_To the Editor of the Knickerbocker:_
+
+Sir--Permit me through the pages of your magazine to call the attention of
+the public to the learned and elegant researches in Europe of one of our
+countrymen, Mr. R. H. Wilde, of Georgia, formerly a member of the House of
+Representatives. After leaving Congress, Mr. Wilde a few years since spent
+about eighteen months in traveling through different parts of Europe, until
+he became stationary for a time in Tuscany. Here he occupied himself with
+researches concerning the private life of Tasso, whose mysterious and
+romantic love for the Princess Leonora, his madness and imprisonment, had
+recently become the theme of a literary controversy, not yet ended; curious
+in itself, and rendered still more curious by some alleged manuscripts of
+the poet's, brought forward by Count Alberti. Mr. Wilde entered into the
+investigation with the enthusiasm of a poet, and the patience and accuracy
+of a case-hunter; and has produced a work now in the press, in which the
+"vexed questions" concerning Tasso are most ably discussed, and lights
+thrown upon them by his letters, and by various of his sonnets, which last
+are rendered into English with rare felicity. While Mr. Wilde was occupied
+upon this work, he became acquainted with Signer Carlo Liverati, an artist
+of considerable merit, and especially well versed in the antiquities of
+Florence. This gentleman mentioned incidentally one day, in the course of
+conversation, that there once and probably still existed in the "Bargello,"
+anciently both the prison, and the palace of the republic, an authentic
+portrait of Dante. It was believed to be in fresco, on a wall which
+afterward, by some strange neglect or inadvertency, had been covered with
+whitewash. Signor Liverati mentioned the circumstance merely to deplore the
+loss of so precious a portrait, and to regret the almost utter hopelessness
+of its recovery.
+
+As Mr. Wilde had not as yet imbibed that enthusiastic admiration for Dante
+which possesses all Italians, by whom the poet is almost worshiped, this
+conversation made but a slight impression on him at the time. Subsequently,
+however, his researches concerning Tasso being ended, he began to amuse his
+leisure hours with attempts to translate some specimens of Italian lyric
+poetry, and to compose very short biographical sketches of the authors. In
+these specimens, which as yet exist only in manuscript, he has shown the
+same critical knowledge of the Italian language, and admirable command of
+the English, that characterize his translations of Tasso. He had not
+advanced far in these exercises, when the obscure and contradictory
+accounts of many incidents in the life of Dante caused him much
+embarrassment, and sorely piqued his curiosity. About the same time he
+received, through the courtesy of Don Neri dei Principi Corsini, what he
+had long most fervently desired, a permission from the grandduke to pursue
+his investigations in the secret archives of Florence, with power to obtain
+copies therefrom. This was a rich and almost unwrought mine of literary
+research; for to Italians themselves, as well as to foreigners, their
+archives, for the most part, have been long inaccessible. For two years Mr.
+Wilde devoted himself with indefatigable ardor to explore the records of
+the republic during the time of Dante. These being written in barbarous
+Latin and semi-Gothic characters, on parchment more or less discolored and
+mutilated, with ink sometimes faded, were rendered still more illegible by
+the arbitrary abbreviations of the notaries. They require, in fact, an
+especial study; few even of the officers employed in the "Archivio delle
+Riformagione" can read them currently and correctly.
+
+Mr. Wilde however persevered in his laborious task with a patience severely
+tried, but invincible. Being without an index, each file, each book,
+required to be examined page by page, to ascertain whether any particular
+of the immortal poet's political life had escaped the untiring industry of
+his countrymen. This toil was not wholly fruitless, and several interesting
+facts obscurely known, and others utterly unknown by the Italians
+themselves, are drawn forth by Mr. Wilde from the oblivion of these
+archives.
+
+While thus engaged, the circumstance of the lost portrait of Dante was
+again brought to Mr. Wilde's mind, but now excited intense interest. In
+perusing the notes of the late learned Canonico Moreri on Filelfo's life of
+Dante, he found it stated that a portrait of the poet by Giotto was
+formerly to be seen in the Bargello. He learned also that Signer Scotti,
+who has charge of the original drawings of the old masters in the imperial
+and royal gallery, had made several years previously an ineffectual attempt
+to set on foot a project for the recovery of the lost treasure. Here was a
+new vein of inquiry, which Mr. Wilde followed up with his usual energy and
+sagacity. He soon satisfied himself, by reference to Vasari, and to the
+still more ancient and decisive authority of Filippo Villari, who lived
+shortly after the poet, that Giotto, the friend and contemporary of Dante,
+did undoubtedly paint his likeness in the place indicated. Giotto died in
+1336, but as Dante was banished, and was even sentenced to be burned, in
+1302, it was obvious the work must have been executed before that time;
+since the portrait of one outlawed and capitally convicted as an enemy to
+the commonwealth would never have been ordered or tolerated in the chapel
+of the royal palace. It was clear, then, that the portrait must have been
+painted between 1290 and 1302.
+
+Mr. Wilde now revolved in his own mind the possibility that this precious
+relic might remain undestroyed under its coat of whitewash, and might yet
+be restored to the world. For a moment he felt an impulse to undertake the
+enterprise; but feared that, in a foreigner from a new world, any part of
+which is unrepresented at the Tuscan court, it might appear like an
+intrusion. He soon however found a zealous coadjutor. This was one Giovanni
+Aubrey Bezzi, a Piedmontese exile, who had long been a resident in England,
+and was familiar with its language and literature. He was now on a visit to
+Florence, which liberal and hospitable city is always open to men of merit
+who for political reasons have been excluded from other parts of Italy.
+Signer Bezzi partook deeply of the enthusiasm of his countrymen for the
+memory of Dante, and sympathized with Mr. Wilde in his eagerness to
+retrieve if possible the lost portrait. They had several consultations as
+to the means to be adopted to effect their purpose, without incurring the
+charge of undue officiousness. To lessen any objections that might occur
+they resolved to ask for nothing but permission to search for the fresco
+painting at their own expense; and should any remains of it be found, then
+to propose to the nobility and gentry of Florence an association for the
+purpose of completing the undertaking and effectually recovering the lost
+portrait.
+
+For the same reason the formal memorial addressed to the grandduke was
+drawn up in the name of Florentines; among whom were the celebrated
+Bartolini, now President of the School of Sculpture in the Imperial and
+Royal Academy, Signor Paolo Ferroni, of the noble family of that name, who
+has exhibited considerable talent for painting, and Signor Gasparini, also
+an artist. This petition was urged and supported with indefatigable zeal by
+Signor Bezzi; and being warmly countenanced by Count Nerli and other
+functionaries, met with more prompt success than had been anticipated.
+Signor Marini, a skillful artist, who had succeeded in similar operations,
+was now employed to remove the whitewash by a process of his own, by which
+any fresco painting that might exist beneath would be protected from
+injury. He set to work patiently and cautiously. In a short time he met
+with evidence of the existence of the fresco. From under the coat of
+whitewash the head of an angel gradually made its appearance, and was
+pronounced to be by the pencil of Giotto.
+
+The enterprise was now prosecuted with increased ardor. Several months were
+expended on the task, and three sides of the chapel wall were uncovered;
+they were all painted in fresco by Giotto, with the history of the
+Magdalen, exhibiting her conversion, her penance, and her beatification.
+The figures, however, were all those of saints and angels; no historical
+portraits had yet been discovered, and doubts began to be entertained
+whether there were any. Still the recovery of an indisputable work of
+Giotto's was considered an ample reward for any toil; and the Ministers of
+the grandduke, acting under his directions, assumed on his behalf the past
+charges and future management of the enterprise.
+
+At length, on the uncovering of the fourth wall, the undertaking was
+crowned with complete success. A number of historical figures were brought
+to light, and among them the undoubted likeness of Dante. He was
+represented in full length, in the garb of the time, with a book under his
+arm, designed most probably to represent the "Vita Nuova," for the
+"Comedia" was not yet composed, and to all appearance from thirty to
+thirty-five years of age. The face was in profile and in excellent
+preservation, excepting that at some former period a nail had unfortunately
+been driven into the eye. The outline of the eyelid was perfect, so that
+the injury could easily be remedied. The countenance was extremely
+handsome, yet bore a strong resemblance to the portraits of the poet taken
+later in life.
+
+It is not easy to appreciate the delight of Mr. Wilde and his coadjutors at
+this triumphant result of their researches; nor the sensation produced, not
+merely in Florence but throughout Italy, by this discovery of a veritable
+portrait of Dante, in the prime of his days. It was some such sensation as
+would be produced in England by the sudden discovery of a perfectly well
+authenticated likeness of Shakespeare; with a difference in intensity
+proportioned to the superior sensitiveness of the Italians.
+
+The recovery of this portrait of the "divine poet" has occasioned fresh
+inquiry into the origin of the masks said to have been made from a cast of
+his face taken after death. One of these masks, in the possession of the
+Marquess of Torrigiani, has been pronounced as certainly the
+_original_. Several artists of high talent have concurred in this
+opinion; among these may be named Jesi, the first engraver in Florence;
+Seymour Kirkup, Esq., a painter and antiquary; and our own countryman
+Powers, whose genius, by the way, is very highly appreciated by the
+Italians.
+
+We may expect from the accomplished pen of Carlo Torrigiani, son of the
+marquess, and who is advantageously known in this country, from having
+traveled here, an account of this curious and valuable relic, which has
+been upward of a century in the possession of his family.
+
+Should Mr. Wilde finish his biographical work concerning Dante, which
+promises to be a proud achievement in American literature, he intends, I
+understand, to apply for permission to have both likenesses copied, and
+should circumstances warrant the expense, to have them engraved by eminent
+artists. We shall then have the features of Dante while in the prime of
+life as well as at the moment of his death.
+
+G. C.
+
+
+
+
+THE TAKING OF THE VEIL
+
+
+One of the most remarkable personages in Parisian society during the last
+century was Renée Charlotte Victoire de Froulay De Tesse, Marchioness De
+Crequi. She sprang from the highest and proudest of the old French
+nobility, and ever maintained the most exalted notions of the purity and
+antiquity of blood, looking upon all families that could not date back
+further than three or four hundred years as mere upstarts. When a beautiful
+girl, fourteen years of age, she was presented to Louis XIV., at
+Versailles, and the ancient monarch kissed her hand with great gallantry;
+after an interval of about eighty-five years, when nearly a hundred years
+old, the same testimonial of respect was paid her at the Tuileries by
+Bonaparte, then First Consul, who promised her the restitution of the
+confiscated forests formerly belonging to her family. She was one of the
+most celebrated women of her time for intellectual grace and superiority,
+and had the courage to remain at Paris and brave all the horrors of the
+revolution, which laid waste the aristocratical world around her.
+
+The memoirs she has left behind abound with curious anecdotes and vivid
+pictures of Parisian life during the latter days of Louis XIV., the regency
+of the Duke of Orleans, and the residue of the last century; and are highly
+illustrative of the pride, splendor, and licentiousness of the French
+nobility on the very eve of their tremendous downfall.
+
+I shall draw forth a few scenes from her memoirs, taken almost at random,
+and which, though given as actual and well-known circumstances, have quite
+the air of romance.
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+All the great world of Paris were invited to be present at a grand
+ceremonial, to take place in the church of the Abbey Royal of Panthemont.
+Henrietta de Lenoncour, a young girl, of a noble family, of great beauty,
+and heiress to immense estates, was to take the black veil. Invitations had
+been issued in grand form, by her aunt and guardian, the Countess Brigitte
+de Rupelmonde, canoness of Mauberge. The circumstance caused great talk and
+wonder in the fashionable circles of Paris; everybody was at a loss to
+imagine why a young girl, beautiful and rich, in the very springtime of her
+charms, should renounce a world which she was so eminently qualified to
+embellish and enjoy.
+
+A lady of high rank, who visited the beautiful novice at the grate of her
+convent-parlor, got a clew to the mystery. She found her in great
+agitation; for a time she evidently repressed her feelings, but they at
+length broke forth in passionate exclamations. "Heaven grant me grace,"
+said she, "some day or other to pardon my cousin Gondrecourt the sorrows he
+has caused me!"
+
+"What do you mean?--what sorrows, my child?" inquired her visitor. "What
+has your cousin done to affect you?"
+
+"He is married!" cried she in accents of despair, but endeavoring to
+repress her sobs.
+
+"Married! I have heard nothing of the kind, my dear. Are you perfectly sure
+of it?"
+
+"Alas! nothing is more certain; my aunt de Rupelmonde informed me of it."
+
+The lady retired, full of surprise and commiseration. She related the scene
+in a circle of the highest nobility, in the saloon of the Marshal Prince of
+Beauvau, where the unaccountable self-sacrifice of the beautiful novice was
+under discussion.
+
+"Alas!" said she, "the poor girl is crossed in love; she is about to
+renounce the world in despair, at the marriage of her cousin De
+Gondrecourt."
+
+"What!" cried a gentleman present, "the Viscount de Gondrecourt married!
+Never was there a greater falsehood. And 'her aunt told her so'! Oh! I
+understand the plot. The countess is passionately fond of Gondrecourt, and
+jealous of her beautiful niece; but her schemes are vain; the viscount
+holds her in perfect detestation."
+
+There was a mingled expression of ridicule, disgust, and indignation at the
+thought of such a rivalry. The Countess Rupelmonde was old enough to be the
+grandmother of the viscount. She was a woman of violent passions, and
+imperious temper; robust in person, with a masculine voice, a dusky
+complexion, green eyes, and powerful eyebrows.
+
+"It is impossible," cried one of the company, "that a woman of the
+countess's age and appearance can be guilty of such folly. No, no; you
+mistake the aim of this detestable woman. She is managing to get possession
+of the estate of her lovely niece."
+
+This was admitted to be the most probable; and all concurred in believing
+the countess to be at the bottom of the intended sacrifice; for although a
+canoness, a dignitary of a religious order, she was pronounced little
+better than a devil incarnate.
+
+The Princess de Beauvau, a woman of generous spirit and intrepid zeal,
+suddenly rose from the chair in which she had been reclining. "My prince,"
+said she, addressing her husband, "if you approve of it, I will go
+immediately and have a conversation on this subject with the archbishop.
+There is not a moment to spare. It is now past midnight; the ceremony is to
+take place in the morning. A few hours and the irrevocable vows will be
+pronounced."
+
+The prince inclined his head in respectful assent. The princess set about
+her generous enterprise with a woman's promptness. Within a short time her
+carriage was at the iron gate of the archiepiscopal palace, and her
+servants rang for admission. Two Switzers, who had charge of the gate, were
+fast asleep in the porter's lodge, for it was half-past two in the morning.
+It was some time before they could be awakened, and longer before they
+could be made to come forth.
+
+"The Princess de Beauvau is at the gate!"
+
+Such a personage was not to be received in deshabille. Her dignity and the
+dignity of the archbishop demanded that the gate should be served in full
+costume. For half an hour, therefore, had the princess to wait, in feverish
+impatience, until the two dignitaries of the porter's lodge arrayed
+themselves; and three o'clock sounded from the tower of Notre Dame before
+they came forth. They were in grand livery, of a buff color, with amaranth
+galloons, plaited with silver, and fringed sword-belts reaching to their
+knees, in which were suspended long rapiers. They had small three-cornered
+hats, surmounted with plumes; and each bore in his hand a halbert. Thus
+equipped at all points, they planted themselves before the door of the
+carriage; struck the ends of their halberts on the ground with emphasis;
+and stood waiting with official importance, but profound respect, to know
+the pleasure of the princess.
+
+She demanded to speak with the archbishop. A most reverential bow and shrug
+accompanied the reply, that "His Grandeur was not at home."
+
+Not at home! Where was he to be found? Another bow and shrug: "His Grandeur
+either was, or ought to be, in retirement in the seminary of St. Magloire;
+unless he had gone to pass the Fete of St. Bruno with the reverend
+Carthusian fathers of the Rue d'Enfer; or perhaps he might have gone to
+repose himself in his castle of Conflans-sur-Seine. Though, on further
+thought, it was not unlikely he might have gone to sleep at St. Cyr, where
+the Bishop of Chartres never failed to invite him for the anniversary
+soiree of Madame de Maintenon."
+
+The princess was in despair at this multiplicity of crossroads pointed out
+for the chase; the brief interval of time was rapidly elapsing; day already
+began to dawn; she saw there was no hope of finding the archbishop before
+the moment of his entrance into the church for the morning's ceremony; so
+she returned home quite distressed.
+
+At seven o'clock in the morning the princess was in the parlor of the
+monastery of De Panthemont, and sent in an urgent request for a moment's
+conversation with the Lady Abbess. The reply brought was, that the abbess
+could not come to the parlor, being obliged to attend in the choir at the
+canonical hours. The princess entreated permission to enter the convent, to
+reveal to the Lady Abbess in two words something of the greatest
+importance. The abbess sent word in reply, that the thing was impossible,
+until she had obtained permission from the Archbishop of Paris. The
+princess retired once more to her carriage, and now, as a forlorn hope,
+took her station at the door of the church to watch for the arrival of the
+prelate.
+
+After a while the splendid company invited to this great ceremony began to
+arrive. The beauty, rank, and wealth of the novice had excited great
+attention; and, as everybody was expected to be present on the occasion,
+everybody pressed to secure a place. The street reverberated with the
+continual roll of gilded carriages and chariots; coaches of princes and
+dukes, designated by imperials of crimson velvet, and magnificent equipages
+of six horses, decked out with nodding plumes and sumptuous harnessing. At
+length the equipages ceased to arrive; empty vehicles filled the street;
+and, with a noisy and party-colored crowd of lackeys in rich liveries,
+obstructed all the entrances to De Panthemont.
+
+Eleven o'clock had struck; the last auditor had entered the church; the
+deep tones of the organ began to swell through the sacred pile, yet still
+the archbishop came not! The heart of the princess beat quicker and quicker
+with vague apprehension; when a valet, dressed in cloth of silver, trimmed
+with crimson velvet, approached her carriage precipitately. "Madame," said
+he, "the archbishop is in the church; he entered by the portal of the
+cloister; he is already in the sanctuary; the ceremony is about to
+commence!"
+
+What was to be done? To speak with the archbishop was now impossible, and
+yet on the revelation she was to make to him depended the fate of the
+lovely novice. The princess drew forth her tablets of enameled gold, wrote
+a few lines therein with a pencil, and ordered her lackey to make way for
+her through the crowd, and conduct her with all speed to the sacristy.
+
+The description given of the church and the assemblage on this occasion
+presents an idea of the aristocratical state of the times, and of the high
+interest awakened by the affecting sacrifice about to take place. The
+church was hung with superb tapestry, above which extended a band of white
+damask, fringed with gold, and covered with armorial escutcheons. A large
+pennon, emblazoned with the arms and alliances of the high-born damsel, was
+suspended, according to custom, in place of the lamp of the sanctuary. The
+lusters, girandoles, and candelabras of the king had been furnished in
+profusion, to decorate the sacred edifice, and the pavements were all
+covered with rich carpets.
+
+The sanctuary presented a reverend and august assemblage of bishops,
+canons, and monks of various orders, Benedictines, Bernardines, Raccollets,
+Capuchins, and others, all in their appropriate robes and dresses. In the
+midst presided the Archbishop of Paris, Christopher de Beaumont; surrounded
+by his four arch priests and his vicars-general. He was seated with his
+back against the altar. When his eyes were cast down, his countenance, pale
+and severe, is represented as having been somewhat sepulchral and
+death-like; but the moment he raised his large, dark, sparkling eyes, the
+whole became animated; beaming with ardor, and expressive of energy,
+penetration, and firmness.
+
+The audience that crowded the church was no less illustrious. Excepting the
+royal family, all that was elevated in rank and title was there; never had
+a ceremonial of the kind attracted an equal concourse of the high
+aristocracy of Paris.
+
+At length the grated gates of the choir creaked on their hinges, and Madame
+de Richelieu, the high and noble Abbess of De Panthemont, advanced to
+resign the novice into the hands of her aunt, the Countess Canoness De
+Rupelmonde. Every eye was turned with intense curiosity to gain a sight of
+the beautiful victim. She was sumptuously dressed, but her paleness and
+languor accorded but little with her brilliant attire. The Canoness De
+Rupelmonde conducted her niece to her praying-desk, where, as soon as the
+poor girl knelt down, she sank as if exhausted. Just then a sort of murmur
+was heard at the lower end of the church, where the servants in livery were
+gathered. A young man was borne forth, struggling in convulsions. He was in
+the uniform of an officer of the guards of King Stanislaus, Duke of
+Lorraine. A whisper circulated that it was the young Viscount de
+Gondrecourt, and that he was a lover of the novice. Almost all the young
+nobles present hurried forth to proffer him sympathy and assistance.
+
+The Archbishop of Paris remained all this time seated before the altar; his
+eyes cast down, his pallid countenance giving no signs of interest or
+participation in the scene around him. It was noticed that in one of his
+hands, which was covered with a violet glove, he grasped firmly a pair of
+tablets, of enameled gold.
+
+The Canoness de Rupelmonde conducted her niece to the prelate, to make her
+profession of self-devotion, and to utter the irrevocable vow. As the
+lovely novice knelt at his feet, the archbishop fixed on her his dark,
+beaming eyes, with a kind but earnest expression. "Sister!" said he, in the
+softest and most benevolent tone of voice, "What is your age?"
+
+"Nineteen years, monseigneur," eagerly interposed the Countess de
+Rupelmonde.
+
+"_You_ will reply to me by-and-by, madame," said the archbishop,
+dryly. He then repeated his question to the novice, who replied in a
+faltering voice, "Seventeen years."
+
+"In what diocese did you take the white veil?"
+
+"In the diocese of Toul."
+
+"How!" exclaimed the archbishop, vehemently. "In the diocese of Toul? The
+chair of Toul is vacant! The bishop of Toul died fifteen months since; and
+those who officiate in the chapter are not authorized to receive novices.
+Your novitiate, mademoiselle, is null and void, and we cannot receive your
+profession."
+
+The archbishop rose from his chair, resumed his miter, and took the crozier
+from the hands of an attendant.
+
+"My dear brethren," said he, addressing the assembly, "there is no
+necessity for our examining and interrogating Mademoiselle de Lenoncour on
+the sincerity of her religious vocation. There is a canonical impediment to
+her professing for the present; and, as to the future, we reserve to
+ourselves the consideration of the matter; interdicting to all other
+ecclesiastical persons the power of accepting her vows, under penalty of
+interdiction, of suspension, and of nullification; all which is in virtue
+of our metropolitan rights, contained in the terms of the bull _cum
+proximis_:" "_Adjutorium nostrum in nomine Domini!_" pursued he,
+chanting in a grave and solemn voice, and turning toward the altar to give
+the benediction of the holy sacrament.
+
+The noble auditory had that habitude of reserve, that empire, or rather
+tyranny, over all outward manifestations of internal emotions, which
+belongs to high aristocratical breeding. The declaration of the archbishop,
+therefore, was received as one of the most natural and ordinary things in
+the world, and all knelt down and received the pontifical benediction with
+perfect decorum. As soon, however, as they were released from the
+self-restraint imposed by etiquette, they amply indemnified themselves; and
+nothing was talked of for a month, in the fashionable saloons of Paris, but
+the loves of the handsome Viscount and the charming Henrietta; the
+wickedness of the canoness; the active benevolence and admirable address of
+the Princess de Beauvau; and the great wisdom of the archbishop, who was
+particularly extolled for his delicacy in defeating this maneuver without
+any scandal to the aristocracy, or public stigma on the name of De
+Rupelmonde, and without any departure from pastoral gentleness, by adroitly
+seizing upon an informality, and turning it to beneficial account, with as
+much authority as charitable circumspection.
+
+As to the Canoness de Rupelmonde, she was defeated at all points in her
+wicked plans against her beautiful niece. In consequence of the caveat of
+the archbishop, her superior ecclesiastic, the Abbess de Panthemont,
+formally forbade Mademoiselle de Lenoncour to resume the white veil and the
+dress of a novitiate, and instead of a novice's cell established her in a
+beautiful apartment as a boarder. The next morning the Canoness de
+Rupelmonde called at the convent to take away her niece; but, to her
+confusion, the abbess produced a lettre-de-cachet, which she had just
+received, and which forbade mademoiselle to leave the convent with any
+other person save the Prince de Beauvau.
+
+Under the auspices and the vigilant attention of the prince, the whole
+affair was wound up in the most technical and circumstantial manner. The
+Countess de Rupelmonde, by a decree of the Grand Council, was divested of
+the guardianship of her niece. All the arrears of revenues accumulated
+during Mademoiselle de Lenoncour's minority were rigorously collected, the
+accounts scrutinized and adjusted, and her noble fortune placed safely and
+entirely in her hands.
+
+In a little while the noble personages who had been invited to the ceremony
+of taking the veil received another invitation, on the part of the Countess
+dowager de Gondrecourt, and the Marshal Prince de Beauvau, to attend the
+marriage of Adrien de Gondrecourt, Viscount of Jean-sur-Moselle, and
+Henrietta de Lenoncour, Countess de Hevouwal, etc., which duly took place
+in the chapel of the archiepiscopal palace at Paris.
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+So much for the beautiful Henrietta de Lenoncour. We will now draw forth a
+companion picture of a handsome young cavalier, who figured in the gay
+world of Paris about the same time, and concerning whom the ancient
+marchioness writes with the lingering feeling of youthful romance.
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+
+
+
+THE CHARMING LETORIÈRES
+
+
+"A good face is a letter of recommendation," says an old proverb; and it
+was never more verified than in the case of the Chevalier Letorieres. He
+was a young gentleman of good family, but who, according to the Spanish
+phrase, had nothing but his cloak and sword (capa y espada), that is to
+say, his gentle blood and gallant bearing, to help him forward in the
+world. Through the interest of an uncle, who was an abbe, he received a
+gratuitous education at a fashionable college, but finding the terms of
+study too long, and the vacations too short, for his gay and indolent
+temper, he left college without saying a word, and launched himself upon
+Paris, with a light heart and still lighter pocket. Here he led a life to
+his humor. It is true he had to make scanty meals, and to lodge in a
+garret; but what of that? He was his own master; free from all task or
+restraint. When cold or hungry, he sallied forth, like others of the
+chameleon order, and banqueted on pure air and warm sunshine in the public
+walks and gardens; drove off the thoughts of a dinner by amusing himself
+with the gay and grotesque throngs of the metropolis; and if one of the
+poorest, was one of the merriest gentlemen upon town. Wherever he went his
+good looks and frank, graceful demeanor, had an instant and magical effect
+in securing favor. There was but one word to express his fascinating
+powers--he was "charming."
+
+Instances are given of the effect of his winning qualities upon minds of
+coarse, ordinary mold. He had once taken shelter from a heavy shower under
+a gateway. A hackney coachman, who was passing by, pulled up, and asked him
+if he wished a cast in his carriage. Letorieres declined, with a melancholy
+and dubious shake of the head. The coachman regarded him wistfully,
+repeared his solicitations, and wished to know what place he was going to
+"To the Palace of Justice, to walk in the galleries; but I will wait here
+until the rain is over."
+
+"And why so?" inquired the coachman, pertinaciously.
+
+"Because I've no money; do let me be quiet."
+
+The coachman jumped down, and, opening the door of his carriage, "It shall
+never be said," cried he, "that I left so charming a young gentleman to
+weary himself, and catch cold, merely for the sake of twenty-four sous."
+
+Arrived at the Palace of Justice, he stopped before the saloon of a famous
+restaurateur, opened the door of the carriage, and taking off his hat very
+respectfully, begged the youth to accept of a Louis-d'or. "You will meet
+with some young gentlemen within," said he, "with whom you may wish to take
+a hand at cards. The number of my coach is 144. You can find me out, and
+repay me whenever you please."
+
+The worthy Jehu was some years afterward made coachman to the Princess
+Sophia, of France, through the recommendation of the handsome youth he had
+so generously obliged.
+
+Another instance in point is given with respect to his tailor, to whom he
+owed four hundred livres. The tailor had repeatedly dunned him, but was
+always put off with the best grace in the world. The wife of the tailor
+urged her husband to assume a harsher tone. He replied that he could not
+find it in his heart to speak roughly to so charming a young gentleman.
+
+"I've no patience with such want of spirit!" cried the wife; "you have not
+the courage to show your teeth: but I'm going out to get change for this
+note of a hundred crowns; before I come home, I'll seek this 'charming'
+youth myself, and see whether he has the power to charm me. I'll warrant he
+won't be able to put _me_ off with fine looks and fine speeches."
+
+With these and many more vaunts, the good dame sallied forth. When she
+returned home, however, she wore quite a different aspect.
+
+"Well," said her husband, "how much have you received from the 'charming'
+young man?"
+
+"Let me alone," replied the wife; "I found him playing on the guitar, and
+he looked so handsome, and was so amiable and genteel, that I had not the
+heart to trouble him."
+
+"And the change for the hundred-crown note?" said the tailor.
+
+The wife hesitated a moment: "Faith," cried she, "you'll have to add the
+amount to your next bill against him. The poor young gentleman had such a
+melancholy air that--I know not how it was, but--I left the hundred crowns
+on his mantel-piece in spite of him!"
+
+The captivating looks and manners of Letorieres made his way with equal
+facility in the great world. His high connections entitled him to
+presentation at court, but some questions arose about the sufficiency of
+his proofs of nobility; whereupon the king, who had seen him walking in the
+gardens of Versailles, and had been charmed with his appearance, put an end
+to all demurs of etiquette by making him a viscount.
+
+The same kind of fascination is said to have attended him throughout his
+career. He succeeded in various difficult family suits on questions of
+honors and privileges; he had merely to appear in court to dispose the
+judges in his favor. He at length became so popular that on one occasion,
+when he appeared at the theater on recovering from a wound received in a
+duel, the audience applauded him on his entrance. Nothing, it is said,
+could have been in more perfect good taste and high breeding than his
+conduct on this occasion. When he heard the applause, he rose in his box,
+stepped forward, and surveyed both sides of the house, as if he could not
+believe that it was himself they were treating like a favorite actor, or a
+prince of the blood.
+
+His success with the fair sex may easily be presumed; but he had too much
+honor and sensibility to render his intercourse with them a series of cold
+gallantries and heartless triumphs. In the course of his attendance upon
+court, where he held a post of honor about the king, he fell deeply in love
+with the beautiful Princess Julia, of Savoy Carignan. She was young,
+tender, and simple-hearted, and returned his love with equal fervor. Her
+family took the alarm at this attachment, and procured an order that she
+should inhabit the Abbey of Montmartre, where she was treated with all
+befitting delicacy and distinction, but not permitted to go beyond the
+convent walls. The lovers found means to correspond. One of their letters
+was intercepted, and it is even hinted that a plan of elopement was
+discovered. A duel was the consequence, with one of the fiery relations of
+the princess. Letorieres received two sword-thrusts in his right side. His
+wounds were serious, yet after two or three days' confinement he could not
+resist his impatience to see the princess. He succeeded in scaling the
+walls of the abbey, and obtaining an interview in an arcade leading to the
+cloister of the cemetery. The interview of the lovers was long and tender.
+They exchanged vows of eternal fidelity, and flattered themselves with
+hopes of future happiness, which they were never to realize. After repeated
+farewells, the princess re-entered the convent, never again to behold the
+charming Letorieres. On the following morning his corpse was found stiff
+and cold on the pavement of the cloister!
+
+It would seem that the wounds of the unfortunate youth had been reopened by
+his efforts to get over the wall; that he had refrained from calling
+assistance, lest he should expose the princess, and that he had bled to
+death, without any one to aid him, or to close his dying eyes.
+
+
+
+
+THE EARLY EXPERIENCES OF RALPH RINGWOOD [Footnote: Ralph Ringwood, though a
+fictitious name, is a real personage: the worthy original is now living and
+flourishing in honorable station. I have given some anecdotes of his early
+and eccentric career in, as nearly as I can recollect, the very words in
+which he related them. They certainly afforded strong temptations to the
+embellishments of fiction; but I thought them so strikingly characteristic
+of the individual, and of the scenes and society into which his peculiar
+humors carried him, that I preferred giving them in their original
+simplicity.--G. C.]
+
+
+NOTED DOWN FROM HIS CONVERSATIONS
+
+"I am a Kentuckian by residence and choice, but a Virginian by birth. The
+cause of my first leaving the 'Ancient Dominion,' and emigrating to
+Kentucky was a jackass! You stare, but have a little patience, and I'll
+soon show you how it came to pass. My father, who was of one of the old
+Virginian families, resided in Richmond. He was a widower, and his domestic
+affairs were managed by a housekeeper of the old school, such as used to
+administer the concerns of opulent Virginian households. She was a
+dignitary that almost rivaled my father in importance, and seemed to think
+everything belonged to her; in fact, she was so considerate in her economy,
+and so careful of expense, as sometimes to vex my father, who would swear
+she was disgracing him by her meanness. She always appeared with that
+ancient insignia of housekeeping trust and authority, a great bunch of keys
+jingling at her girdle. She superintended the arrangement of the table at
+every meal, and saw that the dishes were all placed according to her
+primitive notions of symmetry. In the evening she took her stand and served
+out tea with a mingled respectfulness and pride of station, truly
+exemplary. Her great ambition was to have everything in order, and that the
+establishment under her sway should be cited as a model of good
+housekeeping. If anything went wrong, poor old Barbara would take it to
+heart, and sit in her room and cry; until a few chapters in the Bible would
+quiet her spirits, and make all calm again. The Bible, in fact, was her
+constant resort in time of trouble. She opened it indiscriminately, and
+whether she chanced among the Lamentations of Jeremiah, the Canticles of
+Solomon, or the rough enumeration of the tribes in Deuteronomy, a chapter
+was a chapter, and operated like balm to her soul. Such was our good old
+housekeeper Barbara, who was destined, unwittingly, to have a most
+important effect upon my destiny.
+
+"It came to pass, during the days of my juvenility, while I was yet what is
+termed 'an unlucky boy,' that a gentleman of our neighborhood, a great
+advocate for experiments and improvements of all kinds, took it into his
+head that it would be an immense public advantage to introduce a breed of
+mules, and accordingly imported three jacks to stock the neighborhood. This
+in a part of the country where the people cared for nothing but blood
+horses! Why, sir! they would have considered their mares disgraced and
+their whole stud dishonored by such a misalliance. The whole matter was a
+town talk and a town scandal. The worthy amalgamator of quadrupeds found
+himself in a dismal scrape: so he backed out in time, abjured the whole
+doctrine of amalgamation, and turned his jacks loose to shift for
+themselves upon the town common. There they used to run about and lead an
+idle, good-for-nothing, holiday life, the happiest animals in the country.
+
+"It so happened that my way to school lay across this common. The first
+time that I saw one of these animals it set up a braying and frightened me
+confoundedly. However, I soon got over my fright, and seeing that it had
+something of a horse look, my Virginian love for anything of the equestrian
+species predominated, and I determined to back it. I accordingly applied at
+a grocer's shop, procured a cord that had been round a loaf of sugar, and
+made a kind of halter; then summoning some of my schoolfellows, we drove
+master Jack about the common until we hemmed him in an angle of a 'worm
+fence.' After some difficulty, we fixed the halter round his muzzle, and I
+mounted. Up flew his heels, away I went over his head, and off he
+scampered. However, I was on my legs in a twinkling, gave chase, caught him
+and remounted. By dint of repeated tumbles I soon learned to stick to his
+back, so that he could no more cast me than he could his own skin. From
+that time, master Jack and his companions had a scampering life of it, for
+we all rode them between school hours, and on holiday afternoons; and you
+may be sure schoolboys' nags are never permitted to suffer the grass to
+grow under their feet. They soon became so knowing that they took to their
+heels at the very sight of a schoolboy; and we were generally much longer
+in chasing than we were in riding them.
+
+"Sunday approached, on which I projected an equestrian excursion on one of
+these long-eared steeds. As I knew the jacks would be in great demand on
+Sunday morning, I secured one overnight, and conducted him home, to be
+ready for an early outset. But where was I to quarter him for the night? I
+could not put him in the stable; our old black groom George was as absolute
+in that domain as Barbara was within doors, and would have thought his
+stable, his horses, and himself disgraced, by the introduction of a
+jackass. I recollected the smoke-house; an out-building appended to all
+Virginian establishments for the smoking of hams, and other kinds of meat.
+So I got the key, put master Jack in, locked the door, returned the key to
+its place, and went to bed, intending to release my prisoner at an early
+hour, before any of the family were awake. I was so tired, however, by the
+exertions I had made in catching the donkey, that I fell into a sound
+sleep, and the morning broke without my awaking.
+
+"Not so with dame Barbara, the housekeeper. As usual, to use her own
+phrase, 'she was up before the crow put his shoes on,' and bustled about to
+get things in order for breakfast. Her first resort was to the smoke-house.
+Scarce had she opened the door, when master Jack, tired of his confinement,
+and glad to be released from darkness, gave a loud bray, and rushed forth.
+Down dropped old Barbara; the animal trampled over her, and made off for
+the common. Poor Barbara! She had never before seen a donkey, and having
+read in the Bible that the devil went about like a roaring lion, seeking
+whom he might devour, she took it for granted that this was Beelzebub
+himself. The kitchen was soon in a hubbub; the servants hurried to the
+spot. There lay old Barbara in fits; as fast as she got out of one, the
+thoughts of the devil came over her, and she fell into another, for the
+good soul was devoutly superstitious.
+
+"As ill luck would have it, among those attracted by the noise was a
+little, cursed, fidgety, crabbed uncle of mine; one of those uneasy spirits
+that cannot rest quietly in their beds in the morning, but must be up
+early, to bother the household. He was only a kind of half-uncle, after
+all, for he had married my father's sister; yet be assumed great authority
+on the strength of this left-handed relationship, and was a universal
+intermeddler and family pest. This prying little busybody soon ferreted out
+the truth of the story, and discovered, by hook and by crook, that I was at
+the bottom of the affair, and had locked up the donkey in the smoke-house.
+He stopped to inquire no further, for he was one of those testy curmudgeons
+with whom unlucky boys are always in the wrong. Leaving old Barbara to
+wrestle in imagination with the devil, he made for my bedchamber, where I
+still lay wrapped in rosy slumbers, little dreaming of the mischief I had
+done, and the storm about to break over me.
+
+"In an instant I was awakened by a shower of thwacks, and started up in
+wild amazement, I demanded the meaning of this attack, but received no
+other reply than that I had murdered the housekeeper; while my uncle
+continued whacking away during my confusion. I seized a poker, and put
+myself on the defensive. I was a stout boy for my years, while my uncle was
+a little wiffet of a man; one that in Kentucky we would not call even an
+'individual'; nothing more than a 'remote circumstance.' I soon, therefore,
+brought him to a parley, and learned the whole extent of the charge brought
+against me. I confessed to the donkey and the smoke-house, but pleaded not
+guilty of the murder of the housekeeper. I soon found out that old Barbara
+was still alive. She continued under the doctor's hands, however, for
+several days; and whenever she had an ill turn my uncle would seek to give
+me another flogging. I appealed to my father, but got no redress. I was
+considered an 'unlucky boy,' prone to all kinds of mischief; so that
+prepossessions were against me in all cases of appeal.
+
+"I felt stung to the soul at all this. I had been beaten, degraded, and
+treated with slighting when I complained. I lost my usual good spirits and
+good humor; and, being out of temper with everybody, fancied everybody out
+of temper with me. A certain wild, roving spirit of freedom, which I
+believe is as inherent in me as it is in the partridge, was brought into
+sudden activity by the checks and restraints I suffered. 'I'll go from
+home,' thought I, 'and shift for myself.' Perhaps this notion was quickened
+by the rage for emigrating to Kentucky, which was at that time prevalent in
+Virginia. I had heard such stories of the romantic beauties of the country;
+of the abundance of game of all kinds, and of the glorious independent life
+of the hunters who ranged its noble forests, and lived by the rifle; that I
+was as much agog to get there as boys who live in seaports are to launch
+themselves among the wonders and adventures of the ocean.
+
+"After a time old Barbara got better in mind and body, and matters were
+explained to her; and she became gradually convinced that it was not the
+devil she had encountered. When she heard how harshly I had been treated on
+her account, the good old soul was extremely grieved, and spoke warmly to
+my father in my behalf. He had himself remarked the change in my behavior,
+and thought punishment might have been carried too far. He sought,
+therefore, to have some conversation with me, and to soothe my feelings;
+but it was too late. I frankly told him the course of mortification that I
+had experienced, and the fixed determination I had made to go from home.
+
+"'And where do you mean to go?'
+
+"'To Kentucky.'
+
+"'To Kentucky! Why, you know nobody there.'
+
+"'No matter: I can soon make acquaintances.'
+
+"'And what will you do when you get there?'
+
+"'Hunt!'
+
+"My father gave a long, low whistle, and looked in my face with a
+serio-comic expression. I was not far in my teens, and to talk of setting
+off alone for Kentucky, to turn hunter, seemed doubtless the idle prattle
+of a boy. He was little aware of the dogged resolution of my character; and
+his smile of incredulity but fixed me more obstinately in my purpose. I
+assured him I was serious in what I said, and would certainly set off for
+Kentucky in the spring.
+
+"Month after month passed away. My father now and then adverted slightly to
+what had passed between us; doubtless for the purpose of sounding me. I
+always expressed the same grave and fixed determination. By degrees he
+spoke to me more directly on the subject, endeavoring earnestly but kindly
+to dissuade me. My only reply was, 'I had made up my mind.'
+
+"Accordingly, as soon as the spring had fairly opened, I sought him one day
+in his study, and informed him I was about to set out for Kentucky, and had
+come to take my leave. He made no objection, for he had exhausted
+persuasion and remonstrance, and doubtless thought it best to give way to
+my humor, trusting that a little rough experience would soon bring me home
+again. I asked money for my journey. He went to a chest, took out a long
+green silk purse, well filled, and laid it on the table. I now asked for a
+horse and servant.
+
+"'A horse!' said my father, sneeringly: 'why, you would not go a mile
+without racing him, and breaking your neck; and, as to a servant, you
+cannot take care of yourself much less of him.'
+
+"'How am I to travel, then?'
+
+"'Why, I suppose you are man enough to travel on foot.'
+
+"He spoke jestingly, little thinking I would take him at his word; but I
+was thoroughly piqued in respect to my enterprise; so I pocketed the purse,
+went to my room, tied up three or four shirts in a pocket-handkerchief, put
+a dirk in my bosom, girt a couple of pistols round my waist, and felt like
+a knight errant armed cap a-pie, and ready to rove the world in quest of
+adventures.
+
+"My sister (I had but one) hung round me and wept, and entreated me to
+stay. I felt my heart swell in my throat; but I gulped it back to its
+place, and straightened myself up; I would not suffer myself to cry. I at
+length disengaged myself from her, and got to the door.
+
+"'When will you come back?' cried she.
+
+"'Never, by heavens!' cried I, 'until I come back a member of Congress from
+Kentucky. I am determined to show that I am not the tail-end of the
+family.'
+
+"Such was my first outset from home. You may suppose what a greenhorn I
+was, and how little I knew of the world I was launching into.
+
+"I do not recollect any incident of importance until I reached the borders
+of Pennsylvania. I had stopped at an inn to get some refreshment; and as I
+was eating in the back room, I overheard two men in the barroom conjecture
+who and what I could be. One determined, at length, that I was a runaway
+apprentice, and ought to be stopped, to which the other assented. When I
+had finished my meal, and paid for it, I went out at the back door, lest I
+should be stopped by my supervisors. Scorning, however, to steal off like a
+culprit, I walked round to the front of the house. One of the men advanced
+to the front door. He wore his hat on one side, and had a consequential air
+that nettled me.
+
+"'Where are you going, youngster?' demanded he.
+
+"'That's none of your business!' replied I, rather pertly.
+
+"'Yes, but it is, though! You have run away from home, and must give an
+account of yourself.'
+
+"He advanced to seize me, when I drew forth a pistol. 'If you advance
+another step, I'll shoot you!'
+
+"He sprang back as if he had trodden upon a rattlesnake, and his hat fell
+off in the movement.
+
+"'Let him alone!' cried his companion; 'he's a foolish, mad-headed boy, and
+don't know what he's about. He'll shoot you, you may rely on it.'
+
+"He did not need any caution in the matter; he was afraid even to pick up
+his hat: so I pushed forward on my way, without molestation. This incident,
+however, had its effect upon me. I became fearful of sleeping in any house
+at night, lest I should be stopped. I took my meals in the houses, in the
+course of the day, but would turn aside at night into some wood or ravine,
+make a fire, and sleep before it. This I considered was true hunter's
+style, and I wished to inure myself to it.
+
+"At length I arrived at Brownsville, leg-weary and wayworn, and in a shabby
+plight, as you may suppose, having been 'camping out' for some nights past.
+I applied at some of the inferior inns, but could gain no admission. I was
+regarded for a moment with a dubious eye, and then informed they did not
+receive foot-passengers. At last I went boldly to the principal inn. The
+landlord appeared as unwilling as the rest to receive a vagrant boy beneath
+his roof; but his wife interfered in the midst of his excuses, and half
+elbowing him aside:
+
+"'Where are you going, my lad?' said she.
+
+"'To Kentucky.'
+
+"'What are you going there for?'
+
+"'To hunt.'
+
+"She looked earnestly at me for a moment or two. 'Have you a mother
+living?' said she at length.
+
+"'No, madam: she has been dead for some time.'
+
+"'I thought so!' cried she warmly. 'I knew if you had a mother living you
+would not be here.' From that moment the good woman treated me with a
+mother's kindness.
+
+"I remained several days beneath her roof recovering from the fatigue of my
+journey. While here I purchased a rifle and practiced daily at a mark to
+prepare myself for a hunter's life. When sufficiently recruited in strength
+I took leave of my kind host and hostess and resumed my journey.
+
+"At Wheeling I embarked in a flat bottomed family boat, technically called
+a broad-horn, a prime river conveyance in those days. In this ark for two
+weeks I floated down the Ohio. The river was as yet in all its wild beauty.
+Its loftiest trees had not been thinned out. The forest overhung the
+water's edge and was occasionally skirted by immense cane-brakes. Wild
+animals of all kinds abounded. We heard them rushing through the thickets
+and plashing in the water. Deer and bears would frequently swim across the
+river; others would come down to the bank and gaze at the boat as it
+passed. I was incessantly on the alert with my rifle; but somehow or other
+the game was never within shot. Sometimes I got a chance to land and try my
+skill on shore. I shot squirrels and small birds and even wild turkeys; but
+though I caught glimpses of deer bounding away through the woods, I never
+could get a fair shot at them.
+
+"In this way we glided in our broad-horn past Cincinnati, the 'Queen of the
+West' as she is now called, then a mere group of log cabins; and the site
+of the bustling city of Louisville, then designated by a solitary house. As
+I said before, the Ohio was as yet a wild river; all was forest, forest,
+forest! Near the confluence of Green River with the Ohio, I landed, bade
+adieu to the broad-horn, and struck for the interior of Kentucky. I had no
+precise plan; my only idea was to make for one of the wildest parts of the
+country. I had relatives in Lexington and other settled places, to whom I
+thought it probable my father would write concerning me: so as I was full
+of manhood and independence, and resolutely bent on making my way in the
+world without assistance or control, I resolved to keep clear of them all.
+
+"In the course of my first day's trudge, I shot a wild turkey, and slung it
+on my back for provisions. The forest was open and clear from underwood. I
+saw deer in abundance, but always running, running. It seemed to me as if
+these animals never stood still.
+
+"At length I came to where a gang of half-starved wolves were feasting on
+the carcass of a deer which they had run down; and snarling and snapping
+and fighting like so many dogs. They were all so ravenous and intent upon
+their prey that they did not notice me, and I had time to make my
+observations. One, larger and fiercer than the rest, seemed to claim the
+larger share, and to keep the others in awe. If any one came too near him
+while eating, he would fly off, seize and shake him, and then return to his
+repast. 'This,' thought I, 'must be the captain; if I can kill him, I shall
+defeat the whole army.' I accordingly took aim, fired, and down dropped
+the old fellow. He might be only shamming dead; so I loaded and put a
+second ball through him. He never budged; all the rest ran off, and my
+victory was complete.
+
+"It would not be easy to describe my triumphant feelings on this great
+achievement. I marched on with renovated spirit, regarding myself as
+absolute lord of the forest. As night drew near, I prepared for camping. My
+first care was to collect dry wood and make a roaring fire to cook and
+sleep by, and to frighten off wolves, and bears, and panthers. I then began
+to pluck my turkey for supper. I had camped out several times in the early
+part of my expedition; but that was in comparatively more settled and
+civilized regions, where there were no wild animals of consequence in the
+forest. This was my first camping out in the real wilderness; and I was
+soon made sensible of the loneliness and wildness of my situation.
+
+"In a little while a concert of wolves commenced: there might have been a
+dozen or two, but it seemed to me as if there were thousands. I never heard
+such howling and whining. Having prepared my turkey, I divided it into two
+parts, thrust two sticks into one of the halves, and planted them on end
+before the fire, the hunter's mode of roasting. The smell of roast meat
+quickened the appetites of the wolves, and their concert became truly
+infernal. They seemed to be all around me, but I could only now and then
+get a glimpse of one of them, as he came within the glare of the light.
+
+"I did not much care for the wolves, who I knew to be a cowardly race, but
+I had heard terrible stories of panthers, and began to fear their stealthy
+prowlings in the surrounding darkness. I was thirsty, and heard a brook
+bubbling and tinkling along at no great distance, but absolutely dared not
+go there, lest some panther might lie in wait, and spring upon me.
+By-and-by a deer whistled. I had never heard one before, and thought it
+must be a panther. I now felt uneasy lest he might climb the trees, crawl
+along the branches overhead, and plump down upon me; so I kept my eyes
+fixed on the branches, until my head ached. I more than once thought I saw
+fiery eyes glaring down from--among the leaves. At length I thought of my
+supper and turned to see if my half-turkey was cooked. In crowding so near
+the fire I had pressed the meat into the flames, and it was consumed. I had
+nothing to do but toast the other half, and take better care of it. On that
+half I made my supper, without salt or bread. I was still so possessed with
+the dread of panthers that I could not close my eyes all night, but lay
+watching the trees until daybreak, when all my fears were dispelled with
+the darkness; and as I saw the morning sun sparkling down through the
+branches of the trees, I smiled to think how I had suffered myself to be
+dismayed by sounds and shadows; but I was a young woodsman, and a stranger
+in Kentucky.
+
+"Having breakfasted on the remainder of my turkey, and slaked my thirst at
+the bubbling stream, without further dread of panthers, I resumed my
+wayfaring with buoyant feelings. I again saw deer, but as usual running,
+running! I tried in vain to get a shot at them, and began to fear I never
+should. I was gazing with vexation after a herd in full scamper, when I was
+startled by a human voice. Turning round, I saw a man at a short distance
+from me in a hunting dress.
+
+"'What are you after, my lad?' cried he.
+
+"'Those deer,' replied I, pettishly: 'but it seems as if they never stand
+still.'
+
+"Upon that he burst out laughing. 'Where are you from?' said he.
+
+"'From Richmond.'
+
+"'What! In old Virginny?'
+
+"'The same.'
+
+"'And how on earth did you get here?'
+
+"'I landed at Green River from a broad-horn.
+
+"'And where are your companions?'
+
+"' I have none.'
+
+"'What?--all alone!"
+
+"'Yes.'
+
+"'Where are you going?'
+
+"'Anywhere.'
+
+"'And what have you come here for?'
+
+"'To hunt.'
+
+"'Well,' said he, laughingly, 'you'll make a real hunter; there's no
+mistaking that! Have you killed anything?'
+
+"'Nothing but a turkey; I can't get within shot of a deer: they are always
+running.'
+
+"'Oh, I'll tell you the secret of that. You're always pushing forward, and
+starting the deer at a distance, and gazing at those that are scampering;
+but you must step as slow, and silent, and cautious as a cat, and keep your
+eyes close around you, and lurk from tree to tree, if you wish to get a
+chance at deer. But come, go home with me. My name is Bill Smithers; I live
+not far off: stay with me a little while, and I'll teach you how to hunt.'
+
+"I gladly accepted the invitation of honest Bill Smithers. We soon reached
+his habitation; a mere log hut, with a square hole for a window and a
+chimney made of sticks and clay. Here he lived with a wife and child. He
+had 'girdled' the trees for an acre or two around, preparatory to clearing
+a space for corn and potatoes. In the meantime he maintained his family
+entirely by his rifle, and I soon found him to be a first-rate huntsman.
+Under his tutelage I received my first effective lessons in 'woodcraft.'
+
+"The more I knew of a hunter's life, the more I relished it. The country,
+too, which had been the promised land of my boyhood, did not, like most
+promised lands, disappoint me. No wilderness could be more beautiful than
+this part of Kentucky in those times. The forests were open and spacious,
+with noble trees, some of which looked as if they had stood for centuries.
+There were beautiful prairies, too, diversified with groves and clumps of
+trees, which looked like vast parks, and in which you could see the deer
+running, at a great distance. In the proper season these prairies would be
+covered in many places with wild strawberries, where your horses' hoofs
+would be dyed to the fetlock. I thought there could not be another place in
+the world equal to Kentucky--and I think so still.
+
+"After I had passed ten or twelve days with Bill Smithers, I thought it
+time to shift my quarters, for his house was scarce large enough for his
+own family, and I had no idea of being an encumbrance to any one. I
+accordingly made up my bundle, shouldered my rifle, took a friendly leave
+of Smithers and his wife, and set out in quest of a Nimrod of the
+wilderness, one John Miller, who lived alone, nearly forty miles off, and
+who I hoped would be well pleased to have a hunting companion.
+
+"I soon found out that one of the most important items in woodcraft in a
+new country was the skill to find one's way in the wilderness. There were
+no regular roads in the forests, but they were cut up and perplexed by
+paths leading in all directions. Some of these were made by the cattle of
+the settlers, and were called 'stock-tracks,' but others had been made by
+the immense droves of buffaloes which roamed about the country, from the
+flood until recent times. These were called buffalo-tracks, and traversed
+Kentucky from end to end, like highways. Traces of them may still be seen
+in uncultivated parts, or deeply worn in the rocks where they crossed the
+mountains. I was a young woodman, and sorely puzzled to distinguish one
+kind of track from the other, or to make out my course through this tangled
+labyrinth. While thus perplexed, I heard a distant roaring and rushing
+sound; a gloom stole over the forest: on looking up, when I could catch a
+stray glimpse of the sky, I beheld the clouds rolled up like balls, the
+lower parts as black as ink. There was now and then an explosion, like a
+burst of cannonry afar off, and the crash of a falling tree. I had heard of
+hurricanes in the woods, and surmised that one was at hand. It soon came
+crashing its way; the forest writhing, and twisting, and groaning before
+it. The hurricane did not extend far on either side, but in a manner plowed
+a furrow through the woodland; snapping off or uprooting trees that had
+stood for centuries, and filling the air with whirling branches. I was
+directly in its course, and took my stand behind an immense poplar, six
+feet in diameter. It bore for a time the full fury of the blast, but at
+length began to yield. Seeing it falling, I scrambled nimbly round the
+trunk like a squirrel. Down it went, bearing down another tree with it. I
+crept under the trunk as a shelter, and was protected from other trees
+which fell around me, but was sore all over from the twigs and branches
+driven against me by the blast.
+
+"This was the only incident of consequence that occurred on my way to John
+Miller's, where I arrived on the following day, and was received by the
+veteran with the rough kindness of a backwoodsman. He was a gray-haired
+man, hardy and weather-beaten, with a blue wart, like a great beard, over
+one eye, whence he was nicknamed by the hunters 'Bluebeard Miller.' He had
+been in these parts from the earliest settlements, and had signalized
+himself in the hard conflicts with the Indians, which gained Kentucky the
+appellation of 'the Bloody Ground.' In one of these fights he had had an
+arm broken; in another he had narrowly escaped, when hotly pursued, by
+jumping from a precipice thirty feet high into a river.
+
+"Miller willingly received me into his house as an inmate, and seemed
+pleased with the idea of making a hunter of me. His dwelling was a small
+log-house, with a loft or garret of boards, so that there was ample room
+for both of us. Under his instruction I soon made a tolerable proficiency
+in hunting. My first exploit, of any consequence, was killing a bear. I was
+hunting in company with two brothers, when we came upon the track of bruin,
+in a wood where there was an undergrowth of canes and grapevines. He was
+scrambling up a tree, when I shot him through the breast: he fell to the
+ground and lay motionless. The brothers sent in their dog, who seized the
+bear by the throat. Bruin raised one arm and gave the dog a hug that
+crushed his ribs. One yell, and all was over. I don't know which was first
+dead, the dog or the bear. The two brothers sat down and cried like
+children over their unfortunate dog. Yet they were mere rough huntsmen,
+almost as wild and untamable as Indians; but they were fine fellows.
+
+"By degrees I became known, and somewhat of a favorite among the hunters of
+the neighborhood; that is to say, men who lived within a circle of thirty
+or forty miles, and came occasionally to see John Miller, who was a
+patriarch among them. They lived widely apart, in log huts and wigwams,
+almost with the simplicity of Indians, and wellnigh as destitute of the
+comforts and inventions of civilized life. They seldom saw each other;
+weeks, and even months, would elapse, without their visiting. When they did
+meet, it was very much after the manner of Indians; loitering about all
+day, without having much to say, but becoming communicative as evening
+advanced, and sitting up half the night before the fire, telling hunting
+stories, and terrible tales of the fights of the Bloody Ground.
+
+"Sometimes several would join in a distant hunting expedition, or rather
+campaign. Expeditions of this kind lasted from November until April; during
+which we laid up our stock of summer provisions. We shifted our hunting
+camps from place to place, according as we found the game. They were
+generally pitched near a run of water, and close by a cane-brake, to screen
+us from the wind. One side of our lodge was open toward the fire. Our
+horses were hoppled and turned loose in the cane-brakes, with bells round
+their necks. One of the party stayed at home to watch the camp, prepare the
+meals and keep off the wolves; the others hunted. When a hunter killed a
+deer at a distance from the camp, he would open it and take out the
+entrails; then climbing a sapling he would bend it down, tie the deer to
+the top, and let it spring up again, so as to suspend the carcass out of
+reach of the wolves. At night he would return to the camp and give an
+account of his luck. The next morning early he would get a horse out of the
+canebrake and bring home his game. That day he would stay at home to cut up
+the carcass, while the others hunted.
+
+"Our days were thus spent in silent and lonely occupations. It was only at
+night that we would gather together before the fire and be sociable. I was
+a novice, and used to listen with open eyes and ears to the strange and
+wild stories told by the old hunters, and believed everything I heard. Some
+of their stories bordered upon the supernatural. They believed that their
+rifles might be spellbound, so as not to be able to kill a buffalo, even at
+arms-length. This superstition they had derived from the Indians, who often
+think the white hunters have laid a spell upon their rifles. Miller partook
+of this superstition, and used to tell of his rifle's having a spell upon
+it; but it often seemed to me to be a shuffling way of accounting for a bad
+shot. If a hunter grossly missed his aim he would ask, 'Who shot last with
+this rifle?'--and hint that he must have charmed it. The sure mode to
+disenchant the gun was to shoot a silver bullet out of it.
+
+"By the opening of spring we would generally have quantities of bears'-meat
+and venison salted, dried, and smoked, and numerous packs of skins. We
+would then make the best of our way home from our distant hunting-grounds;
+transporting our spoils, sometimes in canoes along the rivers, sometimes on
+horseback over land, and our return would often be celebrated by feasting
+and dancing, in true backwoods style. I have given you some idea of our
+hunting; let me now give you a sketch of our frolicking.
+
+"It was on our return from a winter's hunting in the neighborhood of Green
+River, when we received notice that there was to be a grand frolic at Bob
+Mosely's, to greet the hunters. This Bob Mosely was a prime fellow
+throughout the country. He was an indifferent hunter, it is true, and
+rather lazy to boot; but then he could play the fiddle, and that was enough
+to make him of consequence. There was no other man within a hundred miles
+that could play the fiddle, so there was no having a regular frolic without
+Bob Mosely. The hunters, therefore, were always ready to give him a share
+of their game in exchange for his music, and Bob was always ready to get up
+a carousal, whenever there was a party returning from a hunting expedition.
+The present frolic was to take place at Bob Mosely's own house, which was
+on the Pigeon Roost Fork of the Muddy, which is a branch of Rough Creek,
+which is a branch of Green River.
+
+"Everybody was agog for the revel at Bob Mosely's; and as all the fashion
+of the neighborhood was to be there, I thought I must brush up for the
+occasion. My leathern hunting-dress, which was the only one I had, was
+somewhat the worse for wear, it is true, and considerably japanned with
+blood and grease; but I was up to hunting expedients. Getting into a
+periogue, I paddled off to a part of the Green River where there was sand
+and clay, that might serve for soap; then taking off my dress, I scrubbed
+and scoured it, until I thought it looked very well. I then put it on the
+end of a stick, and hung it out of the periogue to dry, while I stretched
+myself very comfortably on the green bank of the river. Unluckily a flaw
+struck the periogue, and tipped over the stick: down went my dress to the
+bottom of the river, and I never saw it more. Here was I, left almost in a
+state of nature. I managed to make a kind of Robinson Crusoe garb of
+undressed skins, with the hair on, which enabled me to get home with
+decency; but my dream of gayety and fashion was at an end; for how could I
+think of figuring in high life at the Pigeon Roost, equipped like a mere
+Orson?
+
+"Old Miller, who really began to take some pride in me, was confounded when
+he understood that I did not intend to go to Bob Mosely's; but when I told
+him my misfortune, and that I had no dress: 'By the powers,' cried he, 'but
+you _shall_ go, and you shall be the best dressed and the best mounted
+lad there!'
+
+"He immediately set to work to cut out and make up a hunting-shirt of
+dressed deer-skin, gayly fringed at the shoulders, with leggings of the
+same, fringed from hip to heel. He then made me a rakish raccoon-cap, with
+a flaunting tail to it; mounted me on his best horse; and I may say,
+without vanity, that I was one of the smartest fellows that figured on that
+occasion at the Pigeon Roost Fork of the Muddy.
+
+"It was no small occasion, either, let me tell you. Bob Mosely's house was
+a tolerably large bark shanty, with a clap-board roof; and there were
+assembled all the young hunters and pretty girls of the country, for many a
+mile round. The young men were in their best hunting-dresses, but not one
+could compare with mine; and my raccoon-cap, with its flowing tail, was the
+admiration of everybody. The girls were mostly in doe-skin dresses; for
+there was no spinning and weaving as yet in the woods; nor any need of it.
+I never saw girls that seemed to me better dressed; and I was somewhat of a
+judge, having seen fashions at Richmond. We had a hearty dinner, and a
+merry one; for there was Jemmy Kiel, famous for raccoon-hunting, and Bob
+Tarleton, and Wesley Pigman, and Joe Taylor, and several other prime
+fellows for a frolic, that made all ring again, and laughed that you might
+have heard them a mile.
+
+"After dinner we began dancing, and were hard at it, when, about three
+o'clock in the afternoon, there was a new arrival--the two daughters of old
+Simon Schultz; two young ladies that affected fashion and late hours. Their
+arrival had nearly put an end to all our merriment. I must go a little
+roundabout in my story to explain to you how that happened.
+
+"As old Schultz, the father, was one day looking in the cane-brakes for his
+cattle, he came upon the track of horses. He knew they were none of his,
+and that none of his neighbors had horses about that place. They must be
+stray horses; or must belong to some traveler who had lost his way, as the
+track led nowhere. He accordingly followed it up, until he came to an
+unlucky peddler, with two or three pack-horses, who had been bewildered
+among the cattle-tracks, and had wandered for two or three days among woods
+and cane-brakes, until he was almost famished.
+
+"Old Schultz brought him to his house; fed him on venison, bear's-meat, and
+hominy, and at the end of a week put him in prime condition. The peddler
+could not sufficiently express his thankfulness; and when about to depart
+inquired what he had to pay? Old Schultz stepped back with surprise.
+'Stranger,' said he, 'you have been welcome under my roof. I've given you
+nothing but wild meat and hominy, because I had no better, but have been
+glad of your company. You are welcome to stay as long as you please; but,
+by Zounds! if any one offers to pay Simon Schultz for food he affronts
+him!' So saying, he walked out in a huff.
+
+"The peddler admired the hospitality of his host, but could not reconcile
+it to his conscience to go away without making some recompense. There were
+honest Simon's two daughters, two strapping, red-haired girls. He opened
+his packs and displayed riches before them of which they had no conception;
+for in those days there were no country stores in those parts, with their
+artificial finery and trinketry; and this was the first peddler that had
+wandered into that part of the wilderness. The girls were for a time
+completely dazzled, and knew not what to choose: but what caught their eyes
+most were two looking-glasses, about the size of a dollar, set in gilt tin.
+They had never seen the like before, having used no other mirror than a
+pail of water. The peddler presented them these jewels, without the least
+hesitation; nay, he gallantly hung them round their necks by red ribbons,
+almost as fine as the glasses themselves. This done, he took his departure,
+leaving them as much astonished as two princesses in a fairy tale that have
+received a magic gift from an enchanter.
+
+"It was with these looking-glasses, hung round their necks as lockets, by
+red ribbons, that old Schultz's daughters made their appearance at three
+o'clock in the afternoon, at the frolic at Bob Mosely's, on the Pigeon
+Roost Fork of the Muddy.
+
+"By the powers, but it was an event! Such a thing had never before been
+seen in Kentucky. Bob Tarleton, a strapping fellow, with a head like a
+chestnut-burr and a look like a boar in an apple orchard, stepped up,
+caught hold of the looking-glass of one of the girls, and gazing at it for
+a moment, cried out: 'Joe Taylor, come here! come here! I'll be darn'd if
+Patty Schultz ain't got a locket that you can see your face in, as clear as
+in a spring of water!'
+
+"In a twinkling all the young hunters gathered round old Schultz's
+daughters. I, who knew what looking-glasses were, did not budge. Some of
+the girls who sat near me were excessively mortified at finding themselves
+thus deserted. I heard Peggy Pugh say to Sally Pigman, 'Goodness knows,
+it's well Schultz's daughters is got them things round their necks, for
+it's the first time the young men crowded round them!'
+
+"I saw immediately the danger of the case. We were a small community, and
+could not afford to be split up by feuds. So I stepped up to the girls, and
+whispered to them: 'Polly,' said I, 'those lockets are powerful fine, and
+become you amazingly; but you don't consider that the country is not
+advanced enough in these parts for such things. You and I understand these
+matters, but these people don't. Fine things like these may do very well in
+the old settlements, but they won't answer at the Pigeon Roost Fork of the
+Muddy. You had better lay them aside for the present, or we shall have no
+peace.'
+
+"Polly and her sister luckily saw their error; they took off the lockets,
+laid them aside, and harmony was restored: otherwise, I verily believe
+there would have been an end of our community. Indeed, notwithstanding the
+great sacrifice they made on this occasion, I do not think old Schultz's
+daughters were ever much liked afterward among the young women.
+
+"This was the first time that looking-glasses were ever seen in the Green
+River part of Kentucky.
+
+"I had now lived some time with old Miller, and had become a tolerably
+expert hunter. Game, however, began to grow scarce. The buffalo had
+gathered together, as if by universal understanding, and had crossed the
+Mississippi, never to return. Strangers kept pouring into the country,
+clearing away the forests and building in all directions. The hunters began
+to grow restive. Jemmy Kiel, the same of whom I have already spoken for his
+skill in raccoon catching, came to me one day: 'I can't stand this any
+longer,' said he; 'we're getting too thick here. Simon Schultz crowds me so
+that I have no comfort of my life.'
+
+"'Why, how you talk!' said I; 'Simon Schultz lives twelve miles off.'
+
+"'No matter; his cattle run with mine, and I've no idea of living where
+another man's cattle can run with mine. That's too close neighborhood; I
+want elbow-room. This country, too, is growing too poor to live in; there's
+no game; so two or three of us have made up our minds to follow the buffalo
+to the Missouri, and we should like to have you of the party.' Other
+hunters of my acquaintance talked in the same manner. This set me thinking;
+but the more I thought the more I was perplexed. I had no one to advise
+with; old Miller and his associates knew but of one mode of life, and I had
+had no experience in any other; but I had a wide scope of thought. When out
+hunting alone I used to forget the sport, and sit for hours together on the
+trunk of a tree, with rifle in hand, buried in thought, and debating with
+myself: 'Shall I go with Jemmy Kiel and his company, or shall I remain
+here? If I remain here there will soon be nothing left to hunt; but am I to
+be a hunter all my life? Have not I something more in me than to be
+carrying a rifle on my shoulder, day after day, and dodging about after
+bears, and deer, and other brute beasts?' My vanity told me I had; and I
+called to mind my boyish boast to my sister, that I would never return home
+until I returned a member of Congress from Kentucky; but was this the way
+to fit myself for such a station?
+
+"Various plans passed through my mind, but they were abandoned almost as
+soon as formed. At length I determined on becoming a lawyer. True it is, I
+knew almost nothing. I had left school before I had learned beyond the
+'rule of three.' 'Never mind,' said I to myself, resolutely; 'I am a
+terrible fellow for hanging on to anything when I've once made up my mind;
+and if a man has but ordinary capacity, and will set to work with heart and
+soul, and stick to it, he can do almost anything.' With this maxim, which
+has been pretty much my mainstay throughout life, I fortified myself in my
+determination to attempt the law. But how was I to set about it? I must
+quit this forest life, and go to one or other of the towns, where I might
+be able to study, and to attend the courts. This too required funds. I
+examined into the state of my finances. The purse given me by my father had
+remained untouched, in the bottom of an old chest up in the loft, for money
+was scarcely needed in these parts. I had bargained away the skins acquired
+in hunting for a horse and various other matters, on which in case of need
+I could raise funds. I therefore thought I could make shift to maintain
+myself until I was fitted for the bar.
+
+"I informed my worthy host and patron, old Miller, of my plan. He shook his
+head at my turning my back upon the woods, when I was in a fair way of
+making a first-rate hunter; but he made no effort to dissuade me. I
+accordingly set off in September, on horseback, intending to visit
+Lexington, Frankfort, and other of the principal towns, in search of a
+favorable place to prosecute my studies. My choice was made sooner than I
+expected. I had put up one night at Bardstown, and found, on inquiry, that
+I could get comfortable board and accommodation in a private family for a
+dollar and a half a week. I liked the place, and resolved to look no
+further. So the next morning I prepared to turn my face homeward, and take
+my final leave of forest life.
+
+"I had taken my breakfast, and was waiting for my horse, when, in pacing up
+and down the piazza, I saw a young girl seated near a window, evidently a
+visitor. She was very pretty; with auburn hair and blue eyes, and was
+dressed in white. I had seen nothing of the kind since I had left Richmond;
+and at that time I was too much of a boy to be much struck by female
+charms. She was so delicate and dainty-looking, so different from the hale,
+buxom, brown girls of the woods; and then her white dress!--it was
+perfectly dazzling! Never was poor youth more taken by surprise, and
+suddenly bewitched. My heart yearned to know her; but how was I to accost
+her? I had grown wild in the woods, and had none of the habitudes of polite
+life. Had she been like Peggy Pugh or Sally Pigman, or any other of my
+leathern-dressed belles of the Pigeon Roost, I should have approached her
+without dread; nay, had she been as fair as Schultz's daughters, with their
+looking-glass lockets, I should not have hesitated; but that white dress,
+and those auburn ringlets, and blue eyes, and delicate looks, quite
+daunted, while they fascinated me. I don't know what put it into my head,
+but I thought, all at once, that I would kiss her! It would take a long
+acquaintance to arrive at such a boon, but I might seize upon it by sheer
+robbery. Nobody knew me here. I would just step in, snatch a kiss, mount my
+horse, and ride off. She would not be the worse for it; and that kiss--oh!
+I should die if I did not get it!
+
+"I gave no time for the thought to cool, but entered the house, and stepped
+lightly into the room. She was seated with her back to the door, looking
+out at the window, and did not hear my approach. I tapped her chair, and as
+she turned and looked up, I snatched as sweet a kiss as ever was stolen,
+and vanished in a twinkling. The next moment I was on horseback, galloping
+homeward; my very ears tingling at what I had done.
+
+"On my return home I sold my horse, and turned everything to cash; and
+found, with the remains of the paternal purse, that I had nearly four
+hundred dollars; a little capital which I resolved to manage with the
+strictest economy.
+
+"It was hard parting with old Miller, who had been like a father to me; it
+cost me, too, something of a struggle to give up the free, independent
+wild-wood life I had hitherto led; but I had marked out my course, and had
+never been one to flinch or turn back.
+
+"I footed it sturdily to Bardstown; took possession of the quarters for
+which I had bargained, shut myself up, and set to work with might and main
+to study. But what a task I had before me! I had everything to learn; not
+merely law, but all the elementary branches of knowledge. I read and read,
+for sixteen hours out of the four-and-twenty; but the more I read the more
+I became aware of my own ignorance, and shed bitter tears over my
+deficiency. It seemed as if the wilderness of knowledge expanded and grew
+more perplexed as I advanced. Every height gained only revealed a wider
+region to be traversed, and nearly filled me with despair. I grew moody,
+silent, and unsocial, but studied on doggedly and incessantly. The only
+person with whom I held any conversation was the worthy man in whose house
+I was quartered. He was honest and well meaning, but perfectly ignorant,
+and I believe would have liked me much better if I had not been so much
+addicted to reading. He considered all books filled with lies and
+impositions, and seldom could look into one without finding something to
+rouse his spleen. Nothing put him into a greater passion than the assertion
+that the world turned on its own axis every four-and-twenty hours. He swore
+it was an outrage upon common sense. 'Why, if it did,' said he, 'there
+would not be a drop of water in the well by morning, and all the milk and
+cream in the dairy would be turned topsy-turvy! And then to talk of the
+earth going round the sun! How do they know it? I've seen the sun rise
+every morning and set every evening for more than thirty years. They must
+not talk to _me_ about the earth's going round the sun!'
+
+"At another time he was in a perfect fret at being told the distance
+between the sun and moon. 'How can any one tell the distance?' cried he.
+'Who surveyed it? who carried the chain? By Jupiter! they only talk this
+way before me to annoy me. But then there's some people of sense who give
+in to this cursed humbug! There's Judge Broadnax, now, one of the best
+lawyers we have; isn't it surprising he should believe in such stuff? Why,
+sir, the other day I heard him talk of the distance from a star he called
+Mars to the sun! He must have got it out of one or other of those
+confounded books he's so fond of reading; a book some impudent fellow has
+written, who knew nobody could swear the distance was more or less.'
+
+"For my own part, feeling my own deficiency in scientific lore, I never
+ventured to unsettle his conviction that the sun made his daily circuit
+round the earth; and for aught I said to the contrary, he lived and died in
+that belief.
+
+"I had been about a year at Bardstown, living thus studiously and
+reclusely, when, as I was one day walking the street, I met two young
+girls, in one of whom I immediately recalled the little beauty whom I had
+kissed so impudently. She blushed up to the eyes, and so did I; but we both
+passed on with further sign of recognition. This second glimpse of her,
+however, caused an odd fluttering about my heart. I could not get her out
+of my thoughts for days. She quite interfered with my studies. I tried to
+think of her as a mere child, but it would not do; she had improved in
+beauty, and was tending toward womanhood; and then I myself was but little
+better than a stripling. However, I did not attempt to seek after her, or
+even to find out who she was, but returned doggedly to my books. By degrees
+she faded from my thoughts, or if she did cross them occasionally, it was
+only to increase my despondency; for I feared that with all my exertions, I
+should never be able to fit myself for the bar, or enable myself to support
+a wife.
+
+"One cold stormy evening I was seated, in dumpish mood, in the bar-room of
+the inn, looking into the fire, and turning over uncomfortable thoughts,
+when I was accosted by some one who had entered the room without my
+perceiving it. I looked up, and saw before me a tall and, as I thought,
+pompous-looking man, arrayed in small clothes and knee-buckles, with
+powdered head, and shoes nicely blacked and polished; a style of dress
+unparalleled in those days, in that rough country. I took a pique against
+him from the very portliness of his appearance, and stateliness of his
+manner, and bristled up as he accosted me. He demanded if my name was not
+Ringwood.
+
+"I was startled, for I supposed myself perfectly incog.; but I answered in
+the affirmative.
+
+"'Your family, I believe, lives in Richmond?'
+
+"My gorge began to rise. 'Yes, sir,' replied I sulkily, 'my family does
+live in Richmond.'
+
+"'And what, may I ask, has brought you into this part of the country?'
+
+"'Zounds, sir!' cried I, starting on my feet, 'what business is it of
+yours? How dare you to question me in this manner?'
+
+"The entrance of some persons prevented a reply; but I walked up and down
+the bar-room, fuming with conscious independence and insulted dignity,
+while the pompous-looking personage, who had thus trespassed upon my
+spleen, retired without proffering another word.
+
+"The next day, while seated in my room, some one tapped at the door, and,
+on being bid to enter, the stranger in the powdered head, small-clothes,
+and shining shoes and buckles, walked in with ceremonious courtesy.
+
+"My boyish pride was again in arms; but he subdued me. He was formal, but
+kind and friendly. He knew my family and understood my situation, and the
+dogged struggle I was making. A little conversation, when my jealous pride
+was once put to rest, drew everything from me. He was a lawyer of
+experience and of extensive practice, and offered at once to take me with
+him, and direct my studies. The offer was too advantageous and gratifying
+not to be immediately accepted. From that time I began to look up. I was
+put into a proper track, and was enabled to study to a proper purpose. I
+made acquaintance, too, with some of the young men of the place, who were
+in the same pursuit, and was encouraged at finding that I could 'hold my
+own' in argument with them. We instituted a debating club, in which I soon
+became prominent and popular. Men of talents, engaged in other pursuits,
+joined it, and this diversified our subjects and put me on various tracks
+of inquiry. Ladies, too, attended some of our discussions, and this gave
+them a polite tone, and had an influence on the manners of the debaters. My
+legal patron also may have had a favorable effect in correcting any
+roughness contracted in my hunter's life. He was calculated to bend me in
+an opposite direction, for he was of the old school; quoted Chesterfield on
+all occasions, and talked of Sir Charles Grandison, who was his beau
+ideal. It was Sir Charles Grandison, however, Kentuckyized.
+
+"I had always been fond of female society. My experience, however, had
+hitherto been among the rough daughters of the backwoodsmen; and I felt an
+awe of young ladies in 'store clothes,' and delicately brought up. Two or
+three of the married ladies of Bardstown, who had heard me at the debating
+club, determined that I was a genius and undertook to bring me out. I
+believe I really improved under their hands; became quiet where I had been
+shy or sulky, and easy where I had been impudent.
+
+"I called to take tea one evening with one of these ladies, when to my
+surprise, and somewhat to my confusion, I found with her the identical
+blue-eyed little beauty whom I had so audaciously kissed. I was formally
+introduced to her, but neither of us betrayed any sign of previous
+acquaintance, except by blushing to the eyes. While tea was getting ready
+the lady of the house went out of the room to give some directions, and
+left us alone.
+
+"Heavens and earth, what a situation! I would have given all the pittance I
+was worth to have been in the deepest dell of the forest. I felt the
+necessity of saying something in excuse of my former rudeness, but I could
+not conjure up an idea, nor utter a word. Every moment matters were growing
+worse. I felt at one time tempted to do as I had done when I robbed her of
+the kiss; bolt from the room, and take to flight; but I was chained to the
+spot, for I really longed to gain her good-will.
+
+"At length I plucked up courage, on seeing that she was equally confused
+with myself, and walking desperately up to her, I exclaimed:
+
+"'I have been trying to muster up something to say to you, but I cannot. I
+feel that I am in a horrible scrape. Do have pity on me, and help me out of
+it.'
+
+"A smile dimpled about her mouth, and played among the blushes of her
+cheek. She looked up with a shy, but arch glance of the eye, that expressed
+a volume of comic recollection; we both broke into a laugh, and from that
+moment all went on well.
+
+"A few evenings afterward I met her at a dance, and prosecuted the
+acquaintance. I soon became deeply attached to her; paid my court
+regularly; and before I was nineteen years of age had engaged myself to
+marry her. I spoke to her mother, a widow lady, to ask her consent. She
+seemed to demur; upon which, with my customary haste, I told her there
+would be no use in opposing the match, for if her daughter chose to have
+me, I would take her, in defiance of her family, and the whole world.
+
+"She laughed, and told me I need not give myself any uneasiness; there
+would be no unreasonable opposition. She knew my family and all about me.
+The only obstacle was that I had no means of supporting a wife, and she had
+nothing to give with her daughter.
+
+"No matter; at that moment everything was bright before me. I was in one of
+my sanguine moods. I feared nothing, doubted nothing. So it was agreed that
+I should prosecute my studies, obtain a license, and as soon as I should be
+fairly launched in business we would be married.
+
+"I now prosecuted my studies with redoubled ardor, and was up to my ears in
+law, when I received a letter from my father, who had heard of me and my
+whereabout. He applauded the course I had taken, but advised me to lay a
+foundation of general knowledge, and offered to defray my expenses, if I
+would go to college. I felt the want of a general education, and was
+staggered with this offer. It militated somewhat against the self-dependent
+course I had so proudly or rather conceitedly marked out for myself, but it
+would enable me to enter more advantageously upon my legal career. I talked
+over the matter with the lovely girl to whom I was engaged. She sided in
+opinion with my father, and talked so disinterestedly, yet tenderly, that,
+if possible, I loved her more than ever. I reluctantly, therefore, agreed
+to go to college for a couple of years, though it must necessarily postpone
+our union.
+
+"Scarcely had I formed this resolution, when her mother was taken ill and
+died, leaving her without a protector. This again altered all my plans. I
+felt as if I could protect her. I gave up all idea of collegiate studies;
+persuaded myself that by dint of industry and application I might overcome
+the deficiencies of education, and resolved to take out a license as soon
+as possible.
+
+"That very autumn I was admitted to the bar, and within a month afterward
+was married. We were a young couple, she not much above sixteen, I not
+quite twenty; and both almost without a dollar in the world. The
+establishment which we set up was suited to our circumstances: a log-house,
+with two small rooms; a bed, a table, a half dozen chairs, a half dozen
+knives and forks, a half dozen spoons; everything by half dozens; a little
+delf ware; everything in a small way; we were so poor, but then so happy!
+
+"We had not been married many days, when court was held at a county town,
+about twenty-five miles distant. It was necessary for me to go there, and
+put myself in the way of business; but how was I to go? I had expended all
+my means on our establishment; and then it was hard parting with my wife so
+soon after marriage. However, go I must. Money must be made, or we should
+soon have the wolf at the door. I accordingly borrowed a horse, and
+borrowed a little cash, and rode off from my door, leaving my wife standing
+at it, and waving her hand after me. Her last look, so sweet and beaming,
+went to my heart. I felt as if I could go through fire and water for her.
+
+"I arrived at the county town on a cool October evening. The inn was
+crowded, for the court was to commence on the following day. I knew no one,
+and wondered how I, a stranger, and a mere youngster, was to make my way in
+such a crowd, and to get business. The public room was thronged with the
+idlers of the country, who gather together on such occasions. There was
+some drinking going forward, with much noise, and a little altercation.
+Just as I entered the room I saw a rough bully of a fellow, who was partly
+intoxicated, strike an old man. He came swaggering by me, and elbowed me as
+he passed. I immediately knocked him down, and kicked him into the street.
+I needed no better introduction. In a moment I had a dozen rough shakes of
+the hand, and invitations to drink, and found myself quite a personage in
+this rough assembly.
+
+"The next morning the court opened. I took my seat among the lawyers, but
+felt as a mere spectator, not having a suit in progress or prospect, nor
+having any idea where business was to come from. In the course of the
+morning a man was put at the bar, charged with passing counterfeit money,
+and was asked if he was ready for trial. He answered in the negative. He
+had been confined in a place where there were no lawyers, and had not had
+an opportunity of consulting any. He was told to choose counsel from the
+lawyers present, and to be ready for trial on the following day. He looked
+round the court and selected me. I was thunderstruck. I could not tell why
+he should make such a choice. I, a beardless youngster; unpracticed at the
+bar; perfectly unknown. I felt diffident yet delighted, and could have
+hugged the rascal.
+
+"Before leaving the court he gave me one hundred dollars in a bag as a
+retaining fee. I could scarcely believe my senses; it seemed like a dream.
+The heaviness of the fee spoke but lightly in favor of his innocence, but
+that was no affair of mine. I was to be advocate, not judge nor jury. I
+followed him to jail, and learned from him all the particulars of his case;
+from thence I went to the clerk's office and took minutes of the
+indictment. I then examined the law on the subject, and prepared my brief
+in my room. All this occupied me until midnight, when I went to bed and
+tried to sleep. It was all in vain. Never in my life was I more wide-awake.
+A host of thoughts and fancies kept rushing through my mind; the shower of
+gold that had so unexpectedly fallen into my lap; the idea of my poor
+little wife at home, that I was to astonish with my good fortune! But then
+the awful responsibility I had undertaken!--to speak for the first time in
+a strange court; the expectations the culprit had evidently formed of my
+talents; all these, and a crowd of similar notions, kept whirling through
+my mind. I tossed about all night, fearing the morning would find me
+exhausted and incompetent; in a word, the day dawned on me, a miserable
+fellow!
+
+"I got up feverish and nervous. I walked out before breakfast, striving to
+collect my thoughts and tranquilize my feelings. It was a bright morning;
+the air was pure and frosty. I bathed my forehead and my hands in a
+beautiful running stream; but I could not allay the fever heat that raged
+within. I returned to breakfast, but could not eat. A single cup of coffee
+formed my repast. It was time to go to court, and I went there with a
+throbbing heart. I believe if it had not been for the thoughts of my little
+wife, in her lonely log house, I should have given back to the man his
+hundred dollars, and relinquished the cause. I took my seat, looking, I am
+convinced, more like a culprit than the rogue I was to defend.
+
+"When the time came for me to speak, my heart died within me. I rose
+embarrassed and dismayed, and stammered in opening my cause. I went on from
+bad to worse, and felt as if I was going down hill. Just then the public
+prosecutor, a man of talents, but somewhat rough in his practice, made a
+sarcastic remark on something I had said. It was like an electric spark,
+and ran tingling through every vein in my body. In an instant my diffidence
+was gone. My whole spirit was in arms. I answered with promptness and
+bitterness, for I felt the cruelty of such an attack upon a novice in my
+situation. The public prosecutor made a kind of apology: this, from a man
+of his redoubted powers, was a vast concession. I renewed my argument with
+a fearless glow; carried the case through triumphantly, and the man was
+acquitted.
+
+"This was the making of me. Everybody was curious to know who this new
+lawyer was, that had thus suddenly risen among them, and bearded the
+attorney-general at the very outset. The story of my debut at the inn on
+the preceding evening, when I had knocked down a bully, and kicked him out
+of doors for striking an old man, was circulated with favorable
+exaggerations. Even my very beardless chin and juvenile countenance were in
+my favor, for people gave me far more credit than I really deserved. The
+chance business which occurs in our country courts came thronging upon me.
+I was repeatedly employed in other causes; and by Saturday night, when the
+court closed, and I had paid my bill at the inn, I found myself with a
+hundred and fifty dollars in silver, three hundred dollars in notes, and a
+horse that I afterward sold for two hundred dollars more.
+
+"Never did miser gloat on his money with more delight. I locked the door of
+my room; piled the money in a heap upon the table; walked round it; sat
+with my elbows on the table, and my chin upon my hands, and gazed upon it.
+Was I thinking of the money? No! I was thinking of my little wife at home.
+Another sleepless night ensued; but what a night of golden fancies, and
+splendid air-castle! As soon as morning dawned, I was up, mounted the
+borrowed horse with which I had come to court, and led the other which I
+had received as a fee. All the way I was delighting myself with the
+thoughts of the surprise I had in store for my little wife; for both of us
+had expected nothing but that I should spend all the money I had borrowed,
+and should return in debt.
+
+"Our meeting was joyous, as you may suppose: but I played the part of the
+Indian, hunter, who, when he returns from the chase, never for a time
+speaks of his success. She had prepared a snug little rustic meal for me,
+and while it was getting ready I seated myself at an old-fashioned desk in
+one corner, and began to count over my money, and put it away. She came to
+me before I had finished, and asked who I had collected the money for.
+
+"'For myself, to be sure,' replied I, with affected coolness; 'I made it at
+court.'
+
+"She looked me for a moment in the face, incredulously. I tried to keep my
+countenance, and to play Indian, but it would not do. My muscles began to
+twitch; my feelings all at once gave way. I caught her in my arms; laughed,
+cried, and danced about the room, like a crazy man. From that time forward,
+we never wanted for money.
+
+"I had not been long in successful practice, when I was surprised one day
+by a visit from my woodland patron, old Miller. The tidings of my
+prosperity had reached him in the wilderness, and he had walked one hundred
+and fifty miles on foot to see me. By that tame I had improved my domestic
+establishment, and had all things comfortable about me. He looked around
+him with a wondering eye, at what he considered luxuries and superfluities;
+but supposed they were all right in my altered circumstances. He said he
+did not know, upon the whole, but that I had acted for the best It is true,
+if game had continued plenty, it would have been a folly for me to quit a
+hunter's life; but hunting was pretty nigh done up in Kentucky. The buffalo
+had gone to Missouri; the elk were nearly gone also; deer, too, were
+growing scarce; they might last out his time, as he was growing old, but
+they were not worth setting up life upon. He had once lived on the borders
+of Virginia. Game grew scarce there; he followed it up across Kentucky, and
+now it was again giving him the slip; but he was too old to follow it
+further.
+
+"He remained with us three days. My wife did everything in her power to
+make him comfortable; but at the end of that time he said he must be off
+again to the woods. He was tired of the village, and of having so many
+people about him. He accordingly returned to the wilderness and to hunting
+life. But I fear he did not make a good end of it; for I understand that a
+few years before his death he married Sukey Thomas, who lived at the White
+Oak Run."
+
+
+
+
+THE SEMINOLES
+
+
+From the time of the chimerical cruising of Old Ponce de Leon in search of
+the Fountain of Youth, the avaricious expedition of Pamphilo de Narvaez in
+quest of gold, and the chivalrous enterprise of Hernando de Soto, to
+discover and conquer a second Mexico, the natives of Florida have been
+continually subjected to the invasions and encroachments of white men. They
+have resisted them perseveringly but fruitlessly, and are now battling amid
+swamps and morasses for the last foothold of their native soil, with all
+the ferocity of despair. Can we wonder at the bitterness of a hostility
+that has been handed down from father to son, for upward of three
+centuries, and exasperated by the wrongs and miseries of each succeeding
+generation! The very name of the savages with which we are fighting
+betokens their fallen and homeless condition. Formed of the wrecks of once
+powerful tribes, and driven from their ancient seats of prosperity and
+dominion, they are known by the name of the Seminoles, or "Wanderers."
+
+Bartram, who traveled through Florida in the latter part of the last
+century, speaks of passing through a great extent of ancient Indian fields,
+now silent and deserted, overgrown with forests, orange groves, and rank
+vegetation, the site of the ancient Alachua, the capital of a famous and
+powerful tribe, who in days of old could assemble thousands at bull-play
+and other athletic exercises "over these then happy fields and green
+plains." "Almost every step we take," adds he, "over these fertile heights,
+discovers the remains and traces of ancient human habitations and
+cultivation."
+
+About the year 1763, when Florida was ceded by the Spaniards to the
+English, we are told that the Indians generally retired from the towns and
+the neighborhood of the whites, and burying themselves in the deep forests,
+intricate swamps and hommocks, and vast savannas of the interior, devoted
+themselves to a pastoral life, and the rearing of horses and cattle. These
+are the people that received the name of the Seminoles, or Wanderers, which
+they still retain.
+
+Bartram gives a pleasing picture of them at the time he visited them in
+their wilderness; where their distance from the abodes of the white man
+gave them a transient quiet and security. "This handful of people," says
+he, "possesses a vast territory, all East and the greatest part of West
+Florida, which being naturally cut and divided into thousands of islets,
+knolls, and eminences, by the innumerable rivers, lakes, swamps, vast
+savannas, and ponds, form so many secure retreats and temporary
+dwelling-places that effectually guard them from any sudden invasions or
+attacks from their enemies; and being such a swampy, hommocky country,
+furnishes such a plenty and variety of supplies for the nourishment of
+varieties of animals that I can venture to assert that no part of the globe
+so abounds with wild game, or creatures fit for the food of man.
+
+"Thus they enjoy a superabundance of the necessaries and conveniences of
+life, with the security of person and property, the two great concerns of
+mankind. The hides of deer, bears, tigers, and wolves, together with honey,
+wax, and other productions of the country, purchase their clothing equipage
+and domestic utensils from the whites. They seem to be free from want or
+desires. No cruel enemy to dread; nothing to give them disquietude but the
+gradual encroachments of the white people. Thus contented and undisturbed,
+they appear as blithe and free as the birds of the air, and like them as
+volatile and active, tuneful and vociferous. The visage, action, and
+deportment of the Seminoles form the most striking picture of happiness in
+this life; joy, contentment, love, and friendship, without guile or
+affectation, seem inherent in them, or predominant in their vital
+principle, for it leaves them with but the last breath of life.... They are
+fond of games and gambling, and amuse themselves like children, in relating
+extravagant stories, to cause surprise and mirth." [Footnote: Bartram's
+Travels in North America.]
+
+The same writer gives an engaging picture of his treatment by these
+savages:
+
+"Soon after entering the forests, we were met in the path by a small
+company of Indians, smiling and beckoning to us long before we joined them.
+This was a family of Talahasochte, who had been out on a hunt and were
+returning home loaded with barbecued meat, hides, and honey. Their company
+consisted of the man, his wife and children, well mounted on fine horses,
+with a number of pack-horses. The man offered us a fawn skin of honey,
+which I accepted, and at parting presented him with some fish-hooks,
+sewing-needles, etc.
+
+"On our return to camp in the evening, we were saluted by a party of young
+Indian warriors, who had pitched their tents on a green eminence near the
+lake, at a small distance from our camp, under a little grove of oaks and
+palms. This company consisted of seven young Seminoles, under the conduct
+of a young prince or chief of Talahasochte, a town southward in the
+isthmus. They were all dressed and painted with singular elegance, and
+richly ornamented with silver plates, chains, etc., after the Seminole
+mode, with waving plumes of feathers on their crests. On our coming up to
+them, they arose and shook hands; we alighted and sat a while with them by
+their cheerful fire.
+
+"The young prince informed our chief that he was in pursuit of a young
+fellow who had fled from the town carrying off with him one of his favorite
+young wives. He said, merrily, he would have the ears of both of them
+before he returned. He was rather above the middle stature, and the most
+perfect human figure I ever saw; of an amiable, engaging countenance, air,
+and deportment; free and familiar in conversation, yet retaining a becoming
+gracefulness and dignity. We arose, took leave of them, and crossed a
+little vale, covered with a charming green turf, already illuminated by the
+soft light of the full moon.
+
+"Soon after joining our companions at camp, our neighbors, the prince and
+his associates, paid us a visit. We treated them with the best fare we had,
+having till this time preserved our spirituous liquors. They left us with
+perfect cordiality and cheerfulness, wishing us a good repose, and retired
+to their own camp. Having a band of music with them, consisting of a drum,
+flutes, and a rattle-gourd, they entertained us during the night with their
+music, vocal and instrumental.
+
+"There is a languishing softness and melancholy air in the Indian convivial
+songs, especially of the amorous class, irresistibly moving attention, and
+exquisitely pleasing, especially in their solitary recesses, when all
+nature is silent."
+
+Travelers who have been among them, in more recent times, before they had
+embarked in their present desperate struggle, represent them in much the
+same light; as leading a pleasant, indolent life, in a climate that
+required little shelter or clothing, and where the spontaneous fruits of
+the earth furnished subsistence without toil. A cleanly race, delighting in
+bathing, passing much of their time under the shade of their trees, with
+heaps of oranges and other fine fruits for their refreshment; talking,
+laughing, dancing and sleeping. Every chief had a fan hanging to his side,
+made of feathers of the wild turkey, the beautiful pink-colored crane, or
+the scarlet flamingo. With this he would sit and fan himself with great
+stateliness, while the young people danced before him. The women joined in
+the dances with the men, excepting the war-dances. They wore strings of
+tortoise-shells and pebbles round their legs, which rattled in cadence to
+the music. They were treated with more attention among the Seminoles than
+among most Indian tribes.
+
+
+
+
+ORIGIN OF THE WHITE, THE RED, AND THE BLACK MEN
+
+A SEMINOLE TRADITION
+
+
+When the Floridas were erected into a territory of the United States, one
+of the earliest cares of the Governor, William P. Duval, was directed to
+the instruction and civilization of the natives. For this purpose he called
+a meeting of the chiefs, in which he informed them of the wish of their
+Great Father at Washington that they should have schools and teachers among
+them, and that their children should be instructed like the children of
+white men. The chiefs listened with their customary silence and decorum to
+a long speech, setting forth the advantages that would accrue to them from
+this measure, and when he had concluded, begged the interval of a day to
+deliberate on it.
+
+On the following day a solemn convocation was held, at which one of the
+chiefs addressed the governor in the name of all the rest. "My brother,"
+said he, "we have been thinking over the proposition of our Great Father at
+Washington, to send teachers and set up schools among us. We are very
+thankful for the interest be takes in our welfare; but after much
+deliberation have concluded to decline his offer. What will do very well
+for white men will not do for red men. I know you white men say we all come
+from the same father and mother, but you are mistaken. We have a tradition
+handed down from our forefathers, and we believe it, that the Great Spirit,
+when he undertook to make men, made the black man; it was his first
+attempt, and pretty well for a beginning; but he soon saw he had bungled;
+so he determined to try his hand again. He did so, and made the red man. He
+liked him much better than the black man, but still he was not exactly what
+he wanted. So he tried once more, and made the white man; and then he was
+satisfied. You see, therefore, that you were made last, and that is the
+reason I call you my youngest brother.
+
+"When the Great Spirit had made the three men, he called them together and
+showed them three boxes. The first was filled with books, and maps, and
+papers; the second with bows and arrows, knives and tomahawks; the third
+with spades, axes, hoes, and hammers. 'These, my sons,' said he, 'are the
+means by which you are to live: choose among them according to your fancy.'
+
+"The white man, being the favorite, had the first choice. He passed by the
+box of working-tools without notice; but when he came to the weapons for
+war and hunting, he stopped and looked hard at them. The red man trembled,
+for he had set his heart upon that box. The white man, however, after
+looking upon it for a moment, passed on, and chose the box of books and
+papers. The red man's turn came next; and you may be sure he seized with
+joy upon the bows and arrows and tomahawks. As to the black man, he had no
+choice left but to put up with the box of tools.
+
+"From this it is clear that the Great Spirit intended the white man should
+learn to read and write; to understand all about the moon and stars; and to
+make everything, even rum and whisky. That the red man should be a
+first-rate hunter, and a mighty warrior, but he was not to learn anything
+from books, as the Great Spirit had not given him any: nor was he to make
+rum and whisky, lest he should kill himself with drinking. As to the black
+man, as he had nothing but working-tools, it was clear he was to work for
+the white and red man, which he has continued to do.
+
+"We must go according to the wishes of the Great Spirit, or we shall get
+into trouble. To know how to read and write is very good for white men, but
+very bad for red men. It makes white men better, but red men worse. Some of
+the Creeks and Cherokees learned to read and write, and they are the
+greatest rascals among all the Indians. They went on to Washington, and
+said they were going to see their Great Father, to talk about the good of
+the nation. And when they got there, they all wrote upon a little piece of
+paper, without the nation at home knowing anything about it. And the first
+thing the nation at home knew of the matter, they were called together by
+the Indian agent, who showed them a little piece of paper, which he told
+them was a treaty, which their brethren had made in their name, with their
+Great Father at Washington. And as they knew not what a treaty was, he held
+up the little piece of paper, and they looked under it, and lo! it covered
+a great extent of country, and they found that their brethren, by knowing
+how to read and write, had sold their houses and their lands and the graves
+of their fathers; and that the white man, by knowing how to read and write,
+had gained them. Tell our Great Father at Washington, therefore, that we
+are very sorry we cannot receive teachers among us; for reading and
+writing, though very good for white men, is very bad for the Indians."
+
+
+
+
+THE CONSPIRACY OF NEAMATHLA
+
+AN AUTHENTIC SKETCH
+
+
+In the autumn of 1823, Governor Duval, and other commissioners on the part
+of the United States, concluded a treaty with the chiefs and warriors of
+the Florida Indians, by which the latter, for certain considerations, ceded
+all claims to the whole territory, excepting a district in the eastern
+part, to which they were to remove, and within which they were to reside
+for twenty years. Several of the chiefs signed the treaty with great
+reluctance; but none opposed it more strongly than Neamathla, principal
+chief of the Mickasookies, a fierce and warlike people, many of them Creeks
+by origin, who lived about the Mickasookie lake. Neamathla had always been
+active in those depredations on the frontiers of Georgia which had brought
+vengeance and ruin on the Seminoles. He was a remarkable man; upward of
+sixty years of age, about six feet high, with a fine eye, and a strongly
+marked countenance, over which he possessed great command. His hatred of
+the white men appeared to be mixed with contempt: on the common people he
+looked down with infinite scorn. He seemed unwilling to acknowledge any
+superiority of rank or dignity in Governor Duval, claiming to associate
+with him on terms of equality, as two great chieftains. Though he had been
+prevailed upon to sign the treaty, his heart revolted at it. In one of his
+frank conversations with Governor Duval, he observed: "This country belongs
+to the red man; and if I had the number of warriors at my command that this
+nation once had I would not leave a white man on my lands. I would
+exterminate the whole. I can say this to you, for you can understand me:
+you are a man; but I would not say it to your people. They'd cry out I was
+a savage, and would take my life. They cannot appreciate the feelings of a
+man that loves his country."
+
+As Florida had but recently been erected into a territory, everything as
+yet was in rude and simple style. The governor, to make himself acquainted
+with the Indians, and to be near at hand to keep an eye upon them, fixed
+his residence at Tallahassee, near the Fowel towns, inhabited by the
+Mickasookies. His government palace for a time was a mere log house, and he
+lived on hunters' fare. The village of Neamathla was but about three miles
+off, and thither the governor occasionally rode, to visit the old
+chieftain. In one of these visits he found Neamathla seated in his wigwam,
+in the center of the village, surrounded by his warriors. The governor had
+brought him some liquor as a present, but it mounted quickly into his brain
+and rendered him quite boastful and belligerent. The theme ever uppermost
+in his mind was the treaty with the whites. "It was true," he said, "the
+red men had made such a treaty, but the white men had not acted up to it.
+The red men had received none of the money and the cattle that had been
+promised them: the treaty, therefore, was at an end, and they did not mean
+to be bound by it."
+
+Governor Duval calmly represented to him that the time appointed in the
+treaty for the payment and delivery of the money and the cattle had not yet
+arrived. This the old chieftain knew full well, but he chose, for the
+moment, to pretend ignorance. He kept on drinking and talking, his voice
+growing louder and louder, until it resounded all over the village. He held
+in his hand a long knife, with which he had been rasping tobacco; this he
+kept flourishing backward and forward, as he talked, by way of giving
+effect to his words, brandishing it at times within an inch of the
+governor's throat. He concluded his tirade by repeating that the country
+belonged to the red men, and that sooner than give it up his bones and the
+bones of his people should bleach upon its soil.
+
+Duval saw that the object of all this bluster was to see whether he could
+be intimidated. He kept his eye, therefore, fixed steadily on the chief,
+and the moment he concluded with his menace, seized him by the bosom of his
+hunting shirt, and clinching his other fist:
+
+"I've heard what you have said," replied he. "You have made a treaty, yet
+you say your bones shall bleach before you comply with it. As sure as there
+is a sun in heaven, your bones _shall_ bleach, if you do not fulfill
+every article of that treaty I I'll let you know that I am _first_
+here, and will see that you do your duty!"
+
+Upon this, the old chieftain threw himself back, burst into a fit of
+laughing, and declared that all he had said was in joke. The governor
+suspected, however, that there was a grave meaning at the bottom of this
+jocularity.
+
+For two months, everything went on smoothly: the Indians repaired daily to
+the log-cabin palace of the governor, at Tallahassee, and appeared
+perfectly contented. All at once they ceased their visits, and for three or
+four days not one was to be seen. Governor Duval began to apprehend that
+some mischief was brewing. On the evening of the fourth day a chief named
+Yellow-Hair, a resolute, intelligent fellow, who had always evinced an
+attachment for the governor, entered his cabin about twelve o'clock at
+night, and informed him that between four and five hundred warriors,
+painted and decorated, were assembled to hold a secret war-talk at
+Neamathla's town. He had slipped off to give intelligence, at the risk of
+his life, and hastened back lest his absence should be discovered.
+
+Governor Duval passed an anxious night after this intelligence. He knew the
+talent and the daring character of Neamathla; he recollected the threats he
+had thrown out; he reflected that about eighty white families were
+scattered widely apart, over a great extent of country, and might be swept
+away at once, should the Indians, as he feared, determine to clear the
+country. That he did not exaggerate the dangers of the case has been proved
+by the horrid scenes of Indian warfare that have since desolated that
+devoted region. After a night of sleepless cogitation, Duval determined on
+a measure suited to his prompt and resolute character. Knowing the
+admiration of the savages for personal courage, he determined, by a sudden
+surprise, to endeavor to overawe and check them. It was hazarding much; but
+where so many lives were in jeopardy, he felt bound to incur the hazard.
+
+Accordingly, on the next morning, he set off on horseback, attended merely
+by a white man who had been reared among the Seminoles, and understood
+their language and manners, and who acted as interpreter. They struck into
+an Indian "trail," leading to Neamathla's village. After proceeding about
+half a mile, Governor Duval informed the interpreter of the object of his
+expedition. The latter, though a bold man, paused and remonstrated. The
+Indians among whom they were going were among the most desperate and
+discontented of the nation. Many of them were veteran warriors,
+impoverished and exasperated by defeat, and ready to set their lives at any
+hazard. He said that if they were holding a war council, it must be with
+desperate intent, and it would be certain death to intrude among them.
+
+Duval made light of his apprehensions: he said he was perfectly well
+acquainted with the Indian character, and should certainly proceed. So
+saying, he rode on. When within half a mile of the village, the interpreter
+addressed him again, in such a tremulous tone that Duval turned and looked
+him in the face. He was deadly pale, and once more urged the governor to
+return, as they would certainly be massacred if they proceeded.
+
+Duval repeated his determination to go on, but advised the other to return,
+lest his pale face should betray fear to the Indians, and they might take
+advantage of it. The interpreter replied that he would rather die a
+thousand deaths than have it said he had deserted his leader when in peril.
+
+Duval then told him he must translate faithfully all he should say to the
+Indians, without softening a word. The interpreter promised faithfully to
+do so, adding that he well knew, when they were once in the town, nothing
+but boldness could save them.
+
+They now rode into the village, and advanced to the council house. This was
+rather a group of four houses, forming a square, in the center of which was
+a great council-fire. The houses were open in front, toward the fire, and
+closed in the rear. At each corner of the square there was an interval
+between the houses, for ingress and egress. In these houses sat the old men
+and the chiefs; the young men were gathered round the fire. Neamathla
+presided at the council, elevated on a higher seat than the rest.
+
+Governor Duval entered by one of the corner intervals, and rode boldly into
+the center of the square. The young men made way for him; an old man who
+was speaking paused in the midst of his harangue. In an instant thirty or
+forty rifles were cocked and leveled. Never had Duval heard so loud a click
+of triggers; it seemed to strike on his heart. He gave one glance at the
+Indians, and turned off with an air of contempt. He did not dare, he says,
+to look again, lest it might affect his nerves; and on the firmness of his
+nerves everything depended.
+
+The chief threw up his arm. The rifles were lowered. Duval breathed more
+freely: he felt disposed to leap from his horse, but restrained himself,
+and dismounted leisurely. He then walked deliberately up to Neamathla, and
+demanded, in an authoritative tone, what were his motives for holding that
+council. The moment he made this demand the orator sat down. The chief made
+no reply, but hung his head in apparent confusion. After a moment's pause,
+Duval proceeded:
+
+"I am well aware of the meaning of this war-council; and deem it my duty to
+warn you against prosecuting the schemes you have been devising. If a
+single hair of a white man in this country falls to the ground, I will hang
+you and your chiefs on the trees around your council house! You cannot
+pretend to withstand the power of the white men. You are in the palm of the
+hand of your Great Father at Washington, who can crush you like an
+egg-shell. You may kill me: I am but one man; but recollect, white men are
+numerous as the leaves on the trees. Remember the fate of your warriors
+whose bones are whitening in battlefields. Remember your wives and children
+who perished in swamps. Do you want to provoke more hostilities? Another
+war with the white men, and there will not be a Seminole left to tell the
+story of his race."
+
+Seeing the effect of his words, he concluded by appointing a day for the
+Indians to meet him at St. Marks, and give an account of their conduct. He
+then rode off, without giving them time to recover from their surprise.
+That night he rode forty miles to Apalachicola River, to the tribe of the
+same name, who were in feud with the Seminoles. They promptly put two
+hundred and fifty warriors at his disposal, whom he ordered to be at St.
+Marks at the appointed day. He sent out runners, also, and mustered one
+hundred of the militia to repair to the same place, together with a number
+of regulars from the army. All his arrangements were successful.
+
+Having taken these measures, he returned to Tallahassee, to the
+neighborhood of the conspirators, to show them that he was not afraid. Here
+he ascertained, through Yellow-Hair, that nine towns were disaffected, and
+had been concerned in the conspiracy. He was careful to inform himself,
+from the same source, of the names of the warriors in each of those towns
+who were most popular, though poor, and destitute of rank and command.
+
+When the appointed day was at hand for the meeting at St. Marks, Governor
+Duval set off with Neamathla, who was at the head of eight or nine hundred
+warriors, but who feared to venture into the fort without him. As they
+entered the fort, and saw troops and militia drawn up there, and a force of
+Apalachicola soldiers stationed on the opposite bank of the river, they
+thought they were betrayed, and were about to fly; but Duval assured them
+they were safe, and that when the talk was over they might go home
+unmolested.
+
+A grand talk was now held, in which the late conspiracy was discussed. As
+he had foreseen, Neamathla and the other old chiefs threw all the blame
+upon the young men, "Well," replied Duval, "with us white men, when we find
+a man incompetent to govern those under him, we put him down, and appoint
+another in his place. Now as you all acknowledge you cannot manage your
+young men, we must put chiefs over them who can."
+
+So saying, he deposed Neamathla first; appointing another in his place; and
+so on with all the rest; taking care to substitute the warriors who had
+been pointed out to him as poor and popular; putting medals round their
+necks, and investing them with great ceremony. The Indians were surprised
+and delighted at finding the appointments fall upon the very men they would
+themselves have chosen, and hailed them with acclamations. The warriors
+thus unexpectedly elevated to command, and clothed with dignity, were
+secured to the interests of the governor, and sure to keep an eye on the
+disaffected. As to the great chief Neamathla, he left the country in
+disgust, and returned to the Creek nation, who elected him a chief of one
+of their towns. Thus by the resolute spirit and prompt sagacity of one man,
+a dangerous conspiracy was completely defeated. Governor Duval was
+afterward enabled to remove the whole nation, through his own personal
+influence, without the aid of the general government.
+
+To the Editor of the Knickerbocker:
+
+SIR--The following letter was scribbled to a friend during my sojourn in
+the Alhambra, in 1828. As it presents scenes and impressions noted down at
+the time, I venture to offer it for the consideration of your readers.
+Should it prove acceptable, I may from tune to time give other letters,
+written in the course of my various ramblings, and which have been kindly
+restored to me by my friends.
+
+Yours, G. C.
+
+
+
+
+LETTER FROM GRANADA
+
+GRANADA, 1828.
+
+
+My Dear--: Religious festivals furnish, in all Catholic countries,
+occasions of popular pageant and recreation; but in none more so than in
+Spain, where the great end of religion seems to be to create holidays and
+ceremonials. For two days past, Granada has been in a gay turmoil with the
+great annual fete of Corpus Christi. This most eventful and romantic city,
+as you well know, has ever been the rallying point of a mountainous region,
+studded with small towns and villages. Hither, during the time that Granada
+was the splendid capital of a Moorish kingdom, the Moslem youth repaired
+from all points, to participate in chivalrous festivities; and hither the
+Spanish populace at the present day throng from all parts of the
+surrounding country to attend the festivals of the church.
+
+As the populace like to enjoy things from the very commencement, the stir
+of Corpus Christ! began in Granada on the preceding evening. Before dark
+the gates of the city were thronged with the picturesque peasantry from the
+mountain villages, and the brown laborers from the Vega, or vast fertile
+plain. As the evening advanced, the Vivarambla thickened and swarmed with a
+motley multitude. This is the great square in the center of the city,
+famous for tilts and tourneys during the times of Moorish domination, and
+incessantly mentioned in all the old Moorish ballads of love and chivalry.
+For several days the hammer had resounded throughout this square. A gallery
+of wood had been erected all round it, forming a covered way for the grand
+procession of Corpus Christi. On this eve of the ceremonial this gallery
+was a fashionable promenade. It was brilliantly illuminated, bands of music
+were stationed in balconies on the four sides of the square, and all the
+fashion and beauty of Granada, and all its population that could boast a
+little finery of apparel, together with the majos and majas, the beaux and
+belles of the villages, in their gay Andalusian costumes, thronged this
+covered walk, anxious to see and to be seen. As to the sturdy peasantry of
+the Vega, and such of the mountaineers as did not pretend to display, but
+were content with hearty enjoyment, they swarmed in the center of the
+square; some in groups listening to the guitar and the traditional ballad;
+some dancing their favorite bolero; some seated on the ground making a
+merry though frugal supper; and some stretched out for their night's
+repose.
+
+The gay crowd of the gallery dispersed gradually toward midnight; but the
+center of the square resembled the bivouac of an army; for hundreds of the
+peasantry, men, women, and children, passed the night there, sleeping
+soundly on the bare earth, under the open canopy of heaven. A summer's
+night requires no shelter in this genial climate; and with a great part of
+the hardy peasantry of Spain a bed is a superfluity which many of them
+never enjoy, and which they affect to despise. The common Spaniard spreads
+out his manta, or mule-cloth, or wraps himself in his cloak, and lies on
+the ground, with his saddle for a pillow.
+
+The next morning I revisited the square at sunrise. It was still strewed
+with groups of sleepers; some were reposing from the dance and revel of the
+evening; others had left their villages after work, on the preceding day,
+and having trudged on foot the greater part of the night, were taking a
+sound sleep to freshen them for the festivities of the day. Numbers from
+the mountains, and the remote villages of the plain, who had set out in the
+night, continued to arrive, with their wives and children. All were in high
+spirits; greeting each other, and exchanging jokes and pleasantries. The
+gay tumult thickened as the day advanced. Now came pouring in at the city
+gates, and parading through the streets, the deputations from the various
+villages, destined to swell the grand procession. These village deputations
+were headed by their priests, bearing their respective crosses and banners,
+and images of the Blessed Virgin and of patron saints; all which were
+matters of great rivalship and jealousy among the peasantry. It was like
+the chivalrous gatherings of ancient days, when each town and village sent
+its chiefs, and warriors, and standards, to defend the capital or grace its
+festivities.
+
+At length, all these various detachments congregated into one grand
+pageant, which slowly paraded round the Vivarambla, and through the
+principal streets, where every window and balcony was hung with tapestry.
+In this procession were all the religious orders, the civil and military
+authorities, and the chief people of the parishes and villages; every
+church and convent had contributed its banners, its images, its relics, and
+poured forth its wealth for the occasion. In the center of the procession
+walked the archbishop, under a damask canopy, and surrounded by inferior
+dignitaries and their dependents. The whole moved to the swell and cadence
+of numerous bands of music, and, passing through the midst of a countless
+yet silent multitude, proceeded onward to the cathedral.
+
+I could not but be struck with the changes of times and customs, as I saw
+this monkish pageant passing through the Vivarambla, the ancient seat of
+Moslem pomp and chivalry. The contrast was indeed forced upon the mind by
+the decorations of the square. The whole front of the wooden gallery
+erected for the procession, extending several hundred feet, was faced with
+canvas, on which some humble though patriotic artist had painted, by
+contract, a series of the principal scenes and exploits of the conquest, as
+recorded in chronicle and romance. It is thus the romantic legends of
+Granada mingle themselves with everything, and are kept fresh in the public
+mind. Another great festival at Granada, answering in its popular character
+to our Fourth of July, is _El Dia de la Toma_; "The day of the
+Capture"; that is to say, the anniversary of the capture of the city by
+Ferdinand and Isabella. On this day all Granada is abandoned to revelry.
+The alarm-bell on the Terre de la Campana, or watch-tower of the Alhambra,
+keeps up a clangor from morn till night; and happy is the damsel that can
+ring that bell; it is a charm to secure a husband in the course of the
+year.
+
+The sound, which can be heard over the whole Vega, and to the top of the
+mountains, summons the peasantry to the festivities. Throughout the day the
+Alhambra is thrown open to the public. The halls and courts of the Moorish
+monarchs resound with the guitar and castanet, and gay groups, in the
+fanciful dresses of Andalusia, perform those popular dances which they have
+inherited from the Moors.
+
+In the meantime a grand procession moves through the city. The banner of
+Ferdinand and Isabella, that precious relic of the conquest, is brought
+forth from its depository, and borne by the Alferez Mayor, or grand
+standard-bearer, through the principal streets. The portable camp-altar,
+which was carried about with them in all their campaigns, is transported
+into the chapel royal, and placed before their sepulcher, where their
+effigies lie in monumental marble. The procession fills the chapel. High
+mass is performed in memory of the conquest; and at a certain part of the
+ceremony the Alferez Mayor puts on his hat, and waves the standard above
+the tomb of the conquerors.
+
+A more whimsical memorial of the conquest is exhibited on the same evening
+at the theater, where a popular drama is performed, entitled "Ave Maria."
+This turns on the oft-sung achievement of Hernando del Pulgar, surnamed El
+de las Hazanas, "He of the Exploits," the favorite hero of the populace of
+Granada.
+
+During the time that Ferdinand and Isabella besieged the city, the young
+Moorish and Spanish knights vied with each other in extravagant bravadoes.
+On one occasion Hernando del Pulgar, at the head of a handful of youthful
+followers, made a dash into Granada at the dead of night, nailed the
+inscription of Ave Maria, with his dagger, to the gate of the principal
+mosque, as a token of having consecrated it to the Virgin, and effected his
+retreat in safety.
+
+While the Moorish cavaliers admired this daring exploit, they felt bound to
+revenge it. On the following day, therefore, Tarfe, one of the stoutest of
+the infidel warriors, paraded in front of the Christian army, dragging the
+sacred inscription of Ave Maria at his horse's tail. The cause of the
+Virgin was eagerly vindicated by Garcilaso de la Vega, who slew the Moor in
+single combat, and elevated the inscription of Ave Maria, in devotion and
+triumph, at the end of his lance.
+
+The drama founded on this exploit is prodigiously popular with the common
+people. Although it has been acted time out of mind, and the people have
+seen it repeatedly, it never fails to draw crowds, and so completely to
+engross the feelings of the audience, as to have almost the effect on them
+of reality. When their favorite Pulgar strides about with many a mouthy
+speech, in the very midst of the Moorish capital, he is cheered with
+enthusiastic bravoes; and when he nails the tablet of Ave Maria to the door
+of the mosque, the theater absolutely shakes with shouts and thunders of
+applause. On the other hand, the actors who play the part of the Moors have
+to bear the brunt of the temporary indignation of their auditors; and when
+the infidel Tarfe plucks down the tablet to tie it to his horse's tail,
+many of the people absolutely rise in fury, and are ready to jump upon the
+stage to revenge this insult to the Virgin.
+
+Besides this annual festival at the capital, almost every village of the
+Vega and the mountains has its own anniversary, wherein its own deliverance
+from the Moorish yoke is celebrated with uncouth ceremony and rustic pomp.
+
+On these occasions a kind of resurrection takes place of ancient Spanish
+dresses and armor; great two-handed swords, ponderous arquebuses, with
+matchlocks, and other weapons and accouterments, once the equipments of the
+village chivalry, and treasured up from generation to generation, since the
+time of the conquest. In these hereditary and historical garbs some of the
+most sturdy of the villagers array themselves as champions of the faith,
+while its ancient opponents are represented by another band of villagers,
+dressed up as Moorish warriors. A tent is pitched in the public square of
+the village, within which is an altar and an image of the Virgin. The
+Spanish warriors approach to perform their devotions at this shrine, but
+are opposed by the infidel Moslems, who surround the tent. A mock fight
+succeeds, in the course of which the combatants sometimes forget that they
+are merely playing a part, and exchange dry blows of grievous weight; the
+fictious Moors especially are apt to bear away pretty evident marks of the
+pious zeal of their antagonists. The contest, however, invariably
+terminates in favor of the good cause. The Moors are defeated and taken
+prisoners. The image of the Virgin, rescued from thralldom, is elevated in
+triumph; and a grand procession succeeds, in which the Spanish conquerors
+figure with great vainglory and applause, and their captives are led in
+chains, to the infinite delight and edification of the populace. These
+annual festivals are the delight of the villagers, who expend considerable
+sums in their celebration. In some villages they are occasionally obliged
+to suspend them for want of funds; but when times grow better, or they have
+been enabled to save money for the purpose, they are revived with all their
+grotesque pomp and extravagance.
+
+To recur to the exploit of Hernando del Pulgar. However extravagant and
+fabulous it may seem, it is authenticated by certain traditional usages,
+and shows the vainglorious daring that prevailed between the youthful
+warriors of both nations, in that romantic war. The mosque thus consecrated
+to the Virgin was made the cathedral of the city after the conquest; and
+there is a painting of the Virgin beside the royal chapel, which was put
+there by Hernando del Pulgar. The lineal representative of the hare-brained
+cavalier has the right to this day to enter the church, on certain
+occasions, on horseback, to sit within the choir, and to put on his hat at
+the elevation of the host, though these privileges have often been
+obstinately contested by the clergy.
+
+The present lineal representative of Hernando del Pulgar is the Marquis de
+Salar, whom I have met occasionally in society. He is a young man of
+agreeable appearance and manners, and his bright black eyes would give
+indication of his inheriting the fire of his ancestor. When the paintings
+were put up in the Vivarambla, illustrating the scenes of the conquest, an
+old gray-headed family servant of the Pulgars was so delighted with those
+which related to the family hero, that he absolutely shed tears, and
+hurrying home to the marquis, urged him to hasten and behold the family
+trophies. The sudden zeal of the old man provoked the mirth of his young
+master; upon which, turning to the brother of the marquis, with that
+freedom allowed to family servants in Spain, "Come, señor," cried he, "you
+are more grave and considerate than your brother; come and see your
+ancestor in all his glory!"
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+Within two or three years after the above letter was written, the Marquis
+de Salar was married to the beautiful daughter of the Count -----,
+mentioned by the author in his anecdotes of the Alhambra. The match was
+very agreeable to all parties, and the nuptials were celebrated with great
+festivity.
+
+
+
+
+ABDERAHMAN
+
+FOUNDER OF THE DYNASTY OF THE OMMIADES OF SPAIN
+
+
+_To the Editor of the Knickerbocker:_
+
+SIR--In the following memoir I have conformed to the facts furnished by the
+Arabian chroniclers, as cited by the learned Conde. The story of Abderahman
+has almost the charm of romance; but it derives a higher interest from the
+heroic yet gentle virtues which it illustrates, and from recording the
+fortunes of the founder of that splendid dynasty, which shed such a luster
+upon Spain during the domination of the Arabs. Abderahman may, in some
+respects, be compared to our own Washington. He achieved the independence
+of Moslem Spain, freeing it from subjection to the caliphs; he united its
+jarring parts under one government; he ruled over it with justice,
+clemency, and moderation; his whole course of conduct was distinguished by
+wonderful forbearance and magnanimity; and when he died he left a legacy of
+good example and good counsel to his successors.
+
+G.C.
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+"Blessed be God!" exclaims an Arabian historian; "in His hands alone is the
+destiny of princes. He overthrows the mighty, and humbles the haughty to
+the dust; and he raises up the persecuted and afflicted from the very
+depths of despair!"
+
+The illustrious house of Omeya had swayed the scepter at Damascus for
+nearly a century, when a rebellion broke out, headed by Aboul Abbas Safah,
+who aspired to the throne of the caliphs, as being descended from Abbas,
+the uncle of the prophet. The rebellion was successful. Marvau, the last
+caliph of the house of Omeya, was defeated and slain. A general
+proscription of the Ommiades took place. Many of them fell in battle; many
+were treacherously slain, in places where they had taken refuge; above
+seventy most noble and distinguished were murdered at a banquet to which
+they had been invited, and their dead bodies covered with cloths, and made
+to serve as tables for the horrible festivity. Others were driven forth,
+forlorn and desolate wanderers in various parts of the earth, and pursued
+with relentless hatred; for it was the determination of the usurper that
+not one of the persecuted family should escape. Aboul Abbas took possession
+of three stately palaces and delicious gardens, and founded the powerful
+dynasty of the Abbassides, which, for several centuries, maintained
+dominion in the east.
+
+"Blessed be God!" again exclaims the Arabian historian; "it was written in
+His eternal decrees that, notwithstanding the fury of the Abbassides, the
+noble stock of Omeya should not be destroyed. One fruitful branch remained
+to nourish with glory and greatness in another land."
+
+When the sanguinary proscription of the Ommiades took place, two young
+princes of that line, brothers, by the names of Solyman and Abderahman were
+spared for a time. Their personal graces, noble demeanor, and winning
+affability, had made them many friends, while their extreme youth rendered
+them objects of but little dread to the usurper. Their safety, however, was
+but transient. In a little while the suspicions of Aboul Abbas were
+aroused. The unfortunate Solyman fell beneath the scimiter of the
+executioner. His brother Abderahman was warned of his danger in time.
+Several of his friends hastened to him, bringing him jewels, a disguise,
+and a fleet horse. "The emissaries of the caliph," said they, "are in
+search of thee; thy brother lies weltering in his blood; fly to the desert!
+There is no safety for thee in the habitations of man!"
+
+Abderahman took the jewels, clad himself in the disguise, and mounting his
+steed, fled for his life. As he passed, a lonely fugitive, by the palaces
+of his ancestors, in which his family had long held sway, their very walls
+seemed disposed to betray him, as they echoed the swift clattering of his
+steed.
+
+Abandoning his native country, Syria, where he was liable at each moment to
+be recognized and taken, he took refuge among the Bedouin Arabs, a
+half-savage race of shepherds. His youth, his inborn majesty and grace, and
+the sweetness and affability that shone forth in his azure eyes, won the
+hearts of these wandering men. He was but twenty years of age, and had been
+reared in the soft luxury of a palace; but he was tall and vigorous, and in
+a little while hardened himself so completely to the rustic life of the
+fields that it seemed as though he had passed all his days in the rude
+simplicity of a shepherd's cabin.
+
+His enemies, however, were upon his traces, and gave him but little rest.
+By day he scoured the plain with the Bedouins, hearing in every blast the
+sound of pursuit, and fancying in every distant cloud of dust a troop of
+the caliph's horsemen. That night was passed in broken sleep and frequent
+watchings, and at the earliest dawn he was the first to put the bridle to
+his steed.
+
+Wearied by these perpetual alarms, he bade farewell to his friendly
+Bedouins, and leaving Egypt behind, sought a safer refuge in Western
+Africa. The province of Barea was at that time governed by Aben Habib, who
+had risen to rank and fortune under the fostering favor of the Ommiades.
+"Surely," thought the unhappy prince, "I shall receive kindness and
+protection from this man; he will rejoice to show his gratitude for the
+benefits showered upon him by my kindred."
+
+Abderahman was young, and as yet knew little of mankind. None are so
+hostile to the victim of power as those whom he has befriended. They fear
+being suspected of gratitude by his persecutors, and involved in his
+misfortunes.
+
+The unfortunate Abderahman had halted for a few days to repose himself
+among a horde of Bedouins, who had received him with their characteristic
+hospitality. They would gather round him in the evenings, to listen to his
+conversation, regarding with wonder this gently-spoken stranger from the
+more refined country of Egypt. The old men marveled to find so much
+knowledge and wisdom in such early youth, and the young men, won by his
+frank and manly carriage, entreated him to remain among them.
+
+One night, when all were buried in sleep, they were roused by the tramp of
+horsemen. The Wali Aben Habib, who, like all the governors of distant
+ports, had received orders from the caliph to be on the watch for the
+fugitive prince, had heard that a young man, answering the description, had
+entered the province alone, from the frontiers of Egypt, on a steed worn
+down by travel. He had immediately sent forth horsemen in his pursuit, with
+orders to bring him to him dead or alive. The emissaries of the Wali had
+traced him to his resting-place, and demanded of the Arabs whether a young
+man, a stranger from Syria, did not sojourn among their tribe. The Bedouins
+knew by the description that the stranger must be their guest, and feared
+some evil was intended him. "Such a youth," said they, "has indeed
+sojourned among us; but he has gone, with some of our young men, to a
+distant valley, to hunt the lion." The emissaries inquired the way to the
+place, and hastened on to surprise their expected prey.
+
+The Bedouins repaired to Abderahman, who was still sleeping. "If thou hast
+aught to fear from man in power," said they, "arise and fly; for the
+horsemen of the Wali are in quest of thee! We have sent them off for a time
+on a wrong errand, but they will soon return."
+
+"Alas! whither shall I fly!" cried the unhappy prince; "my enemies hunt me
+like the ostrich of the desert. They follow me like the wind, and allow me
+neither safety nor repose!"
+
+Six of the bravest youth of the tribe stepped forward. "We have steeds,"
+said they, "that can outstrip the wind, and hands that can hurl the
+javelin. We will accompany thee in thy flight, and will fight by thy side
+while life lasts, and we have weapons to wield."
+
+Abderahman embraced them with tears of gratitude. They mounted their
+steeds, and made for the most lonely parts of the desert. By the faint
+light of the stars, they passed through dreary wastes and over hills of
+sand. The lion roared, and the hyena howled unheeded, for they fled from
+man, more cruel and relentless, when in pursuit of blood, than the savage
+beasts of the desert.
+
+At sunrise they paused to refresh themselves beside a scanty well,
+surrounded by a few palm-trees. One of the young Arabs climbed a tree, and
+looked in every direction, but not a horseman was to be seen.
+
+"We have outstripped pursuit," said the Bedouins; "whither shall we conduct
+thee? Where is thy home and the land of thy people?"
+
+"Home have I none!" replied Abderahman, mournfully, "nor family, nor
+kindred! My native land is to me a land of destruction, and my people seek
+my life!"
+
+The hearts of the youthful Bedouins were touched with compassion at these
+words, and they marveled that one so young and gentle should have suffered
+such great sorrow and persecution.
+
+Abderahman sat by the well and mused for a time. At length, breaking
+silence, "In the midst of Mauritania," said he, "dwells the tribe of
+Zeneta. My mother was of that tribe; and perhaps when her son presents
+himself, a persecuted wanderer, at their door, they will not turn him from
+the threshold."
+
+"The Zenetes," replied the Bedouins, "are among the bravest and most
+hospitable of the people of Africa. Never did the unfortunate seek refuge
+among them in vain, nor was the stranger repulsed from their door." So they
+mounted their steeds with renewed spirits, and journeyed with all speed to
+Tahart, the capital of the Zenetes.
+
+When Abderahman entered the place, followed by his six rustic Arabs, all
+wayworn and travel-stained, his noble and majestic demeanor shone through
+the simple garb of a Bedouin. A crowd gathered around him, as he alighted
+from his weary steed. Confiding in the well known character of the tribe,
+he no longer attempted concealment.
+
+"You behold before you," said he, "one of the proscribed house of Omeya. I
+am that Abderahman upon whose head a price has been set, and who has been
+driven from land to land. I come to you as my kindred. My mother was of
+your tribe, and she told me with her dying breath that in all time of need
+I would find a home and friends among the Zenetes."
+
+The words of Abderahman went straight to the hearts of his hearers. They
+pitied his youth and his great misfortunes, while they were charmed by his
+frankness, and by the manly graces of his person. The tribe was of a bold
+and generous spirit, and not to be awed by the frown of power. "Evil be
+upon us and upon our children," said they, "if we deceive the trust thou
+hast placed in us!"
+
+Then one of the noblest Xeques took Abderahman to his house, and treated
+him as his own child; and the principal people of the tribe strove who most
+should cherish him, and do him honor; endeavoring to obliterate by their
+kindness the recollection of his past misfortunes.
+
+Abderahman had resided some time among the hospitable Zenetes, when one day
+two strangers, of venerable appearance, attended by a small retinue,
+arrived at Tahart. They gave themselves out as merchants, and from the
+simple style in which they traveled, excited no attention. In a little
+while they sought out Abderahman, and, taking him apart: "Hearken," said
+they, "Abderahman, of the royal line of Omeya; we are embassadors sent on
+the part of the principal Moslems of Spain, to offer thee, not merely an
+asylum, for that thou hast already among these brave Zenetes, but an
+empire! Spain is a prey to distracting factions, and can no longer exist as
+a dependency upon a throne too remote to watch over its welfare. It needs
+to be independent of Asia and Africa, and to be under the government of a
+good prince, who shall reside within it, and devote himself entirely to its
+prosperity; a prince with sufficient title to silence all rival claims, and
+bring the warring parties into unity and peace; and at the same time with
+sufficient ability and virtue to insure the welfare of his dominions. For
+this purpose the eyes of all the honorable leaders in Spain have been
+turned to thee, as a descendant of the royal line of Omeya, and an offset
+from the same stock as our holy prophet. They have heard of thy virtues,
+and of thy admirable constancy under misfortunes; and invite thee to accept
+the sovereignty of one of the noblest countries in the world. Thou wilt
+have some difficulties to encounter from hostile men; but thou wilt have on
+thy side the bravest captains that have signalized themselves in the
+conquest of the unbelievers."
+
+The embassadors ceased, and Abderahman remained for a time lost in wonder
+and admiration. "God is great!" exclaimed he, at length; "there is but one
+God, who is God, and Mahomet is his prophet! Illustrious embassadors, you
+have put new life into my soul, for you have shown me something to live
+for. In the few years that I have lived, troubles and sorrows have been
+heaped upon my head, and I have become inured to hardships and alarms.
+Since it is the wish of the valiant Moslems of Spain, I am willing to
+become their leader and defender, and devote myself to their cause, be it
+happy or disastrous."
+
+The embassadors now cautioned him to be silent as to their errand, and to
+depart secretly for Spain. "The seaboard of Africa," said they, "swarms
+with your enemies, and a powerful faction in Spain would intercept you on
+landing, did they know your name and rank, and the object of your coming."
+
+But Abderahman replied: "I have been cherished in adversity by these brave
+Zenetes; I have been protected and honored by them, when a price was set
+upon my head, and to harbor me was great peril. How can I keep my good
+fortune from my benefactors, and desert their hospitable roofs in silence?
+He is unworthy of friendship, who withholds confidence from his friend."
+
+Charmed with the generosity of his feelings, the embassadors made no
+opposition to his wishes. The Zenetes proved themselves worthy of his
+confidence. They hailed with joy the great change in his fortunes. The
+warriors and the young men pressed forward to follow, and aid them with
+horse and weapon; "for the honor of a noble house and family," said they,
+"can be maintained only by lances and horsemen." In a few days he set
+forth, with the embassadors, at the head of nearly a thousand horsemen
+skilled in war, and exercised in the desert, and a large body of infantry,
+armed with lances. The venerable Xeque, with whom he had resided, blessed
+him and shed tears over him at parting, as though he had been his own
+child; and when the youth passed over the threshold, the house was filled
+with lamentations.
+
+Abderahman reached Spain in safely, and landed at Almanecar, with his
+little band of warlike Zenetes. Spain was at that time in a state of great
+confusion. Upward of forty years had elapsed since the conquest. The civil
+wars in Syria and Egypt had prevented the main government at Damascus from
+exercising control over this distant and recently acquired territory. Every
+Moslem commander considered the town or province committed to his charge an
+absolute property; and accordingly exercised the most arbitrary extortions.
+These excesses at length became insupportable, and, at a convocation of
+many of the principal leaders, it was determined, as a means to end these
+dissensions, to unite all the Moslem provinces of Spain under one emir, or
+general governor. Yusuf el Fehri, an ancient man, of honorable lineage, was
+chosen for this station. He began his reign with policy, and endeavored to
+conciliate all parties; but the distribution of offices soon created
+powerful enemies among the disappointed leaders. A civil war was the
+consequence, and Spain was deluged with blood. The troops of both parties
+burned and ravaged and laid every thing waste, to distress their
+antagonists; the villages were abandoned by their inhabitants, who fled to
+the cities for refuge; and flourishing towns disappeared from the face of
+the earth, or remained mere heaps of rubbish and ashes. At the time of the
+landing of Abderahman in Spain, the old Emir Yusuf had obtained a signal
+victory. He had captured Saragossa, in which was Ameer ben Amru, his
+principal enemy, together with his son and secretary. Loading his prisoners
+with chains, and putting them on camels, he set out in triumph for Cordova,
+considering himself secure in the absolute domination of Spain.
+
+He had halted one day in a valley called Wadarambla, and was reposing with
+his family in his pavilion, while his people and the prisoners made a
+repast in the open air. In the midst of his repose, his confidential
+adherent and general, the Wali Samael, galloped into the camp covered with
+dust and exhausted with fatigue. He brought tidings of the arrival of
+Abderahman and that the whole seaboard was flocking to his standard.
+Messenger after messenger came hurrying into the camp, confirming the
+fearful tidings, and adding that this descendant of the Omeyas had secretly
+been invited to Spain by Amru and his followers. Yusuf waited not to
+ascertain the truth of this accusation. Giving way to a transport of fury,
+he ordered that Amru, his son and secretary, should be cut to pieces. His
+commands were instantly executed. "And this cruelty," says the Arabian
+chronicler, "lost him the favor of Allah; for from that time success
+deserted his standard."
+
+Abderahman had indeed been hailed with joy on his landing in Spain. The old
+people hoped to find tranquillity under the sway of one supreme chieftain,
+descended from their ancient caliphs; the young men were rejoiced to have a
+youthful warrior to lead them on to victories; and the populace, charmed
+with his freshness and manly beauty, his majestic yet gracious and affable
+demeanor, shouted: "Long live Abderahman ben Moavia Meramamolin of Spain!"
+
+In a few days the youthful sovereign saw himself at the head of more than
+twenty thousand men, from the neighborhood of Elvira, Almeria, Malaga,
+Xeres, and Sidonia. Fair Seville threw open its gates at his approach, and
+celebrated his arrival with public rejoicings. He continued his march into
+the country, vanquished one of the eons of Yusuf before the gates of
+Cordova, and obliged him to take refuge within its walls, where he held him
+in close siege. Hearing, however, of the approach of Yusuf, the father,
+with a powerful army, he divided his forces, and leaving ten thousand men
+to press the siege, he hastened with the other ten to meet the coming foe.
+
+Yusuf had indeed mustered a formidable force, from the east and south of
+Spain, and accompanied by his veteran general, Samael, came with confident
+boasting to drive this intruder from the land. His confidence increased on
+beholding the small army of Abderahman. Turning to Samael, he repeated,
+with a scornful sneer, a verse from an Arabian poetess, which says:
+
+"How hard is our lot! We come, a thirsty multitude, and lo! but this cup of
+water to share among us!"
+
+There was indeed a fearful odds. On the one side were two veteran generals,
+grown gray in victory, with a mighty host of warriors, seasoned in the wars
+of Spain. On the other side was a mere youth, scarce attained to manhood,
+with a hasty levy of half-disciplined troops; but the youth was a prince,
+flushed with hope, and aspiring after fame and empire; and surrounded by a
+devoted band of warriors from Africa, whose example infused desperate zeal
+into the little army.
+
+The encounter took place at daybreak. The impetuous valor of the Zenetes
+carried everything before it. The cavalry of Yusuf was broken, and driven
+back upon the infantry, and before noon the whole host was put to headlong
+flight. Yusuf and Samael were borne along in the torrent of the fugitives,
+raging and storming, and making ineffectual efforts to rally them. They
+were separated widely in the confusion of the flight, one taking refuge in
+the Algarves, the other in the kingdom of Murcia. They afterward rallied,
+reunited their forces, and made another desperate stand near Almunecar. The
+battle was obstinate and bloody, but they were again defeated, and driven,
+with a handful of followers, to take refuge in the rugged mountains
+adjacent to Elvira.
+
+The spirit of the veteran Samael gave way before these fearful reverses.
+"In vain, oh Yusuf!" said he, "do we contend with the prosperous star of
+this youthful conqueror: the will of Allah be done! Let us submit to our
+fate, and sue for favorable terms, while we have yet the means of
+capitulation."
+
+It was a hard trial for the proud spirit of Yusuf, that had once aspired to
+uncontrolled sway; but he was compelled to capitulate. Abderahman was as
+generous as brave. He granted the two gray-headed generals the most
+honorable conditions, and even took the veteran Samael into favor,
+employing him, as a mark of confidence, to visit the eastern provinces of
+Spain, and restore them to tranquillity. Yusuf, having delivered up Elvira
+and Granada, and complied with other articles of his capitulation, was
+permitted to retire to Murcia, and rejoin his son Muhamad. A general
+amnesty to all chiefs and soldiers who should yield up their strongholds,
+and lay down their arms, completed the triumph of Abderahman, and brought
+all hearts into obedience.
+
+Thus terminated this severe struggle for the domination of Spain; and thus
+the illustrious family of Omeya, after having been cast down and almost
+exterminated in the East, took new root, and sprang forth prosperously in
+the West.
+
+Wherever Abderahman appeared, he was received with rapturous acclamations.
+As he rode through the cities, the populace rent the air with shouts of
+joy; the stately palaces were crowded with spectators, eager to gain a
+sight of his graceful form and beaming countenance; and when they beheld
+the mingled majesty and benignity of their new monarch, and the sweetness
+and gentleness of his whole conduct, they extolled him as something more
+than mortal; as a beneficent genius, sent for the happiness of Spain.
+
+In the interval of peace which now succeeded, Abderahman occupied himself
+in promoting the useful and elegant arts, and in introducing into Spain the
+refinements of the East. Considering the building and ornamenting of cities
+as among the noblest employments of the tranquil hours of princes, he
+bestowed great pains upon beautifying the city of Cordova and its environs.
+He reconstructed banks and dikes, to keep the Guadalquivir from overflowing
+its borders, and on the vast terraces thus formed he planted delightful
+gardens. In the midst of these, he erected a lofty tower, commanding a view
+of the vast and fruitful valley, enlivened by the windings of the river. In
+this tower he would pass hours of meditation, gazing on the soft and varied
+landscape, and inhaling the bland and balmy airs of that delightful region.
+At such times, his thoughts would recur to the past, and the misfortunes of
+his youth; the massacre of his family would rise to view, mingled with
+tender recollections of his native country, from which he was exiled. In
+these melancholy musings he would sit with his eyes fixed upon a palm-tree
+which he had planted in the midst of his garden. It is said to have been
+the first ever planted in Spain, and to have been the parent stock of all
+the palm-trees which grace the southern provinces of the peninsula. The
+heart of Abderahman yearned toward this tree; it was the offspring of his
+native country, and, like him, an exile. In one of his moods of tenderness,
+he composed verses upon it, which have since become famous throughout the
+world. The following is a rude but literal translation:
+
+"Beauteous Palm! thou also wert hither brought a stranger; but thy roots
+have found a kindly soil, thy head is lifted to the skies, and the sweet
+airs of Algarve fondle and kiss thy branches.
+
+"Thou hast known, like me, the storms of adverse fortune. Bitter tears
+wouldst thou shed, couldst thou feel my woes. Repeated griefs have
+overwhelmed me. With early tears I bedewed the palms on the banks of the
+Euphrates; but neither tree nor river heeded my sorrows, when driven by
+cruel fate, and the ferocious Aboul Abbas, from the scenes of my childhood
+and the sweet objects of my affection.
+
+"To thee no remembrance remains of my beloved country; I, unhappy! can
+never recall it without tears."
+
+The generosity of Abderahman to his vanquished foes was destined to be
+abused. The veteran Yusuf, in visiting certain of the cities which he had
+surrendered, found himself surrounded by zealous partisans, ready to peril
+life in his service. The love of command revived in his bosom, and he
+repented the facility with which he had suffered himself to be persuaded to
+submission. Flushed with new hopes of success, he caused arms to be
+secretly collected, and deposited in various villages, most zealous in
+their professions of devotion, and raising a considerable body of troops,
+seized upon the castle of Almodovar. The rash rebellion was short-lived. At
+the first appearance of an army sent by Abderahman, and commanded by
+Abdelmelee, governor of Seville, the villages which had so recently
+professed loyalty to Yusuf hastened to declare their attachment to the
+monarch, and to give up the concealed arms. Almodovar was soon retaken, and
+Yusuf, driven to the environs of Lorea, was surrounded by the cavalry of
+Abdelmelee. The veteran endeavored to cut a passage through the enemy, but
+after fighting with desperate fury, and with a force of arm incredible in
+one of his age, he fell beneath blows from weapons of all kinds, so that
+after the battle his body could scarcely be recognized, so numerous were
+the wounds. His head was cut off and sent to Cordova, where it was placed
+in an iron cage, over the gate of the city.
+
+The old lion was dead, but his whelps survived. Yusuf had left three sons,
+who inherited his warlike spirit, and were eager to revenge his death.
+Collecting a number of the scattered adherents of their house, they
+surprised and seized upon Toledo, during the absence of Temam, its Wali or
+commander. In this old warrior city, built upon a rock, and almost
+surrounded by the Tagus, they set up a kind of robber hold, scouring the
+surrounding country, levying tribute, seizing upon horses, and compelling
+the peasantry to join their standard. Every day cavalcades of horses and
+mules, laden with spoil, with flocks of sheep and droves of cattle, came
+pouring over the bridges on either side of the city, and thronging in at
+the gates, the plunder of the surrounding country. Those of the inhabitants
+who were still loyal to Abderahman dared not lift up their voices, for men
+of the sword bore sway. At length one day, when the sons of Yusuf, with
+their choicest troops, were out on a maraud, the watchmen on the towers
+gave the alarm. A troop of scattered horsemen were spurring wildly toward
+the gates. The banners of the sons of Yusuf were descried. Two of them
+spurred into the city, followed by a handful of warriors, covered with
+confusion, and dismay. They had been encountered and defeated by the Wali
+Temam, and one of the brothers had been slain.
+
+The gates were secured in all haste, and the walls were scarcely manned,
+when Temam appeared before them with his troops, and summoned the city to
+surrender. A great internal commotion ensued between the loyalists and the
+insurgents; the latter, however, had weapons in their hands, and prevailed;
+and for several days, trusting to the strength of their rock-built
+fortress, they set the Wali at defiance. At length some of the loyal
+inhabitants of Toledo, who knew all its secret and subterraneous passages,
+some of which, if chroniclers may be believed, have existed since the days
+of Hercules, if not of Tubal Cain, introduced Temam and a chosen band of
+his warriors into the very center of the city, where they suddenly appeared
+as if by magic. A panic seized upon the insurgents. Some sought safety in
+submission, some in concealment, some in flight. Casim, one of the sons of
+Yusuf, escaped in disguise; the youngest, unarmed, was taken, and was sent
+captive to the king, accompanied by the head of his brother, who had been
+slain in battle.
+
+When Abderahman beheld the youth laden with chains, he remembered his own
+sufferings in his early days, and had compassion on him; but, to prevent
+him from doing further mischief, he imprisoned him in a tower of the wall
+of Cordova.
+
+In the meantime Casim, who had escaped, managed to raise another band of
+warriors. Spain, in all ages a guerrilla country, prone to partisan warfare
+and petty maraud, was at that time infested by bands of licentious troops,
+who had sprung up in the civil contests; their only object pillage, their
+only dependence the sword, and ready to flock to any new and desperate
+standard, that promised the greatest license. With a ruffian force thus
+levied, Casim scoured the country, took Sidonia by storm, and surprised
+Seville while in a state of unsuspecting security.
+
+Abderahman put himself at the head of his faithful Zenetes, and took the
+field in person. By the rapidity of his movements, the rebels were
+defeated, Sidonia and Seville speedily retaken, and Casim was made
+prisoner. The generosity of Abderahman was again exhibited toward this
+unfortunate son of Yusuf. He spared his life, and sent him to be confined
+in a tower at Toledo.
+
+The veteran Samael had taken no part in these insurrections, but had
+attended faithfully to the affairs intrusted to him by Abderahman. The
+death of his old friend and colleague, Yusuf, however, and the subsequent
+disasters of his family, filled him with despondency. Fearing the
+inconstancy of fortune, and the dangers incident to public employ, he
+entreated the king to be permitted to retire to his house in Seguenza, and
+indulge a privacy and repose suited to his advanced age. His prayer was
+granted. The veteran laid by his arms, battered in a thousand conflicts;
+hung his sword and lance against the wall, and, surrounded by a few
+friends, gave himself up apparently to the sweets of quiet and unambitious
+leisure.
+
+Who can count, however, upon the tranquil content of a heart nurtured amid
+the storms of war and ambition! Under the ashes of this outward humility
+were glowing the coals of faction. In his seemingly philosophical
+retirement, Samael was concerting with his friends new treason against
+Abderahman. His plot was discovered; his house was suddenly surrounded by
+troops; and he was conveyed to a tower at Toledo, where, in the course of a
+few months, he died in captivity.
+
+The magnanimity of Abderahman was again put to the proof, by a new
+insurrection at Toledo. Hixem ben Adra, a relation of Yusuf, seized upon
+the Alcazar, or citadel, slew several of the royal adherents of the king,
+liberated Casim from his tower, and, summoning all the banditti of the
+country, soon mustered a force of ten thousand men. Abderahman was quickly
+before the walls of Toledo, with the troops of Cordova and his devoted
+Zenetes. The rebels were brought to terms, and surrendered the city on
+promise of general pardon, which was extended even to Hixem and Casim. When
+the chieftains saw Hixem and his principal confederates in the power of
+Abderahman, they advised him to put them all to death. "A promise given to
+traitors and rebels," said they, "is not binding, when it is to the
+interest of the state that it should be broken."
+
+"No!" replied Abderahman, "if the safety of my throne were at stake, I
+would not break my word." So saying, he confirmed the amnesty, and granted
+Hixem ben Adra a worthless life, to be employed in further treason.
+
+Scarcely had Abderahman returned from this expedition, when a powerful
+army, sent by the caliph, landed from Africa on the coast of the Algarves.
+The commander, Aly ben Mogueth, Emir of Cairvan, elevated a rich banner
+which he had received from the hands of the caliph. Wherever he went, he
+ordered the caliph of the East to be proclaimed by sound of trumpet,
+denouncing Abderahman as a usurper, the vagrant member of a family
+proscribed and execrated in all the mosques of the East.
+
+One of the first to join his standard was Hixem ben Adra, so recently
+pardoned by Abderahman. He seized upon the citadel of Toledo, and repairing
+to the camp of Aly, offered to deliver the city into his hands.
+
+Abderahman, as bold in war as he was gentle in peace, took the field with
+his wonted promptness; overthrew his enemies, with great slaughter, drove
+some to the seacoast to regain their ships, and others to the mountains.
+The body of Aly was found on the field of battle. Abderahman caused the
+head to be struck off, and conveyed to Cairvan, where it was affixed at
+night to a column in the public square, with this inscription: "Thus
+Abderahman, the descendant of the Omeyas, punishes the rash and arrogant."
+
+Hixem ben Adra escaped from the field of battle, and excited further
+troubles, but was eventually captured by Abdelmelee, who ordered his head
+to be struck off on the spot, lest he should again be spared, through the
+wonted clemency of Abderahman.
+
+Notwithstanding these signal triumphs, the reign of Abderahman was
+disturbed by further insurrections, and by another descent from Africa, but
+he was victorious over them all; striking the roots of his power deeper and
+deeper into the land. Under his sway, the government of Spain became more
+regular and consolidated, and acquired an independence of the empire of the
+East. The caliph continued to be considered as first pontiff and chief of
+the religion, but he ceased to have any temporal power over Spain.
+
+Having again an interval of peace, Abderahman devoted himself to the
+education of his children. Suleiman, the eldest, he appointed Wali or
+governor of Toledo; Abdallah, the second, was intrusted with the command of
+Merida; but the third son, Hixem, was the delight of his heart, the son of
+Howara, his favorite sultana, whom he loved throughout life with the utmost
+tenderness. With this youth, who was full of promise, he relaxed from the
+fatigues of government; joining in his youthful sports amid the delightful
+gardens of Cordova, and teaching him the gentle art of falconry, of which
+the king was so fond that he received the name of the Falcon of Coraixi.
+
+While Abderahman was thus indulging in the gentle propensities of his
+nature, mischief was secretly at work. Muhamad, the youngest son of Yusuf,
+had been for many years a prisoner in the tower of Cordova. Being passive
+and resigned, his keepers relaxed their vigilance, and brought him forth
+from his dungeon. He went groping about, however, in broad daylight, as if
+still in the darkness of his tower. His guards watched him narrowly, lest
+this should be a deception, but were at length convinced that the long
+absence of light had rendered him blind. They now permitted him to descend
+frequently to the lower chambers of the tower, and to sleep there
+occasionally, during the heats of summer. They even allowed him to grope
+his way to the cistern, in quest of water for his ablutions.
+
+A year passed in this way without anything to excite suspicion. During all
+this time, however, the blindness of Muhamad was entirely a deception; and
+he was concerting a plan of escape, through the aid of some friends of his
+father, who found means to visit him occasionally. One sultry evening in
+midsummer, the guards had gone to bathe in the Guadalquivir, leaving
+Muhamad alone, in the lower chambers of the tower. No sooner were they out
+of sight and hearing than he hastened to a window of the staircase, leading
+down to the cistern, lowered himself as far as his arms would reach, and
+dropped without injury to the ground. Plunging into the Guadalquivir, he
+swam across to a thick grove on the opposite side, where his friends were
+waiting to receive him. Here, mounting a horse which they had provided for
+an event of the kind, he fled across the country, by solitary roads, and
+made good his escape to the mountains of Jaen.
+
+The guardians of the tower dreaded for some time to make known his flight
+to Abderahman. When at length it was told to him, he exclaimed: "All is the
+work of eternal wisdom; it is intended to teach us that we cannot benefit
+the wicked without injuring the good. The flight of that blind man will
+cause much trouble and bloodshed."
+
+His predictions were verified. Muhamad reared the standard of rebellion on
+the mountains; the seditious and discontented of all kinds hastened to join
+it, together with soldiers of fortune, or rather wandering banditti, and he
+had soon six thousand men, well armed, hardy in habits and desperate in
+character. His brother Casim also reappeared about the same time in the
+mountains of Ronda, at the head of a daring band that laid all the
+neighboring valleys under contribution.
+
+Abderahman summoned his alcaydes from their various military posts, to
+assist in driving the rebels from their mountain fastnesses into the
+plains. It was a dangerous and protracted toil, for the mountains were
+frightfully wild and rugged. He entered them with a powerful host, driving
+the rebels from height to height and valley to valley, and harassing them
+by a galling fire from thousands of crossbows. At length a decisive battle
+took place near the river Guadalemar. The rebels were signally defeated;
+four thousand fell in action, many were drowned in the river, and Muhamad,
+with a few horsemen, escaped to the mountains of the Algarves. Here he was
+hunted by the alcaydes from one desolate retreat to another; his few
+followers grew tired of sharing the disastrous fortunes of a fated man; one
+by one deserted him, and he himself deserted the remainder, fearing they
+might give him up, to purchase their own pardon.
+
+Lonely and disguised, he plunged into the depths of the forests, or lurked
+in dens and caverns, like a famished wolf, often casting back his thoughts
+with regret to the time of his captivity in the gloomy tower of Cordova.
+Hunger at length drove him to Alarcon, at the risk of being discovered.
+Famine and misery, however, had so wasted and changed him that he was not
+recognized. He remained nearly a year in Alarcon, unnoticed and unknown,
+yet constantly tormenting himself with the dread of discovery, and with
+groundless fears of the vengeance of Abderahman. Death at length put an end
+to his wretchedness.
+
+A milder fate attended his brother Casim. Being defeated in the mountains
+of Murcia, he was conducted in chains to Cordova. On coming into the
+presence of Abderahman, his once fierce and haughty spirit, broken by
+distress, gave way; he threw himself on the earth, kissed the dust beneath
+the feet of the king, and implored his clemency. The benignant heart of
+Abderahman was filled with melancholy, rather than exultation, at beholding
+this wreck of the once haughty family of Yusuf a suppliant at his feet, and
+suing for mere existence. He thought upon the mutability of fortune, and
+felt how insecure are all her favors. He raised the unhappy Casim from the
+earth, ordered his irons to be taken off, and, not content with mere
+forgiveness, treated him with honor, and gave him possessions in Seville,
+where he might live in state conformable to the ancient dignity of his
+family. Won by this great and persevering magnanimity, Casim ever after
+remained one of the most devoted of his subjects.
+
+All the enemies of Abderahman were at length subdued; he reigned undisputed
+sovereign of the Moslems of Spain; and so benign was his government that
+every one blessed the revival of the illustrious line of Omeya. He was at
+all times accessible to the humblest of his subjects: the poor man ever
+found in him a friend, and the oppressed a protector. He improved the
+administration of justice; established schools for public instruction;
+encouraged poets and men of letters, and cultivated the sciences. He built
+mosques in every city that he visited; inculcated religion by example as
+well as by precept; and celebrated all the festivals prescribed by the
+Koran with the utmost magnificence.
+
+As a monument of gratitude to God for the prosperity with which he had been
+favored, he undertook to erect a mosque in his favorite city of Cordova
+that should rival in splendor the great mosque of Damascus, and excel the
+one recently erected in Bagdad by the Abbassides, the supplanters of his
+family.
+
+It is said that he himself furnished the plan for this famous edifice, and
+even worked on it, with his own hands, one hour in each day, to testify his
+zeal and humility in the service of God, and to animate his workmen. He did
+not live to see it completed, but it was finished according to his plans by
+his son Hixem. When finished, it surpassed the most splendid mosques of the
+east. It was six hundred feet in length, and two hundred and fifty in
+breadth. Within were twenty-eight aisles, crossed by nineteen, supported by
+a thousand and ninety-three columns of marble. There were nineteen portals,
+covered with plates of bronze of rare workmanship. The principal portal was
+covered with plates of gold. On the summit of the grand cupola were three
+gilt balls surmounted by a golden pomegranate. At night, the mosque was
+illuminated with four thousand seven hundred lamps, and great sums were
+expended in amber and aloes, which were burned as perfumes. The mosque
+remains to this day, shorn of its ancient splendor, yet still one of the
+grandest Moslem monuments in Spain.
+
+Finding himself advancing in years, Abderahman assembled in his capital of
+Cordova the principal governors and commanders of his kingdom, and in
+presence of them all, with great solemnity, nominated his son Hixem as the
+successor to the throne. All present made an oath of fealty to Abderahman
+during his life, and to Hixem after his death. The prince was younger than
+his brothers, Suleiman and Abdallah; but he was the son of Howara, the
+tenderly beloved sultana of Abderahman, and her influence, it is said,
+gained him this preference.
+
+Within a few months afterward, Abderahman fell grievously sick at Merida.
+Finding his end approaching, he summoned Hixem to his bedside: "My son,"
+said he, "the angel of death is hovering over me; treasure up, therefore,
+in thy heart this dying counsel, which I give through the great love I bear
+thee. Remember that all empire is from God, who gives and takes it away,
+according to his pleasure. Since God, through his divine goodness, has
+given us regal power and authority, let us do his holy will, which is
+nothing else than to do good to all men, and especially to those committed
+to our protection. Render equal justice, my son, to the rich and the poor,
+and never suffer injustice to be done within thy dominion, for it is the
+road to perdition. Be merciful and benignant to those dependent upon thee.
+Confide the government of thy cities and provinces to men of worth and
+experience; punish without compassion those ministers who oppress thy
+people with exorbitant exactions. Pay thy troops punctually; teach them to
+feel a certainty in thy promises; command them with gentleness but
+firmness, and make them in truth the defenders of the state, not its
+destroyers. Cultivate unceasingly the affections of thy people, for in
+their good-will consists the security of the state, in their distrust its
+peril, in their hatred its certain ruin. Protect the husbandmen who
+cultivate the earth, and yield us necessary sustenance; never permit their
+fields, and groves, and gardens to be disturbed. In a word, act in such
+wise that thy people may bless thee, and may enjoy, under the shadow of thy
+wing, a secure and tranquil life. In this consists good government; if thou
+dost practice it, thou wilt be happy among thy people, and renowned
+throughout the world."
+
+Having given this excellent counsel, the good king Abderahman blessed his
+son Hixem, and shortly after died; being but in the sixtieth year of his
+age. He was interred with great pomp; but the highest honors that
+distinguished his funeral were the tears of real sorrow shed upon his
+grave. He left behind him a name for valor, justice, and magnanimity, and
+forever famous as being the founder of the glorious line of the Ommiades in
+Spain.
+
+
+
+
+THE WIDOW'S ORDEAL
+
+OR A JUDICIAL TRIAL BY COMBAT
+
+
+The world is daily growing older and wiser. Its institutions vary with its
+years, and mark its growing wisdom; and none more so than its modes of
+investigating truth, and ascertaining guilt or innocence. In its nonage,
+when man was yet a fallible being, and doubted the accuracy of his own
+intellect, appeals were made to heaven in dark and doubtful cases of
+atrocious accusation.
+
+The accused was required to plunge his hand in boiling oil, or to walk
+across red-hot plowshares, or to maintain his innocence in armed fight and
+listed field, in person or by champion. If he passed these ordeals
+unscathed, he stood acquitted, and the result was regarded as a verdict
+from on high.
+
+It is somewhat remarkable that, in the gallant age of chivalry, the gentler
+sex should have been most frequently the subjects of these rude trials and
+perilous ordeals; and that, too, when assailed in their most delicate and
+vulnerable part--their honor.
+
+In the present very old and enlightened age of the world, when the human
+intellect is perfectly competent to the management of its own concerns, and
+needs no special interposition of heaven in its affairs, the trial by jury
+has superseded these superhuman ordeals; and the unanimity of twelve
+discordant minds is necessary to constitute a verdict. Such a unanimity
+would, at first sight, appear also to require a miracle from heaven; but it
+is produced by a simple device of human ingenuity. The twelve jurors are
+locked up in their box, there to fast until abstinence shall have so
+clarified their intellects that the whole jarring panel can discern the
+truth, and concur in a unanimous decision. One point is certain, that truth
+is one and is immutable--until the jurors all agree, they cannot all be
+right.
+
+It is not our intention, however, to discuss this great judicial point, or
+to question the avowed superiority of the mode of investigating truth
+adopted in this antiquated and very sagacious era. It is our object merely
+to exhibit to the curious reader one of the most memorable cases of
+judicial combat we find in the annals of Spain. It occurred at the bright
+commencement of the reign, and in the youthful, and, as yet, glorious days,
+of Roderick the Goth; who subsequently tarnished his fame at home by his
+misdeeds, and, finally, lost his kingdom and his life on the banks of the
+Guadalete, in that disastrous battle which gave up Spain a conquest to the
+Moors. The following is the story:
+
+There was once upon a time a certain duke of Lorraine, who was acknowledged
+throughout his domains to be one of the wisest princes that ever lived. In
+fact, there was no one measure adopted by him that did not astonish his
+privy counselors and gentlemen in attendance; and he said such witty
+things, and made such sensible speeches, that the jaws of his high
+chamberlain were wellnigh dislocated from laughing with delight at one, and
+gaping with wonder at the other.
+
+This very witty and exceedingly wise potentate lived for half a century in
+single blessedness; at length his courtiers began to think it a great pity
+so wise and wealthy a prince should not have a child after his own
+likeness, to inherit his talents and domains; so they urged him most
+respectfully to marry, for the good of his estate, and the welfare of his
+subjects.
+
+He turned their advice over in his mind some four or five years, and then
+sent forth emissaries to summon to his court all the beautiful maidens in
+the land who were ambitious of sharing a ducal crown. The court was soon
+crowded with beauties of all styles and complexions, from among whom he
+chose one in the earliest budding of her charms, and acknowledged by all
+the gentlemen to be unparalleled for grace and loveliness. The courtiers
+extolled the duke to the skies for making such a choice, and considered it
+another proof of his great wisdom. "The duke," said they, "is waxing a
+little too old, the damsel, on the other hand, is a little too young; if
+one is lacking in years, the other has a superabundance; thus a want on one
+side is balanced by the excess on the other, and the result is a
+well-assorted marriage."
+
+The duke, as is often the case with wise men who marry rather late, and
+take damsels rather youthful to their bosoms, became dotingly fond of his
+wife, and very properly indulged her in all things. He was, consequently,
+cried up by his subjects in general, and by the ladies in particular, as a
+pattern for husbands; and, in the end, from the wonderful docility with
+which he submitted to be reined and checked, acquired the amiable and
+enviable appellation of Duke Philibert the wife-ridden.
+
+There was only one thing that disturbed the conjugal felicity of this
+paragon of husbands--though a considerable tine elapsed after his marriage,
+there was still no prospect of an heir. The good duke left no means untried
+to propitiate heaven. He made vows and pilgrimages, he fasted and he
+prayed, but all to no purpose. The courtiers were all astonished at the
+circumstance. They could not account for it. While the meanest peasant in
+the country had sturdy brats by dozens, without putting up a prayer, the
+duke wore himself to skin and bone with penances and fastings, yet seemed
+further off from his object than ever.
+
+At length, the worthy prince fell dangerously ill, and felt his end
+approaching. He looked sorrowfully and dubiously upon his young and tender
+spouse, who hung over him with tears and sobbings. "Alas!" said he, "tears
+are soon dried from youthful eyes, and sorrow lies lightly on a youthful
+heart. In a little while thou wilt forget in the arms of another husband
+him who has loved thee so tenderly."
+
+"Never! never!" cried the duchess. "Never will I cleave to another! Alas,
+that my lord should think me capable of such inconstancy!"
+
+The worthy and wife-ridden duke was soothed by her assurances; for he could
+not brook the thought of giving her up even after he should be dead. Still
+he wished to have some pledge of her enduring constancy:
+
+"Far be it from me, my dearest wife," said he, "to control thee through a
+long life. A year and a day of strict fidelity will appease my troubled
+spirit. Promise to remain faithful to my memory for a year and a day, and I
+will die in peace."
+
+The duchess made a solemn vow to that effect, but the uxorious feelings of
+the duke were not yet satisfied. "Safe bind, safe find," thought he; so he
+made a will, bequeathing to her all his domains, on condition of her
+remaining true to him for a year and a day after his decease; but, should
+it appear that, within that time, she had in anywise lapsed from her
+fidelity, the inheritance should go to his nephew, the lord of a
+neighboring territory.
+
+Having made his will, the good duke died and was buried. Scarcely was he in
+his tomb, when his nephew came to take possession, thinking, as his uncle
+had died without issue, the domains would be devised to him of course. He
+was in a furious passion, when the will was produced, and the young widow
+declared inheritor of the dukedom. As he was a violent, high-handed man,
+and one of the sturdiest knights in the land, fears were entertained that
+he might attempt to seize on the territories by force. He had, however, two
+bachelor uncles for bosom counselors, swaggering, rakehelly old cavaliers,
+who, having led loose and riotous lives, prided themselves upon knowing the
+world, and being deeply experienced in human nature. "Prithee, man, be of
+good cheer," said they, "the duchess is a young and buxom widow. She has
+just buried our brother, who, God rest his soul! was somewhat too much
+given to praying and fasting, and kept his pretty wife always tied to his
+girdle. She is now like a bird from a cage. Think you she will keep her
+vow? Pooh, pooh--impossible! Take our words for it--we know mankind, and,
+above all, womankind. She cannot hold out for such a length of time; it is
+not in womanhood--it is not in widowhood--we know it, and that's enough.
+Keep a sharp lookout upon the widow, therefore, and within the twelvemonth
+you will catch her tripping--and then the dukedom is your own."
+
+The nephew was pleased with this counsel, and immediately placed spies
+round the duchess, and bribed several of her servants to keep watch upon
+her, so that she could not take a single step, even from one apartment of
+her palace to another, without being observed. Never was young and
+beautiful widow exposed to so terrible an ordeal.
+
+The duchess was aware of the watch thus kept upon her. Though confident of
+her own rectitude, she knew that it is not enough for a woman to be
+virtuous--she must be above the reach of slander. For the whole term of her
+probation, therefore, she proclaimed a strict non-intercourse with the
+other sex. She had females for cabinet ministers and chamberlains, through
+whom she transacted all her public and private concerns; and it is said
+that never were the affairs of the dukedom so adroitly administered.
+
+All males were rigorously excluded from the palace; she never went out of
+its precincts, and whenever she moved about its courts and gardens she
+surrounded herself with a bodyguard of young maids of honor, commanded by
+dames renowned for discretion. She slept in a bed without curtains, placed
+in the center of a room illuminated by innumerable wax tapers. Four ancient
+spinsters, virtuous as Virginia, perfect dragons of watchfulness, who only
+slept during the daytime, kept vigils throughout the night, seated in the
+four corners of the room on stools without backs or arms, and with seats
+cut in checkers of the hardest wood, to keep them from dozing.
+
+Thus wisely and warily did the young duchess conduct herself for twelve
+long months, and slander almost bit her tongue off in despair, at finding
+no room even for a surmise. Never was ordeal more burdensome, or more
+enduringly sustained.
+
+
+The year passed away. The last, odd day, arrived, and a long, long day it
+was. It was the twenty-first of June, the longest day in the year. It
+seemed as if it would never come to an end. A thousand times did the
+duchess and her ladies watch the sun from the windows of the palace, as he
+slowly climbed the vault of heaven, and seemed still more slowly to roll
+down. They could not help expressing their wonder, now and then, why the
+duke should have tagged this supernumerary day to the end of the year, as
+if three hundred and sixty-five days were not sufficient to try and task
+the fidelity of any woman. It is the last grain that turns the scale--the
+last drop that overflows the goblet--and the last moment of delay that
+exhausts the patience. By the time the sun sank below the horizon, the
+duchess was in a fidget that passed all bounds, and, though several hours
+were yet to pass before the day regularly expired, she could not have
+remained those hours in durance to gain a royal crown, much less a ducal
+coronet. So she gave orders, and her palfrey, magnificently caparisoned,
+was brought into the courtyard of the castle, with palfreys for all her
+ladies in attendance. In this way she sallied forth, just as the sun had
+gone down. It was a mission of piety--a pilgrim cavalcade to a convent at
+the foot of a neighboring mountain--to return thanks to the blessed Virgin,
+for having sustained her through this fearful ordeal.
+
+The orisons performed, the duchess and her ladies returned, ambling gently
+along the border of a forest. It was about that mellow hour of twilight
+when night and day are mingled and all objects are indistinct. Suddenly,
+some monstrous animal sprang from out a thicket, with fearful howlings. The
+female bodyguard was thrown into confusion, and fled different ways. It was
+some time before they recovered from their panic, and gathered once more
+together; but the duchess was not to be found. The greatest anxiety was
+felt for her safety. The hazy mist of twilight had prevented their
+distinguishing perfectly the animal which had affrighted them. Some thought
+it a wolf, others a bear, others a wild man of the woods. For upward of an
+hour did they beleaguer the forest, without daring to venture in, and were
+on the point of giving up the duchess as torn to pieces and devoured, when,
+to their great joy, they beheld her advancing in the gloom, supported by a
+stately cavalier.
+
+He was a stranger knight, whom nobody knew. It was impossible to
+distinguish his countenance in the dark; but all the ladies agreed that he
+was of noble presence and captivating address. He had rescued the duchess
+from the very fangs of the monster, which, he assured the ladies, was
+neither a wolf, nor a bear, nor yet a wild man of the woods, but a
+veritable fiery dragon, a species of monster peculiarly hostile to
+beautiful females in the days of chivalry, and which all the efforts of
+knight-errantry had not been able to extirpate.
+
+The ladies crossed themselves when they heard of the danger from which they
+had escaped, and could not enough admire the gallantry of the cavalier. The
+duchess would fain have prevailed on her deliverer to accompany her to her
+court; but he had no time to spare, being a knight-errant, who had many
+adventures on hand, and many distressed damsels and afflicted widows to
+rescue and relieve in various parts of the country. Taking a respectful
+leave, therefore, he pursued his wayfaring, and the duchess and her train
+returned to the palace. Throughout the whole way, the ladies were unwearied
+in chanting the praises of the stranger knight, nay, many of them would
+willingly have incurred the danger of the dragon to have enjoyed the happy
+deliverance of the duchess. As to the latter, she rode pensively along, but
+said nothing.
+
+No sooner was the adventure of the wood made public than a whirlwind was
+raised about the ears of the beautiful duchess. The blustering nephew of
+the deceased duke went about, armed to the teeth, with a swaggering uncle
+at each shoulder, ready to back him, and swore the duchess had forfeited
+her domain. It was in vain that she called all the saints, and angels, and
+her ladies in attendance into the bargain, to witness that she had passed a
+year and a day of immaculate fidelity. One fatal hour remained to be
+accounted for; and into the space of one little hour sins enough may be
+conjured up by evil tongues to blast the fame of a whole life of virtue.
+
+The two graceless uncles, who had seen the world, were ever ready to
+bolster the matter through, and as they were brawny, broad-shouldered
+warriors, and veterans in brawl as well as debauch, they had great sway
+with the multitude. If any one pretended to assert the innocence of the
+duchess, they interrupted him with a loud ha! ha! of derision. "A pretty
+story, truly," would they cry, "about a wolf and a dragon, and a young
+widow rescued in the dark by a sturdy varlet who dares not show his face in
+the daylight. You may tell that to those who do not know human nature, for
+our parts, we know the sex, and that's enough."
+
+If, however, the other repeated his assertion, they would suddenly knit
+their brows, swell, look big, and put their hands upon their swords. As few
+people like to fight in a cause that does not touch their own interests,
+the nephew and the uncles were suffered to have their way, and swagger
+uncontradicted.
+
+The matter was at length referred to a tribunal, composed of all the
+dignitaries of the dukedom, and many and repeated consultations were held.
+The character of the duchess throughout the year was as bright and spotless
+as the moon in a cloudless night; one fatal hour of darkness alone
+intervened to eclipse its brightness. Finding human sagacity incapable of
+dispelling the mystery, it was determined to leave the question to heaven;
+or, in other words, to decide it by the ordeal of the sword--a sage
+tribunal in the age of chivalry. The nephew and two bully uncles were to
+maintain their accusation in listed combat, and six months were allowed to
+the duchess to provide herself with three champions to meet them in the
+field. Should she fail in this, or should her champions be vanquished, her
+honor would be considered as attainted, her fidelity as forfeit, and her
+dukedom would go to the nephew, as a matter of right.
+
+With this determination the duchess was fain to comply. Proclamations were
+accordingly made, and heralds sent to various parts; but day after day,
+week after week, and month after month elapsed without any champion
+appearing to assert her loyalty throughout that darksome hour. The fair
+widow was reduced to despair, when tidings reached her of grand tournaments
+to be held at Toledo, in celebration of the nuptials of Don Roderick, the
+last of the Gothic kings, with the Morisco princess Exilona. As a last
+resort, the duchess repaired to the Spanish court, to implore the gallantry
+of its assembled chivalry.
+
+The ancient city of Toledo was a scene of gorgeous revelry on the event of
+the royal nuptials. The youthful king, brave, ardent, and magnificent, and
+his lovely bride, beaming with all the radiant beauty of the East, were
+hailed with shouts and acclamations whenever they appeared. Their nobles
+vied with each other in the luxury of their attire, their prancing steeds,
+and splendid retinues; and the haughty dames of the court appeared in a
+blaze of jewels.
+
+In the midst of all this pageantry, the beautiful, but afflicted Duchess of
+Lorraine made her approach to the throne. She was dressed in black, and
+closely veiled; for duennas of the most staid and severe aspect, and six
+beautiful demoiselles, formed her female attendants. She was guarded by
+several very ancient, withered, and grayheaded cavaliers; and her train was
+borne by one of the most deformed and diminutive dwarfs in existence.
+
+Advancing to the foot of the throne, she knelt down, and, throwing up her
+veil, revealed a countenance so beautiful that half the courtiers present
+were ready to renounce wives and mistresses, and devote themselves to her
+service; but when she made known that she came in quest of champions to
+defend her fame, every cavalier pressed forward to offer his arm and sword,
+without inquiring into the merits of the case; for it seemed clear that so
+beauteous a lady could have done nothing but what was right; and that, at
+any rate, she ought to be championed in following the bent of her humors,
+whether right or wrong.
+
+Encouraged by such gallant zeal, the duchess suffered herself to be raised
+from the ground, and related the whole story of her distress. When she
+concluded, the king remained for some time silent, charmed by the music of
+her voice. At length: "As I hope for salvation, most beautiful duchess,"
+said he, "were I not a sovereign king, and bound in duty to my kingdom, I
+myself would put lance in rest to vindicate your cause; as it is, I here
+give full permission to my knights, and promise lists and a fair field, and
+that the contest shall take place before the walls of Toledo, in presence
+of my assembled court."
+
+As soon as the pleasure of the king was known, there was a strife among the
+cavaliers present for the honor of the contest. It was decided by lot, and
+the successful candidates were objects of great envy, for every one was
+ambitious of finding favor in the eyes of the beautiful widow.
+
+Missives were sent, summoning the nephew and his two uncles to Toledo, to
+maintain their accusation, and a day was appointed for the combat. When the
+day arrived, all Toledo was in commotion at an early hour. The lists had
+been prepared in the usual place, just without the walls, at the foot of
+the rugged rocks on which the city is built, and on that beautiful meadow
+along the Tagus, known by the name of the king's garden. The populace had
+already assembled, each one eager to secure a favorable place; the
+balconies were filled with the ladies of the court, clad in their richest
+attire, and bands of youthful knights, splendidly armed and decorated with
+their ladies' devices, were managing their superbly caparisoned steeds
+about the field. The king at length came forth in state, accompanied by the
+queen Exilona. They took their seats in a raised balcony, under a canopy of
+rich damask; and, at sight of them, the people rent the air with
+acclamations.
+
+The nephew and his uncles now rode into the field, armed cap-a-pie, and
+followed by a train of cavaliers of their own roistering cast, great
+swearers and carousers, arrant swashbucklers, with clanking armor and
+jingling spurs. When the people of Toledo beheld the vaunting and
+discourteous appearance of these knights, they were more anxious than ever
+for the success of the gentle duchess; but, at the same time, the sturdy
+and stalwart frames of these warriors showed that whoever won the victory
+from them must do it at the cost of many a bitter blow.
+
+As the nephew and his riotous crew rode in at one side of the field, the
+fair widow appeared at the other, with her suite of grave grayheaded
+courtiers, her ancient duennas and dainty demoiselles, and the little dwarf
+toiling along under the weight of her train. Every one made way for her as
+she passed, and blessed her beautiful face, and prayed for success to her
+cause. She took her seat in a lower balcony, not far from the sovereigns;
+and her pale face, set off by her mourning weeds, was as the moon shining
+forth from among the clouds of night.
+
+The trumpets sounded for the combat. The warriors were just entering the
+lists, when a stranger knight, armed in panoply, and followed by two pages
+and an esquire, came galloping into the field, and, riding up to the royal
+balcony, claimed the combat as a matter of right.
+
+"In me," cried he, "behold the cavalier who had the happiness to rescue the
+beautiful duchess from the peril of the forest, and the misfortune to bring
+on her this grievous calumny. It was but recently, in the course of my
+errantry, that tidings of her wrongs have reached my ears, and I have urged
+hither at all speed, to stand forth in her vindication."
+
+No sooner did the duchess hear the accents of the knight than she
+recognized his voice, and joined her prayers with his that he might enter
+the lists. The difficulty was, to determine which of the three champions
+already appointed should yield his place, each insisting on the honor of
+the combat. The stranger knight would have settled the point, by taking the
+whole contest upon himself; but this the other knights would not permit. It
+was at length determined, as before, by lot, and the cavalier who lost the
+chance retired murmuring and disconsolate.
+
+The trumpets again sounded--the lists were opened. The arrogant nephew and
+his two drawcansir uncles appeared so completely cased in steel that they
+and their steeds were like moving masses of iron. When they understood the
+stranger knight to be the same that had rescued the duchess from her peril,
+they greeted him with the most boisterous derision:
+
+"Oh, ho! sir Knight of the Dragon," said they, "you who pretend to champion
+fair widows in the dark, come on, and vindicate your deeds of darkness in
+the open day."
+
+The only reply of the cavalier was to put lance in rest, and brace himself
+for the encounter. Needless is it to relate the particulars of a battle,
+which was like so many hundred combats that have been said and sung in
+prose and verse. Who is there but must have foreseen the event of a
+contest, where Heaven had to decide on the guilt or innocence of the most
+beautiful and immaculate of widows?
+
+The sagacious reader, deeply read in this kind of judicial combats, can
+imagine the encounter of the graceless nephew and the stranger knight. He
+sees their concussion, man to man, and horse to horse, in mid career, and
+Sir Graceless hurled to the ground and slain. He will not wonder that the
+assailants of the brawny uncles were less successful in their rude
+encounter; but he will picture to himself the stout stranger spurring to
+their rescue, in the very critical moment; he will see him transfixing one
+with his lance, and cleaving the other to the chine with a back stroke of
+his sword, thus leaving the trio of accusers dead upon the field, and
+establishing the immaculate fidelity of the duchess, and her title to the
+dukedom, beyond the shadow of a doubt.
+
+The air rang with acclamations; nothing was heard but praises of the beauty
+and virtue of the duchess, and of the prowess of the stranger knight; but
+the public joy was still more increased when the champion raised his visor,
+and revealed the countenance of one of the bravest cavaliers of Spain,
+renowned for his gallantry in the service of the sex, and who had been
+round the world in quest of similar adventures.
+
+That worthy knight, however, was severely wounded, and remained for a long
+time ill of his wounds. The lovely duchess, grateful for having twice owed
+her protection to his arm, attended him daily during his illness; and
+finally rewarded his gallantry with her hand.
+
+The king would fain have had the knight establish his title to such high
+advancement by further deeds of arms; but his courtiers declared that he
+already merited the lady, by thus vindicating her fame and fortune in a
+deadly combat _à outrance_; and the lady herself hinted that she was
+perfectly satisfied of his prowess in arms, from the proofs she had
+received in his achievement in the forest.
+
+Their nuptials were celebrated with great magnificence. The present husband
+of the duchess did not pray and fast like his predecessor, Philibert the
+wife-ridden; yet he found greater favor in the eyes of heaven, for their
+union was blessed with a numerous progeny--the daughters chaste and
+beauteous as their mother; the sons stout and valiant as their sire, and
+renowned, like him, for relieving disconsolate damsels and desolated
+widows.
+
+
+
+
+THE CREOLE VILLAGE
+
+A SKETCH FROM A STEAMBOAT
+
+First published in 1887
+
+
+In traveling about our motley country, I am often reminded of Ariosto's
+account of the moon, in which the good paladin Astolpho found everything
+garnered up that had been lost on earth. So I am apt to imagine, that many
+things lost in the old world are treasured up in the new; having been
+handed down from generation to generation, since the early days of the
+colonies. A European antiquary, therefore, curious in his researches after
+the ancient and almost obliterated customs and usages of his country, would
+do well to put himself upon the track of some early band of emigrants,
+follow them across the Atlantic, and rummage among their descendants on our
+shores.
+
+In the phraseology of New England might be found many an old English
+provincial phrase, long since obsolete in the parent country; with some
+quaint relics of the roundheads; while Virginia cherishes peculiarities
+characteristic of the days of Elizabeth and Sir Walter Raleigh.
+
+In the same way the sturdy yeomanry of New Jersey and Pennsylvania keep up
+many usages fading away in ancient Germany; while many an honest,
+broad-bottomed custom, nearly extinct in venerable Holland, may be found
+flourishing in pristine vigor and luxuriance in Dutch villages, on the
+banks of the Mohawk and the Hudson.
+
+In no part of our country, however, are the customs and peculiarities,
+imported from the old world by the earlier settlers, kept up with more
+fidelity than in the little, poverty-stricken villages of Spanish and
+French origin, which border the rivers of ancient Louisiana. Their
+population is generally made up of the descendants of those nations,
+married and interwoven together, and occasionally crossed with a slight
+dash of the Indian. The French character, however, floats on top, as, from
+its buoyant qualities, it is sure to do, whenever it forms a particle,
+however small, of an intermixture.
+
+In these serene and dilapidated villages, art and nature stand still, and
+the world forgets to turn round. The revolutions that distract other parts
+of this mutable planet reach not here, or pass over without leaving any
+trace. The fortunate inhabitants have none of that public spirit which
+extends its cares beyond its horizon, and imports trouble and perplexity
+from all quarters in newspapers. In fact, newspapers are almost unknown in
+these villages, and as French is the current language, the inhabitants have
+little community of opinion with their republican neighbors. They retain,
+therefore, their old habits of passive obedience to the decrees of
+government, as though they still lived under the absolute sway of colonial
+commandants, instead of being part and parcel of the sovereign people, and
+having a voice in public legislation.
+
+A few aged men, who have grown gray on their hereditary acres, and are of
+the good old colonial stock, exert a patriarchal sway in all matters of
+public and private import; their opinions are considered oracular, and
+their word is law.
+
+The inhabitants, moreover, have none of that eagerness for gain and rage
+for improvement which keep our people continually on the move, and our
+country towns incessantly in a state of transition. There the magic
+phrases, "town lots," "water privileges," "railroads," and other
+comprehensive and soul-stirring words from the speculator's vocabulary, are
+never heard. The residents dwell in the houses built by their forefathers,
+without thinking of enlarging or modernizing them, or pulling them down and
+turning them into granite stores. The trees, under which they have been
+born and have played in infancy, flourish undisturbed; though, by cutting
+them down, they might open new streets, and put money in their pockets. In
+a word, the almighty dollar, that great object of universal devotion
+throughout our land, seems to have no genuine devotees in these peculiar
+villages; and unless some of its missionaries penetrate there, and erect
+banking houses and other pious shrines, there is no knowing how long the
+inhabitants may remain in their present state of contented poverty.
+
+In descending one of our great Western rivers in a steam-boat, I met with
+two worthies from one of these villages, who had been on a distant
+excursion, the longest they had ever made, as they seldom ventured far from
+home. One was the great man, or grand seigneur, of the village; not that he
+enjoyed any legal privileges or power there, everything of the kind having
+been done away when the province was ceded by France to the United States.
+His sway over his neighbors was merely one of custom and convention, out of
+deference to his family. Beside, he was worth full fifty thousand dollars,
+an amount almost equal, in the imaginations of the villagers, to the
+treasures of King Solomon.
+
+This very substantial old gentleman, though of the fourth or fifth
+generation in this country, retained the true Gallic feature and
+deportment, and reminded me of one of those provincial potentates that are
+to be met with in the remote parts of France. He was of a large frame, a
+ginger-bread complexion, strong features, eyes that stood out like glass
+knobs, and a prominent nose, which he frequently regaled from a gold
+snuff-box, and occasionally blew, with a colored handkerchief, until it
+sounded like a trumpet.
+
+He was attended by an old negro, as black as ebony, with a huge mouth in a
+continual grin; evidently a privileged and favorite servant, who had grown
+up and grown old with him. He was dressed in creole style--with white
+jacket and trousers, a stiff shirt collar that threatened to cut off his
+ears, a bright Madras handkerchief tied round his head, and large gold
+earrings. He was the politest negro I met with in a Western tour; and that
+is saying a great deal, for, excepting the Indians, the negroes are the
+most gentlemanlike personages to be met with in those parts. It is true,
+they differ from the Indians in being a little extra polite and
+complimentary. He was also one of the merriest; and here, too, the negroes,
+however we may deplore their unhappy condition, have the advantage of their
+masters. The whites are, in general, too free and prosperous to be merry.
+The cares of maintaining their rights and liberties, adding to their
+wealth, and making presidents, engross all their thoughts, and dry up all
+the moisture of their souls. If you hear a broad, hearty, devil-may-care
+laugh, be assured it is a negro's.
+
+Besides this African domestic, the seigneur of the village had another no
+less cherished and privileged attendant. This was a huge dog, of the
+mastiff breed, with a deep, hanging mouth, and a look of surly gravity. He
+walked about the cabin with the air of a dog perfectly at home, and who had
+paid for his passage. At dinner time he took his seat beside his master,
+giving him a glance now and then out of a corner of his eye, which bespoke
+perfect confidence that he would not be forgotten. Nor was he--every now
+and then a huge morsel would be thrown to him, peradventure the half-picked
+leg of a fowl, which he would receive with a snap like the springing of a
+steel-trap--one gulp, and all was down; and a glance of the eye told his
+master that he was ready for another consignment.
+
+The other village worthy, traveling in company with the seigneur, was of a
+totally different stamp. Small, thin, and weazen faced, as Frenchmen are
+apt to be represented in caricature, with a bright, squirrel-like eye, and
+a gold ring in his ear. His dress was flimsy, and sat loosely on his frame,
+and he had altogether the look of one with but little coin in his pocket.
+Yet, though one of the poorest, I was assured he was one of the merriest
+and most popular personages in his native village.
+
+Compere Martin, as he was commonly called, was the factotum of the
+place-sportsman, schoolmaster, and land surveyor. He could sing, dance,
+and, above all, play on the fiddle, an invaluable accomplishment in an old
+French Creole village, for the inhabitants have a hereditary love for balls
+and fetes; if they work but little, they dance a great deal, and a fiddle
+is the joy of their heart.
+
+What had sent Compere Martin traveling with the grand seigneur I could not
+learn; he evidently looked up to him with great deference, and was
+assiduous in rendering him petty attentions; from which I concluded that he
+lived at home upon the crumbs which fell from his table. He was gayest when
+out of his sight; and had his song and his joke when forward, among the
+deck passengers; but altogether Compere Martin was out of his element on
+board of a steamboat. He was quite another being, I am told, when at home
+in his own village.
+
+Like his opulent fellow-traveler, he too had his canine follower and
+retainer--and one suited to his different fortunes--one of the civilest,
+most unoffending little dogs in the world. Unlike the lordly mastiff, he
+seemed to think he had no right on board of the steamboat; if you did but
+look hard at him, he would throw himself upon his back, and lift up his
+legs, as if imploring mercy.
+
+At table he took his seat a little distance from his master; not with the
+bluff, confident air of the mastiff, but quietly and diffidently, his head
+on one side, with one ear dubiously slouched, the other hopefully cocked
+up; his under teeth projecting beyond his black nose, and his eye wistfully
+following each morsel that went into his master's mouth.
+
+If Compere Martin now and then should venture to abstract a morsel from his
+plate to give to his humble companion, it was edifying to see with what
+diffidence the exemplary little animal would take hold of it, with the very
+tip of his teeth, as if he would almost rather not, or was fearful of
+taking too great a liberty. And then with what decorum would he eat it! How
+many efforts would he make in swallowing it, as if it stuck in his throat;
+with what daintiness would he lick his lips; and then with what an air of
+thankfulness would he resume his seat, with his teeth once more projecting
+beyond his nose, and an eye of humble expectation fixed upon his master.
+
+It was late in the afternoon when the steamboat stopped at the village
+which was the residence of these worthies. It stood on the high bank of the
+river, and bore traces of having been a frontier trading post. There were
+the remains of stockades that once protected it from the Indians, and the
+houses were in the ancient Spanish and French colonial taste, the place
+having been successively under the domination of both those nations prior
+to the cession of Louisiana to the United States.
+
+The arrival of the seigneur of fifty thousand dollars, and his humble
+companion, Compere Martin, had evidently been looked forward to as an event
+in the village. Numbers of men, women, and children, white, yellow, and
+black, were collected on the river bank; most of them clad in old-fashioned
+French garments, and their heads decorated with colored handkerchiefs, or
+white nightcaps. The moment the steamboat came within sight and hearing,
+there was a waving of handkerchiefs, and a screaming and bawling of
+salutations, and felicitations, that baffle all description.
+
+The old gentleman of fifty thousand dollars was received by a train of
+relatives, and friends, and children, and grandchildren, whom he kissed on
+each cheek, and who formed a procession in his rear, with a legion of
+domestics, of all ages, following him to a large, old-fashioned French
+house, that domineered over the village.
+
+His black valet de chambre, in white jacket and trousers, and gold
+earrings, was met on the shore by a boon, though rustic companion, a tall
+negro fellow, with a long good-humored face, and the profile of a horse,
+which stood out from beneath a narrow-rimmed straw hat, stuck on the back
+of his head. The explosions of laughter of these two varlets on meeting and
+exchanging compliments were enough to electrify the country round.
+
+The most hearty reception, however, was that given to Compere Martin.
+Everybody, young and old, hailed him before he got to land. Everybody had a
+joke for Compere Martin, and Compere Martin had a joke for everybody. Even
+his little dog appeared to partake of his popularity, and to be caressed by
+every hand. Indeed, he was quite a different animal the moment he touched
+the land. Here he was at home; here he was of consequence. He barked, he
+leaped, he frisked about his old friends, and then would skim round the
+place in a wide circle, as if mad.
+
+I traced Compere Martin and his little dog to their home. It was an old
+ruinous Spanish house, of large dimensions, with verandas overshadowed by
+ancient elms. The house had probably been the residence, in old times, of
+the Spanish commandant. In one wing of this crazy, but aristocratical
+abode, was nestled the family of my fellow-traveler; for poor devils are
+apt to be magnificently clad and lodged, in the cast-off clothes and
+abandoned palaces of the great and wealthy.
+
+The arrival of Compere Martin was welcomed by a legion of women, children,
+and mongrel curs; and, as poverty and gayety generally go hand in hand
+among the French and their descendants, the crazy mansion soon resounded
+with loud gossip and light-hearted laughter.
+
+As the steamboat paused a short time at the village, I took occasion to
+stroll about the place. Most of the houses were in the French taste, with
+casements and rickety verandas, but most of them in flimsy and ruinous
+condition. All the wagons, plows, and other utensils about the place were
+of ancient and inconvenient Gallic construction, such as had been brought
+from France in the primitive days of the colony. The very looks of the
+people reminded me of the villages of France.
+
+From one of the houses came the hum of a spinning wheel, accompanied by a
+scrap of an old French chanson, which I have heard many a time among the
+peasantry of Languedoc, doubtless a traditional song, brought over by the
+first French emigrants, and handed down from generation to generation.
+
+Half a dozen young lasses emerged from the adjacent dwellings, reminding
+me, by their light step and gay costume, of scenes in ancient France, where
+taste in dress comes natural to every class of females. The trim bodice and
+covered petticoat, and little apron, with its pockets to receive the hands
+when in an attitude for conversation; the colored kerchief wound tastefully
+round the head, with a coquettish knot perking above one ear; and the neat
+slipper and tight drawn stocking with its braid of narrow ribbon embracing
+the ankle where it peeps from its mysterious curtain. It is from this
+ambush that Cupid sends his most inciting arrows.
+
+While I was musing upon the recollections thus accidentally summoned up, I
+heard the sound of a fiddle from the mansion of Compere Martin, the signal,
+no doubt, for a joyous gathering. I was disposed to turn my steps thither,
+and witness the festivities of one of the very few villages I had met with
+in my wide tour that was yet poor enough to be merry; but the bell of the
+steamboat summoned me to re-embark.
+
+As we swept away from the shore, I cast back a wistful eye upon the
+moss-grown roofs and ancient elms of the village, and prayed that the
+inhabitants might long retain their happy ignorance, their absence of all
+enterprise and improvement, their respect for the fiddle, and their
+contempt for the almighty dollar. [Footnote: This phrase, used for the
+first time in this sketch, has since passed into current circulation, and
+by some has been questioned as savoring I fear, however, my prayer is of
+irreverence. The author, therefore, owes it to his orthodoxy to declare
+that no irreverence was intended even to the dollar itself; which he is
+aware is daily becoming more and more an object of worship.] I fear,
+however, my prayer is doomed to be of no avail. In a little while the
+steamboat whirled me to an American town, just springing into bustling
+and prosperous existence.
+
+The surrounding forest had been laid out in town lots; frames of wooden
+buildings were rising from among stumps and burned trees. The place already
+boasted a court-house, a jail, and two banks, all built of pine boards, on
+the model of Grecian temples. There were rival hotels, rival churches, and
+rival newspapers; together with the usual number of judges, and generals,
+and governors; not to speak of doctors by the dozen, and lawyers by the
+score.
+
+The place, I was told, was in an astonishing career of improvement, with a
+canal and two railroads in embryo. Lots doubled in price every week;
+everybody was speculating in land; everybody was rich; and everybody was
+growing richer. The community, however, was torn to pieces by new doctrines
+in religion and in political economy; there were camp meetings, and
+agrarian meetings; and an election was at hand, which, it was expected,
+would throw the whole country into a paroxysm.
+
+Alas! with such an enterprising neighbor, what is to become of the poor
+little Creole village!
+
+
+
+
+A CONTENTED MAN
+
+
+In the garden of the Tuileries there is a sunny corner under the wall of a
+terrace which fronts the south. Along the wall is a range of benches
+commanding a view of the walks and avenues of the garden. This genial nook
+is a place of great resort in the latter part of autumn and in fine days in
+winter, as it seems to retain the flavor of departed summer. On a calm,
+bright morning it is quite alive with nursery-maids and their playful
+little charges. Hither also resort a number of ancient ladies and
+gentlemen, who, with the laudable thrift in small pleasures and small
+expenses for which the French are to be noted, come here to enjoy sunshine
+and save firewood. Here may often be seen some cavalier of the old school,
+when the sunbeams have warmed his blood into something like a glow,
+fluttering about like a frost-bitten moth thawed before the fire, putting
+forth a feeble show of gallantry among the antiquated dames, and now and
+then eying the buxom nursery-maids with what might almost be mistaken for
+an air of libertinism.
+
+Among the habitual frequenters of this place I had often remarked an old
+gentleman whose dress was decidedly ante-revolutional. He wore the
+three-cornered cocked hat of the _ancien regime_; his hair was frizzed
+over each ear into _ailes de pigeon_, a style strongly savoring of
+Bourbonism; and a queue stuck out behind, the loyalty of which was not to
+be disputed. His dress, though ancient, had an air of decayed gentility,
+and I observed that he took his snuff out of an elegant though
+old-fashioned gold box. He appeared to be the most popular man on the walk.
+He had a compliment for every old lady, he kissed every child, and he
+patted every little dog on the head; for children and little dogs are very
+important members of society in France. I must observe, however, that he
+seldom kissed a child without, at the same time, pinching the
+nursery-maid's cheek; a Frenchman of the old school never forgets his
+devoirs to the sex.
+
+I had taken a liking to this old gentleman. There was an habitual
+expression of benevolence in his face which I have very frequently remarked
+in these relics of the politer days of France. The constant interchange of
+those thousand little courtesies which imperceptibly sweeten life have a
+happy effect upon the features, and spread a mellow evening charm over the
+wrinkles of old age.
+
+Where there is a favorable predisposition one soon forms a kind of tacit
+intimacy by often meeting on the same walks. Once or twice I accommodated
+him with a bench, after which we touched hats on passing each other; at
+length we got so far as to take a pinch of snuff together out of his box,
+which is equivalent to eating salt together in the East; from that time our
+acquaintance was established.
+
+I now became his frequent companion in his morning promenades, and derived
+much amusement from his good-humored remarks on men and manners. One
+morning, as we were strolling through an alley of the Tuileries, with the
+autumnal breeze whirling the yellow leaves about our path, my companion
+fell into a peculiarly communicative vein, and gave me several particulars
+of his history. He had once been wealthy, and possessed of a fine estate in
+the country and a noble hotel in Paris; but the revolution, which effected
+so many disastrous changes, stripped him of everything. He was secretly
+denounced by his own steward during a sanguinary period of the revolution,
+and a number of the bloodhounds of the Convention were sent to arrest him.
+He received private intelligence of their approach in time to effect his
+escape. He landed in England without money or friends, but considered
+himself singularly fortunate in having his head upon his shoulders; several
+of his neighbors having been guillotined as a punishment for being rich.
+
+When he reached London he had but a louis in his pocket, and no prospect of
+getting another. He ate a solitary dinner of beefsteak, and was almost
+poisoned by port wine, which from its color he had mistaken for claret. The
+dingy look of the chop-house, and of the little mahogany-colored box in
+which he ate his dinner, contrasted sadly with the gay saloons of Paris.
+Everything looked gloomy and disheartening. Poverty stared him in the face;
+he turned over the few shillings he had of change; did not know what was to
+become of him; and--went to the theater!
+
+He took his seat in the pit, listened attentively to a tragedy of which he
+did not understand a word, and which seemed made up of fighting, and
+stabbing, and scene shifting, and began to feel his spirits sinking within
+him; when, casting his eyes into the orchestra, what was his surprise to
+recognize an old friend and neighbor in the very act of extorting music
+from a huge violoncello.
+
+As soon as the evening's performance was over he tapped his friend on the
+shoulder; they kissed each other on each cheek, and the musician took him
+home, and shared his lodgings with him. He had learned music as an
+accomplishment; by his friend's advice he now turned to it as a means of
+support. He procured a violin, offered himself for the orchestra, was
+received, and again considered himself one of the most fortunate men upon
+earth.
+
+Here therefore he lived for many years during the ascendency of the
+terrible Napoleon. He found several emigrants living, like himself, by the
+exercise of their talents. They associated together, talked of France and
+of old times, and endeavored to keep up a semblance of Parisian life in the
+center of London.
+
+They dined at a miserable cheap French restaurant in the neighborhood of
+Leicester Square, where they were served with a caricature of French
+cookery. They took their promenade in St. James's Park, and endeavored to
+fancy it the Tuileries; in short, they made shift to accommodate themselves
+to everything but an English Sunday. Indeed the old gentleman seemed to
+have nothing to say against the English, whom he affirmed to be _braves
+gens_; and he mingled so much among them that at the end of twenty years
+he could speak their language almost well enough to be understood.
+
+The downfall of Napoleon was another epoch in his life. He had considered
+himself a fortunate man to make his escape penniless out of France, and he
+considered himself fortunate to be able to return penniless into it. It is
+true that he found his Parisian hotel had passed through several hands
+during the vicissitudes of the times, so as to be beyond the reach of
+recovery; but then he had been noticed benignantly by government, and had a
+pension of several hundred francs, upon which, with careful management, he
+lived independently, and, as far as I could judge, happily. As his once
+splendid hotel was now occupied as a _hotel garni_, he hired a small
+chamber in the attic; it was but, as he said, changing his bedroom up two
+pair of stairs--he was still in his own house. His room was decorated with
+pictures of several beauties of former times, with whom he professed to
+have been on favorable terms: among them was a favorite opera-dancer, who
+had been the admiration of Paris at the breaking out of the revolution. She
+had been a protegee of my friend, and one of the few of his youthful
+favorites who had survived the lapse of time and its various vicissitudes.
+They had renewed their acquaintance, and she now and then visited him; but
+the beautiful Psyche, once the fashion of the day and the idol of the
+_parterre_, was now a shriveled, little old woman, warped in the back
+and with a hooked nose.
+
+The old gentleman was a devout attendant upon levees; he was most zealous
+in his loyalty, and could not speak of the royal family without a burst of
+enthusiasm, for he still felt toward them as his companions in exile. As to
+his poverty he made light of it, and indeed had a good-humored way of
+consoling himself for every cross and privation. If he had lost his chateau
+in the country, he had half a dozen royal palaces, as it were, at his
+command. He had Versailles and St. Cloud for his country resorts, and the
+shady alleys of the Tuileries and the Luxembourg for his town recreation.
+Thus all his promenades and relaxations were magnificent, yet cost nothing.
+
+When I walk through these fine gardens, said he, I have only to fancy
+myself the owner of them, and they are mine. All these gay crowds are my
+visitors, and I defy the grand seignior himself to display a greater
+variety of beauty. Nay, what is better, I have not the trouble of
+entertaining them. My estate is a perfect Sans Souci, where every one does
+as he pleases, and no one troubles the owner. All Paris is my theater, and
+presents me with a continual spectacle. I have a table spread for me in
+every street, and thousands of waiters ready to fly at my bidding. When my
+servants have waited upon me I pay them, discharge them, and there's an
+end; I have no fears of their wronging or pilfering me when my back is
+turned. Upon the whole, said the old gentleman with a smile of infinite
+good humor, when I think upon the various risks I have run, and the manner
+in which I have escaped them; when I recollect all that I have suffered,
+and consider all that I at present enjoy, I cannot but look upon myself as
+a man of singular good fortune.
+
+Such was the brief history of this practical philosopher, and it is a
+picture of many a Frenchman ruined by the revolution. The French appear to
+have a greater facility than most men in accommodating themselves to the
+reverses of life, and of extracting honey out of the bitter things of this
+world. The first shock of calamity is apt to overwhelm them, but when it is
+once past, their natural buoyancy of feeling soon brings them to the
+surface. This may be called the result of levity of character, but it
+answers the end of reconciling us to misfortune, and if it be not true
+philosophy, it is something almost as efficacious. Ever since I have heard
+the story of my little Frenchman, I have treasured it up in my heart; and I
+thank my stars I have at length found what I had long considered as not to
+be found on earth--a contented man.
+
+P. S.--There is no calculating on human happiness. Since writing the
+foregoing, the law of indemnity has been passed, and my friend restored to
+a great part of his fortune. I was absent from Paris at the time, but on my
+return hastened to congratulate him. I found him magnificently lodged on
+the first floor of his hotel. I was ushered, by a servant in livery,
+through splendid saloons, to a cabinet richly furnished, where I found my
+little Frenchman reclining on a couch. He received me with his usual
+cordiality; but I saw the gayety and benevolence of his countenance had
+fled; he had an eye full of care and anxiety.
+
+I congratulated him on his good fortune. "Good fortune?" echoed he; "bah! I
+have been plundered of a princely fortune, and they give me a pittance as
+an indemnity."
+
+Alas! I found my late poor and contented friend one of the richest and most
+miserable men in Paris. Instead of rejoicing hi the ample competency
+restored to him, he is daily repining at the superfluity withheld. He no
+longer wanders in happy idleness about Paris, but is a repining attendant
+in the ante-chambers of ministers. His loyalty has evaporated with his
+gayety; he screws his mouth when the Bourbons are mentioned, and even
+shrugs his shoulders when he hears the praises of the king. In a word, he
+is one of the many philosophers undone by the law of indemnity, and his
+case is desperate, for I doubt whether even another reverse of fortune,
+which should restore him to poverty, could make him again a happy man.
+
+
+
+
+
+
+
+
+
+
+
+End of the Project Gutenberg EBook of The Crayon Papers, by Washington Irving
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+    <title>The Crayon Papers, by Washington Irving</title>
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+<pre xml:space="preserve">
+The Project Gutenberg EBook of The Crayon Papers, by Washington Irving
+
+This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere at no cost and with
+almost no restrictions whatsoever.  You may copy it, give it away or
+re-use it under the terms of the Project Gutenberg License included
+with this eBook or online at www.gutenberg.org
+
+
+Title: The Crayon Papers
+
+Author: Washington Irving
+
+Posting Date: October 8, 2012 [EBook #7994]
+Release Date: April, 2005
+First Posted: June 10, 2003
+Last Updated: June 1, 2018
+
+
+Language: English
+
+Character set encoding: UTF-8
+
+*** START OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK THE CRAYON PAPERS ***
+
+
+
+
+Etext produced by Charles Aldarondo, Tiffany Vergon, William
+Craig, Charles Franks, and the Online Distributed
+Proofreading Team
+
+HTML file produced by David Widger
+
+
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+
+
+
+
+</pre>
+    <div style="height: 8em;">
+      <br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br />
+    </div>
+    <h1>
+      THE CRAYON PAPERS
+    </h1>
+    <h2>
+      By Geoffrey Crayon
+    </h2>
+    <p>
+      <br /><br />
+    </p>
+    <hr />
+    <p>
+      <br /><br />
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      <b>CONTENTS</b>
+    </p>
+    <p class="toc">
+      <a href="#link2H_4_0001"> MOUNTJOY, OR SOME PASSAGES OUT OF THE LIFE OF A
+      CASTLE-BUILDER </a>
+    </p>
+    <p class="toc">
+      <a href="#link2H_4_0002"> THE GREAT MISSISSIPPI BUBBLE </a>
+    </p>
+    <p class="toc">
+      <a href="#link2H_4_0003"> DON JUAN </a>
+    </p>
+    <p class="toc">
+      <a href="#link2H_4_0004"> BROEK </a>
+    </p>
+    <p class="toc">
+      <a href="#link2H_4_0005"> SKETCHES IN PARIS IN 1825 </a>
+    </p>
+    <p class="toc">
+      <a href="#link2H_4_0006"> ENGLISH AND FRENCH CHARACTER </a>
+    </p>
+    <p class="toc">
+      <a href="#link2H_4_0007"> THE TUILERIES AND WINDSOR CASTLE </a>
+    </p>
+    <p class="toc">
+      <a href="#link2H_4_0008"> THE FIELD OF WATERLOO </a>
+    </p>
+    <p class="toc">
+      <a href="#link2H_4_0009"> PARIS AT THE RESTORATION </a>
+    </p>
+    <p class="toc">
+      <a href="#link2H_4_0010"> AMERICAN RESEARCHES IN ITALY </a>
+    </p>
+    <p class="toc">
+      <a href="#link2H_4_0011"> THE TAKING OF THE VEIL </a>
+    </p>
+    <p class="toc">
+      <a href="#link2H_4_0012"> THE CHARMING LETORIÈRES </a>
+    </p>
+    <p class="toc">
+      <a href="#link2H_4_0013"> THE EARLY EXPERIENCES OF RALPH RINGWOOD </a>
+    </p>
+    <p class="toc">
+      <a href="#link2H_4_0014"> THE SEMINOLES </a>
+    </p>
+    <p class="toc">
+      <a href="#link2H_4_0015"> ORIGIN OF THE WHITE, THE RED, AND THE BLACK MEN
+      </a>
+    </p>
+    <p class="toc">
+      <a href="#link2H_4_0016"> THE CONSPIRACY OF NEAMATHLA </a>
+    </p>
+    <p class="toc">
+      <a href="#link2H_4_0017"> LETTER FROM GRANADA </a>
+    </p>
+    <p class="toc">
+      <a href="#link2H_4_0018"> ABDERAHMAN </a>
+    </p>
+    <p class="toc">
+      <a href="#link2H_4_0019"> THE WIDOW&rsquo;S ORDEAL </a>
+    </p>
+    <p class="toc">
+      <a href="#link2H_4_0020"> THE CREOLE VILLAGE </a>
+    </p>
+    <p class="toc">
+      <a href="#link2H_4_0021"> A CONTENTED MAN </a>
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      <br /><br />
+    </p>
+    <hr />
+    <p>
+      <a name="link2H_4_0001" id="link2H_4_0001"> </a>
+    </p>
+    <div style="height: 4em;">
+      <br /><br /><br /><br />
+    </div>
+    <h2>
+      MOUNTJOY, OR SOME PASSAGES OUT OF THE LIFE OF A CASTLE-BUILDER
+    </h2>
+    <p>
+      I was born among romantic scenery, in one of the wildest parts of the
+      Hudson, which at that time was not so thickly settled as at present. My
+      father was descended from one of the old Huguenot families that came over
+      to this country on the revocation of the edict of Nantz. He lived in a
+      style of easy, rural independence, on a patrimonial estate that had been
+      for two or three generations in the family. He was an indolent,
+      good-natured man, who took the world as it went, and had a kind of
+      laughing philosophy, that parried all rubs and mishaps, and served him in
+      the place of wisdom. This was the part of his character least to my taste;
+      for I was of an enthusiastic, excitable temperament, prone to kindle up
+      with new schemes and projects, and he was apt to dash my sallying
+      enthusiasm by some unlucky joke; so that whenever I was in a glow with any
+      sudden excitement, I stood in mortal dread of his good-humor.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Yet he indulged me in every vagary; for I was an only son, and of course a
+      personage of importance in the household. I had two sisters older than
+      myself, and one younger. The former were educated at New York, under the
+      eye of a maiden aunt; the latter remained at home, and was my cherished
+      playmate, the companion of my thoughts. We were two imaginative little
+      beings, of quick susceptibility, and prone to see wonders and mysteries in
+      everything around us. Scarce had we learned to read, when our mother made
+      us holiday presents of all the nursery literature of the day; which at
+      that time consisted of little books covered with gilt paper, adorned with
+      &ldquo;cuts,&rdquo; and filled with tales of fairies, giants, and enchanters. What
+      draughts of delightful fiction did we then inhale! My sister Sophy was of
+      a soft and tender nature. She would weep over the woes of the Children in
+      the Wood, or quake at the dark romance of Blue-Beard, and the terrible
+      mysteries of the blue chamber. But I was all for enterprise and adventure.
+      I burned to emulate the deeds of that heroic prince who delivered the
+      white cat from her enchantment; or he of no less royal blood, and doughty
+      enterprise, who broke the charmed slumber of the Beauty in the Wood!
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The house in which we lived was just the kind of place to foster such
+      propensities. It was a venerable mansion, half villa, half farmhouse. The
+      oldest part was of stone, with loop-holes for musketry, having served as a
+      family fortress in the time of the Indians. To this there had been made
+      various additions, some of brick, some of wood, according to the
+      exigencies of the moment; so that it was full of nooks and crooks, and
+      chambers of all sorts and sizes. It was buried among willows, elms, and
+      cherry trees, and surrounded with roses and hollyhocks, with honeysuckle
+      and sweetbrier clambering about every window. A brood of hereditary
+      pigeons sunned themselves upon the roof; hereditary swallows and martins
+      built about the eaves and chimneys; and hereditary bees hummed about the
+      flower-beds.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Under the influence of our story-books every object around us now assumed
+      a new character, and a charmed interest. The wild flowers were no longer
+      the mere ornaments of the fields, or the resorts of the toilful bee; they
+      were the lurking-places of fairies. We would watch the humming-bird, as it
+      hovered around the trumpet creeper at our porch, and the butterfly as it
+      flitted up into the blue air, above the sunny tree-tops, and fancy them
+      some of the tiny beings from fairyland. I would call to mind all that I
+      had read of Robin Goodfellow and his power of transformation. Oh, how I
+      envied him that power! How I longed to be able to compress my form into
+      utter littleness; to ride the bold dragonfly; swing on the tall bearded
+      grass; follow the ant into his subterraneous habitation, or dive into the
+      cavernous depths of the honeysuckle!
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      While I was yet a mere child I was sent to a daily school, about two miles
+      distant. The schoolhouse was on the edge of a wood, close by a brook
+      overhung with birches, alders, and dwarf willows. We of the school who
+      lived at some distance came with our dinners put up in little baskets. In
+      the intervals of school hours we would gather round a spring, under a tuft
+      of hazel-bushes, and have a kind of picnic; interchanging the rustic
+      dainties with which our provident mothers had fitted us out. Then, when
+      our joyous repast was over, and my companions were disposed for play, I
+      would draw forth one of my cherished story-books, stretch myself on the
+      green sward, and soon lose myself in its bewitching contents.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      I became an oracle among my schoolmates on account of my superior
+      erudition, and soon imparted to them the contagion of my infected fancy.
+      Often in the evening, after school hours, we would sit on the trunk of
+      some fallen tree in the woods, and vie with each other in telling
+      extravagant stories, until the whip-poor-will began his nightly moaning,
+      and the fireflies sparkled in the gloom. Then came the perilous journey
+      homeward. What delight we would take in getting up wanton panics in some
+      dusky part of the wood; scampering like frightened deer; pausing to take
+      breath; renewing the panic, and scampering off again, wild with fictitious
+      terror!
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Our greatest trial was to pass a dark, lonely pool, covered with
+      pond-lilies, peopled with bullfrogs and water snakes, and haunted by two
+      white cranes. Oh! the terrors of that pond! How our little hearts would
+      beat as we approached it; what fearful glances we would throw around! And
+      if by chance a plash of a wild duck, or the guttural twang of a bullfrog,
+      struck our ears, as we stole quietly by&mdash;away we sped, nor paused
+      until completely out of the woods. Then, when I reached home, what a world
+      of adventures and imaginary terrors would I have to relate to my sister
+      Sophy!
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      As I advanced in years, this turn of mind increased upon me, and became
+      more confirmed. I abandoned myself to the impulses of a romantic
+      imagination, which controlled my studies, and gave a bias to all my
+      habits. My father observed me continually with a book in my hand, and
+      satisfied himself that I was a profound student; but what were my studies?
+      Works of fiction; tales of chivalry; voyages of discovery; travels in the
+      East; everything, in short, that partook of adventure and romance. I well
+      remember with what zest I entered upon that part of my studies which
+      treated of the heathen mythology, and particularly of the sylvan deities.
+      Then indeed my school books became dear to me. The neighborhood was well
+      calculated to foster the reveries of a mind like mine. It abounded with
+      solitary retreats, wild streams, solemn forests, and silent valleys. I
+      would ramble about for a whole day with a volume of Ovid&rsquo;s Metamorphoses
+      in my pocket, and work myself into a kind of self-delusion, so as to
+      identify the surrounding scenes with those of which I had just been
+      reading. I would loiter about a brook that glided through the shadowy
+      depths of the forest, picturing it to myself the haunt of Naiads. I would
+      steal round some bushy copse that opened upon a glade, as if I expected to
+      come suddenly upon Diana and her nymphs, or to behold Pan and his satyrs
+      bounding, with whoop and halloo, through the woodland. I would throw
+      myself, during the panting heats of a summer noon, under the shade of some
+      wide-spreading tree, and muse and dream away the hours, in a state of
+      mental intoxication. I drank in the very light of day, as nectar, and my
+      soul seemed to bathe with ecstasy in the deep blue of a summer sky.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      In these wanderings nothing occurred to jar my feelings, or bring me back
+      to the realities of life. There is a repose in our mighty forests that
+      gives full scope to the imagination. Now and then I would hear the distant
+      sound of the woodcutter&rsquo;s ax, or the crash of some tree which he had laid
+      low; but these noises, echoing along the quiet landscape, could easily be
+      wrought by fancy into harmony with its illusions. In general, however, the
+      woody recesses of the neighborhood were peculiarly wild and unfrequented.
+      I could ramble for a whole day, without coming upon any traces of
+      cultivation. The partridge of the wood scarcely seemed to shun my path,
+      and the squirrel, from his nut-tree, would gaze at me for an instant, with
+      sparkling eye, as if wondering at the unwonted intrusion.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      I cannot help dwelling on this delicious period of my life; when as yet I
+      had known no sorrow, nor experienced any worldly care. I have since
+      studied much, both of books and men, and of course have grown too wise to
+      be so easily pleased; yet with all my wisdom, I must confess I look back
+      with a secret feeling of regret to the days of happy ignorance before I
+      had begun to be a philosopher.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      <br /><br />
+    </p>
+    <hr />
+    <p>
+      <br /><br />
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      It must be evident that I was in a hopeful training for one who was to
+      descend into the arena of life, and wrestle with the world. The tutor,
+      also, who superintended my studies in the more advanced stage of my
+      education, was just fitted to complete the <i>fata morgana</i> which was
+      forming in my mind. His name was Glencoe. He was a pale,
+      melancholy-looking man, about forty years of age; a native of Scotland,
+      liberally educated, and who had devoted himself to the instruction of
+      youth from taste rather than necessity; for, as he said, he loved the
+      human heart, and delighted to study it in its earlier impulses. My two
+      elder sisters, having returned home from a city boarding-school, were
+      likewise placed under his care, to direct their reading in history and
+      belles-lettres.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      We all soon became attached to Glencoe. It is true, we were at first
+      somewhat prepossessed against him. His meager, pallid countenance, his
+      broad pronunciation, his inattention to the little forms of society, and
+      an awkward and embarrassed manner, on first acquaintance, were much
+      against him; but we soon discovered that under this unpromising exterior
+      existed the kindest urbanity of temper; the warmest sympathies; the most
+      enthusiastic benevolence. His mind was ingenious and acute. His reading
+      had been various, but more abstruse than profound; his memory was stored,
+      on all subjects, with facts, theories, and quotations, and crowded with
+      crude materials for thinking. These, in a moment of excitement, would be,
+      as it were, melted down, and poured forth in the lava of a heated
+      imagination. At such moments, the change in the whole man was wonderful.
+      His meager form would acquire a dignity and grace; his long, pale visage
+      would flash with a hectic glow; his eyes would beam with intense
+      speculation; and there would be pathetic tones and deep modulations in his
+      voice, that delighted the ear, and spoke movingly to the heart.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      But what most endeared him to us was the kindness and sympathy with which
+      he entered into all our interests and wishes. Instead of curbing and
+      checking our young imaginations with the reins of sober reason, he was a
+      little too apt to catch the impulse and be hurried away with us. He could
+      not withstand the excitement of any sally of feeling or fancy, and was
+      prone to lend heightening tints to the illusive coloring of youthful
+      anticipation.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Under his guidance my sisters and myself soon entered upon a more extended
+      range of studies; but while they wandered, with delighted minds, through
+      the wide field of history and belles-lettres, a nobler walk was opened to
+      my superior intellect.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The mind of Glencoe presented a singular mixture of philosophy and poetry.
+      He was fond of metaphysics and prone to indulge in abstract speculations,
+      though his metaphysics were somewhat fine spun and fanciful, and his
+      speculations were apt to partake of what my father most irreverently
+      termed &ldquo;humbug.&rdquo; For my part, I delighted in them, and the more especially
+      because they set my father to sleep and completely confounded my sisters.
+      I entered with my accustomed eagerness into this new branch of study.
+      Metaphysics were now my passion. My sisters attempted to accompany me, but
+      they soon faltered, and gave out before they had got half way through
+      Smith&rsquo;s Theory of the Moral Sentiments. I, however, went on, exulting in
+      my strength. Glencoe supplied me with books, and I devoured them with
+      appetite, if not digestion. We walked and talked together under the trees
+      before the house, or sat apart, like Milton&rsquo;s angels, and held high
+      converse upon themes beyond the grasp of ordinary intellects. Glencoe
+      possessed a kind of philosophic chivalry, in imitation of the old
+      peripatetic sages, and was continually dreaming of romantic enterprises in
+      morals, and splendid systems for the improvement of society. He had a
+      fanciful mode of illustrating abstract subjects, peculiarly to my taste;
+      clothing them with the language of poetry, and throwing round them almost
+      the magic hues of fiction. &ldquo;How charming,&rdquo; thought I, &ldquo;is divine
+      philosophy;&rdquo; not harsh and crabbed, as dull fools suppose,
+    </p>
+<pre xml:space="preserve">
+  &ldquo;But a perpetual feast of nectar&rsquo;d sweets,
+   Where no crude surfeit reigns.&rdquo;
+ </pre>
+    <p>
+      I felt a wonderful self-complacency at being on such excellent terms with
+      a man whom I considered on a parallel with the sages of antiquity, and
+      looked down with a sentiment of pity on the feebler intellects of my
+      sisters, who could comprehend nothing of metaphysics. It is true, when I
+      attempted to study them by myself, I was apt to get in a fog; but when
+      Glencoe came to my aid, everything was soon as clear to me as day. My ear
+      drank in the beauty of his words; my imagination was dazzled with the
+      splendor of his illustrations. It caught up the sparkling sands of poetry
+      that glittered through his speculations, and mistook them for the golden
+      ore of wisdom. Struck with the facility with which I seemed to imbibe and
+      relish the most abstract doctrines, I conceived a still higher opinion of
+      my mental powers, and was convinced that I also was a philosopher.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      <br /><br />
+    </p>
+    <hr />
+    <p>
+      <br /><br />
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      I was now verging toward man&rsquo;s estate, and though my education had been
+      extremely irregular&mdash;following the caprices of my humor, which I
+      mistook for the impulses of my genius&mdash;yet I was regarded with wonder
+      and delight by my mother and sisters, who considered me almost as wise and
+      infallible as I considered myself. This high opinion of me was
+      strengthened by a declamatory habit, which made me an oracle and orator at
+      the domestic board. The time was now at hand, however, that was to put my
+      philosophy to the test.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      We had passed through a long winter, and the spring at length opened upon
+      us with unusual sweetness. The soft serenity of the weather; the beauty of
+      the surrounding country; the joyous notes of the birds; the balmy breath
+      of flower and blossom, all combined to fill my bosom with indistinct
+      sensations, and nameless wishes. Amid the soft seductions of the season, I
+      lapsed into a state of utter indolence, both of body and mind.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Philosophy had lost its charms for me. Metaphysics&mdash;faugh! I tried to
+      study; took down volume after volume, ran my eye vacantly over a few
+      pages, and threw them by with distaste. I loitered about the house, with
+      my hands in my pockets, and an air of complete vacancy. Something was
+      necessary to make me happy; but what was that something? I sauntered to
+      the apartments of my sisters, hoping their conversation might amuse me.
+      They had walked out, and the room was vacant. On the table lay a volume
+      which they had been reading. It was a novel. I had never read a novel,
+      having conceived a contempt for works of the kind, from hearing them
+      universally condemned. It is true, I had remarked that they were as
+      universally read; but I considered them beneath the attention of a
+      philosopher, and never would venture to read them, lest I should lessen my
+      mental superiority in the eyes of my sisters. Nay, I had taken up a work
+      of the kind now and then, when I knew my sisters were observing me, looked
+      into it for a moment, and then laid it down, with a slight supercilious
+      smile. On the present occasion, out of mere listlessness, I took up the
+      volume and turned over a few of the first pages. I thought I heard some
+      one coming, and laid it down. I was mistaken; no one was near, and what I
+      had read tempted my curiosity to read a little further. I leaned against a
+      window-frame, and in a few minutes was completely lost in the story. How
+      long I stood there reading I know not, but I believe for nearly two hours.
+      Suddenly I heard my sisters on the stairs, when I thrust the book into my
+      bosom, and the two other volumes which lay near into my pockets, and
+      hurried out of the house to my beloved woods. Here I remained all day
+      beneath the trees, bewildered, bewitched, devouring the contents of these
+      delicious volumes, and only returned to the house when it was too dark to
+      peruse their pages.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      This novel finished, I replaced it in my sisters&rsquo; apartment, and looked
+      for others. Their stock was ample, for they had brought home all that were
+      current in the city; but my appetite demanded an immense supply. All this
+      course of reading was carried on clandestinely, for I was a little ashamed
+      of it, and fearful that my wisdom might be called in question; but this
+      very privacy gave it additional zest. It was &ldquo;bread eaten in secret&rdquo;; it
+      had the charm of a private amour.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      But think what must have been the effect of such a course of reading on a
+      youth of my temperament and turn of mind; indulged, too, amid romantic
+      scenery and in the romantic season of the year. It seemed as if I had
+      entered upon a new scene of existence. A train of combustible feelings
+      were lighted up in me, and my soul was all tenderness and passion. Never
+      was youth more completely love-sick, though as yet it was a mere general
+      sentiment, and wanted a definite object. Unfortunately, our neighborhood
+      was particularly deficient in female society, and I languished in vain for
+      some divinity to whom I might offer up this most uneasy burden of
+      affections. I was at one time seriously enamored of a lady whom I saw
+      occasionally in my rides, reading at the window of a country-seat; and
+      actually serenaded her with my flute; when, to my confusion, I discovered
+      that she was old enough to be my mother. It was a sad damper to my
+      romance; especially as my father heard of it, and made it the subject of
+      one of those household jokes which he was apt to serve up at every
+      meal-time.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      I soon recovered from this check, however, but it was only to relapse into
+      a state of amorous excitement. I passed whole days in the fields, and
+      along the brooks; for there is something in the tender passion that makes
+      us alive to the beauties of nature. A soft sunshiny morning infused a sort
+      of rapture into my breast. I flung open my arms, like the Grecian youth in
+      Ovid, as if I would take in and embrace the balmy atmosphere. [Footnote:
+      Ovid&rsquo;s Metamorphoses, Book vii] The song of the birds melted me to
+      tenderness. I would lie by the side of some rivulet for hours, and form
+      garlands of the flowers on its banks, and muse on ideal beauties, and sigh
+      from the crowd of undefined emotions that swelled my bosom.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      In this state of amorous delirium, I was strolling one morning along a
+      beautiful wild brook, which I had discovered in a glen. There was one
+      place where a small waterfall, leaping from among rocks into a natural
+      basin, made a scene such as a poet might have chosen as the haunt of some
+      shy Naiad. It was here I usually retired to banquet on my novels. In
+      visiting the place this morning I traced distinctly, on the margin of the
+      basin, which was of fine clear sand, the prints of a female foot of the
+      most slender and delicate proportions. This was sufficient for an
+      imagination like mine. Robinson Crusoe himself, when he discovered the
+      print of a savage foot on the beach of his lonely island, could not have
+      been more suddenly assailed with thick-coming fancies.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      I endeavored to track the steps, but they only passed for a few paces
+      along the fine sand, and then were lost among the herbage. I remained
+      gazing in reverie upon this passing trace of loveliness. It evidently was
+      not made by any of my sisters, for they knew nothing of this haunt;
+      besides, the foot was smaller than theirs; it was remarkable for its
+      beautiful delicacy.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      My eye accidentally caught two or three half-withered wild flowers lying
+      on the ground. The unknown nymph had doubtless dropped them from her
+      bosom! Here was a new document of taste and sentiment. I treasured them up
+      as invaluable relics. The place, too, where I found them, was remarkably
+      picturesque, and the most beautiful part of the brook. It was overhung
+      with a fine elm, entwined with grapevines. She who could select such a
+      spot, who could delight in wild brooks, and wild flowers, and silent
+      solitudes, must have fancy, and feeling, and tenderness; and with all
+      these qualities, she must be beautiful!
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      But who could be this Unknown, that had thus passed by, as in a morning
+      dream, leaving merely flowers and fairy footsteps to tell of her
+      loveliness? There was a mystery in it that bewildered me. It was so vague
+      and disembodied, like those &ldquo;airy tongues that syllable men&rsquo;s names&rdquo; in
+      solitude. Every attempt to solve the mystery was vain. I could hear of no
+      being in the neighborhood to whom this trace could be ascribed. I haunted
+      the spot, and became daily more and more enamored. Never, surely, was
+      passion more pure and spiritual, and never lover in more dubious
+      situation. My case could be compared only to that of the amorous prince in
+      the fairy tale of Cinderella; but he had a glass slipper on which to
+      lavish his tenderness. I, alas! was in love with a footstep!
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The imagination is alternately a cheat and a dupe; nay, more, it is the
+      most subtle of cheats, for it cheats itself and becomes the dupe of its
+      own delusions. It conjures up &ldquo;airy nothings,&rdquo; gives to them a &ldquo;local
+      habitation and a name,&rdquo; and then bows to their control as implicitly as
+      though they were realities. Such was now my case. The good Numa could not
+      more thoroughly have persuaded himself that the nymph Egeria hovered about
+      her sacred fountain and communed with him in spirit than I had deceived
+      myself into a kind of visionary intercourse with the airy phantom
+      fabricated in my brain. I constructed a rustic seat at the foot of the
+      tree where I had discovered the footsteps. I made a kind of bower there,
+      where I used to pass my mornings reading poetry and romances. I carved
+      hearts and darts on the tree, and hung it with garlands. My heart was full
+      to overflowing, and wanted some faithful bosom into which it might relieve
+      itself. What is a lover without a confidante? I thought at once of my
+      sister Sophy, my early playmate, the sister of my affections. She was so
+      reasonable, too, and of such correct feelings, always listening to my
+      words as oracular sayings, and admiring my scraps of poetry as the very
+      inspirations of the muse. From such a devoted, such a rational being, what
+      secrets could I have?
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      I accordingly took her one morning to my favorite retreat. She looked
+      around, with delighted surprise, upon the rustic seat, the bower, the tree
+      carved with emblems of the tender passion. She turned her eyes upon me to
+      inquire the meaning.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Oh, Sophy,&rdquo; exclaimed I, clasping both her hands in mine, and looking
+      earnestly in her face, &ldquo;I am in love.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      She started with surprise.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Sit down,&rdquo; said I, &ldquo;and I will tell you all.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      She seated herself upon the rustic bench, and I went into a full history
+      of the footstep, with all the associations of idea that had been conjured
+      up by my imagination.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Sophy was enchanted; it was like a fairy tale; she had read of such
+      mysterious visitations in books, and the loves thus conceived were always
+      for beings of superior order, and were always happy. She caught the
+      illusion in all its force; her cheek glowed; her eye brightened.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;I daresay she&rsquo;s pretty,&rdquo; said Sophy.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Pretty!&rdquo; echoed I, &ldquo;she is beautiful.&rdquo; I went through all the reasoning
+      by which I had logically proved the fact to my own satisfaction. I dwelt
+      upon the evidences of her taste, her sensibility to the beauties of
+      nature; her soft meditative habit that delighted in solitude. &ldquo;Oh,&rdquo; said
+      I, clasping my hands, &ldquo;to have such a companion to wander through these
+      scenes; to sit with her by this murmuring stream; to wreathe garlands
+      round her brows; to hear the music of her voice mingling with the
+      whisperings of these groves; to&mdash;&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Delightful! delightful!&rdquo; cried Sophy; &ldquo;what a sweet creature she must be!
+      She is just the friend I want. How I shall dote upon her! Oh, my dear
+      brother! you must not keep her all to yourself. You must let <i>me</i>
+      have some share of her!&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      I caught her to my bosom: &ldquo;You shall&mdash;you shall!&rdquo; cried I, &ldquo;my dear
+      Sophy; we will all live for each other!&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      <br /><br />
+    </p>
+    <hr />
+    <p>
+      <br /><br />
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The conversation with Sophy heightened the illusions of my mind; and the
+      manner in which she had treated my daydream identified it with facts and
+      persons and gave it still more the stamp of reality. I walked about as one
+      in a trance, heedless of the world around and lapped in an elysium of the
+      fancy.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      In this mood I met one morning with Glencoe. He accosted me with his usual
+      smile, and was proceeding with some general observations, but paused and
+      fixed on me an inquiring eye.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;What is the matter with you?&rdquo; said he, &ldquo;you seem agitated; has anything
+      in particular happened?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Nothing,&rdquo; said I, hesitating; &ldquo;at least nothing worth communicating to
+      you.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Nay, my dear young friend,&rdquo; said he, &ldquo;whatever is of sufficient
+      importance to agitate you is worthy of being communicated to me.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Well; but my thoughts are running on what you would think a frivolous
+      subject.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;No subject is frivolous that has the power to awaken strong feelings.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;What think you,&rdquo; said I, hesitating, &ldquo;what think you of love?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      Glencoe almost started at the question. &ldquo;Do you call that a frivolous
+      subject?&rdquo; replied he. &ldquo;Believe me, there is none fraught with such deep,
+      such vital interest. If you talk, indeed, of the capricious inclination
+      awakened by the mere charm of perishable beauty, I grant it to be idle in
+      the extreme; but that love which springs from the concordant sympathies of
+      virtuous hearts; that love which is awakened by the perception of moral
+      excellence, and fed by meditation on intellectual as well as personal
+      beauty; that is a passion which refines and ennobles the human heart. Oh,
+      where is there a sight more nearly approaching to the intercourse of
+      angels, than that of two young beings, free from the sins and follies of
+      the world, mingling pure thoughts, and looks, and feelings, and becoming,
+      as it were, soul of one soul and heart of one heart! How exquisite the
+      silent converse that they hold; the soft devotion of the eye, that needs
+      no words to make it eloquent! Yes, my friend, if there be anything in this
+      weary world worthy of heaven, it is the pure bliss of such a mutual
+      affection!&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      The words of my worthy tutor overcame all further reserve. &ldquo;Mr. Glencoe,&rdquo;
+       cried I, blushing still deeper, &ldquo;I am in love.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;And is that what you were ashamed to tell me? Oh, never seek to conceal
+      from your friend so important a secret. If your passion be unworthy, it is
+      for the steady hand of friendship to pluck it forth; if honorable, none
+      but an enemy would seek to stifle it. On nothing does the character and
+      happiness so much depend as on the first affection of the heart. Were you
+      caught by some fleeting and superficial charm&mdash;a bright eye, a
+      blooming cheek, a soft voice, or a voluptuous form&mdash;I would warn you
+      to beware; I would tell you that beauty is but a passing gleam of the
+      morning, a perishable flower; that accident may becloud and blight it, and
+      that at best it must soon pass away. But were you in love with such a one
+      as I could describe; young in years, but still younger in feelings; lovely
+      in person, but as a type of the mind&rsquo;s beauty; soft in voice, in token of
+      gentleness of spirit; blooming in countenance, like the rosy tints of
+      morning kindling with the promise of a genial day; an eye beaming with the
+      benignity of a happy heart; a cheerful temper, alive to all kind impulses,
+      and frankly diffusing its own felicity; a self-poised mind, that needs not
+      lean on others for support; an elegant taste, that can embellish solitude,
+      and furnish out its own enjoyments&mdash;&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;My dear sir,&rdquo; cried I, for I could contain myself no longer, &ldquo;you have
+      described the very person!&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Why, then, my dear young friend,&rdquo; said he, affectionately pressing my
+      hand, &ldquo;in God&rsquo;s name, love on!&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      <br /><br />
+    </p>
+    <hr />
+    <p>
+      <br /><br />
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      For the remainder of the day I was in some such state of dreamy beatitude
+      as a Turk is said to enjoy when under the influence of opium. It must be
+      already manifest how prone I was to bewilder myself with picturings of the
+      fancy, so as to confound them with existing realities. In the present
+      instance, Sophy and Glencoe had contributed to promote the transient
+      delusion. Sophy, dear girl, had as usual joined with me in my
+      castle-building, and indulged in the same train of imaginings, while
+      Glencoe, duped by my enthusiasm, firmly believed that I spoke of a being I
+      had seen and known. By their sympathy with my feelings they in a manner
+      became associated with the Unknown in my mind, and thus linked her with
+      the circle of my intimacy.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      In the evening, our family party was assembled in the hall, to enjoy the
+      refreshing breeze. Sophy was playing some favorite Scotch airs on the
+      piano, while Glencoe, seated apart, with his forehead resting on his hand,
+      was buried in one of those pensive reveries that made him so interesting
+      to me.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;What a fortunate being I am!&rdquo; thought I, &ldquo;blessed with such a sister and
+      such a friend! I have only to find out this amiable Unknown, to wed her,
+      and be happy! What a paradise will be my home, graced with a partner of
+      such exquisite refinement! It will be a perfect fairy bower, buried among
+      sweets and roses. Sophy shall live with us, and be the companion of all
+      our enjoyments. Glencoe, too, shall no more be the solitary being that he
+      now appears. He shall have a home with us. He shall have his study, where,
+      when he pleases, he may shut himself up from the world, and bury himself
+      in his own reflections. His retreat shall be sacred; no one shall intrude
+      there; no one but myself, who will visit him now and then, in his
+      seclusion, where we will devise grand schemes together for the improvement
+      of mankind. How delightfully our days will pass, in a round of rational
+      pleasures and elegant employments! Sometimes we will have music; sometimes
+      we will read; sometimes we will wander through the flower garden, when I
+      will smile with complacency on every flower my wife has planted; while in
+      the long winter evenings the ladies will sit at their work, and listen
+      with hushed attention to Glencoe and myself, as we discuss the abstruse
+      doctrines of metaphysics.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      From this delectable reverie, I was startled by my father&rsquo;s slapping me on
+      the shoulder. &ldquo;What possesses the lad?&rdquo; cried he; &ldquo;here have I been
+      speaking to you half a dozen times, without receiving an answer.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Pardon me, sir,&rdquo; replied I; &ldquo;I was so completely lost in thought, that I
+      did not hear you.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Lost in thought! And pray what were you thinking of? Some of your
+      philosophy, I suppose.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Upon my word,&rdquo; said my sister Charlotte, with an arch laugh, &ldquo;I suspect
+      Harry&rsquo;s in love again.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;And if were in love, Charlotte,&rdquo; said I, somewhat nettled, and
+      recollecting Glencoe&rsquo;s enthusiastic eulogy of the passion, &ldquo;if I were in
+      love, is that a matter of jest and laughter? Is the tenderest and most
+      fervid affection that can animate the human breast to be made a matter of
+      cold-hearted ridicule?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      My sister colored. &ldquo;Certainly not, brother!&mdash;nor did I mean to make
+      it so, or to say anything that should wound your feelings. Had I really
+      suspected you had formed some genuine attachment, it would have been
+      sacred in my eyes; but&mdash;but,&rdquo; said she, smiling, as if at some
+      whimsical recollection, &ldquo;I thought that you&mdash;you might be indulging
+      in another little freak of the imagination.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Ill wager any money,&rdquo; cried my father, &ldquo;he has fallen in love again with
+      some old lady at a window!&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Oh, no!&rdquo; cried my dear sister Sophy, with the most gracious warmth; &ldquo;she
+      is young and beautiful.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;From what I understand,&rdquo; said Glencoe, rousing himself, &ldquo;she must be
+      lovely in mind as in person.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      I found my friends were getting me into a fine scrape. I began to perspire
+      at every pore, and felt my ears tingle.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Well, but,&rdquo; cried my father, &ldquo;who is she?&mdash;what is she? Let us hear
+      something about her.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      This was no time to explain so delicate a matter. I caught up my hat, and
+      vanished out of the house.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The moment I was in the open air, and alone, my heart upbraided me. Was
+      this respectful treatment to my father&mdash;to <i>such</i> a father, too&mdash;who
+      had always regarded me as the pride of his age&mdash;the staff of his
+      hopes? It is true, he was apt sometimes to laugh at my enthusiastic
+      flights, and did not treat my philosophy with due respect; but when had he
+      ever thwarted a wish of my heart? Was I then to act with reserve toward
+      him, in a matter which might affect the whole current of my future life?
+      &ldquo;I have done wrong,&rdquo; thought I; &ldquo;but it is not too late to remedy it. I
+      will hasten back and open my whole heart to my father!&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      I returned accordingly, and was just on the point of entering the house,
+      with my heart full of filial piety and a contrite speech upon my lips,
+      when I heard a burst of obstreperous laughter from my father, and a loud
+      titter from my two elder sisters.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;A footstep!&rdquo; shouted he, as soon as he could recover himself; &ldquo;in love
+      with a footstep! Why, this beats the old lady at the window!&rdquo; And then
+      there was another appalling burst of laughter. Had it been a clap of
+      thunder, it could hardly have astounded me more completely. Sophy, in the
+      simplicity of her heart, had told all, and had set my father&rsquo;s risible
+      propensities in full action.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Never was poor mortal so thoroughly crestfallen as myself. The whole
+      delusion was at an end. I drew off silently from the house, shrinking
+      smaller and smaller at every fresh peal of laughter; and, wandering about
+      until the family had retired, stole quietly to my bed. Scarce any sleep,
+      however, visited my eyes that night! I lay overwhelmed with mortification,
+      and meditating how I might meet the family in the morning. The idea of
+      ridicule was always intolerable to me; but to endure it on a subject by
+      which my feelings had been so much excited seemed worse than death. I
+      almost determined, at one time, to get up, saddle my horse, and ride off,
+      I knew not whither.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      At length I came to a resolution. Before going down to breakfast, I sent
+      for Sophy, and employed her as embassador to treat formally in the matter.
+      I insisted that the subject should be buried in oblivion; otherwise I
+      would not show my face at table. It was readily agreed to; for not one of
+      the family would have given me pain for the world. They faithfully kept
+      their promise. Not a word was said of the matter; but there were wry
+      faces, and suppressed titters, that went to my soul; and whenever my
+      father looked me in the face, it was with such a tragi-comical leer&mdash;such
+      an attempt to pull down a serious brow upon a whimsical mouth&mdash;that I
+      had a thousand times rather he had laughed outright.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      <br /><br />
+    </p>
+    <hr />
+    <p>
+      <br /><br />
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      For a day or two after the mortifying occurrence just related, I kept as
+      much as possible out of the way of the family, and wandered about the
+      fields and woods by myself. I was sadly out of tune; my feelings were all
+      jarred and unstrung. The birds sang from every grove, but I took no
+      pleasure in their melody; and the flowers of the field bloomed unheeded
+      around me. To be crossed in love is bad enough; but then one can fly to
+      poetry for relief, and turn one&rsquo;s woes to account in soul-subduing
+      stanzas. But to have one&rsquo;s whole passion, object and all, annihilated,
+      dispelled, proved to be such stuff as dreams are made of&mdash;or, worse
+      than all, to be turned into a proverb and a jest&mdash;what consolation is
+      there in such a case?
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      I avoided the fatal brook where I had seen the footstep. My favorite
+      resort was now the banks of the Hudson, where I sat upon the rocks and
+      mused upon the current that dimpled by, or the waves that laved the shore;
+      or watched the bright mutations of the clouds, and the shifting lights and
+      shadows of the distant mountain. By degrees a returning serenity stole
+      over my feelings; and a sigh now and then, gentle and easy, and unattended
+      by pain, showed that my heart was recovering its susceptibility.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      As I was sitting in this musing mood my eye became gradually fixed upon an
+      object that was borne along by the tide. It proved to be a little pinnace,
+      beautifully modeled, and gayly painted and decorated. It was an unusual
+      sight in this neighborhood, which was rather lonely; indeed, it was rare
+      to see any pleasure-barks in this part of the river. As it drew nearer, I
+      perceived that there was no one on board; it had apparently drifted from
+      its anchorage. There was not a breath of air; the little bark came
+      floating along on the glassy stream, wheeling about with the eddies. At
+      length it ran aground, almost at the foot of the rock on which I was
+      seated. I descended to the margin of the river, and drawing the bark to
+      shore, admired its light and elegant proportions and the taste with which
+      it was fitted up. The benches were covered with cushions, and its long
+      streamer was of silk. On one of the cushion&rsquo;s lay a lady&rsquo;s glove, of
+      delicate size and shape, with beautifully tapered fingers. I instantly
+      seized it and thrust it in my bosom; it seemed a match for the fairy
+      footstep that had so fascinated me.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      In a moment all the romance of my bosom was again in a glow. Here was one
+      of the very incidents of fairy tale; a bark sent by some invisible power,
+      some good genius, or benevolent fairy, to waft me to some delectable
+      adventure. I recollected something of an enchanted bark, drawn by white
+      swans, that conveyed a knight down the current of the Rhine, on some
+      enterprise connected with love and beauty. The glove, too, showed that
+      there was a lady fair concerned in the present adventure. It might be a
+      gauntlet of defiance, to dare me to the enterprise.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      In the spirit of romance and the whim of the moment, I sprang on board,
+      hoisted the light sail, and pushed from shore. As if breathed by some
+      presiding power, a light breeze at that moment sprang up, swelled out the
+      sail, and dallied with the silken streamer. For a time I glided along
+      under steep umbrageous banks, or across deep sequestered bays; and then
+      stood out over a wide expansion of the river toward a high rocky
+      promontory. It was a lovely evening; the sun was setting in a congregation
+      of clouds that threw the whole heavens in a glow, and were reflected in
+      the river. I delighted myself with all kinds of fantastic fancies, as to
+      what enchanted island, or mystic bower, or necromantic palace, I was to be
+      conveyed by the fairy bark.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      In the revel of my fancy I had not noticed that the gorgeous congregation
+      of clouds which had so much delighted me was in fact a gathering thunder
+      gust. I perceived the truth too late. The clouds came hurrying on,
+      darkening as they advanced. The whole face of nature was suddenly changed,
+      and assumed that baleful and livid tint, predictive of a storm. I tried to
+      gain the shore, but before I could reach it a blast of wind struck the
+      water and lashed it at once into foam. The next moment it overtook the
+      boat. Alas! I was nothing of a sailor; and my protecting fairy forsook me
+      in the moment of peril. I endeavored to lower the sail; but in so doing I
+      had to quit the helm; the bark was overturned in an instant, and I was
+      thrown into the water. I endeavored to cling to the wreck, but missed my
+      hold; being a poor swimmer I soon found myself sinking, but grasped a
+      light oar that was floating by me. It was not sufficient for my support; I
+      again sank beneath the surface; there was a rushing and bubbling sound in
+      my ears, and all sense forsook me.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      How long I remained insensible, I know not. I had a confused notion of
+      being moved and tossed about, and of hearing strange beings and strange
+      voices around me; but all this was like a hideous dream. When I at length
+      recovered full consciousness and perception, I found myself in bed in a
+      spacious chamber, furnished with more taste than I had been accustomed to.
+      The bright rays of a morning sun were intercepted by curtains of a
+      delicate rose color, that gave a soft, voluptuous tinge to every object.
+      Not far from my bed, on a classic tripod, was a basket of beautiful exotic
+      flowers, breathing the sweetest fragrance.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Where am I? How came I here?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      I tasked my mind to catch at some previous event, from which I might trace
+      up the thread of existence to the present moment. By degrees I called to
+      mind the fairy pinnace, my daring embarkation, my adventurous voyage, and
+      my disastrous shipwreck. Beyond that, all was chaos. How came I here? What
+      unknown region had I landed upon? The people that inhabited it must be
+      gentle and amiable, and of elegant tastes, for they loved downy beds,
+      fragrant flowers, and rose-colored curtains.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      While I lay thus musing, the tones of a harp reached my ear. Presently
+      they were accompanied by a female voice. It came from the room below; but
+      in the profound stillness of my chamber not a modulation was lost. My
+      sisters were all considered good musicians, and sang very tolerably; but I
+      had never heard a voice like this. There was no attempt at difficult
+      execution, or striking effect; but there were exquisite inflections, and
+      tender turns, which art could not reach. Nothing but feeling and sentiment
+      could produce them. It was soul breathed forth in sound. I was always
+      alive to the influence of music; indeed, I was susceptible of voluptuous
+      influences of every kind&mdash;sounds, colors, shapes, and fragrant odors.
+      I was the very slave of sensation.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      I lay mute and breathless, and drank in every note of this siren strain.
+      It thrilled through my whole frame, and filled my soul with melody and
+      love. I pictured to myself, with curious logic, the form of the unseen
+      musician. Such melodious sounds and exquisite inflections could only be
+      produced by organs of the most delicate flexibility. Such organs do not
+      belong to coarse, vulgar forms; they are the harmonious results of fair
+      proportions, and admirable symmetry. A being so organized must be lovely.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Again my busy imagination was at work. I called to mind the Arabian story
+      of a prince, borne away during sleep by a good genius, to the distant
+      abode of a princess of ravishing beauty. I do not pretend to say that I
+      believed in having experienced a similar transportation; but it was my
+      inveterate habit to cheat myself with fancies of the kind, and to give the
+      tinge of illusion to surrounding realities.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The witching sound had ceased, but its vibrations still played round my
+      heart, and filled it with a tumult of soft emotions. At this moment, a
+      self-upbraiding pang shot through my bosom. &ldquo;Ah, recreant!&rdquo; a voice seemed
+      to exclaim, &ldquo;is this the stability of thine affections? What! hast thou so
+      soon forgotten the nymph of the fountain? Has one song, idly piped in
+      thine ear, been sufficient to charm away the cherished tenderness of a
+      whole summer?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      The wise may smile&mdash;but I am in a confiding mood, and must confess my
+      weakness. I felt a degree of compunction at this sudden infidelity, yet I
+      could not resist the power of present fascination. My peace of mind was
+      destroyed by conflicting claims. The nymph of the fountain came over my
+      memory, with all the associations of fairy footsteps, shady groves, soft
+      echoes, and wild streamlets; but this new passion was produced by a strain
+      of soul-subduing melody, still lingering in my ear, aided by a downy bed,
+      fragrant flowers, and rose-colored curtains. &ldquo;Unhappy youth!&rdquo; sighed I to
+      myself, &ldquo;distracted by such rival passions, and the empire of thy heart
+      thus violently contested by the sound of a voice, and the print of a
+      footstep!&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      <br /><br />
+    </p>
+    <hr />
+    <p>
+      <br /><br />
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      I had not remained long in this mood, when I heard the door of the room
+      gently opened. I turned my head to see what inhabitant of this enchanted
+      palace should appear; whether page in green, a hideous dwarf, or haggard
+      fairy. It was my own man Scipio. He advanced with cautious step, and was
+      delighted, as he said, to find me so much myself again. My first questions
+      were as to where I was and how I came there? Scipio told me a long story
+      of his having been fishing in a canoe at the time of my hare-brained
+      cruise; of his noticing the gathering squall, and my impending danger; of
+      his hastening to join me, but arriving just in time to snatch me from a
+      watery grave; of the great difficulty in restoring me to animation; and of
+      my being subsequently conveyed, in a state of insensibility, to this
+      mansion.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;But where am I?&rdquo; was the reiterated demand.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;In the house of Mr. Somerville.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Somerville&mdash;Somerville!&rdquo; I recollected to have heard that a
+      gentleman of that name had recently taken up his residence at some
+      distance from my father&rsquo;s abode, on the opposite side of the Hudson. He
+      was commonly known by the name of &ldquo;French Somerville,&rdquo; from having passed
+      part of his early life in France, and from his exhibiting traces of French
+      taste in his mode of living, and the arrangements of his house. In fact,
+      it was in his pleasure-boat, which had got adrift, that I had made my
+      fanciful and disastrous cruise. All this was simple, straightforward
+      matter of fact, and threatened to demolish all the cobweb romance I had
+      been spinning, when fortunately I again heard the tinkling of a harp. I
+      raised myself in bed and listened.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Scipio,&rdquo; said I, with some little hesitation, &ldquo;I heard some one singing
+      just now. Who was it?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Oh, that was Miss Julia.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Julia! Julia! Delightful! what a name! And, Scipio&mdash;is she&mdash;is
+      she pretty?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      Scipio grinned from ear to ear. &ldquo;Except Miss Sophy, she was the most
+      beautiful young lady he had ever seen.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      I should observe, that my sister Sophia was considered by all the servants
+      a paragon of perfection.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Scipio now offered to remove the basket of flowers; he was afraid their
+      odor might be too powerful; but Miss Julia had given them that morning to
+      be placed in my room.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      These flowers, then, had been gathered by the fairy fingers of my unseen
+      beauty; that sweet breath which had filled my ear with melody had passed
+      over them. I made Scipio hand them to me, culled several of the most
+      delicate, and laid them on my bosom.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Mr. Somerville paid me a visit not long afterward. He was an interesting
+      study for me, for he was the father of my unseen beauty, and probably
+      resembled her. I scanned him closely. He was a tall and elegant man, with
+      an open, affable manner, and an erect and graceful carriage. His eyes were
+      bluish-gray, and, though not dark, yet at times were sparkling and
+      expressive. His hair was dressed and powdered, and being lightly combed up
+      from his forehead, added to the loftiness of his aspect. He was fluent in
+      discourse, but his conversation had the quiet tone of polished society,
+      without any of those bold flights of thought, and picturings of fancy,
+      which I so much admired.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      My imagination was a little puzzled, at first, to make out of this
+      assemblage of personal and mental qualities a picture that should
+      harmonize with my previous idea of the fair unseen. By dint, however, of
+      selecting what it liked, and giving a touch here and a touch there, it
+      soon furnished out a satisfactory portrait.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Julia must be tall,&rdquo; thought I, &ldquo;and of exquisite grace and dignity. She
+      is not quite so courtly as her father, for she has been brought up in the
+      retirement of the country. Neither is she of such vivacious deportment;
+      for the tones of her voice are soft and plaintive, and she loves pathetic
+      music. She is rather pensive&mdash;yet not too pensive; just what is
+      called interesting. Her eyes are like her father&rsquo;s, except that they are
+      of a purer blue, and more tender and languishing. She has light hair&mdash;not
+      exactly flaxen, for I do not like flaxen hair, but between that and
+      auburn. In a word, she is a tall, elegant, imposing, languishing
+      blue-eyed, romantic-looking beauty.&rdquo; And having thus finished her picture,
+      I felt ten times more in love with her than ever.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      <br /><br />
+    </p>
+    <hr />
+    <p>
+      <br /><br />
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      I felt so much recovered that I would at once have left my room, but Mr.
+      Somerville objected to it. He had sent early word to my family of my
+      safety; and my father arrived in the course of the morning. He was shocked
+      at learning the risk I had run, but rejoiced to find me so much restored,
+      and was warm in his thanks to Mr. Somerville for his kindness. The other
+      only required, in return, that I might remain two or three days as his
+      guest, to give time for my recovery, and for our forming a closer
+      acquaintance; a request which my father readily granted. Scipio
+      accordingly accompanied my father home, and returned with a supply of
+      clothes, and with affectionate letters from my mother and sisters.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The next morning, aided by Scipio, I made my toilet with rather more care
+      than usual, and descended the stairs with some trepidation, eager to see
+      the original of the portrait which had been so completely pictured in my
+      imagination.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      On entering the parlor, I found it deserted. Like the rest of the house,
+      it was furnished in a foreign style. The curtains were of French silk;
+      there were Grecian couches, marble tables, pier-glasses, and chandeliers.
+      What chiefly attracted my eye, were documents of female taste that I saw
+      around me; a piano, with an ample stock of Italian music: a book of poetry
+      lying on the sofa; a vase of fresh flowers on a table, and a portfolio
+      open with a skillful and half-finished sketch of them. In the window was a
+      canary bird, in a gilt cage, and near by, the harp that had been in
+      Julia&rsquo;s arms. Happy harp! But where was the being that reigned in this
+      little empire of delicacies?&mdash;that breathed poetry and song, and
+      dwelt among birds and flowers, and rose-colored curtains?
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Suddenly I heard the hall door fly open, the quick pattering of light
+      steps, a wild, capricious strain of music, and the shrill barking of a
+      dog. A light, frolic nymph of fifteen came tripping into the room, playing
+      on a flageolet, with a little spaniel romping after her. Her gypsy hat had
+      fallen back upon her shoulders; a profusion of glossy brown hair was blown
+      in rich ringlets about her face, which beamed through them with the
+      brightness of smiles and dimples.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      At sight of me she stopped short, in the most beautiful confusion,
+      stammered out a word or two about looking for her father, glided out of
+      the door, and I heard her bounding up the staircase, like a frightened
+      fawn, with the little dog barking after her.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      When Miss Somerville returned to the parlor, she was quite a different
+      being. She entered, stealing along by her mother&rsquo;s side with noiseless
+      step, and sweet timidity; her hair was prettily adjusted, and a soft blush
+      mantled on her damask cheek. Mr. Somerville accompanied the ladies, and
+      introduced me regularly to them. There were many kind inquiries and much
+      sympathy expressed, on the subject of my nautical accident, and some
+      remarks upon the wild scenery of the neighborhood, with which the ladies
+      seemed perfectly acquainted.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;You must know,&rdquo; said Mr. Somerville, &ldquo;that we are great navigators, and
+      delight in exploring every nook and corner of the river. My daughter, too,
+      is a great hunter of the picturesque, and transfers every rock and glen to
+      her portfolio. By the way, my dear, show Mr. Mountjoy that pretty scene
+      you have lately sketched.&rdquo; Julia complied, blushing, and drew from her
+      portfolio a colored sketch. I almost started at the sight. It was my
+      favorite brook. A sudden thought darted across my mind. I glanced down my
+      eye, and beheld the divinest little foot in the world. Oh, blissful
+      conviction! The struggle of my affections was at an end. The voice and the
+      footstep were no longer at variance. Julia Somerville was the nymph of the
+      fountain!
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      <br /><br />
+    </p>
+    <hr />
+    <p>
+      <br /><br />
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      What conversation passed during breakfast I do not recollect, and hardly
+      was conscious of at the time, for my thoughts were in complete confusion.
+      I wished to gaze on Miss Somerville, but did not dare. Once, indeed, I
+      ventured a glance. She was at that moment darting a similar one from under
+      a covert of ringlets. Our eyes seemed shocked by the rencontre, and fell;
+      hers through the natural modesty of her sex, mine through a bashfulness
+      produced by the previous workings of my imagination. That glance, however,
+      went like a sunbeam to my heart.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      A convenient mirror favored my diffidence, and gave me the reflection of
+      Miss Somerville&rsquo;s form. It is true it only presented the back of her head,
+      but she had the merit of an ancient statue; contemplate her from any point
+      of view, she was beautiful. And yet she was totally different from
+      everything I had before conceived of beauty. She was not the serene,
+      meditative maid that I had pictured the nymph of the fountain; nor the
+      tall, soft, languishing, blue-eyed, dignified being that I had fancied the
+      minstrel of the harp. There was nothing of dignity about her: she was
+      girlish in her appearance, and scarcely of the middle size; but then there
+      was the tenderness of budding youth; the sweetness of the half-blown rose,
+      when not a tint of perfume has been withered or exhaled; there were smiles
+      and dimples, and all the soft witcheries of ever-varying expression. I
+      wondered that I could ever have admired any other style of beauty.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      After breakfast, Mr. Somerville departed to attend to the concerns of his
+      estate, and gave me in charge of the ladies. Mrs. Somerville also was
+      called away by her household cares, and I was left alone with Julia! Here,
+      then, was the situation which of all others I had most coveted. I was in
+      the presence of the lovely being that had so long been the desire of my
+      heart. We were alone; propitious opportunity for a lover! Did I seize upon
+      it? Did I break out in one of my accustomed rhapsodies? No such thing!
+      Never was being more awkwardly embarrassed.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;What can be the cause of this?&rdquo; thought I. &ldquo;Surely, I cannot stand in awe
+      of this young girl. I am of course her superior in intellect, and am never
+      embarrassed in company with my tutor, notwithstanding all his wisdom.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      It was passing strange. I felt that if she were an old woman, I should be
+      quite at my ease; if she were even an ugly woman, I should make out very
+      well: it was her beauty that overpowered me. How little do lovely women
+      know what awful beings they are, in the eyes of inexperienced youth! Young
+      men brought up in the fashionable circles of our cities will smile at all
+      this. Accustomed to mingle incessantly in female society, and to have the
+      romance of the heart deadened by a thousand frivolous flirtations, women
+      are nothing but women in their eyes; but to a susceptible youth like
+      myself, brought up in the country, they are perfect divinities.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Miss Somerville was at first a little embarrassed herself; but, somehow or
+      other, women have a natural adroitness in recovering their
+      self-possession; they are more alert in their minds, and graceful in their
+      manners. Besides, I was but an ordinary personage in Miss Somerville&rsquo;s
+      eyes; she was not under Hie influence of such a singular course of
+      imaginings as had surrounded her, in my eyes, with the illusions of
+      romance. Perhaps, too, she saw the confusion in the opposite camp and
+      gained courage from the discovery. At any rate she was the first to take
+      the field.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Her conversation, however, was only on commonplace topics, and in an easy,
+      well-bred style. I endeavored to respond in the same manner; but I was
+      strangely incompetent to the task. My ideas were frozen up; even words
+      seemed to fail me. I was excessively vexed at myself, for I wished to be
+      uncommonly elegant. I tried two or three times to turn a pretty thought,
+      or to utter a fine sentiment; but it would come forth so trite, so forced,
+      so mawkish, that I was ashamed of it. My very voice sounded discordantly,
+      though I sought to modulate it into the softest tones. &ldquo;The truth is,&rdquo;
+       thought I to myself, &ldquo;I cannot bring my mind down to the small talk
+      necessary for young girls; it is too masculine and robust for the mincing
+      measure of parlor gossip. I am a philosopher&mdash;and that accounts for
+      it.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      The entrance of Mrs. Somerville at length gave me relief. I at once
+      breathed freely, and felt a vast deal of confidence come over me. &ldquo;This is
+      strange,&rdquo; thought I, &ldquo;that the appearance of another woman should revive
+      my courage; that I should be a better match for two women than one.
+      However, since it is so, I will take advantage of the circumstance, and
+      let this young lady see that I am not so great a simpleton as she probably
+      thinks me.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      I accordingly took up the book of poetry which lay upon the sofa. It was
+      Milton&rsquo;s Paradise Lost. Nothing could have been more fortunate; it
+      afforded a fine scope for my favorite vein of grandiloquence. I went
+      largely into a discussion of its merits, or rather an enthusiastic eulogy
+      of them. My observations were addressed to Mrs. Somerville, for I found I
+      could talk to her with more ease than to her daughter. She appeared alive
+      to the beauties of the poet and disposed to meet me in the discussion; but
+      it was not my object to hear her talk; it was to talk myself. I
+      anticipated all she had to say, overpowered her with the copiousness of my
+      ideas, and supported and illustrated them by long citations from the
+      author.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      While thus holding forth, I cast a side glance to see how Miss Somerville
+      was affected. She had some embroidery stretched on a frame before her, but
+      had paused in her labor, and was looking down as if lost in mute
+      attention. I felt a glow of self-satisfaction, but I recollected, at the
+      same time, with a kind of pique, the advantage she had enjoyed over me in
+      our tete-a-tete. I determined to push my triumph, and accordingly kept on
+      with redoubled ardor, until I had fairly exhausted my subject, or rather
+      my thoughts.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      I had scarce come to a full stop, when Miss Somerville raised her eyes
+      from the work on which they had been fixed, and turning to her mother,
+      observed: &ldquo;I have been considering, mamma, whether to work these flowers
+      plain, or in colors.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      Had an ice-bolt shot to my heart, it could not have chilled me more
+      effectually. &ldquo;What a fool,&rdquo; thought I, &ldquo;have I been making myself&mdash;squandering
+      away fine thoughts, and fine language, upon a light mind and an ignorant
+      ear! This girl knows nothing of poetry. She has no soul, I fear, for its
+      beauties. Can any one have real sensibility of heart, and not be alive to
+      poetry? However, she is young; this part of her education has been
+      neglected; there is time enough to remedy it. I will be her preceptor. I
+      will kindle in her mind the sacred flame, and lead her through the fairy
+      land of song. But after all, it is rather unfortunate that I should have
+      fallen in love with a woman who knows nothing of poetry.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      <br /><br />
+    </p>
+    <hr />
+    <p>
+      <br /><br />
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      I passed a day not altogether satisfactory. I was a little disappointed
+      that Miss Somerville did not show more poetical feeling. &ldquo;I am afraid,
+      after all,&rdquo; said I to myself, &ldquo;she is light and girlish, and more fitted
+      to pluck wild flowers, play on the flageolet, and romp with little dogs
+      than to converse with a man of my turn.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      I believe, however, to tell the truth, I was more out of humor with
+      myself. I thought I had made the worst first appearance that ever hero
+      made, either in novel or fairy tale. I was out of all patience, when I
+      called to mind my awkward attempts at ease and elegance, in the
+      tete-a-tete. And then my intolerable long lecture about poetry to catch
+      the applause of a heedless auditor! But there I was not to blame. I had
+      certainly been eloquent: it was her fault that the eloquence was wasted.
+      To meditate upon the embroidery of a flower, when I was expatiating on the
+      beauties of Milton! She might at least have admired the poetry, if she did
+      not relish the manner in which it was delivered: though that was not
+      despicable, for I had recited passages in my best style, which my mother
+      and sisters had always considered equal to a play. &ldquo;Oh, it is evident,&rdquo;
+       thought I, &ldquo;Miss Somerville has very little soul!&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      Such were my fancies and cogitations during the day, the greater part of
+      which was spent in my chamber, for I was still languid. My evening was
+      passed in the drawing-room, where I overlooked Miss Somerville&rsquo;s portfolio
+      of sketches. They were executed with great taste, and showed a nice
+      observation of the peculiarities of nature. They were all her own, and
+      free from those cunning tints and touches of the drawing-master, by which
+      young ladies&rsquo; drawings, like their heads, are dressed up for company.
+      There was no garish and vulgar trick of colors, either; all was executed
+      with singular truth and simplicity.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;And yet,&rdquo; thought I, &ldquo;this little being, who has so pure an eye to take
+      in, as in a limpid brook, all the graceful forms and magic tints of
+      nature, has no soul for poetry!&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      Mr. Somerville, toward the latter part of the evening, observing my eye to
+      wander occasionally to the harp, interpreted and met my wishes with his
+      accustomed civility.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Julia, my dear,&rdquo; said he, &ldquo;Mr. Mountjoy would like to hear a little music
+      from your harp; let us hear, too, the sound of your voice.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      Julia immediately complied, without any of that hesitation and difficulty,
+      by which young ladies are apt to make company pay dear for bad music. She
+      sang a sprightly strain, in a brilliant style, that came trilling
+      playfully over the ear; and the bright eye and dimpling smile showed that
+      her little heart danced with the song. Her pet canary bird, who hung close
+      by, was awakened by the music, and burst forth into an emulating strain.
+      Julia smiled with a pretty air of defiance, and played louder.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      After some time the music changed, and ran into a plaintive strain, in a
+      minor key. Then it was that all the former witchery of her voice came over
+      me; then it was that she seemed to sing from the heart and to the heart.
+      Her fingers moved about the chords as if they scarcely touched them. Her
+      whole manner and appearance changed; her eyes beamed with the softest
+      expression; her countenance, her frame, all seemed subdued into
+      tenderness. She rose from the harp, leaving it still vibrating with sweet
+      sounds, and moved toward her father, to bid him good-night.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      His eyes had been fixed on her intently during her performance. As she
+      came before him he parted her shining ringlets with both his hands, and
+      looked down with the fondness of a father on her innocent face. The music
+      seemed still lingering in its lineaments, and the action of her father
+      brought a moist gleam in her eye. He kissed her fair forehead, after the
+      French mode of parental caressing: &ldquo;Goodnight, and God bless you,&rdquo; said
+      he, &ldquo;my good little girl!&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      Julia tripped away, with a tear in her eye, a dimple in her cheek, and a
+      light heart in her bosom. I thought it the prettiest picture of paternal
+      and filial affection I had ever seen.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      When I retired to bed, a new train of thoughts crowded into my brain.
+      &ldquo;After all,&rdquo; said I to myself, &ldquo;it is clear this girl has a soul, though
+      she was not moved by my eloquence. She has all the outward signs and
+      evidences of poetic feeling. She paints well, and has an eye for nature.
+      She is a fine musician, and enters into the very soul of song. What a pity
+      that she knows nothing of poetry! But we will see what is to be done? I am
+      irretrievably in love with her; what then am I to do? Come down to the
+      level of her mind, or endeavor to raise her to some kind of intellectual
+      equality with myself? That is the most generous course. She will look up
+      to me as a benefactor. I shall become associated in her mind with the
+      lofty thoughts and harmonious graces of poetry. She is apparently docile:
+      besides the difference of our ages will give me an ascendency over her.
+      She cannot be above sixteen years of age, and I am full turned to twenty.&rdquo;
+       So, having built this most delectable of air castles, I fell asleep.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      <br /><br />
+    </p>
+    <hr />
+    <p>
+      <br /><br />
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The next morning I was quite a different being. I no longer felt fearful
+      of stealing a glance at Julia; on the contrary, I contemplated her
+      steadily, with the benignant eye of a benefactor. Shortly after breakfast
+      I found myself alone with her, as I had on the preceding morning; but I
+      felt nothing of the awkwardness of our previous tete-a-tete. I was
+      elevated by the consciousness of my intellectual superiority and should
+      almost have felt a sentiment of pity for the ignorance of the lovely
+      little being, if I had not felt also the assurance that I should be able
+      to dispel it. &ldquo;But it is time,&rdquo; thought I, &ldquo;to open school.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      Julia was occupied in arranging some music on her piano. I looked over two
+      or three songs; they were Moore&rsquo;s Irish melodies.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;These are pretty things!&rdquo; said I, flirting the leaves over lightly, and
+      giving a slight shrug, by way of qualifying the opinion.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Oh, I love them of all things,&rdquo; said Julia, &ldquo;they&rsquo;re so touching!&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Then you like them for the poetry,&rdquo; said I, with an encouraging smile.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Oh, yes; she thought them charmingly written.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      Now was my time. &ldquo;Poetry,&rdquo; said I, assuming a didactic attitude and air,
+      &ldquo;poetry is one of the most pleasing studies that can occupy a youthful
+      mind. It renders us susceptible of the gentle impulses of humanity, and
+      cherishes a delicate perception of all that is virtuous and elevated in
+      morals, and graceful and beautiful in physics. It&mdash;&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      I was going on in a style that would have graced a professor of rhetoric,
+      when I saw a light smile playing about Miss Somerville&rsquo;s mouth, and that
+      she began to turn over the leaves of a music-book. I recollected her
+      inattention to my discourse of the preceding morning. &ldquo;There is no fixing
+      her light mind,&rdquo; thought I, &ldquo;by abstract theory; we will proceed
+      practically.&rdquo; As it happened, the identical volume of Milton&rsquo;s Paradise
+      Lost was lying at hand.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Let me recommend to you, my young friend,&rdquo; said I, in one of those tones
+      of persuasive admonition, which I had so often loved in Glencoe, &ldquo;let me
+      recommend to you this admirable poem; you will find in it sources of
+      intellectual enjoyment far superior to those songs which have delighted
+      you.&rdquo; Julia looked at the book, and then at me, with a whimsically dubious
+      air. &ldquo;Milton&rsquo;s Paradise Lost?&rdquo; said she; &ldquo;oh, I know the greater part of
+      that by heart.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      I had not expected to find my pupil so far advanced; however, the Paradise
+      Lost is a kind of school book, and its finest passages are given to young
+      ladies as tasks.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;I find,&rdquo; said I to myself, &ldquo;I must not treat her as so complete a novice;
+      her inattention yesterday could not have proceeded from absolute
+      ignorance, but merely from a want of poetic feeling. I&rsquo;ll try her again.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      I now determined to dazzle her with my own erudition, and launched into a
+      harangue that would have done honor to an institute. Pope, Spenser,
+      Chaucer, and the old dramatic writers were all dipped into, with the
+      excursive flight of a swallow. I did not confine myself to English poets,
+      but gave a glance at the French and Italian schools; I passed over Ariosto
+      in full wing, but paused on Tasso&rsquo;s Jerusalem Delivered. I dwelt on the
+      character of Clorinda: &ldquo;There&rsquo;s a character,&rdquo; said I, &ldquo;that you will find
+      well worthy a woman&rsquo;s study. It shows to what exalted heights of heroism
+      the sex can rise, how gloriously they may share even in the stern concerns
+      of men.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;For my part,&rdquo; said Julia, gently taking advantage of a pause, &ldquo;for my
+      part, I prefer the character of Sophronia.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      I was thunderstruck. She then had read Tasso! This girl that I had been
+      treating as an ignoramus in poetry! She proceeded with a slight glow of
+      the cheek, summoned up perhaps by a casual glow of feeling:
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;I do not admire those masculine heroines,&rdquo; said she, &ldquo;who aim at the bold
+      qualities of the opposite sex. Now Sophronia only exhibits the real
+      qualities of a woman, wrought up to their highest excitement. She is
+      modest, gentle, and retiring, as it becomes a woman to be; but she has all
+      the strength of affection proper to a woman. She cannot fight for her
+      people as Clorinda does, but she can offer herself up, and die to serve
+      them. You may admire Clorinda, but you surely would be more apt to love
+      Sophronia; at least,&rdquo; added she, suddenly appearing to recollect herself,
+      and blushing at having launched into such a discussion, &ldquo;at least that is
+      what papa observed when we read the poem together.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Indeed,&rdquo; said I, dryly, for I felt disconcerted and nettled at being
+      unexpectedly lectured by my pupil; &ldquo;indeed, I do not exactly recollect the
+      passage.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Oh,&rdquo; said Julia, &ldquo;I can repeat it to you;&rdquo; and she immediately gave it in
+      Italian.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Heavens and earth!&mdash;here was a situation! I knew no more of Italian
+      than I did of the language of Psalmanazar. What a dilemma for a
+      would-be-wise man to be placed in! I saw Julia waited for my opinion.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;In fact,&rdquo; said I, hesitating, &ldquo;I&mdash;I do not exactly understand
+      Italian.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Oh,&rdquo; said Julia, with the utmost naivete, &ldquo;I have no doubt it is very
+      beautiful in the translation.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      I was glad to break up school, and get back to my chamber, full of the
+      mortification which a wise man in love experiences on finding his mistress
+      wiser than himself. &ldquo;Translation! translation!&rdquo; muttered I to myself, as I
+      jerked the door shut behind me: &ldquo;I am surprised my father has never had me
+      instructed in the modern languages. They are all important. What is the
+      use of Latin and Greek? No one speaks them; but here, the moment I make my
+      appearance in the world, a little girl slaps Italian in my face. However,
+      thank heaven, a language is easily learned. The moment I return home, I&rsquo;ll
+      set about studying Italian; and to prevent future surprise, I will study
+      Spanish and German at the same time; and if any young lady attempts to
+      quote Italian upon me again, I&rsquo;ll bury her under a heap of High Dutch
+      poetry!&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      <br /><br />
+    </p>
+    <hr />
+    <p>
+      <br /><br />
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      I felt now like some mighty chieftain, who has carried the war into a weak
+      country, with full confidence of success, and been repulsed and obliged to
+      draw off his forces from before some inconsiderable fortress.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;However,&rdquo; thought I, &ldquo;I have as yet brought only my light artillery into
+      action; we shall see what is to be done with my heavy ordnance. Julia is
+      evidently well versed in poetry; but it is natural she should be so; it is
+      allied to painting and music, and is congenial to the light graces of the
+      female character. We will try her on graver themes.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      I felt all my pride awakened; it even for a time swelled higher than my
+      love. I was determined completely to establish my mental superiority, and
+      subdue the intellect of this little being; it would then be time to sway
+      the scepter of gentle empire, and win the affections of her heart.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Accordingly, at dinner I again took the field, <i>en potence.</i> I now
+      addressed myself to Mr. Somerville, for I was about to enter upon topics
+      in which a young girl like her could not be well versed. I led, or rather
+      forced, the conversation into a vein of historical erudition, discussing
+      several of the most prominent facts of ancient history, and accompanying
+      them with sound, indisputable apothegms.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Mr. Somerville listened to me with the air of a man receiving information.
+      I was encouraged, and went on gloriously from theme to theme of school
+      declamation. I sat with Marius on the ruins of Carthage; I defended the
+      bridge with Horatius Cocles; thrust my hand into the flame with Martius
+      Scaevola, and plunged with Curtius into the yawning gulf; I fought side by
+      side with Leonidas, at the straits of Thermopylae; and was going full
+      drive into the battle of Plataea, when my memory, which is the worst in
+      the world, failed me, just as I wanted the name of the Lacedemonian
+      commander.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Julia, my dear,&rdquo; said Mr. Somerville, &ldquo;perhaps you may recollect the name
+      of which Mr. Mountjoy is in quest?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      Julia colored slightly. &ldquo;I believe,&rdquo; said she, in a low voice, &ldquo;I believe
+      it was Pausanius.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      This unexpected sally, instead of re-enforcing me, threw my whole scheme
+      of battle into confusion, and the Athenians remained unmolested in the
+      field.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      I am half inclined, since, to think Mr. Somerville meant this as a sly hit
+      at my schoolboy pedantry; but he was too well bred not to seek to relieve
+      me from my mortification. &ldquo;Oh!&rdquo; said he, &ldquo;Julia is our family book of
+      reference for names, dates, and distances, and has an excellent memory for
+      history and geography.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      I now became desperate; as a last resource I turned to metaphysics. &ldquo;If
+      she is a philosopher in petticoats,&rdquo; thought I, &ldquo;it is all over with me.&rdquo;
+       Here, however, I had the field to myself. I gave chapter and verse of my
+      tutor&rsquo;s lectures, heightened by all his poetical illustrations; I even
+      went further than he had ever ventured, and plunged into such depths of
+      metaphysics that I was in danger of sticking in the mire at the bottom.
+      Fortunately, I had auditors who apparently could not detect my
+      flounderings. Neither Mr. Somerville nor his daughter offered the least
+      interruption.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      When the ladies had retired, Mr. Somerville sat some time with me; and as
+      I was no longer anxious to astonish, I permitted myself to listen, and
+      found that he was really agreeable. He was quite communicative, and from
+      his conversation I was enabled to form a juster idea of his daughter&rsquo;s
+      character, and the mode in which she had been brought up. Mr. Somerville
+      had mingled much with the world, and with what is termed fashionable
+      society. He had experienced its cold elegances and gay insincerities; its
+      dissipation of the spirits and squanderings of the heart. Like many men of
+      the world, though he had wandered too far from nature ever to return to
+      it, yet he had the good taste and good feeling to look back fondly to its
+      simple delights, and to determine that his child, if possible, should
+      never leave them. He had superintended her education with scrupulous care,
+      storing her mind with the graces of polite literature, and with such
+      knowledge as would enable it to furnish its own amusement and occupation,
+      and giving her all the accomplishments that sweeten and enliven the circle
+      of domestic life. He had been particularly sedulous to exclude all
+      fashionable affectations; all false sentiment, false sensibility, and
+      false romance. &ldquo;Whatever advantages she may possess,&rdquo; said he, &ldquo;she is
+      quite unconscious of them. She is a capricious little being, in everything
+      but her affections; she is, however, free from art; simple, ingenuous,
+      amiable, and, I thank God! happy.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      Such was the eulogy of a fond father, delivered with a tenderness that
+      touched me. I could not help making a casual inquiry, whether, among the
+      graces of polite literature, he had included a slight tincture of
+      metaphysics. He smiled, and told me he had not.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      On the whole, when, as usual, that night, I summed up the day&rsquo;s
+      observations on my pillow, I was not altogether dissatisfied. &ldquo;Miss
+      Somerville,&rdquo; said I, &ldquo;loves poetry, and I like her the better for it. She
+      has the advantage of me in Italian; agreed; what is it to know a variety
+      of languages, but merely to have a variety of sounds to express the same
+      idea? Original thought is the ore of the mind; language is but the
+      accidental stamp and coinage by which it is put into circulation. If I can
+      furnish an original idea, what care I how many languages she can translate
+      it into? She may be able also to quote names and dates and latitudes
+      better than I; but that is a mere effort of the memory. I admit she is
+      more accurate in history and geography than I; but then she knows nothing
+      of metaphysics.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      I had now sufficiently recovered to return home; yet I could not think of
+      leaving Mr. Somerville&rsquo;s without having a little further conversation with
+      him on the subject of his daughter&rsquo;s education.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;This Mr. Somerville,&rdquo; thought I, &ldquo;is a very accomplished, elegant man; he
+      has seen a good deal of the world, and, upon the whole, has profited by
+      what he has seen. He is not without information, and, as far as he thinks,
+      appears to think correctly; but, after all, he is rather superficial, and
+      does not think profoundly. He seems to take no delight in those
+      metaphysical abstractions that are the proper aliment of masculine minds.
+      I called to mind various occasions in which I had indulged largely in
+      metaphysical discussions, but could recollect no instance where I had been
+      able to draw him out. He had listened, it is true, with attention, and
+      smiled as if in acquiescence, but had always appeared to avoid reply.
+      Besides, I had made several sad blunders in the glow of eloquent
+      declamation; but he had never interrupted me, to notice and correct them,
+      as he would have done had he been versed in the theme.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Now, it is really a great pity,&rdquo; resumed I, &ldquo;that he should have the
+      entire management of Miss Somerville&rsquo;s education. What a vast advantage it
+      would be if she could be put for a little time under the superintendence
+      of Glencoe. He would throw some deeper shades of thought into her mind,
+      which at present is all sunshine; not but that Mr. Somerville has done
+      very well, as far as he has gone; but then he has merely prepared the soil
+      for the strong plants of useful knowledge. She is well versed in the
+      leading facts of history, and the general course of belles-lettres,&rdquo; said
+      I; &ldquo;a little more philosophy would do wonders.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      I accordingly took occasion to ask Mr. Somerville for a few moments&rsquo;
+      conversation in his study, the morning I was to depart. When we were alone
+      I opened the matter fully to him. I commenced with the warmest eulogium of
+      Glencoe&rsquo;s powers of mind and vast acquirements, and ascribed to him all my
+      proficiency in the higher branches of knowledge. I begged, therefore, to
+      recommend him as a friend calculated to direct the studies of Miss
+      Somerville; to lead her mind, by degrees, to the contemplation of abstract
+      principles, and to produce habits of philosophical analysis; &ldquo;which,&rdquo;
+       added I, gently smiling, &ldquo;are not often cultivated by young ladies.&rdquo; I
+      ventured to hint, in addition, that he would find Mr. Glencoe a most
+      valuable and interesting acquaintance for himself; one who would stimulate
+      and evolve the powers of his mind; and who might open to him tracts of
+      inquiry and speculation to which perhaps he had hitherto been a stranger.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Mr. Somerville listened with grave attention. When I had finished, he
+      thanked me in the politest manner for the interest I took in the welfare
+      of his daughter and himself. He observed that, as it regarded himself, he
+      was afraid he was too old to benefit by the instruction of Mr. Glencoe,
+      and that as to his daughter, he was afraid her mind was but little fitted
+      for the study of metaphysics. &ldquo;I do not wish,&rdquo; continued he, &ldquo;to strain
+      her intellects with subjects they cannot grasp, but to make her familiarly
+      acquainted with those that are within the limits of her capacity. I do not
+      pretend to prescribe the boundaries of female genius, and am far from
+      indulging the vulgar opinion that women are unfitted by nature for the
+      highest intellectual pursuits. I speak only with reference to my
+      daughter&rsquo;s tastes and talents. She will never make a learned woman; nor,
+      in truth, do I desire it; for such is the jealousy of our sex, as to
+      mental as well as physical ascendency, that a learned woman is not always
+      the happiest. I do not wish my daughter to excite envy, or to battle with
+      the prejudices of the world; but to glide peaceably through life, on the
+      good will and kind opinions of her friends. She has ample employment for
+      her little head, in the course I have marked out for her; and is busy at
+      present with some branches of natural history, calculated to awaken her
+      perceptions to the beauties and wonders of nature, and to the
+      inexhaustible volume of wisdom constantly spread open before her eyes. I
+      consider that woman most likely to make an agreeable companion, who can
+      draw topics of pleasing remark from every natural object; and most likely
+      to be cheerful and contented, who is continually sensible of the order,
+      the harmony, and the invariable beneficence that reign throughout the
+      beautiful world we inhabit.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;But,&rdquo; added he, smiling, &ldquo;I am betraying myself into a lecture, instead
+      of merely giving a reply to your kind offer. Permit me to take the
+      liberty, in return, of inquiring a little about your own pursuits. You
+      speak of having finished your education; but of course you have a line of
+      private study and mental occupation marked out; for you must know the
+      importance, both in point of interest and happiness, of keeping the mind
+      employed. May I ask what system you observe in your intellectual
+      exercises?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Oh, as to system,&rdquo; I observed, &ldquo;I could never bring myself into anything
+      of the kind. I thought it best to let my genius take it own course, as it
+      always acted the most vigorously when stimulated by inclination.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      Mr. Somerville shook his head. &ldquo;This same genius,&rdquo; said he, &ldquo;is a wild
+      quality that runs away with our most promising young men. It has become so
+      much the fashion, too, to give it the reins that it is now thought an
+      animal of too noble and generous a nature to be brought to harness. But it
+      is all a mistake. Nature never designed these high endowments to run riot
+      through society, and throw the whole system into confusion. No, my dear
+      sir, genius, unless it acts upon system, is very apt to be a useless
+      quality to society; sometimes an injurious, and certainly a very
+      uncomfortable one, to its possessor. I have had many opportunities of
+      seeing the progress through life of young men who were accounted geniuses,
+      and have found it too often end in early exhaustion and bitter
+      disappointment; and have as often noticed that these effects might be
+      traced to a total want of system. There were no habits of business, of
+      steady purpose, and regular application, superinduced upon the mind;
+      everything was left to chance and impulse, and native luxuriance, and
+      everything of course ran to waste and wild entanglement. Excuse me if I am
+      tedious on this point, for I feel solicitous to impress it upon you, being
+      an error extremely prevalent in our country and one into which too many of
+      our youth have fallen. I am happy, however, to observe the zeal which
+      still appears to actuate you for the acquisition of knowledge, and augur
+      every good from the elevated bent of your ambition. May I ask what has
+      been your course of study for the last six months?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      Never was question more unluckily timed. For the last six months I had
+      been absolutely buried in novels and romances.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Mr. Somerville perceived that the question was embarrassing, and, with his
+      invariable good breeding, immediately resumed the conversation, without
+      waiting for a reply. He took care, however, to turn it in such a way as to
+      draw from me an account of the whole manner in which I had been educated,
+      and the various currents of reading into which my mind had run. He then
+      went on to discuss, briefly but impressively, the different branches of
+      knowledge most important to a young man in my situation; and to my
+      surprise I found him a complete master of those studies on which I had
+      supposed him ignorant, and on which I had been descanting so confidently.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      He complimented me, however, very graciously, upon the progress I had
+      made, but advised me for the present to turn my attention to the physical
+      rather than the moral sciences. &ldquo;These studies,&rdquo; said he, &ldquo;store a man&rsquo;s
+      mind with valuable facts, and at the same time repress self-confidence, by
+      letting him know how boundless are the realms of knowledge, and how little
+      we can possibly know. Whereas metaphysical studies, though of an ingenious
+      order of intellectual employment, are apt to bewilder some minds with
+      vague speculations. They never know how far they have advanced, or what
+      may be the correctness of their favorite theory. They render many of our
+      young men verbose and declamatory, and prone to mistake the aberrations of
+      their fancy for the inspirations of divine philosophy.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      I could not but interrupt him, to assent to the truth of these remarks,
+      and to say that it had been my lot, in the course of my limited
+      experience, to encounter young men of the kind, who had overwhelmed me by
+      their verbosity.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Mr. Somerville smiled. &ldquo;I trust,&rdquo; said he, kindly, &ldquo;that you will guard
+      against these errors. Avoid the eagerness with which a young man is apt to
+      hurry into conversation, and to utter the crude and ill-digested notions
+      which he has picked up in his recent studies. Be assured that extensive
+      and accurate knowledge is the slow acquisition of a studious lifetime;
+      that a young man, however pregnant his wit, and prompt his talent, can
+      have mastered but the rudiments of learning, and, in a manner, attained
+      the implements of study. Whatever may have been your past assiduity, you
+      must be sensible that as yet you have but reached the threshold of true
+      knowledge; but at the same time you have the advantage that you are still
+      very young, and have ample time to learn.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      Here our conference ended. I walked out of the study a very different
+      being from what I was on entering it. I had gone in with the air of a
+      professor about to deliver a lecture; I came out like a student who had
+      failed in his examination, and been degraded in his class.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Very young,&rdquo; and &ldquo;on the threshold of knowledge!&rdquo; This was extremely
+      flattering to one who had considererd himself an accomplished scholar and
+      a profound philosopher.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;It is singular,&rdquo; thought I; &ldquo;there seems to have been a spell upon my
+      faculties, ever since I have been in this house. I certainly have not been
+      able to do myself justice. Whenever I have undertaken to advise, I have
+      had the tables turned upon me. It must be that I am strange and diffident
+      among people I am not accustomed to. I wish they could hear me talk at
+      home!&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;After all,&rdquo; added I, on further reflection, &ldquo;after all there is a great
+      deal of force in what Mr. Somerville has said. Somehow or other, these men
+      of the world do now and then hit upon remarks that would do credit to a
+      philosopher. Some of his general observations came so home that I almost
+      thought they were meant for myself. His advice about adopting a system of
+      study is very judicious. I will immediately put it hi practice. My mind
+      shall operate henceforward with the regularity of clock-work.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      How far I succeeded in adopting this plan, how I fared in the further
+      pursuit of knowledge, and how I succeeded in my suit to Julia Somerville,
+      may afford matter for a further communication to the public, if this
+      simple record of my early life is fortunate enough to excite any
+      curiosity.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      <br /><br />
+    </p>
+    <hr />
+    <p>
+      <a name="link2H_4_0002" id="link2H_4_0002"> </a>
+    </p>
+    <div style="height: 4em;">
+      <br /><br /><br /><br />
+    </div>
+    <h2>
+      THE GREAT MISSISSIPPI BUBBLE
+    </h2>
+    <h3>
+      &ldquo;A TIME OF UNEXAMPLED PROSPERITY&rdquo;
+     </h3>
+    <p>
+      In the course of a voyage from England, I once fell in with a convoy of
+      merchant ships bound for the West Indies. The weather was uncommonly
+      bland; and the ships vied with each other in spreading sail to catch a
+      light, favoring breeze, until their hulls were almost hidden beneath a
+      cloud of canvas. The breeze went down with the sun, and his last yellow
+      rays shone upon a thousand sails, idly flapping against the masts.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      I exulted in the beauty of the scene, and augured a prosperous voyage; but
+      the veteran master of the ship shook his head, and pronounced this halcyon
+      calm a &ldquo;weather-breeder.&rdquo; And so it proved. A storm burst forth in the
+      night; the sea roared and raged; and when the day broke, I beheld the late
+      gallant convoy scattered in every direction; some dismasted, others
+      scudding under bare poles, and many firing signals of distress.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      I have since been occasionally reminded of this scene, by those calm,
+      sunny seasons in the commercial world, which are known by the name of
+      &ldquo;times of unexampled prosperity.&rdquo; They are the sure weather-breeders of
+      traffic. Every now and then the world is visited by one of these delusive
+      seasons, when &ldquo;the credit system,&rdquo; as it is called, expands to full
+      luxuriance, everybody trusts everybody; a bad debt is a thing unheard of;
+      the broad way to certain and sudden wealth lies plain and open; and men
+      are tempted to dash forward boldly, from the facility of borrowing.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Promissory notes, interchanged between scheming individuals, are liberally
+      discounted at the banks, which become so many mints to coin words into
+      cash; and as the supply of words is inexhaustible, it may readily be
+      supposed what a vast amount of promissory capital is soon in circulation.
+      Every one now talks in thousands; nothing is heard but gigantic operations
+      in trade; great purchases and sales of real property, and immense sums
+      made at every transfer. All, to be sure, as yet exists in promise; but the
+      believer in promises calculates the aggregate as solid capital, and falls
+      back in amazement at the amount of public wealth, the &ldquo;unexampled state of
+      public prosperity.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      Now is the time for speculative and dreaming or designing men. They relate
+      their dreams and projects to the ignorant and credulous, dazzle them with
+      golden visions, and set them madding after shadows. The example of one
+      stimulates another; speculation rises on speculation; bubble rises on
+      bubble; every one helps with his breath to swell the windy superstructure,
+      and admires and wonders at the magnitude of the inflation he has
+      contributed to produce.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Speculation is the romance of trade, and casts contempt upon all its sober
+      realities. It renders the stock-jobber a magician, and the exchange a
+      region of enchantment. It elevates the merchant into a kind of
+      knight-errant, or rather a commercial Quixote. The slow but sure gains of
+      snug percentage become despicable in his eyes; no &ldquo;operation&rdquo; is thought
+      worthy of attention that does not double or treble the investment. No
+      business is worth following that does not promise an immediate fortune. As
+      he sits musing over his ledger, with pen behind his ear, he is like La
+      Mancha&rsquo;s hero in his study, dreaming over his books of chivalry. His dusty
+      counting-house fades before his eyes, or changes into a Spanish mine; he
+      gropes after diamonds, or dives after pearls. The subterranean garden of
+      Aladdin is nothing to the realms of wealth that break upon his
+      imagination.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Could this delusion always last, the life of a merchant would indeed be a
+      golden dream; but it is as short as it is brilliant. Let but a doubt
+      enter, and the &ldquo;season of unexampled prosperity&rdquo; is at end. The coinage of
+      words is suddenly curtailed; the promissory capital begins to vanish into
+      smoke; a panic succeeds, and the whole superstructure, built upon credit
+      and reared by speculation, crumbles to the ground, leaving scarce a wreck
+      behind:
+    </p>
+<pre xml:space="preserve">
+  &ldquo;It is such stuff as dreams are made of.&rdquo;
+ </pre>
+    <p>
+      When a man of business, therefore, hears on every side rumors of fortunes
+      suddenly acquired; when he finds banks liberal, and brokers busy; when he
+      sees adventurers flush of paper capital, and full of scheme and
+      enterprise; when he perceives a greater disposition to buy than to sell;
+      when trade overflows its accustomed channels and deluges the country; when
+      he hears of new regions of commercial adventure; of distant marts and
+      distant mines, swallowing merchandise and disgorging gold; when he finds
+      joint-stock companies of all kinds forming; railroads, canals, and
+      locomotive engines, springing up on every side; when idlers suddenly
+      become men of business, and dash into the game of commerce as they would
+      into the hazards of the faro table; when he beholds the streets glittering
+      with new equipages, palaces conjured up by the magic of speculation;
+      tradesmen flushed with sudden success, and vying with each other in
+      ostentatious expense; in a word, when he hears the whole community joining
+      in the theme of &ldquo;unexampled prosperity,&rdquo; let him look upon the whole as a
+      &ldquo;weather-breeder,&rdquo; and prepare for the impending storm.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The foregoing remarks are intended merely as a prelude to a narrative I am
+      about to lay before the public, of one of the most memorable instances of
+      the infatuation of gain to be found in the whole history of commerce. I
+      allude to the famous Mississippi Bubble. It is a matter that has passed
+      into a proverb, and become a phrase in every one&rsquo;s mouth, yet of which not
+      one merchant in ten has probably a distinct idea. I have therefore thought
+      that an authentic account of it would be interesting and salutary, at the
+      present moment, when we are suffering under the effects of a severe access
+      of the credit system, and just recovering from one of its ruinous
+      delusions.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Before entering into the story of this famous chimera, it is proper to
+      give a few particulars concerning the individual who engendered it. John
+      Law was born in Edinburgh in 1671. His father, William Law, was a rich
+      goldsmith, and left his son an estate of considerable value, called
+      Lauriston, situated about four miles from Edinburgh. Goldsmiths, in those
+      days, acted occasionally as bankers, and his father&rsquo;s operations, under
+      this character, may have originally turned the thoughts of the youth to
+      the science of calculation, in which he became an adept; so that at an
+      early age he excelled in playing at all games of combination.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      In 1694 he appeared in London, where a handsome person, and an easy and
+      insinuating address, gained him currency in the first circles and the
+      nickname of &ldquo;Beau Law.&rdquo; The same personal advantages gave him success in
+      the world of gallantry, until he became involved in a quarrel with Beau
+      Wilson, his rival in fashion, whom he killed in a duel, and then fled to
+      France, to avoid prosecution.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      He returned to Edinburgh in 1700, and remained there several years; during
+      which time he first broached his great credit system, offering to supply
+      the deficiency of coin by the establishment of a bank, which, according to
+      his views, might emit a paper currency equivalent to the whole landed
+      estate of the kingdom.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      His scheme excited great astonishment in Edinburgh; but, though the
+      government was not sufficiently advanced in financial knowledge to detect
+      the fallacies upon which it was founded, Scottish caution and suspicion
+      served in the place of wisdom, and the project was rejected. Law met with
+      no better success with the English Parliament; and the fatal affair of the
+      death of Wilson still hanging over him, for which he had never been able
+      to procure a pardon, he again went to France.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The financial affairs of France were at this time in a deplorable
+      condition. The wars, the pomp and profusion, of Louis XIV., and his
+      religious persecutions of whole classes of the most industrious of his
+      subjects, had exhausted his treasury, and overwhelmed the nation with
+      debt. The old monarch clung to his selfish magnificence, and could not be
+      induced to diminish his enormous expenditure; and his minister of finance
+      was driven to his wits&rsquo; end to devise all kinds of disastrous expedients
+      to keep up the royal state, and to extricate the nation from its
+      embarrassments.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      In this state of things, Law ventured to bring forward his financial
+      project. It was founded on the plan of the Bank of England, which had
+      already been in successful operation several years. He met with immediate
+      patronage, and a congenial spirit, in the Duke of Orleans, who had married
+      a natural daughter of the king. The duke had been astonished at the
+      facility with which England had supported the burden of a public debt,
+      created by the wars of Anne and William, and which exceeded in amount that
+      under which France was groaning. The whole matter was soon explained by
+      Law to his satisfaction. The latter maintained that England had stopped at
+      the mere threshold of an art capable of creating unlimited sources of
+      national wealth. The duke was dazzled with his splendid views and specious
+      reasonings, and thought he clearly comprehended his system. Demarets, the
+      Comptroller-General of Finance, was not so easily deceived. He pronounced
+      the plan of Law more pernicious than any of the disastrous expedients that
+      the government had yet been driven to. The old king also, Louis XIV.,
+      detested all innovations, especially those which came from a rival nation;
+      the project of a bank, therefore, was utterly rejected.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Law remained for a while in Paris, leading a gay and affluent existence,
+      owing to his handsome person, easy manners, flexible temper, and a
+      faro-bank which he had set up. His agreeable career was interrupted by a
+      message from D&rsquo;Argenson, Lieutenant-General of Police, ordering him to
+      quit Paris, alleging that he was &ldquo;<i>rather too skillful at the game which
+      he had introduced</i>.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      For several succeeding years he shifted his residence from state to state
+      of Italy and Germany; offering his scheme of finance to every court that
+      he visited, but without success. The Duke of Savoy, Victor Amadeus,
+      afterward king of Sardinia, was much struck with his project; but after
+      considering it for a time, replied, <i>&ldquo;I am not sufficiently powerful to
+      ruin myself.&rdquo;</i>
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The shifting, adventurous life of Law, and the equivocal means by which he
+      appeared to live, playing high, and always with great success, threw a
+      cloud of suspicion over him wherever he went, and caused him to be
+      expelled by the magistracy from the semi-commercial, semi-aristocratical
+      cities of Venice and Genoa.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The events of 1715 brought Law back again to Paris. Louis XIV. was dead.
+      Louis XV. was a mere child, and during his minority the Duke of Orleans
+      held the reins of government as Regent. Law had at length found his man.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The Duke of Orleans has been differently represented by different
+      contemporaries. He appears to have had excellent natural qualities,
+      perverted by a bad education. He was of the middle size, easy and
+      graceful, with an agreeable countenance, and open, affable demeanor. His
+      mind was quick and sagacious, rather than profound; and his quickness of
+      intellect, and excellence of memory, supplied the lack of studious
+      application. His wit was prompt and pungent; he expressed himself with
+      vivacity and precision; his imagination was vivid, his temperament
+      sanguine and joyous; his courage daring. His mother, the Duchess of
+      Orleans, expressed his character in a jeu d&rsquo;esprit. &ldquo;The fairies,&rdquo; said
+      she, &ldquo;were invited to be present at his birth, and each one conferring a
+      talent on my son, he possesses them all. Unfortunately, we had forgotten
+      to invite an old fairy, who, arriving after all the others, exclaimed, &lsquo;He
+      shall have all the talents, excepting that to make a good use of them.&rsquo;&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      Under proper tuition, the duke might have risen to real greatness; but in
+      his early years he was put under the tutelage of the Abbe Dubois, one of
+      the subtlest and basest spirits that ever intrigued its way into eminent
+      place and power. The abbe was of low origin and despicable exterior,
+      totally destitute of morals, and perfidious in the extreme; but with a
+      supple, insinuating address, and an accommodating spirit, tolerant of all
+      kinds of profligacy in others. Conscious of his own inherent baseness, he
+      sought to secure an influence over his pupil, by corrupting his principles
+      and fostering his vices; he debased him, to keep himself from being
+      despised. Unfortunately he succeeded. To the early precepts of this
+      infamous pander have been attributed those excesses that disgraced the
+      manhood of the regent, and gave a licentious character to his whole course
+      of government. His love of pleasure, quickened and indulged by those who
+      should have restrained it, led him into all kinds of sensual indulgence.
+      He had been taught to think lightly of the most serious duties and sacred
+      ties; to turn virtue into a jest, and consider religion mere hypocrisy. He
+      was a gay misanthrope, that had a sovereign but sportive contempt for
+      mankind; believed that his most devoted servant would be his enemy, if
+      interest prompted; and maintained that an honest man was he who had the
+      art to conceal that he was the contrary.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      He surrounded himself with a set of dissolute men like himself; who, let
+      loose from the restraint under which they had been held, during the latter
+      hypocritical days of Louis XIV., now gave way to every kind of debauchery.
+      With these men the regent used to shut himself up, after the hours of
+      business, and excluding all graver persons and graver concerns, celebrate
+      the most drunken and disgusting orgies; where obscenity and blasphemy
+      formed the seasoning of conversation. For the profligate companions of
+      these revels, he invented the appellation of his <i>roués</i>, the literal
+      meaning of which is men broken on the wheel; intended, no doubt, to
+      express their broken-down characters and dislocated fortunes; although a
+      contemporary asserts that it designated the punishment that most of them
+      merited. Madame de Labran, who was present at one of the regent&rsquo;s suppers,
+      was disgusted by the conduct and conversation of the host and his guests,
+      and observed, at table, that God, after he had created man, took the
+      refuse clay that was left, and made of it the souls of lackeys and
+      princes.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Such was the man that now ruled the destinies of France. Law found him
+      full of perplexities, from the disastrous state of the finances. He had
+      already tampered with the coinage, calling in the coin of the nation,
+      restamping it, and issuing it at a nominal increase of one-fifth; thus
+      defrauding the nation out of twenty per cent of its capital. He was not
+      likely, therefore, to be scrupulous about any means likely to relieve him
+      from financial difficulties; he had even been led to listen to the cruel
+      alternative of a national bankruptcy.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Under these circumstances, Law confidently brought forward his scheme of a
+      bank, that was to pay off the national debt, increase the revenue, and at
+      the same time diminish the taxes. The following is stated as the theory by
+      which he recommended his system to the regent. The credit enjoyed by a
+      banker or a merchant, he observed, increases his capital tenfold; that is
+      to say, he who has a capital of one thousand livres, may, if he possess
+      sufficient credit, extend his operations to a million, and reap profits to
+      that amount. In like manner, a state that can collect into a bank all the
+      current coin of the kingdom, would be as powerful as if its capital were
+      increased tenfold. The specie must be drawn into the bank, not by way of
+      loan, or by taxations, but in the way of deposit. This might be effected
+      in different modes, either by inspiring confidence or by exerting
+      authority. One mode, he observed, had already been in use. Each time that
+      a state makes a recoinage, it becomes momentarily the depositary of all
+      the money called in, belonging to the subjects of that state. His bank was
+      to effect the same purpose; that is to say, to receive in deposit all the
+      coin of the kingdom, but to give in exchange its bills, which, being of an
+      invariable value, bearing an interest, and being payable on demand, would
+      not only supply the place of coin, but prove a better and more profitable
+      currency.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The regent caught with avidity at the scheme. It suited his bold, reckless
+      spirit, and his grasping extravagance. Not that he was altogether the dupe
+      of Law&rsquo;s specious projects; still he was apt, like many other men,
+      unskilled in the arcana of finance, to mistake the multiplication of money
+      for the multiplication of wealth; not understanding that it was a mere
+      agent or instrument in the interchange of traffic, to represent the value
+      of the various productions of industry; and that an increased circulation
+      of coin or bank bills, in the shape of currency, only adds a
+      proportionably increased and fictitious value to such productions. Law
+      enlisted the vanity of the regent in his cause. He persuaded him that he
+      saw more clearly than others into sublime theories of finance, which were
+      quite above the ordinary apprehension. He used to declare that, excepting
+      the regent and the Duke of Savoy, no one had thoroughly comprehended his
+      system.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      It is certain that it met with strong opposition from the regent&rsquo;s
+      ministers, the Duke de Noailles and the Chancellor d&rsquo;Anguesseau; and it
+      was no less strenuously opposed by the Parliament of Paris. Law, however,
+      had a potent though secret coadjutor in the Abbe Dubois, now rising,
+      during the regency, into great political power, and who retained a baneful
+      influence over the mind of the regent. This wily priest, as avaricious as
+      he was ambitious, drew large sums from Law as subsidies, and aided him
+      greatly in many of his most pernicious operations. He aided him, in the
+      present instance, to fortify the mind of the regent against all the
+      remonstrances of his ministers and the parliament.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Accordingly, on the 2d of May, 1716, letters patent were granted to Law,
+      to establish a bank of deposit, discount, and circulation, under the firm
+      of &ldquo;Law &amp; Company,&rdquo; to continue for twenty years. The capital was
+      fixed at six millions of livres, divided into shares of five hundred
+      livres each, which were to be sold for twenty-five per cent of the
+      regent&rsquo;s debased coin, and seventy-five per cent of the public securities;
+      which were then at a great reduction from their nominal value, and which
+      then amounted to nineteen hundred millions. The ostensible object of the
+      bank, as set forth in the patent, was to encourage the commerce and
+      manufactures of France. The louis d&rsquo;ors and crowns of the bank were always
+      to retain the same standard of value, and its bills to be payable in them
+      on demand.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      At the outset, while the bank was limited in its operations, and while its
+      paper really represented the specie in its vaults, it seemed to realize
+      all that had been promised from it. It rapidly acquired public confidence,
+      and an extended circulation, and produced an activity in commerce unknown
+      under the baneful government of Louis XIV. As the bills of the bank bore
+      an interest, and as it was stipulated they would be of invariable value,
+      and as hints had been artfully circulated that the coin would experience
+      successive diminution, everybody hastened to the bank to exchange gold and
+      silver for paper. So great became the throng of depositors, and so intense
+      their eagerness, that there was quite a press and struggle at the bank
+      door, and a ludicrous panic was awakened, as if there was danger of their
+      not being admitted. An anecdote of the time relates that one of the
+      clerks, with an ominous smile, called out to the struggling multitude,
+      &ldquo;Have a little patience, my friends; we mean to take all your money;&rdquo; an
+      assertion disastrously verified in the sequel.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Thus, by the simple establishment of a bank, Law and the regent obtained
+      pledges of confidence for the consummation of further and more complicated
+      schemes, as yet hidden from the public. In a little while, the bank shares
+      rose enormously, and the amount of its notes in circulation exceeded one
+      hundred and ten millions of livres. A subtle stroke of policy had rendered
+      it popular with the aristocracy. Louis XIV. had several years previously
+      imposed an income tax of a tenth, giving his royal word that it should
+      cease in 1717. This tax had been exceedingly irksome to the privileged
+      orders; and in the present disastrous times they had dreaded an
+      augmentation of it. In consequence of the successful operation of Law&rsquo;s
+      scheme, however, the tax was abolished, and now nothing was to be heard
+      among the nobility and clergy but praises of the regent and the bank.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Hitherto all had gone well, and all might have continued to go well, had
+      not the paper system been further expanded. But Law had yet the grandest
+      part of his scheme to develop. He had to open his ideal world of
+      speculation, his El Dorado of unbounded wealth. The English had brought
+      the vast imaginary commerce of the South Seas in aid of their banking
+      operations. Law sought to bring, as an immense auxiliary of his bank, the
+      whole trade of the Mississippi. Under this name was included not merely
+      the river so called, but the vast region known as Louisiana, extending
+      from north latitude 29° up to Canada in north latitude 40°. This country
+      had been granted by Louis XIV. to the Sieur Crozat, but he had been
+      induced to resign his patent. In conformity to the plea of Mr. Law,
+      letters patent were granted in August, 1717, for the creation of a
+      commercial company, which was to have the colonizing of this country, and
+      the monopoly of its trade and resources, and of the beaver or fur trade
+      with Canada. It was called the Western, but became better known as the
+      Mississippi Company. The capital was fixed at one hundred millions of
+      livres, divided into shares, bearing an Interest of four per cent, which
+      were subscribed for in the public securities. As the bank was to
+      co-operate with the company, the regent ordered that its bills should be
+      received the same as coin, in all payments of the public revenue. Law was
+      appointed chief director of this company, which was an exact copy of the
+      Earl of Oxford&rsquo;s South Sea Company, set on foot in 1711, and which
+      distracted all England with the frenzy of speculation. In like manner with
+      the delusive picturings given in that memorable scheme of the sources of
+      rich trade to be opened in the South Sea countries, Law held forth
+      magnificent prospects of the fortunes to be made in colonizing Louisiana,
+      which was represented as a veritable land of promise, capable of yielding
+      every variety of the most precious produce. Reports, too, were artfully
+      circulated, with great mystery, as if to the &ldquo;chosen few,&rdquo; of mines of
+      gold and silver recently discovered in Louisiana, and which would insure
+      instant wealth to the early purchasers. These confidential whispers of
+      course soon became public; and were confirmed by travelers fresh from the
+      Mississippi, and doubtless bribed, who had seen the mines in question, and
+      declared them superior in richness to those of Mexico and Peru. Nay, more,
+      ocular proof was furnished to public credulity, in ingots of gold conveyed
+      to the mint, as if just brought from the mines of Louisiana.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Extraordinary measures were adopted to force a colonization. An edict was
+      issued to collect and transport settlers to the Mississippi. The police
+      lent its aid. The streets and prisons of Paris, and of the provincial
+      cities, were swept of mendicants and vagabonds of all kinds, who were
+      conveyed to Havre de Grace. About six thousand were crowded into ships,
+      where no precautions had been taken for their health or accommodation.
+      Instruments of all kinds proper for the working of mines were
+      ostentatiously paraded in public, and put on board the vessels; and the
+      whole set sail for this fabled El Dorado, which was to prove the grave of
+      the greater part of its wretched colonists.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      D&rsquo;Anguesseau, the chancellor, a man of probity and integrity, still lifted
+      his voice against the paper system of Law, and his project of
+      colonization, and was eloquent and prophetic in picturing the evils they
+      were calculated to produce; the private distress and public degradation;
+      the corruption of morals and manners; the triumph of knaves and schemers;
+      the ruin of fortunes, and downfall of families. He was incited more and
+      more to this opposition by the Duke de Noailles, the Minister of Finance,
+      who was jealous of the growing ascendency of Law over the mind of the
+      regent, but was less honest than the chancellor in his opposition. The
+      regent was excessively annoyed by the difficulties they conjured up in the
+      way of his darling schemes of finance, and the countenance they gave to
+      the opposition of parliament; which body, disgusted more and more with the
+      abuses of the regency, and the system of Law, had gone so far as to carry
+      its remonstrances to the very foot of the throne.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      He determined to relieve himself from these two ministers, who, either
+      through honesty or policy, interfered with all his plans. Accordingly, on
+      the 28th of January, 1718, he dismissed the chancellor from office, and
+      exiled him to his estate in the country; and shortly afterward removed the
+      Duke de Noailles from the administration of the finances.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The opposition of parliament to the regent and his measures was carried on
+      with increasing violence. That body aspired to an equal authority with the
+      regent in the administration of affairs, and pretended, by its decree, to
+      suspend an edict of the regency, ordering a new coinage and altering the
+      value of the currency. But its chief hostility was leveled against Law, a
+      foreigner and a heretic, and one who was considered by a majority of the
+      members in the light of a malefactor. In fact, so far was this hostility
+      carried, that secret measures were taken to investigate his malversations,
+      and to collect evidence against him; and it was resolved in parliament
+      that, should the testimony collected justify their suspicions, they would
+      have him seized and brought before them; would give him a brief trial,
+      and, if convicted, would hang him in the courtyard of the palace, and
+      throw open the gates after the execution, that the public might behold his
+      corpse!
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Law received intimation of the danger hanging over him, and was in
+      terrible trepidation. He took refuge in the Palais Royal, the residence of
+      the regent, and implored his protection. The regent himself was
+      embarrassed by the sturdy opposition of parliament, which contemplated
+      nothing less than a decree reversing most of his public measures,
+      especially those of finance. His indecision kept Law for a time in an
+      agony of terror and suspense. Finally, by assembling a board of justice,
+      and bringing to his aid the absolute authority of the king, he triumphed
+      over parliament and relieved Law from his dread of being hanged.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The system now went on with flowing sail. The Western or Mississippi
+      Company, being identified with the bank, rapidly increased in power and
+      privileges. One monopoly after another was granted to it; the trade of the
+      Indian seas; the slave trade with Senegal and Guinea; the farming of
+      tobacco; the national coinage, etc. Each new privilege was made a pretext
+      for issuing more bills, and caused an immense advance in the price of
+      stock. At length, on the 4th of December, 1718, the regent gave the
+      establishment the imposing title of &ldquo;The Royal Bank,&rdquo; and proclaimed that
+      he had effected the purchase of all the shares, the proceeds of which he
+      had added to its capital This measure seemed to shock the public feeling
+      more than any other connected with the system, and roused the indignation
+      of parliament. The French nation had been so accustomed to attach an idea
+      of everything noble, lofty, and magnificent to the royal name and person,
+      especially during the stately and sumptuous reign of Louis XIV., that they
+      could not at first tolerate the idea of royalty being in any degree
+      mingled with matters of traffic and finance, and the king being in a
+      manner a banker. It was one of the downward steps, however, by which
+      royalty lost its illusive splendor in France, and became gradually
+      cheapened in the public mind.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Arbitrary measures now began to be taken to force the bills of the bank
+      into artificial currency. On the 27th of December appeared an order in
+      council, forbidding, under severe penalties, the payment of any sum above
+      six hundred livres in gold or silver. This decree rendered bank bills
+      necessary in all transactions of purchase and sale, and called for a new
+      emission. The prohibition was occasionally evaded or opposed;
+      confiscations were the consequence; informers were rewarded, and spies and
+      traitors began to spring up in all the domestic walks of life.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The worst effect of this illusive system was the mania for gain, or rather
+      for gambling in stocks, that now seized upon the whole nation. Under the
+      exciting effects of lying reports, and the forcing effects of government
+      decrees, the shares of the company went on rising in value until they
+      reached thirteen hundred per cent. Nothing was now spoken of but the price
+      of shares, and the immense fortunes suddenly made by lucky speculators.
+      Those whom Law had deluded used every means to delude others. The most
+      extravagant dreams were indulged, concerning the wealth to flow in upon
+      the company from its colonies, its trade, and its various monopolies. It
+      is true nothing as yet had been realized, nor could in some time be
+      realized, from these distant sources, even if productive; but the
+      imaginations of speculators are ever in the advance, and their conjectures
+      are immediately converted into facts. Lying reports now flew from mouth to
+      month, of sure avenues to fortune suddenly thrown open. The more
+      extravagant the fable, the more readily was it believed. To doubt was to
+      awaken anger, or incur ridicule. In a time of public infatuation, it
+      requires no small exercise of courage to doubt a popular fallacy.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Paris now became the center of attraction for the adventurous and the
+      avaricious, who flocked to it, not merely from the provinces, but from
+      neighboring countries. A stock exchange was established in a house in the
+      Rue Quincampoix, and became immediately the gathering place of
+      stock-jobbers. The exchange opened at seven o&rsquo;clock, with the beat of drum
+      and sound of bell, and closed at night with the same signals. Guards were
+      stationed at each end of the street, to maintain order and exclude
+      carriages and horses. The whole street swarmed throughout the day like a
+      bee-hive. Bargains of all kinds were seized upon with avidity. Shares of
+      stock passed from hand to hand, mounting in value, one knew not why.
+      Fortunes were made in a moment, as if by magic; and every lucky bargain
+      prompted those around to a more desperate throw of the die. The fever went
+      on, increasing in intensity as the day declined; and when the drum beat,
+      and the bell rang, at night, to close the exchange, there were
+      exclamations of impatience and despair, as if the wheel of fortune had
+      suddenly been stopped when about to make its luckiest evolution.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      To engulf all classes in this ruinous vortex, Law now split the shares of
+      fifty millions of stock each into one hundred shares; thus, as in the
+      splitting of lottery tickets, accommodating the venture to the humblest
+      purse. Society was thus stirred up to its very dregs, and adventurers of
+      the lowest order hurried to the stock market. All honest, industrious
+      pursuits, and modest gains, were now despised. Wealth was to be obtained
+      instantly, without labor and without stint. The upper classes were as base
+      in their venality as the lower. The highest and most powerful nobles,
+      abandoning all generous pursuits and lofty aims, engaged in the vile
+      scuffle for gam. They were even baser than the lower classes; for some of
+      them, who were members of the council of the regency, abused their station
+      and their influence, and promoted measures by which shares rose while in
+      their hands, and they made immense profits.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The Duke de Bourbon, the prince of Conti, the Dukes de la Force and
+      D&rsquo;Antin were among the foremost of these illustrious stock-jobbers. They
+      were nicknamed the Mississippi Lords, and they smiled at the sneering
+      title. In fact, the usual distinctions of society had lost their
+      consequence, under the reign of this new passion. Bank, talent, military
+      fame, no longer inspired deference. All respect for others, all
+      self-respect, were forgotten in the mercenary struggle of the
+      stock-market. Even prelates and ecclesiastical corporations, forgetting
+      their true objects of devotion, mingled among the votaries of Mammon. They
+      were not behind those who wielded the civil power in fabricating
+      ordinances suited to their avaricious purposes. Theological decisions
+      forthwith appeared, in which the anathema launched by the Church against
+      usury was conveniently construed as not extending to the traffic in bank
+      shares!
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The Abbe Dubois entered into the mysteries of stockjobbing with all the
+      zeal of an apostle, and enriched himself by the spoils of the credulous;
+      and he continually drew large sums from Law, as considerations for his
+      political influence. Faithless to his country, in the course of his
+      gambling speculations he transferred to England a great amount of specie,
+      which had been paid into the royal treasury; thus contributing to the
+      subsequent dearth of the precious metals.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The female sex participated in this sordid frenzy. Princesses of the
+      blood, and ladies of the highest nobility, were among the most rapacious
+      of stock-jobbers. The regent seemed to have the riches of Croesus at his
+      command, and lavished money by hundreds of thousands upon his female
+      relatives and favorites, as well as upon his <i>roués</i>, the dissolute
+      companions of his debauches. &ldquo;My son,&rdquo; writes the regent&rsquo;s mother, in her
+      correspondence, &ldquo;gave me shares to the amount of two millions, which I
+      distributed among my household. The king also took several millions for
+      his own household. All the royal family have had them; all the children
+      and grandchildren of France, and the princes of the blood.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      Luxury and extravagance kept pace with this sudden inflation of fancied
+      wealth. The hereditary palaces of nobles were pulled down, and rebuilt on
+      a scale of augmented splendor. Entertainments were given of incredible
+      cost and magnificence. Never before had been such display in houses,
+      furniture, equipages, and amusements. This was particularly the case among
+      persons of the lower ranks, who had suddenly become possessed of millions.
+      Ludicrous anecdotes are related of some of these upstarts. One, who had
+      just launched a splendid carriage, when about to use it for the first
+      time, instead of getting in at the door, mounted, through habitude, to his
+      accustomed place behind. Some ladies of quality, seeing a well-dressed
+      woman covered with diamonds, but whom nobody knew, alight from a very
+      handsome carriage, inquired who she was of the footman. He replied, with a
+      sneer: &ldquo;It is a lady who has recently tumbled from a garret into this
+      carriage.&rdquo; Mr. Law&rsquo;s domestics were said to become in like manner suddenly
+      enriched by the crumbs that fell from his table. His coachman, having made
+      his fortune, retired from his service. Mr. Law requested him to procure a
+      coachman in his place. He appeared the next day with two, whom he
+      pronounced equally good, and told Mr. Law: &ldquo;Take which of them you choose,
+      and I will take the other!&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      Nor were these <i>novi homini</i> treated with the distance and disdain
+      they would formerly have experienced from the haughty aristocracy of
+      France. The pride of the old noblesse had been stifled by the stronger
+      instinct of avarice. They rather sought the intimacy and confidence of
+      these lucky upstarts; and it has been observed that a nobleman would
+      gladly take his seat at the table of the fortunate lackey of yesterday, in
+      hopes of learning from him the secret of growing rich!
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Law now went about with a countenance radiant with success and apparently
+      dispensing wealth on every side. &ldquo;He is admirably skilled in all that
+      relates to finance,&rdquo; writes the Duchess of Orleans, the regent&rsquo;s mother,
+      &ldquo;and has put the affairs of the state in such good order that all the
+      king&rsquo;s debts have been paid. He is so much run after that he has no repose
+      night or day. A duchess even kissed his hand publicly. If a duchess can do
+      this, what will other ladies do?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      Wherever he went, his path, we are told, was beset by a sordid throng, who
+      waited to see him pass, and sought to obtain the favor of a word, a nod,
+      or smile, as if a mere glance from him would bestow fortune. When at home,
+      his house was absolutely besieged by furious candidates for fortune. &ldquo;They
+      forced the doors,&rdquo; says the Duke de St. Simon; &ldquo;they scaled his windows
+      from the garden; they made their way into his cabinet down the chimney!&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      The same venal court was paid by all classes to his family. The highest
+      ladies of the court vied with each other in meannesses to purchase the
+      lucrative friendship of Mrs. Law and her daughter. They waited upon them
+      with as much assiduity and adulation as if they had been princesses of the
+      blood. The regent one day expressed a desire that some duchess should
+      accompany his daughter to Genoa. &ldquo;My lord,&rdquo; said some one present, &ldquo;if you
+      would have a choice from among the duchesses, you need but send to Mrs.
+      Law&rsquo;s, you will find them all assembled there.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      The wealth of Law rapidly increased with the expansion of the bubble. In
+      the course of a few months he purchased fourteen titled estates, paying
+      for them in paper; and the public hailed these sudden and vast
+      acquisitions of landed property as so many proofs of the soundness of his
+      system. In one instance he met with a shrewd bargainer, who had not the
+      general faith in his paper money. The President de Novion insisted on
+      being paid for an estate in hard coin. Law accordingly brought the amount,
+      four hundred thousand livres, in specie, saying, with a sarcastic smile,
+      that he preferred paying in money as its weight rendered it a mere
+      encumbrance. As it happened, the president could give no clear title to
+      the land, and the money had to be refunded. He paid it back <i>in paper</i>,
+      which Law dared not refuse, lest he should depreciate it in the market.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The course of illusory credit went on triumphantly for eighteen months.
+      Law had nearly fulfilled one of his promises, for the greater part of the
+      public debt had been paid off; but how paid? In bank shares, which had
+      been trumped up several hundred per cent above their value, and which were
+      to vanish like smoke in the hands of the holders.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      One of the most striking attributes of Law was the imperturbable assurance
+      and self-possession with which he replied to every objection, and found a
+      solution for every problem. He had the dexterity of a juggler in evading
+      difficulties; and what was peculiar, made figures themselves, which are
+      the very elements of exact demonstration, the means to dazzle and
+      bewilder.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Toward the latter end of 1719 the Mississippi scheme had reached its
+      highest point of glory. Half a million of strangers had crowded into Paris
+      in quest of fortune. The hotels and lodging-houses were overflowing;
+      lodgings were procured with excessive difficulty; granaries were turned
+      into bedrooms; provisions had risen enormously in price; splendid houses
+      were multiplying on every side; the streets were crowded with carriages;
+      above a thousand new equipages had been launched.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      On the eleventh of December, Law obtained another prohibitory decree, for
+      the purpose of sweeping all the remaining specie in circulation into the
+      bank. By this it was forbidden to make any payment in silver above ten
+      livres, or in gold above three hundred.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The repeated decrees of this nature, the object of which was to depreciate
+      the value of gold, and increase the illusive credit of paper, began to
+      awaken doubts of a system which required such bolstering. Capitalists
+      gradually awoke from their bewilderment. Sound and able financiers
+      consulted together, and agreed to make common cause against this continual
+      expansion of a paper system. The shares of the bank and of the company
+      began to decline in value. Wary men took the alarm, and began to <i>realize</i>,
+      a word now first brought into use, to express the conversion of <i>ideal</i>
+      property into something <i>real</i>.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The prince of Conti, one of the most prominent and grasping of the
+      Mississippi lords, was the first to give a blow to the credit of the bank.
+      There was a mixture of ingratitude in his conduct that characterized the
+      venal baseness of the times. He had received from time to time enormous
+      sums from Law, as the price of his influence and patronage. His avarice
+      had increased with every acquisition, until Law was compelled to refuse
+      one of his exactions. In revenge the prince immediately sent such an
+      amount of paper to the bank to be cashed that it required four wagons to
+      bring away the silver, and he had the meanness to loll out of the window
+      of his hotel and jest and exult as it was trundled into his portecochère.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      This was the signal for other drains of like nature. The English and Dutch
+      merchants, who had purchased a great amount of bank paper at low prices,
+      cashed them at the bank, and carried the money out of the country. Other
+      strangers did the like, thus draining the kingdom of its specie, and
+      leaving paper in its place.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The regent, perceiving these symptoms of decay in the system, sought to
+      restore it to public confidence by conferring marks of confidence upon its
+      author.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      He accordingly resolved to make Law Comptroller General of the Finances of
+      France. There was a material obstacle in his way. Law was a Protestant,
+      and the regent, unscrupulous as he was himself, did not dare publicly to
+      outrage the severe edicts which Louis XIV., in his bigot days, had
+      fulminated against all heretics. Law soon let him know that there would be
+      no difficulty on that head. He was ready at any moment to abjure his
+      religion in the way of business. For decency&rsquo;s sake, however, it was
+      judged proper he should previously be convinced and converted. A ghostly
+      instructor was soon found, ready to accomplish his conversion in the
+      shortest possible time. This was the Abbe Tencin, a profligate creature of
+      the profligate Dubois, and like him working his way to ecclesiastical
+      promotion and temporal wealth, by the basest means.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Under the instructions of the Abbe Tencin, Law soon mastered the mysteries
+      and dogmas of the Catholic doctrine; and, after a brief course of ghostly
+      training, declared himself thoroughly convinced and converted. To avoid
+      the sneers and jests of the Parisian public the ceremony of abjuration
+      took place at Melun. Law made a pious present of one hundred thousand
+      livres to the Church of St. Roque, and the Abbe Tencin was rewarded for
+      his edifying labors by sundry shares and bank bills; which he shrewdly
+      took care to convert into cash, having as little faith in the system as in
+      the piety of his new convert. A more grave and moral community might have
+      been outraged by this scandalous farce; but the Parisians laughed at it
+      with their usual levity, and contented themselves with making it the
+      subject of a number of songs and epigrams.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Law now being orthodox in his faith, took out letters of naturalization,
+      and having thus surmounted the intervening obstacles, was elevated by the
+      regent to the post of comptroller-general. So accustomed had the community
+      become to all juggles and transmutations in this hero of finance, that no
+      one seemed shocked or astonished at his sudden elevation. On the contrary,
+      being now considered perfectly established in place and power, he became
+      more than ever the object of venal adoration. Men of rank and dignity
+      thronged his antechamber, waiting patiently their turn for an audience;
+      and titled dames demeaned themselves to take the front seats of the
+      carriages of his wife and daughter, as if they had been riding with
+      princesses of the blood royal. Law&rsquo;s head grew giddy with his elevation,
+      and he began to aspire after aristocratical distinction. There was to be a
+      court ball, at which several of the young noblemen were to dance in a
+      ballet with the youthful king. Law requested that his son might be
+      admitted into the ballet, and the regent consented. The young scions of
+      nobility, however, were indignant and scouted the &ldquo;intruding upstart.&rdquo;
+       Their more worldly parents, fearful of displeasing the modern Midas,
+      reprimanded them in vain. The striplings had not yet imbibed the passion
+      for gain, and still held to their high blood. The son of the banker
+      received slights and annoyances on all sides, and the public applauded
+      them for their spirit. A fit of illness came opportunely to relieve the
+      youth from an honor which would have cost him a world of vexations and
+      affronts.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      In February, 1720, shortly after Law&rsquo;s installment in office, a decree
+      came out uniting the bank to the India Company, by which last name the
+      whole establishment was now known. The decree stated that as the bank was
+      royal, the king was bound to make good the value of its bills; that he
+      committed to the company the government of the bank for fifty years, and
+      sold to it fifty millions of stock belonging to him, for nine hundred
+      millions; a simple advance of eighteen hundred per cent. The decree
+      further declared, in the king&rsquo;s name, that he would never draw on the bank
+      until the value of his drafts had first been lodged in it by his
+      receivers-general.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The bank, it was said, had by this time issued notes to the amount of one
+      thousand millions; being more paper than all the banks of Europe were able
+      to circulate. To aid its credit, the receivers of the revenue were
+      directed to take bank notes of the sub-receivers. All payments, also, of
+      one hundred livres and upward were ordered to be made in banknotes. These
+      compulsory measures for a short time gave a false credit to the bank,
+      which proceeded to discount merchants&rsquo; notes, to lend money on jewels,
+      plate, and other valuables, as well as on mortgages.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Still further to force on the system an edict next appeared, forbidding
+      any individual, or any corporate body, civil or religious, to hold in
+      possession more than five hundred livres in current coin; that is to say,
+      about seven louis d&rsquo;ors: the value of the louis-d&rsquo;or in paper being, at
+      the time, seventy-two livres. All the gold and silver they might have
+      above this pittance was to be brought to the royal bank and exchanged
+      either for shares or bills.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      As confiscation was the penalty of disobedience to this decree, and
+      informers were assured a share of the forfeitures, a bounty was in a
+      manner held out to domestic spies and traitors; and the most odious
+      scrutiny was awakened into the pecuniary affairs of families and
+      individuals. The very confidence between friends and relatives was
+      unpaired, and all the domestic ties and virtues of society were
+      threatened, until a general sentiment of indignation broke forth, that
+      compelled the regent to rescind the odious decree. Lord Stairs, the
+      British embassador, speaking of the system of espionage encouraged by this
+      edict, observed that it was impossible to doubt that Law was a thorough
+      Catholic, since he had thus established the <i>inquisition</i>, after
+      having already proved <i>transubstantiation</i>, by changing specie into
+      paper.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Equal abuses had taken place under the colonizing project. In his thousand
+      expedients to amass capital, Law had sold parcels of land in Mississippi,
+      at the rate of three thousand livres for a league square. Many capitalists
+      had purchased estates large enough to constitute almost a principality;
+      the only evil was, Law had sold a property which he could not deliver. The
+      agents of police, who aided in recruiting the ranks of the colonists, had
+      been guilty of scandalous impositions. Under pretense of taking up
+      mendicants and vagabonds, they had scoured the streets at night, seizing
+      upon honest mechanics, or their sons, and hurrying them to their
+      crimping-houses, for the sole purpose of extorting money from them as a
+      ransom. The populace was roused to indignation by these abuses. The
+      officers of police were mobbed in the exercise of their odious functions,
+      and several of them were killed; which put an end to this flagrant abuse
+      of power.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      In March, a most extraordinary decree of the council fixed the price of
+      shares of the India Company at nine thousand livres each. All
+      ecclesiastical communities and hospitals were now prohibited from
+      investing money at interest, in anything but India stock. With all these
+      props and stays, the system continued to totter. How could it be
+      otherwise, under a despotic government that could alter the value of
+      property at every moment? The very compulsory measures that were adopted
+      to establish the credit of the bank hastened its fall; plainly showing
+      there was a want of solid security.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Law caused pamphlets to be published, setting forth, in eloquent language,
+      the vast profits that must accrue to holders of the stock, and the
+      impossibility of the king&rsquo;s ever doing it any harm. On the very back of
+      these assertions came forth an edict of the king, dated the 22d of May,
+      wherein, under pretense of having reduced the value of his coin, it was
+      declared necessary to reduce the value of his bank-notes one-half, and of
+      the India shares from nine thousand to five thousand livres.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      This decree came like a clap of thunder upon shareholders. They found
+      one-half of the pretended value of the paper in their hands annihilated in
+      an instant; and what certainty had they with respect to the other half?
+      The rich considered themselves ruined; those in humbler circumstances
+      looked forward to abject beggary.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The parliament seized the occasion to stand forth as the protector of the
+      public, and refused to register the decree. It gained the credit of
+      compelling the regent to retrace his step, though it is more probable he
+      yielded to the universal burst of public astonishment and reprobation. On
+      the 27th of May the edict was revoked, and bank bills were restored to
+      their previous value. But the fatal blow had been struck; the delusion was
+      at an end. Government itself had lost all public confidence, equally with
+      the bank it had engendered, and which its own arbitrary acts had brought
+      into discredit. &ldquo;All Paris,&rdquo; says the regent&rsquo;s mother, in her letters,
+      &ldquo;has been mourning at the cursed decree which Law has persuaded my son to
+      make. I have received anonymous letters stating that I have nothing to
+      fear on my own account, but that my son shall be pursued with fire and
+      sword.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      The regent now endeavored to avert the odium of his ruinous schemes from
+      himself. He affected to have suddenly lost confidence in Law, and, on the
+      29th of May, discharged bin from his employ as comptroller-general, and
+      stationed a Swiss guard of sixteen men in his house. He even refused to
+      see him, when, on the following day, he applied at the portal of the
+      Palais Royal for admission; but having played off this farce before the
+      public, he admitted him secretly the same night, by a private door, and
+      continued as before to co-operate with him in his financial schemes.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      On the first of June the regent issued a decree, permitting persons to
+      have as much money as they pleased in their possession. Few, however, were
+      in a state to benefit by this permission. There was a run upon the bank,
+      but a royal ordinance immediately suspended payment, until further orders.
+      To relieve the public mind, a city stock was created, of twenty-five
+      millions, bearing an interest of two and a half per cent, for which bank
+      notes were taken in exchange. The bank notes thus withdrawn from
+      circulation were publicly burned before the Hotel de Ville. The public,
+      however, had lost confidence in everything and everybody, and suspected
+      fraud and collusion in those who pretended to burn the bills.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      A general confusion now took place hi the financial world. Families who
+      had lived in opulence found themselves suddenly reduced to indigence.
+      Schemers who had been reveling in the delusion of princely fortune found
+      their estates vanishing into thin air. Those who had any property
+      remaining sought to secure it against reverses. Cautious persons found
+      there was no safety for property in a country where the coin was
+      continually shifting in value, and where a despotism was exercised over
+      public securities, and even over the private purses of individuals. They
+      began to send their effects into other countries; when lo! on the 20th of
+      June a royal edict commanded them to bring back their effects, under
+      penalty of forfeiting twice their value; and forbade them, under like
+      penalty, from investing their money in foreign stocks. This was soon
+      followed by another decree, forbidding any one to retain precious stones
+      in his possession, or to sell them to foreigners; all must be deposited in
+      the bank, in exchange for depreciating paper!
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Execrations were now poured out on all sides against Law, and menaces of
+      vengeance. What a contrast, in a short time, to the venal incense that was
+      offered up to him! &ldquo;This person,&rdquo; writes the regent&rsquo;s mother, &ldquo;who was
+      formerly worshiped as a god, is now not sure of his life. It is
+      astonishing how greatly terrified he is. He is as a dead man; he is pale
+      as a sheet, and it is said he can never get over it. My son is not
+      dismayed, though he is threatened on all sides; and is very much amused
+      with Law&rsquo;s terrors.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      About the middle of July the last grand attempt was made by Law and the
+      regent to keep up the system and provide for the immense emission of
+      paper. A decree was fabricated, giving the India Company the entire
+      monopoly of commerce, on condition that it would, in the course of a year,
+      reimburse six hundred millions of livres of its bills, at the rate of
+      fifty millions per month.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      On the 17th this decree was sent to parliament to be registered. It at
+      once raised a storm of opposition in that assembly, and a vehement
+      discussion took place. While that was going on a disastrous scene was
+      passing out of doors.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The calamitous effects of the system had reached the humblest concerns of
+      human life. Provisions had risen to an enormous price; paper money was
+      refused at all the shops; the people had not wherewithal to buy bread. It
+      had been found absolutely indispensable to relax a little from the
+      suspension of specie payments, and to allow small sums to be scantily
+      exchanged for paper. The doors of the bank and the neighboring streets
+      were immediately thronged with a famishing multitude, seeking cash for
+      bank notes of ten livres. So great was the press and struggle that several
+      persons were stifled and crushed to death. The mob carried three of the
+      bodies to the courtyard of the Palais Royal. Some cried for the regent to
+      come forth and behold the effect of his system; others demanded the death
+      of Law, the impostor, who had brought this misery and rum upon the nation.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The moment was critical, the popular fury was rising to a tempest, when Le
+      Blanc, the Secretary of State, stepped forth. He had previously sent for
+      the military, and now only sought to gain tune. Singling out six or seven
+      stout fellows, who seemed to be the ringleaders of the mob: &ldquo;My good
+      fellows,&rdquo; said he, calmly, &ldquo;carry away these bodies and place them in some
+      church, and then come back quickly to me for your pay.&rdquo; They immediately
+      obeyed; a kind of funeral procession was formed; the arrival of troops
+      dispersed those who lingered behind; and Paris was probably saved from an
+      insurrection.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      About ten o&rsquo;clock in the morning, all being quiet, Law ventured to go in
+      his carriage to the Palais Royal. He was saluted with cries and curses, as
+      he passed along the streets; and he reached the Palais Royal in a terrible
+      fright. The regent amused himself with his fears, but retained him with
+      him, and sent off his carriage, which was assailed by the mob, pelted with
+      stones, and the glasses shivered. The news of this outrage was
+      communicated to parliament in the midst of a furious discussion of the
+      decree for the commercial monopoly. The first president, who had been
+      absent for a short time, re-entered, and communicated the tidings in a
+      whimsical couplet:
+    </p>
+<pre xml:space="preserve">
+  &ldquo;Messieurs, Messieurs! bonne nouvelle!
+  Le carrosse de Law est reduite en carrelle!&rdquo;
+
+  &ldquo;Gentlemen, Gentlemen! good news!
+  The carriage of Law is shivered to atoms!&rdquo;
+ </pre>
+    <p>
+      The members sprang up with joy; &ldquo;And Law!&rdquo; exclaimed they, &ldquo;has he been
+      torn to pieces?&rdquo; The president was ignorant of the result of the tumult;
+      whereupon the debate was cut short, the decree rejected, and the house
+      adjourned; the members hurrying to learn the particulars. Such was the
+      levity with which public affairs were treated at that dissolute and
+      disastrous period.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      On the following day there was an ordinance from the king, prohibiting all
+      popular assemblages; and troops were stationed at various points, and in
+      all public places. The regiment of guards was ordered to hold itself in
+      readiness; and the musketeers to be at their hotels, with their horses
+      ready saddled. A number of small offices were opened, where people might
+      cash small notes, though with great delay and difficulty. An edict was
+      also issued declaring that whoever should refuse to take bank notes in the
+      course of trade should forfeit double the amount!
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The continued and vehement opposition of parliament to the whole delusive
+      system of finance had been a constant source of annoyance to the regent;
+      but this obstinate rejection of his last grand expedient of a commercial
+      monopoly was not to be tolerated. He determined to punish that intractable
+      body. The Abbe Dubois and Law suggested a simple mode; it was to suppress
+      the parliament altogether, being, as they observed, so far from useful
+      that it was a constant impediment to the march of public affairs. The
+      regent was half inclined to listen to their advice; but upon calmer
+      consideration, and the advice of friends, he adopted a more moderate
+      course. On the 20th of July, early in the morning, all the doors of the
+      parliament-house were taken possession of by troops. Others were sent to
+      surround the house of the first president, and others to the houses of the
+      various members; who were all at first in great alarm, until an order from
+      the king was put into their hands, to render themselves at Pontoise, in
+      the course of two days, to which place the parliament was thus suddenly
+      and arbitrarily transferred.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      This despotic act, says Voltaire, would at any other time have caused an
+      insurrection; but one half of the Parisians were occupied by their ruin,
+      and the other half by their fancied riches, which were soon to vanish. The
+      president and members of parliament acquiesced in the mandate without a
+      murmur; they even went as if on a party of pleasure, and made every
+      preparation to lead a joyous life in their exile. The musketeers, who held
+      possession of the vacated parliament-house, a gay corps of fashionable
+      young fellows, amused themselves with making songs and pasquinades, at the
+      expense of the exiled legislators; and at length, to pass away time,
+      formed themselves into a mock parliament; elected their presidents, kings,
+      ministers, and advocates; took their seats in due form, arraigned a cat at
+      their bar, in place of the Sieur Law, and, after giving it a &ldquo;fair trial,&rdquo;
+       condemned it to be hanged. In this manner public affairs and public
+      institutions were lightly turned to jest.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      As to the exiled parliament, it lived gayly and luxuriously at Pontoise,
+      at the public expense; for the regent had furnished funds, as usual, with
+      a lavish hand. The first president had the mansion of the Duke de Bouillon
+      put at his disposal, already furnished, with a vast and delightful garden
+      on the borders of a river. There he kept open house to all the members of
+      parliament. Several tables were spread every day, all furnished
+      luxuriously and splendidly; the most exquisite wines and liqueurs, the
+      choicest fruits and refreshments, of all kinds, abounded. A number of
+      small chariots for one and two horses were always at hand, for such ladies
+      and old gentlemen as wished to take an airing after dinner, and card and
+      billiard tables for such as chose to amuse themselves in that way until
+      supper. The sister and the daughter of the first president did the honors
+      of the house, and he himself presided there with an air of great ease,
+      hospitality, and magnificence. It became a party of pleasure to drive from
+      Paris to Pontoise, which was six leagues distant, and partake of the
+      amusements and festivities of the place. Business was openly slighted;
+      nothing was thought of but amusement. The regent and his government were
+      laughed at, and made the subjects of continual pleasantries; while the
+      enormous expenses incurred by this idle and lavish course of life more
+      than doubled the liberal sums provided. This was the way in which the
+      parliament resented their exile.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      During all this time the system was getting more and more involved. The
+      stock exchange had some time previously been removed to the Place Vendome;
+      but the tumult and noise becoming intolerable to the residents of that
+      polite quarter, and especially to the chancellor, whose hotel was there,
+      the Prince and Princess Carignan, both deep gamblers in Mississippi stock,
+      offered the extensive garden of the Hotel de Soissons as a rallying-place
+      for the worshipers of Mammon. The offer was accepted. A number of barracks
+      were immediately erected in the garden, as offices for the stock-brokers,
+      and an order was obtained from the regent, under pretext of police
+      regulations, that no bargain should be valid unless concluded in these
+      barracks. The rent of them immediately mounted to a hundred livres a month
+      for each, and the whole yielded these noble proprietors an ignoble revenue
+      of half a million of livres.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The mania for gain, however, was now at an end. A universal panic
+      succeeded. &ldquo;<i>Sauve qui peut!</i>&rdquo; was the watchword. Every one was
+      anxious to exchange falling paper for something of intrinsic and permanent
+      value. Since money was not to be had, jewels, precious stones, plate,
+      porcelain, trinkets of gold and silver, all commanded any price in paper.
+      Land was bought at fifty years&rsquo; purchase, and he esteemed himself happy
+      who could get it even at this price. Monopolies now became the rage among
+      the noble holders of paper. The Duke de la Force bought up nearly all the
+      tallow, grease, and soap; others the coffee and spices; others hay and
+      oats. Foreign exchanges were almost impracticable. The debts of Dutch and
+      English merchants were paid in this fictitious money, all the coin of the
+      realm having disappeared. All the relations of debtor and creditor were
+      confounded. With one thousand crowns one might pay a debt of eighteen
+      thousand livres!
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The regent&rsquo;s mother, who once exulted in the affluence of bank paper, now
+      wrote in a very different tone: &ldquo;I have often wished,&rdquo; said she in her
+      letters, &ldquo;that these bank-notes were in the depths of the infernal
+      regions. They have given my son more trouble than relief. Nobody in France
+      has a penny.... My son was once popular, but since the arrival of this
+      cursed Law, he is hated more and more. Not a week passes, without my
+      receiving letters filled with frightful threats, and speaking of him as a
+      tyrant. I have just received one threatening him with poison. When I
+      showed it to him, he did nothing but laugh.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      In the meantime, Law was dismayed by the increasing troubles, and
+      terrified at the tempest he had raised. He was not a man of real courage;
+      and fearing for his personal safety, from popular tumult, or the despair
+      of ruined individuals, he again took refuge in the palace of the regent.
+      The latter, as usual, amused himself with his terrors, and turned every
+      new disaster into a jest; but he too began to think of his own security.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      In pursuing the schemes of Law, he had no doubt calculated to carry
+      through his term of government with ease and splendor; and to enrich
+      himself, his connections, and his favorites; and had hoped that the
+      catastrophe of the system would not take place until after the expiration
+      of the regency.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      He now saw his mistake; that it was impossible much longer to prevent an
+      explosion; and he determined at once to get Law out of the way, and then
+      to charge him with the whole tissue of delusions of this paper alchemy. He
+      accordingly took occasion of the recall of parliament in December, 1720,
+      to suggest to Law the policy of his avoiding an encounter with that
+      hostile and exasperated body. Law needed no urging to the measure. His
+      only desire was to escape from Paris and its tempestuous populace. Two
+      days before the return of parliament he took his sudden and secret
+      departure. He traveled in a chaise bearing the arms of the regent, and was
+      escorted by a kind of safeguard of servants in the duke&rsquo;s livery. His
+      first place of refuge was an estate of the regent&rsquo;s, about six leagues
+      from Paris, from whence he pushed forward to Bruxelles.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      As soon as Law was fairly out of the way, the Duke of Orleans summoned a
+      council of the regency, and informed them that they were assembled to
+      deliberate on the state of the finances, and the affairs of the India
+      Company. Accordingly La Houssaye, comptroller-general, rendered a
+      perfectly clear statement, by which it appeared that there were bank bills
+      in circulation to the amount of two milliards, seven hundred millions of
+      livres, without any evidence that this enormous sum had been emitted in
+      virtue of any ordinance from the general assembly of the India Company,
+      which alone had the right to authorize such emissions.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The council was astonished at this disclosure, and looked to the regent
+      for explanation. Pushed to the extreme, the regent avowed that Law had
+      emitted bills to the amount of twelve hundred millions beyond what had
+      been fixed by ordinances, and in contradiction to express prohibitions;
+      that the thing being done, he, the regent, had legalized or rather covered
+      the transaction, by decrees ordering such emissions, which decrees he had
+      <i>antedated</i>.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      A stormy scene ensued between the regent and the Duke de Bourbon, little
+      to the credit of either, both having been deeply implicated in the
+      cabalistic operations of the system. In fact, the several members of the
+      council had been among the most venal &ldquo;beneficiaries&rdquo; of the scheme, and
+      had interests at stake which they were anxious to secure. From all the
+      circumstances of the case, I am inclined to think that others were more to
+      blame than Law, for the disastrous effects of his financial projects. His
+      bank, had it been confined to its original limits, and left to the control
+      of its own internal regulations, might have gone on prosperously, and been
+      of great benefit to the nation. It was an institution fitted for a free
+      country; but unfortunately it was subjected to the control of a despotic
+      government, that could, at its pleasure, alter the value of the specie
+      within its vaults, and compel the most extravagant expansions of its paper
+      circulation. The vital principle of a bank is security in the regularity
+      of its operations, and the immediate convertibility of its paper into
+      coin; and what confidence could be reposed in an institution or its paper
+      promises, when the sovereign could at any moment centuple those promises
+      in the market, and seize upon all the money in the bank? The compulsory
+      measures used, likewise, to force bank-notes into currency, against the
+      judgment of the public, was fatal to the system; for credit must be free
+      and uncontrolled as the common air. The regent was the evil spirit of the
+      system, that forced Law on to an expansion of his paper currency far
+      beyond what he had ever dreamed of. He it was that in a manner compelled
+      the unlucky projector to devise all kinds of collateral companies and
+      monopolies, by which to raise funds to meet the constantly and enormously
+      increasing emissions of shares and notes. Law was but like a poor conjurer
+      in the hands of a potent spirit that he has evoked, and that obliges him
+      to go on, desperately and ruinously, with his conjurations. He only
+      thought at the outset to raise the wind, but the regent compelled him to
+      raise the whirlwind.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The investigation of the affairs of the company by the council resulted in
+      nothing beneficial to the public. The princes and nobles who had enriched
+      themselves by all kinds of juggles and extortions, escaped unpunished, and
+      retained the greater part of their spoils. Many of the &ldquo;suddenly rich,&rdquo;
+       who had risen from obscurity to a giddy height of imaginary prosperity,
+      and had indulged in all kinds of vulgar and ridiculous excesses, awoke as
+      out of a dream, in their original poverty, now made more galling and
+      humiliating by their transient elevation.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The weight of the evil, however, fell on more valuable classes of society;
+      honest tradesmen and artisans, who had been seduced away from the safe
+      pursuits of industry, to the specious chances of speculation. Thousands of
+      meritorious families also, once opulent, had been reduced to indigence, by
+      a too great confidence in government. There was a general derangement in
+      the finances, that long exerted a baneful influence over the national
+      prosperity; but the most disastrous effects of the system were upon the
+      morals and manners of the nation. The faith of engagements, the sanctity
+      of promises in affairs of business, were at an end. Every expedient to
+      grasp present profit, or to evade present difficulty, was tolerated. While
+      such deplorable laxity of principle was generated in the busy classes, the
+      chivalry of France had soiled their pennons; and honor and glory, so long
+      the idols of the Gallic nobility, had been tumbled to the earth, and
+      trampled in the dirt of the stock-market.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      As to Law, the originator of the system, he appears eventually to have
+      profited but little by his schemes. &ldquo;He was a quack,&rdquo; says Voltaire, &ldquo;to
+      whom the state was given to be cured, but who poisoned it with his drugs,
+      and who poisoned himself.&rdquo; The effects which he left behind in France were
+      sold at a low price and the proceeds dissipated. His landed estates were
+      confiscated. He carried away with him barely enough to maintain himself,
+      his wife, and daughter, with decency. The chief relic of his immense
+      fortune was a great diamond, which he was often obliged to pawn. He was in
+      England in 1721, and was presented to George the First. He returned
+      shortly afterward to the continent; shifting about from place to place,
+      and died in Venice, in 1729. His wife and daughter, accustomed to live
+      with the prodigality of princesses, could not conform to their altered
+      fortunes, but dissipated the scanty means left to them, and sank into
+      abject poverty. &ldquo;I saw his wife,&rdquo; says Voltaire, &ldquo;at Bruxelles, as much
+      humiliated as she had been haughty and triumphant in Paris.&rdquo; An elder
+      brother of Law remained in France, and was protected by the Duchess of
+      Bourbon. His descendants have acquitted themselves honorably, in various
+      public employments; and one of them is the Marquis Lauriston, some time
+      lieutenant-general and peer of France.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      <br /><br />
+    </p>
+    <hr />
+    <p>
+      <br /><br /> <br /><br />
+    </p>
+    <hr />
+    <p>
+      <a name="link2H_4_0003" id="link2H_4_0003"> </a>
+    </p>
+    <div style="height: 4em;">
+      <br /><br /><br /><br />
+    </div>
+    <h2>
+      DON JUAN
+    </h2>
+    <h3>
+      A SPECTRAL RESEARCH
+    </h3>
+<pre xml:space="preserve">
+  &ldquo;I have heard of spirits walking with aerial bodies, and have been
+  wondered at by others; but I must only wonder at myself, for if they
+  be not mad, I&rsquo;me come to my own buriall.&rdquo;&mdash;SHIRLEY&rsquo;s <i>Witty Fairie
+  One</i>
+</pre>
+    <p>
+      Everybody has heard of the fate of Don Juan, the famous libertine of
+      Seville, who for his sins against the fair sex and other minor
+      peccadilloes was hurried away to the infernal regions. His story has been
+      illustrated in play, in pantomime, and farce, on every stage in
+      Christendom; until at length it has been rendered the theme of the operas,
+      and embalmed to endless duration in the glorious music of Mozart. I well
+      recollect the effect of this story upon my feelings in my boyish days,
+      though represented in grotesque pantomime; the awe with which I
+      contemplated the monumental statue on horseback of the murdered commander,
+      gleaming by pale moonlight in the convent cemetery; how my heart quaked as
+      he bowed his marble head, and accepted the impious invitation of Don Juan:
+      how each footfall of the statue smote upon my heart, as I heard it
+      approach, step by step, through the echoing corridor, and beheld it enter,
+      and advance, a moving figure of stone, to the supper table! But then the
+      convivial scene in the charnel-house, where Don Juan returned the visit of
+      the statue; was offered a banquet of skulls and bones, and on refusing to
+      partake, was hurled into a yawning gulf, under a tremendous shower of
+      fire! These were accumulated horrors enough to shake the nerves of the
+      most pantomime-loving schoolboy. Many have supposed the story of Don Juan
+      a mere fable. I myself thought so once; but &ldquo;seeing is believing.&rdquo; I have
+      since beheld the very scene where it took place, and now to indulge any
+      doubt on the subject would be preposterous.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      I was one night perambulating the streets of Seville, in company with a
+      Spanish friend, a curious investigator of the popular traditions and other
+      good-for-nothing lore of the city, and who was kind enough to imagine he
+      had met, in me, with a congenial spirit. In the course of our rambles we
+      were passing by a heavy, dark gateway, opening into the courtyard of a
+      convent, when he laid his hand upon my arm: &ldquo;Stop!&rdquo; said he, &ldquo;this is the
+      convent of San Francisco; there is a story connected with it which I am
+      sure must be known to you. You cannot but have heard of Don Juan and the
+      marble statue.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Undoubtedly,&rdquo; replied I, &ldquo;it has been familiar to me from childhood.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Well, then, it was in the cemetery of this very convent that the events
+      took place.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Why, you do not mean to say that the story is founded on fact?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Undoubtedly it is. The circumstances of the case are said to have
+      occurred during the reign of Alfonso XI. Don Juan was of the noble family
+      of Tenorio, one of the most illustrious houses of Andalusia. His father,
+      Don Diego Tenorio, was a favorite of the king, and his family ranked among
+      the <i>deintecuatros</i>, or magistrates, of the city. Presuming on his
+      high descent and powerful connections, Don Juan set no bounds to his
+      excesses: no female, high or low, was sacred from his pursuit: and he soon
+      became the scandal of Seville. One of his most daring outrages was, to
+      penetrate by night into the palace of Don Gonzalo de Ulloa, commander of
+      the order of Calatrava, and attempt to carry off his daughter. The
+      household was alarmed; a scuffle in the dark took place; Don Juan escaped,
+      but the unfortunate commander was found weltering in his blood, and
+      expired without being able to name his murderer. Suspicions attached to
+      Don Juan; he did not stop to meet the investigations of justice, and the
+      vengeance of the powerful family of Ulloa, but fled from Seville, and took
+      refuge with his uncle, Don Pedro Tenorio, at that time embassador at the
+      court of Naples. Here he remained until the agitation occasioned by the
+      murder of Don Gonzalo had time to subside; and the scandal which the
+      affair might cause to both the families of Ulloa and Tenorio had induced
+      them to hush it up. Don Juan, however, continued his libertine career at
+      Naples, until at length his excesses forfeited the protection of his
+      uncle, the embassador, and obliged him again to flee. He had made his way
+      back to Seville, trusting that his past misdeeds were forgotten, or rather
+      trusting to his dare-devil spirit and the power of his family to carry him
+      through all difficulties.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;It was shortly after his return, and while in the height of his
+      arrogance, that on visiting this very convent of Francisco, he beheld on a
+      monument the equestrian statue of the murdered commander, who had been
+      buried within the walls of this sacred edifice, where the family of Ulloa
+      had a chapel. It was on this occasion that Don Juan, in a moment of
+      impious levity, invited the statue to the banquet, the awful catastrophe
+      of which has given such celebrity to his story.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;And pray how much of this story,&rdquo; said I, &ldquo;is believed in Seville?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;The whole of it by the populace; with whom it has been a favorite
+      tradition since time immemorial, and who crowd to the theaters to see it
+      represented in dramas written long since by Tyrso de Molina, and another
+      of our popular writers. Many in our higher ranks also, accustomed from
+      childhood to this story, would feel somewhat indignant at hearing it
+      treated with contempt. An attempt has been made to explain the whole, by
+      asserting that, to put an end to the extravagances of Don Juan, and to
+      pacify the family of Ulloa, without exposing the delinquent to the
+      degrading penalties of justice, he was decoyed into this convent under a
+      false pretext, and either plunged into a perpetual dungeon, or privately
+      hurried out of existence; while the story of the statue was circulated by
+      the monks, to account for his sudden disappearance. The populace, however,
+      are not to be cajoled out of a ghost story by any of these plausible
+      explanations; and the marble statue still strides the stage, and Don Juan
+      is still plunged into the infernal regions, as an awful warning to all
+      rake-helly youngsters, in like case offending.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      While my companion was relating these anecdotes, we had entered the
+      gateway, traversed the exterior courtyard of the convent, and made our way
+      into a great interior court; partly surrounded by cloisters and
+      dormitories, partly by chapels, and having a large fountain in the center.
+      The pile had evidently once been extensive and magnificent; but it was for
+      the greater part in ruins. By the light of the stars, and of twinkling
+      lamps placed here and there in the chapels and corridors, I could see that
+      many of the columns and arches were broken; the walls were rent and riven;
+      white burned beams and rafters showed the destructive effects of fire. The
+      whole place had a desolate air; the night breeze rustled through grass and
+      weeds flaunting out of the crevices of the walls, or from the shattered
+      columns; the bat flitted about the vaulted passages, and the owl hooted
+      from the ruined belfry. Never was any scene more completely fitted for a
+      ghost story.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      While I was indulging in picturings of the fancy, proper to such a place,
+      the deep chant of the monks from the convent church came swelling upon the
+      ear. &ldquo;It is the vesper service,&rdquo; said my companion; &ldquo;follow me.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      Leading the way across the court of the cloisters, and through one or two
+      ruined passages, he reached the distant portal of the church, and pushing
+      open a wicket, cut in the folding doors, we found ourselves in the deep
+      arched vestibule of the sacred edifice. To our left was the choir, forming
+      one end of the church, and having a low vaulted ceiling, which gave it the
+      look of a cavern. About this were ranged the monks, seated on stools, and
+      chanting from immense books placed on music-stands, and having the notes
+      scored in such gigantic characters as to be legible from every part of the
+      choir. A few lights on these music-stands dimly illumined the choir,
+      gleamed on the shaven heads of the monks and threw their shadows on the
+      walls. They were gross, blue-bearded, bullet-headed men, with bass voices,
+      of deep metallic tone, that reverberated out of the cavernous choir.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      To our right extended the great body of the church. It was spacious and
+      lofty; some of the side chapels had gilded grates, and were decorated with
+      images and paintings, representing the sufferings of our Saviour. Aloft
+      was a great painting by Murillo, but too much in the dark to be
+      distinguished. The gloom of the whole church was but faintly relieved by
+      the reflected light from the choir, and the glimmering here and there of a
+      votive lamp before the shrine of a saint.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      As my eye roamed about the shadowy pile, it was struck with the dimly seen
+      figure of a man on horseback, near a distant altar. I touched my
+      companion, and pointed to it: &ldquo;The specter statue!&rdquo; said I.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;No,&rdquo; replied he; &ldquo;it is the statue of the blessed St. Iago; the statue of
+      the commander was in the cemetery of the convent, and was destroyed at the
+      tune of the conflagration. But,&rdquo; added he, &ldquo;as I see you take a proper
+      interest in these kind of stories, come with me to the other end of the
+      church, where our whisperings will not disturb these holy fathers at their
+      devotions, and I will tell you another story that has been current for
+      some generations in our city, by which you will find that Don Juan is not
+      the only libertine that has been the object of supernatural castigation in
+      Seville.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      I accordingly followed him with noiseless tread to the further part of the
+      church, where we took our seats on the steps of an altar, opposite to the
+      suspicious-looking figure on horseback, and there, in a low, mysterious
+      voice, he related to me the following narration:
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;There was once in Seville a gay young fellow, Don Manuel de Manara by
+      name, who, having come to a great estate by the death of his father, gave
+      the reins to his passions, and plunged into all kinds of dissipation. Like
+      Don Juan, whom he seemed to have taken for a model, he became famous for
+      his enterprises among the fair sex, and was the cause of doors being
+      barred and windows grated with more than usual strictness. All in vain. No
+      balcony was too high for him to scale; no bolt nor bar was proof against
+      his efforts; and his very name was a word of terror to all the jealous
+      husbands and cautious fathers of Seville. His exploits extended to country
+      as well as city; and in the village dependent on his castle, scarce a
+      rural beauty was safe from his arts and enterprises.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;As he was one day ranging the streets of Seville, with several of his
+      dissolute companions, he beheld a procession about to enter the gate of a
+      convent. In the center was a young female arrayed in the dress of a bride;
+      it was a novice, who, having accomplished her year of probation, was about
+      to take the black veil, and consecrate herself to heaven. The companions
+      of Don Manuel drew back, out of respect to the sacred pageant; but he
+      pressed forward, with his usual impetuosity, to gain a near view of the
+      novice. He almost jostled her, in passing through the portal of the
+      church, when, on her turning round, he beheld the countenance of a
+      beautiful village girl, who had been the object of his ardent pursuit, but
+      who had been spirited secretly out of his reach by her relatives. She
+      recognized him at the same moment, and fainted; but was borne within the
+      grate of the chapel. It was supposed the agitation of the ceremony and the
+      heat of the throng had overcome her. After some time, the curtain which
+      hung within the grate was drawn up: there stood the novice, pale and
+      trembling, surrounded by the abbess and the nuns. The ceremony proceeded;
+      the crown of flowers was taken from her head; she was shorn of her silken
+      tresses, received the black veil, and went passively through the remainder
+      of the ceremony.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Don Manuel de Manara, on the contrary, was roused to fury at the sight of
+      this sacrifice. His passion, which had almost faded away in the absence of
+      the object, now glowed with tenfold ardor, being inflamed by the
+      difficulties placed in his way, and piqued by the measures which had been
+      taken to defeat him. Never had the object of his pursuit appeared so
+      lovely and desirable as when within the grate of the convent; and he swore
+      to have her, in defiance of heaven and earth. By dint of bribing a female
+      servant of the convent he contrived to convey letters to her, pleading his
+      passion in the most eloquent and seductive terms. How successful they were
+      is only matter of conjecture; certain it is, he undertook one night to
+      scale the garden wall of the convent, either to carry off the nun or gain
+      admission to her cell. Just as he was mounting the wall he was suddenly
+      plucked back, and a stranger, muffled in a cloak, stood before him.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;&lsquo;Rash man, forbear!&rsquo; cried he: &lsquo;is it not enough to have violated all
+      human ties? Wouldst thou steal a bride from heaven!&rsquo;
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;The sword of Don Manuel had been drawn on the instant, and, furious at
+      this interruption, he passed it through the body of the stranger, who fell
+      dead at his feet. Hearing approaching footsteps, he fled the fatal spot,
+      and mounting his horse, which was at hand, retreated to his estate in the
+      country, at no great distance from Seville. Here he remained throughout
+      the next day, full of horror and remorse; dreading lest he should be known
+      as the murderer of the deceased, and fearing each moment the arrival of
+      the officers of justice.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;The day passed, however, without molestation; and, as the evening
+      approached, unable any longer to endure this state of uncertainty and
+      apprehension, he ventured back to Seville. Irresistibly his footsteps took
+      the direction of the convent; but he paused and hovered at a distance from
+      the scene of blood. Several persons were gathered round the place, one of
+      whom was busy nailing something against the convent wall. After a while
+      they dispersed, and one passed near to Don Manuel. The latter addressed
+      him, with a hesitating voice.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;&lsquo;Señor,&rsquo; said he, &lsquo;may I ask the reason of yonder throng?&rsquo;
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;&lsquo;A cavalier,&rsquo; replied the other, &lsquo;has been murdered.&rsquo;
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;&lsquo;Murdered!&rsquo; echoed Don Manuel; &lsquo;and can you tell me his name?&rsquo;
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;&lsquo;Don Manuel de Manara,&rsquo; replied the stranger, and passed on.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Don Manuel was startled at this mention of his own name; especially when
+      applied to the murdered man. He ventured, when it was entirely deserted,
+      to approach the fatal spot. A small cross had been nailed against the
+      wall, as is customary in Spain, to mark the place where a murder has been
+      committed; and just below it, he read, by the twinkling light of a lamp:
+      &lsquo;Here was murdered Don Manuel de Manara. Pray to God for his soul!&rsquo;
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Still more confounded and perplexed by this inscription, he wandered
+      about the streets until the night was far advanced, and all was still and
+      lonely. As he entered the principal square, the light of torches suddenly
+      broke on him, and he beheld a grand funeral procession moving across it.
+      There was a great train of priests, and many persons of dignified
+      appearance, in ancient Spanish dresses, attending as mourners, none of
+      whom he knew. Accosting a servant who followed in the train, he demanded
+      the name of the defunct.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;&lsquo;Don Manuel de Manara,&rsquo; was the reply; and it went cold to his heart. He
+      looked, and indeed beheld the armorial bearings of his family emblazoned
+      on the funeral escutcheons. Yet not one of his family was to be seen among
+      the mourners. The mystery was more and more incomprehensible.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;He followed the procession as it moved on to the cathedral. The bier was
+      deposited before the high altar; the funeral service was commenced, and
+      the grand organ began to peal through the vaulted aisles.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Again the youth ventured to question this awful pageant. &lsquo;Father,&rsquo; said
+      he, with trembling voice, to one of the priests, &lsquo;who is this you are
+      about to inter?&rsquo;
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;&lsquo;Don Manuel de Manara!&rsquo; replied the priest.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;&lsquo;Father,&rsquo; cried Don Manuel, impatiently, &lsquo;you are deceived. This is some
+      imposture. Know that Don Manuel de Manara la alive and well, and now
+      stands before you. <i>I</i> am Don Manuel de Manara!&rsquo;
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;&lsquo;Avaunt, rash youth!&rsquo; cried the priest; &lsquo;know that Don Manuel de Manara
+      is dead!&mdash;is dead!&mdash;is dead!&mdash;and we are all souls from
+      purgatory, his deceased relatives and ancestors, and others that have been
+      aided by masses of his family, who are permitted to come here and pray for
+      the repose of his soul!&rsquo;
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Don Manuel cast round a fearful glance upon the assemblage, in antiquated
+      Spanish garbs, and recognized in their pale and ghastly countenances the
+      portraits of many an ancestor that hung in the family picture-gallery. He
+      now lost all self-command, rushed up to the bier, and beheld the
+      counterpart of himself, but in the fixed and livid lineaments of death.
+      Just at that moment the whole choir burst forth with a &lsquo;Requiescat in
+      pace,&rsquo; that shook the vaults of the cathedral. Don Manuel sank senseless
+      on the pavement. He was found there early the next morning by the
+      sacristan, and conveyed to his home. When sufficiently recovered, he sent
+      for a friar and made a full confession of all that had happened.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;&lsquo;My son,&rsquo; said the friar, &lsquo;all this is a miracle and a mystery, intended
+      for thy conversion and salvation. The corpse thou hast seen was a token
+      that thou hadst died to sin and the world; take warning by it, and
+      henceforth live to righteousness and heaven!&rsquo;
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Don Manuel did take warning by it. Guided by the counsels of the worthy
+      friar, he disposed of all his temporal affairs; dedicated the greater part
+      of his wealth to pious uses, especially to the performance of masses for
+      souls in purgatory; and finally, entering a convent, became one of the
+      most zealous and exemplary monks in Seville.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      <br /><br />
+    </p>
+    <hr />
+    <p>
+      <br /><br />
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      While my companion was relating this story, my eyes wandered, from time to
+      time, about the dusky church. Methought the burly countenances of the
+      monks in their distant choir assumed a pallid, ghastly hue, and their deep
+      metallic voices had a sepulchral sound. By the time the story was ended,
+      they had ended their chant; and, extinguishing their lights, glided one by
+      one, like shadows, through a small door in the side of the choir. A deeper
+      gloom prevailed over the church; the figure opposite me on horseback grew
+      more and more spectral; and I almost expected to see it bow its head.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;It is time to be off,&rdquo; said my companion, &ldquo;unless we intend to sup with
+      the statue.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;I have no relish for such fare or such company,&rdquo; replied I; and,
+      following my companion, we groped our way through the mouldering
+      cloisters. As we passed by the ruined cemetery, keeping up a casual
+      conversation, by way of dispelling the loneliness of the scene, I called
+      to mind the words of the poet:
+    </p>
+<pre xml:space="preserve">
+                     &ldquo;&mdash;The tombs
+  And monumental caves of death look cold,
+  And shoot a chillness to my trembling heart!
+  Give me thy hand, and let me hear thy voice;
+  Nay, speak&mdash;and let me hear thy voice;
+  My own affrights me with its echoes.&rdquo;
+ </pre>
+    <p>
+      There wanted nothing but the marble statue of the commander striding along
+      the echoing cloisters to complete the haunted scene.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Since that time I never fail to attend the theater whenever the story of
+      Don Juan is represented, whether in pantomime or opera. In the sepulchral
+      scene, I feel myself quite at home; and when the statue makes his
+      appearance, I greet him as an old acquaintance. When the audience applaud,
+      I look round upon them with a degree of compassion. &ldquo;Poor souls!&rdquo; I say to
+      myself, &ldquo;they think they are pleased; they think they enjoy this piece,
+      and yet they consider the whole as a fiction! How much more would they
+      enjoy it, if like me they knew it to be true&mdash;<i>and had seen the
+      very place</i>!&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      <br /><br />
+    </p>
+    <hr />
+    <p>
+      <br /><br /> <br /><br />
+    </p>
+    <hr />
+    <p>
+      <a name="link2H_4_0004" id="link2H_4_0004"> </a>
+    </p>
+    <div style="height: 4em;">
+      <br /><br /><br /><br />
+    </div>
+    <h2>
+      BROEK
+    </h2>
+    <h3>
+      OF THE DUTCH PARADISE
+    </h3>
+    <p>
+      It has long been a matter of discussion and controversy among the pious
+      and the learned, as to the situation of the terrestrial paradise from
+      whence our first parents were exiled. This question has been put to rest
+      by certain of the faithful in Holland, who have decided in favor of the
+      village of Broek, about six miles from Amsterdam. It may not, they
+      observe, correspond in all respects to the description of the Garden of
+      Eden, handed down from days of yore, but it comes nearer to their ideas of
+      a perfect paradise than any other place on earth.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      This eulogium induced me to make some inquiries as to this favored spot in
+      the course of a sojourn at the city of Amsterdam, and the information I
+      procured fully justified the enthusiastic praises I had heard. The village
+      of Broek is situated in Waterland, in the midst of the greenest and
+      richest pastures of Holland, I may say, of Europe. These pastures are the
+      source of its wealth, for it is famous for its dairies, and for those oval
+      cheeses which regale and perfume the whole civilized world. The population
+      consists of about six hundred persons, comprising several families which
+      have inhabited the place since time immemorial, and have waxed rich on the
+      products of their meadows. They keep all their wealth among themselves,
+      intermarrying, and keeping all strangers at a wary distance. They are a
+      &ldquo;hard money&rdquo; people, and remarkable for turning the penny the right way.
+      It is said to have been an old rule, established by one of the primitive
+      financiers and legislators of Broek, that no one should leave the village
+      with more than six guilders in his pocket, or return with less than ten; a
+      shrewd regulation, well worthy the attention of modern political
+      economists, who are so anxious to fix the balance of trade.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      What, however, renders Broek so perfect an elysium in the eyes of all true
+      Hollanders is the matchless height to which the spirit of cleanliness is
+      carried there. It amounts almost to a religion among the inhabitants, who
+      pass the greater part of their time rubbing and scrubbing, and painting
+      and varnishing; each housewife vies with her neighbor in her devotion to
+      the scrubbing-brush, as zealous Catholics do in their devotion to the
+      cross; and it is said a notable housewife of the place in days of yore is
+      held in pious remembrance, and almost canonized as a saint, for having
+      died of pure exhaustion and chagrin in an ineffectual attempt to scour a
+      black man white.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      These particulars awakened my ardent curiosity to see a place which I
+      pictured to myself the very fountain-head of certain hereditary habits and
+      customs prevalent among the descendants of the original Dutch settlers of
+      my native State. I accordingly lost no time in performing a pilgrimage to
+      Broek.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Before I reached the place I beheld symptoms of the tranquil character of
+      its inhabitants. A little clump-built boat was in full sail along the lazy
+      bosom of a canal, but its sail consisted of the blades of two paddles
+      stood on end, while the navigator sat steering with a third paddle in the
+      stern, crouched down like a toad, with a slouched hat drawn over his eyes.
+      I presumed him to be some nautical lover on the way to his mistress. After
+      proceeding a little further I came in sight of the harbor or port of
+      destination of this drowsy navigator. This was the Broeken-Meer, an
+      artificial basin, or sheet of olive-green water, tranquil as a mill-pond.
+      On this the village of Broek is situated, and the borders are laboriously
+      decorated with flower-beds, box-trees clipped into all kinds of ingenious
+      shapes and fancies, and little &ldquo;lust&rdquo; houses, or pavilions.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      I alighted outside of the village, for no horse nor vehicle is permitted
+      to enter its precincts, lest it should cause defilement of the
+      well-scoured pavements. Shaking the dust off my feet, therefore, I
+      prepared to enter, with due reverence and circumspection, this <i>sanctum
+      sanctorum</i> of Dutch cleanliness. I entered by a narrow street, paved
+      with yellow bricks, laid edgewise, and so clean that one might eat from
+      them. Indeed, they were actually worn deep, not by the tread of feet, but
+      by the friction of the scrubbing-brush.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The houses were built of wood, and all appeared to have been freshly
+      painted, of green, yellow, and other bright colors. They were separated
+      from each other by gardens and orchards, and stood at some little distance
+      from the street, with wide areas or courtyards, paved in mosaic, with
+      variegated stones, polished by frequent rubbing. The areas were divided
+      from the street by curiously-wrought railings, or balustrades, of iron,
+      surmounted with brass and copper balls, scoured into dazzling effulgence.
+      The very trunks of the trees in front of the houses were by the same
+      process made to look as if they had been varnished. The porches, doors,
+      and window-frames of the houses were of exotic woods, curiously carved,
+      and polished like costly furniture. The front doors are never opened,
+      excepting on christenings, marriages, or funerals; on all ordinary
+      occasions, visitors enter by the back door. In former times, persons when
+      admitted had to put on slippers, but this Oriental ceremony is no longer
+      insisted upon.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      A poor devil Frenchman, who attended upon me as cicerone, boasted with
+      some degree of exultation of a triumph of his countrymen over the stern
+      regulations of the place. During the time that Holland was overrun by the
+      armies of the French republic, a French general, surrounded by his whole
+      état major, who had come from Amsterdam to view the wonders of Broek,
+      applied for admission at one of these taboo&rsquo;d portals. The reply was that
+      the owner never received any one who did not come introduced by some
+      friend. &ldquo;Very well,&rdquo; said the general, &ldquo;take my compliments to your
+      master, and tell him I will return here to-morrow with a company of
+      soldiers, &lsquo;<i>pour parler raison avec mon ami Hollandais</i>.&rsquo;&rdquo; Terrified
+      at the idea of having a company of soldiers billeted upon him, the owner
+      threw open his house, entertained the general and his retinue with
+      unwonted hospitality; though it is said it cost the family a month&rsquo;s
+      scrubbing and scouring to restore all things to exact order, after this
+      military invasion. My vagabond informant seemed to consider this one of
+      the greatest victories of the republic.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      I walked about the place in mute wonder and admiration. A dead stillness
+      prevailed around, like that in the deserted streets of Pompeii. No sign of
+      life was to be seen, excepting now and then a hand, and a long pipe, and
+      an occasional puff of smoke, out of the window of some &ldquo;lusthaus&rdquo;
+       overhanging a miniature canal; and on approaching a little nearer, the
+      periphery in profile of some robustious burgher.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Among the grand houses pointed out to me were those of Claes Bakker, and
+      Cornelius Bakker, richly carved and gilded, with flower gardens and
+      clipped shrubberies; and that of the Great Ditmus, who, my poor devil
+      cicerone informed me, in a whisper, was worth two millions; all these were
+      mansions shut up from the world, and only kept to be cleaned. After having
+      been conducted from one wonder to another of the village, I was ushered by
+      my guide into the grounds and gardens of Mynheer Broekker, another mighty
+      cheese-manufacturer, worth eighty thousand guilders a year. I had
+      repeatedly been struck with the similarity of all that I had seen in this
+      amphibious little village to the buildings and landscapes on Chinese
+      platters and tea-pots; but here I found the similarity complete; for I was
+      told that these gardens were modeled upon Van Bramm&rsquo;s description of those
+      of Yuen min Yuen, in China. Here were serpentine walks, with trellised
+      borders; winding canals, with fanciful Chinese bridges; flower-beds
+      resembling huge baskets, with the flower of &ldquo;love lies bleeding&rdquo; falling
+      over to the ground. But mostly had the fancy of Mynheer Broekker been
+      displayed about a stagnant little lake, on which a corpulent little
+      pinnace lay at anchor. On the border was a cottage within which were a
+      wooden man and woman seated at table, and a wooden dog beneath, all the
+      size of life; on pressing a spring, the woman commenced spinning, and the
+      dog barked furiously. On the lake were wooden swans, painted to the life;
+      some floating, others on the nest among the rushes; while a wooden
+      sportsman, crouched among the bushes, was preparing his gun to take deadly
+      aim. In another part of the garden was a dominie in his clerical robes,
+      with wig, pipe, and cocked hat; and mandarins with nodding heads, amid red
+      lions, green tigers, and blue hares. Last of all, the heathen deities, in
+      wood and plaster, male and female, naked and bare-faced as usual, and
+      seeming to stare with wonder at finding themselves in such strange
+      company.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      My shabby French guide, while he pointed out all these mechanical marvels
+      of the garden, was anxious to let me see that he had too polite a taste to
+      be pleased with them. At every new knick-knack he would screw down his
+      mouth, shrug up his shoulders, take a pinch of snuff, and exclaim: &ldquo;<i>Ma
+      foi, Monsieur, ces Hollandais sont forts pour ces bétises là</i>!&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      To attempt to gain admission to any of these stately abodes was out of the
+      question, having no company of soldiers to enforce a solicitation. I was
+      fortunate enough, however, through the aid of my guide, to make my way
+      into the kitchen of the illustrious Ditmus, and I question whether the
+      parlor would have proved more worthy of observation. The cook, a little
+      wiry, hook-nosed woman, worn thin by incessant action and friction, was
+      bustling about among her kettles and saucepans, with the scullion at her
+      heels, both clattering in wooden shoes, which were as clean and white as
+      the milk-pails; rows of vessels, of brass and copper, regiments of pewter
+      dishes, and portly porringers, gave resplendent evidence of the intensity
+      of their cleanliness; the very trammels and hangers in the fireplace were
+      highly scoured, and the burnished face of the good Saint Nicholas shone
+      forth from the iron plate of the chimney back.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Among the decorations of the kitchen was a printed sheet of woodcuts,
+      representing the various holiday customs of Holland, with explanatory
+      rhymes. Here I was delighted to recognize the jollities of New Year&rsquo;s Day;
+      the festivities of Paäs and Pinkster, and all the other merry-makings
+      handed down in my native place from the earliest times of New Amsterdam,
+      and which had been such bright spots in the year in my childhood. I
+      eagerly made myself master of this precious document for a trifling
+      consideration, and bore it off as a memento of the place; though I
+      question if, in so doing, I did not carry off with me the whole current
+      literature of Broek.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      I must not omit to mention that this village is the paradise of cows as
+      well as men; indeed you would almost suppose the cow to be as much an
+      object of worship here as the bull was among the ancient Egyptians; and
+      well does she merit it, for she is in fact the patroness of the place. The
+      same scrupulous cleanliness, however, which pervades everything else, is
+      manifested in the treatment of this venerated animal. She is not permitted
+      to perambulate the place, but in winter, when she forsakes the rich
+      pasture, a well-built house is provided for her, well painted, and
+      maintained in the most perfect order. Her stall is of ample dimensions;
+      the floor is scrubbed and polished; her hide is daily curried and brushed
+      and sponged to her heart&rsquo;s content, and her tail is daintily tucked up to
+      the ceiling, and decorated with a ribbon!
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      On my way back through the village, I passed the house of the prediger, or
+      preacher; a very comfortable mansion, which led me to augur well of the
+      state of religion in the village. On inquiry, I was told that for a long
+      time the inhabitants lived in a great state of indifference as to
+      religious matters; it was in vain that their preachers endeavored to
+      arouse their thoughts as to a future state; the joys of heaven, as
+      commonly depicted, were but little to their taste. At length a dominie
+      appeared among them who struck out in a different vein. He depicted the
+      New Jerusalem as a place all smooth and level; with beautiful dykes, and
+      ditches, and canals; and houses all shining with paint and varnish, and
+      glazed tiles; and where there should never come horse, or ass, or cat, or
+      dog, or anything that could make noise or dirt; but there should be
+      nothing but rubbing and scrubbing, and washing and painting, and gilding
+      and varnishing, for ever and ever, amen! Since that time, the good
+      housewives of Broek have all turned their faces Zionward.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      <br /><br />
+    </p>
+    <hr />
+    <p>
+      <br /><br /> <br /><br />
+    </p>
+    <hr />
+    <p>
+      <a name="link2H_4_0005" id="link2H_4_0005"> </a>
+    </p>
+    <div style="height: 4em;">
+      <br /><br /><br /><br />
+    </div>
+    <h2>
+      SKETCHES IN PARIS IN 1825
+    </h2>
+    <h3>
+      FROM THE TRAVELING NOTE-BOOK OF GEOFFREY CRAYON, GENT.
+    </h3>
+    <p>
+      A Parisian hotel is a street set on end, the grand staircase forming the
+      highway, and every floor a separate habitation. Let me describe the one in
+      which I am lodged, which may serve as a specimen of its class. It is a
+      huge quadrangular pile of stone, built round a spacious paved court. The
+      ground floor is occupied by shops, magazines, and domestic offices. Then
+      comes the <i>entre-sol</i>, with low ceilings, short windows, and dwarf
+      chambers; then succeed a succession of floors, or stories, rising one
+      above the other, to the number of Mahomet&rsquo;s heavens. Each floor is like a
+      distinct mansion, complete in itself, with ante-chamber, saloons, dining
+      and sleeping rooms, kitchen and other conveniences for the accommodation
+      of a family. Some floors are divided into two or more suites of
+      apartments. Each apartment has its main door of entrance, opening upon the
+      staircase, or landing-places, and locked like a street door. Thus several
+      families and numerous single persons live under the same roof, totally
+      independent of each other, and may live so for years without holding more
+      intercourse than is kept up in other cities by residents in the same
+      street.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Like the great world, this little microcosm has its gradations of rank and
+      style and importance. The <i>Premier</i>, or first floor, with its grand
+      saloons, lofty ceilings, and splendid furniture, is decidedly the
+      aristocratical part of the establishment. The second floor is scarcely
+      less aristocratical and magnificent; the other floors go on lessening in
+      splendor as they gain in altitude, and end with the attics, the region of
+      petty tailors, clerks, and sewing-girls. To make the filling up of the
+      mansion complete, every odd nook and corner is fitted up as a <i>joli
+      petit appartement à garçon</i> (a pretty little bachelor&rsquo;s apartment),
+      that is to say, some little dark inconvenient nestling-place for a poor
+      devil of a bachelor.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The whole domain is shut up from the street by a great <i>porte-cochère</i>,
+      or portal, calculated for the admission of carriages. This consists of two
+      massy folding-doors, that swing heavily open upon a spacious entrance,
+      passing under the front of the edifice into the courtyard. On one side is
+      a spacious staircase leading to the upper apartments. Immediately without
+      the portal is the porter&rsquo;s lodge, a small room with one or two bedrooms
+      adjacent, for the accommodation of the <i>concierge</i>, or porter and his
+      family. This is one of the most important functionaries of the hotel. He
+      is, in fact, the Cerberus of the establishment, and no one can pass in or
+      out without his knowledge and consent. The <i>porte-cochère</i> in general
+      is fastened by a sliding bolt, from which a cord or wire passes into the
+      porter&rsquo;s lodge. Whoever wishes to go out must speak to the porter, who
+      draws the bolt. A visitor from without gives a single rap with the massive
+      knocker; the bolt is immediately drawn, as if by an invisible hand; the
+      door stands ajar, the visitor pushes it open, and enters. A face presents
+      itself at the glass door of the porter&rsquo;s little chamber; the stranger
+      pronounces the name of the person he comes to seek. If the person or
+      family is of importance, occupying the first or second floor, the porter
+      sounds a bell once or twice, to give notice that a visitor is at hand. The
+      stranger in the meantime ascends the great staircase, the highway common
+      to all, and arrives at the outer door, equivalent to a street door, of the
+      suite of rooms inhabited by his friends.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Beside this hangs a bell-cord, with which he rings for admittance.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      When the family or person inquired for is of less importance, or lives in
+      some remote part of the mansion less easy to be apprised, no signal is
+      given. The applicant pronounces the name at the porter&rsquo;s door, and is
+      told, <i>&ldquo;Montez au troisième, au quatrième; sonnez à la porte à droite ou
+      à gauche.&rdquo;</i> (&ldquo;Ascend to the third or fourth story; ring the bell on the
+      right or left hand door&rdquo;); as the case may be.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The porter and his wife act as domestics to such of the inmates of the
+      mansion as do not keep servants; making their beds, arranging their rooms,
+      lighting their fires, and doing other menial offices, for which they
+      receive a monthly stipend. They are also in confidential intercourse with
+      the servants of the other inmates, and, having an eye on all the incomers
+      and outgoers, are thus enabled, by hook and by crook, to learn the secrets
+      and domestic history of every member of the little territory within the <i>porte-cochère</i>.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The porter&rsquo;s lodge is accordingly a great scene of gossip, where all the
+      private affairs of this interior neighborhood are discussed. The
+      courtyard, also, is an assembling place in the evenings for the servants
+      of the different families, and a sisterhood of sewing girls from the
+      entre-sols and the attics, to play at various games, and dance to the
+      music of their own songs, and the echoes of their feet, at which
+      assemblages the porter&rsquo;s daughter takes the lead; a fresh, pretty, buxom
+      girl, generally called &ldquo;<i>La Petite</i>,&rdquo; though almost as tall as a
+      grenadier. These little evening gatherings, so characteristic of this gay
+      country, are countenanced by the various families of the mansion, who
+      often look down from their windows and balconies, on moonlight evenings,
+      and enjoy the simple revels of their domestics. I must observe, however,
+      that the hotel I am describing is rather a quiet, retired one, where most
+      of the inmates are permanent residents from year to year, so that there is
+      more of the spirit of neighborhood than in the bustling, fashionable
+      hotels in the gay parts of Paris, which are continually changing their
+      inhabitants.
+    </p>
+    <h3>
+      MY FRENCH NEIGHBOR
+    </h3>
+    <p>
+      I often amuse myself by watching from my window (which, by the bye, is
+      tolerably elevated) the movements of the teeming little world below me;
+      and as I am on sociable terms with the porter and his wife, I gather from
+      them, as they light my fire, or serve my breakfast, anecdotes of all my
+      fellow lodgers. I have been somewhat curious in studying a little antique
+      Frenchman, who occupies one of the <i>jolie chambres à garçon</i> already
+      mentioned. He is one of those superannuated veterans who flourished before
+      the revolution, and have weathered all the storms of Paris, in
+      consequence, very probably, of being fortunately too insignificant to
+      attract attention. He has a small income, which he manages with the skill
+      of a French economist; appropriating so much for his lodgings, so much for
+      his meals; so much for his visits to St. Cloud and Versailles, and so much
+      for his seat at the theater. He has resided in the hotel for years, and
+      always in the same chamber, which he furnishes at his own expense. The
+      decorations of the room mark his various ages. There are some gallant
+      pictures which he hung up in his younger days; with a portrait of a lady
+      of rank, whom he speaks tenderly of, dressed in the old French taste; and
+      a pretty opera dancer, pirouetting in a hoop petticoat, who lately died at
+      a good old age. In a corner of this picture is stuck a prescription for
+      rheumatism, and below it stands an easy-chair. He has a small parrot at
+      the window, to amuse him when within doors, and a pug dog to accompany him
+      in his daily peregrinations. While I am writing he is crossing the court
+      to go out. He is attired in his best coat, of sky-blue, and is doubtless
+      bound for the Tuileries. His hair is dressed in the old style, with
+      powdered ear-locks and a pig-tail. His little dog trips after him,
+      sometimes on four legs, sometimes on three, and looking as if his leather
+      small-clothes were too tight for him. Now the old gentleman stops to have
+      a word with an old crony who lives in the entre-sol, and is just returning
+      from his promenade. Now they take a pinch of snuff together; now they pull
+      out huge red cotton handkerchiefs (those &ldquo;flags of abomination,&rdquo; as they
+      have well been called) and blow their noses most sonorously. Now they turn
+      to make remarks upon their two little dogs, who are exchanging the
+      morning&rsquo;s salutation; now they part, and my old gentleman stops to have a
+      passing word with the porter&rsquo;s wife; and now he sallies forth, and is
+      fairly launched upon the town for the day.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      No man is so methodical as a complete idler, and none so scrupulous in
+      measuring and portioning out his time as he whose time is worth nothing.
+      The old gentleman in question has his exact hour for rising, and for
+      shaving himself by a small mirror hung against his casement. He sallies
+      forth at a certain hour every morning to take his cup of coffee and his
+      roll at a certain cafe, where he reads the papers. He has been a regular
+      admirer of the lady who presides at the bar, and always stops to have a
+      little <i>badinage</i> with her <i>en passant</i>. He has his regular
+      walks on the Boulevards and in the Palais Royal, where he sets his watch
+      by the petard fired off by the sun at midday. He has his daily resort in
+      the Garden of the Tuileries, to meet with a knot of veteran idlers like
+      himself, who talk on pretty much the same subjects whenever they meet. He
+      has been present at all the sights and shows and rejoicings of Paris for
+      the last fifty years; has witnessed the great events of the revolution;
+      the guillotining of the king and queen; the coronation of Bonaparte; the
+      capture of Paris, and the restoration of the Bourbons. All these he speaks
+      of with the coolness of a theatrical critic; and I question whether he has
+      not been gratified by each in its turn; not from any inherent love of
+      tumult, but from that insatiable appetite for spectacle which prevails
+      among the inhabitants of this metropolis. I have been amused with a farce,
+      in which one of these systematic old triflers is represented. He sings a
+      song detailing his whole day&rsquo;s round of insignificant occupations, and
+      goes to bed delighted with the idea that his next day will be an exact
+      repetition of the same routine:
+    </p>
+<pre xml:space="preserve">
+  &ldquo;Je me couche le soir,
+   Enchanté de pouvoir
+   Recommencer mon train
+      Le lendemain
+         Matin.&rdquo;
+
+</pre>
+    <p>
+      <br /><br />
+    </p>
+    <hr />
+    <p>
+      <br /><br />
+    </p>
+    <h3>
+      THE ENGLISHMAN AT PARIS
+    </h3>
+    <p>
+      In another part of the hotel a handsome suite of rooms is occupied by an
+      old English gentleman, of great probity, some understanding, and very
+      considerable crustiness, who has come to France to live economically. He
+      has a very fair property, but his wife, being of that blessed kind
+      compared in Scripture to the fruitful vine, has overwhelmed him with a
+      family of buxom daughters, who hang clustering about him, ready to be
+      gathered by any hand. He is seldom to be seen in public without one
+      hanging on each arm, and smiling on all the world, while his own mouth is
+      drawn down at each corner like a mastiff&rsquo;s with internal growling at
+      everything about him. He adheres rigidly to English fashion in dress, and
+      trudges about in long gaiters and broad-brimmed hat; while his daughters
+      almost overshadow him with feathers, flowers, and French bonnets.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      He contrives to keep up an atmosphere of English habits, opinions, and
+      prejudices, and to carry a semblance of London into the very heart of
+      Paris. His mornings are spent at Galignani&rsquo;s news-room, where he forms one
+      of a knot of inveterate quidnuncs, who read the same articles over a dozen
+      times in a dozen different papers. He generally dines in company with some
+      of his own countrymen, and they have what is called a &ldquo;comfortable
+      sitting&rdquo; after dinner, in the English fashion, drinking wine, discussing
+      the news of the London papers, and canvassing the French character, the
+      French metropolis, and the French revolution, ending with a unanimous
+      admission of English courage, English morality, English cookery, English
+      wealth, the magnitude of London, and the ingratitude of the French.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      His evenings are chiefly spent at a club of his countrymen, where the
+      London papers are taken. Sometimes his daughters entice him to the
+      theaters, but not often. He abuses French tragedy, as all fustian and
+      bombast, Talma as a ranter, and Duchesnois as a mere termagant. It is true
+      his ear is not sufficiently familiar with the language to understand
+      French verse, and he generally goes to sleep during the performance. The
+      wit of the French comedy is flat and pointless to him. He would not give
+      one of Munden&rsquo;s wry faces or Liston&rsquo;s inexpressible looks for the whole of
+      it.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      He will not admit that Paris has any advantage over London. The Seine is a
+      muddy rivulet in comparison with the Thames; the West End of London
+      surpasses the finest parts of the French capital; and on some one&rsquo;s
+      observing that there was a very thick fog out of doors: &ldquo;Pish!&rdquo; said he,
+      crustily, &ldquo;it&rsquo;s nothing to the fogs we have in London.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      He has infinite trouble in bringing his table into anything like
+      conformity to English rule. With his liquors, it is true, he is tolerably
+      successful. He procures London porter, and a stock of port and sherry, at
+      considerable expense; for he observes that he cannot stand those cursed
+      thin French wines, they dilute his blood so much as to give him the
+      rheumatism. As to their white wines, he stigmatizes them as mere
+      substitutes for cider; and as to claret, why, &ldquo;it would be port if it
+      could.&rdquo; He has continual quarrels with his French cook, whom he renders
+      wretched by insisting on his conforming to Mrs. Glass; for it is easier to
+      convert a Frenchman from his religion than his cookery. The poor fellow,
+      by dint of repeated efforts, once brought himself to serve up <i>ros bif</i>
+      sufficiently raw to suit what he considered the cannibal taste of his
+      master; but then he could not refrain, at the last moment, adding some
+      exquisite sauce, that put the old gentleman in a fury.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      He detests wood-fires, and has procured a quantity of coal; but not having
+      a grate, he is obliged to burn it on the hearth. Here he sits poking and
+      stirring the fire with one end of a tongs, while the room is as murky as a
+      smithy; railing at French chimneys, French masons, and French architects;
+      giving a poke at the end of every sentence, as though he were stirring up
+      the very bowels of the delinquents he is anathematizing. He lives in a
+      state militant with inanimate objects around him; gets into high dudgeon
+      with doors and casements, because they will not come under English law,
+      and has implacable feuds with sundry refractory pieces of furniture. Among
+      these is one in particular with which he is sure to have a high quarrel
+      every tune he goes to dress. It is a <i>commode</i>, one of those smooth,
+      polished, plausible pieces of French furniture that have the perversity of
+      five hundred devils. Each drawer has a will of its own, will open or not,
+      just as the whim takes it, and sets lock and key at defiance. Sometimes a
+      drawer will refuse to yield to either persuasion or force, and will part
+      with both handles rather than yield; another will come out in the most coy
+      and coquettish manner imaginable; elbowing along, zig-zag; one corner
+      retreating as the other advances; making a thousand difficulties and
+      objections at every move; until the old gentleman, out of all patience,
+      gives a sudden jerk, and brings drawer and contents into the middle of the
+      floor. His hostility to this unlucky piece of furniture increases every
+      day, as if incensed that it does not grow better. He is like the fretful
+      invalid who cursed his bed, that the longer he lay the harder it grew. The
+      only benefit he has derived from the quarrel is that it has furnished him
+      with a crusty joke, which he utters on all occasions. He swears that a
+      French <i>commode</i> is the most <i>incommodious</i> thing in existence,
+      and that although the nation cannot make a joint-stool that will stand
+      steady, yet they are always talking of everything&rsquo;s being <i>perfectionée</i>.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      His servants understand his humor, and avail themselves of it. He was one
+      day disturbed by a pertinacious rattling and shaking at one of the doors,
+      and bawled out in an angry tone to know the cause of the disturbance.
+      &ldquo;Sir,&rdquo; said the footman, testily, &ldquo;it&rsquo;s this confounded French lock!&rdquo;
+       &ldquo;Ah!&rdquo; said the old gentleman, pacified by this hit at the nation, &ldquo;I
+      thought there was something French at the bottom of it!&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      <br /><br />
+    </p>
+    <hr />
+    <p>
+      <br /><br /> <br /><br />
+    </p>
+    <hr />
+    <p>
+      <a name="link2H_4_0006" id="link2H_4_0006"> </a>
+    </p>
+    <div style="height: 4em;">
+      <br /><br /><br /><br />
+    </div>
+    <h2>
+      ENGLISH AND FRENCH CHARACTER
+    </h2>
+    <p>
+      As I am a mere looker on in Europe, and hold myself as much as possible
+      aloof from its quarrels and prejudices, I feel something like one
+      overlooking a game, who, without any great skill of his own, can
+      occasionally perceive the blunders of much abler players. This neutrality
+      of feeling enables me to enjoy the contrasts of character presented in
+      this time of general peace, when the various peoples of Europe, who have
+      so long been sundered by wars, are brought together and placed side by
+      side in this great gathering-place of nations. No greater contrast,
+      however, is exhibited than that of the French and English. The peace has
+      deluged this gay capital with English visitors of all ranks and
+      conditions. They throng every place of curiosity and amusement; fill the
+      public gardens, the galleries, the cafes, saloons, theaters; always
+      herding together, never associating with the French. The two nations are
+      like two threads of different colors, tangled together but never blended.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      In fact they present a continual antithesis, and seem to value themselves
+      upon being unlike each other; yet each have their peculiar merits, which
+      should entitle them to each other&rsquo;s esteem. The French intellect is quick
+      and active. It flashes its way into a subject with the rapidity of
+      lightning; seizes upon remote conclusions with a sudden bound, and its
+      deductions are almost intuitive. The English intellect is less rapid, but
+      more persevering; less sudden, but more sure in its deductions. The
+      quickness and mobility of the French enable them to find enjoyment in the
+      multiplicity of sensations. They speak and act more from immediate
+      impressions than from reflection and meditation. They are therefore more
+      social and communicative; more fond of society, and of places of public
+      resort and amusement. An Englishman is more reflective in his habits. He
+      lives in the world of his own thoughts, and seems more self-existent and
+      self-dependent. He loves the quiet of his own apartment; even when abroad,
+      he in a manner makes a little solitude around him by his silence and
+      reserve; he moves about shy and solitary, and, as it were, buttoned up,
+      body and soul.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The French are great optimists; they seize upon every good as it flies,
+      and revel in the passing pleasure. The Englishman is too apt to neglect
+      the present good, in preparing against the possible evil. However
+      adversities may lower, let the sun shine but for a moment, and forth
+      sallies the mercurial Frenchman, in holiday dress and holiday spirits, gay
+      as a butterfly, as though his sunshine were perpetual; but let the sun
+      beam never so brightly, so there be but a cloud in the horizon, the wary
+      Englishman ventures forth distrustfully, with his umbrella in his hand.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The Frenchman has a wonderful facility at turning small things to
+      advantage. No one can be gay and luxurious on smaller means; no one
+      requires less expense to be happy. He practices a kind of gilding in his
+      style of living, and hammers out every guinea into gold leaf. The
+      Englishman, on the contrary, is expensive in his habits, and expensive in
+      his enjoyments. He values everything, whether useful or ornamental, by
+      what it costs. He has no satisfaction in show, unless it be solid and
+      complete. Everything goes with him by the square foot. Whatever display he
+      makes, the depth is sure to equal the surface.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The Frenchman&rsquo;s habitation, like himself, is open, cheerful, bustling, and
+      noisy. He lives in a part of a great hotel, with wide portal, paved court,
+      a spacious dirty stone staircase, and a family on every floor. All is
+      clatter and chatter. He is good-humored and talkative with his servants,
+      sociable with his neighbors, and complaisant to all the world. Anybody has
+      access to himself and his apartments; his very bedroom is open to
+      visitors, whatever may be its state of confusion; and all this not from
+      any peculiarly hospitable feeling, but from that communicative habit which
+      predominates over his character.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The Englishman, on the contrary, ensconces himself in a snug brick
+      mansion, which he has all to himself; locks the front door; puts broken
+      bottles along his walls, and spring guns and man-traps in his gardens;
+      shrouds himself with trees and window-curtains; exults in his quiet and
+      privacy, and seems disposed to keep out noise, daylight, and company. His
+      house, like himself, has a reserved, inhospitable exterior; yet whoever
+      gains admittance is apt to find a warm heart and warm fireside within.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The French excel in wit, the English in humor; the French have gayer
+      fancy, the English richer imagination. The former are full of sensibility;
+      easily moved, and prone to sudden and great excitement; but their
+      excitement is not durable; the English are more phlegmatic; not so readily
+      affected, but capable of being aroused to great enthusiasm. The faults of
+      these opposite temperaments are that the vivacity of the French is apt to
+      sparkle up and be frothy, the gravity of the English to settle down and
+      grow muddy. When the two characters can be fixed in a medium, the French
+      kept from effervescence and the English from stagnation, both will be
+      found excellent.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      This contrast of character may also be noticed in the great concerns of
+      the two nations. The ardent Frenchman is all for military renown; he
+      fights for glory, that is to say, for success in arms. For, provided the
+      national flag is victorious, he cares little about the expense, the
+      injustice, or the inutility of the war. It is wonderful how the poorest
+      Frenchman will revel on a triumphant bulletin; a great victory is meat and
+      drink to him; and at the sight of a military sovereign, bringing home
+      captured cannon and captured standards, he throws up his greasy cap in the
+      air, and is ready to jump out of his wooden shoes for joy.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      John Bull, on the contrary, is a reasoning, considerate person. If he does
+      wrong, it is in the most rational way imaginable. He fights because the
+      good of the world requires it. He is a moral person, and makes war upon
+      his neighbor for the maintenance of peace and good order, and sound
+      principles. He is a money-making personage, and fights for the prosperity
+      of commerce and manufactures. Thus the two nations have been fighting,
+      time out of mind, for glory and good. The French, in pursuit of glory,
+      have had their capital twice taken; and John, in pursuit of good, has run
+      himself over head and ears in debt.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      <br /><br />
+    </p>
+    <hr />
+    <p>
+      <br /><br /> <br /><br />
+    </p>
+    <hr />
+    <p>
+      <a name="link2H_4_0007" id="link2H_4_0007"> </a>
+    </p>
+    <div style="height: 4em;">
+      <br /><br /><br /><br />
+    </div>
+    <h2>
+      THE TUILERIES AND WINDSOR CASTLE
+    </h2>
+    <p>
+      I have sometimes fancied I could discover national characteristics in
+      national edifices. In the Chateau of the Tuileries, for instance, I
+      perceive the same jumble of contrarieties that marks the French character;
+      the same whimsical mixture of the great and the little; the splendid and
+      the paltry, the sublime and the grotesque. On visiting this famous pile,
+      the first thing that strikes both eye and ear is military display. The
+      courts glitter with steel-clad soldiery, and resound with the tramp of
+      horse, the roll of drum, and the bray of trumpet. Dismounted guardsmen
+      patrol its arcades, with loaded carbines, jingling spears, and clanking
+      sabers. Gigantic grenadiers are posted about its staircases; young
+      officers of the guards loll from the balconies, or lounge in groups upon
+      the terraces; and the gleam of bayonet from window to window, shows that
+      sentinels are pacing up and down the corridors and ante-chambers. The
+      first floor is brilliant with the splendors of a court. French taste has
+      tasked itself in adorning the sumptuous suites of apartments; nor are the
+      gilded chapel and the splendid theater forgotten, where piety and pleasure
+      are next-door neighbors, and harmonize together with perfect French <i>bienseance</i>.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Mingled up with all this regal and military magnificence is a world of
+      whimsical and make-shift detail. A great part of the huge edifice is cut
+      up into little chambers and nestling-places for retainers of the court,
+      dependents on retainers, and hangers-on of dependents. Some are squeezed
+      into narrow entre-sols, those low, dark, intermediate slices of apartments
+      between floors, the inhabitants of which seem shoved in edgewise, like
+      books between narrow shelves; others are perched like swallows, under the
+      eaves; the high roofs, too, which are as tall and steep as a French cocked
+      hat, have rows of little dormant windows, tier above tier, just large
+      enough to admit light and air for some dormitory, and to enable its
+      occupant to peep out at the sky. Even to the very ridge of the roof may be
+      seen here and there one of these air-holes, with a stove pipe beside it,
+      to carry off the smoke from the handful of fuel with which its
+      weazen-faced tenant simmers his <i>demi-tasse</i> of coffee.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      On approaching the palace from the Pont Royal, you take in at a glance all
+      the various strata of inhabitants; the garreteer in the roof; the retainer
+      in the entre-sol; the courtiers at the casements of the royal apartments;
+      while on the ground-floor a steam of savory odors and a score or two of
+      cooks, in white caps, bobbing their heads about the windows, betray that
+      scientific and all-important laboratory, the Royal Kitchen.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Go into the grand ante-chamber of the royal apartments on Sunday and see
+      the mixture of Old and New France; the old emigrés, returned with the
+      Bourbons; little withered, spindle-shanked old noblemen, clad in court
+      dresses, that figured in these saloons before the revolution, and have
+      been carefully treasured up during their exile; with the solitaires and <i>ailes
+      de pigeon</i> of former days; and the court swords strutting out behind,
+      like pins stuck through dry beetles. See them haunting the scenes of their
+      former splendor, in hopes of a restitution of estates, like ghosts
+      haunting the vicinity of buried treasure; while around them you see the
+      Young France, that have grown up in the fighting school of Napoleon; all
+      equipped <i>en militaire</i>; tall, hardy, frank, vigorous, sunburned,
+      fierce-whiskered; with tramping boots, towering crests, and glittering
+      breast-plates.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      It is incredible the number of ancient and hereditary feeders on royalty
+      said to be housed in this establishment. Indeed all the royal palaces
+      abound with noble families returned from exile, and who have
+      nestling-places allotted them while they await the restoration of their
+      estates, or the much-talked-of law indemnity. Some of them have fine
+      quarters, but poor living. Some families have but five or six hundred
+      francs a year, and all their retinue consists of a servant-woman. With all
+      this, they maintain their old aristocratical hauteur, look down with vast
+      contempt upon the opulent families which have risen since the revolution;
+      stigmatize them all as <i>parvenues</i> or upstarts, and refuse to visit
+      them.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      In regarding the exterior of the Tuileries, with all its outward signs of
+      internal populousness, I have often thought what a rare sight it would be
+      to see it suddenly unroofed, and all its nooks and corners laid open to
+      the day. It would be like turning up the stump of an old tree, and
+      dislodging the world of grubs, and ants, and beetles lodged beneath.
+      Indeed there is a scandalous anecdote current that in the time of one of
+      the petty plots, when petards were exploded under the windows of the
+      Tuileries, the police made a sudden investigation of the palace at four
+      o&rsquo;clock in the morning; when a scene of the most whimsical confusion
+      ensued. Hosts of supernumerary inhabitants were found foisted into the
+      huge edifice; every rat-hole had its occupant; and places which had been
+      considered as tenanted only by spiders were found crowded with a
+      surreptitious population. It is added that many ludicrous accidents
+      occurred; great scampering and slamming of doors, and whisking away in
+      nightgowns and slippers; and several persons, who were found by accident
+      in their neighbors&rsquo; chambers, evinced indubitable astonishment at the
+      circumstance.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      As I have fancied I could read the French character in the national palace
+      of the Tuileries, so I have pictured to myself some of the traits of John
+      Bull in his royal abode of Windsor Castle. The Tuileries, outwardly a
+      peaceful palace, is in effect a swaggering military hold; while the old
+      castle, on the contrary, in spite of its bullying look, is completely
+      under petticoat government. Every corner and nook is built up into some
+      snug, cozy nestling place, some &ldquo;procreant cradle,&rdquo; not tenanted by meager
+      expectants or whiskered warriors, but by sleek placemen; knowing realizers
+      of present pay and present pudding; who seem placed there not to kill and
+      destroy, but to breed and multiply. Nursery maids and children shine with
+      rosy faces at the windows, and swarm about the courts and terraces. The
+      very soldiers have a pacific look, and when off duty may be seen loitering
+      about the place with the nursery-maids; not making love to them in the gay
+      gallant style of the French soldiery, but with infinite bonhomie aiding
+      them to take care of the broods of children.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Though the old castle is in decay, everything about it thrives; the very
+      crevices of the walls are tenanted by swallows, rooks, and pigeons, all
+      sure of quiet lodgment; the ivy strikes its roots deep in the fissures,
+      and flourishes about the mouldering tower. [Footnote: The above sketch was
+      written before the thorough repairs and magnificent additions that have
+      been made of late years to Windsor Castle.] Thus it is with honest John;
+      according to his own account, he is ever going to ruin, yet everything
+      that lives on him thrives and waxes fat. He would fain be a soldier, and
+      swagger like his neighbors; but his domestic, quiet-loving, uxorious
+      nature continually gets the upper hand; and though he may mount his helmet
+      and gird on his sword, yet he is apt to sink into the plodding,
+      painstaking father of a family; with a troop of children at his heels, and
+      his womenkind hanging on each arm.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      <br /><br />
+    </p>
+    <hr />
+    <p>
+      <a name="link2H_4_0008" id="link2H_4_0008"> </a>
+    </p>
+    <div style="height: 4em;">
+      <br /><br /><br /><br />
+    </div>
+    <h2>
+      THE FIELD OF WATERLOO
+    </h2>
+    <p>
+      I have spoken heretofore with some levity of the contrast that exists
+      between the English and French character; but it deserves more serious
+      consideration. They are the two great nations of modern times most
+      diametrically opposed, and most worthy of each other&rsquo;s rivalry;
+      essentially distinct in their characters, excelling in opposite qualities,
+      and reflecting luster on each other by their very opposition. In nothing
+      is this contrast more strikingly evinced than in their military conduct.
+      For ages have they been contending, and for ages have they crowded each
+      other&rsquo;s history with acts of splendid heroism. Take the Battle of
+      Waterloo, for instance, the last and most memorable trial of their rival
+      prowess. Nothing could surpass the brilliant daring on the one side, and
+      the steadfast enduring on the other. The French cavalry broke like waves
+      on the compact squares of English infantry. They were seen galloping round
+      those serried walls of men, seeking in vain for an entrance; tossing their
+      arms in the air, in the heat of their enthusiasm, and braving the whole
+      front of battle. The British troops, on the other hand, forbidden to move
+      or fire, stood firm and enduring. Their columns were ripped up by
+      cannonry; whole rows were swept down at a shot; the survivors closed their
+      ranks, and stood firm. In this way many columns stood through the pelting
+      of the iron tempest without firing a shot; without any action to stir
+      their blood or excite their spirits. Death thinned their ranks, but could
+      not shake their souls.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      A beautiful instance of the quick and generous impulses to which the
+      French are prone, is given in the case of a French cavalier, in the
+      hottest of the action, charging furiously upon a British officer, but
+      perceiving in the moment of assault that his adversary had lost his
+      sword-arm, dropping the point of his saber, and courteously riding on.
+      Peace be with that generous warrior, whatever were his fate! If he went
+      down in the storm of battle, with the foundering fortunes of his
+      chieftain, may the turf of Waterloo grow green above his grave! and
+      happier far would be the fate of such a spirit, to sink amid the tempest,
+      unconscious of defeat, than to survive and mourn over the blighted laurels
+      of his country.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      In this way the two armies fought through a long and bloody day. The
+      French with enthusiastic valor, the English with cool, inflexible courage,
+      until Fate, as if to leave the question of superiority still undecided
+      between two such adversaries, brought up the Prussians to decide the
+      fortunes of the field.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      It was several years afterward that I visited the field of Waterloo. The
+      plowshare had been busy with its oblivious labors, and the frequent
+      harvest had nearly obliterated the vestiges of war. Still the blackened
+      ruins of Hoguemont stood, a monumental pile, to mark the violence of this
+      vehement struggle. Its broken walls, pierced by bullets, and shattered by
+      explosions, showed the deadly strife that had taken place within; when
+      Gaul and Briton, hemmed in between narrow walls, hand to hand and foot to
+      foot, fought from garden to courtyard, from courtyard to chamber, with
+      intense and concentrated rivalship. Columns of smoke turned from this
+      vortex of battle as from a volcano: &ldquo;it was,&rdquo; said my guide, &ldquo;like a
+      little hell upon earth.&rdquo; Not far off, two or three broad spots of rank,
+      unwholesome green still marked the places where these rival warriors,
+      after their fierce and fitful struggle, slept quietly together in the lap
+      of their common mother earth. Over all the rest of the field peace had
+      resumed its sway. The thoughtless whistle of the peasant floated on the
+      air, instead of the trumpet&rsquo;s clangor; the team slowly labored up the
+      hillside, once shaken by the hoofs of rushing squadrons; and wide fields
+      of corn waved peacefully over the soldiers&rsquo; graves, as summer seas dimple
+      over the place where many a tall ship lies buried.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      <br /><br />
+    </p>
+    <hr />
+    <p>
+      <br /><br />
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      To the foregoing desultory notes on the French military character, let me
+      append a few traits which I picked up verbally in one of the French
+      provinces. They may have already appeared in print, but I have never met
+      with them.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      At the breaking out of the revolution, when so many of the old families
+      emigrated, a descendant of the great Turenne, by the name of De Latour
+      D&rsquo;Auvergne, refused to accompany his relations, and entered into the
+      Republican army. He served in all the campaigns of the revolution,
+      distinguished himself by his valor, his accomplishments, and his generous
+      spirit, and might have risen to fortune, and to the highest honors. He
+      refused, however, all rank in the army, above that of captain, and would
+      receive no recompense for his achievements but a sword of honor. Napoleon,
+      in testimony of his merits, gave him the title of Premier Grenadier de
+      France (First Grenadier of France), which was the only title he would ever
+      bear. He was killed in Germany, in 1809 or &lsquo;10. To honor his memory, his
+      place was always retained in his regiment, as if he still occupied it; and
+      whenever the regiment was mustered, and the name of De Latour D&rsquo;Auvergne
+      was called out, the reply was, &ldquo;Dead on the field of honor!&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      <br /><br />
+    </p>
+    <hr />
+    <p>
+      <br /><br /> <br /><br />
+    </p>
+    <hr />
+    <p>
+      <a name="link2H_4_0009" id="link2H_4_0009"> </a>
+    </p>
+    <div style="height: 4em;">
+      <br /><br /><br /><br />
+    </div>
+    <h2>
+      PARIS AT THE RESTORATION
+    </h2>
+    <p>
+      Paris presented a singular aspect just after the downfall of Napoleon, and
+      the restoration of the Bourbons. It was filled with a restless, roaming
+      population; a dark, sallow race, with fierce mustaches, black cravats, and
+      feverish, menacing looks; men suddenly thrown out of employ by the return
+      of peace; officers cut short in their career, and cast loose with scanty
+      means, many of them in utter indigence, upon the world; the broken
+      elements of armies. They haunted the places of public resort, like
+      restless, unhappy spirits, taking no pleasure; hanging about, like
+      lowering clouds that linger after a storm, and giving a singular air of
+      gloom to this otherwise gay metropolis.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The vaunted courtesy of the old school, the smooth urbanity that prevailed
+      in former days of settled government and long-established aristocracy, had
+      disappeared amid the savage republicanism of the revolution and the
+      military furor of the empire; recent reverses had stung the national
+      vanity to the quick; and English travelers, who crowded to Paris on the
+      return of peace, expecting to meet with a gay, good-humored, complaisant
+      populace, such as existed in the time of the &ldquo;Sentimental Journey,&rdquo; were
+      surprised at finding them irritable and fractious, quick at fancying
+      affronts, and not unapt to offer insults. They accordingly inveighed with
+      heat and bitterness at the rudeness they experienced in the French
+      metropolis; yet what better had they to expect? Had Charles II. been
+      reinstated in his kingdom by the valor of French troops; had he been
+      wheeled triumphantly to London over the trampled bodies and trampled
+      standards of England&rsquo;s bravest sons; had a French general dictated to the
+      English capital, and a French army been quartered in Hyde Park; had Paris
+      poured forth its motley population, and the wealthy bourgeoise of every
+      French trading town swarmed to London; crowding its squares; filling its
+      streets with their equipages; thronging its fashionable hotels, and places
+      of amusements; elbowing its impoverished nobility out of their palaces and
+      opera-boxes, and looking down on the humiliated inhabitants as a conquered
+      people; in such a reverse of the case, what degree of courtesy would the
+      populace of London have been apt to exercise toward their visitors?
+      [Footnote: The above remarks were suggested by a conversation with the
+      late Mr. Canning, whom the author met in Paris, and who expressed himself
+      in the most liberal way concerning the magnanimity of the French on the
+      occupation of their capital by strangers.]
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      On the contrary, I have always admired the degree of magnanimity exhibited
+      by the French on the occupation of their capital by the English. When we
+      consider the military ambition of this nation, its love of glory; the
+      splendid height to which its renown in arms had recently been carried, and
+      with these, the tremendous reverses it had just undergone; its armies
+      shattered, annihilated; its capital captured, garrisoned, and overrun, and
+      that too by its ancient rival, the English, toward whom it had cherished
+      for centuries a jealous and almost religious hostility; could we have
+      wondered if the tiger spirit of this fiery people had broken out in bloody
+      feuds and deadly quarrels; and that they had sought to rid themselves in
+      any way of their invaders? But it is cowardly nations only, those who dare
+      not wield the sword, that revenge themselves with the lurking dagger.
+      There were no assassinations in Paris. The French had fought valiantly,
+      desperately, in the field; but, when valor was no longer of avail, they
+      submitted like gallant men to a fate they could not withstand. Some
+      instances of insult from the populace were experienced by their English
+      visitors; some personal rencontres, which led to duels, did take place;
+      but these smacked of open and honorable hostility. No instances of lurking
+      and perfidious revenge occurred, and the British soldier patroled the
+      streets of Paris safe from treacherous assault.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      If the English met with harshness and repulse in social intercourse, it
+      was in some degree a proof that the people are more sincere than has been
+      represented. The emigrants who had just returned were not yet reinstated.
+      Society was constituted of those who had flourished under the late regime;
+      the newly ennobled, the recently enriched, who felt their prosperity and
+      their consequence endangered by this change of things. The broken-down
+      officer, who saw his glory tarnished, his fortune ruined, his occupation
+      gone, could not be expected to look with complacency upon the authors of
+      his downfall. The English visitor, flushed with health, and wealth, and
+      victory, could little enter into the feelings of the blighted warrior,
+      scarred with a hundred battles, an exile from the camp, broken in
+      constitution by the wars, impoverished by the peace, and cast back, a
+      needy stranger in the splendid but captured metropolis of his country.
+    </p>
+<pre xml:space="preserve">
+  &ldquo;Oh! who can tell what heroes feel,
+   When all but life and honor&rsquo;s lost!&rdquo;
+ </pre>
+    <p>
+      And here let me notice the conduct of the French soldiery on the
+      dismemberment of the army of the Loire, when two hundred thousand men were
+      suddenly thrown out of employ; men who had been brought up to the camp,
+      and scarce knew any other home. Few in civil, peaceful life, are aware of
+      the severe trial to the feelings that takes place on the dissolution of a
+      regiment. There is a fraternity in arms. The community of dangers,
+      hardships, enjoyments; the participation in battles and victories; the
+      companionship in adventures, at a time of life when men&rsquo;s feelings are
+      most fresh, susceptible, and ardent, all these bind the members of a
+      regiment strongly together. To them the regiment is friends, family, home.
+      They identify themselves with its fortunes, its glories, its disgraces.
+      Imagine this romantic tie suddenly dissolved; the regiment broken up; the
+      occupation of its members gone; their military pride mortified; the career
+      of glory closed behind them; that of obscurity, dependence, want, neglect,
+      perhaps beggary, before them. Such was the case with the soldiers of the
+      army of the Loire. They were sent off in squads, with officers, to the
+      principal towns where they were to be disarmed and discharged. In this way
+      they passed through the country with arms in their hands, often exposed to
+      slights and scoffs, to hunger and various hardships and privations; but
+      they conducted themselves magnanimously, without any of those outbreaks of
+      violence and wrong that so often attend the dismemberment of armies.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      <br /><br />
+    </p>
+    <hr />
+    <p>
+      <br /><br />
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The few years that have elapsed since the time above alluded to, have
+      already had their effect. The proud and angry spirits which then roamed
+      about Paris unemployed begins to recover its old channels, though worn
+      deeper by recent torrents. The natural urbanity of the French begins to
+      find its way, like oil, to the surface, though there still remains a
+      degree of roughness and bluntness of manner, partly real, and partly
+      affected, by such as imagine it to indicate force and frankness. The
+      events of the last thirty years have rendered the French a more reflecting
+      people. They have acquired greater independence of mind and strength of
+      judgment, together with a portion of that prudence which results from
+      experiencing the dangerous consequences of excesses. However that period
+      may have been stained by crimes, and filled with extravagances, the French
+      have certainly come out of it a greater nation than before. One of their
+      own philosophers observes that in one or two generations the nation will
+      probably combine the ease and elegance of the old character with force and
+      solidity. They were light, he says, before the revolution; then wild and
+      savage; they have become more thoughtful and reflective. It is only old
+      Frenchmen, nowadays, that are gay and trivial; the young are very serious
+      personages.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      <br /><br />
+    </p>
+    <hr />
+    <p>
+      <br /><br />
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      P.S.&mdash;In the course of a morning&rsquo;s walk, about the time the above
+      remarks were written, I observed the Duke of Wellington, who was on a
+      brief visit to Paris. He was alone, simply attired in a blue frock; with
+      an umbrella under his arm, and his hat drawn over his eyes, and sauntering
+      across the Place Vendome, close by the Column of Napoleon. He gave a
+      glance up at the column as he passed, and continued his loitering way up
+      the Rue de la Paix; stopping occasionally to gaze in at the shop-windows;
+      elbowed now and then by other gazers, who little suspected that the quiet,
+      lounging individual they were jostling so unceremoniously was the
+      conqueror who had twice entered their capital victoriously; had controlled
+      the destinies of the nation, and eclipsed the glory of the military idol,
+      at the base of whose column he was thus negligently sauntering.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Some years afterward I was at an evening&rsquo;s entertainment given by the duke
+      at Apsley House, to William IV. The duke had manifested his admiration of
+      his great adversary, by having portraits of him in different parts of the
+      house. At the bottom of the grand staircase stood the colossal statue of
+      the emperor, by Canova. It was of marble, in the antique style, with one
+      arm partly extended, holding a figure of victory. Over this arm the
+      ladies, in tripping upstairs to the ball, had thrown their shawls. It was
+      a singular office for the statue of Napoleon to perform in the mansion of
+      the Duke of Wellington!
+    </p>
+<pre xml:space="preserve">
+  &ldquo;Imperial Caesar dead, and turned to clay,&rdquo; etc., etc.
+
+</pre>
+    <p>
+      <br /><br />
+    </p>
+    <hr />
+    <p>
+      <br /><br /> <br /><br />
+    </p>
+    <hr />
+    <p>
+      <a name="link2H_4_0010" id="link2H_4_0010"> </a>
+    </p>
+    <div style="height: 4em;">
+      <br /><br /><br /><br />
+    </div>
+    <h2>
+      AMERICAN RESEARCHES IN ITALY
+    </h2>
+    <h3>
+      LIFE OF TASSO: RECOVERY OF A LOST PORTRAIT OF DANTE
+    </h3>
+    <p>
+      <i>To the Editor of the Knickerbocker:</i>
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Sir&mdash;Permit me through the pages of your magazine to call the
+      attention of the public to the learned and elegant researches in Europe of
+      one of our countrymen, Mr. R. H. Wilde, of Georgia, formerly a member of
+      the House of Representatives. After leaving Congress, Mr. Wilde a few
+      years since spent about eighteen months in traveling through different
+      parts of Europe, until he became stationary for a time in Tuscany. Here he
+      occupied himself with researches concerning the private life of Tasso,
+      whose mysterious and romantic love for the Princess Leonora, his madness
+      and imprisonment, had recently become the theme of a literary controversy,
+      not yet ended; curious in itself, and rendered still more curious by some
+      alleged manuscripts of the poet&rsquo;s, brought forward by Count Alberti. Mr.
+      Wilde entered into the investigation with the enthusiasm of a poet, and
+      the patience and accuracy of a case-hunter; and has produced a work now in
+      the press, in which the &ldquo;vexed questions&rdquo; concerning Tasso are most ably
+      discussed, and lights thrown upon them by his letters, and by various of
+      his sonnets, which last are rendered into English with rare felicity.
+      While Mr. Wilde was occupied upon this work, he became acquainted with
+      Signer Carlo Liverati, an artist of considerable merit, and especially
+      well versed in the antiquities of Florence. This gentleman mentioned
+      incidentally one day, in the course of conversation, that there once and
+      probably still existed in the &ldquo;Bargello,&rdquo; anciently both the prison, and
+      the palace of the republic, an authentic portrait of Dante. It was
+      believed to be in fresco, on a wall which afterward, by some strange
+      neglect or inadvertency, had been covered with whitewash. Signor Liverati
+      mentioned the circumstance merely to deplore the loss of so precious a
+      portrait, and to regret the almost utter hopelessness of its recovery.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      As Mr. Wilde had not as yet imbibed that enthusiastic admiration for Dante
+      which possesses all Italians, by whom the poet is almost worshiped, this
+      conversation made but a slight impression on him at the time.
+      Subsequently, however, his researches concerning Tasso being ended, he
+      began to amuse his leisure hours with attempts to translate some specimens
+      of Italian lyric poetry, and to compose very short biographical sketches
+      of the authors. In these specimens, which as yet exist only in manuscript,
+      he has shown the same critical knowledge of the Italian language, and
+      admirable command of the English, that characterize his translations of
+      Tasso. He had not advanced far in these exercises, when the obscure and
+      contradictory accounts of many incidents in the life of Dante caused him
+      much embarrassment, and sorely piqued his curiosity. About the same time
+      he received, through the courtesy of Don Neri dei Principi Corsini, what
+      he had long most fervently desired, a permission from the grandduke to
+      pursue his investigations in the secret archives of Florence, with power
+      to obtain copies therefrom. This was a rich and almost unwrought mine of
+      literary research; for to Italians themselves, as well as to foreigners,
+      their archives, for the most part, have been long inaccessible. For two
+      years Mr. Wilde devoted himself with indefatigable ardor to explore the
+      records of the republic during the time of Dante. These being written in
+      barbarous Latin and semi-Gothic characters, on parchment more or less
+      discolored and mutilated, with ink sometimes faded, were rendered still
+      more illegible by the arbitrary abbreviations of the notaries. They
+      require, in fact, an especial study; few even of the officers employed in
+      the &ldquo;Archivio delle Riformagione&rdquo; can read them currently and correctly.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Mr. Wilde however persevered in his laborious task with a patience
+      severely tried, but invincible. Being without an index, each file, each
+      book, required to be examined page by page, to ascertain whether any
+      particular of the immortal poet&rsquo;s political life had escaped the untiring
+      industry of his countrymen. This toil was not wholly fruitless, and
+      several interesting facts obscurely known, and others utterly unknown by
+      the Italians themselves, are drawn forth by Mr. Wilde from the oblivion of
+      these archives.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      While thus engaged, the circumstance of the lost portrait of Dante was
+      again brought to Mr. Wilde&rsquo;s mind, but now excited intense interest. In
+      perusing the notes of the late learned Canonico Moreri on Filelfo&rsquo;s life
+      of Dante, he found it stated that a portrait of the poet by Giotto was
+      formerly to be seen in the Bargello. He learned also that Signer Scotti,
+      who has charge of the original drawings of the old masters in the imperial
+      and royal gallery, had made several years previously an ineffectual
+      attempt to set on foot a project for the recovery of the lost treasure.
+      Here was a new vein of inquiry, which Mr. Wilde followed up with his usual
+      energy and sagacity. He soon satisfied himself, by reference to Vasari,
+      and to the still more ancient and decisive authority of Filippo Villari,
+      who lived shortly after the poet, that Giotto, the friend and contemporary
+      of Dante, did undoubtedly paint his likeness in the place indicated.
+      Giotto died in 1336, but as Dante was banished, and was even sentenced to
+      be burned, in 1302, it was obvious the work must have been executed before
+      that time; since the portrait of one outlawed and capitally convicted as
+      an enemy to the commonwealth would never have been ordered or tolerated in
+      the chapel of the royal palace. It was clear, then, that the portrait must
+      have been painted between 1290 and 1302.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Mr. Wilde now revolved in his own mind the possibility that this precious
+      relic might remain undestroyed under its coat of whitewash, and might yet
+      be restored to the world. For a moment he felt an impulse to undertake the
+      enterprise; but feared that, in a foreigner from a new world, any part of
+      which is unrepresented at the Tuscan court, it might appear like an
+      intrusion. He soon however found a zealous coadjutor. This was one
+      Giovanni Aubrey Bezzi, a Piedmontese exile, who had long been a resident
+      in England, and was familiar with its language and literature. He was now
+      on a visit to Florence, which liberal and hospitable city is always open
+      to men of merit who for political reasons have been excluded from other
+      parts of Italy. Signer Bezzi partook deeply of the enthusiasm of his
+      countrymen for the memory of Dante, and sympathized with Mr. Wilde in his
+      eagerness to retrieve if possible the lost portrait. They had several
+      consultations as to the means to be adopted to effect their purpose,
+      without incurring the charge of undue officiousness. To lessen any
+      objections that might occur they resolved to ask for nothing but
+      permission to search for the fresco painting at their own expense; and
+      should any remains of it be found, then to propose to the nobility and
+      gentry of Florence an association for the purpose of completing the
+      undertaking and effectually recovering the lost portrait.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      For the same reason the formal memorial addressed to the grandduke was
+      drawn up in the name of Florentines; among whom were the celebrated
+      Bartolini, now President of the School of Sculpture in the Imperial and
+      Royal Academy, Signor Paolo Ferroni, of the noble family of that name, who
+      has exhibited considerable talent for painting, and Signor Gasparini, also
+      an artist. This petition was urged and supported with indefatigable zeal
+      by Signor Bezzi; and being warmly countenanced by Count Nerli and other
+      functionaries, met with more prompt success than had been anticipated.
+      Signor Marini, a skillful artist, who had succeeded in similar operations,
+      was now employed to remove the whitewash by a process of his own, by which
+      any fresco painting that might exist beneath would be protected from
+      injury. He set to work patiently and cautiously. In a short time he met
+      with evidence of the existence of the fresco. From under the coat of
+      whitewash the head of an angel gradually made its appearance, and was
+      pronounced to be by the pencil of Giotto.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The enterprise was now prosecuted with increased ardor. Several months
+      were expended on the task, and three sides of the chapel wall were
+      uncovered; they were all painted in fresco by Giotto, with the history of
+      the Magdalen, exhibiting her conversion, her penance, and her
+      beatification. The figures, however, were all those of saints and angels;
+      no historical portraits had yet been discovered, and doubts began to be
+      entertained whether there were any. Still the recovery of an indisputable
+      work of Giotto&rsquo;s was considered an ample reward for any toil; and the
+      Ministers of the grandduke, acting under his directions, assumed on his
+      behalf the past charges and future management of the enterprise.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      At length, on the uncovering of the fourth wall, the undertaking was
+      crowned with complete success. A number of historical figures were brought
+      to light, and among them the undoubted likeness of Dante. He was
+      represented in full length, in the garb of the time, with a book under his
+      arm, designed most probably to represent the &ldquo;Vita Nuova,&rdquo; for the
+      &ldquo;Comedia&rdquo; was not yet composed, and to all appearance from thirty to
+      thirty-five years of age. The face was in profile and in excellent
+      preservation, excepting that at some former period a nail had
+      unfortunately been driven into the eye. The outline of the eyelid was
+      perfect, so that the injury could easily be remedied. The countenance was
+      extremely handsome, yet bore a strong resemblance to the portraits of the
+      poet taken later in life.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      It is not easy to appreciate the delight of Mr. Wilde and his coadjutors
+      at this triumphant result of their researches; nor the sensation produced,
+      not merely in Florence but throughout Italy, by this discovery of a
+      veritable portrait of Dante, in the prime of his days. It was some such
+      sensation as would be produced in England by the sudden discovery of a
+      perfectly well authenticated likeness of Shakespeare; with a difference in
+      intensity proportioned to the superior sensitiveness of the Italians.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The recovery of this portrait of the &ldquo;divine poet&rdquo; has occasioned fresh
+      inquiry into the origin of the masks said to have been made from a cast of
+      his face taken after death. One of these masks, in the possession of the
+      Marquess of Torrigiani, has been pronounced as certainly the <i>original</i>.
+      Several artists of high talent have concurred in this opinion; among these
+      may be named Jesi, the first engraver in Florence; Seymour Kirkup, Esq., a
+      painter and antiquary; and our own countryman Powers, whose genius, by the
+      way, is very highly appreciated by the Italians.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      We may expect from the accomplished pen of Carlo Torrigiani, son of the
+      marquess, and who is advantageously known in this country, from having
+      traveled here, an account of this curious and valuable relic, which has
+      been upward of a century in the possession of his family.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Should Mr. Wilde finish his biographical work concerning Dante, which
+      promises to be a proud achievement in American literature, he intends, I
+      understand, to apply for permission to have both likenesses copied, and
+      should circumstances warrant the expense, to have them engraved by eminent
+      artists. We shall then have the features of Dante while in the prime of
+      life as well as at the moment of his death.
+    </p>
+    <h3>
+      G. C.
+    </h3>
+    <p>
+      <br /><br />
+    </p>
+    <hr />
+    <p>
+      <a name="link2H_4_0011" id="link2H_4_0011"> </a>
+    </p>
+    <div style="height: 4em;">
+      <br /><br /><br /><br />
+    </div>
+    <h2>
+      THE TAKING OF THE VEIL
+    </h2>
+    <p>
+      One of the most remarkable personages in Parisian society during the last
+      century was Renée Charlotte Victoire de Froulay De Tesse, Marchioness De
+      Crequi. She sprang from the highest and proudest of the old French
+      nobility, and ever maintained the most exalted notions of the purity and
+      antiquity of blood, looking upon all families that could not date back
+      further than three or four hundred years as mere upstarts. When a
+      beautiful girl, fourteen years of age, she was presented to Louis XIV., at
+      Versailles, and the ancient monarch kissed her hand with great gallantry;
+      after an interval of about eighty-five years, when nearly a hundred years
+      old, the same testimonial of respect was paid her at the Tuileries by
+      Bonaparte, then First Consul, who promised her the restitution of the
+      confiscated forests formerly belonging to her family. She was one of the
+      most celebrated women of her time for intellectual grace and superiority,
+      and had the courage to remain at Paris and brave all the horrors of the
+      revolution, which laid waste the aristocratical world around her.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The memoirs she has left behind abound with curious anecdotes and vivid
+      pictures of Parisian life during the latter days of Louis XIV., the
+      regency of the Duke of Orleans, and the residue of the last century; and
+      are highly illustrative of the pride, splendor, and licentiousness of the
+      French nobility on the very eve of their tremendous downfall.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      I shall draw forth a few scenes from her memoirs, taken almost at random,
+      and which, though given as actual and well-known circumstances, have quite
+      the air of romance.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      <br /><br />
+    </p>
+    <hr />
+    <p>
+      <br /><br />
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      All the great world of Paris were invited to be present at a grand
+      ceremonial, to take place in the church of the Abbey Royal of Panthemont.
+      Henrietta de Lenoncour, a young girl, of a noble family, of great beauty,
+      and heiress to immense estates, was to take the black veil. Invitations
+      had been issued in grand form, by her aunt and guardian, the Countess
+      Brigitte de Rupelmonde, canoness of Mauberge. The circumstance caused
+      great talk and wonder in the fashionable circles of Paris; everybody was
+      at a loss to imagine why a young girl, beautiful and rich, in the very
+      springtime of her charms, should renounce a world which she was so
+      eminently qualified to embellish and enjoy.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      A lady of high rank, who visited the beautiful novice at the grate of her
+      convent-parlor, got a clew to the mystery. She found her in great
+      agitation; for a time she evidently repressed her feelings, but they at
+      length broke forth in passionate exclamations. &ldquo;Heaven grant me grace,&rdquo;
+       said she, &ldquo;some day or other to pardon my cousin Gondrecourt the sorrows
+      he has caused me!&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;What do you mean?&mdash;what sorrows, my child?&rdquo; inquired her visitor.
+      &ldquo;What has your cousin done to affect you?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;He is married!&rdquo; cried she in accents of despair, but endeavoring to
+      repress her sobs.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Married! I have heard nothing of the kind, my dear. Are you perfectly
+      sure of it?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Alas! nothing is more certain; my aunt de Rupelmonde informed me of it.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      The lady retired, full of surprise and commiseration. She related the
+      scene in a circle of the highest nobility, in the saloon of the Marshal
+      Prince of Beauvau, where the unaccountable self-sacrifice of the beautiful
+      novice was under discussion.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Alas!&rdquo; said she, &ldquo;the poor girl is crossed in love; she is about to
+      renounce the world in despair, at the marriage of her cousin De
+      Gondrecourt.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;What!&rdquo; cried a gentleman present, &ldquo;the Viscount de Gondrecourt married!
+      Never was there a greater falsehood. And &lsquo;her aunt told her so&rsquo;! Oh! I
+      understand the plot. The countess is passionately fond of Gondrecourt, and
+      jealous of her beautiful niece; but her schemes are vain; the viscount
+      holds her in perfect detestation.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      There was a mingled expression of ridicule, disgust, and indignation at
+      the thought of such a rivalry. The Countess Rupelmonde was old enough to
+      be the grandmother of the viscount. She was a woman of violent passions,
+      and imperious temper; robust in person, with a masculine voice, a dusky
+      complexion, green eyes, and powerful eyebrows.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;It is impossible,&rdquo; cried one of the company, &ldquo;that a woman of the
+      countess&rsquo;s age and appearance can be guilty of such folly. No, no; you
+      mistake the aim of this detestable woman. She is managing to get
+      possession of the estate of her lovely niece.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      This was admitted to be the most probable; and all concurred in believing
+      the countess to be at the bottom of the intended sacrifice; for although a
+      canoness, a dignitary of a religious order, she was pronounced little
+      better than a devil incarnate.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The Princess de Beauvau, a woman of generous spirit and intrepid zeal,
+      suddenly rose from the chair in which she had been reclining. &ldquo;My prince,&rdquo;
+       said she, addressing her husband, &ldquo;if you approve of it, I will go
+      immediately and have a conversation on this subject with the archbishop.
+      There is not a moment to spare. It is now past midnight; the ceremony is
+      to take place in the morning. A few hours and the irrevocable vows will be
+      pronounced.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      The prince inclined his head in respectful assent. The princess set about
+      her generous enterprise with a woman&rsquo;s promptness. Within a short time her
+      carriage was at the iron gate of the archiepiscopal palace, and her
+      servants rang for admission. Two Switzers, who had charge of the gate,
+      were fast asleep in the porter&rsquo;s lodge, for it was half-past two in the
+      morning. It was some time before they could be awakened, and longer before
+      they could be made to come forth.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;The Princess de Beauvau is at the gate!&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      Such a personage was not to be received in deshabille. Her dignity and the
+      dignity of the archbishop demanded that the gate should be served in full
+      costume. For half an hour, therefore, had the princess to wait, in
+      feverish impatience, until the two dignitaries of the porter&rsquo;s lodge
+      arrayed themselves; and three o&rsquo;clock sounded from the tower of Notre Dame
+      before they came forth. They were in grand livery, of a buff color, with
+      amaranth galloons, plaited with silver, and fringed sword-belts reaching
+      to their knees, in which were suspended long rapiers. They had small
+      three-cornered hats, surmounted with plumes; and each bore in his hand a
+      halbert. Thus equipped at all points, they planted themselves before the
+      door of the carriage; struck the ends of their halberts on the ground with
+      emphasis; and stood waiting with official importance, but profound
+      respect, to know the pleasure of the princess.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      She demanded to speak with the archbishop. A most reverential bow and
+      shrug accompanied the reply, that &ldquo;His Grandeur was not at home.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      Not at home! Where was he to be found? Another bow and shrug: &ldquo;His
+      Grandeur either was, or ought to be, in retirement in the seminary of St.
+      Magloire; unless he had gone to pass the Fete of St. Bruno with the
+      reverend Carthusian fathers of the Rue d&rsquo;Enfer; or perhaps he might have
+      gone to repose himself in his castle of Conflans-sur-Seine. Though, on
+      further thought, it was not unlikely he might have gone to sleep at St.
+      Cyr, where the Bishop of Chartres never failed to invite him for the
+      anniversary soiree of Madame de Maintenon.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      The princess was in despair at this multiplicity of crossroads pointed out
+      for the chase; the brief interval of time was rapidly elapsing; day
+      already began to dawn; she saw there was no hope of finding the archbishop
+      before the moment of his entrance into the church for the morning&rsquo;s
+      ceremony; so she returned home quite distressed.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      At seven o&rsquo;clock in the morning the princess was in the parlor of the
+      monastery of De Panthemont, and sent in an urgent request for a moment&rsquo;s
+      conversation with the Lady Abbess. The reply brought was, that the abbess
+      could not come to the parlor, being obliged to attend in the choir at the
+      canonical hours. The princess entreated permission to enter the convent,
+      to reveal to the Lady Abbess in two words something of the greatest
+      importance. The abbess sent word in reply, that the thing was impossible,
+      until she had obtained permission from the Archbishop of Paris. The
+      princess retired once more to her carriage, and now, as a forlorn hope,
+      took her station at the door of the church to watch for the arrival of the
+      prelate.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      After a while the splendid company invited to this great ceremony began to
+      arrive. The beauty, rank, and wealth of the novice had excited great
+      attention; and, as everybody was expected to be present on the occasion,
+      everybody pressed to secure a place. The street reverberated with the
+      continual roll of gilded carriages and chariots; coaches of princes and
+      dukes, designated by imperials of crimson velvet, and magnificent
+      equipages of six horses, decked out with nodding plumes and sumptuous
+      harnessing. At length the equipages ceased to arrive; empty vehicles
+      filled the street; and, with a noisy and party-colored crowd of lackeys in
+      rich liveries, obstructed all the entrances to De Panthemont.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Eleven o&rsquo;clock had struck; the last auditor had entered the church; the
+      deep tones of the organ began to swell through the sacred pile, yet still
+      the archbishop came not! The heart of the princess beat quicker and
+      quicker with vague apprehension; when a valet, dressed in cloth of silver,
+      trimmed with crimson velvet, approached her carriage precipitately.
+      &ldquo;Madame,&rdquo; said he, &ldquo;the archbishop is in the church; he entered by the
+      portal of the cloister; he is already in the sanctuary; the ceremony is
+      about to commence!&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      What was to be done? To speak with the archbishop was now impossible, and
+      yet on the revelation she was to make to him depended the fate of the
+      lovely novice. The princess drew forth her tablets of enameled gold, wrote
+      a few lines therein with a pencil, and ordered her lackey to make way for
+      her through the crowd, and conduct her with all speed to the sacristy.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The description given of the church and the assemblage on this occasion
+      presents an idea of the aristocratical state of the times, and of the high
+      interest awakened by the affecting sacrifice about to take place. The
+      church was hung with superb tapestry, above which extended a band of white
+      damask, fringed with gold, and covered with armorial escutcheons. A large
+      pennon, emblazoned with the arms and alliances of the high-born damsel,
+      was suspended, according to custom, in place of the lamp of the sanctuary.
+      The lusters, girandoles, and candelabras of the king had been furnished in
+      profusion, to decorate the sacred edifice, and the pavements were all
+      covered with rich carpets.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The sanctuary presented a reverend and august assemblage of bishops,
+      canons, and monks of various orders, Benedictines, Bernardines,
+      Raccollets, Capuchins, and others, all in their appropriate robes and
+      dresses. In the midst presided the Archbishop of Paris, Christopher de
+      Beaumont; surrounded by his four arch priests and his vicars-general. He
+      was seated with his back against the altar. When his eyes were cast down,
+      his countenance, pale and severe, is represented as having been somewhat
+      sepulchral and death-like; but the moment he raised his large, dark,
+      sparkling eyes, the whole became animated; beaming with ardor, and
+      expressive of energy, penetration, and firmness.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The audience that crowded the church was no less illustrious. Excepting
+      the royal family, all that was elevated in rank and title was there; never
+      had a ceremonial of the kind attracted an equal concourse of the high
+      aristocracy of Paris.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      At length the grated gates of the choir creaked on their hinges, and
+      Madame de Richelieu, the high and noble Abbess of De Panthemont, advanced
+      to resign the novice into the hands of her aunt, the Countess Canoness De
+      Rupelmonde. Every eye was turned with intense curiosity to gain a sight of
+      the beautiful victim. She was sumptuously dressed, but her paleness and
+      languor accorded but little with her brilliant attire. The Canoness De
+      Rupelmonde conducted her niece to her praying-desk, where, as soon as the
+      poor girl knelt down, she sank as if exhausted. Just then a sort of murmur
+      was heard at the lower end of the church, where the servants in livery
+      were gathered. A young man was borne forth, struggling in convulsions. He
+      was in the uniform of an officer of the guards of King Stanislaus, Duke of
+      Lorraine. A whisper circulated that it was the young Viscount de
+      Gondrecourt, and that he was a lover of the novice. Almost all the young
+      nobles present hurried forth to proffer him sympathy and assistance.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The Archbishop of Paris remained all this time seated before the altar;
+      his eyes cast down, his pallid countenance giving no signs of interest or
+      participation in the scene around him. It was noticed that in one of his
+      hands, which was covered with a violet glove, he grasped firmly a pair of
+      tablets, of enameled gold.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The Canoness de Rupelmonde conducted her niece to the prelate, to make her
+      profession of self-devotion, and to utter the irrevocable vow. As the
+      lovely novice knelt at his feet, the archbishop fixed on her his dark,
+      beaming eyes, with a kind but earnest expression. &ldquo;Sister!&rdquo; said he, in
+      the softest and most benevolent tone of voice, &ldquo;What is your age?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Nineteen years, monseigneur,&rdquo; eagerly interposed the Countess de
+      Rupelmonde.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;<i>You</i> will reply to me by-and-by, madame,&rdquo; said the archbishop,
+      dryly. He then repeated his question to the novice, who replied in a
+      faltering voice, &ldquo;Seventeen years.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;In what diocese did you take the white veil?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;In the diocese of Toul.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;How!&rdquo; exclaimed the archbishop, vehemently. &ldquo;In the diocese of Toul? The
+      chair of Toul is vacant! The bishop of Toul died fifteen months since; and
+      those who officiate in the chapter are not authorized to receive novices.
+      Your novitiate, mademoiselle, is null and void, and we cannot receive your
+      profession.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      The archbishop rose from his chair, resumed his miter, and took the
+      crozier from the hands of an attendant.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;My dear brethren,&rdquo; said he, addressing the assembly, &ldquo;there is no
+      necessity for our examining and interrogating Mademoiselle de Lenoncour on
+      the sincerity of her religious vocation. There is a canonical impediment
+      to her professing for the present; and, as to the future, we reserve to
+      ourselves the consideration of the matter; interdicting to all other
+      ecclesiastical persons the power of accepting her vows, under penalty of
+      interdiction, of suspension, and of nullification; all which is in virtue
+      of our metropolitan rights, contained in the terms of the bull <i>cum
+      proximis</i>:&rdquo; &ldquo;<i>Adjutorium nostrum in nomine Domini!</i>&rdquo; pursued he,
+      chanting in a grave and solemn voice, and turning toward the altar to give
+      the benediction of the holy sacrament.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The noble auditory had that habitude of reserve, that empire, or rather
+      tyranny, over all outward manifestations of internal emotions, which
+      belongs to high aristocratical breeding. The declaration of the
+      archbishop, therefore, was received as one of the most natural and
+      ordinary things in the world, and all knelt down and received the
+      pontifical benediction with perfect decorum. As soon, however, as they
+      were released from the self-restraint imposed by etiquette, they amply
+      indemnified themselves; and nothing was talked of for a month, in the
+      fashionable saloons of Paris, but the loves of the handsome Viscount and
+      the charming Henrietta; the wickedness of the canoness; the active
+      benevolence and admirable address of the Princess de Beauvau; and the
+      great wisdom of the archbishop, who was particularly extolled for his
+      delicacy in defeating this maneuver without any scandal to the
+      aristocracy, or public stigma on the name of De Rupelmonde, and without
+      any departure from pastoral gentleness, by adroitly seizing upon an
+      informality, and turning it to beneficial account, with as much authority
+      as charitable circumspection.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      As to the Canoness de Rupelmonde, she was defeated at all points in her
+      wicked plans against her beautiful niece. In consequence of the caveat of
+      the archbishop, her superior ecclesiastic, the Abbess de Panthemont,
+      formally forbade Mademoiselle de Lenoncour to resume the white veil and
+      the dress of a novitiate, and instead of a novice&rsquo;s cell established her
+      in a beautiful apartment as a boarder. The next morning the Canoness de
+      Rupelmonde called at the convent to take away her niece; but, to her
+      confusion, the abbess produced a lettre-de-cachet, which she had just
+      received, and which forbade mademoiselle to leave the convent with any
+      other person save the Prince de Beauvau.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Under the auspices and the vigilant attention of the prince, the whole
+      affair was wound up in the most technical and circumstantial manner. The
+      Countess de Rupelmonde, by a decree of the Grand Council, was divested of
+      the guardianship of her niece. All the arrears of revenues accumulated
+      during Mademoiselle de Lenoncour&rsquo;s minority were rigorously collected, the
+      accounts scrutinized and adjusted, and her noble fortune placed safely and
+      entirely in her hands.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      In a little while the noble personages who had been invited to the
+      ceremony of taking the veil received another invitation, on the part of
+      the Countess dowager de Gondrecourt, and the Marshal Prince de Beauvau, to
+      attend the marriage of Adrien de Gondrecourt, Viscount of
+      Jean-sur-Moselle, and Henrietta de Lenoncour, Countess de Hevouwal, etc.,
+      which duly took place in the chapel of the archiepiscopal palace at Paris.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      <br /><br />
+    </p>
+    <hr />
+    <p>
+      <br /><br />
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      So much for the beautiful Henrietta de Lenoncour. We will now draw forth a
+      companion picture of a handsome young cavalier, who figured in the gay
+      world of Paris about the same time, and concerning whom the ancient
+      marchioness writes with the lingering feeling of youthful romance.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      <br /><br />
+    </p>
+    <hr />
+    <p>
+      <br /><br /> <br /><br />
+    </p>
+    <hr />
+    <p>
+      <a name="link2H_4_0012" id="link2H_4_0012"> </a>
+    </p>
+    <div style="height: 4em;">
+      <br /><br /><br /><br />
+    </div>
+    <h2>
+      THE CHARMING LETORIÈRES
+    </h2>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;A good face is a letter of recommendation,&rdquo; says an old proverb; and it
+      was never more verified than in the case of the Chevalier Letorieres. He
+      was a young gentleman of good family, but who, according to the Spanish
+      phrase, had nothing but his cloak and sword (capa y espada), that is to
+      say, his gentle blood and gallant bearing, to help him forward in the
+      world. Through the interest of an uncle, who was an abbe, he received a
+      gratuitous education at a fashionable college, but finding the terms of
+      study too long, and the vacations too short, for his gay and indolent
+      temper, he left college without saying a word, and launched himself upon
+      Paris, with a light heart and still lighter pocket. Here he led a life to
+      his humor. It is true he had to make scanty meals, and to lodge in a
+      garret; but what of that? He was his own master; free from all task or
+      restraint. When cold or hungry, he sallied forth, like others of the
+      chameleon order, and banqueted on pure air and warm sunshine in the public
+      walks and gardens; drove off the thoughts of a dinner by amusing himself
+      with the gay and grotesque throngs of the metropolis; and if one of the
+      poorest, was one of the merriest gentlemen upon town. Wherever he went his
+      good looks and frank, graceful demeanor, had an instant and magical effect
+      in securing favor. There was but one word to express his fascinating
+      powers&mdash;he was &ldquo;charming.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      Instances are given of the effect of his winning qualities upon minds of
+      coarse, ordinary mold. He had once taken shelter from a heavy shower under
+      a gateway. A hackney coachman, who was passing by, pulled up, and asked
+      him if he wished a cast in his carriage. Letorieres declined, with a
+      melancholy and dubious shake of the head. The coachman regarded him
+      wistfully, repeared his solicitations, and wished to know what place he
+      was going to &ldquo;To the Palace of Justice, to walk in the galleries; but I
+      will wait here until the rain is over.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;And why so?&rdquo; inquired the coachman, pertinaciously.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Because I&rsquo;ve no money; do let me be quiet.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      The coachman jumped down, and, opening the door of his carriage, &ldquo;It shall
+      never be said,&rdquo; cried he, &ldquo;that I left so charming a young gentleman to
+      weary himself, and catch cold, merely for the sake of twenty-four sous.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      Arrived at the Palace of Justice, he stopped before the saloon of a famous
+      restaurateur, opened the door of the carriage, and taking off his hat very
+      respectfully, begged the youth to accept of a Louis-d&rsquo;or. &ldquo;You will meet
+      with some young gentlemen within,&rdquo; said he, &ldquo;with whom you may wish to
+      take a hand at cards. The number of my coach is 144. You can find me out,
+      and repay me whenever you please.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      The worthy Jehu was some years afterward made coachman to the Princess
+      Sophia, of France, through the recommendation of the handsome youth he had
+      so generously obliged.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Another instance in point is given with respect to his tailor, to whom he
+      owed four hundred livres. The tailor had repeatedly dunned him, but was
+      always put off with the best grace in the world. The wife of the tailor
+      urged her husband to assume a harsher tone. He replied that he could not
+      find it in his heart to speak roughly to so charming a young gentleman.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;I&rsquo;ve no patience with such want of spirit!&rdquo; cried the wife; &ldquo;you have not
+      the courage to show your teeth: but I&rsquo;m going out to get change for this
+      note of a hundred crowns; before I come home, I&rsquo;ll seek this &lsquo;charming&rsquo;
+      youth myself, and see whether he has the power to charm me. I&rsquo;ll warrant
+      he won&rsquo;t be able to put <i>me</i> off with fine looks and fine speeches.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      With these and many more vaunts, the good dame sallied forth. When she
+      returned home, however, she wore quite a different aspect.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Well,&rdquo; said her husband, &ldquo;how much have you received from the &lsquo;charming&rsquo;
+      young man?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Let me alone,&rdquo; replied the wife; &ldquo;I found him playing on the guitar, and
+      he looked so handsome, and was so amiable and genteel, that I had not the
+      heart to trouble him.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;And the change for the hundred-crown note?&rdquo; said the tailor.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The wife hesitated a moment: &ldquo;Faith,&rdquo; cried she, &ldquo;you&rsquo;ll have to add the
+      amount to your next bill against him. The poor young gentleman had such a
+      melancholy air that&mdash;I know not how it was, but&mdash;I left the
+      hundred crowns on his mantel-piece in spite of him!&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      The captivating looks and manners of Letorieres made his way with equal
+      facility in the great world. His high connections entitled him to
+      presentation at court, but some questions arose about the sufficiency of
+      his proofs of nobility; whereupon the king, who had seen him walking in
+      the gardens of Versailles, and had been charmed with his appearance, put
+      an end to all demurs of etiquette by making him a viscount.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The same kind of fascination is said to have attended him throughout his
+      career. He succeeded in various difficult family suits on questions of
+      honors and privileges; he had merely to appear in court to dispose the
+      judges in his favor. He at length became so popular that on one occasion,
+      when he appeared at the theater on recovering from a wound received in a
+      duel, the audience applauded him on his entrance. Nothing, it is said,
+      could have been in more perfect good taste and high breeding than his
+      conduct on this occasion. When he heard the applause, he rose in his box,
+      stepped forward, and surveyed both sides of the house, as if he could not
+      believe that it was himself they were treating like a favorite actor, or a
+      prince of the blood.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      His success with the fair sex may easily be presumed; but he had too much
+      honor and sensibility to render his intercourse with them a series of cold
+      gallantries and heartless triumphs. In the course of his attendance upon
+      court, where he held a post of honor about the king, he fell deeply in
+      love with the beautiful Princess Julia, of Savoy Carignan. She was young,
+      tender, and simple-hearted, and returned his love with equal fervor. Her
+      family took the alarm at this attachment, and procured an order that she
+      should inhabit the Abbey of Montmartre, where she was treated with all
+      befitting delicacy and distinction, but not permitted to go beyond the
+      convent walls. The lovers found means to correspond. One of their letters
+      was intercepted, and it is even hinted that a plan of elopement was
+      discovered. A duel was the consequence, with one of the fiery relations of
+      the princess. Letorieres received two sword-thrusts in his right side. His
+      wounds were serious, yet after two or three days&rsquo; confinement he could not
+      resist his impatience to see the princess. He succeeded in scaling the
+      walls of the abbey, and obtaining an interview in an arcade leading to the
+      cloister of the cemetery. The interview of the lovers was long and tender.
+      They exchanged vows of eternal fidelity, and flattered themselves with
+      hopes of future happiness, which they were never to realize. After
+      repeated farewells, the princess re-entered the convent, never again to
+      behold the charming Letorieres. On the following morning his corpse was
+      found stiff and cold on the pavement of the cloister!
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      It would seem that the wounds of the unfortunate youth had been reopened
+      by his efforts to get over the wall; that he had refrained from calling
+      assistance, lest he should expose the princess, and that he had bled to
+      death, without any one to aid him, or to close his dying eyes.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      <br /><br />
+    </p>
+    <hr />
+    <p>
+      <a name="link2H_4_0013" id="link2H_4_0013"> </a>
+    </p>
+    <div style="height: 4em;">
+      <br /><br /><br /><br />
+    </div>
+    <h2>
+      THE EARLY EXPERIENCES OF RALPH RINGWOOD
+    </h2>
+    <p>
+      [Footnote: Ralph Ringwood, though a fictitious name, is a real personage:
+      the worthy original is now living and flourishing in honorable station. I
+      have given some anecdotes of his early and eccentric career in, as nearly
+      as I can recollect, the very words in which he related them. They
+      certainly afforded strong temptations to the embellishments of fiction;
+      but I thought them so strikingly characteristic of the individual, and of
+      the scenes and society into which his peculiar humors carried him, that I
+      preferred giving them in their original simplicity.&mdash;G. C.]
+    </p>
+    <h3>
+      NOTED DOWN FROM HIS CONVERSATIONS
+    </h3>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;I am a Kentuckian by residence and choice, but a Virginian by birth. The
+      cause of my first leaving the &lsquo;Ancient Dominion,&rsquo; and emigrating to
+      Kentucky was a jackass! You stare, but have a little patience, and I&rsquo;ll
+      soon show you how it came to pass. My father, who was of one of the old
+      Virginian families, resided in Richmond. He was a widower, and his
+      domestic affairs were managed by a housekeeper of the old school, such as
+      used to administer the concerns of opulent Virginian households. She was a
+      dignitary that almost rivaled my father in importance, and seemed to think
+      everything belonged to her; in fact, she was so considerate in her
+      economy, and so careful of expense, as sometimes to vex my father, who
+      would swear she was disgracing him by her meanness. She always appeared
+      with that ancient insignia of housekeeping trust and authority, a great
+      bunch of keys jingling at her girdle. She superintended the arrangement of
+      the table at every meal, and saw that the dishes were all placed according
+      to her primitive notions of symmetry. In the evening she took her stand
+      and served out tea with a mingled respectfulness and pride of station,
+      truly exemplary. Her great ambition was to have everything in order, and
+      that the establishment under her sway should be cited as a model of good
+      housekeeping. If anything went wrong, poor old Barbara would take it to
+      heart, and sit in her room and cry; until a few chapters in the Bible
+      would quiet her spirits, and make all calm again. The Bible, in fact, was
+      her constant resort in time of trouble. She opened it indiscriminately,
+      and whether she chanced among the Lamentations of Jeremiah, the Canticles
+      of Solomon, or the rough enumeration of the tribes in Deuteronomy, a
+      chapter was a chapter, and operated like balm to her soul. Such was our
+      good old housekeeper Barbara, who was destined, unwittingly, to have a
+      most important effect upon my destiny.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;It came to pass, during the days of my juvenility, while I was yet what
+      is termed &lsquo;an unlucky boy,&rsquo; that a gentleman of our neighborhood, a great
+      advocate for experiments and improvements of all kinds, took it into his
+      head that it would be an immense public advantage to introduce a breed of
+      mules, and accordingly imported three jacks to stock the neighborhood.
+      This in a part of the country where the people cared for nothing but blood
+      horses! Why, sir! they would have considered their mares disgraced and
+      their whole stud dishonored by such a misalliance. The whole matter was a
+      town talk and a town scandal. The worthy amalgamator of quadrupeds found
+      himself in a dismal scrape: so he backed out in time, abjured the whole
+      doctrine of amalgamation, and turned his jacks loose to shift for
+      themselves upon the town common. There they used to run about and lead an
+      idle, good-for-nothing, holiday life, the happiest animals in the country.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;It so happened that my way to school lay across this common. The first
+      time that I saw one of these animals it set up a braying and frightened me
+      confoundedly. However, I soon got over my fright, and seeing that it had
+      something of a horse look, my Virginian love for anything of the
+      equestrian species predominated, and I determined to back it. I
+      accordingly applied at a grocer&rsquo;s shop, procured a cord that had been
+      round a loaf of sugar, and made a kind of halter; then summoning some of
+      my schoolfellows, we drove master Jack about the common until we hemmed
+      him in an angle of a &lsquo;worm fence.&rsquo; After some difficulty, we fixed the
+      halter round his muzzle, and I mounted. Up flew his heels, away I went
+      over his head, and off he scampered. However, I was on my legs in a
+      twinkling, gave chase, caught him and remounted. By dint of repeated
+      tumbles I soon learned to stick to his back, so that he could no more cast
+      me than he could his own skin. From that time, master Jack and his
+      companions had a scampering life of it, for we all rode them between
+      school hours, and on holiday afternoons; and you may be sure schoolboys&rsquo;
+      nags are never permitted to suffer the grass to grow under their feet.
+      They soon became so knowing that they took to their heels at the very
+      sight of a schoolboy; and we were generally much longer in chasing than we
+      were in riding them.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Sunday approached, on which I projected an equestrian excursion on one of
+      these long-eared steeds. As I knew the jacks would be in great demand on
+      Sunday morning, I secured one overnight, and conducted him home, to be
+      ready for an early outset. But where was I to quarter him for the night? I
+      could not put him in the stable; our old black groom George was as
+      absolute in that domain as Barbara was within doors, and would have
+      thought his stable, his horses, and himself disgraced, by the introduction
+      of a jackass. I recollected the smoke-house; an out-building appended to
+      all Virginian establishments for the smoking of hams, and other kinds of
+      meat. So I got the key, put master Jack in, locked the door, returned the
+      key to its place, and went to bed, intending to release my prisoner at an
+      early hour, before any of the family were awake. I was so tired, however,
+      by the exertions I had made in catching the donkey, that I fell into a
+      sound sleep, and the morning broke without my awaking.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Not so with dame Barbara, the housekeeper. As usual, to use her own
+      phrase, &lsquo;she was up before the crow put his shoes on,&rsquo; and bustled about
+      to get things in order for breakfast. Her first resort was to the
+      smoke-house. Scarce had she opened the door, when master Jack, tired of
+      his confinement, and glad to be released from darkness, gave a loud bray,
+      and rushed forth. Down dropped old Barbara; the animal trampled over her,
+      and made off for the common. Poor Barbara! She had never before seen a
+      donkey, and having read in the Bible that the devil went about like a
+      roaring lion, seeking whom he might devour, she took it for granted that
+      this was Beelzebub himself. The kitchen was soon in a hubbub; the servants
+      hurried to the spot. There lay old Barbara in fits; as fast as she got out
+      of one, the thoughts of the devil came over her, and she fell into
+      another, for the good soul was devoutly superstitious.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;As ill luck would have it, among those attracted by the noise was a
+      little, cursed, fidgety, crabbed uncle of mine; one of those uneasy
+      spirits that cannot rest quietly in their beds in the morning, but must be
+      up early, to bother the household. He was only a kind of half-uncle, after
+      all, for he had married my father&rsquo;s sister; yet be assumed great authority
+      on the strength of this left-handed relationship, and was a universal
+      intermeddler and family pest. This prying little busybody soon ferreted
+      out the truth of the story, and discovered, by hook and by crook, that I
+      was at the bottom of the affair, and had locked up the donkey in the
+      smoke-house. He stopped to inquire no further, for he was one of those
+      testy curmudgeons with whom unlucky boys are always in the wrong. Leaving
+      old Barbara to wrestle in imagination with the devil, he made for my
+      bedchamber, where I still lay wrapped in rosy slumbers, little dreaming of
+      the mischief I had done, and the storm about to break over me.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;In an instant I was awakened by a shower of thwacks, and started up in
+      wild amazement, I demanded the meaning of this attack, but received no
+      other reply than that I had murdered the housekeeper; while my uncle
+      continued whacking away during my confusion. I seized a poker, and put
+      myself on the defensive. I was a stout boy for my years, while my uncle
+      was a little wiffet of a man; one that in Kentucky we would not call even
+      an &lsquo;individual&rsquo;; nothing more than a &lsquo;remote circumstance.&rsquo; I soon,
+      therefore, brought him to a parley, and learned the whole extent of the
+      charge brought against me. I confessed to the donkey and the smoke-house,
+      but pleaded not guilty of the murder of the housekeeper. I soon found out
+      that old Barbara was still alive. She continued under the doctor&rsquo;s hands,
+      however, for several days; and whenever she had an ill turn my uncle would
+      seek to give me another flogging. I appealed to my father, but got no
+      redress. I was considered an &lsquo;unlucky boy,&rsquo; prone to all kinds of
+      mischief; so that prepossessions were against me in all cases of appeal.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;I felt stung to the soul at all this. I had been beaten, degraded, and
+      treated with slighting when I complained. I lost my usual good spirits and
+      good humor; and, being out of temper with everybody, fancied everybody out
+      of temper with me. A certain wild, roving spirit of freedom, which I
+      believe is as inherent in me as it is in the partridge, was brought into
+      sudden activity by the checks and restraints I suffered. &lsquo;I&rsquo;ll go from
+      home,&rsquo; thought I, &lsquo;and shift for myself.&rsquo; Perhaps this notion was
+      quickened by the rage for emigrating to Kentucky, which was at that time
+      prevalent in Virginia. I had heard such stories of the romantic beauties
+      of the country; of the abundance of game of all kinds, and of the glorious
+      independent life of the hunters who ranged its noble forests, and lived by
+      the rifle; that I was as much agog to get there as boys who live in
+      seaports are to launch themselves among the wonders and adventures of the
+      ocean.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;After a time old Barbara got better in mind and body, and matters were
+      explained to her; and she became gradually convinced that it was not the
+      devil she had encountered. When she heard how harshly I had been treated
+      on her account, the good old soul was extremely grieved, and spoke warmly
+      to my father in my behalf. He had himself remarked the change in my
+      behavior, and thought punishment might have been carried too far. He
+      sought, therefore, to have some conversation with me, and to soothe my
+      feelings; but it was too late. I frankly told him the course of
+      mortification that I had experienced, and the fixed determination I had
+      made to go from home.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;&lsquo;And where do you mean to go?&rsquo;
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;&lsquo;To Kentucky.&rsquo;
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;&lsquo;To Kentucky! Why, you know nobody there.&rsquo;
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;&lsquo;No matter: I can soon make acquaintances.&rsquo;
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;&lsquo;And what will you do when you get there?&rsquo;
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;&lsquo;Hunt!&rsquo;
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;My father gave a long, low whistle, and looked in my face with a
+      serio-comic expression. I was not far in my teens, and to talk of setting
+      off alone for Kentucky, to turn hunter, seemed doubtless the idle prattle
+      of a boy. He was little aware of the dogged resolution of my character;
+      and his smile of incredulity but fixed me more obstinately in my purpose.
+      I assured him I was serious in what I said, and would certainly set off
+      for Kentucky in the spring.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Month after month passed away. My father now and then adverted slightly
+      to what had passed between us; doubtless for the purpose of sounding me. I
+      always expressed the same grave and fixed determination. By degrees he
+      spoke to me more directly on the subject, endeavoring earnestly but kindly
+      to dissuade me. My only reply was, &lsquo;I had made up my mind.&rsquo;
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Accordingly, as soon as the spring had fairly opened, I sought him one
+      day in his study, and informed him I was about to set out for Kentucky,
+      and had come to take my leave. He made no objection, for he had exhausted
+      persuasion and remonstrance, and doubtless thought it best to give way to
+      my humor, trusting that a little rough experience would soon bring me home
+      again. I asked money for my journey. He went to a chest, took out a long
+      green silk purse, well filled, and laid it on the table. I now asked for a
+      horse and servant.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;&lsquo;A horse!&rsquo; said my father, sneeringly: &lsquo;why, you would not go a mile
+      without racing him, and breaking your neck; and, as to a servant, you
+      cannot take care of yourself much less of him.&rsquo;
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;&lsquo;How am I to travel, then?&rsquo;
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;&lsquo;Why, I suppose you are man enough to travel on foot.&rsquo;
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;He spoke jestingly, little thinking I would take him at his word; but I
+      was thoroughly piqued in respect to my enterprise; so I pocketed the
+      purse, went to my room, tied up three or four shirts in a
+      pocket-handkerchief, put a dirk in my bosom, girt a couple of pistols
+      round my waist, and felt like a knight errant armed cap a-pie, and ready
+      to rove the world in quest of adventures.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;My sister (I had but one) hung round me and wept, and entreated me to
+      stay. I felt my heart swell in my throat; but I gulped it back to its
+      place, and straightened myself up; I would not suffer myself to cry. I at
+      length disengaged myself from her, and got to the door.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;&lsquo;When will you come back?&rsquo; cried she.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;&lsquo;Never, by heavens!&rsquo; cried I, &lsquo;until I come back a member of Congress
+      from Kentucky. I am determined to show that I am not the tail-end of the
+      family.&rsquo;
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Such was my first outset from home. You may suppose what a greenhorn I
+      was, and how little I knew of the world I was launching into.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;I do not recollect any incident of importance until I reached the borders
+      of Pennsylvania. I had stopped at an inn to get some refreshment; and as I
+      was eating in the back room, I overheard two men in the barroom conjecture
+      who and what I could be. One determined, at length, that I was a runaway
+      apprentice, and ought to be stopped, to which the other assented. When I
+      had finished my meal, and paid for it, I went out at the back door, lest I
+      should be stopped by my supervisors. Scorning, however, to steal off like
+      a culprit, I walked round to the front of the house. One of the men
+      advanced to the front door. He wore his hat on one side, and had a
+      consequential air that nettled me.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;&lsquo;Where are you going, youngster?&rsquo; demanded he.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;&lsquo;That&rsquo;s none of your business!&rsquo; replied I, rather pertly.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;&lsquo;Yes, but it is, though! You have run away from home, and must give an
+      account of yourself.&rsquo;
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;He advanced to seize me, when I drew forth a pistol. &lsquo;If you advance
+      another step, I&rsquo;ll shoot you!&rsquo;
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;He sprang back as if he had trodden upon a rattlesnake, and his hat fell
+      off in the movement.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;&lsquo;Let him alone!&rsquo; cried his companion; &lsquo;he&rsquo;s a foolish, mad-headed boy,
+      and don&rsquo;t know what he&rsquo;s about. He&rsquo;ll shoot you, you may rely on it.&rsquo;
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;He did not need any caution in the matter; he was afraid even to pick up
+      his hat: so I pushed forward on my way, without molestation. This
+      incident, however, had its effect upon me. I became fearful of sleeping in
+      any house at night, lest I should be stopped. I took my meals in the
+      houses, in the course of the day, but would turn aside at night into some
+      wood or ravine, make a fire, and sleep before it. This I considered was
+      true hunter&rsquo;s style, and I wished to inure myself to it.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;At length I arrived at Brownsville, leg-weary and wayworn, and in a
+      shabby plight, as you may suppose, having been &lsquo;camping out&rsquo; for some
+      nights past. I applied at some of the inferior inns, but could gain no
+      admission. I was regarded for a moment with a dubious eye, and then
+      informed they did not receive foot-passengers. At last I went boldly to
+      the principal inn. The landlord appeared as unwilling as the rest to
+      receive a vagrant boy beneath his roof; but his wife interfered in the
+      midst of his excuses, and half elbowing him aside:
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;&lsquo;Where are you going, my lad?&rsquo; said she.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;&lsquo;To Kentucky.&rsquo;
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;&lsquo;What are you going there for?&rsquo;
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;&lsquo;To hunt.&rsquo;
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;She looked earnestly at me for a moment or two. &lsquo;Have you a mother
+      living?&rsquo; said she at length.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;&lsquo;No, madam: she has been dead for some time.&rsquo;
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;&lsquo;I thought so!&rsquo; cried she warmly. &lsquo;I knew if you had a mother living you
+      would not be here.&rsquo; From that moment the good woman treated me with a
+      mother&rsquo;s kindness.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;I remained several days beneath her roof recovering from the fatigue of
+      my journey. While here I purchased a rifle and practiced daily at a mark
+      to prepare myself for a hunter&rsquo;s life. When sufficiently recruited in
+      strength I took leave of my kind host and hostess and resumed my journey.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;At Wheeling I embarked in a flat bottomed family boat, technically called
+      a broad-horn, a prime river conveyance in those days. In this ark for two
+      weeks I floated down the Ohio. The river was as yet in all its wild
+      beauty. Its loftiest trees had not been thinned out. The forest overhung
+      the water&rsquo;s edge and was occasionally skirted by immense cane-brakes. Wild
+      animals of all kinds abounded. We heard them rushing through the thickets
+      and plashing in the water. Deer and bears would frequently swim across the
+      river; others would come down to the bank and gaze at the boat as it
+      passed. I was incessantly on the alert with my rifle; but somehow or other
+      the game was never within shot. Sometimes I got a chance to land and try
+      my skill on shore. I shot squirrels and small birds and even wild turkeys;
+      but though I caught glimpses of deer bounding away through the woods, I
+      never could get a fair shot at them.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;In this way we glided in our broad-horn past Cincinnati, the &lsquo;Queen of
+      the West&rsquo; as she is now called, then a mere group of log cabins; and the
+      site of the bustling city of Louisville, then designated by a solitary
+      house. As I said before, the Ohio was as yet a wild river; all was forest,
+      forest, forest! Near the confluence of Green River with the Ohio, I
+      landed, bade adieu to the broad-horn, and struck for the interior of
+      Kentucky. I had no precise plan; my only idea was to make for one of the
+      wildest parts of the country. I had relatives in Lexington and other
+      settled places, to whom I thought it probable my father would write
+      concerning me: so as I was full of manhood and independence, and
+      resolutely bent on making my way in the world without assistance or
+      control, I resolved to keep clear of them all.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;In the course of my first day&rsquo;s trudge, I shot a wild turkey, and slung
+      it on my back for provisions. The forest was open and clear from
+      underwood. I saw deer in abundance, but always running, running. It seemed
+      to me as if these animals never stood still.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;At length I came to where a gang of half-starved wolves were feasting on
+      the carcass of a deer which they had run down; and snarling and snapping
+      and fighting like so many dogs. They were all so ravenous and intent upon
+      their prey that they did not notice me, and I had time to make my
+      observations. One, larger and fiercer than the rest, seemed to claim the
+      larger share, and to keep the others in awe. If any one came too near him
+      while eating, he would fly off, seize and shake him, and then return to
+      his repast. &lsquo;This,&rsquo; thought I, &lsquo;must be the captain; if I can kill him, I
+      shall defeat the whole army.&rsquo; I accordingly took aim, fired, and down
+      dropped the old fellow. He might be only shamming dead; so I loaded and
+      put a second ball through him. He never budged; all the rest ran off, and
+      my victory was complete.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;It would not be easy to describe my triumphant feelings on this great
+      achievement. I marched on with renovated spirit, regarding myself as
+      absolute lord of the forest. As night drew near, I prepared for camping.
+      My first care was to collect dry wood and make a roaring fire to cook and
+      sleep by, and to frighten off wolves, and bears, and panthers. I then
+      began to pluck my turkey for supper. I had camped out several times in the
+      early part of my expedition; but that was in comparatively more settled
+      and civilized regions, where there were no wild animals of consequence in
+      the forest. This was my first camping out in the real wilderness; and I
+      was soon made sensible of the loneliness and wildness of my situation.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;In a little while a concert of wolves commenced: there might have been a
+      dozen or two, but it seemed to me as if there were thousands. I never
+      heard such howling and whining. Having prepared my turkey, I divided it
+      into two parts, thrust two sticks into one of the halves, and planted them
+      on end before the fire, the hunter&rsquo;s mode of roasting. The smell of roast
+      meat quickened the appetites of the wolves, and their concert became truly
+      infernal. They seemed to be all around me, but I could only now and then
+      get a glimpse of one of them, as he came within the glare of the light.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;I did not much care for the wolves, who I knew to be a cowardly race, but
+      I had heard terrible stories of panthers, and began to fear their stealthy
+      prowlings in the surrounding darkness. I was thirsty, and heard a brook
+      bubbling and tinkling along at no great distance, but absolutely dared not
+      go there, lest some panther might lie in wait, and spring upon me.
+      By-and-by a deer whistled. I had never heard one before, and thought it
+      must be a panther. I now felt uneasy lest he might climb the trees, crawl
+      along the branches overhead, and plump down upon me; so I kept my eyes
+      fixed on the branches, until my head ached. I more than once thought I saw
+      fiery eyes glaring down from&mdash;among the leaves. At length I thought
+      of my supper and turned to see if my half-turkey was cooked. In crowding
+      so near the fire I had pressed the meat into the flames, and it was
+      consumed. I had nothing to do but toast the other half, and take better
+      care of it. On that half I made my supper, without salt or bread. I was
+      still so possessed with the dread of panthers that I could not close my
+      eyes all night, but lay watching the trees until daybreak, when all my
+      fears were dispelled with the darkness; and as I saw the morning sun
+      sparkling down through the branches of the trees, I smiled to think how I
+      had suffered myself to be dismayed by sounds and shadows; but I was a
+      young woodsman, and a stranger in Kentucky.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Having breakfasted on the remainder of my turkey, and slaked my thirst at
+      the bubbling stream, without further dread of panthers, I resumed my
+      wayfaring with buoyant feelings. I again saw deer, but as usual running,
+      running! I tried in vain to get a shot at them, and began to fear I never
+      should. I was gazing with vexation after a herd in full scamper, when I
+      was startled by a human voice. Turning round, I saw a man at a short
+      distance from me in a hunting dress.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;&lsquo;What are you after, my lad?&rsquo; cried he.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;&lsquo;Those deer,&rsquo; replied I, pettishly: &lsquo;but it seems as if they never stand
+      still.&rsquo;
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Upon that he burst out laughing. &lsquo;Where are you from?&rsquo; said he.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;&lsquo;From Richmond.&rsquo;
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;&lsquo;What! In old Virginny?&rsquo;
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;&lsquo;The same.&rsquo;
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;&lsquo;And how on earth did you get here?&rsquo;
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;&lsquo;I landed at Green River from a broad-horn.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;&lsquo;And where are your companions?&rsquo;
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;&rsquo; I have none.&rsquo;
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;&lsquo;What?&mdash;all alone!&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;&lsquo;Yes.&rsquo;
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;&lsquo;Where are you going?&rsquo;
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;&lsquo;Anywhere.&rsquo;
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;&lsquo;And what have you come here for?&rsquo;
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;&lsquo;To hunt.&rsquo;
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;&lsquo;Well,&rsquo; said he, laughingly, &lsquo;you&rsquo;ll make a real hunter; there&rsquo;s no
+      mistaking that! Have you killed anything?&rsquo;
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;&lsquo;Nothing but a turkey; I can&rsquo;t get within shot of a deer: they are always
+      running.&rsquo;
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;&lsquo;Oh, I&rsquo;ll tell you the secret of that. You&rsquo;re always pushing forward, and
+      starting the deer at a distance, and gazing at those that are scampering;
+      but you must step as slow, and silent, and cautious as a cat, and keep
+      your eyes close around you, and lurk from tree to tree, if you wish to get
+      a chance at deer. But come, go home with me. My name is Bill Smithers; I
+      live not far off: stay with me a little while, and I&rsquo;ll teach you how to
+      hunt.&rsquo;
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;I gladly accepted the invitation of honest Bill Smithers. We soon reached
+      his habitation; a mere log hut, with a square hole for a window and a
+      chimney made of sticks and clay. Here he lived with a wife and child. He
+      had &lsquo;girdled&rsquo; the trees for an acre or two around, preparatory to clearing
+      a space for corn and potatoes. In the meantime he maintained his family
+      entirely by his rifle, and I soon found him to be a first-rate huntsman.
+      Under his tutelage I received my first effective lessons in &lsquo;woodcraft.&rsquo;
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;The more I knew of a hunter&rsquo;s life, the more I relished it. The country,
+      too, which had been the promised land of my boyhood, did not, like most
+      promised lands, disappoint me. No wilderness could be more beautiful than
+      this part of Kentucky in those times. The forests were open and spacious,
+      with noble trees, some of which looked as if they had stood for centuries.
+      There were beautiful prairies, too, diversified with groves and clumps of
+      trees, which looked like vast parks, and in which you could see the deer
+      running, at a great distance. In the proper season these prairies would be
+      covered in many places with wild strawberries, where your horses&rsquo; hoofs
+      would be dyed to the fetlock. I thought there could not be another place
+      in the world equal to Kentucky&mdash;and I think so still.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;After I had passed ten or twelve days with Bill Smithers, I thought it
+      time to shift my quarters, for his house was scarce large enough for his
+      own family, and I had no idea of being an encumbrance to any one. I
+      accordingly made up my bundle, shouldered my rifle, took a friendly leave
+      of Smithers and his wife, and set out in quest of a Nimrod of the
+      wilderness, one John Miller, who lived alone, nearly forty miles off, and
+      who I hoped would be well pleased to have a hunting companion.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;I soon found out that one of the most important items in woodcraft in a
+      new country was the skill to find one&rsquo;s way in the wilderness. There were
+      no regular roads in the forests, but they were cut up and perplexed by
+      paths leading in all directions. Some of these were made by the cattle of
+      the settlers, and were called &lsquo;stock-tracks,&rsquo; but others had been made by
+      the immense droves of buffaloes which roamed about the country, from the
+      flood until recent times. These were called buffalo-tracks, and traversed
+      Kentucky from end to end, like highways. Traces of them may still be seen
+      in uncultivated parts, or deeply worn in the rocks where they crossed the
+      mountains. I was a young woodman, and sorely puzzled to distinguish one
+      kind of track from the other, or to make out my course through this
+      tangled labyrinth. While thus perplexed, I heard a distant roaring and
+      rushing sound; a gloom stole over the forest: on looking up, when I could
+      catch a stray glimpse of the sky, I beheld the clouds rolled up like
+      balls, the lower parts as black as ink. There was now and then an
+      explosion, like a burst of cannonry afar off, and the crash of a falling
+      tree. I had heard of hurricanes in the woods, and surmised that one was at
+      hand. It soon came crashing its way; the forest writhing, and twisting,
+      and groaning before it. The hurricane did not extend far on either side,
+      but in a manner plowed a furrow through the woodland; snapping off or
+      uprooting trees that had stood for centuries, and filling the air with
+      whirling branches. I was directly in its course, and took my stand behind
+      an immense poplar, six feet in diameter. It bore for a time the full fury
+      of the blast, but at length began to yield. Seeing it falling, I scrambled
+      nimbly round the trunk like a squirrel. Down it went, bearing down another
+      tree with it. I crept under the trunk as a shelter, and was protected from
+      other trees which fell around me, but was sore all over from the twigs and
+      branches driven against me by the blast.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;This was the only incident of consequence that occurred on my way to John
+      Miller&rsquo;s, where I arrived on the following day, and was received by the
+      veteran with the rough kindness of a backwoodsman. He was a gray-haired
+      man, hardy and weather-beaten, with a blue wart, like a great beard, over
+      one eye, whence he was nicknamed by the hunters &lsquo;Bluebeard Miller.&rsquo; He had
+      been in these parts from the earliest settlements, and had signalized
+      himself in the hard conflicts with the Indians, which gained Kentucky the
+      appellation of &lsquo;the Bloody Ground.&rsquo; In one of these fights he had had an
+      arm broken; in another he had narrowly escaped, when hotly pursued, by
+      jumping from a precipice thirty feet high into a river.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Miller willingly received me into his house as an inmate, and seemed
+      pleased with the idea of making a hunter of me. His dwelling was a small
+      log-house, with a loft or garret of boards, so that there was ample room
+      for both of us. Under his instruction I soon made a tolerable proficiency
+      in hunting. My first exploit, of any consequence, was killing a bear. I
+      was hunting in company with two brothers, when we came upon the track of
+      bruin, in a wood where there was an undergrowth of canes and grapevines.
+      He was scrambling up a tree, when I shot him through the breast: he fell
+      to the ground and lay motionless. The brothers sent in their dog, who
+      seized the bear by the throat. Bruin raised one arm and gave the dog a hug
+      that crushed his ribs. One yell, and all was over. I don&rsquo;t know which was
+      first dead, the dog or the bear. The two brothers sat down and cried like
+      children over their unfortunate dog. Yet they were mere rough huntsmen,
+      almost as wild and untamable as Indians; but they were fine fellows.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;By degrees I became known, and somewhat of a favorite among the hunters
+      of the neighborhood; that is to say, men who lived within a circle of
+      thirty or forty miles, and came occasionally to see John Miller, who was a
+      patriarch among them. They lived widely apart, in log huts and wigwams,
+      almost with the simplicity of Indians, and wellnigh as destitute of the
+      comforts and inventions of civilized life. They seldom saw each other;
+      weeks, and even months, would elapse, without their visiting. When they
+      did meet, it was very much after the manner of Indians; loitering about
+      all day, without having much to say, but becoming communicative as evening
+      advanced, and sitting up half the night before the fire, telling hunting
+      stories, and terrible tales of the fights of the Bloody Ground.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Sometimes several would join in a distant hunting expedition, or rather
+      campaign. Expeditions of this kind lasted from November until April;
+      during which we laid up our stock of summer provisions. We shifted our
+      hunting camps from place to place, according as we found the game. They
+      were generally pitched near a run of water, and close by a cane-brake, to
+      screen us from the wind. One side of our lodge was open toward the fire.
+      Our horses were hoppled and turned loose in the cane-brakes, with bells
+      round their necks. One of the party stayed at home to watch the camp,
+      prepare the meals and keep off the wolves; the others hunted. When a
+      hunter killed a deer at a distance from the camp, he would open it and
+      take out the entrails; then climbing a sapling he would bend it down, tie
+      the deer to the top, and let it spring up again, so as to suspend the
+      carcass out of reach of the wolves. At night he would return to the camp
+      and give an account of his luck. The next morning early he would get a
+      horse out of the canebrake and bring home his game. That day he would stay
+      at home to cut up the carcass, while the others hunted.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Our days were thus spent in silent and lonely occupations. It was only at
+      night that we would gather together before the fire and be sociable. I was
+      a novice, and used to listen with open eyes and ears to the strange and
+      wild stories told by the old hunters, and believed everything I heard.
+      Some of their stories bordered upon the supernatural. They believed that
+      their rifles might be spellbound, so as not to be able to kill a buffalo,
+      even at arms-length. This superstition they had derived from the Indians,
+      who often think the white hunters have laid a spell upon their rifles.
+      Miller partook of this superstition, and used to tell of his rifle&rsquo;s
+      having a spell upon it; but it often seemed to me to be a shuffling way of
+      accounting for a bad shot. If a hunter grossly missed his aim he would
+      ask, &lsquo;Who shot last with this rifle?&rsquo;&mdash;and hint that he must have
+      charmed it. The sure mode to disenchant the gun was to shoot a silver
+      bullet out of it.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;By the opening of spring we would generally have quantities of
+      bears&rsquo;-meat and venison salted, dried, and smoked, and numerous packs of
+      skins. We would then make the best of our way home from our distant
+      hunting-grounds; transporting our spoils, sometimes in canoes along the
+      rivers, sometimes on horseback over land, and our return would often be
+      celebrated by feasting and dancing, in true backwoods style. I have given
+      you some idea of our hunting; let me now give you a sketch of our
+      frolicking.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;It was on our return from a winter&rsquo;s hunting in the neighborhood of Green
+      River, when we received notice that there was to be a grand frolic at Bob
+      Mosely&rsquo;s, to greet the hunters. This Bob Mosely was a prime fellow
+      throughout the country. He was an indifferent hunter, it is true, and
+      rather lazy to boot; but then he could play the fiddle, and that was
+      enough to make him of consequence. There was no other man within a hundred
+      miles that could play the fiddle, so there was no having a regular frolic
+      without Bob Mosely. The hunters, therefore, were always ready to give him
+      a share of their game in exchange for his music, and Bob was always ready
+      to get up a carousal, whenever there was a party returning from a hunting
+      expedition. The present frolic was to take place at Bob Mosely&rsquo;s own
+      house, which was on the Pigeon Roost Fork of the Muddy, which is a branch
+      of Rough Creek, which is a branch of Green River.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Everybody was agog for the revel at Bob Mosely&rsquo;s; and as all the fashion
+      of the neighborhood was to be there, I thought I must brush up for the
+      occasion. My leathern hunting-dress, which was the only one I had, was
+      somewhat the worse for wear, it is true, and considerably japanned with
+      blood and grease; but I was up to hunting expedients. Getting into a
+      periogue, I paddled off to a part of the Green River where there was sand
+      and clay, that might serve for soap; then taking off my dress, I scrubbed
+      and scoured it, until I thought it looked very well. I then put it on the
+      end of a stick, and hung it out of the periogue to dry, while I stretched
+      myself very comfortably on the green bank of the river. Unluckily a flaw
+      struck the periogue, and tipped over the stick: down went my dress to the
+      bottom of the river, and I never saw it more. Here was I, left almost in a
+      state of nature. I managed to make a kind of Robinson Crusoe garb of
+      undressed skins, with the hair on, which enabled me to get home with
+      decency; but my dream of gayety and fashion was at an end; for how could I
+      think of figuring in high life at the Pigeon Roost, equipped like a mere
+      Orson?
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Old Miller, who really began to take some pride in me, was confounded
+      when he understood that I did not intend to go to Bob Mosely&rsquo;s; but when I
+      told him my misfortune, and that I had no dress: &lsquo;By the powers,&rsquo; cried
+      he, &lsquo;but you <i>shall</i> go, and you shall be the best dressed and the
+      best mounted lad there!&rsquo;
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;He immediately set to work to cut out and make up a hunting-shirt of
+      dressed deer-skin, gayly fringed at the shoulders, with leggings of the
+      same, fringed from hip to heel. He then made me a rakish raccoon-cap, with
+      a flaunting tail to it; mounted me on his best horse; and I may say,
+      without vanity, that I was one of the smartest fellows that figured on
+      that occasion at the Pigeon Roost Fork of the Muddy.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;It was no small occasion, either, let me tell you. Bob Mosely&rsquo;s house was
+      a tolerably large bark shanty, with a clap-board roof; and there were
+      assembled all the young hunters and pretty girls of the country, for many
+      a mile round. The young men were in their best hunting-dresses, but not
+      one could compare with mine; and my raccoon-cap, with its flowing tail,
+      was the admiration of everybody. The girls were mostly in doe-skin
+      dresses; for there was no spinning and weaving as yet in the woods; nor
+      any need of it. I never saw girls that seemed to me better dressed; and I
+      was somewhat of a judge, having seen fashions at Richmond. We had a hearty
+      dinner, and a merry one; for there was Jemmy Kiel, famous for
+      raccoon-hunting, and Bob Tarleton, and Wesley Pigman, and Joe Taylor, and
+      several other prime fellows for a frolic, that made all ring again, and
+      laughed that you might have heard them a mile.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;After dinner we began dancing, and were hard at it, when, about three
+      o&rsquo;clock in the afternoon, there was a new arrival&mdash;the two daughters
+      of old Simon Schultz; two young ladies that affected fashion and late
+      hours. Their arrival had nearly put an end to all our merriment. I must go
+      a little roundabout in my story to explain to you how that happened.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;As old Schultz, the father, was one day looking in the cane-brakes for
+      his cattle, he came upon the track of horses. He knew they were none of
+      his, and that none of his neighbors had horses about that place. They must
+      be stray horses; or must belong to some traveler who had lost his way, as
+      the track led nowhere. He accordingly followed it up, until he came to an
+      unlucky peddler, with two or three pack-horses, who had been bewildered
+      among the cattle-tracks, and had wandered for two or three days among
+      woods and cane-brakes, until he was almost famished.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Old Schultz brought him to his house; fed him on venison, bear&rsquo;s-meat,
+      and hominy, and at the end of a week put him in prime condition. The
+      peddler could not sufficiently express his thankfulness; and when about to
+      depart inquired what he had to pay? Old Schultz stepped back with
+      surprise. &lsquo;Stranger,&rsquo; said he, &lsquo;you have been welcome under my roof. I&rsquo;ve
+      given you nothing but wild meat and hominy, because I had no better, but
+      have been glad of your company. You are welcome to stay as long as you
+      please; but, by Zounds! if any one offers to pay Simon Schultz for food he
+      affronts him!&rsquo; So saying, he walked out in a huff.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;The peddler admired the hospitality of his host, but could not reconcile
+      it to his conscience to go away without making some recompense. There were
+      honest Simon&rsquo;s two daughters, two strapping, red-haired girls. He opened
+      his packs and displayed riches before them of which they had no
+      conception; for in those days there were no country stores in those parts,
+      with their artificial finery and trinketry; and this was the first peddler
+      that had wandered into that part of the wilderness. The girls were for a
+      time completely dazzled, and knew not what to choose: but what caught
+      their eyes most were two looking-glasses, about the size of a dollar, set
+      in gilt tin. They had never seen the like before, having used no other
+      mirror than a pail of water. The peddler presented them these jewels,
+      without the least hesitation; nay, he gallantly hung them round their
+      necks by red ribbons, almost as fine as the glasses themselves. This done,
+      he took his departure, leaving them as much astonished as two princesses
+      in a fairy tale that have received a magic gift from an enchanter.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;It was with these looking-glasses, hung round their necks as lockets, by
+      red ribbons, that old Schultz&rsquo;s daughters made their appearance at three
+      o&rsquo;clock in the afternoon, at the frolic at Bob Mosely&rsquo;s, on the Pigeon
+      Roost Fork of the Muddy.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;By the powers, but it was an event! Such a thing had never before been
+      seen in Kentucky. Bob Tarleton, a strapping fellow, with a head like a
+      chestnut-burr and a look like a boar in an apple orchard, stepped up,
+      caught hold of the looking-glass of one of the girls, and gazing at it for
+      a moment, cried out: &lsquo;Joe Taylor, come here! come here! I&rsquo;ll be darn&rsquo;d if
+      Patty Schultz ain&rsquo;t got a locket that you can see your face in, as clear
+      as in a spring of water!&rsquo;
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;In a twinkling all the young hunters gathered round old Schultz&rsquo;s
+      daughters. I, who knew what looking-glasses were, did not budge. Some of
+      the girls who sat near me were excessively mortified at finding themselves
+      thus deserted. I heard Peggy Pugh say to Sally Pigman, &lsquo;Goodness knows,
+      it&rsquo;s well Schultz&rsquo;s daughters is got them things round their necks, for
+      it&rsquo;s the first time the young men crowded round them!&rsquo;
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;I saw immediately the danger of the case. We were a small community, and
+      could not afford to be split up by feuds. So I stepped up to the girls,
+      and whispered to them: &lsquo;Polly,&rsquo; said I, &lsquo;those lockets are powerful fine,
+      and become you amazingly; but you don&rsquo;t consider that the country is not
+      advanced enough in these parts for such things. You and I understand these
+      matters, but these people don&rsquo;t. Fine things like these may do very well
+      in the old settlements, but they won&rsquo;t answer at the Pigeon Roost Fork of
+      the Muddy. You had better lay them aside for the present, or we shall have
+      no peace.&rsquo;
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Polly and her sister luckily saw their error; they took off the lockets,
+      laid them aside, and harmony was restored: otherwise, I verily believe
+      there would have been an end of our community. Indeed, notwithstanding the
+      great sacrifice they made on this occasion, I do not think old Schultz&rsquo;s
+      daughters were ever much liked afterward among the young women.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;This was the first time that looking-glasses were ever seen in the Green
+      River part of Kentucky.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;I had now lived some time with old Miller, and had become a tolerably
+      expert hunter. Game, however, began to grow scarce. The buffalo had
+      gathered together, as if by universal understanding, and had crossed the
+      Mississippi, never to return. Strangers kept pouring into the country,
+      clearing away the forests and building in all directions. The hunters
+      began to grow restive. Jemmy Kiel, the same of whom I have already spoken
+      for his skill in raccoon catching, came to me one day: &lsquo;I can&rsquo;t stand this
+      any longer,&rsquo; said he; &lsquo;we&rsquo;re getting too thick here. Simon Schultz crowds
+      me so that I have no comfort of my life.&rsquo;
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;&lsquo;Why, how you talk!&rsquo; said I; &lsquo;Simon Schultz lives twelve miles off.&rsquo;
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;&lsquo;No matter; his cattle run with mine, and I&rsquo;ve no idea of living where
+      another man&rsquo;s cattle can run with mine. That&rsquo;s too close neighborhood; I
+      want elbow-room. This country, too, is growing too poor to live in;
+      there&rsquo;s no game; so two or three of us have made up our minds to follow
+      the buffalo to the Missouri, and we should like to have you of the party.&rsquo;
+      Other hunters of my acquaintance talked in the same manner. This set me
+      thinking; but the more I thought the more I was perplexed. I had no one to
+      advise with; old Miller and his associates knew but of one mode of life,
+      and I had had no experience in any other; but I had a wide scope of
+      thought. When out hunting alone I used to forget the sport, and sit for
+      hours together on the trunk of a tree, with rifle in hand, buried in
+      thought, and debating with myself: &lsquo;Shall I go with Jemmy Kiel and his
+      company, or shall I remain here? If I remain here there will soon be
+      nothing left to hunt; but am I to be a hunter all my life? Have not I
+      something more in me than to be carrying a rifle on my shoulder, day after
+      day, and dodging about after bears, and deer, and other brute beasts?&rsquo; My
+      vanity told me I had; and I called to mind my boyish boast to my sister,
+      that I would never return home until I returned a member of Congress from
+      Kentucky; but was this the way to fit myself for such a station?
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Various plans passed through my mind, but they were abandoned almost as
+      soon as formed. At length I determined on becoming a lawyer. True it is, I
+      knew almost nothing. I had left school before I had learned beyond the
+      &lsquo;rule of three.&rsquo; &lsquo;Never mind,&rsquo; said I to myself, resolutely; &lsquo;I am a
+      terrible fellow for hanging on to anything when I&rsquo;ve once made up my mind;
+      and if a man has but ordinary capacity, and will set to work with heart
+      and soul, and stick to it, he can do almost anything.&rsquo; With this maxim,
+      which has been pretty much my mainstay throughout life, I fortified myself
+      in my determination to attempt the law. But how was I to set about it? I
+      must quit this forest life, and go to one or other of the towns, where I
+      might be able to study, and to attend the courts. This too required funds.
+      I examined into the state of my finances. The purse given me by my father
+      had remained untouched, in the bottom of an old chest up in the loft, for
+      money was scarcely needed in these parts. I had bargained away the skins
+      acquired in hunting for a horse and various other matters, on which in
+      case of need I could raise funds. I therefore thought I could make shift
+      to maintain myself until I was fitted for the bar.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;I informed my worthy host and patron, old Miller, of my plan. He shook
+      his head at my turning my back upon the woods, when I was in a fair way of
+      making a first-rate hunter; but he made no effort to dissuade me. I
+      accordingly set off in September, on horseback, intending to visit
+      Lexington, Frankfort, and other of the principal towns, in search of a
+      favorable place to prosecute my studies. My choice was made sooner than I
+      expected. I had put up one night at Bardstown, and found, on inquiry, that
+      I could get comfortable board and accommodation in a private family for a
+      dollar and a half a week. I liked the place, and resolved to look no
+      further. So the next morning I prepared to turn my face homeward, and take
+      my final leave of forest life.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;I had taken my breakfast, and was waiting for my horse, when, in pacing
+      up and down the piazza, I saw a young girl seated near a window, evidently
+      a visitor. She was very pretty; with auburn hair and blue eyes, and was
+      dressed in white. I had seen nothing of the kind since I had left
+      Richmond; and at that time I was too much of a boy to be much struck by
+      female charms. She was so delicate and dainty-looking, so different from
+      the hale, buxom, brown girls of the woods; and then her white dress!&mdash;it
+      was perfectly dazzling! Never was poor youth more taken by surprise, and
+      suddenly bewitched. My heart yearned to know her; but how was I to accost
+      her? I had grown wild in the woods, and had none of the habitudes of
+      polite life. Had she been like Peggy Pugh or Sally Pigman, or any other of
+      my leathern-dressed belles of the Pigeon Roost, I should have approached
+      her without dread; nay, had she been as fair as Schultz&rsquo;s daughters, with
+      their looking-glass lockets, I should not have hesitated; but that white
+      dress, and those auburn ringlets, and blue eyes, and delicate looks, quite
+      daunted, while they fascinated me. I don&rsquo;t know what put it into my head,
+      but I thought, all at once, that I would kiss her! It would take a long
+      acquaintance to arrive at such a boon, but I might seize upon it by sheer
+      robbery. Nobody knew me here. I would just step in, snatch a kiss, mount
+      my horse, and ride off. She would not be the worse for it; and that kiss&mdash;oh!
+      I should die if I did not get it!
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;I gave no time for the thought to cool, but entered the house, and
+      stepped lightly into the room. She was seated with her back to the door,
+      looking out at the window, and did not hear my approach. I tapped her
+      chair, and as she turned and looked up, I snatched as sweet a kiss as ever
+      was stolen, and vanished in a twinkling. The next moment I was on
+      horseback, galloping homeward; my very ears tingling at what I had done.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;On my return home I sold my horse, and turned everything to cash; and
+      found, with the remains of the paternal purse, that I had nearly four
+      hundred dollars; a little capital which I resolved to manage with the
+      strictest economy.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;It was hard parting with old Miller, who had been like a father to me; it
+      cost me, too, something of a struggle to give up the free, independent
+      wild-wood life I had hitherto led; but I had marked out my course, and had
+      never been one to flinch or turn back.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;I footed it sturdily to Bardstown; took possession of the quarters for
+      which I had bargained, shut myself up, and set to work with might and main
+      to study. But what a task I had before me! I had everything to learn; not
+      merely law, but all the elementary branches of knowledge. I read and read,
+      for sixteen hours out of the four-and-twenty; but the more I read the more
+      I became aware of my own ignorance, and shed bitter tears over my
+      deficiency. It seemed as if the wilderness of knowledge expanded and grew
+      more perplexed as I advanced. Every height gained only revealed a wider
+      region to be traversed, and nearly filled me with despair. I grew moody,
+      silent, and unsocial, but studied on doggedly and incessantly. The only
+      person with whom I held any conversation was the worthy man in whose house
+      I was quartered. He was honest and well meaning, but perfectly ignorant,
+      and I believe would have liked me much better if I had not been so much
+      addicted to reading. He considered all books filled with lies and
+      impositions, and seldom could look into one without finding something to
+      rouse his spleen. Nothing put him into a greater passion than the
+      assertion that the world turned on its own axis every four-and-twenty
+      hours. He swore it was an outrage upon common sense. &lsquo;Why, if it did,&rsquo;
+      said he, &lsquo;there would not be a drop of water in the well by morning, and
+      all the milk and cream in the dairy would be turned topsy-turvy! And then
+      to talk of the earth going round the sun! How do they know it? I&rsquo;ve seen
+      the sun rise every morning and set every evening for more than thirty
+      years. They must not talk to <i>me</i> about the earth&rsquo;s going round the
+      sun!&rsquo;
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;At another time he was in a perfect fret at being told the distance
+      between the sun and moon. &lsquo;How can any one tell the distance?&rsquo; cried he.
+      &lsquo;Who surveyed it? who carried the chain? By Jupiter! they only talk this
+      way before me to annoy me. But then there&rsquo;s some people of sense who give
+      in to this cursed humbug! There&rsquo;s Judge Broadnax, now, one of the best
+      lawyers we have; isn&rsquo;t it surprising he should believe in such stuff? Why,
+      sir, the other day I heard him talk of the distance from a star he called
+      Mars to the sun! He must have got it out of one or other of those
+      confounded books he&rsquo;s so fond of reading; a book some impudent fellow has
+      written, who knew nobody could swear the distance was more or less.&rsquo;
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;For my own part, feeling my own deficiency in scientific lore, I never
+      ventured to unsettle his conviction that the sun made his daily circuit
+      round the earth; and for aught I said to the contrary, he lived and died
+      in that belief.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;I had been about a year at Bardstown, living thus studiously and
+      reclusely, when, as I was one day walking the street, I met two young
+      girls, in one of whom I immediately recalled the little beauty whom I had
+      kissed so impudently. She blushed up to the eyes, and so did I; but we
+      both passed on with further sign of recognition. This second glimpse of
+      her, however, caused an odd fluttering about my heart. I could not get her
+      out of my thoughts for days. She quite interfered with my studies. I tried
+      to think of her as a mere child, but it would not do; she had improved in
+      beauty, and was tending toward womanhood; and then I myself was but little
+      better than a stripling. However, I did not attempt to seek after her, or
+      even to find out who she was, but returned doggedly to my books. By
+      degrees she faded from my thoughts, or if she did cross them occasionally,
+      it was only to increase my despondency; for I feared that with all my
+      exertions, I should never be able to fit myself for the bar, or enable
+      myself to support a wife.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;One cold stormy evening I was seated, in dumpish mood, in the bar-room of
+      the inn, looking into the fire, and turning over uncomfortable thoughts,
+      when I was accosted by some one who had entered the room without my
+      perceiving it. I looked up, and saw before me a tall and, as I thought,
+      pompous-looking man, arrayed in small clothes and knee-buckles, with
+      powdered head, and shoes nicely blacked and polished; a style of dress
+      unparalleled in those days, in that rough country. I took a pique against
+      him from the very portliness of his appearance, and stateliness of his
+      manner, and bristled up as he accosted me. He demanded if my name was not
+      Ringwood.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;I was startled, for I supposed myself perfectly incog.; but I answered in
+      the affirmative.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;&lsquo;Your family, I believe, lives in Richmond?&rsquo;
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;My gorge began to rise. &lsquo;Yes, sir,&rsquo; replied I sulkily, &lsquo;my family does
+      live in Richmond.&rsquo;
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;&lsquo;And what, may I ask, has brought you into this part of the country?&rsquo;
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;&lsquo;Zounds, sir!&rsquo; cried I, starting on my feet, &lsquo;what business is it of
+      yours? How dare you to question me in this manner?&rsquo;
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;The entrance of some persons prevented a reply; but I walked up and down
+      the bar-room, fuming with conscious independence and insulted dignity,
+      while the pompous-looking personage, who had thus trespassed upon my
+      spleen, retired without proffering another word.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;The next day, while seated in my room, some one tapped at the door, and,
+      on being bid to enter, the stranger in the powdered head, small-clothes,
+      and shining shoes and buckles, walked in with ceremonious courtesy.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;My boyish pride was again in arms; but he subdued me. He was formal, but
+      kind and friendly. He knew my family and understood my situation, and the
+      dogged struggle I was making. A little conversation, when my jealous pride
+      was once put to rest, drew everything from me. He was a lawyer of
+      experience and of extensive practice, and offered at once to take me with
+      him, and direct my studies. The offer was too advantageous and gratifying
+      not to be immediately accepted. From that time I began to look up. I was
+      put into a proper track, and was enabled to study to a proper purpose. I
+      made acquaintance, too, with some of the young men of the place, who were
+      in the same pursuit, and was encouraged at finding that I could &lsquo;hold my
+      own&rsquo; in argument with them. We instituted a debating club, in which I soon
+      became prominent and popular. Men of talents, engaged in other pursuits,
+      joined it, and this diversified our subjects and put me on various tracks
+      of inquiry. Ladies, too, attended some of our discussions, and this gave
+      them a polite tone, and had an influence on the manners of the debaters.
+      My legal patron also may have had a favorable effect in correcting any
+      roughness contracted in my hunter&rsquo;s life. He was calculated to bend me in
+      an opposite direction, for he was of the old school; quoted Chesterfield
+      on all occasions, and talked of Sir Charles Grandison, who was his beau
+      ideal. It was Sir Charles Grandison, however, Kentuckyized.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;I had always been fond of female society. My experience, however, had
+      hitherto been among the rough daughters of the backwoodsmen; and I felt an
+      awe of young ladies in &lsquo;store clothes,&rsquo; and delicately brought up. Two or
+      three of the married ladies of Bardstown, who had heard me at the debating
+      club, determined that I was a genius and undertook to bring me out. I
+      believe I really improved under their hands; became quiet where I had been
+      shy or sulky, and easy where I had been impudent.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;I called to take tea one evening with one of these ladies, when to my
+      surprise, and somewhat to my confusion, I found with her the identical
+      blue-eyed little beauty whom I had so audaciously kissed. I was formally
+      introduced to her, but neither of us betrayed any sign of previous
+      acquaintance, except by blushing to the eyes. While tea was getting ready
+      the lady of the house went out of the room to give some directions, and
+      left us alone.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Heavens and earth, what a situation! I would have given all the pittance
+      I was worth to have been in the deepest dell of the forest. I felt the
+      necessity of saying something in excuse of my former rudeness, but I could
+      not conjure up an idea, nor utter a word. Every moment matters were
+      growing worse. I felt at one time tempted to do as I had done when I
+      robbed her of the kiss; bolt from the room, and take to flight; but I was
+      chained to the spot, for I really longed to gain her good-will.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;At length I plucked up courage, on seeing that she was equally confused
+      with myself, and walking desperately up to her, I exclaimed:
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;&lsquo;I have been trying to muster up something to say to you, but I cannot. I
+      feel that I am in a horrible scrape. Do have pity on me, and help me out
+      of it.&rsquo;
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;A smile dimpled about her mouth, and played among the blushes of her
+      cheek. She looked up with a shy, but arch glance of the eye, that
+      expressed a volume of comic recollection; we both broke into a laugh, and
+      from that moment all went on well.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;A few evenings afterward I met her at a dance, and prosecuted the
+      acquaintance. I soon became deeply attached to her; paid my court
+      regularly; and before I was nineteen years of age had engaged myself to
+      marry her. I spoke to her mother, a widow lady, to ask her consent. She
+      seemed to demur; upon which, with my customary haste, I told her there
+      would be no use in opposing the match, for if her daughter chose to have
+      me, I would take her, in defiance of her family, and the whole world.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;She laughed, and told me I need not give myself any uneasiness; there
+      would be no unreasonable opposition. She knew my family and all about me.
+      The only obstacle was that I had no means of supporting a wife, and she
+      had nothing to give with her daughter.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;No matter; at that moment everything was bright before me. I was in one
+      of my sanguine moods. I feared nothing, doubted nothing. So it was agreed
+      that I should prosecute my studies, obtain a license, and as soon as I
+      should be fairly launched in business we would be married.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;I now prosecuted my studies with redoubled ardor, and was up to my ears
+      in law, when I received a letter from my father, who had heard of me and
+      my whereabout. He applauded the course I had taken, but advised me to lay
+      a foundation of general knowledge, and offered to defray my expenses, if I
+      would go to college. I felt the want of a general education, and was
+      staggered with this offer. It militated somewhat against the
+      self-dependent course I had so proudly or rather conceitedly marked out
+      for myself, but it would enable me to enter more advantageously upon my
+      legal career. I talked over the matter with the lovely girl to whom I was
+      engaged. She sided in opinion with my father, and talked so
+      disinterestedly, yet tenderly, that, if possible, I loved her more than
+      ever. I reluctantly, therefore, agreed to go to college for a couple of
+      years, though it must necessarily postpone our union.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Scarcely had I formed this resolution, when her mother was taken ill and
+      died, leaving her without a protector. This again altered all my plans. I
+      felt as if I could protect her. I gave up all idea of collegiate studies;
+      persuaded myself that by dint of industry and application I might overcome
+      the deficiencies of education, and resolved to take out a license as soon
+      as possible.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;That very autumn I was admitted to the bar, and within a month afterward
+      was married. We were a young couple, she not much above sixteen, I not
+      quite twenty; and both almost without a dollar in the world. The
+      establishment which we set up was suited to our circumstances: a
+      log-house, with two small rooms; a bed, a table, a half dozen chairs, a
+      half dozen knives and forks, a half dozen spoons; everything by half
+      dozens; a little delf ware; everything in a small way; we were so poor,
+      but then so happy!
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;We had not been married many days, when court was held at a county town,
+      about twenty-five miles distant. It was necessary for me to go there, and
+      put myself in the way of business; but how was I to go? I had expended all
+      my means on our establishment; and then it was hard parting with my wife
+      so soon after marriage. However, go I must. Money must be made, or we
+      should soon have the wolf at the door. I accordingly borrowed a horse, and
+      borrowed a little cash, and rode off from my door, leaving my wife
+      standing at it, and waving her hand after me. Her last look, so sweet and
+      beaming, went to my heart. I felt as if I could go through fire and water
+      for her.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;I arrived at the county town on a cool October evening. The inn was
+      crowded, for the court was to commence on the following day. I knew no
+      one, and wondered how I, a stranger, and a mere youngster, was to make my
+      way in such a crowd, and to get business. The public room was thronged
+      with the idlers of the country, who gather together on such occasions.
+      There was some drinking going forward, with much noise, and a little
+      altercation. Just as I entered the room I saw a rough bully of a fellow,
+      who was partly intoxicated, strike an old man. He came swaggering by me,
+      and elbowed me as he passed. I immediately knocked him down, and kicked
+      him into the street. I needed no better introduction. In a moment I had a
+      dozen rough shakes of the hand, and invitations to drink, and found myself
+      quite a personage in this rough assembly.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;The next morning the court opened. I took my seat among the lawyers, but
+      felt as a mere spectator, not having a suit in progress or prospect, nor
+      having any idea where business was to come from. In the course of the
+      morning a man was put at the bar, charged with passing counterfeit money,
+      and was asked if he was ready for trial. He answered in the negative. He
+      had been confined in a place where there were no lawyers, and had not had
+      an opportunity of consulting any. He was told to choose counsel from the
+      lawyers present, and to be ready for trial on the following day. He looked
+      round the court and selected me. I was thunderstruck. I could not tell why
+      he should make such a choice. I, a beardless youngster; unpracticed at the
+      bar; perfectly unknown. I felt diffident yet delighted, and could have
+      hugged the rascal.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Before leaving the court he gave me one hundred dollars in a bag as a
+      retaining fee. I could scarcely believe my senses; it seemed like a dream.
+      The heaviness of the fee spoke but lightly in favor of his innocence, but
+      that was no affair of mine. I was to be advocate, not judge nor jury. I
+      followed him to jail, and learned from him all the particulars of his
+      case; from thence I went to the clerk&rsquo;s office and took minutes of the
+      indictment. I then examined the law on the subject, and prepared my brief
+      in my room. All this occupied me until midnight, when I went to bed and
+      tried to sleep. It was all in vain. Never in my life was I more
+      wide-awake. A host of thoughts and fancies kept rushing through my mind;
+      the shower of gold that had so unexpectedly fallen into my lap; the idea
+      of my poor little wife at home, that I was to astonish with my good
+      fortune! But then the awful responsibility I had undertaken!&mdash;to
+      speak for the first time in a strange court; the expectations the culprit
+      had evidently formed of my talents; all these, and a crowd of similar
+      notions, kept whirling through my mind. I tossed about all night, fearing
+      the morning would find me exhausted and incompetent; in a word, the day
+      dawned on me, a miserable fellow!
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;I got up feverish and nervous. I walked out before breakfast, striving to
+      collect my thoughts and tranquilize my feelings. It was a bright morning;
+      the air was pure and frosty. I bathed my forehead and my hands in a
+      beautiful running stream; but I could not allay the fever heat that raged
+      within. I returned to breakfast, but could not eat. A single cup of coffee
+      formed my repast. It was time to go to court, and I went there with a
+      throbbing heart. I believe if it had not been for the thoughts of my
+      little wife, in her lonely log house, I should have given back to the man
+      his hundred dollars, and relinquished the cause. I took my seat, looking,
+      I am convinced, more like a culprit than the rogue I was to defend.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;When the time came for me to speak, my heart died within me. I rose
+      embarrassed and dismayed, and stammered in opening my cause. I went on
+      from bad to worse, and felt as if I was going down hill. Just then the
+      public prosecutor, a man of talents, but somewhat rough in his practice,
+      made a sarcastic remark on something I had said. It was like an electric
+      spark, and ran tingling through every vein in my body. In an instant my
+      diffidence was gone. My whole spirit was in arms. I answered with
+      promptness and bitterness, for I felt the cruelty of such an attack upon a
+      novice in my situation. The public prosecutor made a kind of apology:
+      this, from a man of his redoubted powers, was a vast concession. I renewed
+      my argument with a fearless glow; carried the case through triumphantly,
+      and the man was acquitted.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;This was the making of me. Everybody was curious to know who this new
+      lawyer was, that had thus suddenly risen among them, and bearded the
+      attorney-general at the very outset. The story of my debut at the inn on
+      the preceding evening, when I had knocked down a bully, and kicked him out
+      of doors for striking an old man, was circulated with favorable
+      exaggerations. Even my very beardless chin and juvenile countenance were
+      in my favor, for people gave me far more credit than I really deserved.
+      The chance business which occurs in our country courts came thronging upon
+      me. I was repeatedly employed in other causes; and by Saturday night, when
+      the court closed, and I had paid my bill at the inn, I found myself with a
+      hundred and fifty dollars in silver, three hundred dollars in notes, and a
+      horse that I afterward sold for two hundred dollars more.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Never did miser gloat on his money with more delight. I locked the door
+      of my room; piled the money in a heap upon the table; walked round it; sat
+      with my elbows on the table, and my chin upon my hands, and gazed upon it.
+      Was I thinking of the money? No! I was thinking of my little wife at home.
+      Another sleepless night ensued; but what a night of golden fancies, and
+      splendid air-castle! As soon as morning dawned, I was up, mounted the
+      borrowed horse with which I had come to court, and led the other which I
+      had received as a fee. All the way I was delighting myself with the
+      thoughts of the surprise I had in store for my little wife; for both of us
+      had expected nothing but that I should spend all the money I had borrowed,
+      and should return in debt.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Our meeting was joyous, as you may suppose: but I played the part of the
+      Indian, hunter, who, when he returns from the chase, never for a time
+      speaks of his success. She had prepared a snug little rustic meal for me,
+      and while it was getting ready I seated myself at an old-fashioned desk in
+      one corner, and began to count over my money, and put it away. She came to
+      me before I had finished, and asked who I had collected the money for.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;&lsquo;For myself, to be sure,&rsquo; replied I, with affected coolness; &lsquo;I made it
+      at court.&rsquo;
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;She looked me for a moment in the face, incredulously. I tried to keep my
+      countenance, and to play Indian, but it would not do. My muscles began to
+      twitch; my feelings all at once gave way. I caught her in my arms;
+      laughed, cried, and danced about the room, like a crazy man. From that
+      time forward, we never wanted for money.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;I had not been long in successful practice, when I was surprised one day
+      by a visit from my woodland patron, old Miller. The tidings of my
+      prosperity had reached him in the wilderness, and he had walked one
+      hundred and fifty miles on foot to see me. By that tame I had improved my
+      domestic establishment, and had all things comfortable about me. He looked
+      around him with a wondering eye, at what he considered luxuries and
+      superfluities; but supposed they were all right in my altered
+      circumstances. He said he did not know, upon the whole, but that I had
+      acted for the best It is true, if game had continued plenty, it would have
+      been a folly for me to quit a hunter&rsquo;s life; but hunting was pretty nigh
+      done up in Kentucky. The buffalo had gone to Missouri; the elk were nearly
+      gone also; deer, too, were growing scarce; they might last out his time,
+      as he was growing old, but they were not worth setting up life upon. He
+      had once lived on the borders of Virginia. Game grew scarce there; he
+      followed it up across Kentucky, and now it was again giving him the slip;
+      but he was too old to follow it further.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;He remained with us three days. My wife did everything in her power to
+      make him comfortable; but at the end of that time he said he must be off
+      again to the woods. He was tired of the village, and of having so many
+      people about him. He accordingly returned to the wilderness and to hunting
+      life. But I fear he did not make a good end of it; for I understand that a
+      few years before his death he married Sukey Thomas, who lived at the White
+      Oak Run.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      <br /><br />
+    </p>
+    <hr />
+    <p>
+      <a name="link2H_4_0014" id="link2H_4_0014"> </a>
+    </p>
+    <div style="height: 4em;">
+      <br /><br /><br /><br />
+    </div>
+    <h2>
+      THE SEMINOLES
+    </h2>
+    <p>
+      From the time of the chimerical cruising of Old Ponce de Leon in search of
+      the Fountain of Youth, the avaricious expedition of Pamphilo de Narvaez in
+      quest of gold, and the chivalrous enterprise of Hernando de Soto, to
+      discover and conquer a second Mexico, the natives of Florida have been
+      continually subjected to the invasions and encroachments of white men.
+      They have resisted them perseveringly but fruitlessly, and are now
+      battling amid swamps and morasses for the last foothold of their native
+      soil, with all the ferocity of despair. Can we wonder at the bitterness of
+      a hostility that has been handed down from father to son, for upward of
+      three centuries, and exasperated by the wrongs and miseries of each
+      succeeding generation! The very name of the savages with which we are
+      fighting betokens their fallen and homeless condition. Formed of the
+      wrecks of once powerful tribes, and driven from their ancient seats of
+      prosperity and dominion, they are known by the name of the Seminoles, or
+      &ldquo;Wanderers.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      Bartram, who traveled through Florida in the latter part of the last
+      century, speaks of passing through a great extent of ancient Indian
+      fields, now silent and deserted, overgrown with forests, orange groves,
+      and rank vegetation, the site of the ancient Alachua, the capital of a
+      famous and powerful tribe, who in days of old could assemble thousands at
+      bull-play and other athletic exercises &ldquo;over these then happy fields and
+      green plains.&rdquo; &ldquo;Almost every step we take,&rdquo; adds he, &ldquo;over these fertile
+      heights, discovers the remains and traces of ancient human habitations and
+      cultivation.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      About the year 1763, when Florida was ceded by the Spaniards to the
+      English, we are told that the Indians generally retired from the towns and
+      the neighborhood of the whites, and burying themselves in the deep
+      forests, intricate swamps and hommocks, and vast savannas of the interior,
+      devoted themselves to a pastoral life, and the rearing of horses and
+      cattle. These are the people that received the name of the Seminoles, or
+      Wanderers, which they still retain.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Bartram gives a pleasing picture of them at the time he visited them in
+      their wilderness; where their distance from the abodes of the white man
+      gave them a transient quiet and security. &ldquo;This handful of people,&rdquo; says
+      he, &ldquo;possesses a vast territory, all East and the greatest part of West
+      Florida, which being naturally cut and divided into thousands of islets,
+      knolls, and eminences, by the innumerable rivers, lakes, swamps, vast
+      savannas, and ponds, form so many secure retreats and temporary
+      dwelling-places that effectually guard them from any sudden invasions or
+      attacks from their enemies; and being such a swampy, hommocky country,
+      furnishes such a plenty and variety of supplies for the nourishment of
+      varieties of animals that I can venture to assert that no part of the
+      globe so abounds with wild game, or creatures fit for the food of man.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Thus they enjoy a superabundance of the necessaries and conveniences of
+      life, with the security of person and property, the two great concerns of
+      mankind. The hides of deer, bears, tigers, and wolves, together with
+      honey, wax, and other productions of the country, purchase their clothing
+      equipage and domestic utensils from the whites. They seem to be free from
+      want or desires. No cruel enemy to dread; nothing to give them disquietude
+      but the gradual encroachments of the white people. Thus contented and
+      undisturbed, they appear as blithe and free as the birds of the air, and
+      like them as volatile and active, tuneful and vociferous. The visage,
+      action, and deportment of the Seminoles form the most striking picture of
+      happiness in this life; joy, contentment, love, and friendship, without
+      guile or affectation, seem inherent in them, or predominant in their vital
+      principle, for it leaves them with but the last breath of life.... They
+      are fond of games and gambling, and amuse themselves like children, in
+      relating extravagant stories, to cause surprise and mirth.&rdquo; [Footnote:
+      Bartram&rsquo;s Travels in North America.]
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The same writer gives an engaging picture of his treatment by these
+      savages:
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Soon after entering the forests, we were met in the path by a small
+      company of Indians, smiling and beckoning to us long before we joined
+      them. This was a family of Talahasochte, who had been out on a hunt and
+      were returning home loaded with barbecued meat, hides, and honey. Their
+      company consisted of the man, his wife and children, well mounted on fine
+      horses, with a number of pack-horses. The man offered us a fawn skin of
+      honey, which I accepted, and at parting presented him with some
+      fish-hooks, sewing-needles, etc.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;On our return to camp in the evening, we were saluted by a party of young
+      Indian warriors, who had pitched their tents on a green eminence near the
+      lake, at a small distance from our camp, under a little grove of oaks and
+      palms. This company consisted of seven young Seminoles, under the conduct
+      of a young prince or chief of Talahasochte, a town southward in the
+      isthmus. They were all dressed and painted with singular elegance, and
+      richly ornamented with silver plates, chains, etc., after the Seminole
+      mode, with waving plumes of feathers on their crests. On our coming up to
+      them, they arose and shook hands; we alighted and sat a while with them by
+      their cheerful fire.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;The young prince informed our chief that he was in pursuit of a young
+      fellow who had fled from the town carrying off with him one of his
+      favorite young wives. He said, merrily, he would have the ears of both of
+      them before he returned. He was rather above the middle stature, and the
+      most perfect human figure I ever saw; of an amiable, engaging countenance,
+      air, and deportment; free and familiar in conversation, yet retaining a
+      becoming gracefulness and dignity. We arose, took leave of them, and
+      crossed a little vale, covered with a charming green turf, already
+      illuminated by the soft light of the full moon.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Soon after joining our companions at camp, our neighbors, the prince and
+      his associates, paid us a visit. We treated them with the best fare we
+      had, having till this time preserved our spirituous liquors. They left us
+      with perfect cordiality and cheerfulness, wishing us a good repose, and
+      retired to their own camp. Having a band of music with them, consisting of
+      a drum, flutes, and a rattle-gourd, they entertained us during the night
+      with their music, vocal and instrumental.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;There is a languishing softness and melancholy air in the Indian
+      convivial songs, especially of the amorous class, irresistibly moving
+      attention, and exquisitely pleasing, especially in their solitary
+      recesses, when all nature is silent.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      Travelers who have been among them, in more recent times, before they had
+      embarked in their present desperate struggle, represent them in much the
+      same light; as leading a pleasant, indolent life, in a climate that
+      required little shelter or clothing, and where the spontaneous fruits of
+      the earth furnished subsistence without toil. A cleanly race, delighting
+      in bathing, passing much of their time under the shade of their trees,
+      with heaps of oranges and other fine fruits for their refreshment;
+      talking, laughing, dancing and sleeping. Every chief had a fan hanging to
+      his side, made of feathers of the wild turkey, the beautiful pink-colored
+      crane, or the scarlet flamingo. With this he would sit and fan himself
+      with great stateliness, while the young people danced before him. The
+      women joined in the dances with the men, excepting the war-dances. They
+      wore strings of tortoise-shells and pebbles round their legs, which
+      rattled in cadence to the music. They were treated with more attention
+      among the Seminoles than among most Indian tribes.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      <br /><br />
+    </p>
+    <hr />
+    <p>
+      <a name="link2H_4_0015" id="link2H_4_0015"> </a>
+    </p>
+    <div style="height: 4em;">
+      <br /><br /><br /><br />
+    </div>
+    <h2>
+      ORIGIN OF THE WHITE, THE RED, AND THE BLACK MEN
+    </h2>
+    <h3>
+      A SEMINOLE TRADITION
+    </h3>
+    <p>
+      When the Floridas were erected into a territory of the United States, one
+      of the earliest cares of the Governor, William P. Duval, was directed to
+      the instruction and civilization of the natives. For this purpose he
+      called a meeting of the chiefs, in which he informed them of the wish of
+      their Great Father at Washington that they should have schools and
+      teachers among them, and that their children should be instructed like the
+      children of white men. The chiefs listened with their customary silence
+      and decorum to a long speech, setting forth the advantages that would
+      accrue to them from this measure, and when he had concluded, begged the
+      interval of a day to deliberate on it.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      On the following day a solemn convocation was held, at which one of the
+      chiefs addressed the governor in the name of all the rest. &ldquo;My brother,&rdquo;
+       said he, &ldquo;we have been thinking over the proposition of our Great Father
+      at Washington, to send teachers and set up schools among us. We are very
+      thankful for the interest be takes in our welfare; but after much
+      deliberation have concluded to decline his offer. What will do very well
+      for white men will not do for red men. I know you white men say we all
+      come from the same father and mother, but you are mistaken. We have a
+      tradition handed down from our forefathers, and we believe it, that the
+      Great Spirit, when he undertook to make men, made the black man; it was
+      his first attempt, and pretty well for a beginning; but he soon saw he had
+      bungled; so he determined to try his hand again. He did so, and made the
+      red man. He liked him much better than the black man, but still he was not
+      exactly what he wanted. So he tried once more, and made the white man; and
+      then he was satisfied. You see, therefore, that you were made last, and
+      that is the reason I call you my youngest brother.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;When the Great Spirit had made the three men, he called them together and
+      showed them three boxes. The first was filled with books, and maps, and
+      papers; the second with bows and arrows, knives and tomahawks; the third
+      with spades, axes, hoes, and hammers. &lsquo;These, my sons,&rsquo; said he, &lsquo;are the
+      means by which you are to live: choose among them according to your
+      fancy.&rsquo;
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;The white man, being the favorite, had the first choice. He passed by the
+      box of working-tools without notice; but when he came to the weapons for
+      war and hunting, he stopped and looked hard at them. The red man trembled,
+      for he had set his heart upon that box. The white man, however, after
+      looking upon it for a moment, passed on, and chose the box of books and
+      papers. The red man&rsquo;s turn came next; and you may be sure he seized with
+      joy upon the bows and arrows and tomahawks. As to the black man, he had no
+      choice left but to put up with the box of tools.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;From this it is clear that the Great Spirit intended the white man should
+      learn to read and write; to understand all about the moon and stars; and
+      to make everything, even rum and whisky. That the red man should be a
+      first-rate hunter, and a mighty warrior, but he was not to learn anything
+      from books, as the Great Spirit had not given him any: nor was he to make
+      rum and whisky, lest he should kill himself with drinking. As to the black
+      man, as he had nothing but working-tools, it was clear he was to work for
+      the white and red man, which he has continued to do.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;We must go according to the wishes of the Great Spirit, or we shall get
+      into trouble. To know how to read and write is very good for white men,
+      but very bad for red men. It makes white men better, but red men worse.
+      Some of the Creeks and Cherokees learned to read and write, and they are
+      the greatest rascals among all the Indians. They went on to Washington,
+      and said they were going to see their Great Father, to talk about the good
+      of the nation. And when they got there, they all wrote upon a little piece
+      of paper, without the nation at home knowing anything about it. And the
+      first thing the nation at home knew of the matter, they were called
+      together by the Indian agent, who showed them a little piece of paper,
+      which he told them was a treaty, which their brethren had made in their
+      name, with their Great Father at Washington. And as they knew not what a
+      treaty was, he held up the little piece of paper, and they looked under
+      it, and lo! it covered a great extent of country, and they found that
+      their brethren, by knowing how to read and write, had sold their houses
+      and their lands and the graves of their fathers; and that the white man,
+      by knowing how to read and write, had gained them. Tell our Great Father
+      at Washington, therefore, that we are very sorry we cannot receive
+      teachers among us; for reading and writing, though very good for white
+      men, is very bad for the Indians.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      <br /><br />
+    </p>
+    <hr />
+    <p>
+      <a name="link2H_4_0016" id="link2H_4_0016"> </a>
+    </p>
+    <div style="height: 4em;">
+      <br /><br /><br /><br />
+    </div>
+    <h2>
+      THE CONSPIRACY OF NEAMATHLA
+    </h2>
+    <h3>
+      AN AUTHENTIC SKETCH
+    </h3>
+    <p>
+      In the autumn of 1823, Governor Duval, and other commissioners on the part
+      of the United States, concluded a treaty with the chiefs and warriors of
+      the Florida Indians, by which the latter, for certain considerations,
+      ceded all claims to the whole territory, excepting a district in the
+      eastern part, to which they were to remove, and within which they were to
+      reside for twenty years. Several of the chiefs signed the treaty with
+      great reluctance; but none opposed it more strongly than Neamathla,
+      principal chief of the Mickasookies, a fierce and warlike people, many of
+      them Creeks by origin, who lived about the Mickasookie lake. Neamathla had
+      always been active in those depredations on the frontiers of Georgia which
+      had brought vengeance and ruin on the Seminoles. He was a remarkable man;
+      upward of sixty years of age, about six feet high, with a fine eye, and a
+      strongly marked countenance, over which he possessed great command. His
+      hatred of the white men appeared to be mixed with contempt: on the common
+      people he looked down with infinite scorn. He seemed unwilling to
+      acknowledge any superiority of rank or dignity in Governor Duval, claiming
+      to associate with him on terms of equality, as two great chieftains.
+      Though he had been prevailed upon to sign the treaty, his heart revolted
+      at it. In one of his frank conversations with Governor Duval, he observed:
+      &ldquo;This country belongs to the red man; and if I had the number of warriors
+      at my command that this nation once had I would not leave a white man on
+      my lands. I would exterminate the whole. I can say this to you, for you
+      can understand me: you are a man; but I would not say it to your people.
+      They&rsquo;d cry out I was a savage, and would take my life. They cannot
+      appreciate the feelings of a man that loves his country.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      As Florida had but recently been erected into a territory, everything as
+      yet was in rude and simple style. The governor, to make himself acquainted
+      with the Indians, and to be near at hand to keep an eye upon them, fixed
+      his residence at Tallahassee, near the Fowel towns, inhabited by the
+      Mickasookies. His government palace for a time was a mere log house, and
+      he lived on hunters&rsquo; fare. The village of Neamathla was but about three
+      miles off, and thither the governor occasionally rode, to visit the old
+      chieftain. In one of these visits he found Neamathla seated in his wigwam,
+      in the center of the village, surrounded by his warriors. The governor had
+      brought him some liquor as a present, but it mounted quickly into his
+      brain and rendered him quite boastful and belligerent. The theme ever
+      uppermost in his mind was the treaty with the whites. &ldquo;It was true,&rdquo; he
+      said, &ldquo;the red men had made such a treaty, but the white men had not acted
+      up to it. The red men had received none of the money and the cattle that
+      had been promised them: the treaty, therefore, was at an end, and they did
+      not mean to be bound by it.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      Governor Duval calmly represented to him that the time appointed in the
+      treaty for the payment and delivery of the money and the cattle had not
+      yet arrived. This the old chieftain knew full well, but he chose, for the
+      moment, to pretend ignorance. He kept on drinking and talking, his voice
+      growing louder and louder, until it resounded all over the village. He
+      held in his hand a long knife, with which he had been rasping tobacco;
+      this he kept flourishing backward and forward, as he talked, by way of
+      giving effect to his words, brandishing it at times within an inch of the
+      governor&rsquo;s throat. He concluded his tirade by repeating that the country
+      belonged to the red men, and that sooner than give it up his bones and the
+      bones of his people should bleach upon its soil.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Duval saw that the object of all this bluster was to see whether he could
+      be intimidated. He kept his eye, therefore, fixed steadily on the chief,
+      and the moment he concluded with his menace, seized him by the bosom of
+      his hunting shirt, and clinching his other fist:
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;I&rsquo;ve heard what you have said,&rdquo; replied he. &ldquo;You have made a treaty, yet
+      you say your bones shall bleach before you comply with it. As sure as
+      there is a sun in heaven, your bones <i>shall</i> bleach, if you do not
+      fulfill every article of that treaty I I&rsquo;ll let you know that I am <i>first</i>
+      here, and will see that you do your duty!&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      Upon this, the old chieftain threw himself back, burst into a fit of
+      laughing, and declared that all he had said was in joke. The governor
+      suspected, however, that there was a grave meaning at the bottom of this
+      jocularity.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      For two months, everything went on smoothly: the Indians repaired daily to
+      the log-cabin palace of the governor, at Tallahassee, and appeared
+      perfectly contented. All at once they ceased their visits, and for three
+      or four days not one was to be seen. Governor Duval began to apprehend
+      that some mischief was brewing. On the evening of the fourth day a chief
+      named Yellow-Hair, a resolute, intelligent fellow, who had always evinced
+      an attachment for the governor, entered his cabin about twelve o&rsquo;clock at
+      night, and informed him that between four and five hundred warriors,
+      painted and decorated, were assembled to hold a secret war-talk at
+      Neamathla&rsquo;s town. He had slipped off to give intelligence, at the risk of
+      his life, and hastened back lest his absence should be discovered.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Governor Duval passed an anxious night after this intelligence. He knew
+      the talent and the daring character of Neamathla; he recollected the
+      threats he had thrown out; he reflected that about eighty white families
+      were scattered widely apart, over a great extent of country, and might be
+      swept away at once, should the Indians, as he feared, determine to clear
+      the country. That he did not exaggerate the dangers of the case has been
+      proved by the horrid scenes of Indian warfare that have since desolated
+      that devoted region. After a night of sleepless cogitation, Duval
+      determined on a measure suited to his prompt and resolute character.
+      Knowing the admiration of the savages for personal courage, he determined,
+      by a sudden surprise, to endeavor to overawe and check them. It was
+      hazarding much; but where so many lives were in jeopardy, he felt bound to
+      incur the hazard.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Accordingly, on the next morning, he set off on horseback, attended merely
+      by a white man who had been reared among the Seminoles, and understood
+      their language and manners, and who acted as interpreter. They struck into
+      an Indian &ldquo;trail,&rdquo; leading to Neamathla&rsquo;s village. After proceeding about
+      half a mile, Governor Duval informed the interpreter of the object of his
+      expedition. The latter, though a bold man, paused and remonstrated. The
+      Indians among whom they were going were among the most desperate and
+      discontented of the nation. Many of them were veteran warriors,
+      impoverished and exasperated by defeat, and ready to set their lives at
+      any hazard. He said that if they were holding a war council, it must be
+      with desperate intent, and it would be certain death to intrude among
+      them.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Duval made light of his apprehensions: he said he was perfectly well
+      acquainted with the Indian character, and should certainly proceed. So
+      saying, he rode on. When within half a mile of the village, the
+      interpreter addressed him again, in such a tremulous tone that Duval
+      turned and looked him in the face. He was deadly pale, and once more urged
+      the governor to return, as they would certainly be massacred if they
+      proceeded.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Duval repeated his determination to go on, but advised the other to
+      return, lest his pale face should betray fear to the Indians, and they
+      might take advantage of it. The interpreter replied that he would rather
+      die a thousand deaths than have it said he had deserted his leader when in
+      peril.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Duval then told him he must translate faithfully all he should say to the
+      Indians, without softening a word. The interpreter promised faithfully to
+      do so, adding that he well knew, when they were once in the town, nothing
+      but boldness could save them.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      They now rode into the village, and advanced to the council house. This
+      was rather a group of four houses, forming a square, in the center of
+      which was a great council-fire. The houses were open in front, toward the
+      fire, and closed in the rear. At each corner of the square there was an
+      interval between the houses, for ingress and egress. In these houses sat
+      the old men and the chiefs; the young men were gathered round the fire.
+      Neamathla presided at the council, elevated on a higher seat than the
+      rest.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Governor Duval entered by one of the corner intervals, and rode boldly
+      into the center of the square. The young men made way for him; an old man
+      who was speaking paused in the midst of his harangue. In an instant thirty
+      or forty rifles were cocked and leveled. Never had Duval heard so loud a
+      click of triggers; it seemed to strike on his heart. He gave one glance at
+      the Indians, and turned off with an air of contempt. He did not dare, he
+      says, to look again, lest it might affect his nerves; and on the firmness
+      of his nerves everything depended.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The chief threw up his arm. The rifles were lowered. Duval breathed more
+      freely: he felt disposed to leap from his horse, but restrained himself,
+      and dismounted leisurely. He then walked deliberately up to Neamathla, and
+      demanded, in an authoritative tone, what were his motives for holding that
+      council. The moment he made this demand the orator sat down. The chief
+      made no reply, but hung his head in apparent confusion. After a moment&rsquo;s
+      pause, Duval proceeded:
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;I am well aware of the meaning of this war-council; and deem it my duty
+      to warn you against prosecuting the schemes you have been devising. If a
+      single hair of a white man in this country falls to the ground, I will
+      hang you and your chiefs on the trees around your council house! You
+      cannot pretend to withstand the power of the white men. You are in the
+      palm of the hand of your Great Father at Washington, who can crush you
+      like an egg-shell. You may kill me: I am but one man; but recollect, white
+      men are numerous as the leaves on the trees. Remember the fate of your
+      warriors whose bones are whitening in battlefields. Remember your wives
+      and children who perished in swamps. Do you want to provoke more
+      hostilities? Another war with the white men, and there will not be a
+      Seminole left to tell the story of his race.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      Seeing the effect of his words, he concluded by appointing a day for the
+      Indians to meet him at St. Marks, and give an account of their conduct. He
+      then rode off, without giving them time to recover from their surprise.
+      That night he rode forty miles to Apalachicola River, to the tribe of the
+      same name, who were in feud with the Seminoles. They promptly put two
+      hundred and fifty warriors at his disposal, whom he ordered to be at St.
+      Marks at the appointed day. He sent out runners, also, and mustered one
+      hundred of the militia to repair to the same place, together with a number
+      of regulars from the army. All his arrangements were successful.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Having taken these measures, he returned to Tallahassee, to the
+      neighborhood of the conspirators, to show them that he was not afraid.
+      Here he ascertained, through Yellow-Hair, that nine towns were
+      disaffected, and had been concerned in the conspiracy. He was careful to
+      inform himself, from the same source, of the names of the warriors in each
+      of those towns who were most popular, though poor, and destitute of rank
+      and command.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      When the appointed day was at hand for the meeting at St. Marks, Governor
+      Duval set off with Neamathla, who was at the head of eight or nine hundred
+      warriors, but who feared to venture into the fort without him. As they
+      entered the fort, and saw troops and militia drawn up there, and a force
+      of Apalachicola soldiers stationed on the opposite bank of the river, they
+      thought they were betrayed, and were about to fly; but Duval assured them
+      they were safe, and that when the talk was over they might go home
+      unmolested.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      A grand talk was now held, in which the late conspiracy was discussed. As
+      he had foreseen, Neamathla and the other old chiefs threw all the blame
+      upon the young men, &ldquo;Well,&rdquo; replied Duval, &ldquo;with us white men, when we
+      find a man incompetent to govern those under him, we put him down, and
+      appoint another in his place. Now as you all acknowledge you cannot manage
+      your young men, we must put chiefs over them who can.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      So saying, he deposed Neamathla first; appointing another in his place;
+      and so on with all the rest; taking care to substitute the warriors who
+      had been pointed out to him as poor and popular; putting medals round
+      their necks, and investing them with great ceremony. The Indians were
+      surprised and delighted at finding the appointments fall upon the very men
+      they would themselves have chosen, and hailed them with acclamations. The
+      warriors thus unexpectedly elevated to command, and clothed with dignity,
+      were secured to the interests of the governor, and sure to keep an eye on
+      the disaffected. As to the great chief Neamathla, he left the country in
+      disgust, and returned to the Creek nation, who elected him a chief of one
+      of their towns. Thus by the resolute spirit and prompt sagacity of one
+      man, a dangerous conspiracy was completely defeated. Governor Duval was
+      afterward enabled to remove the whole nation, through his own personal
+      influence, without the aid of the general government.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      To the Editor of the Knickerbocker:
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      SIR&mdash;The following letter was scribbled to a friend during my sojourn
+      in the Alhambra, in 1828. As it presents scenes and impressions noted down
+      at the time, I venture to offer it for the consideration of your readers.
+      Should it prove acceptable, I may from tune to time give other letters,
+      written in the course of my various ramblings, and which have been kindly
+      restored to me by my friends.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Yours, G. C.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      <br /><br />
+    </p>
+    <hr />
+    <p>
+      <a name="link2H_4_0017" id="link2H_4_0017"> </a>
+    </p>
+    <div style="height: 4em;">
+      <br /><br /><br /><br />
+    </div>
+    <h2>
+      LETTER FROM GRANADA
+    </h2>
+    <h3>
+      GRANADA, 1828.
+    </h3>
+    <p>
+      My Dear&mdash;: Religious festivals furnish, in all Catholic countries,
+      occasions of popular pageant and recreation; but in none more so than in
+      Spain, where the great end of religion seems to be to create holidays and
+      ceremonials. For two days past, Granada has been in a gay turmoil with the
+      great annual fete of Corpus Christi. This most eventful and romantic city,
+      as you well know, has ever been the rallying point of a mountainous
+      region, studded with small towns and villages. Hither, during the time
+      that Granada was the splendid capital of a Moorish kingdom, the Moslem
+      youth repaired from all points, to participate in chivalrous festivities;
+      and hither the Spanish populace at the present day throng from all parts
+      of the surrounding country to attend the festivals of the church.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      As the populace like to enjoy things from the very commencement, the stir
+      of Corpus Christ! began in Granada on the preceding evening. Before dark
+      the gates of the city were thronged with the picturesque peasantry from
+      the mountain villages, and the brown laborers from the Vega, or vast
+      fertile plain. As the evening advanced, the Vivarambla thickened and
+      swarmed with a motley multitude. This is the great square in the center of
+      the city, famous for tilts and tourneys during the times of Moorish
+      domination, and incessantly mentioned in all the old Moorish ballads of
+      love and chivalry. For several days the hammer had resounded throughout
+      this square. A gallery of wood had been erected all round it, forming a
+      covered way for the grand procession of Corpus Christi. On this eve of the
+      ceremonial this gallery was a fashionable promenade. It was brilliantly
+      illuminated, bands of music were stationed in balconies on the four sides
+      of the square, and all the fashion and beauty of Granada, and all its
+      population that could boast a little finery of apparel, together with the
+      majos and majas, the beaux and belles of the villages, in their gay
+      Andalusian costumes, thronged this covered walk, anxious to see and to be
+      seen. As to the sturdy peasantry of the Vega, and such of the mountaineers
+      as did not pretend to display, but were content with hearty enjoyment,
+      they swarmed in the center of the square; some in groups listening to the
+      guitar and the traditional ballad; some dancing their favorite bolero;
+      some seated on the ground making a merry though frugal supper; and some
+      stretched out for their night&rsquo;s repose.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The gay crowd of the gallery dispersed gradually toward midnight; but the
+      center of the square resembled the bivouac of an army; for hundreds of the
+      peasantry, men, women, and children, passed the night there, sleeping
+      soundly on the bare earth, under the open canopy of heaven. A summer&rsquo;s
+      night requires no shelter in this genial climate; and with a great part of
+      the hardy peasantry of Spain a bed is a superfluity which many of them
+      never enjoy, and which they affect to despise. The common Spaniard spreads
+      out his manta, or mule-cloth, or wraps himself in his cloak, and lies on
+      the ground, with his saddle for a pillow.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The next morning I revisited the square at sunrise. It was still strewed
+      with groups of sleepers; some were reposing from the dance and revel of
+      the evening; others had left their villages after work, on the preceding
+      day, and having trudged on foot the greater part of the night, were taking
+      a sound sleep to freshen them for the festivities of the day. Numbers from
+      the mountains, and the remote villages of the plain, who had set out in
+      the night, continued to arrive, with their wives and children. All were in
+      high spirits; greeting each other, and exchanging jokes and pleasantries.
+      The gay tumult thickened as the day advanced. Now came pouring in at the
+      city gates, and parading through the streets, the deputations from the
+      various villages, destined to swell the grand procession. These village
+      deputations were headed by their priests, bearing their respective crosses
+      and banners, and images of the Blessed Virgin and of patron saints; all
+      which were matters of great rivalship and jealousy among the peasantry. It
+      was like the chivalrous gatherings of ancient days, when each town and
+      village sent its chiefs, and warriors, and standards, to defend the
+      capital or grace its festivities.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      At length, all these various detachments congregated into one grand
+      pageant, which slowly paraded round the Vivarambla, and through the
+      principal streets, where every window and balcony was hung with tapestry.
+      In this procession were all the religious orders, the civil and military
+      authorities, and the chief people of the parishes and villages; every
+      church and convent had contributed its banners, its images, its relics,
+      and poured forth its wealth for the occasion. In the center of the
+      procession walked the archbishop, under a damask canopy, and surrounded by
+      inferior dignitaries and their dependents. The whole moved to the swell
+      and cadence of numerous bands of music, and, passing through the midst of
+      a countless yet silent multitude, proceeded onward to the cathedral.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      I could not but be struck with the changes of times and customs, as I saw
+      this monkish pageant passing through the Vivarambla, the ancient seat of
+      Moslem pomp and chivalry. The contrast was indeed forced upon the mind by
+      the decorations of the square. The whole front of the wooden gallery
+      erected for the procession, extending several hundred feet, was faced with
+      canvas, on which some humble though patriotic artist had painted, by
+      contract, a series of the principal scenes and exploits of the conquest,
+      as recorded in chronicle and romance. It is thus the romantic legends of
+      Granada mingle themselves with everything, and are kept fresh in the
+      public mind. Another great festival at Granada, answering in its popular
+      character to our Fourth of July, is <i>El Dia de la Toma</i>; &ldquo;The day of
+      the Capture&rdquo;; that is to say, the anniversary of the capture of the city
+      by Ferdinand and Isabella. On this day all Granada is abandoned to
+      revelry. The alarm-bell on the Terre de la Campana, or watch-tower of the
+      Alhambra, keeps up a clangor from morn till night; and happy is the damsel
+      that can ring that bell; it is a charm to secure a husband in the course
+      of the year.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The sound, which can be heard over the whole Vega, and to the top of the
+      mountains, summons the peasantry to the festivities. Throughout the day
+      the Alhambra is thrown open to the public. The halls and courts of the
+      Moorish monarchs resound with the guitar and castanet, and gay groups, in
+      the fanciful dresses of Andalusia, perform those popular dances which they
+      have inherited from the Moors.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      In the meantime a grand procession moves through the city. The banner of
+      Ferdinand and Isabella, that precious relic of the conquest, is brought
+      forth from its depository, and borne by the Alferez Mayor, or grand
+      standard-bearer, through the principal streets. The portable camp-altar,
+      which was carried about with them in all their campaigns, is transported
+      into the chapel royal, and placed before their sepulcher, where their
+      effigies lie in monumental marble. The procession fills the chapel. High
+      mass is performed in memory of the conquest; and at a certain part of the
+      ceremony the Alferez Mayor puts on his hat, and waves the standard above
+      the tomb of the conquerors.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      A more whimsical memorial of the conquest is exhibited on the same evening
+      at the theater, where a popular drama is performed, entitled &ldquo;Ave Maria.&rdquo;
+       This turns on the oft-sung achievement of Hernando del Pulgar, surnamed El
+      de las Hazanas, &ldquo;He of the Exploits,&rdquo; the favorite hero of the populace of
+      Granada.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      During the time that Ferdinand and Isabella besieged the city, the young
+      Moorish and Spanish knights vied with each other in extravagant bravadoes.
+      On one occasion Hernando del Pulgar, at the head of a handful of youthful
+      followers, made a dash into Granada at the dead of night, nailed the
+      inscription of Ave Maria, with his dagger, to the gate of the principal
+      mosque, as a token of having consecrated it to the Virgin, and effected
+      his retreat in safety.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      While the Moorish cavaliers admired this daring exploit, they felt bound
+      to revenge it. On the following day, therefore, Tarfe, one of the stoutest
+      of the infidel warriors, paraded in front of the Christian army, dragging
+      the sacred inscription of Ave Maria at his horse&rsquo;s tail. The cause of the
+      Virgin was eagerly vindicated by Garcilaso de la Vega, who slew the Moor
+      in single combat, and elevated the inscription of Ave Maria, in devotion
+      and triumph, at the end of his lance.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The drama founded on this exploit is prodigiously popular with the common
+      people. Although it has been acted time out of mind, and the people have
+      seen it repeatedly, it never fails to draw crowds, and so completely to
+      engross the feelings of the audience, as to have almost the effect on them
+      of reality. When their favorite Pulgar strides about with many a mouthy
+      speech, in the very midst of the Moorish capital, he is cheered with
+      enthusiastic bravoes; and when he nails the tablet of Ave Maria to the
+      door of the mosque, the theater absolutely shakes with shouts and thunders
+      of applause. On the other hand, the actors who play the part of the Moors
+      have to bear the brunt of the temporary indignation of their auditors; and
+      when the infidel Tarfe plucks down the tablet to tie it to his horse&rsquo;s
+      tail, many of the people absolutely rise in fury, and are ready to jump
+      upon the stage to revenge this insult to the Virgin.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Besides this annual festival at the capital, almost every village of the
+      Vega and the mountains has its own anniversary, wherein its own
+      deliverance from the Moorish yoke is celebrated with uncouth ceremony and
+      rustic pomp.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      On these occasions a kind of resurrection takes place of ancient Spanish
+      dresses and armor; great two-handed swords, ponderous arquebuses, with
+      matchlocks, and other weapons and accouterments, once the equipments of
+      the village chivalry, and treasured up from generation to generation,
+      since the time of the conquest. In these hereditary and historical garbs
+      some of the most sturdy of the villagers array themselves as champions of
+      the faith, while its ancient opponents are represented by another band of
+      villagers, dressed up as Moorish warriors. A tent is pitched in the public
+      square of the village, within which is an altar and an image of the
+      Virgin. The Spanish warriors approach to perform their devotions at this
+      shrine, but are opposed by the infidel Moslems, who surround the tent. A
+      mock fight succeeds, in the course of which the combatants sometimes
+      forget that they are merely playing a part, and exchange dry blows of
+      grievous weight; the fictious Moors especially are apt to bear away pretty
+      evident marks of the pious zeal of their antagonists. The contest,
+      however, invariably terminates in favor of the good cause. The Moors are
+      defeated and taken prisoners. The image of the Virgin, rescued from
+      thralldom, is elevated in triumph; and a grand procession succeeds, in
+      which the Spanish conquerors figure with great vainglory and applause, and
+      their captives are led in chains, to the infinite delight and edification
+      of the populace. These annual festivals are the delight of the villagers,
+      who expend considerable sums in their celebration. In some villages they
+      are occasionally obliged to suspend them for want of funds; but when times
+      grow better, or they have been enabled to save money for the purpose, they
+      are revived with all their grotesque pomp and extravagance.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      To recur to the exploit of Hernando del Pulgar. However extravagant and
+      fabulous it may seem, it is authenticated by certain traditional usages,
+      and shows the vainglorious daring that prevailed between the youthful
+      warriors of both nations, in that romantic war. The mosque thus
+      consecrated to the Virgin was made the cathedral of the city after the
+      conquest; and there is a painting of the Virgin beside the royal chapel,
+      which was put there by Hernando del Pulgar. The lineal representative of
+      the hare-brained cavalier has the right to this day to enter the church,
+      on certain occasions, on horseback, to sit within the choir, and to put on
+      his hat at the elevation of the host, though these privileges have often
+      been obstinately contested by the clergy.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The present lineal representative of Hernando del Pulgar is the Marquis de
+      Salar, whom I have met occasionally in society. He is a young man of
+      agreeable appearance and manners, and his bright black eyes would give
+      indication of his inheriting the fire of his ancestor. When the paintings
+      were put up in the Vivarambla, illustrating the scenes of the conquest, an
+      old gray-headed family servant of the Pulgars was so delighted with those
+      which related to the family hero, that he absolutely shed tears, and
+      hurrying home to the marquis, urged him to hasten and behold the family
+      trophies. The sudden zeal of the old man provoked the mirth of his young
+      master; upon which, turning to the brother of the marquis, with that
+      freedom allowed to family servants in Spain, &ldquo;Come, señor,&rdquo; cried he, &ldquo;you
+      are more grave and considerate than your brother; come and see your
+      ancestor in all his glory!&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      <br /><br />
+    </p>
+    <hr />
+    <p>
+      <br /><br />
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Within two or three years after the above letter was written, the Marquis
+      de Salar was married to the beautiful daughter of the Count &mdash;&mdash;-,
+      mentioned by the author in his anecdotes of the Alhambra. The match was
+      very agreeable to all parties, and the nuptials were celebrated with great
+      festivity.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      <br /><br />
+    </p>
+    <hr />
+    <p>
+      <a name="link2H_4_0018" id="link2H_4_0018"> </a>
+    </p>
+    <div style="height: 4em;">
+      <br /><br /><br /><br />
+    </div>
+    <h2>
+      ABDERAHMAN
+    </h2>
+    <h3>
+      FOUNDER OF THE DYNASTY OF THE OMMIADES OF SPAIN
+    </h3>
+    <p>
+      <i>To the Editor of the Knickerbocker:</i>
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      SIR&mdash;In the following memoir I have conformed to the facts furnished
+      by the Arabian chroniclers, as cited by the learned Conde. The story of
+      Abderahman has almost the charm of romance; but it derives a higher
+      interest from the heroic yet gentle virtues which it illustrates, and from
+      recording the fortunes of the founder of that splendid dynasty, which shed
+      such a luster upon Spain during the domination of the Arabs. Abderahman
+      may, in some respects, be compared to our own Washington. He achieved the
+      independence of Moslem Spain, freeing it from subjection to the caliphs;
+      he united its jarring parts under one government; he ruled over it with
+      justice, clemency, and moderation; his whole course of conduct was
+      distinguished by wonderful forbearance and magnanimity; and when he died
+      he left a legacy of good example and good counsel to his successors.
+    </p>
+    <h3>
+      G.C.
+    </h3>
+    <p>
+      <br /><br />
+    </p>
+    <hr />
+    <p>
+      <br /><br />
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Blessed be God!&rdquo; exclaims an Arabian historian; &ldquo;in His hands alone is
+      the destiny of princes. He overthrows the mighty, and humbles the haughty
+      to the dust; and he raises up the persecuted and afflicted from the very
+      depths of despair!&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      The illustrious house of Omeya had swayed the scepter at Damascus for
+      nearly a century, when a rebellion broke out, headed by Aboul Abbas Safah,
+      who aspired to the throne of the caliphs, as being descended from Abbas,
+      the uncle of the prophet. The rebellion was successful. Marvau, the last
+      caliph of the house of Omeya, was defeated and slain. A general
+      proscription of the Ommiades took place. Many of them fell in battle; many
+      were treacherously slain, in places where they had taken refuge; above
+      seventy most noble and distinguished were murdered at a banquet to which
+      they had been invited, and their dead bodies covered with cloths, and made
+      to serve as tables for the horrible festivity. Others were driven forth,
+      forlorn and desolate wanderers in various parts of the earth, and pursued
+      with relentless hatred; for it was the determination of the usurper that
+      not one of the persecuted family should escape. Aboul Abbas took
+      possession of three stately palaces and delicious gardens, and founded the
+      powerful dynasty of the Abbassides, which, for several centuries,
+      maintained dominion in the east.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Blessed be God!&rdquo; again exclaims the Arabian historian; &ldquo;it was written in
+      His eternal decrees that, notwithstanding the fury of the Abbassides, the
+      noble stock of Omeya should not be destroyed. One fruitful branch remained
+      to nourish with glory and greatness in another land.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      When the sanguinary proscription of the Ommiades took place, two young
+      princes of that line, brothers, by the names of Solyman and Abderahman
+      were spared for a time. Their personal graces, noble demeanor, and winning
+      affability, had made them many friends, while their extreme youth rendered
+      them objects of but little dread to the usurper. Their safety, however,
+      was but transient. In a little while the suspicions of Aboul Abbas were
+      aroused. The unfortunate Solyman fell beneath the scimiter of the
+      executioner. His brother Abderahman was warned of his danger in time.
+      Several of his friends hastened to him, bringing him jewels, a disguise,
+      and a fleet horse. &ldquo;The emissaries of the caliph,&rdquo; said they, &ldquo;are in
+      search of thee; thy brother lies weltering in his blood; fly to the
+      desert! There is no safety for thee in the habitations of man!&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      Abderahman took the jewels, clad himself in the disguise, and mounting his
+      steed, fled for his life. As he passed, a lonely fugitive, by the palaces
+      of his ancestors, in which his family had long held sway, their very walls
+      seemed disposed to betray him, as they echoed the swift clattering of his
+      steed.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Abandoning his native country, Syria, where he was liable at each moment
+      to be recognized and taken, he took refuge among the Bedouin Arabs, a
+      half-savage race of shepherds. His youth, his inborn majesty and grace,
+      and the sweetness and affability that shone forth in his azure eyes, won
+      the hearts of these wandering men. He was but twenty years of age, and had
+      been reared in the soft luxury of a palace; but he was tall and vigorous,
+      and in a little while hardened himself so completely to the rustic life of
+      the fields that it seemed as though he had passed all his days in the rude
+      simplicity of a shepherd&rsquo;s cabin.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      His enemies, however, were upon his traces, and gave him but little rest.
+      By day he scoured the plain with the Bedouins, hearing in every blast the
+      sound of pursuit, and fancying in every distant cloud of dust a troop of
+      the caliph&rsquo;s horsemen. That night was passed in broken sleep and frequent
+      watchings, and at the earliest dawn he was the first to put the bridle to
+      his steed.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Wearied by these perpetual alarms, he bade farewell to his friendly
+      Bedouins, and leaving Egypt behind, sought a safer refuge in Western
+      Africa. The province of Barea was at that time governed by Aben Habib, who
+      had risen to rank and fortune under the fostering favor of the Ommiades.
+      &ldquo;Surely,&rdquo; thought the unhappy prince, &ldquo;I shall receive kindness and
+      protection from this man; he will rejoice to show his gratitude for the
+      benefits showered upon him by my kindred.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      Abderahman was young, and as yet knew little of mankind. None are so
+      hostile to the victim of power as those whom he has befriended. They fear
+      being suspected of gratitude by his persecutors, and involved in his
+      misfortunes.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The unfortunate Abderahman had halted for a few days to repose himself
+      among a horde of Bedouins, who had received him with their characteristic
+      hospitality. They would gather round him in the evenings, to listen to his
+      conversation, regarding with wonder this gently-spoken stranger from the
+      more refined country of Egypt. The old men marveled to find so much
+      knowledge and wisdom in such early youth, and the young men, won by his
+      frank and manly carriage, entreated him to remain among them.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      One night, when all were buried in sleep, they were roused by the tramp of
+      horsemen. The Wali Aben Habib, who, like all the governors of distant
+      ports, had received orders from the caliph to be on the watch for the
+      fugitive prince, had heard that a young man, answering the description,
+      had entered the province alone, from the frontiers of Egypt, on a steed
+      worn down by travel. He had immediately sent forth horsemen in his
+      pursuit, with orders to bring him to him dead or alive. The emissaries of
+      the Wali had traced him to his resting-place, and demanded of the Arabs
+      whether a young man, a stranger from Syria, did not sojourn among their
+      tribe. The Bedouins knew by the description that the stranger must be
+      their guest, and feared some evil was intended him. &ldquo;Such a youth,&rdquo; said
+      they, &ldquo;has indeed sojourned among us; but he has gone, with some of our
+      young men, to a distant valley, to hunt the lion.&rdquo; The emissaries inquired
+      the way to the place, and hastened on to surprise their expected prey.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The Bedouins repaired to Abderahman, who was still sleeping. &ldquo;If thou hast
+      aught to fear from man in power,&rdquo; said they, &ldquo;arise and fly; for the
+      horsemen of the Wali are in quest of thee! We have sent them off for a
+      time on a wrong errand, but they will soon return.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Alas! whither shall I fly!&rdquo; cried the unhappy prince; &ldquo;my enemies hunt me
+      like the ostrich of the desert. They follow me like the wind, and allow me
+      neither safety nor repose!&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      Six of the bravest youth of the tribe stepped forward. &ldquo;We have steeds,&rdquo;
+       said they, &ldquo;that can outstrip the wind, and hands that can hurl the
+      javelin. We will accompany thee in thy flight, and will fight by thy side
+      while life lasts, and we have weapons to wield.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      Abderahman embraced them with tears of gratitude. They mounted their
+      steeds, and made for the most lonely parts of the desert. By the faint
+      light of the stars, they passed through dreary wastes and over hills of
+      sand. The lion roared, and the hyena howled unheeded, for they fled from
+      man, more cruel and relentless, when in pursuit of blood, than the savage
+      beasts of the desert.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      At sunrise they paused to refresh themselves beside a scanty well,
+      surrounded by a few palm-trees. One of the young Arabs climbed a tree, and
+      looked in every direction, but not a horseman was to be seen.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;We have outstripped pursuit,&rdquo; said the Bedouins; &ldquo;whither shall we
+      conduct thee? Where is thy home and the land of thy people?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Home have I none!&rdquo; replied Abderahman, mournfully, &ldquo;nor family, nor
+      kindred! My native land is to me a land of destruction, and my people seek
+      my life!&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      The hearts of the youthful Bedouins were touched with compassion at these
+      words, and they marveled that one so young and gentle should have suffered
+      such great sorrow and persecution.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Abderahman sat by the well and mused for a time. At length, breaking
+      silence, &ldquo;In the midst of Mauritania,&rdquo; said he, &ldquo;dwells the tribe of
+      Zeneta. My mother was of that tribe; and perhaps when her son presents
+      himself, a persecuted wanderer, at their door, they will not turn him from
+      the threshold.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;The Zenetes,&rdquo; replied the Bedouins, &ldquo;are among the bravest and most
+      hospitable of the people of Africa. Never did the unfortunate seek refuge
+      among them in vain, nor was the stranger repulsed from their door.&rdquo; So
+      they mounted their steeds with renewed spirits, and journeyed with all
+      speed to Tahart, the capital of the Zenetes.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      When Abderahman entered the place, followed by his six rustic Arabs, all
+      wayworn and travel-stained, his noble and majestic demeanor shone through
+      the simple garb of a Bedouin. A crowd gathered around him, as he alighted
+      from his weary steed. Confiding in the well known character of the tribe,
+      he no longer attempted concealment.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;You behold before you,&rdquo; said he, &ldquo;one of the proscribed house of Omeya. I
+      am that Abderahman upon whose head a price has been set, and who has been
+      driven from land to land. I come to you as my kindred. My mother was of
+      your tribe, and she told me with her dying breath that in all time of need
+      I would find a home and friends among the Zenetes.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      The words of Abderahman went straight to the hearts of his hearers. They
+      pitied his youth and his great misfortunes, while they were charmed by his
+      frankness, and by the manly graces of his person. The tribe was of a bold
+      and generous spirit, and not to be awed by the frown of power. &ldquo;Evil be
+      upon us and upon our children,&rdquo; said they, &ldquo;if we deceive the trust thou
+      hast placed in us!&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      Then one of the noblest Xeques took Abderahman to his house, and treated
+      him as his own child; and the principal people of the tribe strove who
+      most should cherish him, and do him honor; endeavoring to obliterate by
+      their kindness the recollection of his past misfortunes.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Abderahman had resided some time among the hospitable Zenetes, when one
+      day two strangers, of venerable appearance, attended by a small retinue,
+      arrived at Tahart. They gave themselves out as merchants, and from the
+      simple style in which they traveled, excited no attention. In a little
+      while they sought out Abderahman, and, taking him apart: &ldquo;Hearken,&rdquo; said
+      they, &ldquo;Abderahman, of the royal line of Omeya; we are embassadors sent on
+      the part of the principal Moslems of Spain, to offer thee, not merely an
+      asylum, for that thou hast already among these brave Zenetes, but an
+      empire! Spain is a prey to distracting factions, and can no longer exist
+      as a dependency upon a throne too remote to watch over its welfare. It
+      needs to be independent of Asia and Africa, and to be under the government
+      of a good prince, who shall reside within it, and devote himself entirely
+      to its prosperity; a prince with sufficient title to silence all rival
+      claims, and bring the warring parties into unity and peace; and at the
+      same time with sufficient ability and virtue to insure the welfare of his
+      dominions. For this purpose the eyes of all the honorable leaders in Spain
+      have been turned to thee, as a descendant of the royal line of Omeya, and
+      an offset from the same stock as our holy prophet. They have heard of thy
+      virtues, and of thy admirable constancy under misfortunes; and invite thee
+      to accept the sovereignty of one of the noblest countries in the world.
+      Thou wilt have some difficulties to encounter from hostile men; but thou
+      wilt have on thy side the bravest captains that have signalized themselves
+      in the conquest of the unbelievers.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      The embassadors ceased, and Abderahman remained for a time lost in wonder
+      and admiration. &ldquo;God is great!&rdquo; exclaimed he, at length; &ldquo;there is but one
+      God, who is God, and Mahomet is his prophet! Illustrious embassadors, you
+      have put new life into my soul, for you have shown me something to live
+      for. In the few years that I have lived, troubles and sorrows have been
+      heaped upon my head, and I have become inured to hardships and alarms.
+      Since it is the wish of the valiant Moslems of Spain, I am willing to
+      become their leader and defender, and devote myself to their cause, be it
+      happy or disastrous.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      The embassadors now cautioned him to be silent as to their errand, and to
+      depart secretly for Spain. &ldquo;The seaboard of Africa,&rdquo; said they, &ldquo;swarms
+      with your enemies, and a powerful faction in Spain would intercept you on
+      landing, did they know your name and rank, and the object of your coming.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      But Abderahman replied: &ldquo;I have been cherished in adversity by these brave
+      Zenetes; I have been protected and honored by them, when a price was set
+      upon my head, and to harbor me was great peril. How can I keep my good
+      fortune from my benefactors, and desert their hospitable roofs in silence?
+      He is unworthy of friendship, who withholds confidence from his friend.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      Charmed with the generosity of his feelings, the embassadors made no
+      opposition to his wishes. The Zenetes proved themselves worthy of his
+      confidence. They hailed with joy the great change in his fortunes. The
+      warriors and the young men pressed forward to follow, and aid them with
+      horse and weapon; &ldquo;for the honor of a noble house and family,&rdquo; said they,
+      &ldquo;can be maintained only by lances and horsemen.&rdquo; In a few days he set
+      forth, with the embassadors, at the head of nearly a thousand horsemen
+      skilled in war, and exercised in the desert, and a large body of infantry,
+      armed with lances. The venerable Xeque, with whom he had resided, blessed
+      him and shed tears over him at parting, as though he had been his own
+      child; and when the youth passed over the threshold, the house was filled
+      with lamentations.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Abderahman reached Spain in safely, and landed at Almanecar, with his
+      little band of warlike Zenetes. Spain was at that time in a state of great
+      confusion. Upward of forty years had elapsed since the conquest. The civil
+      wars in Syria and Egypt had prevented the main government at Damascus from
+      exercising control over this distant and recently acquired territory.
+      Every Moslem commander considered the town or province committed to his
+      charge an absolute property; and accordingly exercised the most arbitrary
+      extortions. These excesses at length became insupportable, and, at a
+      convocation of many of the principal leaders, it was determined, as a
+      means to end these dissensions, to unite all the Moslem provinces of Spain
+      under one emir, or general governor. Yusuf el Fehri, an ancient man, of
+      honorable lineage, was chosen for this station. He began his reign with
+      policy, and endeavored to conciliate all parties; but the distribution of
+      offices soon created powerful enemies among the disappointed leaders. A
+      civil war was the consequence, and Spain was deluged with blood. The
+      troops of both parties burned and ravaged and laid every thing waste, to
+      distress their antagonists; the villages were abandoned by their
+      inhabitants, who fled to the cities for refuge; and flourishing towns
+      disappeared from the face of the earth, or remained mere heaps of rubbish
+      and ashes. At the time of the landing of Abderahman in Spain, the old Emir
+      Yusuf had obtained a signal victory. He had captured Saragossa, in which
+      was Ameer ben Amru, his principal enemy, together with his son and
+      secretary. Loading his prisoners with chains, and putting them on camels,
+      he set out in triumph for Cordova, considering himself secure in the
+      absolute domination of Spain.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      He had halted one day in a valley called Wadarambla, and was reposing with
+      his family in his pavilion, while his people and the prisoners made a
+      repast in the open air. In the midst of his repose, his confidential
+      adherent and general, the Wali Samael, galloped into the camp covered with
+      dust and exhausted with fatigue. He brought tidings of the arrival of
+      Abderahman and that the whole seaboard was flocking to his standard.
+      Messenger after messenger came hurrying into the camp, confirming the
+      fearful tidings, and adding that this descendant of the Omeyas had
+      secretly been invited to Spain by Amru and his followers. Yusuf waited not
+      to ascertain the truth of this accusation. Giving way to a transport of
+      fury, he ordered that Amru, his son and secretary, should be cut to
+      pieces. His commands were instantly executed. &ldquo;And this cruelty,&rdquo; says the
+      Arabian chronicler, &ldquo;lost him the favor of Allah; for from that time
+      success deserted his standard.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      Abderahman had indeed been hailed with joy on his landing in Spain. The
+      old people hoped to find tranquillity under the sway of one supreme
+      chieftain, descended from their ancient caliphs; the young men were
+      rejoiced to have a youthful warrior to lead them on to victories; and the
+      populace, charmed with his freshness and manly beauty, his majestic yet
+      gracious and affable demeanor, shouted: &ldquo;Long live Abderahman ben Moavia
+      Meramamolin of Spain!&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      In a few days the youthful sovereign saw himself at the head of more than
+      twenty thousand men, from the neighborhood of Elvira, Almeria, Malaga,
+      Xeres, and Sidonia. Fair Seville threw open its gates at his approach, and
+      celebrated his arrival with public rejoicings. He continued his march into
+      the country, vanquished one of the eons of Yusuf before the gates of
+      Cordova, and obliged him to take refuge within its walls, where he held
+      him in close siege. Hearing, however, of the approach of Yusuf, the
+      father, with a powerful army, he divided his forces, and leaving ten
+      thousand men to press the siege, he hastened with the other ten to meet
+      the coming foe.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Yusuf had indeed mustered a formidable force, from the east and south of
+      Spain, and accompanied by his veteran general, Samael, came with confident
+      boasting to drive this intruder from the land. His confidence increased on
+      beholding the small army of Abderahman. Turning to Samael, he repeated,
+      with a scornful sneer, a verse from an Arabian poetess, which says:
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;How hard is our lot! We come, a thirsty multitude, and lo! but this cup
+      of water to share among us!&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      There was indeed a fearful odds. On the one side were two veteran
+      generals, grown gray in victory, with a mighty host of warriors, seasoned
+      in the wars of Spain. On the other side was a mere youth, scarce attained
+      to manhood, with a hasty levy of half-disciplined troops; but the youth
+      was a prince, flushed with hope, and aspiring after fame and empire; and
+      surrounded by a devoted band of warriors from Africa, whose example
+      infused desperate zeal into the little army.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The encounter took place at daybreak. The impetuous valor of the Zenetes
+      carried everything before it. The cavalry of Yusuf was broken, and driven
+      back upon the infantry, and before noon the whole host was put to headlong
+      flight. Yusuf and Samael were borne along in the torrent of the fugitives,
+      raging and storming, and making ineffectual efforts to rally them. They
+      were separated widely in the confusion of the flight, one taking refuge in
+      the Algarves, the other in the kingdom of Murcia. They afterward rallied,
+      reunited their forces, and made another desperate stand near Almunecar.
+      The battle was obstinate and bloody, but they were again defeated, and
+      driven, with a handful of followers, to take refuge in the rugged
+      mountains adjacent to Elvira.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The spirit of the veteran Samael gave way before these fearful reverses.
+      &ldquo;In vain, oh Yusuf!&rdquo; said he, &ldquo;do we contend with the prosperous star of
+      this youthful conqueror: the will of Allah be done! Let us submit to our
+      fate, and sue for favorable terms, while we have yet the means of
+      capitulation.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      It was a hard trial for the proud spirit of Yusuf, that had once aspired
+      to uncontrolled sway; but he was compelled to capitulate. Abderahman was
+      as generous as brave. He granted the two gray-headed generals the most
+      honorable conditions, and even took the veteran Samael into favor,
+      employing him, as a mark of confidence, to visit the eastern provinces of
+      Spain, and restore them to tranquillity. Yusuf, having delivered up Elvira
+      and Granada, and complied with other articles of his capitulation, was
+      permitted to retire to Murcia, and rejoin his son Muhamad. A general
+      amnesty to all chiefs and soldiers who should yield up their strongholds,
+      and lay down their arms, completed the triumph of Abderahman, and brought
+      all hearts into obedience.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Thus terminated this severe struggle for the domination of Spain; and thus
+      the illustrious family of Omeya, after having been cast down and almost
+      exterminated in the East, took new root, and sprang forth prosperously in
+      the West.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Wherever Abderahman appeared, he was received with rapturous acclamations.
+      As he rode through the cities, the populace rent the air with shouts of
+      joy; the stately palaces were crowded with spectators, eager to gain a
+      sight of his graceful form and beaming countenance; and when they beheld
+      the mingled majesty and benignity of their new monarch, and the sweetness
+      and gentleness of his whole conduct, they extolled him as something more
+      than mortal; as a beneficent genius, sent for the happiness of Spain.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      In the interval of peace which now succeeded, Abderahman occupied himself
+      in promoting the useful and elegant arts, and in introducing into Spain
+      the refinements of the East. Considering the building and ornamenting of
+      cities as among the noblest employments of the tranquil hours of princes,
+      he bestowed great pains upon beautifying the city of Cordova and its
+      environs. He reconstructed banks and dikes, to keep the Guadalquivir from
+      overflowing its borders, and on the vast terraces thus formed he planted
+      delightful gardens. In the midst of these, he erected a lofty tower,
+      commanding a view of the vast and fruitful valley, enlivened by the
+      windings of the river. In this tower he would pass hours of meditation,
+      gazing on the soft and varied landscape, and inhaling the bland and balmy
+      airs of that delightful region. At such times, his thoughts would recur to
+      the past, and the misfortunes of his youth; the massacre of his family
+      would rise to view, mingled with tender recollections of his native
+      country, from which he was exiled. In these melancholy musings he would
+      sit with his eyes fixed upon a palm-tree which he had planted in the midst
+      of his garden. It is said to have been the first ever planted in Spain,
+      and to have been the parent stock of all the palm-trees which grace the
+      southern provinces of the peninsula. The heart of Abderahman yearned
+      toward this tree; it was the offspring of his native country, and, like
+      him, an exile. In one of his moods of tenderness, he composed verses upon
+      it, which have since become famous throughout the world. The following is
+      a rude but literal translation:
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Beauteous Palm! thou also wert hither brought a stranger; but thy roots
+      have found a kindly soil, thy head is lifted to the skies, and the sweet
+      airs of Algarve fondle and kiss thy branches.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Thou hast known, like me, the storms of adverse fortune. Bitter tears
+      wouldst thou shed, couldst thou feel my woes. Repeated griefs have
+      overwhelmed me. With early tears I bedewed the palms on the banks of the
+      Euphrates; but neither tree nor river heeded my sorrows, when driven by
+      cruel fate, and the ferocious Aboul Abbas, from the scenes of my childhood
+      and the sweet objects of my affection.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;To thee no remembrance remains of my beloved country; I, unhappy! can
+      never recall it without tears.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      The generosity of Abderahman to his vanquished foes was destined to be
+      abused. The veteran Yusuf, in visiting certain of the cities which he had
+      surrendered, found himself surrounded by zealous partisans, ready to peril
+      life in his service. The love of command revived in his bosom, and he
+      repented the facility with which he had suffered himself to be persuaded
+      to submission. Flushed with new hopes of success, he caused arms to be
+      secretly collected, and deposited in various villages, most zealous in
+      their professions of devotion, and raising a considerable body of troops,
+      seized upon the castle of Almodovar. The rash rebellion was short-lived.
+      At the first appearance of an army sent by Abderahman, and commanded by
+      Abdelmelee, governor of Seville, the villages which had so recently
+      professed loyalty to Yusuf hastened to declare their attachment to the
+      monarch, and to give up the concealed arms. Almodovar was soon retaken,
+      and Yusuf, driven to the environs of Lorea, was surrounded by the cavalry
+      of Abdelmelee. The veteran endeavored to cut a passage through the enemy,
+      but after fighting with desperate fury, and with a force of arm incredible
+      in one of his age, he fell beneath blows from weapons of all kinds, so
+      that after the battle his body could scarcely be recognized, so numerous
+      were the wounds. His head was cut off and sent to Cordova, where it was
+      placed in an iron cage, over the gate of the city.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The old lion was dead, but his whelps survived. Yusuf had left three sons,
+      who inherited his warlike spirit, and were eager to revenge his death.
+      Collecting a number of the scattered adherents of their house, they
+      surprised and seized upon Toledo, during the absence of Temam, its Wali or
+      commander. In this old warrior city, built upon a rock, and almost
+      surrounded by the Tagus, they set up a kind of robber hold, scouring the
+      surrounding country, levying tribute, seizing upon horses, and compelling
+      the peasantry to join their standard. Every day cavalcades of horses and
+      mules, laden with spoil, with flocks of sheep and droves of cattle, came
+      pouring over the bridges on either side of the city, and thronging in at
+      the gates, the plunder of the surrounding country. Those of the
+      inhabitants who were still loyal to Abderahman dared not lift up their
+      voices, for men of the sword bore sway. At length one day, when the sons
+      of Yusuf, with their choicest troops, were out on a maraud, the watchmen
+      on the towers gave the alarm. A troop of scattered horsemen were spurring
+      wildly toward the gates. The banners of the sons of Yusuf were descried.
+      Two of them spurred into the city, followed by a handful of warriors,
+      covered with confusion, and dismay. They had been encountered and defeated
+      by the Wali Temam, and one of the brothers had been slain.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The gates were secured in all haste, and the walls were scarcely manned,
+      when Temam appeared before them with his troops, and summoned the city to
+      surrender. A great internal commotion ensued between the loyalists and the
+      insurgents; the latter, however, had weapons in their hands, and
+      prevailed; and for several days, trusting to the strength of their
+      rock-built fortress, they set the Wali at defiance. At length some of the
+      loyal inhabitants of Toledo, who knew all its secret and subterraneous
+      passages, some of which, if chroniclers may be believed, have existed
+      since the days of Hercules, if not of Tubal Cain, introduced Temam and a
+      chosen band of his warriors into the very center of the city, where they
+      suddenly appeared as if by magic. A panic seized upon the insurgents. Some
+      sought safety in submission, some in concealment, some in flight. Casim,
+      one of the sons of Yusuf, escaped in disguise; the youngest, unarmed, was
+      taken, and was sent captive to the king, accompanied by the head of his
+      brother, who had been slain in battle.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      When Abderahman beheld the youth laden with chains, he remembered his own
+      sufferings in his early days, and had compassion on him; but, to prevent
+      him from doing further mischief, he imprisoned him in a tower of the wall
+      of Cordova.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      In the meantime Casim, who had escaped, managed to raise another band of
+      warriors. Spain, in all ages a guerrilla country, prone to partisan
+      warfare and petty maraud, was at that time infested by bands of licentious
+      troops, who had sprung up in the civil contests; their only object
+      pillage, their only dependence the sword, and ready to flock to any new
+      and desperate standard, that promised the greatest license. With a ruffian
+      force thus levied, Casim scoured the country, took Sidonia by storm, and
+      surprised Seville while in a state of unsuspecting security.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Abderahman put himself at the head of his faithful Zenetes, and took the
+      field in person. By the rapidity of his movements, the rebels were
+      defeated, Sidonia and Seville speedily retaken, and Casim was made
+      prisoner. The generosity of Abderahman was again exhibited toward this
+      unfortunate son of Yusuf. He spared his life, and sent him to be confined
+      in a tower at Toledo.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The veteran Samael had taken no part in these insurrections, but had
+      attended faithfully to the affairs intrusted to him by Abderahman. The
+      death of his old friend and colleague, Yusuf, however, and the subsequent
+      disasters of his family, filled him with despondency. Fearing the
+      inconstancy of fortune, and the dangers incident to public employ, he
+      entreated the king to be permitted to retire to his house in Seguenza, and
+      indulge a privacy and repose suited to his advanced age. His prayer was
+      granted. The veteran laid by his arms, battered in a thousand conflicts;
+      hung his sword and lance against the wall, and, surrounded by a few
+      friends, gave himself up apparently to the sweets of quiet and unambitious
+      leisure.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Who can count, however, upon the tranquil content of a heart nurtured amid
+      the storms of war and ambition! Under the ashes of this outward humility
+      were glowing the coals of faction. In his seemingly philosophical
+      retirement, Samael was concerting with his friends new treason against
+      Abderahman. His plot was discovered; his house was suddenly surrounded by
+      troops; and he was conveyed to a tower at Toledo, where, in the course of
+      a few months, he died in captivity.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The magnanimity of Abderahman was again put to the proof, by a new
+      insurrection at Toledo. Hixem ben Adra, a relation of Yusuf, seized upon
+      the Alcazar, or citadel, slew several of the royal adherents of the king,
+      liberated Casim from his tower, and, summoning all the banditti of the
+      country, soon mustered a force of ten thousand men. Abderahman was quickly
+      before the walls of Toledo, with the troops of Cordova and his devoted
+      Zenetes. The rebels were brought to terms, and surrendered the city on
+      promise of general pardon, which was extended even to Hixem and Casim.
+      When the chieftains saw Hixem and his principal confederates in the power
+      of Abderahman, they advised him to put them all to death. &ldquo;A promise given
+      to traitors and rebels,&rdquo; said they, &ldquo;is not binding, when it is to the
+      interest of the state that it should be broken.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;No!&rdquo; replied Abderahman, &ldquo;if the safety of my throne were at stake, I
+      would not break my word.&rdquo; So saying, he confirmed the amnesty, and granted
+      Hixem ben Adra a worthless life, to be employed in further treason.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Scarcely had Abderahman returned from this expedition, when a powerful
+      army, sent by the caliph, landed from Africa on the coast of the Algarves.
+      The commander, Aly ben Mogueth, Emir of Cairvan, elevated a rich banner
+      which he had received from the hands of the caliph. Wherever he went, he
+      ordered the caliph of the East to be proclaimed by sound of trumpet,
+      denouncing Abderahman as a usurper, the vagrant member of a family
+      proscribed and execrated in all the mosques of the East.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      One of the first to join his standard was Hixem ben Adra, so recently
+      pardoned by Abderahman. He seized upon the citadel of Toledo, and
+      repairing to the camp of Aly, offered to deliver the city into his hands.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Abderahman, as bold in war as he was gentle in peace, took the field with
+      his wonted promptness; overthrew his enemies, with great slaughter, drove
+      some to the seacoast to regain their ships, and others to the mountains.
+      The body of Aly was found on the field of battle. Abderahman caused the
+      head to be struck off, and conveyed to Cairvan, where it was affixed at
+      night to a column in the public square, with this inscription: &ldquo;Thus
+      Abderahman, the descendant of the Omeyas, punishes the rash and arrogant.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      Hixem ben Adra escaped from the field of battle, and excited further
+      troubles, but was eventually captured by Abdelmelee, who ordered his head
+      to be struck off on the spot, lest he should again be spared, through the
+      wonted clemency of Abderahman.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Notwithstanding these signal triumphs, the reign of Abderahman was
+      disturbed by further insurrections, and by another descent from Africa,
+      but he was victorious over them all; striking the roots of his power
+      deeper and deeper into the land. Under his sway, the government of Spain
+      became more regular and consolidated, and acquired an independence of the
+      empire of the East. The caliph continued to be considered as first pontiff
+      and chief of the religion, but he ceased to have any temporal power over
+      Spain.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Having again an interval of peace, Abderahman devoted himself to the
+      education of his children. Suleiman, the eldest, he appointed Wali or
+      governor of Toledo; Abdallah, the second, was intrusted with the command
+      of Merida; but the third son, Hixem, was the delight of his heart, the son
+      of Howara, his favorite sultana, whom he loved throughout life with the
+      utmost tenderness. With this youth, who was full of promise, he relaxed
+      from the fatigues of government; joining in his youthful sports amid the
+      delightful gardens of Cordova, and teaching him the gentle art of
+      falconry, of which the king was so fond that he received the name of the
+      Falcon of Coraixi.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      While Abderahman was thus indulging in the gentle propensities of his
+      nature, mischief was secretly at work. Muhamad, the youngest son of Yusuf,
+      had been for many years a prisoner in the tower of Cordova. Being passive
+      and resigned, his keepers relaxed their vigilance, and brought him forth
+      from his dungeon. He went groping about, however, in broad daylight, as if
+      still in the darkness of his tower. His guards watched him narrowly, lest
+      this should be a deception, but were at length convinced that the long
+      absence of light had rendered him blind. They now permitted him to descend
+      frequently to the lower chambers of the tower, and to sleep there
+      occasionally, during the heats of summer. They even allowed him to grope
+      his way to the cistern, in quest of water for his ablutions.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      A year passed in this way without anything to excite suspicion. During all
+      this time, however, the blindness of Muhamad was entirely a deception; and
+      he was concerting a plan of escape, through the aid of some friends of his
+      father, who found means to visit him occasionally. One sultry evening in
+      midsummer, the guards had gone to bathe in the Guadalquivir, leaving
+      Muhamad alone, in the lower chambers of the tower. No sooner were they out
+      of sight and hearing than he hastened to a window of the staircase,
+      leading down to the cistern, lowered himself as far as his arms would
+      reach, and dropped without injury to the ground. Plunging into the
+      Guadalquivir, he swam across to a thick grove on the opposite side, where
+      his friends were waiting to receive him. Here, mounting a horse which they
+      had provided for an event of the kind, he fled across the country, by
+      solitary roads, and made good his escape to the mountains of Jaen.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The guardians of the tower dreaded for some time to make known his flight
+      to Abderahman. When at length it was told to him, he exclaimed: &ldquo;All is
+      the work of eternal wisdom; it is intended to teach us that we cannot
+      benefit the wicked without injuring the good. The flight of that blind man
+      will cause much trouble and bloodshed.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      His predictions were verified. Muhamad reared the standard of rebellion on
+      the mountains; the seditious and discontented of all kinds hastened to
+      join it, together with soldiers of fortune, or rather wandering banditti,
+      and he had soon six thousand men, well armed, hardy in habits and
+      desperate in character. His brother Casim also reappeared about the same
+      time in the mountains of Ronda, at the head of a daring band that laid all
+      the neighboring valleys under contribution.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Abderahman summoned his alcaydes from their various military posts, to
+      assist in driving the rebels from their mountain fastnesses into the
+      plains. It was a dangerous and protracted toil, for the mountains were
+      frightfully wild and rugged. He entered them with a powerful host, driving
+      the rebels from height to height and valley to valley, and harassing them
+      by a galling fire from thousands of crossbows. At length a decisive battle
+      took place near the river Guadalemar. The rebels were signally defeated;
+      four thousand fell in action, many were drowned in the river, and Muhamad,
+      with a few horsemen, escaped to the mountains of the Algarves. Here he was
+      hunted by the alcaydes from one desolate retreat to another; his few
+      followers grew tired of sharing the disastrous fortunes of a fated man;
+      one by one deserted him, and he himself deserted the remainder, fearing
+      they might give him up, to purchase their own pardon.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Lonely and disguised, he plunged into the depths of the forests, or lurked
+      in dens and caverns, like a famished wolf, often casting back his thoughts
+      with regret to the time of his captivity in the gloomy tower of Cordova.
+      Hunger at length drove him to Alarcon, at the risk of being discovered.
+      Famine and misery, however, had so wasted and changed him that he was not
+      recognized. He remained nearly a year in Alarcon, unnoticed and unknown,
+      yet constantly tormenting himself with the dread of discovery, and with
+      groundless fears of the vengeance of Abderahman. Death at length put an
+      end to his wretchedness.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      A milder fate attended his brother Casim. Being defeated in the mountains
+      of Murcia, he was conducted in chains to Cordova. On coming into the
+      presence of Abderahman, his once fierce and haughty spirit, broken by
+      distress, gave way; he threw himself on the earth, kissed the dust beneath
+      the feet of the king, and implored his clemency. The benignant heart of
+      Abderahman was filled with melancholy, rather than exultation, at
+      beholding this wreck of the once haughty family of Yusuf a suppliant at
+      his feet, and suing for mere existence. He thought upon the mutability of
+      fortune, and felt how insecure are all her favors. He raised the unhappy
+      Casim from the earth, ordered his irons to be taken off, and, not content
+      with mere forgiveness, treated him with honor, and gave him possessions in
+      Seville, where he might live in state conformable to the ancient dignity
+      of his family. Won by this great and persevering magnanimity, Casim ever
+      after remained one of the most devoted of his subjects.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      All the enemies of Abderahman were at length subdued; he reigned
+      undisputed sovereign of the Moslems of Spain; and so benign was his
+      government that every one blessed the revival of the illustrious line of
+      Omeya. He was at all times accessible to the humblest of his subjects: the
+      poor man ever found in him a friend, and the oppressed a protector. He
+      improved the administration of justice; established schools for public
+      instruction; encouraged poets and men of letters, and cultivated the
+      sciences. He built mosques in every city that he visited; inculcated
+      religion by example as well as by precept; and celebrated all the
+      festivals prescribed by the Koran with the utmost magnificence.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      As a monument of gratitude to God for the prosperity with which he had
+      been favored, he undertook to erect a mosque in his favorite city of
+      Cordova that should rival in splendor the great mosque of Damascus, and
+      excel the one recently erected in Bagdad by the Abbassides, the
+      supplanters of his family.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      It is said that he himself furnished the plan for this famous edifice, and
+      even worked on it, with his own hands, one hour in each day, to testify
+      his zeal and humility in the service of God, and to animate his workmen.
+      He did not live to see it completed, but it was finished according to his
+      plans by his son Hixem. When finished, it surpassed the most splendid
+      mosques of the east. It was six hundred feet in length, and two hundred
+      and fifty in breadth. Within were twenty-eight aisles, crossed by
+      nineteen, supported by a thousand and ninety-three columns of marble.
+      There were nineteen portals, covered with plates of bronze of rare
+      workmanship. The principal portal was covered with plates of gold. On the
+      summit of the grand cupola were three gilt balls surmounted by a golden
+      pomegranate. At night, the mosque was illuminated with four thousand seven
+      hundred lamps, and great sums were expended in amber and aloes, which were
+      burned as perfumes. The mosque remains to this day, shorn of its ancient
+      splendor, yet still one of the grandest Moslem monuments in Spain.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Finding himself advancing in years, Abderahman assembled in his capital of
+      Cordova the principal governors and commanders of his kingdom, and in
+      presence of them all, with great solemnity, nominated his son Hixem as the
+      successor to the throne. All present made an oath of fealty to Abderahman
+      during his life, and to Hixem after his death. The prince was younger than
+      his brothers, Suleiman and Abdallah; but he was the son of Howara, the
+      tenderly beloved sultana of Abderahman, and her influence, it is said,
+      gained him this preference.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Within a few months afterward, Abderahman fell grievously sick at Merida.
+      Finding his end approaching, he summoned Hixem to his bedside: &ldquo;My son,&rdquo;
+       said he, &ldquo;the angel of death is hovering over me; treasure up, therefore,
+      in thy heart this dying counsel, which I give through the great love I
+      bear thee. Remember that all empire is from God, who gives and takes it
+      away, according to his pleasure. Since God, through his divine goodness,
+      has given us regal power and authority, let us do his holy will, which is
+      nothing else than to do good to all men, and especially to those committed
+      to our protection. Render equal justice, my son, to the rich and the poor,
+      and never suffer injustice to be done within thy dominion, for it is the
+      road to perdition. Be merciful and benignant to those dependent upon thee.
+      Confide the government of thy cities and provinces to men of worth and
+      experience; punish without compassion those ministers who oppress thy
+      people with exorbitant exactions. Pay thy troops punctually; teach them to
+      feel a certainty in thy promises; command them with gentleness but
+      firmness, and make them in truth the defenders of the state, not its
+      destroyers. Cultivate unceasingly the affections of thy people, for in
+      their good-will consists the security of the state, in their distrust its
+      peril, in their hatred its certain ruin. Protect the husbandmen who
+      cultivate the earth, and yield us necessary sustenance; never permit their
+      fields, and groves, and gardens to be disturbed. In a word, act in such
+      wise that thy people may bless thee, and may enjoy, under the shadow of
+      thy wing, a secure and tranquil life. In this consists good government; if
+      thou dost practice it, thou wilt be happy among thy people, and renowned
+      throughout the world.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      Having given this excellent counsel, the good king Abderahman blessed his
+      son Hixem, and shortly after died; being but in the sixtieth year of his
+      age. He was interred with great pomp; but the highest honors that
+      distinguished his funeral were the tears of real sorrow shed upon his
+      grave. He left behind him a name for valor, justice, and magnanimity, and
+      forever famous as being the founder of the glorious line of the Ommiades
+      in Spain.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      <br /><br />
+    </p>
+    <hr />
+    <p>
+      <a name="link2H_4_0019" id="link2H_4_0019"> </a>
+    </p>
+    <div style="height: 4em;">
+      <br /><br /><br /><br />
+    </div>
+    <h2>
+      THE WIDOW&rsquo;S ORDEAL
+    </h2>
+    <h3>
+      OR A JUDICIAL TRIAL BY COMBAT
+    </h3>
+    <p>
+      The world is daily growing older and wiser. Its institutions vary with its
+      years, and mark its growing wisdom; and none more so than its modes of
+      investigating truth, and ascertaining guilt or innocence. In its nonage,
+      when man was yet a fallible being, and doubted the accuracy of his own
+      intellect, appeals were made to heaven in dark and doubtful cases of
+      atrocious accusation.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The accused was required to plunge his hand in boiling oil, or to walk
+      across red-hot plowshares, or to maintain his innocence in armed fight and
+      listed field, in person or by champion. If he passed these ordeals
+      unscathed, he stood acquitted, and the result was regarded as a verdict
+      from on high.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      It is somewhat remarkable that, in the gallant age of chivalry, the
+      gentler sex should have been most frequently the subjects of these rude
+      trials and perilous ordeals; and that, too, when assailed in their most
+      delicate and vulnerable part&mdash;their honor.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      In the present very old and enlightened age of the world, when the human
+      intellect is perfectly competent to the management of its own concerns,
+      and needs no special interposition of heaven in its affairs, the trial by
+      jury has superseded these superhuman ordeals; and the unanimity of twelve
+      discordant minds is necessary to constitute a verdict. Such a unanimity
+      would, at first sight, appear also to require a miracle from heaven; but
+      it is produced by a simple device of human ingenuity. The twelve jurors
+      are locked up in their box, there to fast until abstinence shall have so
+      clarified their intellects that the whole jarring panel can discern the
+      truth, and concur in a unanimous decision. One point is certain, that
+      truth is one and is immutable&mdash;until the jurors all agree, they
+      cannot all be right.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      It is not our intention, however, to discuss this great judicial point, or
+      to question the avowed superiority of the mode of investigating truth
+      adopted in this antiquated and very sagacious era. It is our object merely
+      to exhibit to the curious reader one of the most memorable cases of
+      judicial combat we find in the annals of Spain. It occurred at the bright
+      commencement of the reign, and in the youthful, and, as yet, glorious
+      days, of Roderick the Goth; who subsequently tarnished his fame at home by
+      his misdeeds, and, finally, lost his kingdom and his life on the banks of
+      the Guadalete, in that disastrous battle which gave up Spain a conquest to
+      the Moors. The following is the story:
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      There was once upon a time a certain duke of Lorraine, who was
+      acknowledged throughout his domains to be one of the wisest princes that
+      ever lived. In fact, there was no one measure adopted by him that did not
+      astonish his privy counselors and gentlemen in attendance; and he said
+      such witty things, and made such sensible speeches, that the jaws of his
+      high chamberlain were wellnigh dislocated from laughing with delight at
+      one, and gaping with wonder at the other.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      This very witty and exceedingly wise potentate lived for half a century in
+      single blessedness; at length his courtiers began to think it a great pity
+      so wise and wealthy a prince should not have a child after his own
+      likeness, to inherit his talents and domains; so they urged him most
+      respectfully to marry, for the good of his estate, and the welfare of his
+      subjects.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      He turned their advice over in his mind some four or five years, and then
+      sent forth emissaries to summon to his court all the beautiful maidens in
+      the land who were ambitious of sharing a ducal crown. The court was soon
+      crowded with beauties of all styles and complexions, from among whom he
+      chose one in the earliest budding of her charms, and acknowledged by all
+      the gentlemen to be unparalleled for grace and loveliness. The courtiers
+      extolled the duke to the skies for making such a choice, and considered it
+      another proof of his great wisdom. &ldquo;The duke,&rdquo; said they, &ldquo;is waxing a
+      little too old, the damsel, on the other hand, is a little too young; if
+      one is lacking in years, the other has a superabundance; thus a want on
+      one side is balanced by the excess on the other, and the result is a
+      well-assorted marriage.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      The duke, as is often the case with wise men who marry rather late, and
+      take damsels rather youthful to their bosoms, became dotingly fond of his
+      wife, and very properly indulged her in all things. He was, consequently,
+      cried up by his subjects in general, and by the ladies in particular, as a
+      pattern for husbands; and, in the end, from the wonderful docility with
+      which he submitted to be reined and checked, acquired the amiable and
+      enviable appellation of Duke Philibert the wife-ridden.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      There was only one thing that disturbed the conjugal felicity of this
+      paragon of husbands&mdash;though a considerable tine elapsed after his
+      marriage, there was still no prospect of an heir. The good duke left no
+      means untried to propitiate heaven. He made vows and pilgrimages, he
+      fasted and he prayed, but all to no purpose. The courtiers were all
+      astonished at the circumstance. They could not account for it. While the
+      meanest peasant in the country had sturdy brats by dozens, without putting
+      up a prayer, the duke wore himself to skin and bone with penances and
+      fastings, yet seemed further off from his object than ever.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      At length, the worthy prince fell dangerously ill, and felt his end
+      approaching. He looked sorrowfully and dubiously upon his young and tender
+      spouse, who hung over him with tears and sobbings. &ldquo;Alas!&rdquo; said he, &ldquo;tears
+      are soon dried from youthful eyes, and sorrow lies lightly on a youthful
+      heart. In a little while thou wilt forget in the arms of another husband
+      him who has loved thee so tenderly.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Never! never!&rdquo; cried the duchess. &ldquo;Never will I cleave to another! Alas,
+      that my lord should think me capable of such inconstancy!&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      The worthy and wife-ridden duke was soothed by her assurances; for he
+      could not brook the thought of giving her up even after he should be dead.
+      Still he wished to have some pledge of her enduring constancy:
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Far be it from me, my dearest wife,&rdquo; said he, &ldquo;to control thee through a
+      long life. A year and a day of strict fidelity will appease my troubled
+      spirit. Promise to remain faithful to my memory for a year and a day, and
+      I will die in peace.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      The duchess made a solemn vow to that effect, but the uxorious feelings of
+      the duke were not yet satisfied. &ldquo;Safe bind, safe find,&rdquo; thought he; so he
+      made a will, bequeathing to her all his domains, on condition of her
+      remaining true to him for a year and a day after his decease; but, should
+      it appear that, within that time, she had in anywise lapsed from her
+      fidelity, the inheritance should go to his nephew, the lord of a
+      neighboring territory.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Having made his will, the good duke died and was buried. Scarcely was he
+      in his tomb, when his nephew came to take possession, thinking, as his
+      uncle had died without issue, the domains would be devised to him of
+      course. He was in a furious passion, when the will was produced, and the
+      young widow declared inheritor of the dukedom. As he was a violent,
+      high-handed man, and one of the sturdiest knights in the land, fears were
+      entertained that he might attempt to seize on the territories by force. He
+      had, however, two bachelor uncles for bosom counselors, swaggering,
+      rakehelly old cavaliers, who, having led loose and riotous lives, prided
+      themselves upon knowing the world, and being deeply experienced in human
+      nature. &ldquo;Prithee, man, be of good cheer,&rdquo; said they, &ldquo;the duchess is a
+      young and buxom widow. She has just buried our brother, who, God rest his
+      soul! was somewhat too much given to praying and fasting, and kept his
+      pretty wife always tied to his girdle. She is now like a bird from a cage.
+      Think you she will keep her vow? Pooh, pooh&mdash;impossible! Take our
+      words for it&mdash;we know mankind, and, above all, womankind. She cannot
+      hold out for such a length of time; it is not in womanhood&mdash;it is not
+      in widowhood&mdash;we know it, and that&rsquo;s enough. Keep a sharp lookout
+      upon the widow, therefore, and within the twelvemonth you will catch her
+      tripping&mdash;and then the dukedom is your own.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      The nephew was pleased with this counsel, and immediately placed spies
+      round the duchess, and bribed several of her servants to keep watch upon
+      her, so that she could not take a single step, even from one apartment of
+      her palace to another, without being observed. Never was young and
+      beautiful widow exposed to so terrible an ordeal.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The duchess was aware of the watch thus kept upon her. Though confident of
+      her own rectitude, she knew that it is not enough for a woman to be
+      virtuous&mdash;she must be above the reach of slander. For the whole term
+      of her probation, therefore, she proclaimed a strict non-intercourse with
+      the other sex. She had females for cabinet ministers and chamberlains,
+      through whom she transacted all her public and private concerns; and it is
+      said that never were the affairs of the dukedom so adroitly administered.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      All males were rigorously excluded from the palace; she never went out of
+      its precincts, and whenever she moved about its courts and gardens she
+      surrounded herself with a bodyguard of young maids of honor, commanded by
+      dames renowned for discretion. She slept in a bed without curtains, placed
+      in the center of a room illuminated by innumerable wax tapers. Four
+      ancient spinsters, virtuous as Virginia, perfect dragons of watchfulness,
+      who only slept during the daytime, kept vigils throughout the night,
+      seated in the four corners of the room on stools without backs or arms,
+      and with seats cut in checkers of the hardest wood, to keep them from
+      dozing.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Thus wisely and warily did the young duchess conduct herself for twelve
+      long months, and slander almost bit her tongue off in despair, at finding
+      no room even for a surmise. Never was ordeal more burdensome, or more
+      enduringly sustained.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The year passed away. The last, odd day, arrived, and a long, long day it
+      was. It was the twenty-first of June, the longest day in the year. It
+      seemed as if it would never come to an end. A thousand times did the
+      duchess and her ladies watch the sun from the windows of the palace, as he
+      slowly climbed the vault of heaven, and seemed still more slowly to roll
+      down. They could not help expressing their wonder, now and then, why the
+      duke should have tagged this supernumerary day to the end of the year, as
+      if three hundred and sixty-five days were not sufficient to try and task
+      the fidelity of any woman. It is the last grain that turns the scale&mdash;the
+      last drop that overflows the goblet&mdash;and the last moment of delay
+      that exhausts the patience. By the time the sun sank below the horizon,
+      the duchess was in a fidget that passed all bounds, and, though several
+      hours were yet to pass before the day regularly expired, she could not
+      have remained those hours in durance to gain a royal crown, much less a
+      ducal coronet. So she gave orders, and her palfrey, magnificently
+      caparisoned, was brought into the courtyard of the castle, with palfreys
+      for all her ladies in attendance. In this way she sallied forth, just as
+      the sun had gone down. It was a mission of piety&mdash;a pilgrim cavalcade
+      to a convent at the foot of a neighboring mountain&mdash;to return thanks
+      to the blessed Virgin, for having sustained her through this fearful
+      ordeal.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The orisons performed, the duchess and her ladies returned, ambling gently
+      along the border of a forest. It was about that mellow hour of twilight
+      when night and day are mingled and all objects are indistinct. Suddenly,
+      some monstrous animal sprang from out a thicket, with fearful howlings.
+      The female bodyguard was thrown into confusion, and fled different ways.
+      It was some time before they recovered from their panic, and gathered once
+      more together; but the duchess was not to be found. The greatest anxiety
+      was felt for her safety. The hazy mist of twilight had prevented their
+      distinguishing perfectly the animal which had affrighted them. Some
+      thought it a wolf, others a bear, others a wild man of the woods. For
+      upward of an hour did they beleaguer the forest, without daring to venture
+      in, and were on the point of giving up the duchess as torn to pieces and
+      devoured, when, to their great joy, they beheld her advancing in the
+      gloom, supported by a stately cavalier.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      He was a stranger knight, whom nobody knew. It was impossible to
+      distinguish his countenance in the dark; but all the ladies agreed that he
+      was of noble presence and captivating address. He had rescued the duchess
+      from the very fangs of the monster, which, he assured the ladies, was
+      neither a wolf, nor a bear, nor yet a wild man of the woods, but a
+      veritable fiery dragon, a species of monster peculiarly hostile to
+      beautiful females in the days of chivalry, and which all the efforts of
+      knight-errantry had not been able to extirpate.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The ladies crossed themselves when they heard of the danger from which
+      they had escaped, and could not enough admire the gallantry of the
+      cavalier. The duchess would fain have prevailed on her deliverer to
+      accompany her to her court; but he had no time to spare, being a
+      knight-errant, who had many adventures on hand, and many distressed
+      damsels and afflicted widows to rescue and relieve in various parts of the
+      country. Taking a respectful leave, therefore, he pursued his wayfaring,
+      and the duchess and her train returned to the palace. Throughout the whole
+      way, the ladies were unwearied in chanting the praises of the stranger
+      knight, nay, many of them would willingly have incurred the danger of the
+      dragon to have enjoyed the happy deliverance of the duchess. As to the
+      latter, she rode pensively along, but said nothing.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      No sooner was the adventure of the wood made public than a whirlwind was
+      raised about the ears of the beautiful duchess. The blustering nephew of
+      the deceased duke went about, armed to the teeth, with a swaggering uncle
+      at each shoulder, ready to back him, and swore the duchess had forfeited
+      her domain. It was in vain that she called all the saints, and angels, and
+      her ladies in attendance into the bargain, to witness that she had passed
+      a year and a day of immaculate fidelity. One fatal hour remained to be
+      accounted for; and into the space of one little hour sins enough may be
+      conjured up by evil tongues to blast the fame of a whole life of virtue.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The two graceless uncles, who had seen the world, were ever ready to
+      bolster the matter through, and as they were brawny, broad-shouldered
+      warriors, and veterans in brawl as well as debauch, they had great sway
+      with the multitude. If any one pretended to assert the innocence of the
+      duchess, they interrupted him with a loud ha! ha! of derision. &ldquo;A pretty
+      story, truly,&rdquo; would they cry, &ldquo;about a wolf and a dragon, and a young
+      widow rescued in the dark by a sturdy varlet who dares not show his face
+      in the daylight. You may tell that to those who do not know human nature,
+      for our parts, we know the sex, and that&rsquo;s enough.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      If, however, the other repeated his assertion, they would suddenly knit
+      their brows, swell, look big, and put their hands upon their swords. As
+      few people like to fight in a cause that does not touch their own
+      interests, the nephew and the uncles were suffered to have their way, and
+      swagger uncontradicted.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The matter was at length referred to a tribunal, composed of all the
+      dignitaries of the dukedom, and many and repeated consultations were held.
+      The character of the duchess throughout the year was as bright and
+      spotless as the moon in a cloudless night; one fatal hour of darkness
+      alone intervened to eclipse its brightness. Finding human sagacity
+      incapable of dispelling the mystery, it was determined to leave the
+      question to heaven; or, in other words, to decide it by the ordeal of the
+      sword&mdash;a sage tribunal in the age of chivalry. The nephew and two
+      bully uncles were to maintain their accusation in listed combat, and six
+      months were allowed to the duchess to provide herself with three champions
+      to meet them in the field. Should she fail in this, or should her
+      champions be vanquished, her honor would be considered as attainted, her
+      fidelity as forfeit, and her dukedom would go to the nephew, as a matter
+      of right.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      With this determination the duchess was fain to comply. Proclamations were
+      accordingly made, and heralds sent to various parts; but day after day,
+      week after week, and month after month elapsed without any champion
+      appearing to assert her loyalty throughout that darksome hour. The fair
+      widow was reduced to despair, when tidings reached her of grand
+      tournaments to be held at Toledo, in celebration of the nuptials of Don
+      Roderick, the last of the Gothic kings, with the Morisco princess Exilona.
+      As a last resort, the duchess repaired to the Spanish court, to implore
+      the gallantry of its assembled chivalry.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The ancient city of Toledo was a scene of gorgeous revelry on the event of
+      the royal nuptials. The youthful king, brave, ardent, and magnificent, and
+      his lovely bride, beaming with all the radiant beauty of the East, were
+      hailed with shouts and acclamations whenever they appeared. Their nobles
+      vied with each other in the luxury of their attire, their prancing steeds,
+      and splendid retinues; and the haughty dames of the court appeared in a
+      blaze of jewels.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      In the midst of all this pageantry, the beautiful, but afflicted Duchess
+      of Lorraine made her approach to the throne. She was dressed in black, and
+      closely veiled; for duennas of the most staid and severe aspect, and six
+      beautiful demoiselles, formed her female attendants. She was guarded by
+      several very ancient, withered, and grayheaded cavaliers; and her train
+      was borne by one of the most deformed and diminutive dwarfs in existence.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Advancing to the foot of the throne, she knelt down, and, throwing up her
+      veil, revealed a countenance so beautiful that half the courtiers present
+      were ready to renounce wives and mistresses, and devote themselves to her
+      service; but when she made known that she came in quest of champions to
+      defend her fame, every cavalier pressed forward to offer his arm and
+      sword, without inquiring into the merits of the case; for it seemed clear
+      that so beauteous a lady could have done nothing but what was right; and
+      that, at any rate, she ought to be championed in following the bent of her
+      humors, whether right or wrong.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Encouraged by such gallant zeal, the duchess suffered herself to be raised
+      from the ground, and related the whole story of her distress. When she
+      concluded, the king remained for some time silent, charmed by the music of
+      her voice. At length: &ldquo;As I hope for salvation, most beautiful duchess,&rdquo;
+       said he, &ldquo;were I not a sovereign king, and bound in duty to my kingdom, I
+      myself would put lance in rest to vindicate your cause; as it is, I here
+      give full permission to my knights, and promise lists and a fair field,
+      and that the contest shall take place before the walls of Toledo, in
+      presence of my assembled court.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      As soon as the pleasure of the king was known, there was a strife among
+      the cavaliers present for the honor of the contest. It was decided by lot,
+      and the successful candidates were objects of great envy, for every one
+      was ambitious of finding favor in the eyes of the beautiful widow.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Missives were sent, summoning the nephew and his two uncles to Toledo, to
+      maintain their accusation, and a day was appointed for the combat. When
+      the day arrived, all Toledo was in commotion at an early hour. The lists
+      had been prepared in the usual place, just without the walls, at the foot
+      of the rugged rocks on which the city is built, and on that beautiful
+      meadow along the Tagus, known by the name of the king&rsquo;s garden. The
+      populace had already assembled, each one eager to secure a favorable
+      place; the balconies were filled with the ladies of the court, clad in
+      their richest attire, and bands of youthful knights, splendidly armed and
+      decorated with their ladies&rsquo; devices, were managing their superbly
+      caparisoned steeds about the field. The king at length came forth in
+      state, accompanied by the queen Exilona. They took their seats in a raised
+      balcony, under a canopy of rich damask; and, at sight of them, the people
+      rent the air with acclamations.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The nephew and his uncles now rode into the field, armed cap-a-pie, and
+      followed by a train of cavaliers of their own roistering cast, great
+      swearers and carousers, arrant swashbucklers, with clanking armor and
+      jingling spurs. When the people of Toledo beheld the vaunting and
+      discourteous appearance of these knights, they were more anxious than ever
+      for the success of the gentle duchess; but, at the same time, the sturdy
+      and stalwart frames of these warriors showed that whoever won the victory
+      from them must do it at the cost of many a bitter blow.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      As the nephew and his riotous crew rode in at one side of the field, the
+      fair widow appeared at the other, with her suite of grave grayheaded
+      courtiers, her ancient duennas and dainty demoiselles, and the little
+      dwarf toiling along under the weight of her train. Every one made way for
+      her as she passed, and blessed her beautiful face, and prayed for success
+      to her cause. She took her seat in a lower balcony, not far from the
+      sovereigns; and her pale face, set off by her mourning weeds, was as the
+      moon shining forth from among the clouds of night.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The trumpets sounded for the combat. The warriors were just entering the
+      lists, when a stranger knight, armed in panoply, and followed by two pages
+      and an esquire, came galloping into the field, and, riding up to the royal
+      balcony, claimed the combat as a matter of right.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;In me,&rdquo; cried he, &ldquo;behold the cavalier who had the happiness to rescue
+      the beautiful duchess from the peril of the forest, and the misfortune to
+      bring on her this grievous calumny. It was but recently, in the course of
+      my errantry, that tidings of her wrongs have reached my ears, and I have
+      urged hither at all speed, to stand forth in her vindication.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      No sooner did the duchess hear the accents of the knight than she
+      recognized his voice, and joined her prayers with his that he might enter
+      the lists. The difficulty was, to determine which of the three champions
+      already appointed should yield his place, each insisting on the honor of
+      the combat. The stranger knight would have settled the point, by taking
+      the whole contest upon himself; but this the other knights would not
+      permit. It was at length determined, as before, by lot, and the cavalier
+      who lost the chance retired murmuring and disconsolate.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The trumpets again sounded&mdash;the lists were opened. The arrogant
+      nephew and his two drawcansir uncles appeared so completely cased in steel
+      that they and their steeds were like moving masses of iron. When they
+      understood the stranger knight to be the same that had rescued the duchess
+      from her peril, they greeted him with the most boisterous derision:
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Oh, ho! sir Knight of the Dragon,&rdquo; said they, &ldquo;you who pretend to
+      champion fair widows in the dark, come on, and vindicate your deeds of
+      darkness in the open day.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      The only reply of the cavalier was to put lance in rest, and brace himself
+      for the encounter. Needless is it to relate the particulars of a battle,
+      which was like so many hundred combats that have been said and sung in
+      prose and verse. Who is there but must have foreseen the event of a
+      contest, where Heaven had to decide on the guilt or innocence of the most
+      beautiful and immaculate of widows?
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The sagacious reader, deeply read in this kind of judicial combats, can
+      imagine the encounter of the graceless nephew and the stranger knight. He
+      sees their concussion, man to man, and horse to horse, in mid career, and
+      Sir Graceless hurled to the ground and slain. He will not wonder that the
+      assailants of the brawny uncles were less successful in their rude
+      encounter; but he will picture to himself the stout stranger spurring to
+      their rescue, in the very critical moment; he will see him transfixing one
+      with his lance, and cleaving the other to the chine with a back stroke of
+      his sword, thus leaving the trio of accusers dead upon the field, and
+      establishing the immaculate fidelity of the duchess, and her title to the
+      dukedom, beyond the shadow of a doubt.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The air rang with acclamations; nothing was heard but praises of the
+      beauty and virtue of the duchess, and of the prowess of the stranger
+      knight; but the public joy was still more increased when the champion
+      raised his visor, and revealed the countenance of one of the bravest
+      cavaliers of Spain, renowned for his gallantry in the service of the sex,
+      and who had been round the world in quest of similar adventures.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      That worthy knight, however, was severely wounded, and remained for a long
+      time ill of his wounds. The lovely duchess, grateful for having twice owed
+      her protection to his arm, attended him daily during his illness; and
+      finally rewarded his gallantry with her hand.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The king would fain have had the knight establish his title to such high
+      advancement by further deeds of arms; but his courtiers declared that he
+      already merited the lady, by thus vindicating her fame and fortune in a
+      deadly combat <i>à outrance</i>; and the lady herself hinted that she was
+      perfectly satisfied of his prowess in arms, from the proofs she had
+      received in his achievement in the forest.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Their nuptials were celebrated with great magnificence. The present
+      husband of the duchess did not pray and fast like his predecessor,
+      Philibert the wife-ridden; yet he found greater favor in the eyes of
+      heaven, for their union was blessed with a numerous progeny&mdash;the
+      daughters chaste and beauteous as their mother; the sons stout and valiant
+      as their sire, and renowned, like him, for relieving disconsolate damsels
+      and desolated widows.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      <br /><br />
+    </p>
+    <hr />
+    <p>
+      <a name="link2H_4_0020" id="link2H_4_0020"> </a>
+    </p>
+    <div style="height: 4em;">
+      <br /><br /><br /><br />
+    </div>
+    <h2>
+      THE CREOLE VILLAGE
+    </h2>
+    <h3>
+      A SKETCH FROM A STEAMBOAT
+    </h3>
+    <p>
+      First published in 1887
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      In traveling about our motley country, I am often reminded of Ariosto&rsquo;s
+      account of the moon, in which the good paladin Astolpho found everything
+      garnered up that had been lost on earth. So I am apt to imagine, that many
+      things lost in the old world are treasured up in the new; having been
+      handed down from generation to generation, since the early days of the
+      colonies. A European antiquary, therefore, curious in his researches after
+      the ancient and almost obliterated customs and usages of his country,
+      would do well to put himself upon the track of some early band of
+      emigrants, follow them across the Atlantic, and rummage among their
+      descendants on our shores.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      In the phraseology of New England might be found many an old English
+      provincial phrase, long since obsolete in the parent country; with some
+      quaint relics of the roundheads; while Virginia cherishes peculiarities
+      characteristic of the days of Elizabeth and Sir Walter Raleigh.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      In the same way the sturdy yeomanry of New Jersey and Pennsylvania keep up
+      many usages fading away in ancient Germany; while many an honest,
+      broad-bottomed custom, nearly extinct in venerable Holland, may be found
+      flourishing in pristine vigor and luxuriance in Dutch villages, on the
+      banks of the Mohawk and the Hudson.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      In no part of our country, however, are the customs and peculiarities,
+      imported from the old world by the earlier settlers, kept up with more
+      fidelity than in the little, poverty-stricken villages of Spanish and
+      French origin, which border the rivers of ancient Louisiana. Their
+      population is generally made up of the descendants of those nations,
+      married and interwoven together, and occasionally crossed with a slight
+      dash of the Indian. The French character, however, floats on top, as, from
+      its buoyant qualities, it is sure to do, whenever it forms a particle,
+      however small, of an intermixture.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      In these serene and dilapidated villages, art and nature stand still, and
+      the world forgets to turn round. The revolutions that distract other parts
+      of this mutable planet reach not here, or pass over without leaving any
+      trace. The fortunate inhabitants have none of that public spirit which
+      extends its cares beyond its horizon, and imports trouble and perplexity
+      from all quarters in newspapers. In fact, newspapers are almost unknown in
+      these villages, and as French is the current language, the inhabitants
+      have little community of opinion with their republican neighbors. They
+      retain, therefore, their old habits of passive obedience to the decrees of
+      government, as though they still lived under the absolute sway of colonial
+      commandants, instead of being part and parcel of the sovereign people, and
+      having a voice in public legislation.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      A few aged men, who have grown gray on their hereditary acres, and are of
+      the good old colonial stock, exert a patriarchal sway in all matters of
+      public and private import; their opinions are considered oracular, and
+      their word is law.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The inhabitants, moreover, have none of that eagerness for gain and rage
+      for improvement which keep our people continually on the move, and our
+      country towns incessantly in a state of transition. There the magic
+      phrases, &ldquo;town lots,&rdquo; &ldquo;water privileges,&rdquo; &ldquo;railroads,&rdquo; and other
+      comprehensive and soul-stirring words from the speculator&rsquo;s vocabulary,
+      are never heard. The residents dwell in the houses built by their
+      forefathers, without thinking of enlarging or modernizing them, or pulling
+      them down and turning them into granite stores. The trees, under which
+      they have been born and have played in infancy, flourish undisturbed;
+      though, by cutting them down, they might open new streets, and put money
+      in their pockets. In a word, the almighty dollar, that great object of
+      universal devotion throughout our land, seems to have no genuine devotees
+      in these peculiar villages; and unless some of its missionaries penetrate
+      there, and erect banking houses and other pious shrines, there is no
+      knowing how long the inhabitants may remain in their present state of
+      contented poverty.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      In descending one of our great Western rivers in a steam-boat, I met with
+      two worthies from one of these villages, who had been on a distant
+      excursion, the longest they had ever made, as they seldom ventured far
+      from home. One was the great man, or grand seigneur, of the village; not
+      that he enjoyed any legal privileges or power there, everything of the
+      kind having been done away when the province was ceded by France to the
+      United States. His sway over his neighbors was merely one of custom and
+      convention, out of deference to his family. Beside, he was worth full
+      fifty thousand dollars, an amount almost equal, in the imaginations of the
+      villagers, to the treasures of King Solomon.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      This very substantial old gentleman, though of the fourth or fifth
+      generation in this country, retained the true Gallic feature and
+      deportment, and reminded me of one of those provincial potentates that are
+      to be met with in the remote parts of France. He was of a large frame, a
+      ginger-bread complexion, strong features, eyes that stood out like glass
+      knobs, and a prominent nose, which he frequently regaled from a gold
+      snuff-box, and occasionally blew, with a colored handkerchief, until it
+      sounded like a trumpet.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      He was attended by an old negro, as black as ebony, with a huge mouth in a
+      continual grin; evidently a privileged and favorite servant, who had grown
+      up and grown old with him. He was dressed in creole style&mdash;with white
+      jacket and trousers, a stiff shirt collar that threatened to cut off his
+      ears, a bright Madras handkerchief tied round his head, and large gold
+      earrings. He was the politest negro I met with in a Western tour; and that
+      is saying a great deal, for, excepting the Indians, the negroes are the
+      most gentlemanlike personages to be met with in those parts. It is true,
+      they differ from the Indians in being a little extra polite and
+      complimentary. He was also one of the merriest; and here, too, the
+      negroes, however we may deplore their unhappy condition, have the
+      advantage of their masters. The whites are, in general, too free and
+      prosperous to be merry. The cares of maintaining their rights and
+      liberties, adding to their wealth, and making presidents, engross all
+      their thoughts, and dry up all the moisture of their souls. If you hear a
+      broad, hearty, devil-may-care laugh, be assured it is a negro&rsquo;s.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Besides this African domestic, the seigneur of the village had another no
+      less cherished and privileged attendant. This was a huge dog, of the
+      mastiff breed, with a deep, hanging mouth, and a look of surly gravity. He
+      walked about the cabin with the air of a dog perfectly at home, and who
+      had paid for his passage. At dinner time he took his seat beside his
+      master, giving him a glance now and then out of a corner of his eye, which
+      bespoke perfect confidence that he would not be forgotten. Nor was he&mdash;every
+      now and then a huge morsel would be thrown to him, peradventure the
+      half-picked leg of a fowl, which he would receive with a snap like the
+      springing of a steel-trap&mdash;one gulp, and all was down; and a glance
+      of the eye told his master that he was ready for another consignment.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The other village worthy, traveling in company with the seigneur, was of a
+      totally different stamp. Small, thin, and weazen faced, as Frenchmen are
+      apt to be represented in caricature, with a bright, squirrel-like eye, and
+      a gold ring in his ear. His dress was flimsy, and sat loosely on his
+      frame, and he had altogether the look of one with but little coin in his
+      pocket. Yet, though one of the poorest, I was assured he was one of the
+      merriest and most popular personages in his native village.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Compere Martin, as he was commonly called, was the factotum of the
+      place-sportsman, schoolmaster, and land surveyor. He could sing, dance,
+      and, above all, play on the fiddle, an invaluable accomplishment in an old
+      French Creole village, for the inhabitants have a hereditary love for
+      balls and fetes; if they work but little, they dance a great deal, and a
+      fiddle is the joy of their heart.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      What had sent Compere Martin traveling with the grand seigneur I could not
+      learn; he evidently looked up to him with great deference, and was
+      assiduous in rendering him petty attentions; from which I concluded that
+      he lived at home upon the crumbs which fell from his table. He was gayest
+      when out of his sight; and had his song and his joke when forward, among
+      the deck passengers; but altogether Compere Martin was out of his element
+      on board of a steamboat. He was quite another being, I am told, when at
+      home in his own village.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Like his opulent fellow-traveler, he too had his canine follower and
+      retainer&mdash;and one suited to his different fortunes&mdash;one of the
+      civilest, most unoffending little dogs in the world. Unlike the lordly
+      mastiff, he seemed to think he had no right on board of the steamboat; if
+      you did but look hard at him, he would throw himself upon his back, and
+      lift up his legs, as if imploring mercy.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      At table he took his seat a little distance from his master; not with the
+      bluff, confident air of the mastiff, but quietly and diffidently, his head
+      on one side, with one ear dubiously slouched, the other hopefully cocked
+      up; his under teeth projecting beyond his black nose, and his eye
+      wistfully following each morsel that went into his master&rsquo;s mouth.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      If Compere Martin now and then should venture to abstract a morsel from
+      his plate to give to his humble companion, it was edifying to see with
+      what diffidence the exemplary little animal would take hold of it, with
+      the very tip of his teeth, as if he would almost rather not, or was
+      fearful of taking too great a liberty. And then with what decorum would he
+      eat it! How many efforts would he make in swallowing it, as if it stuck in
+      his throat; with what daintiness would he lick his lips; and then with
+      what an air of thankfulness would he resume his seat, with his teeth once
+      more projecting beyond his nose, and an eye of humble expectation fixed
+      upon his master.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      It was late in the afternoon when the steamboat stopped at the village
+      which was the residence of these worthies. It stood on the high bank of
+      the river, and bore traces of having been a frontier trading post. There
+      were the remains of stockades that once protected it from the Indians, and
+      the houses were in the ancient Spanish and French colonial taste, the
+      place having been successively under the domination of both those nations
+      prior to the cession of Louisiana to the United States.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The arrival of the seigneur of fifty thousand dollars, and his humble
+      companion, Compere Martin, had evidently been looked forward to as an
+      event in the village. Numbers of men, women, and children, white, yellow,
+      and black, were collected on the river bank; most of them clad in
+      old-fashioned French garments, and their heads decorated with colored
+      handkerchiefs, or white nightcaps. The moment the steamboat came within
+      sight and hearing, there was a waving of handkerchiefs, and a screaming
+      and bawling of salutations, and felicitations, that baffle all
+      description.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The old gentleman of fifty thousand dollars was received by a train of
+      relatives, and friends, and children, and grandchildren, whom he kissed on
+      each cheek, and who formed a procession in his rear, with a legion of
+      domestics, of all ages, following him to a large, old-fashioned French
+      house, that domineered over the village.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      His black valet de chambre, in white jacket and trousers, and gold
+      earrings, was met on the shore by a boon, though rustic companion, a tall
+      negro fellow, with a long good-humored face, and the profile of a horse,
+      which stood out from beneath a narrow-rimmed straw hat, stuck on the back
+      of his head. The explosions of laughter of these two varlets on meeting
+      and exchanging compliments were enough to electrify the country round.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The most hearty reception, however, was that given to Compere Martin.
+      Everybody, young and old, hailed him before he got to land. Everybody had
+      a joke for Compere Martin, and Compere Martin had a joke for everybody.
+      Even his little dog appeared to partake of his popularity, and to be
+      caressed by every hand. Indeed, he was quite a different animal the moment
+      he touched the land. Here he was at home; here he was of consequence. He
+      barked, he leaped, he frisked about his old friends, and then would skim
+      round the place in a wide circle, as if mad.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      I traced Compere Martin and his little dog to their home. It was an old
+      ruinous Spanish house, of large dimensions, with verandas overshadowed by
+      ancient elms. The house had probably been the residence, in old times, of
+      the Spanish commandant. In one wing of this crazy, but aristocratical
+      abode, was nestled the family of my fellow-traveler; for poor devils are
+      apt to be magnificently clad and lodged, in the cast-off clothes and
+      abandoned palaces of the great and wealthy.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The arrival of Compere Martin was welcomed by a legion of women, children,
+      and mongrel curs; and, as poverty and gayety generally go hand in hand
+      among the French and their descendants, the crazy mansion soon resounded
+      with loud gossip and light-hearted laughter.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      As the steamboat paused a short time at the village, I took occasion to
+      stroll about the place. Most of the houses were in the French taste, with
+      casements and rickety verandas, but most of them in flimsy and ruinous
+      condition. All the wagons, plows, and other utensils about the place were
+      of ancient and inconvenient Gallic construction, such as had been brought
+      from France in the primitive days of the colony. The very looks of the
+      people reminded me of the villages of France.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      From one of the houses came the hum of a spinning wheel, accompanied by a
+      scrap of an old French chanson, which I have heard many a time among the
+      peasantry of Languedoc, doubtless a traditional song, brought over by the
+      first French emigrants, and handed down from generation to generation.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Half a dozen young lasses emerged from the adjacent dwellings, reminding
+      me, by their light step and gay costume, of scenes in ancient France,
+      where taste in dress comes natural to every class of females. The trim
+      bodice and covered petticoat, and little apron, with its pockets to
+      receive the hands when in an attitude for conversation; the colored
+      kerchief wound tastefully round the head, with a coquettish knot perking
+      above one ear; and the neat slipper and tight drawn stocking with its
+      braid of narrow ribbon embracing the ankle where it peeps from its
+      mysterious curtain. It is from this ambush that Cupid sends his most
+      inciting arrows.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      While I was musing upon the recollections thus accidentally summoned up, I
+      heard the sound of a fiddle from the mansion of Compere Martin, the
+      signal, no doubt, for a joyous gathering. I was disposed to turn my steps
+      thither, and witness the festivities of one of the very few villages I had
+      met with in my wide tour that was yet poor enough to be merry; but the
+      bell of the steamboat summoned me to re-embark.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      As we swept away from the shore, I cast back a wistful eye upon the
+      moss-grown roofs and ancient elms of the village, and prayed that the
+      inhabitants might long retain their happy ignorance, their absence of all
+      enterprise and improvement, their respect for the fiddle, and their
+      contempt for the almighty dollar. [Footnote: This phrase, used for the
+      first time in this sketch, has since passed into current circulation, and
+      by some has been questioned as savoring I fear, however, my prayer is of
+      irreverence. The author, therefore, owes it to his orthodoxy to declare
+      that no irreverence was intended even to the dollar itself; which he is
+      aware is daily becoming more and more an object of worship.] I fear,
+      however, my prayer is doomed to be of no avail. In a little while the
+      steamboat whirled me to an American town, just springing into bustling and
+      prosperous existence.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The surrounding forest had been laid out in town lots; frames of wooden
+      buildings were rising from among stumps and burned trees. The place
+      already boasted a court-house, a jail, and two banks, all built of pine
+      boards, on the model of Grecian temples. There were rival hotels, rival
+      churches, and rival newspapers; together with the usual number of judges,
+      and generals, and governors; not to speak of doctors by the dozen, and
+      lawyers by the score.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The place, I was told, was in an astonishing career of improvement, with a
+      canal and two railroads in embryo. Lots doubled in price every week;
+      everybody was speculating in land; everybody was rich; and everybody was
+      growing richer. The community, however, was torn to pieces by new
+      doctrines in religion and in political economy; there were camp meetings,
+      and agrarian meetings; and an election was at hand, which, it was
+      expected, would throw the whole country into a paroxysm.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Alas! with such an enterprising neighbor, what is to become of the poor
+      little Creole village!
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      <br /><br />
+    </p>
+    <hr />
+    <p>
+      <a name="link2H_4_0021" id="link2H_4_0021"> </a>
+    </p>
+    <div style="height: 4em;">
+      <br /><br /><br /><br />
+    </div>
+    <h2>
+      A CONTENTED MAN
+    </h2>
+    <p>
+      In the garden of the Tuileries there is a sunny corner under the wall of a
+      terrace which fronts the south. Along the wall is a range of benches
+      commanding a view of the walks and avenues of the garden. This genial nook
+      is a place of great resort in the latter part of autumn and in fine days
+      in winter, as it seems to retain the flavor of departed summer. On a calm,
+      bright morning it is quite alive with nursery-maids and their playful
+      little charges. Hither also resort a number of ancient ladies and
+      gentlemen, who, with the laudable thrift in small pleasures and small
+      expenses for which the French are to be noted, come here to enjoy sunshine
+      and save firewood. Here may often be seen some cavalier of the old school,
+      when the sunbeams have warmed his blood into something like a glow,
+      fluttering about like a frost-bitten moth thawed before the fire, putting
+      forth a feeble show of gallantry among the antiquated dames, and now and
+      then eying the buxom nursery-maids with what might almost be mistaken for
+      an air of libertinism.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Among the habitual frequenters of this place I had often remarked an old
+      gentleman whose dress was decidedly ante-revolutional. He wore the
+      three-cornered cocked hat of the <i>ancien regime</i>; his hair was
+      frizzed over each ear into <i>ailes de pigeon</i>, a style strongly
+      savoring of Bourbonism; and a queue stuck out behind, the loyalty of which
+      was not to be disputed. His dress, though ancient, had an air of decayed
+      gentility, and I observed that he took his snuff out of an elegant though
+      old-fashioned gold box. He appeared to be the most popular man on the
+      walk. He had a compliment for every old lady, he kissed every child, and
+      he patted every little dog on the head; for children and little dogs are
+      very important members of society in France. I must observe, however, that
+      he seldom kissed a child without, at the same time, pinching the
+      nursery-maid&rsquo;s cheek; a Frenchman of the old school never forgets his
+      devoirs to the sex.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      I had taken a liking to this old gentleman. There was an habitual
+      expression of benevolence in his face which I have very frequently
+      remarked in these relics of the politer days of France. The constant
+      interchange of those thousand little courtesies which imperceptibly
+      sweeten life have a happy effect upon the features, and spread a mellow
+      evening charm over the wrinkles of old age.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Where there is a favorable predisposition one soon forms a kind of tacit
+      intimacy by often meeting on the same walks. Once or twice I accommodated
+      him with a bench, after which we touched hats on passing each other; at
+      length we got so far as to take a pinch of snuff together out of his box,
+      which is equivalent to eating salt together in the East; from that time
+      our acquaintance was established.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      I now became his frequent companion in his morning promenades, and derived
+      much amusement from his good-humored remarks on men and manners. One
+      morning, as we were strolling through an alley of the Tuileries, with the
+      autumnal breeze whirling the yellow leaves about our path, my companion
+      fell into a peculiarly communicative vein, and gave me several particulars
+      of his history. He had once been wealthy, and possessed of a fine estate
+      in the country and a noble hotel in Paris; but the revolution, which
+      effected so many disastrous changes, stripped him of everything. He was
+      secretly denounced by his own steward during a sanguinary period of the
+      revolution, and a number of the bloodhounds of the Convention were sent to
+      arrest him. He received private intelligence of their approach in time to
+      effect his escape. He landed in England without money or friends, but
+      considered himself singularly fortunate in having his head upon his
+      shoulders; several of his neighbors having been guillotined as a
+      punishment for being rich.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      When he reached London he had but a louis in his pocket, and no prospect
+      of getting another. He ate a solitary dinner of beefsteak, and was almost
+      poisoned by port wine, which from its color he had mistaken for claret.
+      The dingy look of the chop-house, and of the little mahogany-colored box
+      in which he ate his dinner, contrasted sadly with the gay saloons of
+      Paris. Everything looked gloomy and disheartening. Poverty stared him in
+      the face; he turned over the few shillings he had of change; did not know
+      what was to become of him; and&mdash;went to the theater!
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      He took his seat in the pit, listened attentively to a tragedy of which he
+      did not understand a word, and which seemed made up of fighting, and
+      stabbing, and scene shifting, and began to feel his spirits sinking within
+      him; when, casting his eyes into the orchestra, what was his surprise to
+      recognize an old friend and neighbor in the very act of extorting music
+      from a huge violoncello.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      As soon as the evening&rsquo;s performance was over he tapped his friend on the
+      shoulder; they kissed each other on each cheek, and the musician took him
+      home, and shared his lodgings with him. He had learned music as an
+      accomplishment; by his friend&rsquo;s advice he now turned to it as a means of
+      support. He procured a violin, offered himself for the orchestra, was
+      received, and again considered himself one of the most fortunate men upon
+      earth.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Here therefore he lived for many years during the ascendency of the
+      terrible Napoleon. He found several emigrants living, like himself, by the
+      exercise of their talents. They associated together, talked of France and
+      of old times, and endeavored to keep up a semblance of Parisian life in
+      the center of London.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      They dined at a miserable cheap French restaurant in the neighborhood of
+      Leicester Square, where they were served with a caricature of French
+      cookery. They took their promenade in St. James&rsquo;s Park, and endeavored to
+      fancy it the Tuileries; in short, they made shift to accommodate
+      themselves to everything but an English Sunday. Indeed the old gentleman
+      seemed to have nothing to say against the English, whom he affirmed to be
+      <i>braves gens</i>; and he mingled so much among them that at the end of
+      twenty years he could speak their language almost well enough to be
+      understood.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The downfall of Napoleon was another epoch in his life. He had considered
+      himself a fortunate man to make his escape penniless out of France, and he
+      considered himself fortunate to be able to return penniless into it. It is
+      true that he found his Parisian hotel had passed through several hands
+      during the vicissitudes of the times, so as to be beyond the reach of
+      recovery; but then he had been noticed benignantly by government, and had
+      a pension of several hundred francs, upon which, with careful management,
+      he lived independently, and, as far as I could judge, happily. As his once
+      splendid hotel was now occupied as a <i>hotel garni</i>, he hired a small
+      chamber in the attic; it was but, as he said, changing his bedroom up two
+      pair of stairs&mdash;he was still in his own house. His room was decorated
+      with pictures of several beauties of former times, with whom he professed
+      to have been on favorable terms: among them was a favorite opera-dancer,
+      who had been the admiration of Paris at the breaking out of the
+      revolution. She had been a protegee of my friend, and one of the few of
+      his youthful favorites who had survived the lapse of time and its various
+      vicissitudes. They had renewed their acquaintance, and she now and then
+      visited him; but the beautiful Psyche, once the fashion of the day and the
+      idol of the <i>parterre</i>, was now a shriveled, little old woman, warped
+      in the back and with a hooked nose.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The old gentleman was a devout attendant upon levees; he was most zealous
+      in his loyalty, and could not speak of the royal family without a burst of
+      enthusiasm, for he still felt toward them as his companions in exile. As
+      to his poverty he made light of it, and indeed had a good-humored way of
+      consoling himself for every cross and privation. If he had lost his
+      chateau in the country, he had half a dozen royal palaces, as it were, at
+      his command. He had Versailles and St. Cloud for his country resorts, and
+      the shady alleys of the Tuileries and the Luxembourg for his town
+      recreation. Thus all his promenades and relaxations were magnificent, yet
+      cost nothing.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      When I walk through these fine gardens, said he, I have only to fancy
+      myself the owner of them, and they are mine. All these gay crowds are my
+      visitors, and I defy the grand seignior himself to display a greater
+      variety of beauty. Nay, what is better, I have not the trouble of
+      entertaining them. My estate is a perfect Sans Souci, where every one does
+      as he pleases, and no one troubles the owner. All Paris is my theater, and
+      presents me with a continual spectacle. I have a table spread for me in
+      every street, and thousands of waiters ready to fly at my bidding. When my
+      servants have waited upon me I pay them, discharge them, and there&rsquo;s an
+      end; I have no fears of their wronging or pilfering me when my back is
+      turned. Upon the whole, said the old gentleman with a smile of infinite
+      good humor, when I think upon the various risks I have run, and the manner
+      in which I have escaped them; when I recollect all that I have suffered,
+      and consider all that I at present enjoy, I cannot but look upon myself as
+      a man of singular good fortune.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Such was the brief history of this practical philosopher, and it is a
+      picture of many a Frenchman ruined by the revolution. The French appear to
+      have a greater facility than most men in accommodating themselves to the
+      reverses of life, and of extracting honey out of the bitter things of this
+      world. The first shock of calamity is apt to overwhelm them, but when it
+      is once past, their natural buoyancy of feeling soon brings them to the
+      surface. This may be called the result of levity of character, but it
+      answers the end of reconciling us to misfortune, and if it be not true
+      philosophy, it is something almost as efficacious. Ever since I have heard
+      the story of my little Frenchman, I have treasured it up in my heart; and
+      I thank my stars I have at length found what I had long considered as not
+      to be found on earth&mdash;a contented man.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      P. S.&mdash;There is no calculating on human happiness. Since writing the
+      foregoing, the law of indemnity has been passed, and my friend restored to
+      a great part of his fortune. I was absent from Paris at the time, but on
+      my return hastened to congratulate him. I found him magnificently lodged
+      on the first floor of his hotel. I was ushered, by a servant in livery,
+      through splendid saloons, to a cabinet richly furnished, where I found my
+      little Frenchman reclining on a couch. He received me with his usual
+      cordiality; but I saw the gayety and benevolence of his countenance had
+      fled; he had an eye full of care and anxiety.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      I congratulated him on his good fortune. &ldquo;Good fortune?&rdquo; echoed he; &ldquo;bah!
+      I have been plundered of a princely fortune, and they give me a pittance
+      as an indemnity.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      Alas! I found my late poor and contented friend one of the richest and
+      most miserable men in Paris. Instead of rejoicing hi the ample competency
+      restored to him, he is daily repining at the superfluity withheld. He no
+      longer wanders in happy idleness about Paris, but is a repining attendant
+      in the ante-chambers of ministers. His loyalty has evaporated with his
+      gayety; he screws his mouth when the Bourbons are mentioned, and even
+      shrugs his shoulders when he hears the praises of the king. In a word, he
+      is one of the many philosophers undone by the law of indemnity, and his
+      case is desperate, for I doubt whether even another reverse of fortune,
+      which should restore him to poverty, could make him again a happy man.
+    </p>
+    <div style="height: 6em;">
+      <br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br />
+    </div>
+<pre xml:space="preserve">
+
+
+
+
+
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+</pre>
+  </body>
+</html>
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+The Project Gutenberg EBook of The Crayon Papers, by Washington Irving
+
+This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere at no cost and with
+almost no restrictions whatsoever.  You may copy it, give it away or
+re-use it under the terms of the Project Gutenberg License included
+with this eBook or online at www.gutenberg.org
+
+
+Title: The Crayon Papers
+
+Author: Washington Irving
+
+Posting Date: October 8, 2012 [EBook #7994]
+Release Date: April, 2005
+First Posted: June 10, 2003
+
+Language: English
+
+Character set encoding: ASCII
+
+*** START OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK THE CRAYON PAPERS ***
+
+
+
+
+Produced by Charles Aldarondo, Tiffany Vergon, William
+Craig, Charles Franks, and the Online Distributed
+Proofreading Team
+
+
+
+
+
+
+
+
+
+
+
+THE CRAYON PAPERS
+
+by GEOFFREY CRAYON, GENT.
+
+
+
+
+
+
+
+MOUNTJOY: or Some Passages out of the Life of a Castle-Builder
+
+THE GREAT MISSISSIPPI BUBBLE--"A Time of Unexampled Prosperity"
+
+DON JUAN: A Spectral Research
+
+BROEK: or the Dutch Paradise
+
+SKETCHES IN PARIS IN 1825--From the Traveling Note-Book of Geoffrey Crayon,
+Gent.
+
+My French Neighbor The Englishman at Paris English and French Character The
+Tuileries and Windsor Castle The Field of Waterloo Paris at the Restoration
+
+AMERICAN RESEARCHES IN ITALY--Life of Tasso: Recovery of a Lost Portrait of
+Dante
+
+THE TAKING OF THE VEIL The Charming Letorieres
+
+THE EARLY EXPERIENCES OF RALPH RINGWOOD--Noted Down from his Conversations
+
+THE SEMINOLES
+
+ORIGIN OF THE WHITE, THE RED, AND THE BLACK MEN--A Seminole Tradition
+
+THE CONSPIRACY OF NEAMATHLA--An Authentic Sketch
+
+LETTER FROM GRANADA
+
+ABDERAHMAN: Founder of the Dynasty of the Ommiades in Spain
+
+THE WIDOW'S ORDEAL: or a Judicial Trial by Combat
+
+THE CREOLE VILLAGE: A Sketch from a Steamboat
+
+A CONTENTED MAN
+
+
+
+
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+MOUNTJOY
+OR SOME PASSAGES OUT OF THE LIFE OF A CASTLE-BUILDER
+
+I was born among romantic scenery, in one of the wildest parts of the
+Hudson, which at that time was not so thickly settled as at present. My
+father was descended from one of the old Huguenot families that came over
+to this country on the revocation of the edict of Nantz. He lived in a
+style of easy, rural independence, on a patrimonial estate that had been
+for two or three generations in the family. He was an indolent,
+good-natured man, who took the world as it went, and had a kind of laughing
+philosophy, that parried all rubs and mishaps, and served him in the place
+of wisdom. This was the part of his character least to my taste; for I was
+of an enthusiastic, excitable temperament, prone to kindle up with new
+schemes and projects, and he was apt to dash my sallying enthusiasm by some
+unlucky joke; so that whenever I was in a glow with any sudden excitement,
+I stood in mortal dread of his good-humor.
+
+Yet he indulged me in every vagary; for I was an only son, and of course a
+personage of importance in the household. I had two sisters older than
+myself, and one younger. The former were educated at New York, under the
+eye of a maiden aunt; the latter remained at home, and was my cherished
+playmate, the companion of my thoughts. We were two imaginative little
+beings, of quick susceptibility, and prone to see wonders and mysteries in
+everything around us. Scarce had we learned to read, when our mother made
+us holiday presents of all the nursery literature of the day; which at that
+time consisted of little books covered with gilt paper, adorned with
+"cuts," and filled with tales of fairies, giants, and enchanters. What
+draughts of delightful fiction did we then inhale! My sister Sophy was of a
+soft and tender nature. She would weep over the woes of the Children in the
+Wood, or quake at the dark romance of Blue-Beard, and the terrible
+mysteries of the blue chamber. But I was all for enterprise and adventure.
+I burned to emulate the deeds of that heroic prince who delivered the white
+cat from her enchantment; or he of no less royal blood, and doughty
+enterprise, who broke the charmed slumber of the Beauty in the Wood!
+
+The house in which we lived was just the kind of place to foster such
+propensities. It was a venerable mansion, half villa, half farmhouse. The
+oldest part was of stone, with loop-holes for musketry, having served as a
+family fortress in the time of the Indians. To this there had been made
+various additions, some of brick, some of wood, according to the exigencies
+of the moment; so that it was full of nooks and crooks, and chambers of all
+sorts and sizes. It was buried among willows, elms, and cherry trees, and
+surrounded with roses and hollyhocks, with honeysuckle and sweetbrier
+clambering about every window. A brood of hereditary pigeons sunned
+themselves upon the roof; hereditary swallows and martins built about the
+eaves and chimneys; and hereditary bees hummed about the flower-beds.
+
+Under the influence of our story-books every object around us now assumed a
+new character, and a charmed interest. The wild flowers were no longer the
+mere ornaments of the fields, or the resorts of the toilful bee; they were
+the lurking-places of fairies. We would watch the humming-bird, as it
+hovered around the trumpet creeper at our porch, and the butterfly as it
+flitted up into the blue air, above the sunny tree-tops, and fancy them
+some of the tiny beings from fairyland. I would call to mind all that I had
+read of Robin Goodfellow and his power of transformation. Oh, how I envied
+him that power! How I longed to be able to compress my form into utter
+littleness; to ride the bold dragonfly; swing on the tall bearded grass;
+follow the ant into his subterraneous habitation, or dive into the
+cavernous depths of the honeysuckle!
+
+While I was yet a mere child I was sent to a daily school, about two miles
+distant. The schoolhouse was on the edge of a wood, close by a brook
+overhung with birches, alders, and dwarf willows. We of the school who
+lived at some distance came with our dinners put up in little baskets. In
+the intervals of school hours we would gather round a spring, under a tuft
+of hazel-bushes, and have a kind of picnic; interchanging the rustic
+dainties with which our provident mothers had fitted us out. Then, when our
+joyous repast was over, and my companions were disposed for play, I would
+draw forth one of my cherished story-books, stretch myself on the green
+sward, and soon lose myself in its bewitching contents.
+
+I became an oracle among my schoolmates on account of my superior
+erudition, and soon imparted to them the contagion of my infected fancy.
+Often in the evening, after school hours, we would sit on the trunk of some
+fallen tree in the woods, and vie with each other in telling extravagant
+stories, until the whip-poor-will began his nightly moaning, and the
+fireflies sparkled in the gloom. Then came the perilous journey homeward.
+What delight we would take in getting up wanton panics in some dusky part
+of the wood; scampering like frightened deer; pausing to take breath;
+renewing the panic, and scampering off again, wild with fictitious terror!
+
+Our greatest trial was to pass a dark, lonely pool, covered with
+pond-lilies, peopled with bullfrogs and water snakes, and haunted by two
+white cranes. Oh! the terrors of that pond! How our little hearts would
+beat as we approached it; what fearful glances we would throw around! And
+if by chance a plash of a wild duck, or the guttural twang of a bullfrog,
+struck our ears, as we stole quietly by--away we sped, nor paused until
+completely out of the woods. Then, when I reached home, what a world of
+adventures and imaginary terrors would I have to relate to my sister Sophy!
+
+As I advanced in years, this turn of mind increased upon me, and became
+more confirmed. I abandoned myself to the impulses of a romantic
+imagination, which controlled my studies, and gave a bias to all my habits.
+My father observed me continually with a book in my hand, and satisfied
+himself that I was a profound student; but what were my studies? Works of
+fiction; tales of chivalry; voyages of discovery; travels in the East;
+everything, in short, that partook of adventure and romance. I well
+remember with what zest I entered upon that part of my studies which
+treated of the heathen mythology, and particularly of the sylvan deities.
+Then indeed my school books became dear to me. The neighborhood was well
+calculated to foster the reveries of a mind like mine. It abounded with
+solitary retreats, wild streams, solemn forests, and silent valleys. I
+would ramble about for a whole day with a volume of Ovid's Metamorphoses in
+my pocket, and work myself into a kind of self-delusion, so as to identify
+the surrounding scenes with those of which I had just been reading. I would
+loiter about a brook that glided through the shadowy depths of the forest,
+picturing it to myself the haunt of Naiads. I would steal round some bushy
+copse that opened upon a glade, as if I expected to come suddenly upon
+Diana and her nymphs, or to behold Pan and his satyrs bounding, with whoop
+and halloo, through the woodland. I would throw myself, during the panting
+heats of a summer noon, under the shade of some wide-spreading tree, and
+muse and dream away the hours, in a state of mental intoxication. I drank
+in the very light of day, as nectar, and my soul seemed to bathe with
+ecstasy in the deep blue of a summer sky.
+
+In these wanderings nothing occurred to jar my feelings, or bring me back
+to the realities of life. There is a repose in our mighty forests that
+gives full scope to the imagination. Now and then I would hear the distant
+sound of the woodcutter's ax, or the crash of some tree which he had laid
+low; but these noises, echoing along the quiet landscape, could easily be
+wrought by fancy into harmony with its illusions. In general, however, the
+woody recesses of the neighborhood were peculiarly wild and unfrequented. I
+could ramble for a whole day, without coming upon any traces of
+cultivation. The partridge of the wood scarcely seemed to shun my path, and
+the squirrel, from his nut-tree, would gaze at me for an instant, with
+sparkling eye, as if wondering at the unwonted intrusion.
+
+I cannot help dwelling on this delicious period of my life; when as yet I
+had known no sorrow, nor experienced any worldly care. I have since studied
+much, both of books and men, and of course have grown too wise to be so
+easily pleased; yet with all my wisdom, I must confess I look back with a
+secret feeling of regret to the days of happy ignorance before I had begun
+to be a philosopher.
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+It must be evident that I was in a hopeful training for one who was to
+descend into the arena of life, and wrestle with the world. The tutor,
+also, who superintended my studies in the more advanced stage of my
+education, was just fitted to complete the _fata morgana_ which was
+forming in my mind. His name was Glencoe. He was a pale, melancholy-looking
+man, about forty years of age; a native of Scotland, liberally educated,
+and who had devoted himself to the instruction of youth from taste rather
+than necessity; for, as he said, he loved the human heart, and delighted to
+study it in its earlier impulses. My two elder sisters, having returned
+home from a city boarding-school, were likewise placed under his care, to
+direct their reading in history and belles-lettres.
+
+We all soon became attached to Glencoe. It is true, we were at first
+somewhat prepossessed against him. His meager, pallid countenance, his
+broad pronunciation, his inattention to the little forms of society, and an
+awkward and embarrassed manner, on first acquaintance, were much against
+him; but we soon discovered that under this unpromising exterior existed
+the kindest urbanity of temper; the warmest sympathies; the most
+enthusiastic benevolence. His mind was ingenious and acute. His reading had
+been various, but more abstruse than profound; his memory was stored, on
+all subjects, with facts, theories, and quotations, and crowded with crude
+materials for thinking. These, in a moment of excitement, would be, as it
+were, melted down, and poured forth in the lava of a heated imagination. At
+such moments, the change in the whole man was wonderful. His meager form
+would acquire a dignity and grace; his long, pale visage would flash with a
+hectic glow; his eyes would beam with intense speculation; and there would
+be pathetic tones and deep modulations in his voice, that delighted the
+ear, and spoke movingly to the heart.
+
+But what most endeared him to us was the kindness and sympathy with which
+he entered into all our interests and wishes. Instead of curbing and
+checking our young imaginations with the reins of sober reason, he was a
+little too apt to catch the impulse and be hurried away with us. He could
+not withstand the excitement of any sally of feeling or fancy, and was
+prone to lend heightening tints to the illusive coloring of youthful
+anticipation.
+
+Under his guidance my sisters and myself soon entered upon a more extended
+range of studies; but while they wandered, with delighted minds, through
+the wide field of history and belles-lettres, a nobler walk was opened to
+my superior intellect.
+
+The mind of Glencoe presented a singular mixture of philosophy and poetry.
+He was fond of metaphysics and prone to indulge in abstract speculations,
+though his metaphysics were somewhat fine spun and fanciful, and his
+speculations were apt to partake of what my father most irreverently termed
+"humbug." For my part, I delighted in them, and the more especially because
+they set my father to sleep and completely confounded my sisters. I entered
+with my accustomed eagerness into this new branch of study. Metaphysics
+were now my passion. My sisters attempted to accompany me, but they soon
+faltered, and gave out before they had got half way through Smith's Theory
+of the Moral Sentiments. I, however, went on, exulting in my strength.
+Glencoe supplied me with books, and I devoured them with appetite, if not
+digestion. We walked and talked together under the trees before the house,
+or sat apart, like Milton's angels, and held high converse upon themes
+beyond the grasp of ordinary intellects. Glencoe possessed a kind of
+philosophic chivalry, in imitation of the old peripatetic sages, and was
+continually dreaming of romantic enterprises in morals, and splendid
+systems for the improvement of society. He had a fanciful mode of
+illustrating abstract subjects, peculiarly to my taste; clothing them with
+the language of poetry, and throwing round them almost the magic hues of
+fiction. "How charming," thought I, "is divine philosophy;" not harsh and
+crabbed, as dull fools suppose,
+
+  "But a perpetual feast of nectar'd sweets,
+   Where no crude surfeit reigns."
+
+I felt a wonderful self-complacency at being on such excellent terms with a
+man whom I considered on a parallel with the sages of antiquity, and looked
+down with a sentiment of pity on the feebler intellects of my sisters, who
+could comprehend nothing of metaphysics. It is true, when I attempted to
+study them by myself, I was apt to get in a fog; but when Glencoe came to
+my aid, everything was soon as clear to me as day. My ear drank in the
+beauty of his words; my imagination was dazzled with the splendor of his
+illustrations. It caught up the sparkling sands of poetry that glittered
+through his speculations, and mistook them for the golden ore of wisdom.
+Struck with the facility with which I seemed to imbibe and relish the most
+abstract doctrines, I conceived a still higher opinion of my mental powers,
+and was convinced that I also was a philosopher.
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+I was now verging toward man's estate, and though my education had been
+extremely irregular--following the caprices of my humor, which I mistook
+for the impulses of my genius--yet I was regarded with wonder and delight
+by my mother and sisters, who considered me almost as wise and infallible
+as I considered myself. This high opinion of me was strengthened by a
+declamatory habit, which made me an oracle and orator at the domestic
+board. The time was now at hand, however, that was to put my philosophy to
+the test.
+
+We had passed through a long winter, and the spring at length opened upon
+us with unusual sweetness. The soft serenity of the weather; the beauty of
+the surrounding country; the joyous notes of the birds; the balmy breath of
+flower and blossom, all combined to fill my bosom with indistinct
+sensations, and nameless wishes. Amid the soft seductions of the season, I
+lapsed into a state of utter indolence, both of body and mind.
+
+Philosophy had lost its charms for me. Metaphysics--faugh! I tried to
+study; took down volume after volume, ran my eye vacantly over a few pages,
+and threw them by with distaste. I loitered about the house, with my hands
+in my pockets, and an air of complete vacancy. Something was necessary to
+make me happy; but what was that something? I sauntered to the apartments
+of my sisters, hoping their conversation might amuse me. They had walked
+out, and the room was vacant. On the table lay a volume which they had been
+reading. It was a novel. I had never read a novel, having conceived a
+contempt for works of the kind, from hearing them universally condemned. It
+is true, I had remarked that they were as universally read; but I
+considered them beneath the attention of a philosopher, and never would
+venture to read them, lest I should lessen my mental superiority in the
+eyes of my sisters. Nay, I had taken up a work of the kind now and then,
+when I knew my sisters were observing me, looked into it for a moment, and
+then laid it down, with a slight supercilious smile. On the present
+occasion, out of mere listlessness, I took up the volume and turned over a
+few of the first pages. I thought I heard some one coming, and laid it
+down. I was mistaken; no one was near, and what I had read tempted my
+curiosity to read a little further. I leaned against a window-frame, and in
+a few minutes was completely lost in the story. How long I stood there
+reading I know not, but I believe for nearly two hours. Suddenly I heard my
+sisters on the stairs, when I thrust the book into my bosom, and the two
+other volumes which lay near into my pockets, and hurried out of the house
+to my beloved woods. Here I remained all day beneath the trees, bewildered,
+bewitched, devouring the contents of these delicious volumes, and only
+returned to the house when it was too dark to peruse their pages.
+
+This novel finished, I replaced it in my sisters' apartment, and looked for
+others. Their stock was ample, for they had brought home all that were
+current in the city; but my appetite demanded an immense supply. All this
+course of reading was carried on clandestinely, for I was a little ashamed
+of it, and fearful that my wisdom might be called in question; but this
+very privacy gave it additional zest. It was "bread eaten in secret"; it
+had the charm of a private amour.
+
+But think what must have been the effect of such a course of reading on a
+youth of my temperament and turn of mind; indulged, too, amid romantic
+scenery and in the romantic season of the year. It seemed as if I had
+entered upon a new scene of existence. A train of combustible feelings were
+lighted up in me, and my soul was all tenderness and passion. Never was
+youth more completely love-sick, though as yet it was a mere general
+sentiment, and wanted a definite object. Unfortunately, our neighborhood
+was particularly deficient in female society, and I languished in vain for
+some divinity to whom I might offer up this most uneasy burden of
+affections. I was at one time seriously enamored of a lady whom I saw
+occasionally in my rides, reading at the window of a country-seat; and
+actually serenaded her with my flute; when, to my confusion, I discovered
+that she was old enough to be my mother. It was a sad damper to my romance;
+especially as my father heard of it, and made it the subject of one of
+those household jokes which he was apt to serve up at every meal-time.
+
+I soon recovered from this check, however, but it was only to relapse into
+a state of amorous excitement. I passed whole days in the fields, and along
+the brooks; for there is something in the tender passion that makes us
+alive to the beauties of nature. A soft sunshiny morning infused a sort of
+rapture into my breast. I flung open my arms, like the Grecian youth in
+Ovid, as if I would take in and embrace the balmy atmosphere. [Footnote:
+Ovid's Metamorphoses, Book vii] The song of the birds melted me to
+tenderness. I would lie by the side of some rivulet for hours, and form
+garlands of the flowers on its banks, and muse on ideal beauties, and sigh
+from the crowd of undefined emotions that swelled my bosom.
+
+In this state of amorous delirium, I was strolling one morning along a
+beautiful wild brook, which I had discovered in a glen. There was one place
+where a small waterfall, leaping from among rocks into a natural basin,
+made a scene such as a poet might have chosen as the haunt of some shy
+Naiad. It was here I usually retired to banquet on my novels. In visiting
+the place this morning I traced distinctly, on the margin of the basin,
+which was of fine clear sand, the prints of a female foot of the most
+slender and delicate proportions. This was sufficient for an imagination
+like mine. Robinson Crusoe himself, when he discovered the print of a
+savage foot on the beach of his lonely island, could not have been more
+suddenly assailed with thick-coming fancies.
+
+I endeavored to track the steps, but they only passed for a few paces along
+the fine sand, and then were lost among the herbage. I remained gazing in
+reverie upon this passing trace of loveliness. It evidently was not made by
+any of my sisters, for they knew nothing of this haunt; besides, the foot
+was smaller than theirs; it was remarkable for its beautiful delicacy.
+
+My eye accidentally caught two or three half-withered wild flowers lying on
+the ground. The unknown nymph had doubtless dropped them from her bosom!
+Here was a new document of taste and sentiment. I treasured them up as
+invaluable relics. The place, too, where I found them, was remarkably
+picturesque, and the most beautiful part of the brook. It was overhung with
+a fine elm, entwined with grapevines. She who could select such a spot, who
+could delight in wild brooks, and wild flowers, and silent solitudes, must
+have fancy, and feeling, and tenderness; and with all these qualities, she
+must be beautiful!
+
+But who could be this Unknown, that had thus passed by, as in a morning
+dream, leaving merely flowers and fairy footsteps to tell of her
+loveliness? There was a mystery in it that bewildered me. It was so vague
+and disembodied, like those "airy tongues that syllable men's names" in
+solitude. Every attempt to solve the mystery was vain. I could hear of no
+being in the neighborhood to whom this trace could be ascribed. I haunted
+the spot, and became daily more and more enamored. Never, surely, was
+passion more pure and spiritual, and never lover in more dubious situation.
+My case could be compared only to that of the amorous prince in the fairy
+tale of Cinderella; but he had a glass slipper on which to lavish his
+tenderness. I, alas! was in love with a footstep!
+
+The imagination is alternately a cheat and a dupe; nay, more, it is the
+most subtle of cheats, for it cheats itself and becomes the dupe of its own
+delusions. It conjures up "airy nothings," gives to them a "local
+habitation and a name," and then bows to their control as implicitly as
+though they were realities. Such was now my case. The good Numa could not
+more thoroughly have persuaded himself that the nymph Egeria hovered about
+her sacred fountain and communed with him in spirit than I had deceived
+myself into a kind of visionary intercourse with the airy phantom
+fabricated in my brain. I constructed a rustic seat at the foot of the tree
+where I had discovered the footsteps. I made a kind of bower there, where I
+used to pass my mornings reading poetry and romances. I carved hearts and
+darts on the tree, and hung it with garlands. My heart was full to
+overflowing, and wanted some faithful bosom into which it might relieve
+itself. What is a lover without a confidante? I thought at once of my
+sister Sophy, my early playmate, the sister of my affections. She was so
+reasonable, too, and of such correct feelings, always listening to my words
+as oracular sayings, and admiring my scraps of poetry as the very
+inspirations of the muse. From such a devoted, such a rational being, what
+secrets could I have?
+
+I accordingly took her one morning to my favorite retreat. She looked
+around, with delighted surprise, upon the rustic seat, the bower, the tree
+carved with emblems of the tender passion. She turned her eyes upon me to
+inquire the meaning.
+
+"Oh, Sophy," exclaimed I, clasping both her hands in mine, and looking
+earnestly in her face, "I am in love."
+
+She started with surprise.
+
+"Sit down," said I, "and I will tell you all."
+
+She seated herself upon the rustic bench, and I went into a full history of
+the footstep, with all the associations of idea that had been conjured up
+by my imagination.
+
+Sophy was enchanted; it was like a fairy tale; she had read of such
+mysterious visitations in books, and the loves thus conceived were always
+for beings of superior order, and were always happy. She caught the
+illusion in all its force; her cheek glowed; her eye brightened.
+
+"I daresay she's pretty," said Sophy.
+
+"Pretty!" echoed I, "she is beautiful." I went through all the reasoning by
+which I had logically proved the fact to my own satisfaction. I dwelt upon
+the evidences of her taste, her sensibility to the beauties of nature; her
+soft meditative habit that delighted in solitude. "Oh," said I, clasping my
+hands, "to have such a companion to wander through these scenes; to sit
+with her by this murmuring stream; to wreathe garlands round her brows; to
+hear the music of her voice mingling with the whisperings of these groves;
+to--"
+
+"Delightful! delightful!" cried Sophy; "what a sweet creature she must be!
+She is just the friend I want. How I shall dote upon her! Oh, my dear
+brother! you must not keep her all to yourself. You must let _me_ have
+some share of her!"
+
+I caught her to my bosom: "You shall--you shall!" cried I, "my dear Sophy;
+we will all live for each other!"
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+The conversation with Sophy heightened the illusions of my mind; and the
+manner in which she had treated my daydream identified it with facts and
+persons and gave it still more the stamp of reality. I walked about as one
+in a trance, heedless of the world around and lapped in an elysium of the
+fancy.
+
+In this mood I met one morning with Glencoe. He accosted me with his usual
+smile, and was proceeding with some general observations, but paused and
+fixed on me an inquiring eye.
+
+"What is the matter with you?" said he, "you seem agitated; has anything in
+particular happened?"
+
+"Nothing," said I, hesitating; "at least nothing worth communicating to
+you."
+
+"Nay, my dear young friend," said he, "whatever is of sufficient importance
+to agitate you is worthy of being communicated to me."
+
+"Well; but my thoughts are running on what you would think a frivolous
+subject."
+
+"No subject is frivolous that has the power to awaken strong feelings."
+
+"What think you," said I, hesitating, "what think you of love?"
+
+Glencoe almost started at the question. "Do you call that a frivolous
+subject?" replied he. "Believe me, there is none fraught with such deep,
+such vital interest. If you talk, indeed, of the capricious inclination
+awakened by the mere charm of perishable beauty, I grant it to be idle in
+the extreme; but that love which springs from the concordant sympathies of
+virtuous hearts; that love which is awakened by the perception of moral
+excellence, and fed by meditation on intellectual as well as personal
+beauty; that is a passion which refines and ennobles the human heart. Oh,
+where is there a sight more nearly approaching to the intercourse of
+angels, than that of two young beings, free from the sins and follies of
+the world, mingling pure thoughts, and looks, and feelings, and becoming,
+as it were, soul of one soul and heart of one heart! How exquisite the
+silent converse that they hold; the soft devotion of the eye, that needs no
+words to make it eloquent! Yes, my friend, if there be anything in this
+weary world worthy of heaven, it is the pure bliss of such a mutual
+affection!"
+
+The words of my worthy tutor overcame all further reserve. "Mr. Glencoe,"
+cried I, blushing still deeper, "I am in love."
+
+"And is that what you were ashamed to tell me? Oh, never seek to conceal
+from your friend so important a secret. If your passion be unworthy, it is
+for the steady hand of friendship to pluck it forth; if honorable, none but
+an enemy would seek to stifle it. On nothing does the character and
+happiness so much depend as on the first affection of the heart. Were you
+caught by some fleeting and superficial charm--a bright eye, a blooming
+cheek, a soft voice, or a voluptuous form--I would warn you to beware; I
+would tell you that beauty is but a passing gleam of the morning, a
+perishable flower; that accident may becloud and blight it, and that at
+best it must soon pass away. But were you in love with such a one as I
+could describe; young in years, but still younger in feelings; lovely in
+person, but as a type of the mind's beauty; soft in voice, in token of
+gentleness of spirit; blooming in countenance, like the rosy tints of
+morning kindling with the promise of a genial day; an eye beaming with the
+benignity of a happy heart; a cheerful temper, alive to all kind impulses,
+and frankly diffusing its own felicity; a self-poised mind, that needs not
+lean on others for support; an elegant taste, that can embellish solitude,
+and furnish out its own enjoyments--"
+
+"My dear sir," cried I, for I could contain myself no longer, "you have
+described the very person!"
+
+"Why, then, my dear young friend," said he, affectionately pressing my
+hand, "in God's name, love on!"
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+For the remainder of the day I was in some such state of dreamy beatitude
+as a Turk is said to enjoy when under the influence of opium. It must be
+already manifest how prone I was to bewilder myself with picturings of the
+fancy, so as to confound them with existing realities. In the present
+instance, Sophy and Glencoe had contributed to promote the transient
+delusion. Sophy, dear girl, had as usual joined with me in my
+castle-building, and indulged in the same train of imaginings, while
+Glencoe, duped by my enthusiasm, firmly believed that I spoke of a being I
+had seen and known. By their sympathy with my feelings they in a manner
+became associated with the Unknown in my mind, and thus linked her with the
+circle of my intimacy.
+
+In the evening, our family party was assembled in the hall, to enjoy the
+refreshing breeze. Sophy was playing some favorite Scotch airs on the
+piano, while Glencoe, seated apart, with his forehead resting on his hand,
+was buried in one of those pensive reveries that made him so interesting to
+me.
+
+"What a fortunate being I am!" thought I, "blessed with such a sister and
+such a friend! I have only to find out this amiable Unknown, to wed her,
+and be happy! What a paradise will be my home, graced with a partner of
+such exquisite refinement! It will be a perfect fairy bower, buried among
+sweets and roses. Sophy shall live with us, and be the companion of all our
+enjoyments. Glencoe, too, shall no more be the solitary being that he now
+appears. He shall have a home with us. He shall have his study, where, when
+he pleases, he may shut himself up from the world, and bury himself in his
+own reflections. His retreat shall be sacred; no one shall intrude there;
+no one but myself, who will visit him now and then, in his seclusion, where
+we will devise grand schemes together for the improvement of mankind. How
+delightfully our days will pass, in a round of rational pleasures and
+elegant employments! Sometimes we will have music; sometimes we will read;
+sometimes we will wander through the flower garden, when I will smile with
+complacency on every flower my wife has planted; while in the long winter
+evenings the ladies will sit at their work, and listen with hushed
+attention to Glencoe and myself, as we discuss the abstruse doctrines of
+metaphysics."
+
+From this delectable reverie, I was startled by my father's slapping me on
+the shoulder. "What possesses the lad?" cried he; "here have I been
+speaking to you half a dozen times, without receiving an answer."
+
+"Pardon me, sir," replied I; "I was so completely lost in thought, that I
+did not hear you."
+
+"Lost in thought! And pray what were you thinking of? Some of your
+philosophy, I suppose."
+
+"Upon my word," said my sister Charlotte, with an arch laugh, "I suspect
+Harry's in love again."
+
+"And if were in love, Charlotte," said I, somewhat nettled, and
+recollecting Glencoe's enthusiastic eulogy of the passion, "if I were in
+love, is that a matter of jest and laughter? Is the tenderest and most
+fervid affection that can animate the human breast to be made a matter of
+cold-hearted ridicule?"
+
+My sister colored. "Certainly not, brother!--nor did I mean to make it so,
+or to say anything that should wound your feelings. Had I really suspected
+you had formed some genuine attachment, it would have been sacred in my
+eyes; but--but," said she, smiling, as if at some whimsical recollection,
+"I thought that you--you might be indulging in another little freak of the
+imagination."
+
+"Ill wager any money," cried my father, "he has fallen in love again with
+some old lady at a window!"
+
+"Oh, no!" cried my dear sister Sophy, with the most gracious warmth; "she
+is young and beautiful."
+
+"From what I understand," said Glencoe, rousing himself, "she must be
+lovely in mind as in person."
+
+I found my friends were getting me into a fine scrape. I began to perspire
+at every pore, and felt my ears tingle.
+
+"Well, but," cried my father, "who is she?--what is she? Let us hear
+something about her."
+
+This was no time to explain so delicate a matter. I caught up my hat, and
+vanished out of the house.
+
+The moment I was in the open air, and alone, my heart upbraided me. Was
+this respectful treatment to my father--to _such_ a father, too--who
+had always regarded me as the pride of his age--the staff of his hopes? It
+is true, he was apt sometimes to laugh at my enthusiastic flights, and did
+not treat my philosophy with due respect; but when had he ever thwarted a
+wish of my heart? Was I then to act with reserve toward him, in a matter
+which might affect the whole current of my future life? "I have done
+wrong," thought I; "but it is not too late to remedy it. I will hasten back
+and open my whole heart to my father!"
+
+I returned accordingly, and was just on the point of entering the house,
+with my heart full of filial piety and a contrite speech upon my lips, when
+I heard a burst of obstreperous laughter from my father, and a loud titter
+from my two elder sisters.
+
+"A footstep!" shouted he, as soon as he could recover himself; "in love
+with a footstep! Why, this beats the old lady at the window!" And then
+there was another appalling burst of laughter. Had it been a clap of
+thunder, it could hardly have astounded me more completely. Sophy, in the
+simplicity of her heart, had told all, and had set my father's risible
+propensities in full action.
+
+Never was poor mortal so thoroughly crestfallen as myself. The whole
+delusion was at an end. I drew off silently from the house, shrinking
+smaller and smaller at every fresh peal of laughter; and, wandering about
+until the family had retired, stole quietly to my bed. Scarce any sleep,
+however, visited my eyes that night! I lay overwhelmed with mortification,
+and meditating how I might meet the family in the morning. The idea of
+ridicule was always intolerable to me; but to endure it on a subject by
+which my feelings had been so much excited seemed worse than death. I
+almost determined, at one time, to get up, saddle my horse, and ride off, I
+knew not whither.
+
+At length I came to a resolution. Before going down to breakfast, I sent
+for Sophy, and employed her as embassador to treat formally in the matter.
+I insisted that the subject should be buried in oblivion; otherwise I would
+not show my face at table. It was readily agreed to; for not one of the
+family would have given me pain for the world. They faithfully kept their
+promise. Not a word was said of the matter; but there were wry faces, and
+suppressed titters, that went to my soul; and whenever my father looked me
+in the face, it was with such a tragi-comical leer--such an attempt to pull
+down a serious brow upon a whimsical mouth--that I had a thousand times
+rather he had laughed outright.
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+For a day or two after the mortifying occurrence just related, I kept as
+much as possible out of the way of the family, and wandered about the
+fields and woods by myself. I was sadly out of tune; my feelings were all
+jarred and unstrung. The birds sang from every grove, but I took no
+pleasure in their melody; and the flowers of the field bloomed unheeded
+around me. To be crossed in love is bad enough; but then one can fly to
+poetry for relief, and turn one's woes to account in soul-subduing stanzas.
+But to have one's whole passion, object and all, annihilated, dispelled,
+proved to be such stuff as dreams are made of--or, worse than all, to be
+turned into a proverb and a jest--what consolation is there in such a case?
+
+I avoided the fatal brook where I had seen the footstep. My favorite resort
+was now the banks of the Hudson, where I sat upon the rocks and mused upon
+the current that dimpled by, or the waves that laved the shore; or watched
+the bright mutations of the clouds, and the shifting lights and shadows of
+the distant mountain. By degrees a returning serenity stole over my
+feelings; and a sigh now and then, gentle and easy, and unattended by pain,
+showed that my heart was recovering its susceptibility.
+
+As I was sitting in this musing mood my eye became gradually fixed upon an
+object that was borne along by the tide. It proved to be a little pinnace,
+beautifully modeled, and gayly painted and decorated. It was an unusual
+sight in this neighborhood, which was rather lonely; indeed, it was rare to
+see any pleasure-barks in this part of the river. As it drew nearer, I
+perceived that there was no one on board; it had apparently drifted from
+its anchorage. There was not a breath of air; the little bark came floating
+along on the glassy stream, wheeling about with the eddies. At length it
+ran aground, almost at the foot of the rock on which I was seated. I
+descended to the margin of the river, and drawing the bark to shore,
+admired its light and elegant proportions and the taste with which it was
+fitted up. The benches were covered with cushions, and its long streamer
+was of silk. On one of the cushion's lay a lady's glove, of delicate size
+and shape, with beautifully tapered fingers. I instantly seized it and
+thrust it in my bosom; it seemed a match for the fairy footstep that had so
+fascinated me.
+
+In a moment all the romance of my bosom was again in a glow. Here was one
+of the very incidents of fairy tale; a bark sent by some invisible power,
+some good genius, or benevolent fairy, to waft me to some delectable
+adventure. I recollected something of an enchanted bark, drawn by white
+swans, that conveyed a knight down the current of the Rhine, on some
+enterprise connected with love and beauty. The glove, too, showed that
+there was a lady fair concerned in the present adventure. It might be a
+gauntlet of defiance, to dare me to the enterprise.
+
+In the spirit of romance and the whim of the moment, I sprang on board,
+hoisted the light sail, and pushed from shore. As if breathed by some
+presiding power, a light breeze at that moment sprang up, swelled out the
+sail, and dallied with the silken streamer. For a time I glided along under
+steep umbrageous banks, or across deep sequestered bays; and then stood out
+over a wide expansion of the river toward a high rocky promontory. It was a
+lovely evening; the sun was setting in a congregation of clouds that threw
+the whole heavens in a glow, and were reflected in the river. I delighted
+myself with all kinds of fantastic fancies, as to what enchanted island, or
+mystic bower, or necromantic palace, I was to be conveyed by the fairy
+bark.
+
+In the revel of my fancy I had not noticed that the gorgeous congregation
+of clouds which had so much delighted me was in fact a gathering thunder
+gust. I perceived the truth too late. The clouds came hurrying on,
+darkening as they advanced. The whole face of nature was suddenly changed,
+and assumed that baleful and livid tint, predictive of a storm. I tried to
+gain the shore, but before I could reach it a blast of wind struck the
+water and lashed it at once into foam. The next moment it overtook the
+boat. Alas! I was nothing of a sailor; and my protecting fairy forsook me
+in the moment of peril. I endeavored to lower the sail; but in so doing I
+had to quit the helm; the bark was overturned in an instant, and I was
+thrown into the water. I endeavored to cling to the wreck, but missed my
+hold; being a poor swimmer I soon found myself sinking, but grasped a light
+oar that was floating by me. It was not sufficient for my support; I again
+sank beneath the surface; there was a rushing and bubbling sound in my
+ears, and all sense forsook me.
+
+How long I remained insensible, I know not. I had a confused notion of
+being moved and tossed about, and of hearing strange beings and strange
+voices around me; but all this was like a hideous dream. When I at length
+recovered full consciousness and perception, I found myself in bed in a
+spacious chamber, furnished with more taste than I had been accustomed to.
+The bright rays of a morning sun were intercepted by curtains of a delicate
+rose color, that gave a soft, voluptuous tinge to every object. Not far
+from my bed, on a classic tripod, was a basket of beautiful exotic flowers,
+breathing the sweetest fragrance.
+
+"Where am I? How came I here?"
+
+I tasked my mind to catch at some previous event, from which I might trace
+up the thread of existence to the present moment. By degrees I called to
+mind the fairy pinnace, my daring embarkation, my adventurous voyage, and
+my disastrous shipwreck. Beyond that, all was chaos. How came I here? What
+unknown region had I landed upon? The people that inhabited it must be
+gentle and amiable, and of elegant tastes, for they loved downy beds,
+fragrant flowers, and rose-colored curtains.
+
+While I lay thus musing, the tones of a harp reached my ear. Presently they
+were accompanied by a female voice. It came from the room below; but in the
+profound stillness of my chamber not a modulation was lost. My sisters were
+all considered good musicians, and sang very tolerably; but I had never
+heard a voice like this. There was no attempt at difficult execution, or
+striking effect; but there were exquisite inflections, and tender turns,
+which art could not reach. Nothing but feeling and sentiment could produce
+them. It was soul breathed forth in sound. I was always alive to the
+influence of music; indeed, I was susceptible of voluptuous influences of
+every kind--sounds, colors, shapes, and fragrant odors. I was the very
+slave of sensation.
+
+I lay mute and breathless, and drank in every note of this siren strain. It
+thrilled through my whole frame, and filled my soul with melody and love. I
+pictured to myself, with curious logic, the form of the unseen musician.
+Such melodious sounds and exquisite inflections could only be produced by
+organs of the most delicate flexibility. Such organs do not belong to
+coarse, vulgar forms; they are the harmonious results of fair proportions,
+and admirable symmetry. A being so organized must be lovely.
+
+Again my busy imagination was at work. I called to mind the Arabian story
+of a prince, borne away during sleep by a good genius, to the distant abode
+of a princess of ravishing beauty. I do not pretend to say that I believed
+in having experienced a similar transportation; but it was my inveterate
+habit to cheat myself with fancies of the kind, and to give the tinge of
+illusion to surrounding realities.
+
+The witching sound had ceased, but its vibrations still played round my
+heart, and filled it with a tumult of soft emotions. At this moment, a
+self-upbraiding pang shot through my bosom. "Ah, recreant!" a voice seemed
+to exclaim, "is this the stability of thine affections? What! hast thou so
+soon forgotten the nymph of the fountain? Has one song, idly piped in thine
+ear, been sufficient to charm away the cherished tenderness of a whole
+summer?"
+
+The wise may smile--but I am in a confiding mood, and must confess my
+weakness. I felt a degree of compunction at this sudden infidelity, yet I
+could not resist the power of present fascination. My peace of mind was
+destroyed by conflicting claims. The nymph of the fountain came over my
+memory, with all the associations of fairy footsteps, shady groves, soft
+echoes, and wild streamlets; but this new passion was produced by a strain
+of soul-subduing melody, still lingering in my ear, aided by a downy bed,
+fragrant flowers, and rose-colored curtains. "Unhappy youth!" sighed I to
+myself, "distracted by such rival passions, and the empire of thy heart
+thus violently contested by the sound of a voice, and the print of a
+footstep!"
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+I had not remained long in this mood, when I heard the door of the room
+gently opened. I turned my head to see what inhabitant of this enchanted
+palace should appear; whether page in green, a hideous dwarf, or haggard
+fairy. It was my own man Scipio. He advanced with cautious step, and was
+delighted, as he said, to find me so much myself again. My first questions
+were as to where I was and how I came there? Scipio told me a long story of
+his having been fishing in a canoe at the time of my hare-brained cruise;
+of his noticing the gathering squall, and my impending danger; of his
+hastening to join me, but arriving just in time to snatch me from a watery
+grave; of the great difficulty in restoring me to animation; and of my
+being subsequently conveyed, in a state of insensibility, to this mansion.
+
+"But where am I?" was the reiterated demand.
+
+"In the house of Mr. Somerville."
+
+"Somerville--Somerville!" I recollected to have heard that a gentleman of
+that name had recently taken up his residence at some distance from my
+father's abode, on the opposite side of the Hudson. He was commonly known
+by the name of "French Somerville," from having passed part of his early
+life in France, and from his exhibiting traces of French taste in his mode
+of living, and the arrangements of his house. In fact, it was in his
+pleasure-boat, which had got adrift, that I had made my fanciful and
+disastrous cruise. All this was simple, straightforward matter of fact, and
+threatened to demolish all the cobweb romance I had been spinning, when
+fortunately I again heard the tinkling of a harp. I raised myself in bed
+and listened.
+
+"Scipio," said I, with some little hesitation, "I heard some one singing
+just now. Who was it?"
+
+"Oh, that was Miss Julia."
+
+"Julia! Julia! Delightful! what a name! And, Scipio--is she--is she
+pretty?"
+
+Scipio grinned from ear to ear. "Except Miss Sophy, she was the most
+beautiful young lady he had ever seen."
+
+I should observe, that my sister Sophia was considered by all the servants
+a paragon of perfection.
+
+Scipio now offered to remove the basket of flowers; he was afraid their
+odor might be too powerful; but Miss Julia had given them that morning to
+be placed in my room.
+
+These flowers, then, had been gathered by the fairy fingers of my unseen
+beauty; that sweet breath which had filled my ear with melody had passed
+over them. I made Scipio hand them to me, culled several of the most
+delicate, and laid them on my bosom.
+
+Mr. Somerville paid me a visit not long afterward. He was an interesting
+study for me, for he was the father of my unseen beauty, and probably
+resembled her. I scanned him closely. He was a tall and elegant man, with
+an open, affable manner, and an erect and graceful carriage. His eyes were
+bluish-gray, and, though not dark, yet at times were sparkling and
+expressive. His hair was dressed and powdered, and being lightly combed up
+from his forehead, added to the loftiness of his aspect. He was fluent in
+discourse, but his conversation had the quiet tone of polished society,
+without any of those bold flights of thought, and picturings of fancy,
+which I so much admired.
+
+My imagination was a little puzzled, at first, to make out of this
+assemblage of personal and mental qualities a picture that should harmonize
+with my previous idea of the fair unseen. By dint, however, of selecting
+what it liked, and giving a touch here and a touch there, it soon furnished
+out a satisfactory portrait.
+
+"Julia must be tall," thought I, "and of exquisite grace and dignity. She
+is not quite so courtly as her father, for she has been brought up in the
+retirement of the country. Neither is she of such vivacious deportment; for
+the tones of her voice are soft and plaintive, and she loves pathetic
+music. She is rather pensive--yet not too pensive; just what is called
+interesting. Her eyes are like her father's, except that they are of a
+purer blue, and more tender and languishing. She has light hair--not
+exactly flaxen, for I do not like flaxen hair, but between that and auburn.
+In a word, she is a tall, elegant, imposing, languishing blue-eyed,
+romantic-looking beauty." And having thus finished her picture, I felt ten
+times more in love with her than ever.
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+I felt so much recovered that I would at once have left my room, but Mr.
+Somerville objected to it. He had sent early word to my family of my
+safety; and my father arrived in the course of the morning. He was shocked
+at learning the risk I had run, but rejoiced to find me so much restored,
+and was warm in his thanks to Mr. Somerville for his kindness. The other
+only required, in return, that I might remain two or three days as his
+guest, to give time for my recovery, and for our forming a closer
+acquaintance; a request which my father readily granted. Scipio accordingly
+accompanied my father home, and returned with a supply of clothes, and with
+affectionate letters from my mother and sisters.
+
+The next morning, aided by Scipio, I made my toilet with rather more care
+than usual, and descended the stairs with some trepidation, eager to see
+the original of the portrait which had been so completely pictured in my
+imagination.
+
+On entering the parlor, I found it deserted. Like the rest of the house, it
+was furnished in a foreign style. The curtains were of French silk; there
+were Grecian couches, marble tables, pier-glasses, and chandeliers. What
+chiefly attracted my eye, were documents of female taste that I saw around
+me; a piano, with an ample stock of Italian music: a book of poetry lying
+on the sofa; a vase of fresh flowers on a table, and a portfolio open with
+a skillful and half-finished sketch of them. In the window was a canary
+bird, in a gilt cage, and near by, the harp that had been in Julia's arms.
+Happy harp! But where was the being that reigned in this little empire of
+delicacies?--that breathed poetry and song, and dwelt among birds and
+flowers, and rose-colored curtains?
+
+Suddenly I heard the hall door fly open, the quick pattering of light
+steps, a wild, capricious strain of music, and the shrill barking of a dog.
+A light, frolic nymph of fifteen came tripping into the room, playing on a
+flageolet, with a little spaniel romping after her. Her gypsy hat had
+fallen back upon her shoulders; a profusion of glossy brown hair was blown
+in rich ringlets about her face, which beamed through them with the
+brightness of smiles and dimples.
+
+At sight of me she stopped short, in the most beautiful confusion,
+stammered out a word or two about looking for her father, glided out of the
+door, and I heard her bounding up the staircase, like a frightened fawn,
+with the little dog barking after her.
+
+When Miss Somerville returned to the parlor, she was quite a different
+being. She entered, stealing along by her mother's side with noiseless
+step, and sweet timidity; her hair was prettily adjusted, and a soft blush
+mantled on her damask cheek. Mr. Somerville accompanied the ladies, and
+introduced me regularly to them. There were many kind inquiries and much
+sympathy expressed, on the subject of my nautical accident, and some
+remarks upon the wild scenery of the neighborhood, with which the ladies
+seemed perfectly acquainted.
+
+"You must know," said Mr. Somerville, "that we are great navigators, and
+delight in exploring every nook and corner of the river. My daughter, too,
+is a great hunter of the picturesque, and transfers every rock and glen to
+her portfolio. By the way, my dear, show Mr. Mountjoy that pretty scene you
+have lately sketched." Julia complied, blushing, and drew from her
+portfolio a colored sketch. I almost started at the sight. It was my
+favorite brook. A sudden thought darted across my mind. I glanced down my
+eye, and beheld the divinest little foot in the world. Oh, blissful
+conviction! The struggle of my affections was at an end. The voice and the
+footstep were no longer at variance. Julia Somerville was the nymph of the
+fountain!
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+What conversation passed during breakfast I do not recollect, and hardly
+was conscious of at the time, for my thoughts were in complete confusion. I
+wished to gaze on Miss Somerville, but did not dare. Once, indeed, I
+ventured a glance. She was at that moment darting a similar one from under
+a covert of ringlets. Our eyes seemed shocked by the rencontre, and fell;
+hers through the natural modesty of her sex, mine through a bashfulness
+produced by the previous workings of my imagination. That glance, however,
+went like a sunbeam to my heart.
+
+A convenient mirror favored my diffidence, and gave me the reflection of
+Miss Somerville's form. It is true it only presented the back of her head,
+but she had the merit of an ancient statue; contemplate her from any point
+of view, she was beautiful. And yet she was totally different from
+everything I had before conceived of beauty. She was not the serene,
+meditative maid that I had pictured the nymph of the fountain; nor the
+tall, soft, languishing, blue-eyed, dignified being that I had fancied the
+minstrel of the harp. There was nothing of dignity about her: she was
+girlish in her appearance, and scarcely of the middle size; but then there
+was the tenderness of budding youth; the sweetness of the half-blown rose,
+when not a tint of perfume has been withered or exhaled; there were smiles
+and dimples, and all the soft witcheries of ever-varying expression. I
+wondered that I could ever have admired any other style of beauty.
+
+After breakfast, Mr. Somerville departed to attend to the concerns of his
+estate, and gave me in charge of the ladies. Mrs. Somerville also was
+called away by her household cares, and I was left alone with Julia! Here,
+then, was the situation which of all others I had most coveted. I was in
+the presence of the lovely being that had so long been the desire of my
+heart. We were alone; propitious opportunity for a lover! Did I seize upon
+it? Did I break out in one of my accustomed rhapsodies? No such thing!
+Never was being more awkwardly embarrassed.
+
+"What can be the cause of this?" thought I. "Surely, I cannot stand in awe
+of this young girl. I am of course her superior in intellect, and am never
+embarrassed in company with my tutor, notwithstanding all his wisdom."
+
+It was passing strange. I felt that if she were an old woman, I should be
+quite at my ease; if she were even an ugly woman, I should make out very
+well: it was her beauty that overpowered me. How little do lovely women
+know what awful beings they are, in the eyes of inexperienced youth! Young
+men brought up in the fashionable circles of our cities will smile at all
+this. Accustomed to mingle incessantly in female society, and to have the
+romance of the heart deadened by a thousand frivolous flirtations, women
+are nothing but women in their eyes; but to a susceptible youth like
+myself, brought up in the country, they are perfect divinities.
+
+Miss Somerville was at first a little embarrassed herself; but, somehow or
+other, women have a natural adroitness in recovering their self-possession;
+they are more alert in their minds, and graceful in their manners. Besides,
+I was but an ordinary personage in Miss Somerville's eyes; she was not
+under Hie influence of such a singular course of imaginings as had
+surrounded her, in my eyes, with the illusions of romance. Perhaps, too,
+she saw the confusion in the opposite camp and gained courage from the
+discovery. At any rate she was the first to take the field.
+
+Her conversation, however, was only on commonplace topics, and in an easy,
+well-bred style. I endeavored to respond in the same manner; but I was
+strangely incompetent to the task. My ideas were frozen up; even words
+seemed to fail me. I was excessively vexed at myself, for I wished to be
+uncommonly elegant. I tried two or three times to turn a pretty thought, or
+to utter a fine sentiment; but it would come forth so trite, so forced, so
+mawkish, that I was ashamed of it. My very voice sounded discordantly,
+though I sought to modulate it into the softest tones. "The truth is,"
+thought I to myself, "I cannot bring my mind down to the small talk
+necessary for young girls; it is too masculine and robust for the mincing
+measure of parlor gossip. I am a philosopher--and that accounts for it."
+
+The entrance of Mrs. Somerville at length gave me relief. I at once
+breathed freely, and felt a vast deal of confidence come over me. "This is
+strange," thought I, "that the appearance of another woman should revive my
+courage; that I should be a better match for two women than one. However,
+since it is so, I will take advantage of the circumstance, and let this
+young lady see that I am not so great a simpleton as she probably thinks
+me."
+
+I accordingly took up the book of poetry which lay upon the sofa. It was
+Milton's Paradise Lost. Nothing could have been more fortunate; it afforded
+a fine scope for my favorite vein of grandiloquence. I went largely into a
+discussion of its merits, or rather an enthusiastic eulogy of them. My
+observations were addressed to Mrs. Somerville, for I found I could talk to
+her with more ease than to her daughter. She appeared alive to the beauties
+of the poet and disposed to meet me in the discussion; but it was not my
+object to hear her talk; it was to talk myself. I anticipated all she had
+to say, overpowered her with the copiousness of my ideas, and supported and
+illustrated them by long citations from the author.
+
+While thus holding forth, I cast a side glance to see how Miss Somerville
+was affected. She had some embroidery stretched on a frame before her, but
+had paused in her labor, and was looking down as if lost in mute attention.
+I felt a glow of self-satisfaction, but I recollected, at the same time,
+with a kind of pique, the advantage she had enjoyed over me in our
+tete-a-tete. I determined to push my triumph, and accordingly kept on with
+redoubled ardor, until I had fairly exhausted my subject, or rather my
+thoughts.
+
+I had scarce come to a full stop, when Miss Somerville raised her eyes from
+the work on which they had been fixed, and turning to her mother, observed:
+"I have been considering, mamma, whether to work these flowers plain, or in
+colors."
+
+Had an ice-bolt shot to my heart, it could not have chilled me more
+effectually. "What a fool," thought I, "have I been making
+myself--squandering away fine thoughts, and fine language, upon a light
+mind and an ignorant ear! This girl knows nothing of poetry. She has no
+soul, I fear, for its beauties. Can any one have real sensibility of heart,
+and not be alive to poetry? However, she is young; this part of her
+education has been neglected; there is time enough to remedy it. I will be
+her preceptor. I will kindle in her mind the sacred flame, and lead her
+through the fairy land of song. But after all, it is rather unfortunate
+that I should have fallen in love with a woman who knows nothing of
+poetry."
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+I passed a day not altogether satisfactory. I was a little disappointed
+that Miss Somerville did not show more poetical feeling. "I am afraid,
+after all," said I to myself, "she is light and girlish, and more fitted to
+pluck wild flowers, play on the flageolet, and romp with little dogs than
+to converse with a man of my turn."
+
+I believe, however, to tell the truth, I was more out of humor with myself.
+I thought I had made the worst first appearance that ever hero made, either
+in novel or fairy tale. I was out of all patience, when I called to mind my
+awkward attempts at ease and elegance, in the tete-a-tete. And then my
+intolerable long lecture about poetry to catch the applause of a heedless
+auditor! But there I was not to blame. I had certainly been eloquent: it
+was her fault that the eloquence was wasted. To meditate upon the
+embroidery of a flower, when I was expatiating on the beauties of Milton!
+She might at least have admired the poetry, if she did not relish the
+manner in which it was delivered: though that was not despicable, for I had
+recited passages in my best style, which my mother and sisters had always
+considered equal to a play. "Oh, it is evident," thought I, "Miss
+Somerville has very little soul!"
+
+Such were my fancies and cogitations during the day, the greater part of
+which was spent in my chamber, for I was still languid. My evening was
+passed in the drawing-room, where I overlooked Miss Somerville's portfolio
+of sketches. They were executed with great taste, and showed a nice
+observation of the peculiarities of nature. They were all her own, and free
+from those cunning tints and touches of the drawing-master, by which young
+ladies' drawings, like their heads, are dressed up for company. There was
+no garish and vulgar trick of colors, either; all was executed with
+singular truth and simplicity.
+
+"And yet," thought I, "this little being, who has so pure an eye to take
+in, as in a limpid brook, all the graceful forms and magic tints of nature,
+has no soul for poetry!"
+
+Mr. Somerville, toward the latter part of the evening, observing my eye to
+wander occasionally to the harp, interpreted and met my wishes with his
+accustomed civility.
+
+"Julia, my dear," said he, "Mr. Mountjoy would like to hear a little music
+from your harp; let us hear, too, the sound of your voice."
+
+Julia immediately complied, without any of that hesitation and difficulty,
+by which young ladies are apt to make company pay dear for bad music. She
+sang a sprightly strain, in a brilliant style, that came trilling playfully
+over the ear; and the bright eye and dimpling smile showed that her little
+heart danced with the song. Her pet canary bird, who hung close by, was
+awakened by the music, and burst forth into an emulating strain. Julia
+smiled with a pretty air of defiance, and played louder.
+
+After some time the music changed, and ran into a plaintive strain, in a
+minor key. Then it was that all the former witchery of her voice came over
+me; then it was that she seemed to sing from the heart and to the heart.
+Her fingers moved about the chords as if they scarcely touched them. Her
+whole manner and appearance changed; her eyes beamed with the softest
+expression; her countenance, her frame, all seemed subdued into tenderness.
+She rose from the harp, leaving it still vibrating with sweet sounds, and
+moved toward her father, to bid him good-night.
+
+His eyes had been fixed on her intently during her performance. As she came
+before him he parted her shining ringlets with both his hands, and looked
+down with the fondness of a father on her innocent face. The music seemed
+still lingering in its lineaments, and the action of her father brought a
+moist gleam in her eye. He kissed her fair forehead, after the French mode
+of parental caressing: "Goodnight, and God bless you," said he, "my good
+little girl!"
+
+Julia tripped away, with a tear in her eye, a dimple in her cheek, and a
+light heart in her bosom. I thought it the prettiest picture of paternal
+and filial affection I had ever seen.
+
+When I retired to bed, a new train of thoughts crowded into my brain.
+"After all," said I to myself, "it is clear this girl has a soul, though
+she was not moved by my eloquence. She has all the outward signs and
+evidences of poetic feeling. She paints well, and has an eye for nature.
+She is a fine musician, and enters into the very soul of song. What a pity
+that she knows nothing of poetry! But we will see what is to be done? I am
+irretrievably in love with her; what then am I to do? Come down to the
+level of her mind, or endeavor to raise her to some kind of intellectual
+equality with myself? That is the most generous course. She will look up to
+me as a benefactor. I shall become associated in her mind with the lofty
+thoughts and harmonious graces of poetry. She is apparently docile: besides
+the difference of our ages will give me an ascendency over her. She cannot
+be above sixteen years of age, and I am full turned to twenty." So, having
+built this most delectable of air castles, I fell asleep.
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+The next morning I was quite a different being. I no longer felt fearful of
+stealing a glance at Julia; on the contrary, I contemplated her steadily,
+with the benignant eye of a benefactor. Shortly after breakfast I found
+myself alone with her, as I had on the preceding morning; but I felt
+nothing of the awkwardness of our previous tete-a-tete. I was elevated by
+the consciousness of my intellectual superiority and should almost have
+felt a sentiment of pity for the ignorance of the lovely little being, if I
+had not felt also the assurance that I should be able to dispel it. "But it
+is time," thought I, "to open school."
+
+Julia was occupied in arranging some music on her piano. I looked over two
+or three songs; they were Moore's Irish melodies.
+
+"These are pretty things!" said I, flirting the leaves over lightly, and
+giving a slight shrug, by way of qualifying the opinion.
+
+"Oh, I love them of all things," said Julia, "they're so touching!"
+
+"Then you like them for the poetry," said I, with an encouraging smile.
+
+"Oh, yes; she thought them charmingly written."
+
+Now was my time. "Poetry," said I, assuming a didactic attitude and air,
+"poetry is one of the most pleasing studies that can occupy a youthful
+mind. It renders us susceptible of the gentle impulses of humanity, and
+cherishes a delicate perception of all that is virtuous and elevated in
+morals, and graceful and beautiful in physics. It--"
+
+I was going on in a style that would have graced a professor of rhetoric,
+when I saw a light smile playing about Miss Somerville's mouth, and that
+she began to turn over the leaves of a music-book. I recollected her
+inattention to my discourse of the preceding morning. "There is no fixing
+her light mind," thought I, "by abstract theory; we will proceed
+practically." As it happened, the identical volume of Milton's Paradise
+Lost was lying at hand.
+
+"Let me recommend to you, my young friend," said I, in one of those tones
+of persuasive admonition, which I had so often loved in Glencoe, "let me
+recommend to you this admirable poem; you will find in it sources of
+intellectual enjoyment far superior to those songs which have delighted
+you." Julia looked at the book, and then at me, with a whimsically dubious
+air. "Milton's Paradise Lost?" said she; "oh, I know the greater part of
+that by heart."
+
+I had not expected to find my pupil so far advanced; however, the Paradise
+Lost is a kind of school book, and its finest passages are given to young
+ladies as tasks.
+
+"I find," said I to myself, "I must not treat her as so complete a novice;
+her inattention yesterday could not have proceeded from absolute ignorance,
+but merely from a want of poetic feeling. I'll try her again."
+
+I now determined to dazzle her with my own erudition, and launched into a
+harangue that would have done honor to an institute. Pope, Spenser,
+Chaucer, and the old dramatic writers were all dipped into, with the
+excursive flight of a swallow. I did not confine myself to English poets,
+but gave a glance at the French and Italian schools; I passed over Ariosto
+in full wing, but paused on Tasso's Jerusalem Delivered. I dwelt on the
+character of Clorinda: "There's a character," said I, "that you will find
+well worthy a woman's study. It shows to what exalted heights of heroism
+the sex can rise, how gloriously they may share even in the stern concerns
+of men."
+
+"For my part," said Julia, gently taking advantage of a pause, "for my
+part, I prefer the character of Sophronia."
+
+I was thunderstruck. She then had read Tasso! This girl that I had been
+treating as an ignoramus in poetry! She proceeded with a slight glow of the
+cheek, summoned up perhaps by a casual glow of feeling:
+
+"I do not admire those masculine heroines," said she, "who aim at the bold
+qualities of the opposite sex. Now Sophronia only exhibits the real
+qualities of a woman, wrought up to their highest excitement. She is
+modest, gentle, and retiring, as it becomes a woman to be; but she has all
+the strength of affection proper to a woman. She cannot fight for her
+people as Clorinda does, but she can offer herself up, and die to serve
+them. You may admire Clorinda, but you surely would be more apt to love
+Sophronia; at least," added she, suddenly appearing to recollect herself,
+and blushing at having launched into such a discussion, "at least that is
+what papa observed when we read the poem together."
+
+"Indeed," said I, dryly, for I felt disconcerted and nettled at being
+unexpectedly lectured by my pupil; "indeed, I do not exactly recollect the
+passage."
+
+"Oh," said Julia, "I can repeat it to you;" and she immediately gave it in
+Italian.
+
+Heavens and earth!--here was a situation! I knew no more of Italian than I
+did of the language of Psalmanazar. What a dilemma for a would-be-wise man
+to be placed in! I saw Julia waited for my opinion.
+
+"In fact," said I, hesitating, "I--I do not exactly understand Italian."
+
+"Oh," said Julia, with the utmost naivete, "I have no doubt it is very
+beautiful in the translation."
+
+I was glad to break up school, and get back to my chamber, full of the
+mortification which a wise man in love experiences on finding his mistress
+wiser than himself. "Translation! translation!" muttered I to myself, as I
+jerked the door shut behind me: "I am surprised my father has never had me
+instructed in the modern languages. They are all important. What is the
+use of Latin and Greek? No one speaks them; but here, the moment I make my
+appearance in the world, a little girl slaps Italian in my face. However,
+thank heaven, a language is easily learned. The moment I return home, I'll
+set about studying Italian; and to prevent future surprise, I will study
+Spanish and German at the same time; and if any young lady attempts to
+quote Italian upon me again, I'll bury her under a heap of High Dutch
+poetry!"
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+I felt now like some mighty chieftain, who has carried the war into a weak
+country, with full confidence of success, and been repulsed and obliged to
+draw off his forces from before some inconsiderable fortress.
+
+"However," thought I, "I have as yet brought only my light artillery into
+action; we shall see what is to be done with my heavy ordnance. Julia is
+evidently well versed in poetry; but it is natural she should be so; it is
+allied to painting and music, and is congenial to the light graces of the
+female character. We will try her on graver themes."
+
+I felt all my pride awakened; it even for a time swelled higher than my
+love. I was determined completely to establish my mental superiority, and
+subdue the intellect of this little being; it would then be time to sway
+the scepter of gentle empire, and win the affections of her heart.
+
+Accordingly, at dinner I again took the field, _en potence._ I now
+addressed myself to Mr. Somerville, for I was about to enter upon topics in
+which a young girl like her could not be well versed. I led, or rather
+forced, the conversation into a vein of historical erudition, discussing
+several of the most prominent facts of ancient history, and accompanying
+them with sound, indisputable apothegms.
+
+Mr. Somerville listened to me with the air of a man receiving information.
+I was encouraged, and went on gloriously from theme to theme of school
+declamation. I sat with Marius on the ruins of Carthage; I defended the
+bridge with Horatius Cocles; thrust my hand into the flame with Martius
+Scaevola, and plunged with Curtius into the yawning gulf; I fought side by
+side with Leonidas, at the straits of Thermopylae; and was going full drive
+into the battle of Plataea, when my memory, which is the worst in the
+world, failed me, just as I wanted the name of the Lacedemonian commander.
+
+"Julia, my dear," said Mr. Somerville, "perhaps you may recollect the name
+of which Mr. Mountjoy is in quest?"
+
+Julia colored slightly. "I believe," said she, in a low voice, "I believe
+it was Pausanius."
+
+This unexpected sally, instead of re-enforcing me, threw my whole scheme of
+battle into confusion, and the Athenians remained unmolested in the field.
+
+I am half inclined, since, to think Mr. Somerville meant this as a sly hit
+at my schoolboy pedantry; but he was too well bred not to seek to relieve
+me from my mortification. "Oh!" said he, "Julia is our family book of
+reference for names, dates, and distances, and has an excellent memory for
+history and geography."
+
+I now became desperate; as a last resource I turned to metaphysics. "If she
+is a philosopher in petticoats," thought I, "it is all over with me." Here,
+however, I had the field to myself. I gave chapter and verse of my tutor's
+lectures, heightened by all his poetical illustrations; I even went further
+than he had ever ventured, and plunged into such depths of metaphysics that
+I was in danger of sticking in the mire at the bottom. Fortunately, I had
+auditors who apparently could not detect my flounderings. Neither Mr.
+Somerville nor his daughter offered the least interruption.
+
+When the ladies had retired, Mr. Somerville sat some time with me; and as I
+was no longer anxious to astonish, I permitted myself to listen, and found
+that he was really agreeable. He was quite communicative, and from his
+conversation I was enabled to form a juster idea of his daughter's
+character, and the mode in which she had been brought up. Mr. Somerville
+had mingled much with the world, and with what is termed fashionable
+society. He had experienced its cold elegances and gay insincerities; its
+dissipation of the spirits and squanderings of the heart. Like many men of
+the world, though he had wandered too far from nature ever to return to it,
+yet he had the good taste and good feeling to look back fondly to its
+simple delights, and to determine that his child, if possible, should never
+leave them. He had superintended her education with scrupulous care,
+storing her mind with the graces of polite literature, and with such
+knowledge as would enable it to furnish its own amusement and occupation,
+and giving her all the accomplishments that sweeten and enliven the circle
+of domestic life. He had been particularly sedulous to exclude all
+fashionable affectations; all false sentiment, false sensibility, and false
+romance. "Whatever advantages she may possess," said he, "she is quite
+unconscious of them. She is a capricious little being, in everything but
+her affections; she is, however, free from art; simple, ingenuous, amiable,
+and, I thank God! happy."
+
+Such was the eulogy of a fond father, delivered with a tenderness that
+touched me. I could not help making a casual inquiry, whether, among the
+graces of polite literature, he had included a slight tincture of
+metaphysics. He smiled, and told me he had not.
+
+On the whole, when, as usual, that night, I summed up the day's
+observations on my pillow, I was not altogether dissatisfied. "Miss
+Somerville," said I, "loves poetry, and I like her the better for it. She
+has the advantage of me in Italian; agreed; what is it to know a variety of
+languages, but merely to have a variety of sounds to express the same idea?
+Original thought is the ore of the mind; language is but the accidental
+stamp and coinage by which it is put into circulation. If I can furnish an
+original idea, what care I how many languages she can translate it into?
+She may be able also to quote names and dates and latitudes better than I;
+but that is a mere effort of the memory. I admit she is more accurate in
+history and geography than I; but then she knows nothing of metaphysics."
+
+I had now sufficiently recovered to return home; yet I could not think of
+leaving Mr. Somerville's without having a little further conversation with
+him on the subject of his daughter's education.
+
+"This Mr. Somerville," thought I, "is a very accomplished, elegant man; he
+has seen a good deal of the world, and, upon the whole, has profited by
+what he has seen. He is not without information, and, as far as he thinks,
+appears to think correctly; but, after all, he is rather superficial, and
+does not think profoundly. He seems to take no delight in those
+metaphysical abstractions that are the proper aliment of masculine minds. I
+called to mind various occasions in which I had indulged largely in
+metaphysical discussions, but could recollect no instance where I had been
+able to draw him out. He had listened, it is true, with attention, and
+smiled as if in acquiescence, but had always appeared to avoid reply.
+Besides, I had made several sad blunders in the glow of eloquent
+declamation; but he had never interrupted me, to notice and correct them,
+as he would have done had he been versed in the theme.
+
+"Now, it is really a great pity," resumed I, "that he should have the
+entire management of Miss Somerville's education. What a vast advantage it
+would be if she could be put for a little time under the superintendence of
+Glencoe. He would throw some deeper shades of thought into her mind, which
+at present is all sunshine; not but that Mr. Somerville has done very well,
+as far as he has gone; but then he has merely prepared the soil for the
+strong plants of useful knowledge. She is well versed in the leading facts
+of history, and the general course of belles-lettres," said I; "a little
+more philosophy would do wonders."
+
+I accordingly took occasion to ask Mr. Somerville for a few moments'
+conversation in his study, the morning I was to depart. When we were alone
+I opened the matter fully to him. I commenced with the warmest eulogium of
+Glencoe's powers of mind and vast acquirements, and ascribed to him all my
+proficiency in the higher branches of knowledge. I begged, therefore, to
+recommend him as a friend calculated to direct the studies of Miss
+Somerville; to lead her mind, by degrees, to the contemplation of abstract
+principles, and to produce habits of philosophical analysis; "which," added
+I, gently smiling, "are not often cultivated by young ladies." I ventured
+to hint, in addition, that he would find Mr. Glencoe a most valuable and
+interesting acquaintance for himself; one who would stimulate and evolve
+the powers of his mind; and who might open to him tracts of inquiry and
+speculation to which perhaps he had hitherto been a stranger.
+
+Mr. Somerville listened with grave attention. When I had finished, he
+thanked me in the politest manner for the interest I took in the welfare of
+his daughter and himself. He observed that, as it regarded himself, he was
+afraid he was too old to benefit by the instruction of Mr. Glencoe, and
+that as to his daughter, he was afraid her mind was but little fitted for
+the study of metaphysics. "I do not wish," continued he, "to strain her
+intellects with subjects they cannot grasp, but to make her familiarly
+acquainted with those that are within the limits of her capacity. I do not
+pretend to prescribe the boundaries of female genius, and am far from
+indulging the vulgar opinion that women are unfitted by nature for the
+highest intellectual pursuits. I speak only with reference to my daughter's
+tastes and talents. She will never make a learned woman; nor, in truth, do
+I desire it; for such is the jealousy of our sex, as to mental as well as
+physical ascendency, that a learned woman is not always the happiest. I do
+not wish my daughter to excite envy, or to battle with the prejudices of
+the world; but to glide peaceably through life, on the good will and kind
+opinions of her friends. She has ample employment for her little head, in
+the course I have marked out for her; and is busy at present with some
+branches of natural history, calculated to awaken her perceptions to the
+beauties and wonders of nature, and to the inexhaustible volume of wisdom
+constantly spread open before her eyes. I consider that woman most likely
+to make an agreeable companion, who can draw topics of pleasing remark from
+every natural object; and most likely to be cheerful and contented, who is
+continually sensible of the order, the harmony, and the invariable
+beneficence that reign throughout the beautiful world we inhabit."
+
+"But," added he, smiling, "I am betraying myself into a lecture, instead of
+merely giving a reply to your kind offer. Permit me to take the liberty, in
+return, of inquiring a little about your own pursuits. You speak of having
+finished your education; but of course you have a line of private study and
+mental occupation marked out; for you must know the importance, both in
+point of interest and happiness, of keeping the mind employed. May I ask
+what system you observe in your intellectual exercises?"
+
+"Oh, as to system," I observed, "I could never bring myself into anything
+of the kind. I thought it best to let my genius take it own course, as it
+always acted the most vigorously when stimulated by inclination."
+
+Mr. Somerville shook his head. "This same genius," said he, "is a wild
+quality that runs away with our most promising young men. It has become so
+much the fashion, too, to give it the reins that it is now thought an
+animal of too noble and generous a nature to be brought to harness. But it
+is all a mistake. Nature never designed these high endowments to run riot
+through society, and throw the whole system into confusion. No, my dear
+sir, genius, unless it acts upon system, is very apt to be a useless
+quality to society; sometimes an injurious, and certainly a very
+uncomfortable one, to its possessor. I have had many opportunities of
+seeing the progress through life of young men who were accounted geniuses,
+and have found it too often end in early exhaustion and bitter
+disappointment; and have as often noticed that these effects might be
+traced to a total want of system. There were no habits of business, of
+steady purpose, and regular application, superinduced upon the mind;
+everything was left to chance and impulse, and native luxuriance, and
+everything of course ran to waste and wild entanglement. Excuse me if I am
+tedious on this point, for I feel solicitous to impress it upon you, being
+an error extremely prevalent in our country and one into which too many of
+our youth have fallen. I am happy, however, to observe the zeal which still
+appears to actuate you for the acquisition of knowledge, and augur every
+good from the elevated bent of your ambition. May I ask what has been your
+course of study for the last six months?"
+
+Never was question more unluckily timed. For the last six months I had been
+absolutely buried in novels and romances.
+
+Mr. Somerville perceived that the question was embarrassing, and, with his
+invariable good breeding, immediately resumed the conversation, without
+waiting for a reply. He took care, however, to turn it in such a way as to
+draw from me an account of the whole manner in which I had been educated,
+and the various currents of reading into which my mind had run. He then
+went on to discuss, briefly but impressively, the different branches of
+knowledge most important to a young man in my situation; and to my surprise
+I found him a complete master of those studies on which I had supposed him
+ignorant, and on which I had been descanting so confidently.
+
+He complimented me, however, very graciously, upon the progress I had made,
+but advised me for the present to turn my attention to the physical rather
+than the moral sciences. "These studies," said he, "store a man's mind with
+valuable facts, and at the same time repress self-confidence, by letting
+him know how boundless are the realms of knowledge, and how little we can
+possibly know. Whereas metaphysical studies, though of an ingenious order
+of intellectual employment, are apt to bewilder some minds with vague
+speculations. They never know how far they have advanced, or what may be
+the correctness of their favorite theory. They render many of our young men
+verbose and declamatory, and prone to mistake the aberrations of their
+fancy for the inspirations of divine philosophy."
+
+I could not but interrupt him, to assent to the truth of these remarks, and
+to say that it had been my lot, in the course of my limited experience, to
+encounter young men of the kind, who had overwhelmed me by their verbosity.
+
+Mr. Somerville smiled. "I trust," said he, kindly, "that you will guard
+against these errors. Avoid the eagerness with which a young man is apt to
+hurry into conversation, and to utter the crude and ill-digested notions
+which he has picked up in his recent studies. Be assured that extensive and
+accurate knowledge is the slow acquisition of a studious lifetime; that a
+young man, however pregnant his wit, and prompt his talent, can have
+mastered but the rudiments of learning, and, in a manner, attained the
+implements of study. Whatever may have been your past assiduity, you must
+be sensible that as yet you have but reached the threshold of true
+knowledge; but at the same time you have the advantage that you are still
+very young, and have ample time to learn."
+
+Here our conference ended. I walked out of the study a very different being
+from what I was on entering it. I had gone in with the air of a professor
+about to deliver a lecture; I came out like a student who had failed in his
+examination, and been degraded in his class.
+
+"Very young," and "on the threshold of knowledge!" This was extremely
+flattering to one who had considererd himself an accomplished scholar and a
+profound philosopher.
+
+"It is singular," thought I; "there seems to have been a spell upon my
+faculties, ever since I have been in this house. I certainly have not been
+able to do myself justice. Whenever I have undertaken to advise, I have had
+the tables turned upon me. It must be that I am strange and diffident among
+people I am not accustomed to. I wish they could hear me talk at home!"
+
+"After all," added I, on further reflection, "after all there is a great
+deal of force in what Mr. Somerville has said. Somehow or other, these men
+of the world do now and then hit upon remarks that would do credit to a
+philosopher. Some of his general observations came so home that I almost
+thought they were meant for myself. His advice about adopting a system of
+study is very judicious. I will immediately put it hi practice. My mind
+shall operate henceforward with the regularity of clock-work."
+
+How far I succeeded in adopting this plan, how I fared in the further
+pursuit of knowledge, and how I succeeded in my suit to Julia Somerville,
+may afford matter for a further communication to the public, if this simple
+record of my early life is fortunate enough to excite any curiosity.
+
+
+
+
+
+THE GREAT MISSISSIPPI BUBBLE
+
+"A TIME OF UNEXAMPLED PROSPERITY"
+
+
+In the course of a voyage from England, I once fell in with a convoy of
+merchant ships bound for the West Indies. The weather was uncommonly bland;
+and the ships vied with each other in spreading sail to catch a light,
+favoring breeze, until their hulls were almost hidden beneath a cloud of
+canvas. The breeze went down with the sun, and his last yellow rays shone
+upon a thousand sails, idly flapping against the masts.
+
+I exulted in the beauty of the scene, and augured a prosperous voyage; but
+the veteran master of the ship shook his head, and pronounced this halcyon
+calm a "weather-breeder." And so it proved. A storm burst forth in the
+night; the sea roared and raged; and when the day broke, I beheld the late
+gallant convoy scattered in every direction; some dismasted, others
+scudding under bare poles, and many firing signals of distress.
+
+I have since been occasionally reminded of this scene, by those calm, sunny
+seasons in the commercial world, which are known by the name of "times of
+unexampled prosperity." They are the sure weather-breeders of traffic.
+Every now and then the world is visited by one of these delusive seasons,
+when "the credit system," as it is called, expands to full luxuriance,
+everybody trusts everybody; a bad debt is a thing unheard of; the broad way
+to certain and sudden wealth lies plain and open; and men are tempted to
+dash forward boldly, from the facility of borrowing.
+
+Promissory notes, interchanged between scheming individuals, are liberally
+discounted at the banks, which become so many mints to coin words into
+cash; and as the supply of words is inexhaustible, it may readily be
+supposed what a vast amount of promissory capital is soon in circulation.
+Every one now talks in thousands; nothing is heard but gigantic operations
+in trade; great purchases and sales of real property, and immense sums made
+at every transfer. All, to be sure, as yet exists in promise; but the
+believer in promises calculates the aggregate as solid capital, and falls
+back in amazement at the amount of public wealth, the "unexampled state of
+public prosperity."
+
+Now is the time for speculative and dreaming or designing men. They relate
+their dreams and projects to the ignorant and credulous, dazzle them with
+golden visions, and set them madding after shadows. The example of one
+stimulates another; speculation rises on speculation; bubble rises on
+bubble; every one helps with his breath to swell the windy superstructure,
+and admires and wonders at the magnitude of the inflation he has
+contributed to produce.
+
+Speculation is the romance of trade, and casts contempt upon all its sober
+realities. It renders the stock-jobber a magician, and the exchange a
+region of enchantment. It elevates the merchant into a kind of
+knight-errant, or rather a commercial Quixote. The slow but sure gains of
+snug percentage become despicable in his eyes; no "operation" is thought
+worthy of attention that does not double or treble the investment. No
+business is worth following that does not promise an immediate fortune. As
+he sits musing over his ledger, with pen behind his ear, he is like La
+Mancha's hero in his study, dreaming over his books of chivalry. His dusty
+counting-house fades before his eyes, or changes into a Spanish mine; he
+gropes after diamonds, or dives after pearls. The subterranean garden of
+Aladdin is nothing to the realms of wealth that break upon his imagination.
+
+Could this delusion always last, the life of a merchant would indeed be a
+golden dream; but it is as short as it is brilliant. Let but a doubt enter,
+and the "season of unexampled prosperity" is at end. The coinage of words
+is suddenly curtailed; the promissory capital begins to vanish into smoke;
+a panic succeeds, and the whole superstructure, built upon credit and
+reared by speculation, crumbles to the ground, leaving scarce a wreck
+behind:
+
+  "It is such stuff as dreams are made of."
+
+When a man of business, therefore, hears on every side rumors of fortunes
+suddenly acquired; when he finds banks liberal, and brokers busy; when he
+sees adventurers flush of paper capital, and full of scheme and enterprise;
+when he perceives a greater disposition to buy than to sell; when trade
+overflows its accustomed channels and deluges the country; when he hears of
+new regions of commercial adventure; of distant marts and distant mines,
+swallowing merchandise and disgorging gold; when he finds joint-stock
+companies of all kinds forming; railroads, canals, and locomotive engines,
+springing up on every side; when idlers suddenly become men of business,
+and dash into the game of commerce as they would into the hazards of the
+faro table; when he beholds the streets glittering with new equipages,
+palaces conjured up by the magic of speculation; tradesmen flushed with
+sudden success, and vying with each other in ostentatious expense; in a
+word, when he hears the whole community joining in the theme of "unexampled
+prosperity," let him look upon the whole as a "weather-breeder," and
+prepare for the impending storm.
+
+The foregoing remarks are intended merely as a prelude to a narrative I am
+about to lay before the public, of one of the most memorable instances of
+the infatuation of gain to be found in the whole history of commerce. I
+allude to the famous Mississippi Bubble. It is a matter that has passed
+into a proverb, and become a phrase in every one's mouth, yet of which not
+one merchant in ten has probably a distinct idea. I have therefore thought
+that an authentic account of it would be interesting and salutary, at the
+present moment, when we are suffering under the effects of a severe access
+of the credit system, and just recovering from one of its ruinous
+delusions.
+
+Before entering into the story of this famous chimera, it is proper to give
+a few particulars concerning the individual who engendered it. John Law was
+born in Edinburgh in 1671. His father, William Law, was a rich goldsmith,
+and left his son an estate of considerable value, called Lauriston,
+situated about four miles from Edinburgh. Goldsmiths, in those days, acted
+occasionally as bankers, and his father's operations, under this character,
+may have originally turned the thoughts of the youth to the science of
+calculation, in which he became an adept; so that at an early age he
+excelled in playing at all games of combination.
+
+In 1694 he appeared in London, where a handsome person, and an easy and
+insinuating address, gained him currency in the first circles and the
+nickname of "Beau Law." The same personal advantages gave him success in
+the world of gallantry, until he became involved in a quarrel with Beau
+Wilson, his rival in fashion, whom he killed in a duel, and then fled to
+France, to avoid prosecution.
+
+He returned to Edinburgh in 1700, and remained there several years; during
+which time he first broached his great credit system, offering to supply
+the deficiency of coin by the establishment of a bank, which, according to
+his views, might emit a paper currency equivalent to the whole landed
+estate of the kingdom.
+
+His scheme excited great astonishment in Edinburgh; but, though the
+government was not sufficiently advanced in financial knowledge to detect
+the fallacies upon which it was founded, Scottish caution and suspicion
+served in the place of wisdom, and the project was rejected. Law met with
+no better success with the English Parliament; and the fatal affair of the
+death of Wilson still hanging over him, for which he had never been able to
+procure a pardon, he again went to France.
+
+The financial affairs of France were at this time in a deplorable
+condition. The wars, the pomp and profusion, of Louis XIV., and his
+religious persecutions of whole classes of the most industrious of his
+subjects, had exhausted his treasury, and overwhelmed the nation with debt.
+The old monarch clung to his selfish magnificence, and could not be induced
+to diminish his enormous expenditure; and his minister of finance was
+driven to his wits' end to devise all kinds of disastrous expedients to
+keep up the royal state, and to extricate the nation from its
+embarrassments.
+
+In this state of things, Law ventured to bring forward his financial
+project. It was founded on the plan of the Bank of England, which had
+already been in successful operation several years. He met with immediate
+patronage, and a congenial spirit, in the Duke of Orleans, who had married
+a natural daughter of the king. The duke had been astonished at the
+facility with which England had supported the burden of a public debt,
+created by the wars of Anne and William, and which exceeded in amount that
+under which France was groaning. The whole matter was soon explained by Law
+to his satisfaction. The latter maintained that England had stopped at the
+mere threshold of an art capable of creating unlimited sources of national
+wealth. The duke was dazzled with his splendid views and specious
+reasonings, and thought he clearly comprehended his system. Demarets, the
+Comptroller-General of Finance, was not so easily deceived. He pronounced
+the plan of Law more pernicious than any of the disastrous expedients that
+the government had yet been driven to. The old king also, Louis XIV.,
+detested all innovations, especially those which came from a rival nation;
+the project of a bank, therefore, was utterly rejected.
+
+Law remained for a while in Paris, leading a gay and affluent existence,
+owing to his handsome person, easy manners, flexible temper, and a
+faro-bank which he had set up. His agreeable career was interrupted by a
+message from D'Argenson, Lieutenant-General of Police, ordering him to quit
+Paris, alleging that he was "_rather too skillful at the game which he
+had introduced_."
+
+For several succeeding years he shifted his residence from state to state
+of Italy and Germany; offering his scheme of finance to every court that he
+visited, but without success. The Duke of Savoy, Victor Amadeus, afterward
+king of Sardinia, was much struck with his project; but after considering
+it for a time, replied, _"I am not sufficiently powerful to ruin
+myself."_
+
+The shifting, adventurous life of Law, and the equivocal means by which he
+appeared to live, playing high, and always with great success, threw a
+cloud of suspicion over him wherever he went, and caused him to be expelled
+by the magistracy from the semi-commercial, semi-aristocratical cities of
+Venice and Genoa.
+
+The events of 1715 brought Law back again to Paris. Louis XIV. was dead.
+Louis XV. was a mere child, and during his minority the Duke of Orleans
+held the reins of government as Regent. Law had at length found his man.
+
+The Duke of Orleans has been differently represented by different
+contemporaries. He appears to have had excellent natural qualities,
+perverted by a bad education. He was of the middle size, easy and graceful,
+with an agreeable countenance, and open, affable demeanor. His mind was
+quick and sagacious, rather than profound; and his quickness of intellect,
+and excellence of memory, supplied the lack of studious application. His
+wit was prompt and pungent; he expressed himself with vivacity and
+precision; his imagination was vivid, his temperament sanguine and joyous;
+his courage daring. His mother, the Duchess of Orleans, expressed his
+character in a jeu d'esprit. "The fairies," said she, "were invited to be
+present at his birth, and each one conferring a talent on my son, he
+possesses them all. Unfortunately, we had forgotten to invite an old fairy,
+who, arriving after all the others, exclaimed, 'He shall have all the
+talents, excepting that to make a good use of them.'"
+
+Under proper tuition, the duke might have risen to real greatness; but in
+his early years he was put under the tutelage of the Abbe Dubois, one of
+the subtlest and basest spirits that ever intrigued its way into eminent
+place and power. The abbe was of low origin and despicable exterior,
+totally destitute of morals, and perfidious in the extreme; but with a
+supple, insinuating address, and an accommodating spirit, tolerant of all
+kinds of profligacy in others. Conscious of his own inherent baseness, he
+sought to secure an influence over his pupil, by corrupting his principles
+and fostering his vices; he debased him, to keep himself from being
+despised. Unfortunately he succeeded. To the early precepts of this
+infamous pander have been attributed those excesses that disgraced the
+manhood of the regent, and gave a licentious character to his whole course
+of government. His love of pleasure, quickened and indulged by those who
+should have restrained it, led him into all kinds of sensual indulgence. He
+had been taught to think lightly of the most serious duties and sacred
+ties; to turn virtue into a jest, and consider religion mere hypocrisy. He
+was a gay misanthrope, that had a sovereign but sportive contempt for
+mankind; believed that his most devoted servant would be his enemy, if
+interest prompted; and maintained that an honest man was he who had the art
+to conceal that he was the contrary.
+
+He surrounded himself with a set of dissolute men like himself; who, let
+loose from the restraint under which they had been held, during the latter
+hypocritical days of Louis XIV., now gave way to every kind of debauchery.
+With these men the regent used to shut himself up, after the hours of
+business, and excluding all graver persons and graver concerns, celebrate
+the most drunken and disgusting orgies; where obscenity and blasphemy
+formed the seasoning of conversation. For the profligate companions of
+these revels, he invented the appellation of his _roues_, the literal
+meaning of which is men broken on the wheel; intended, no doubt, to express
+their broken-down characters and dislocated fortunes; although a
+contemporary asserts that it designated the punishment that most of them
+merited. Madame de Labran, who was present at one of the regent's suppers,
+was disgusted by the conduct and conversation of the host and his guests,
+and observed, at table, that God, after he had created man, took the refuse
+clay that was left, and made of it the souls of lackeys and princes.
+
+Such was the man that now ruled the destinies of France. Law found him full
+of perplexities, from the disastrous state of the finances. He had already
+tampered with the coinage, calling in the coin of the nation, restamping
+it, and issuing it at a nominal increase of one-fifth; thus defrauding the
+nation out of twenty per cent of its capital. He was not likely, therefore,
+to be scrupulous about any means likely to relieve him from financial
+difficulties; he had even been led to listen to the cruel alternative of a
+national bankruptcy.
+
+Under these circumstances, Law confidently brought forward his scheme of a
+bank, that was to pay off the national debt, increase the revenue, and at
+the same time diminish the taxes. The following is stated as the theory by
+which he recommended his system to the regent. The credit enjoyed by a
+banker or a merchant, he observed, increases his capital tenfold; that is
+to say, he who has a capital of one thousand livres, may, if he possess
+sufficient credit, extend his operations to a million, and reap profits to
+that amount. In like manner, a state that can collect into a bank all the
+current coin of the kingdom, would be as powerful as if its capital were
+increased tenfold. The specie must be drawn into the bank, not by way of
+loan, or by taxations, but in the way of deposit. This might be effected in
+different modes, either by inspiring confidence or by exerting authority.
+One mode, he observed, had already been in use. Each time that a state
+makes a recoinage, it becomes momentarily the depositary of all the money
+called in, belonging to the subjects of that state. His bank was to effect
+the same purpose; that is to say, to receive in deposit all the coin of the
+kingdom, but to give in exchange its bills, which, being of an invariable
+value, bearing an interest, and being payable on demand, would not only
+supply the place of coin, but prove a better and more profitable currency.
+
+The regent caught with avidity at the scheme. It suited his bold, reckless
+spirit, and his grasping extravagance. Not that he was altogether the dupe
+of Law's specious projects; still he was apt, like many other men,
+unskilled in the arcana of finance, to mistake the multiplication of money
+for the multiplication of wealth; not understanding that it was a mere
+agent or instrument in the interchange of traffic, to represent the value
+of the various productions of industry; and that an increased circulation
+of coin or bank bills, in the shape of currency, only adds a proportionably
+increased and fictitious value to such productions. Law enlisted the vanity
+of the regent in his cause. He persuaded him that he saw more clearly than
+others into sublime theories of finance, which were quite above the
+ordinary apprehension. He used to declare that, excepting the regent and
+the Duke of Savoy, no one had thoroughly comprehended his system.
+
+It is certain that it met with strong opposition from the regent's
+ministers, the Duke de Noailles and the Chancellor d'Anguesseau; and it was
+no less strenuously opposed by the Parliament of Paris. Law, however, had a
+potent though secret coadjutor in the Abbe Dubois, now rising, during the
+regency, into great political power, and who retained a baneful influence
+over the mind of the regent. This wily priest, as avaricious as he was
+ambitious, drew large sums from Law as subsidies, and aided him greatly in
+many of his most pernicious operations. He aided him, in the present
+instance, to fortify the mind of the regent against all the remonstrances
+of his ministers and the parliament.
+
+Accordingly, on the 2d of May, 1716, letters patent were granted to Law, to
+establish a bank of deposit, discount, and circulation, under the firm of
+"Law & Company," to continue for twenty years. The capital was fixed at six
+millions of livres, divided into shares of five hundred livres each, which
+were to be sold for twenty-five per cent of the regent's debased coin, and
+seventy-five per cent of the public securities; which were then at a great
+reduction from their nominal value, and which then amounted to nineteen
+hundred millions. The ostensible object of the bank, as set forth in the
+patent, was to encourage the commerce and manufactures of France. The louis
+d'ors and crowns of the bank were always to retain the same standard of
+value, and its bills to be payable in them on demand.
+
+At the outset, while the bank was limited in its operations, and while its
+paper really represented the specie in its vaults, it seemed to realize all
+that had been promised from it. It rapidly acquired public confidence, and
+an extended circulation, and produced an activity in commerce unknown under
+the baneful government of Louis XIV. As the bills of the bank bore an
+interest, and as it was stipulated they would be of invariable value, and
+as hints had been artfully circulated that the coin would experience
+successive diminution, everybody hastened to the bank to exchange gold and
+silver for paper. So great became the throng of depositors, and so intense
+their eagerness, that there was quite a press and struggle at the bank
+door, and a ludicrous panic was awakened, as if there was danger of their
+not being admitted. An anecdote of the time relates that one of the clerks,
+with an ominous smile, called out to the struggling multitude, "Have a
+little patience, my friends; we mean to take all your money;" an assertion
+disastrously verified in the sequel.
+
+Thus, by the simple establishment of a bank, Law and the regent obtained
+pledges of confidence for the consummation of further and more complicated
+schemes, as yet hidden from the public. In a little while, the bank shares
+rose enormously, and the amount of its notes in circulation exceeded one
+hundred and ten millions of livres. A subtle stroke of policy had rendered
+it popular with the aristocracy. Louis XIV. had several years previously
+imposed an income tax of a tenth, giving his royal word that it should
+cease in 1717. This tax had been exceedingly irksome to the privileged
+orders; and in the present disastrous times they had dreaded an
+augmentation of it. In consequence of the successful operation of Law's
+scheme, however, the tax was abolished, and now nothing was to be heard
+among the nobility and clergy but praises of the regent and the bank.
+
+Hitherto all had gone well, and all might have continued to go well, had
+not the paper system been further expanded. But Law had yet the grandest
+part of his scheme to develop. He had to open his ideal world of
+speculation, his El Dorado of unbounded wealth. The English had brought the
+vast imaginary commerce of the South Seas in aid of their banking
+operations. Law sought to bring, as an immense auxiliary of his bank, the
+whole trade of the Mississippi. Under this name was included not merely the
+river so called, but the vast region known as Louisiana, extending from
+north latitude 29 deg. up to Canada in north latitude 40 deg.. This country had
+been granted by Louis XIV. to the Sieur Crozat, but he had been induced to
+resign his patent. In conformity to the plea of Mr. Law, letters patent
+were granted in August, 1717, for the creation of a commercial company,
+which was to have the colonizing of this country, and the monopoly of its
+trade and resources, and of the beaver or fur trade with Canada. It was
+called the Western, but became better known as the Mississippi Company. The
+capital was fixed at one hundred millions of livres, divided into shares,
+bearing an Interest of four per cent, which were subscribed for in the
+public securities. As the bank was to co-operate with the company, the
+regent ordered that its bills should be received the same as coin, in all
+payments of the public revenue. Law was appointed chief director of this
+company, which was an exact copy of the Earl of Oxford's South Sea Company,
+set on foot in 1711, and which distracted all England with the frenzy of
+speculation. In like manner with the delusive picturings given in that
+memorable scheme of the sources of rich trade to be opened in the South Sea
+countries, Law held forth magnificent prospects of the fortunes to be made
+in colonizing Louisiana, which was represented as a veritable land of
+promise, capable of yielding every variety of the most precious produce.
+Reports, too, were artfully circulated, with great mystery, as if to the
+"chosen few," of mines of gold and silver recently discovered in Louisiana,
+and which would insure instant wealth to the early purchasers. These
+confidential whispers of course soon became public; and were confirmed by
+travelers fresh from the Mississippi, and doubtless bribed, who had seen
+the mines in question, and declared them superior in richness to those of
+Mexico and Peru. Nay, more, ocular proof was furnished to public credulity,
+in ingots of gold conveyed to the mint, as if just brought from the mines
+of Louisiana.
+
+Extraordinary measures were adopted to force a colonization. An edict was
+issued to collect and transport settlers to the Mississippi. The police
+lent its aid. The streets and prisons of Paris, and of the provincial
+cities, were swept of mendicants and vagabonds of all kinds, who were
+conveyed to Havre de Grace. About six thousand were crowded into ships,
+where no precautions had been taken for their health or accommodation.
+Instruments of all kinds proper for the working of mines were
+ostentatiously paraded in public, and put on board the vessels; and the
+whole set sail for this fabled El Dorado, which was to prove the grave of
+the greater part of its wretched colonists.
+
+D'Anguesseau, the chancellor, a man of probity and integrity, still lifted
+his voice against the paper system of Law, and his project of colonization,
+and was eloquent and prophetic in picturing the evils they were calculated
+to produce; the private distress and public degradation; the corruption of
+morals and manners; the triumph of knaves and schemers; the ruin of
+fortunes, and downfall of families. He was incited more and more to this
+opposition by the Duke de Noailles, the Minister of Finance, who was
+jealous of the growing ascendency of Law over the mind of the regent, but
+was less honest than the chancellor in his opposition. The regent was
+excessively annoyed by the difficulties they conjured up in the way of his
+darling schemes of finance, and the countenance they gave to the opposition
+of parliament; which body, disgusted more and more with the abuses of the
+regency, and the system of Law, had gone so far as to carry its
+remonstrances to the very foot of the throne.
+
+He determined to relieve himself from these two ministers, who, either
+through honesty or policy, interfered with all his plans. Accordingly, on
+the 28th of January, 1718, he dismissed the chancellor from office, and
+exiled him to his estate in the country; and shortly afterward removed the
+Duke de Noailles from the administration of the finances.
+
+The opposition of parliament to the regent and his measures was carried on
+with increasing violence. That body aspired to an equal authority with the
+regent in the administration of affairs, and pretended, by its decree, to
+suspend an edict of the regency, ordering a new coinage and altering the
+value of the currency. But its chief hostility was leveled against Law, a
+foreigner and a heretic, and one who was considered by a majority of the
+members in the light of a malefactor. In fact, so far was this hostility
+carried, that secret measures were taken to investigate his malversations,
+and to collect evidence against him; and it was resolved in parliament
+that, should the testimony collected justify their suspicions, they would
+have him seized and brought before them; would give him a brief trial, and,
+if convicted, would hang him in the courtyard of the palace, and throw open
+the gates after the execution, that the public might behold his corpse!
+
+Law received intimation of the danger hanging over him, and was in terrible
+trepidation. He took refuge in the Palais Royal, the residence of the
+regent, and implored his protection. The regent himself was embarrassed by
+the sturdy opposition of parliament, which contemplated nothing less than a
+decree reversing most of his public measures, especially those of finance.
+His indecision kept Law for a time in an agony of terror and suspense.
+Finally, by assembling a board of justice, and bringing to his aid the
+absolute authority of the king, he triumphed over parliament and relieved
+Law from his dread of being hanged.
+
+The system now went on with flowing sail. The Western or Mississippi
+Company, being identified with the bank, rapidly increased in power and
+privileges. One monopoly after another was granted to it; the trade of the
+Indian seas; the slave trade with Senegal and Guinea; the farming of
+tobacco; the national coinage, etc. Each new privilege was made a pretext
+for issuing more bills, and caused an immense advance in the price of
+stock. At length, on the 4th of December, 1718, the regent gave the
+establishment the imposing title of "The Royal Bank," and proclaimed that
+he had effected the purchase of all the shares, the proceeds of which he
+had added to its capital This measure seemed to shock the public feeling
+more than any other connected with the system, and roused the indignation
+of parliament. The French nation had been so accustomed to attach an idea
+of everything noble, lofty, and magnificent to the royal name and person,
+especially during the stately and sumptuous reign of Louis XIV., that they
+could not at first tolerate the idea of royalty being in any degree mingled
+with matters of traffic and finance, and the king being in a manner a
+banker. It was one of the downward steps, however, by which royalty lost
+its illusive splendor in France, and became gradually cheapened in the
+public mind.
+
+Arbitrary measures now began to be taken to force the bills of the bank
+into artificial currency. On the 27th of December appeared an order in
+council, forbidding, under severe penalties, the payment of any sum above
+six hundred livres in gold or silver. This decree rendered bank bills
+necessary in all transactions of purchase and sale, and called for a new
+emission. The prohibition was occasionally evaded or opposed; confiscations
+were the consequence; informers were rewarded, and spies and traitors began
+to spring up in all the domestic walks of life.
+
+The worst effect of this illusive system was the mania for gain, or rather
+for gambling in stocks, that now seized upon the whole nation. Under the
+exciting effects of lying reports, and the forcing effects of government
+decrees, the shares of the company went on rising in value until they
+reached thirteen hundred per cent. Nothing was now spoken of but the price
+of shares, and the immense fortunes suddenly made by lucky speculators.
+Those whom Law had deluded used every means to delude others. The most
+extravagant dreams were indulged, concerning the wealth to flow in upon the
+company from its colonies, its trade, and its various monopolies. It is
+true nothing as yet had been realized, nor could in some time be realized,
+from these distant sources, even if productive; but the imaginations of
+speculators are ever in the advance, and their conjectures are immediately
+converted into facts. Lying reports now flew from mouth to month, of sure
+avenues to fortune suddenly thrown open. The more extravagant the fable,
+the more readily was it believed. To doubt was to awaken anger, or incur
+ridicule. In a time of public infatuation, it requires no small exercise of
+courage to doubt a popular fallacy.
+
+Paris now became the center of attraction for the adventurous and the
+avaricious, who flocked to it, not merely from the provinces, but from
+neighboring countries. A stock exchange was established in a house in the
+Rue Quincampoix, and became immediately the gathering place of
+stock-jobbers. The exchange opened at seven o'clock, with the beat of drum
+and sound of bell, and closed at night with the same signals. Guards were
+stationed at each end of the street, to maintain order and exclude
+carriages and horses. The whole street swarmed throughout the day like a
+bee-hive. Bargains of all kinds were seized upon with avidity. Shares of
+stock passed from hand to hand, mounting in value, one knew not why.
+Fortunes were made in a moment, as if by magic; and every lucky bargain
+prompted those around to a more desperate throw of the die. The fever went
+on, increasing in intensity as the day declined; and when the drum beat,
+and the bell rang, at night, to close the exchange, there were exclamations
+of impatience and despair, as if the wheel of fortune had suddenly been
+stopped when about to make its luckiest evolution.
+
+To engulf all classes in this ruinous vortex, Law now split the shares of
+fifty millions of stock each into one hundred shares; thus, as in the
+splitting of lottery tickets, accommodating the venture to the humblest
+purse. Society was thus stirred up to its very dregs, and adventurers of
+the lowest order hurried to the stock market. All honest, industrious
+pursuits, and modest gains, were now despised. Wealth was to be obtained
+instantly, without labor and without stint. The upper classes were as base
+in their venality as the lower. The highest and most powerful nobles,
+abandoning all generous pursuits and lofty aims, engaged in the vile
+scuffle for gam. They were even baser than the lower classes; for some of
+them, who were members of the council of the regency, abused their station
+and their influence, and promoted measures by which shares rose while in
+their hands, and they made immense profits.
+
+The Duke de Bourbon, the prince of Conti, the Dukes de la Force and D'Antin
+were among the foremost of these illustrious stock-jobbers. They were
+nicknamed the Mississippi Lords, and they smiled at the sneering title. In
+fact, the usual distinctions of society had lost their consequence, under
+the reign of this new passion. Bank, talent, military fame, no longer
+inspired deference. All respect for others, all self-respect, were
+forgotten in the mercenary struggle of the stock-market. Even prelates and
+ecclesiastical corporations, forgetting their true objects of devotion,
+mingled among the votaries of Mammon. They were not behind those who
+wielded the civil power in fabricating ordinances suited to their
+avaricious purposes. Theological decisions forthwith appeared, in which the
+anathema launched by the Church against usury was conveniently construed as
+not extending to the traffic in bank shares!
+
+The Abbe Dubois entered into the mysteries of stockjobbing with all the
+zeal of an apostle, and enriched himself by the spoils of the credulous;
+and he continually drew large sums from Law, as considerations for his
+political influence. Faithless to his country, in the course of his
+gambling speculations he transferred to England a great amount of specie,
+which had been paid into the royal treasury; thus contributing to the
+subsequent dearth of the precious metals.
+
+The female sex participated in this sordid frenzy. Princesses of the blood,
+and ladies of the highest nobility, were among the most rapacious of
+stock-jobbers. The regent seemed to have the riches of Croesus at his
+command, and lavished money by hundreds of thousands upon his female
+relatives and favorites, as well as upon his _roues_, the dissolute
+companions of his debauches. "My son," writes the regent's mother, in her
+correspondence, "gave me shares to the amount of two millions, which I
+distributed among my household. The king also took several millions for his
+own household. All the royal family have had them; all the children and
+grandchildren of France, and the princes of the blood."
+
+Luxury and extravagance kept pace with this sudden inflation of fancied
+wealth. The hereditary palaces of nobles were pulled down, and rebuilt on a
+scale of augmented splendor. Entertainments were given of incredible cost
+and magnificence. Never before had been such display in houses, furniture,
+equipages, and amusements. This was particularly the case among persons of
+the lower ranks, who had suddenly become possessed of millions. Ludicrous
+anecdotes are related of some of these upstarts. One, who had just launched
+a splendid carriage, when about to use it for the first time, instead of
+getting in at the door, mounted, through habitude, to his accustomed place
+behind. Some ladies of quality, seeing a well-dressed woman covered with
+diamonds, but whom nobody knew, alight from a very handsome carriage,
+inquired who she was of the footman. He replied, with a sneer: "It is a
+lady who has recently tumbled from a garret into this carriage." Mr. Law's
+domestics were said to become in like manner suddenly enriched by the
+crumbs that fell from his table. His coachman, having made his fortune,
+retired from his service. Mr. Law requested him to procure a coachman in
+his place. He appeared the next day with two, whom he pronounced equally
+good, and told Mr. Law: "Take which of them you choose, and I will take the
+other!"
+
+Nor were these _novi homini_ treated with the distance and disdain
+they would formerly have experienced from the haughty aristocracy of
+France. The pride of the old noblesse had been stifled by the stronger
+instinct of avarice. They rather sought the intimacy and confidence of
+these lucky upstarts; and it has been observed that a nobleman would gladly
+take his seat at the table of the fortunate lackey of yesterday, in hopes
+of learning from him the secret of growing rich!
+
+Law now went about with a countenance radiant with success and apparently
+dispensing wealth on every side. "He is admirably skilled in all that
+relates to finance," writes the Duchess of Orleans, the regent's mother,
+"and has put the affairs of the state in such good order that all the
+king's debts have been paid. He is so much run after that he has no repose
+night or day. A duchess even kissed his hand publicly. If a duchess can do
+this, what will other ladies do?"
+
+Wherever he went, his path, we are told, was beset by a sordid throng, who
+waited to see him pass, and sought to obtain the favor of a word, a nod, or
+smile, as if a mere glance from him would bestow fortune. When at home, his
+house was absolutely besieged by furious candidates for fortune. "They
+forced the doors," says the Duke de St. Simon; "they scaled his windows
+from the garden; they made their way into his cabinet down the chimney!"
+
+The same venal court was paid by all classes to his family. The highest
+ladies of the court vied with each other in meannesses to purchase the
+lucrative friendship of Mrs. Law and her daughter. They waited upon them
+with as much assiduity and adulation as if they had been princesses of the
+blood. The regent one day expressed a desire that some duchess should
+accompany his daughter to Genoa. "My lord," said some one present, "if you
+would have a choice from among the duchesses, you need but send to Mrs.
+Law's, you will find them all assembled there."
+
+The wealth of Law rapidly increased with the expansion of the bubble. In
+the course of a few months he purchased fourteen titled estates, paying for
+them in paper; and the public hailed these sudden and vast acquisitions of
+landed property as so many proofs of the soundness of his system. In one
+instance he met with a shrewd bargainer, who had not the general faith in
+his paper money. The President de Novion insisted on being paid for an
+estate in hard coin. Law accordingly brought the amount, four hundred
+thousand livres, in specie, saying, with a sarcastic smile, that he
+preferred paying in money as its weight rendered it a mere encumbrance. As
+it happened, the president could give no clear title to the land, and the
+money had to be refunded. He paid it back _in paper_, which Law dared
+not refuse, lest he should depreciate it in the market.
+
+The course of illusory credit went on triumphantly for eighteen months. Law
+had nearly fulfilled one of his promises, for the greater part of the
+public debt had been paid off; but how paid? In bank shares, which had been
+trumped up several hundred per cent above their value, and which were to
+vanish like smoke in the hands of the holders.
+
+One of the most striking attributes of Law was the imperturbable assurance
+and self-possession with which he replied to every objection, and found a
+solution for every problem. He had the dexterity of a juggler in evading
+difficulties; and what was peculiar, made figures themselves, which are the
+very elements of exact demonstration, the means to dazzle and bewilder.
+
+Toward the latter end of 1719 the Mississippi scheme had reached its
+highest point of glory. Half a million of strangers had crowded into Paris
+in quest of fortune. The hotels and lodging-houses were overflowing;
+lodgings were procured with excessive difficulty; granaries were turned
+into bedrooms; provisions had risen enormously in price; splendid houses
+were multiplying on every side; the streets were crowded with carriages;
+above a thousand new equipages had been launched.
+
+On the eleventh of December, Law obtained another prohibitory decree, for
+the purpose of sweeping all the remaining specie in circulation into the
+bank. By this it was forbidden to make any payment in silver above ten
+livres, or in gold above three hundred.
+
+The repeated decrees of this nature, the object of which was to depreciate
+the value of gold, and increase the illusive credit of paper, began to
+awaken doubts of a system which required such bolstering. Capitalists
+gradually awoke from their bewilderment. Sound and able financiers
+consulted together, and agreed to make common cause against this continual
+expansion of a paper system. The shares of the bank and of the company
+began to decline in value. Wary men took the alarm, and began to
+_realize_, a word now first brought into use, to express the
+conversion of _ideal_ property into something _real_.
+
+The prince of Conti, one of the most prominent and grasping of the
+Mississippi lords, was the first to give a blow to the credit of the bank.
+There was a mixture of ingratitude in his conduct that characterized the
+venal baseness of the times. He had received from time to time enormous
+sums from Law, as the price of his influence and patronage. His avarice had
+increased with every acquisition, until Law was compelled to refuse one of
+his exactions. In revenge the prince immediately sent such an amount of
+paper to the bank to be cashed that it required four wagons to bring away
+the silver, and he had the meanness to loll out of the window of his hotel
+and jest and exult as it was trundled into his portecochere.
+
+This was the signal for other drains of like nature. The English and Dutch
+merchants, who had purchased a great amount of bank paper at low prices,
+cashed them at the bank, and carried the money out of the country. Other
+strangers did the like, thus draining the kingdom of its specie, and
+leaving paper in its place.
+
+The regent, perceiving these symptoms of decay in the system, sought to
+restore it to public confidence by conferring marks of confidence upon its
+author.
+
+He accordingly resolved to make Law Comptroller General of the Finances of
+France. There was a material obstacle in his way. Law was a Protestant, and
+the regent, unscrupulous as he was himself, did not dare publicly to
+outrage the severe edicts which Louis XIV., in his bigot days, had
+fulminated against all heretics. Law soon let him know that there would be
+no difficulty on that head. He was ready at any moment to abjure his
+religion in the way of business. For decency's sake, however, it was judged
+proper he should previously be convinced and converted. A ghostly
+instructor was soon found, ready to accomplish his conversion in the
+shortest possible time. This was the Abbe Tencin, a profligate creature of
+the profligate Dubois, and like him working his way to ecclesiastical
+promotion and temporal wealth, by the basest means.
+
+Under the instructions of the Abbe Tencin, Law soon mastered the mysteries
+and dogmas of the Catholic doctrine; and, after a brief course of ghostly
+training, declared himself thoroughly convinced and converted. To avoid the
+sneers and jests of the Parisian public the ceremony of abjuration took
+place at Melun. Law made a pious present of one hundred thousand livres to
+the Church of St. Roque, and the Abbe Tencin was rewarded for his edifying
+labors by sundry shares and bank bills; which he shrewdly took care to
+convert into cash, having as little faith in the system as in the piety of
+his new convert. A more grave and moral community might have been outraged
+by this scandalous farce; but the Parisians laughed at it with their usual
+levity, and contented themselves with making it the subject of a number of
+songs and epigrams.
+
+Law now being orthodox in his faith, took out letters of naturalization,
+and having thus surmounted the intervening obstacles, was elevated by the
+regent to the post of comptroller-general. So accustomed had the community
+become to all juggles and transmutations in this hero of finance, that no
+one seemed shocked or astonished at his sudden elevation. On the contrary,
+being now considered perfectly established in place and power, he became
+more than ever the object of venal adoration. Men of rank and dignity
+thronged his antechamber, waiting patiently their turn for an audience; and
+titled dames demeaned themselves to take the front seats of the carriages
+of his wife and daughter, as if they had been riding with princesses of the
+blood royal. Law's head grew giddy with his elevation, and he began to
+aspire after aristocratical distinction. There was to be a court ball, at
+which several of the young noblemen were to dance in a ballet with the
+youthful king. Law requested that his son might be admitted into the
+ballet, and the regent consented. The young scions of nobility, however,
+were indignant and scouted the "intruding upstart." Their more worldly
+parents, fearful of displeasing the modern Midas, reprimanded them in vain.
+The striplings had not yet imbibed the passion for gain, and still held to
+their high blood. The son of the banker received slights and annoyances on
+all sides, and the public applauded them for their spirit. A fit of illness
+came opportunely to relieve the youth from an honor which would have cost
+him a world of vexations and affronts.
+
+In February, 1720, shortly after Law's installment in office, a decree came
+out uniting the bank to the India Company, by which last name the whole
+establishment was now known. The decree stated that as the bank was royal,
+the king was bound to make good the value of its bills; that he committed
+to the company the government of the bank for fifty years, and sold to it
+fifty millions of stock belonging to him, for nine hundred millions; a
+simple advance of eighteen hundred per cent. The decree further declared,
+in the king's name, that he would never draw on the bank until the value of
+his drafts had first been lodged in it by his receivers-general.
+
+The bank, it was said, had by this time issued notes to the amount of one
+thousand millions; being more paper than all the banks of Europe were able
+to circulate. To aid its credit, the receivers of the revenue were directed
+to take bank notes of the sub-receivers. All payments, also, of one hundred
+livres and upward were ordered to be made in banknotes. These compulsory
+measures for a short time gave a false credit to the bank, which proceeded
+to discount merchants' notes, to lend money on jewels, plate, and other
+valuables, as well as on mortgages.
+
+Still further to force on the system an edict next appeared, forbidding any
+individual, or any corporate body, civil or religious, to hold in
+possession more than five hundred livres in current coin; that is to say,
+about seven louis d'ors: the value of the louis-d'or in paper being, at the
+time, seventy-two livres. All the gold and silver they might have above
+this pittance was to be brought to the royal bank and exchanged either for
+shares or bills.
+
+As confiscation was the penalty of disobedience to this decree, and
+informers were assured a share of the forfeitures, a bounty was in a manner
+held out to domestic spies and traitors; and the most odious scrutiny was
+awakened into the pecuniary affairs of families and individuals. The very
+confidence between friends and relatives was unpaired, and all the domestic
+ties and virtues of society were threatened, until a general sentiment of
+indignation broke forth, that compelled the regent to rescind the odious
+decree. Lord Stairs, the British embassador, speaking of the system of
+espionage encouraged by this edict, observed that it was impossible to
+doubt that Law was a thorough Catholic, since he had thus established the
+_inquisition_, after having already proved _transubstantiation_,
+by changing specie into paper.
+
+Equal abuses had taken place under the colonizing project. In his thousand
+expedients to amass capital, Law had sold parcels of land in Mississippi,
+at the rate of three thousand livres for a league square. Many capitalists
+had purchased estates large enough to constitute almost a principality; the
+only evil was, Law had sold a property which he could not deliver. The
+agents of police, who aided in recruiting the ranks of the colonists, had
+been guilty of scandalous impositions. Under pretense of taking up
+mendicants and vagabonds, they had scoured the streets at night, seizing
+upon honest mechanics, or their sons, and hurrying them to their
+crimping-houses, for the sole purpose of extorting money from them as a
+ransom. The populace was roused to indignation by these abuses. The
+officers of police were mobbed in the exercise of their odious functions,
+and several of them were killed; which put an end to this flagrant abuse of
+power.
+
+In March, a most extraordinary decree of the council fixed the price of
+shares of the India Company at nine thousand livres each. All
+ecclesiastical communities and hospitals were now prohibited from investing
+money at interest, in anything but India stock. With all these props and
+stays, the system continued to totter. How could it be otherwise, under a
+despotic government that could alter the value of property at every moment?
+The very compulsory measures that were adopted to establish the credit of
+the bank hastened its fall; plainly showing there was a want of solid
+security.
+
+Law caused pamphlets to be published, setting forth, in eloquent language,
+the vast profits that must accrue to holders of the stock, and the
+impossibility of the king's ever doing it any harm. On the very back of
+these assertions came forth an edict of the king, dated the 22d of May,
+wherein, under pretense of having reduced the value of his coin, it was
+declared necessary to reduce the value of his bank-notes one-half, and of
+the India shares from nine thousand to five thousand livres.
+
+This decree came like a clap of thunder upon shareholders. They found
+one-half of the pretended value of the paper in their hands annihilated in
+an instant; and what certainty had they with respect to the other half? The
+rich considered themselves ruined; those in humbler circumstances looked
+forward to abject beggary.
+
+The parliament seized the occasion to stand forth as the protector of the
+public, and refused to register the decree. It gained the credit of
+compelling the regent to retrace his step, though it is more probable he
+yielded to the universal burst of public astonishment and reprobation. On
+the 27th of May the edict was revoked, and bank bills were restored to
+their previous value. But the fatal blow had been struck; the delusion was
+at an end. Government itself had lost all public confidence, equally with
+the bank it had engendered, and which its own arbitrary acts had brought
+into discredit. "All Paris," says the regent's mother, in her letters, "has
+been mourning at the cursed decree which Law has persuaded my son to make.
+I have received anonymous letters stating that I have nothing to fear on my
+own account, but that my son shall be pursued with fire and sword."
+
+The regent now endeavored to avert the odium of his ruinous schemes from
+himself. He affected to have suddenly lost confidence in Law, and, on the
+29th of May, discharged bin from his employ as comptroller-general, and
+stationed a Swiss guard of sixteen men in his house. He even refused to see
+him, when, on the following day, he applied at the portal of the Palais
+Royal for admission; but having played off this farce before the public, he
+admitted him secretly the same night, by a private door, and continued as
+before to co-operate with him in his financial schemes.
+
+On the first of June the regent issued a decree, permitting persons to have
+as much money as they pleased in their possession. Few, however, were in a
+state to benefit by this permission. There was a run upon the bank, but a
+royal ordinance immediately suspended payment, until further orders. To
+relieve the public mind, a city stock was created, of twenty-five millions,
+bearing an interest of two and a half per cent, for which bank notes were
+taken in exchange. The bank notes thus withdrawn from circulation were
+publicly burned before the Hotel de Ville. The public, however, had lost
+confidence in everything and everybody, and suspected fraud and collusion
+in those who pretended to burn the bills.
+
+A general confusion now took place hi the financial world. Families who had
+lived in opulence found themselves suddenly reduced to indigence. Schemers
+who had been reveling in the delusion of princely fortune found their
+estates vanishing into thin air. Those who had any property remaining
+sought to secure it against reverses. Cautious persons found there was no
+safety for property in a country where the coin was continually shifting in
+value, and where a despotism was exercised over public securities, and even
+over the private purses of individuals. They began to send their effects
+into other countries; when lo! on the 20th of June a royal edict commanded
+them to bring back their effects, under penalty of forfeiting twice their
+value; and forbade them, under like penalty, from investing their money in
+foreign stocks. This was soon followed by another decree, forbidding any
+one to retain precious stones in his possession, or to sell them to
+foreigners; all must be deposited in the bank, in exchange for depreciating
+paper!
+
+Execrations were now poured out on all sides against Law, and menaces of
+vengeance. What a contrast, in a short time, to the venal incense that was
+offered up to him! "This person," writes the regent's mother, "who was
+formerly worshiped as a god, is now not sure of his life. It is astonishing
+how greatly terrified he is. He is as a dead man; he is pale as a sheet,
+and it is said he can never get over it. My son is not dismayed, though he
+is threatened on all sides; and is very much amused with Law's terrors."
+
+About the middle of July the last grand attempt was made by Law and the
+regent to keep up the system and provide for the immense emission of paper.
+A decree was fabricated, giving the India Company the entire monopoly of
+commerce, on condition that it would, in the course of a year, reimburse
+six hundred millions of livres of its bills, at the rate of fifty millions
+per month.
+
+On the 17th this decree was sent to parliament to be registered. It at once
+raised a storm of opposition in that assembly, and a vehement discussion
+took place. While that was going on a disastrous scene was passing out of
+doors.
+
+The calamitous effects of the system had reached the humblest concerns of
+human life. Provisions had risen to an enormous price; paper money was
+refused at all the shops; the people had not wherewithal to buy bread. It
+had been found absolutely indispensable to relax a little from the
+suspension of specie payments, and to allow small sums to be scantily
+exchanged for paper. The doors of the bank and the neighboring streets were
+immediately thronged with a famishing multitude, seeking cash for bank
+notes of ten livres. So great was the press and struggle that several
+persons were stifled and crushed to death. The mob carried three of the
+bodies to the courtyard of the Palais Royal. Some cried for the regent to
+come forth and behold the effect of his system; others demanded the death
+of Law, the impostor, who had brought this misery and rum upon the nation.
+
+The moment was critical, the popular fury was rising to a tempest, when Le
+Blanc, the Secretary of State, stepped forth. He had previously sent for
+the military, and now only sought to gain tune. Singling out six or seven
+stout fellows, who seemed to be the ringleaders of the mob: "My good
+fellows," said he, calmly, "carry away these bodies and place them in some
+church, and then come back quickly to me for your pay." They immediately
+obeyed; a kind of funeral procession was formed; the arrival of troops
+dispersed those who lingered behind; and Paris was probably saved from an
+insurrection.
+
+About ten o'clock in the morning, all being quiet, Law ventured to go in
+his carriage to the Palais Royal. He was saluted with cries and curses, as
+he passed along the streets; and he reached the Palais Royal in a terrible
+fright. The regent amused himself with his fears, but retained him with
+him, and sent off his carriage, which was assailed by the mob, pelted with
+stones, and the glasses shivered. The news of this outrage was communicated
+to parliament in the midst of a furious discussion of the decree for the
+commercial monopoly. The first president, who had been absent for a short
+time, re-entered, and communicated the tidings in a whimsical couplet:
+
+  "Messieurs, Messieurs! bonne nouvelle!
+  Le carrosse de Law est reduite en carrelle!"
+
+  "Gentlemen, Gentlemen! good news!
+  The carriage of Law is shivered to atoms!"
+
+The members sprang up with joy; "And Law!" exclaimed they, "has he been
+torn to pieces?" The president was ignorant of the result of the tumult;
+whereupon the debate was cut short, the decree rejected, and the house
+adjourned; the members hurrying to learn the particulars. Such was the
+levity with which public affairs were treated at that dissolute and
+disastrous period.
+
+On the following day there was an ordinance from the king, prohibiting all
+popular assemblages; and troops were stationed at various points, and in
+all public places. The regiment of guards was ordered to hold itself in
+readiness; and the musketeers to be at their hotels, with their horses
+ready saddled. A number of small offices were opened, where people might
+cash small notes, though with great delay and difficulty. An edict was also
+issued declaring that whoever should refuse to take bank notes in the
+course of trade should forfeit double the amount!
+
+The continued and vehement opposition of parliament to the whole delusive
+system of finance had been a constant source of annoyance to the regent;
+but this obstinate rejection of his last grand expedient of a commercial
+monopoly was not to be tolerated. He determined to punish that intractable
+body. The Abbe Dubois and Law suggested a simple mode; it was to suppress
+the parliament altogether, being, as they observed, so far from useful that
+it was a constant impediment to the march of public affairs. The regent was
+half inclined to listen to their advice; but upon calmer consideration, and
+the advice of friends, he adopted a more moderate course. On the 20th of
+July, early in the morning, all the doors of the parliament-house were
+taken possession of by troops. Others were sent to surround the house of
+the first president, and others to the houses of the various members; who
+were all at first in great alarm, until an order from the king was put into
+their hands, to render themselves at Pontoise, in the course of two days,
+to which place the parliament was thus suddenly and arbitrarily
+transferred.
+
+This despotic act, says Voltaire, would at any other time have caused an
+insurrection; but one half of the Parisians were occupied by their ruin,
+and the other half by their fancied riches, which were soon to vanish. The
+president and members of parliament acquiesced in the mandate without a
+murmur; they even went as if on a party of pleasure, and made every
+preparation to lead a joyous life in their exile. The musketeers, who held
+possession of the vacated parliament-house, a gay corps of fashionable
+young fellows, amused themselves with making songs and pasquinades, at the
+expense of the exiled legislators; and at length, to pass away time, formed
+themselves into a mock parliament; elected their presidents, kings,
+ministers, and advocates; took their seats in due form, arraigned a cat at
+their bar, in place of the Sieur Law, and, after giving it a "fair trial,"
+condemned it to be hanged. In this manner public affairs and public
+institutions were lightly turned to jest.
+
+As to the exiled parliament, it lived gayly and luxuriously at Pontoise, at
+the public expense; for the regent had furnished funds, as usual, with a
+lavish hand. The first president had the mansion of the Duke de Bouillon
+put at his disposal, already furnished, with a vast and delightful garden
+on the borders of a river. There he kept open house to all the members of
+parliament. Several tables were spread every day, all furnished luxuriously
+and splendidly; the most exquisite wines and liqueurs, the choicest fruits
+and refreshments, of all kinds, abounded. A number of small chariots for
+one and two horses were always at hand, for such ladies and old gentlemen
+as wished to take an airing after dinner, and card and billiard tables for
+such as chose to amuse themselves in that way until supper. The sister and
+the daughter of the first president did the honors of the house, and he
+himself presided there with an air of great ease, hospitality, and
+magnificence. It became a party of pleasure to drive from Paris to
+Pontoise, which was six leagues distant, and partake of the amusements and
+festivities of the place. Business was openly slighted; nothing was thought
+of but amusement. The regent and his government were laughed at, and made
+the subjects of continual pleasantries; while the enormous expenses
+incurred by this idle and lavish course of life more than doubled the
+liberal sums provided. This was the way in which the parliament resented
+their exile.
+
+During all this time the system was getting more and more involved. The
+stock exchange had some time previously been removed to the Place Vendome;
+but the tumult and noise becoming intolerable to the residents of that
+polite quarter, and especially to the chancellor, whose hotel was there,
+the Prince and Princess Carignan, both deep gamblers in Mississippi stock,
+offered the extensive garden of the Hotel de Soissons as a rallying-place
+for the worshipers of Mammon. The offer was accepted. A number of barracks
+were immediately erected in the garden, as offices for the stock-brokers,
+and an order was obtained from the regent, under pretext of police
+regulations, that no bargain should be valid unless concluded in these
+barracks. The rent of them immediately mounted to a hundred livres a month
+for each, and the whole yielded these noble proprietors an ignoble revenue
+of half a million of livres.
+
+The mania for gain, however, was now at an end. A universal panic
+succeeded. "_Sauve qui peut!_" was the watchword. Every one was
+anxious to exchange falling paper for something of intrinsic and permanent
+value. Since money was not to be had, jewels, precious stones, plate,
+porcelain, trinkets of gold and silver, all commanded any price in paper.
+Land was bought at fifty years' purchase, and he esteemed himself happy who
+could get it even at this price. Monopolies now became the rage among the
+noble holders of paper. The Duke de la Force bought up nearly all the
+tallow, grease, and soap; others the coffee and spices; others hay and
+oats. Foreign exchanges were almost impracticable. The debts of Dutch and
+English merchants were paid in this fictitious money, all the coin of the
+realm having disappeared. All the relations of debtor and creditor were
+confounded. With one thousand crowns one might pay a debt of eighteen
+thousand livres!
+
+The regent's mother, who once exulted in the affluence of bank paper, now
+wrote in a very different tone: "I have often wished," said she in her
+letters, "that these bank-notes were in the depths of the infernal regions.
+They have given my son more trouble than relief. Nobody in France has a
+penny.... My son was once popular, but since the arrival of this cursed
+Law, he is hated more and more. Not a week passes, without my receiving
+letters filled with frightful threats, and speaking of him as a tyrant. I
+have just received one threatening him with poison. When I showed it to
+him, he did nothing but laugh."
+
+In the meantime, Law was dismayed by the increasing troubles, and terrified
+at the tempest he had raised. He was not a man of real courage; and fearing
+for his personal safety, from popular tumult, or the despair of ruined
+individuals, he again took refuge in the palace of the regent. The latter,
+as usual, amused himself with his terrors, and turned every new disaster
+into a jest; but he too began to think of his own security.
+
+In pursuing the schemes of Law, he had no doubt calculated to carry through
+his term of government with ease and splendor; and to enrich himself, his
+connections, and his favorites; and had hoped that the catastrophe of the
+system would not take place until after the expiration of the regency.
+
+He now saw his mistake; that it was impossible much longer to prevent an
+explosion; and he determined at once to get Law out of the way, and then to
+charge him with the whole tissue of delusions of this paper alchemy. He
+accordingly took occasion of the recall of parliament in December, 1720, to
+suggest to Law the policy of his avoiding an encounter with that hostile
+and exasperated body. Law needed no urging to the measure. His only desire
+was to escape from Paris and its tempestuous populace. Two days before the
+return of parliament he took his sudden and secret departure. He traveled
+in a chaise bearing the arms of the regent, and was escorted by a kind of
+safeguard of servants in the duke's livery. His first place of refuge was
+an estate of the regent's, about six leagues from Paris, from whence he
+pushed forward to Bruxelles.
+
+As soon as Law was fairly out of the way, the Duke of Orleans summoned a
+council of the regency, and informed them that they were assembled to
+deliberate on the state of the finances, and the affairs of the India
+Company. Accordingly La Houssaye, comptroller-general, rendered a perfectly
+clear statement, by which it appeared that there were bank bills in
+circulation to the amount of two milliards, seven hundred millions of
+livres, without any evidence that this enormous sum had been emitted in
+virtue of any ordinance from the general assembly of the India Company,
+which alone had the right to authorize such emissions.
+
+The council was astonished at this disclosure, and looked to the regent for
+explanation. Pushed to the extreme, the regent avowed that Law had emitted
+bills to the amount of twelve hundred millions beyond what had been fixed
+by ordinances, and in contradiction to express prohibitions; that the thing
+being done, he, the regent, had legalized or rather covered the
+transaction, by decrees ordering such emissions, which decrees he had
+_antedated_.
+
+A stormy scene ensued between the regent and the Duke de Bourbon, little to
+the credit of either, both having been deeply implicated in the cabalistic
+operations of the system. In fact, the several members of the council had
+been among the most venal "beneficiaries" of the scheme, and had interests
+at stake which they were anxious to secure. From all the circumstances of
+the case, I am inclined to think that others were more to blame than Law,
+for the disastrous effects of his financial projects. His bank, had it been
+confined to its original limits, and left to the control of its own
+internal regulations, might have gone on prosperously, and been of great
+benefit to the nation. It was an institution fitted for a free country; but
+unfortunately it was subjected to the control of a despotic government,
+that could, at its pleasure, alter the value of the specie within its
+vaults, and compel the most extravagant expansions of its paper
+circulation. The vital principle of a bank is security in the regularity of
+its operations, and the immediate convertibility of its paper into coin;
+and what confidence could be reposed in an institution or its paper
+promises, when the sovereign could at any moment centuple those promises in
+the market, and seize upon all the money in the bank? The compulsory
+measures used, likewise, to force bank-notes into currency, against the
+judgment of the public, was fatal to the system; for credit must be free
+and uncontrolled as the common air. The regent was the evil spirit of the
+system, that forced Law on to an expansion of his paper currency far beyond
+what he had ever dreamed of. He it was that in a manner compelled the
+unlucky projector to devise all kinds of collateral companies and
+monopolies, by which to raise funds to meet the constantly and enormously
+increasing emissions of shares and notes. Law was but like a poor conjurer
+in the hands of a potent spirit that he has evoked, and that obliges him to
+go on, desperately and ruinously, with his conjurations. He only thought at
+the outset to raise the wind, but the regent compelled him to raise the
+whirlwind.
+
+The investigation of the affairs of the company by the council resulted in
+nothing beneficial to the public. The princes and nobles who had enriched
+themselves by all kinds of juggles and extortions, escaped unpunished, and
+retained the greater part of their spoils. Many of the "suddenly rich," who
+had risen from obscurity to a giddy height of imaginary prosperity, and had
+indulged in all kinds of vulgar and ridiculous excesses, awoke as out of a
+dream, in their original poverty, now made more galling and humiliating by
+their transient elevation.
+
+The weight of the evil, however, fell on more valuable classes of society;
+honest tradesmen and artisans, who had been seduced away from the safe
+pursuits of industry, to the specious chances of speculation. Thousands of
+meritorious families also, once opulent, had been reduced to indigence, by
+a too great confidence in government. There was a general derangement in
+the finances, that long exerted a baneful influence over the national
+prosperity; but the most disastrous effects of the system were upon the
+morals and manners of the nation. The faith of engagements, the sanctity of
+promises in affairs of business, were at an end. Every expedient to grasp
+present profit, or to evade present difficulty, was tolerated. While such
+deplorable laxity of principle was generated in the busy classes, the
+chivalry of France had soiled their pennons; and honor and glory, so long
+the idols of the Gallic nobility, had been tumbled to the earth, and
+trampled in the dirt of the stock-market.
+
+As to Law, the originator of the system, he appears eventually to have
+profited but little by his schemes. "He was a quack," says Voltaire, "to
+whom the state was given to be cured, but who poisoned it with his drugs,
+and who poisoned himself." The effects which he left behind in France were
+sold at a low price and the proceeds dissipated. His landed estates were
+confiscated. He carried away with him barely enough to maintain himself,
+his wife, and daughter, with decency. The chief relic of his immense
+fortune was a great diamond, which he was often obliged to pawn. He was in
+England in 1721, and was presented to George the First. He returned shortly
+afterward to the continent; shifting about from place to place, and died in
+Venice, in 1729. His wife and daughter, accustomed to live with the
+prodigality of princesses, could not conform to their altered fortunes, but
+dissipated the scanty means left to them, and sank into abject poverty. "I
+saw his wife," says Voltaire, "at Bruxelles, as much humiliated as she had
+been haughty and triumphant in Paris." An elder brother of Law remained in
+France, and was protected by the Duchess of Bourbon. His descendants have
+acquitted themselves honorably, in various public employments; and one of
+them is the Marquis Lauriston, some time lieutenant-general and peer of
+France.
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+
+
+
+
+DON JUAN
+
+A SPECTRAL RESEARCH
+
+
+  "I have heard of spirits walking with aerial bodies, and have been
+  wondered at by others; but I must only wonder at myself, for if they
+  be not mad, I'me come to my own buriall."--SHIRLEY's _Witty Fairie
+  One_
+
+Everybody has heard of the fate of Don Juan, the famous libertine of
+Seville, who for his sins against the fair sex and other minor peccadilloes
+was hurried away to the infernal regions. His story has been illustrated in
+play, in pantomime, and farce, on every stage in Christendom; until at
+length it has been rendered the theme of the operas, and embalmed to
+endless duration in the glorious music of Mozart. I well recollect the
+effect of this story upon my feelings in my boyish days, though represented
+in grotesque pantomime; the awe with which I contemplated the monumental
+statue on horseback of the murdered commander, gleaming by pale moonlight
+in the convent cemetery; how my heart quaked as he bowed his marble head,
+and accepted the impious invitation of Don Juan: how each footfall of the
+statue smote upon my heart, as I heard it approach, step by step, through
+the echoing corridor, and beheld it enter, and advance, a moving figure of
+stone, to the supper table! But then the convivial scene in the
+charnel-house, where Don Juan returned the visit of the statue; was offered
+a banquet of skulls and bones, and on refusing to partake, was hurled into
+a yawning gulf, under a tremendous shower of fire! These were accumulated
+horrors enough to shake the nerves of the most pantomime-loving schoolboy.
+Many have supposed the story of Don Juan a mere fable. I myself thought so
+once; but "seeing is believing." I have since beheld the very scene where
+it took place, and now to indulge any doubt on the subject would be
+preposterous.
+
+I was one night perambulating the streets of Seville, in company with a
+Spanish friend, a curious investigator of the popular traditions and other
+good-for-nothing lore of the city, and who was kind enough to imagine he
+had met, in me, with a congenial spirit. In the course of our rambles we
+were passing by a heavy, dark gateway, opening into the courtyard of a
+convent, when he laid his hand upon my arm: "Stop!" said he, "this is the
+convent of San Francisco; there is a story connected with it which I am
+sure must be known to you. You cannot but have heard of Don Juan and the
+marble statue."
+
+"Undoubtedly," replied I, "it has been familiar to me from childhood."
+
+"Well, then, it was in the cemetery of this very convent that the events
+took place."
+
+"Why, you do not mean to say that the story is founded on fact?"
+
+"Undoubtedly it is. The circumstances of the case are said to have occurred
+during the reign of Alfonso XI. Don Juan was of the noble family of
+Tenorio, one of the most illustrious houses of Andalusia. His father, Don
+Diego Tenorio, was a favorite of the king, and his family ranked among the
+_deintecuatros_, or magistrates, of the city. Presuming on his high
+descent and powerful connections, Don Juan set no bounds to his excesses:
+no female, high or low, was sacred from his pursuit: and he soon became the
+scandal of Seville. One of his most daring outrages was, to penetrate by
+night into the palace of Don Gonzalo de Ulloa, commander of the order of
+Calatrava, and attempt to carry off his daughter. The household was
+alarmed; a scuffle in the dark took place; Don Juan escaped, but the
+unfortunate commander was found weltering in his blood, and expired without
+being able to name his murderer. Suspicions attached to Don Juan; he did
+not stop to meet the investigations of justice, and the vengeance of the
+powerful family of Ulloa, but fled from Seville, and took refuge with his
+uncle, Don Pedro Tenorio, at that time embassador at the court of Naples.
+Here he remained until the agitation occasioned by the murder of Don
+Gonzalo had time to subside; and the scandal which the affair might cause
+to both the families of Ulloa and Tenorio had induced them to hush it up.
+Don Juan, however, continued his libertine career at Naples, until at
+length his excesses forfeited the protection of his uncle, the embassador,
+and obliged him again to flee. He had made his way back to Seville,
+trusting that his past misdeeds were forgotten, or rather trusting to his
+dare-devil spirit and the power of his family to carry him through all
+difficulties.
+
+"It was shortly after his return, and while in the height of his arrogance,
+that on visiting this very convent of Francisco, he beheld on a monument
+the equestrian statue of the murdered commander, who had been buried within
+the walls of this sacred edifice, where the family of Ulloa had a chapel.
+It was on this occasion that Don Juan, in a moment of impious levity,
+invited the statue to the banquet, the awful catastrophe of which has given
+such celebrity to his story."
+
+"And pray how much of this story," said I, "is believed in Seville?"
+
+"The whole of it by the populace; with whom it has been a favorite
+tradition since time immemorial, and who crowd to the theaters to see it
+represented in dramas written long since by Tyrso de Molina, and another of
+our popular writers. Many in our higher ranks also, accustomed from
+childhood to this story, would feel somewhat indignant at hearing it
+treated with contempt. An attempt has been made to explain the whole, by
+asserting that, to put an end to the extravagances of Don Juan, and to
+pacify the family of Ulloa, without exposing the delinquent to the
+degrading penalties of justice, he was decoyed into this convent under a
+false pretext, and either plunged into a perpetual dungeon, or privately
+hurried out of existence; while the story of the statue was circulated by
+the monks, to account for his sudden disappearance. The populace, however,
+are not to be cajoled out of a ghost story by any of these plausible
+explanations; and the marble statue still strides the stage, and Don Juan
+is still plunged into the infernal regions, as an awful warning to all
+rake-helly youngsters, in like case offending."
+
+While my companion was relating these anecdotes, we had entered the
+gateway, traversed the exterior courtyard of the convent, and made our way
+into a great interior court; partly surrounded by cloisters and
+dormitories, partly by chapels, and having a large fountain in the center.
+The pile had evidently once been extensive and magnificent; but it was for
+the greater part in ruins. By the light of the stars, and of twinkling
+lamps placed here and there in the chapels and corridors, I could see that
+many of the columns and arches were broken; the walls were rent and riven;
+white burned beams and rafters showed the destructive effects of fire. The
+whole place had a desolate air; the night breeze rustled through grass and
+weeds flaunting out of the crevices of the walls, or from the shattered
+columns; the bat flitted about the vaulted passages, and the owl hooted
+from the ruined belfry. Never was any scene more completely fitted for a
+ghost story.
+
+While I was indulging in picturings of the fancy, proper to such a place,
+the deep chant of the monks from the convent church came swelling upon the
+ear. "It is the vesper service," said my companion; "follow me."
+
+Leading the way across the court of the cloisters, and through one or two
+ruined passages, he reached the distant portal of the church, and pushing
+open a wicket, cut in the folding doors, we found ourselves in the deep
+arched vestibule of the sacred edifice. To our left was the choir, forming
+one end of the church, and having a low vaulted ceiling, which gave it the
+look of a cavern. About this were ranged the monks, seated on stools, and
+chanting from immense books placed on music-stands, and having the notes
+scored in such gigantic characters as to be legible from every part of the
+choir. A few lights on these music-stands dimly illumined the choir,
+gleamed on the shaven heads of the monks and threw their shadows on the
+walls. They were gross, blue-bearded, bullet-headed men, with bass voices,
+of deep metallic tone, that reverberated out of the cavernous choir.
+
+To our right extended the great body of the church. It was spacious and
+lofty; some of the side chapels had gilded grates, and were decorated with
+images and paintings, representing the sufferings of our Saviour. Aloft was
+a great painting by Murillo, but too much in the dark to be distinguished.
+The gloom of the whole church was but faintly relieved by the reflected
+light from the choir, and the glimmering here and there of a votive lamp
+before the shrine of a saint.
+
+As my eye roamed about the shadowy pile, it was struck with the dimly seen
+figure of a man on horseback, near a distant altar. I touched my companion,
+and pointed to it: "The specter statue!" said I.
+
+"No," replied he; "it is the statue of the blessed St. Iago; the statue of
+the commander was in the cemetery of the convent, and was destroyed at the
+tune of the conflagration. But," added he, "as I see you take a proper
+interest in these kind of stories, come with me to the other end of the
+church, where our whisperings will not disturb these holy fathers at their
+devotions, and I will tell you another story that has been current for some
+generations in our city, by which you will find that Don Juan is not the
+only libertine that has been the object of supernatural castigation in
+Seville."
+
+I accordingly followed him with noiseless tread to the further part of the
+church, where we took our seats on the steps of an altar, opposite to the
+suspicious-looking figure on horseback, and there, in a low, mysterious
+voice, he related to me the following narration:
+
+"There was once in Seville a gay young fellow, Don Manuel de Manara by
+name, who, having come to a great estate by the death of his father, gave
+the reins to his passions, and plunged into all kinds of dissipation. Like
+Don Juan, whom he seemed to have taken for a model, he became famous for
+his enterprises among the fair sex, and was the cause of doors being barred
+and windows grated with more than usual strictness. All in vain. No balcony
+was too high for him to scale; no bolt nor bar was proof against his
+efforts; and his very name was a word of terror to all the jealous husbands
+and cautious fathers of Seville. His exploits extended to country as well
+as city; and in the village dependent on his castle, scarce a rural beauty
+was safe from his arts and enterprises.
+
+"As he was one day ranging the streets of Seville, with several of his
+dissolute companions, he beheld a procession about to enter the gate of a
+convent. In the center was a young female arrayed in the dress of a bride;
+it was a novice, who, having accomplished her year of probation, was about
+to take the black veil, and consecrate herself to heaven. The companions of
+Don Manuel drew back, out of respect to the sacred pageant; but he pressed
+forward, with his usual impetuosity, to gain a near view of the novice. He
+almost jostled her, in passing through the portal of the church, when, on
+her turning round, he beheld the countenance of a beautiful village girl,
+who had been the object of his ardent pursuit, but who had been spirited
+secretly out of his reach by her relatives. She recognized him at the same
+moment, and fainted; but was borne within the grate of the chapel. It was
+supposed the agitation of the ceremony and the heat of the throng had
+overcome her. After some time, the curtain which hung within the grate was
+drawn up: there stood the novice, pale and trembling, surrounded by the
+abbess and the nuns. The ceremony proceeded; the crown of flowers was taken
+from her head; she was shorn of her silken tresses, received the black
+veil, and went passively through the remainder of the ceremony.
+
+"Don Manuel de Manara, on the contrary, was roused to fury at the sight of
+this sacrifice. His passion, which had almost faded away in the absence of
+the object, now glowed with tenfold ardor, being inflamed by the
+difficulties placed in his way, and piqued by the measures which had been
+taken to defeat him. Never had the object of his pursuit appeared so lovely
+and desirable as when within the grate of the convent; and he swore to have
+her, in defiance of heaven and earth. By dint of bribing a female servant
+of the convent he contrived to convey letters to her, pleading his passion
+in the most eloquent and seductive terms. How successful they were is only
+matter of conjecture; certain it is, he undertook one night to scale the
+garden wall of the convent, either to carry off the nun or gain admission
+to her cell. Just as he was mounting the wall he was suddenly plucked back,
+and a stranger, muffled in a cloak, stood before him.
+
+"'Rash man, forbear!' cried he: 'is it not enough to have violated all
+human ties? Wouldst thou steal a bride from heaven!'
+
+"The sword of Don Manuel had been drawn on the instant, and, furious at
+this interruption, he passed it through the body of the stranger, who fell
+dead at his feet. Hearing approaching footsteps, he fled the fatal spot,
+and mounting his horse, which was at hand, retreated to his estate in the
+country, at no great distance from Seville. Here he remained throughout the
+next day, full of horror and remorse; dreading lest he should be known as
+the murderer of the deceased, and fearing each moment the arrival of the
+officers of justice.
+
+"The day passed, however, without molestation; and, as the evening
+approached, unable any longer to endure this state of uncertainty and
+apprehension, he ventured back to Seville. Irresistibly his footsteps took
+the direction of the convent; but he paused and hovered at a distance from
+the scene of blood. Several persons were gathered round the place, one of
+whom was busy nailing something against the convent wall. After a while
+they dispersed, and one passed near to Don Manuel. The latter addressed
+him, with a hesitating voice.
+
+"'Senor,' said he, 'may I ask the reason of yonder throng?'
+
+"'A cavalier,' replied the other, 'has been murdered.'
+
+"'Murdered!' echoed Don Manuel; 'and can you tell me his name?'
+
+"'Don Manuel de Manara,' replied the stranger, and passed on.
+
+"Don Manuel was startled at this mention of his own name; especially when
+applied to the murdered man. He ventured, when it was entirely deserted, to
+approach the fatal spot. A small cross had been nailed against the wall, as
+is customary in Spain, to mark the place where a murder has been committed;
+and just below it, he read, by the twinkling light of a lamp: 'Here was
+murdered Don Manuel de Manara. Pray to God for his soul!'
+
+"Still more confounded and perplexed by this inscription, he wandered about
+the streets until the night was far advanced, and all was still and lonely.
+As he entered the principal square, the light of torches suddenly broke on
+him, and he beheld a grand funeral procession moving across it. There was a
+great train of priests, and many persons of dignified appearance, in
+ancient Spanish dresses, attending as mourners, none of whom he knew.
+Accosting a servant who followed in the train, he demanded the name of the
+defunct.
+
+"'Don Manuel de Manara,' was the reply; and it went cold to his heart. He
+looked, and indeed beheld the armorial bearings of his family emblazoned on
+the funeral escutcheons. Yet not one of his family was to be seen among the
+mourners. The mystery was more and more incomprehensible.
+
+"He followed the procession as it moved on to the cathedral. The bier was
+deposited before the high altar; the funeral service was commenced, and the
+grand organ began to peal through the vaulted aisles.
+
+"Again the youth ventured to question this awful pageant. 'Father,' said
+he, with trembling voice, to one of the priests, 'who is this you are about
+to inter?'
+
+"'Don Manuel de Manara!' replied the priest.
+
+"'Father,' cried Don Manuel, impatiently, 'you are deceived. This is some
+imposture. Know that Don Manuel de Manara la alive and well, and now stands
+before you. _I_ am Don Manuel de Manara!'
+
+"'Avaunt, rash youth!' cried the priest; 'know that Don Manuel de Manara is
+dead!--is dead!--is dead!--and we are all souls from purgatory, his
+deceased relatives and ancestors, and others that have been aided by masses
+of his family, who are permitted to come here and pray for the repose of
+his soul!'
+
+"Don Manuel cast round a fearful glance upon the assemblage, in antiquated
+Spanish garbs, and recognized in their pale and ghastly countenances the
+portraits of many an ancestor that hung in the family picture-gallery. He
+now lost all self-command, rushed up to the bier, and beheld the
+counterpart of himself, but in the fixed and livid lineaments of death.
+Just at that moment the whole choir burst forth with a 'Requiescat in
+pace,' that shook the vaults of the cathedral. Don Manuel sank senseless on
+the pavement. He was found there early the next morning by the sacristan,
+and conveyed to his home. When sufficiently recovered, he sent for a friar
+and made a full confession of all that had happened.
+
+"'My son,' said the friar, 'all this is a miracle and a mystery, intended
+for thy conversion and salvation. The corpse thou hast seen was a token
+that thou hadst died to sin and the world; take warning by it, and
+henceforth live to righteousness and heaven!'
+
+"Don Manuel did take warning by it. Guided by the counsels of the worthy
+friar, he disposed of all his temporal affairs; dedicated the greater part
+of his wealth to pious uses, especially to the performance of masses for
+souls in purgatory; and finally, entering a convent, became one of the most
+zealous and exemplary monks in Seville."
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+While my companion was relating this story, my eyes wandered, from time to
+time, about the dusky church. Methought the burly countenances of the monks
+in their distant choir assumed a pallid, ghastly hue, and their deep
+metallic voices had a sepulchral sound. By the time the story was ended,
+they had ended their chant; and, extinguishing their lights, glided one by
+one, like shadows, through a small door in the side of the choir. A deeper
+gloom prevailed over the church; the figure opposite me on horseback grew
+more and more spectral; and I almost expected to see it bow its head.
+
+"It is time to be off," said my companion, "unless we intend to sup with
+the statue."
+
+"I have no relish for such fare or such company," replied I; and, following
+my companion, we groped our way through the mouldering cloisters. As we
+passed by the ruined cemetery, keeping up a casual conversation, by way of
+dispelling the loneliness of the scene, I called to mind the words of the
+poet:
+
+                     "--The tombs
+  And monumental caves of death look cold,
+  And shoot a chillness to my trembling heart!
+  Give me thy hand, and let me hear thy voice;
+  Nay, speak--and let me hear thy voice;
+  My own affrights me with its echoes."
+
+There wanted nothing but the marble statue of the commander striding along
+the echoing cloisters to complete the haunted scene.
+
+Since that time I never fail to attend the theater whenever the story of
+Don Juan is represented, whether in pantomime or opera. In the sepulchral
+scene, I feel myself quite at home; and when the statue makes his
+appearance, I greet him as an old acquaintance. When the audience applaud,
+I look round upon them with a degree of compassion. "Poor souls!" I say to
+myself, "they think they are pleased; they think they enjoy this piece, and
+yet they consider the whole as a fiction! How much more would they enjoy
+it, if like me they knew it to be true--_and had seen the very
+place_!"
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+
+
+
+BROEK
+
+OF THE DUTCH PARADISE
+
+
+It has long been a matter of discussion and controversy among the pious and
+the learned, as to the situation of the terrestrial paradise from whence
+our first parents were exiled. This question has been put to rest by
+certain of the faithful in Holland, who have decided in favor of the
+village of Broek, about six miles from Amsterdam. It may not, they observe,
+correspond in all respects to the description of the Garden of Eden, handed
+down from days of yore, but it comes nearer to their ideas of a perfect
+paradise than any other place on earth.
+
+This eulogium induced me to make some inquiries as to this favored spot in
+the course of a sojourn at the city of Amsterdam, and the information I
+procured fully justified the enthusiastic praises I had heard. The village
+of Broek is situated in Waterland, in the midst of the greenest and richest
+pastures of Holland, I may say, of Europe. These pastures are the source of
+its wealth, for it is famous for its dairies, and for those oval cheeses
+which regale and perfume the whole civilized world. The population consists
+of about six hundred persons, comprising several families which have
+inhabited the place since time immemorial, and have waxed rich on the
+products of their meadows. They keep all their wealth among themselves,
+intermarrying, and keeping all strangers at a wary distance. They are a
+"hard money" people, and remarkable for turning the penny the right way. It
+is said to have been an old rule, established by one of the primitive
+financiers and legislators of Broek, that no one should leave the village
+with more than six guilders in his pocket, or return with less than ten; a
+shrewd regulation, well worthy the attention of modern political
+economists, who are so anxious to fix the balance of trade.
+
+What, however, renders Broek so perfect an elysium in the eyes of all true
+Hollanders is the matchless height to which the spirit of cleanliness is
+carried there. It amounts almost to a religion among the inhabitants, who
+pass the greater part of their time rubbing and scrubbing, and painting and
+varnishing; each housewife vies with her neighbor in her devotion to the
+scrubbing-brush, as zealous Catholics do in their devotion to the cross;
+and it is said a notable housewife of the place in days of yore is held in
+pious remembrance, and almost canonized as a saint, for having died of pure
+exhaustion and chagrin in an ineffectual attempt to scour a black man
+white.
+
+These particulars awakened my ardent curiosity to see a place which I
+pictured to myself the very fountain-head of certain hereditary habits and
+customs prevalent among the descendants of the original Dutch settlers of
+my native State. I accordingly lost no time in performing a pilgrimage to
+Broek.
+
+Before I reached the place I beheld symptoms of the tranquil character of
+its inhabitants. A little clump-built boat was in full sail along the lazy
+bosom of a canal, but its sail consisted of the blades of two paddles stood
+on end, while the navigator sat steering with a third paddle in the stern,
+crouched down like a toad, with a slouched hat drawn over his eyes. I
+presumed him to be some nautical lover on the way to his mistress. After
+proceeding a little further I came in sight of the harbor or port of
+destination of this drowsy navigator. This was the Broeken-Meer, an
+artificial basin, or sheet of olive-green water, tranquil as a mill-pond.
+On this the village of Broek is situated, and the borders are laboriously
+decorated with flower-beds, box-trees clipped into all kinds of ingenious
+shapes and fancies, and little "lust" houses, or pavilions.
+
+I alighted outside of the village, for no horse nor vehicle is permitted to
+enter its precincts, lest it should cause defilement of the well-scoured
+pavements. Shaking the dust off my feet, therefore, I prepared to enter,
+with due reverence and circumspection, this _sanctum sanctorum_ of
+Dutch cleanliness. I entered by a narrow street, paved with yellow bricks,
+laid edgewise, and so clean that one might eat from them. Indeed, they were
+actually worn deep, not by the tread of feet, but by the friction of the
+scrubbing-brush.
+
+The houses were built of wood, and all appeared to have been freshly
+painted, of green, yellow, and other bright colors. They were separated
+from each other by gardens and orchards, and stood at some little distance
+from the street, with wide areas or courtyards, paved in mosaic, with
+variegated stones, polished by frequent rubbing. The areas were divided
+from the street by curiously-wrought railings, or balustrades, of iron,
+surmounted with brass and copper balls, scoured into dazzling effulgence.
+The very trunks of the trees in front of the houses were by the same
+process made to look as if they had been varnished. The porches, doors, and
+window-frames of the houses were of exotic woods, curiously carved, and
+polished like costly furniture. The front doors are never opened, excepting
+on christenings, marriages, or funerals; on all ordinary occasions,
+visitors enter by the back door. In former times, persons when admitted had
+to put on slippers, but this Oriental ceremony is no longer insisted upon.
+
+A poor devil Frenchman, who attended upon me as cicerone, boasted with some
+degree of exultation of a triumph of his countrymen over the stern
+regulations of the place. During the time that Holland was overrun by the
+armies of the French republic, a French general, surrounded by his whole
+etat major, who had come from Amsterdam to view the wonders of Broek,
+applied for admission at one of these taboo'd portals. The reply was that
+the owner never received any one who did not come introduced by some
+friend. "Very well," said the general, "take my compliments to your master,
+and tell him I will return here to-morrow with a company of soldiers,
+'_pour parler raison avec mon ami Hollandais_.'" Terrified at the idea
+of having a company of soldiers billeted upon him, the owner threw open his
+house, entertained the general and his retinue with unwonted hospitality;
+though it is said it cost the family a month's scrubbing and scouring to
+restore all things to exact order, after this military invasion. My
+vagabond informant seemed to consider this one of the greatest victories of
+the republic.
+
+I walked about the place in mute wonder and admiration. A dead stillness
+prevailed around, like that in the deserted streets of Pompeii. No sign of
+life was to be seen, excepting now and then a hand, and a long pipe, and an
+occasional puff of smoke, out of the window of some "lusthaus" overhanging
+a miniature canal; and on approaching a little nearer, the periphery in
+profile of some robustious burgher.
+
+Among the grand houses pointed out to me were those of Claes Bakker, and
+Cornelius Bakker, richly carved and gilded, with flower gardens and clipped
+shrubberies; and that of the Great Ditmus, who, my poor devil cicerone
+informed me, in a whisper, was worth two millions; all these were mansions
+shut up from the world, and only kept to be cleaned. After having been
+conducted from one wonder to another of the village, I was ushered by my
+guide into the grounds and gardens of Mynheer Broekker, another mighty
+cheese-manufacturer, worth eighty thousand guilders a year. I had
+repeatedly been struck with the similarity of all that I had seen in this
+amphibious little village to the buildings and landscapes on Chinese
+platters and tea-pots; but here I found the similarity complete; for I was
+told that these gardens were modeled upon Van Bramm's description of those
+of Yuen min Yuen, in China. Here were serpentine walks, with trellised
+borders; winding canals, with fanciful Chinese bridges; flower-beds
+resembling huge baskets, with the flower of "love lies bleeding" falling
+over to the ground. But mostly had the fancy of Mynheer Broekker been
+displayed about a stagnant little lake, on which a corpulent little pinnace
+lay at anchor. On the border was a cottage within which were a wooden man
+and woman seated at table, and a wooden dog beneath, all the size of life;
+on pressing a spring, the woman commenced spinning, and the dog barked
+furiously. On the lake were wooden swans, painted to the life; some
+floating, others on the nest among the rushes; while a wooden sportsman,
+crouched among the bushes, was preparing his gun to take deadly aim. In
+another part of the garden was a dominie in his clerical robes, with wig,
+pipe, and cocked hat; and mandarins with nodding heads, amid red lions,
+green tigers, and blue hares. Last of all, the heathen deities, in wood and
+plaster, male and female, naked and bare-faced as usual, and seeming to
+stare with wonder at finding themselves in such strange company.
+
+My shabby French guide, while he pointed out all these mechanical marvels
+of the garden, was anxious to let me see that he had too polite a taste to
+be pleased with them. At every new knick-knack he would screw down his
+mouth, shrug up his shoulders, take a pinch of snuff, and exclaim: "_Ma
+foi, Monsieur, ces Hollandais sont forts pour ces betises la_!"
+
+To attempt to gain admission to any of these stately abodes was out of the
+question, having no company of soldiers to enforce a solicitation. I was
+fortunate enough, however, through the aid of my guide, to make my way into
+the kitchen of the illustrious Ditmus, and I question whether the parlor
+would have proved more worthy of observation. The cook, a little wiry,
+hook-nosed woman, worn thin by incessant action and friction, was bustling
+about among her kettles and saucepans, with the scullion at her heels, both
+clattering in wooden shoes, which were as clean and white as the
+milk-pails; rows of vessels, of brass and copper, regiments of pewter
+dishes, and portly porringers, gave resplendent evidence of the intensity
+of their cleanliness; the very trammels and hangers in the fireplace were
+highly scoured, and the burnished face of the good Saint Nicholas shone
+forth from the iron plate of the chimney back.
+
+Among the decorations of the kitchen was a printed sheet of woodcuts,
+representing the various holiday customs of Holland, with explanatory
+rhymes. Here I was delighted to recognize the jollities of New Year's Day;
+the festivities of Paaes and Pinkster, and all the other merry-makings
+handed down in my native place from the earliest times of New Amsterdam,
+and which had been such bright spots in the year in my childhood. I eagerly
+made myself master of this precious document for a trifling consideration,
+and bore it off as a memento of the place; though I question if, in so
+doing, I did not carry off with me the whole current literature of Broek.
+
+I must not omit to mention that this village is the paradise of cows as
+well as men; indeed you would almost suppose the cow to be as much an
+object of worship here as the bull was among the ancient Egyptians; and
+well does she merit it, for she is in fact the patroness of the place. The
+same scrupulous cleanliness, however, which pervades everything else, is
+manifested in the treatment of this venerated animal. She is not permitted
+to perambulate the place, but in winter, when she forsakes the rich
+pasture, a well-built house is provided for her, well painted, and
+maintained in the most perfect order. Her stall is of ample dimensions; the
+floor is scrubbed and polished; her hide is daily curried and brushed and
+sponged to her heart's content, and her tail is daintily tucked up to the
+ceiling, and decorated with a ribbon!
+
+On my way back through the village, I passed the house of the prediger, or
+preacher; a very comfortable mansion, which led me to augur well of the
+state of religion in the village. On inquiry, I was told that for a long
+time the inhabitants lived in a great state of indifference as to religious
+matters; it was in vain that their preachers endeavored to arouse their
+thoughts as to a future state; the joys of heaven, as commonly depicted,
+were but little to their taste. At length a dominie appeared among them who
+struck out in a different vein. He depicted the New Jerusalem as a place
+all smooth and level; with beautiful dykes, and ditches, and canals; and
+houses all shining with paint and varnish, and glazed tiles; and where
+there should never come horse, or ass, or cat, or dog, or anything that
+could make noise or dirt; but there should be nothing but rubbing and
+scrubbing, and washing and painting, and gilding and varnishing, for ever
+and ever, amen! Since that time, the good housewives of Broek have all
+turned their faces Zionward.
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+
+
+
+SKETCHES IN PARIS IN 1825
+
+FROM THE TRAVELING NOTE-BOOK OF GEOFFREY CRAYON, GENT.
+
+
+A Parisian hotel is a street set on end, the grand staircase forming the
+highway, and every floor a separate habitation. Let me describe the one in
+which I am lodged, which may serve as a specimen of its class. It is a huge
+quadrangular pile of stone, built round a spacious paved court. The ground
+floor is occupied by shops, magazines, and domestic offices. Then comes the
+_entre-sol_, with low ceilings, short windows, and dwarf chambers;
+then succeed a succession of floors, or stories, rising one above the
+other, to the number of Mahomet's heavens. Each floor is like a distinct
+mansion, complete in itself, with ante-chamber, saloons, dining and
+sleeping rooms, kitchen and other conveniences for the accommodation of a
+family. Some floors are divided into two or more suites of apartments. Each
+apartment has its main door of entrance, opening upon the staircase, or
+landing-places, and locked like a street door. Thus several families and
+numerous single persons live under the same roof, totally independent of
+each other, and may live so for years without holding more intercourse than
+is kept up in other cities by residents in the same street.
+
+Like the great world, this little microcosm has its gradations of rank and
+style and importance. The _Premier_, or first floor, with its grand
+saloons, lofty ceilings, and splendid furniture, is decidedly the
+aristocratical part of the establishment. The second floor is scarcely less
+aristocratical and magnificent; the other floors go on lessening in
+splendor as they gain in altitude, and end with the attics, the region of
+petty tailors, clerks, and sewing-girls. To make the filling up of the
+mansion complete, every odd nook and corner is fitted up as a _joli petit
+appartement a garcon_ (a pretty little bachelor's apartment), that is to
+say, some little dark inconvenient nestling-place for a poor devil of a
+bachelor.
+
+The whole domain is shut up from the street by a great
+_porte-cochere_, or portal, calculated for the admission of carriages.
+This consists of two massy folding-doors, that swing heavily open upon a
+spacious entrance, passing under the front of the edifice into the
+courtyard. On one side is a spacious staircase leading to the upper
+apartments. Immediately without the portal is the porter's lodge, a small
+room with one or two bedrooms adjacent, for the accommodation of the
+_concierge_, or porter and his family. This is one of the most
+important functionaries of the hotel. He is, in fact, the Cerberus of the
+establishment, and no one can pass in or out without his knowledge and
+consent. The _porte-cochere_ in general is fastened by a sliding bolt,
+from which a cord or wire passes into the porter's lodge. Whoever wishes to
+go out must speak to the porter, who draws the bolt. A visitor from without
+gives a single rap with the massive knocker; the bolt is immediately drawn,
+as if by an invisible hand; the door stands ajar, the visitor pushes it
+open, and enters. A face presents itself at the glass door of the porter's
+little chamber; the stranger pronounces the name of the person he comes to
+seek. If the person or family is of importance, occupying the first or
+second floor, the porter sounds a bell once or twice, to give notice that a
+visitor is at hand. The stranger in the meantime ascends the great
+staircase, the highway common to all, and arrives at the outer door,
+equivalent to a street door, of the suite of rooms inhabited by his
+friends.
+
+Beside this hangs a bell-cord, with which he rings for admittance.
+
+When the family or person inquired for is of less importance, or lives in
+some remote part of the mansion less easy to be apprised, no signal is
+given. The applicant pronounces the name at the porter's door, and is told,
+_"Montez au troisieme, au quatrieme; sonnez a la porte a droite ou a
+gauche."_ ("Ascend to the third or fourth story; ring the bell on the
+right or left hand door"); as the case may be.
+
+The porter and his wife act as domestics to such of the inmates of the
+mansion as do not keep servants; making their beds, arranging their rooms,
+lighting their fires, and doing other menial offices, for which they
+receive a monthly stipend. They are also in confidential intercourse with
+the servants of the other inmates, and, having an eye on all the incomers
+and outgoers, are thus enabled, by hook and by crook, to learn the secrets
+and domestic history of every member of the little territory within the
+_porte-cochere_.
+
+The porter's lodge is accordingly a great scene of gossip, where all the
+private affairs of this interior neighborhood are discussed. The courtyard,
+also, is an assembling place in the evenings for the servants of the
+different families, and a sisterhood of sewing girls from the entre-sols
+and the attics, to play at various games, and dance to the music of their
+own songs, and the echoes of their feet, at which assemblages the porter's
+daughter takes the lead; a fresh, pretty, buxom girl, generally called
+"_La Petite_," though almost as tall as a grenadier. These little
+evening gatherings, so characteristic of this gay country, are countenanced
+by the various families of the mansion, who often look down from their
+windows and balconies, on moonlight evenings, and enjoy the simple revels
+of their domestics. I must observe, however, that the hotel I am describing
+is rather a quiet, retired one, where most of the inmates are permanent
+residents from year to year, so that there is more of the spirit of
+neighborhood than in the bustling, fashionable hotels in the gay parts of
+Paris, which are continually changing their inhabitants.
+
+MY FRENCH NEIGHBOR
+
+I often amuse myself by watching from my window (which, by the bye, is
+tolerably elevated) the movements of the teeming little world below me; and
+as I am on sociable terms with the porter and his wife, I gather from them,
+as they light my fire, or serve my breakfast, anecdotes of all my fellow
+lodgers. I have been somewhat curious in studying a little antique
+Frenchman, who occupies one of the _jolie chambres a garcon_ already
+mentioned. He is one of those superannuated veterans who flourished before
+the revolution, and have weathered all the storms of Paris, in consequence,
+very probably, of being fortunately too insignificant to attract attention.
+He has a small income, which he manages with the skill of a French
+economist; appropriating so much for his lodgings, so much for his meals;
+so much for his visits to St. Cloud and Versailles, and so much for his
+seat at the theater. He has resided in the hotel for years, and always in
+the same chamber, which he furnishes at his own expense. The decorations of
+the room mark his various ages. There are some gallant pictures which he
+hung up in his younger days; with a portrait of a lady of rank, whom he
+speaks tenderly of, dressed in the old French taste; and a pretty opera
+dancer, pirouetting in a hoop petticoat, who lately died at a good old age.
+In a corner of this picture is stuck a prescription for rheumatism, and
+below it stands an easy-chair. He has a small parrot at the window, to
+amuse him when within doors, and a pug dog to accompany him in his daily
+peregrinations. While I am writing he is crossing the court to go out. He
+is attired in his best coat, of sky-blue, and is doubtless bound for the
+Tuileries. His hair is dressed in the old style, with powdered ear-locks
+and a pig-tail. His little dog trips after him, sometimes on four legs,
+sometimes on three, and looking as if his leather small-clothes were too
+tight for him. Now the old gentleman stops to have a word with an old crony
+who lives in the entre-sol, and is just returning from his promenade. Now
+they take a pinch of snuff together; now they pull out huge red cotton
+handkerchiefs (those "flags of abomination," as they have well been called)
+and blow their noses most sonorously. Now they turn to make remarks upon
+their two little dogs, who are exchanging the morning's salutation; now
+they part, and my old gentleman stops to have a passing word with the
+porter's wife; and now he sallies forth, and is fairly launched upon the
+town for the day.
+
+No man is so methodical as a complete idler, and none so scrupulous in
+measuring and portioning out his time as he whose time is worth nothing.
+The old gentleman in question has his exact hour for rising, and for
+shaving himself by a small mirror hung against his casement. He sallies
+forth at a certain hour every morning to take his cup of coffee and his
+roll at a certain cafe, where he reads the papers. He has been a regular
+admirer of the lady who presides at the bar, and always stops to have a
+little _badinage_ with her _en passant_. He has his regular walks
+on the Boulevards and in the Palais Royal, where he sets his watch by the
+petard fired off by the sun at midday. He has his daily resort in the
+Garden of the Tuileries, to meet with a knot of veteran idlers like
+himself, who talk on pretty much the same subjects whenever they meet. He
+has been present at all the sights and shows and rejoicings of Paris for
+the last fifty years; has witnessed the great events of the revolution; the
+guillotining of the king and queen; the coronation of Bonaparte; the
+capture of Paris, and the restoration of the Bourbons. All these he speaks
+of with the coolness of a theatrical critic; and I question whether he has
+not been gratified by each in its turn; not from any inherent love of
+tumult, but from that insatiable appetite for spectacle which prevails
+among the inhabitants of this metropolis. I have been amused with a farce,
+in which one of these systematic old triflers is represented. He sings a
+song detailing his whole day's round of insignificant occupations, and goes
+to bed delighted with the idea that his next day will be an exact
+repetition of the same routine:
+
+  "Je me couche le soir,
+   Enchante de pouvoir
+   Recommencer mon train
+      Le lendemain
+         Matin."
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+
+THE ENGLISHMAN AT PARIS
+
+In another part of the hotel a handsome suite of rooms is occupied by an
+old English gentleman, of great probity, some understanding, and very
+considerable crustiness, who has come to France to live economically. He
+has a very fair property, but his wife, being of that blessed kind compared
+in Scripture to the fruitful vine, has overwhelmed him with a family of
+buxom daughters, who hang clustering about him, ready to be gathered by any
+hand. He is seldom to be seen in public without one hanging on each arm,
+and smiling on all the world, while his own mouth is drawn down at each
+corner like a mastiff's with internal growling at everything about him. He
+adheres rigidly to English fashion in dress, and trudges about in long
+gaiters and broad-brimmed hat; while his daughters almost overshadow him
+with feathers, flowers, and French bonnets.
+
+He contrives to keep up an atmosphere of English habits, opinions, and
+prejudices, and to carry a semblance of London into the very heart of
+Paris. His mornings are spent at Galignani's news-room, where he forms one
+of a knot of inveterate quidnuncs, who read the same articles over a dozen
+times in a dozen different papers. He generally dines in company with some
+of his own countrymen, and they have what is called a "comfortable sitting"
+after dinner, in the English fashion, drinking wine, discussing the news of
+the London papers, and canvassing the French character, the French
+metropolis, and the French revolution, ending with a unanimous admission of
+English courage, English morality, English cookery, English wealth, the
+magnitude of London, and the ingratitude of the French.
+
+His evenings are chiefly spent at a club of his countrymen, where the
+London papers are taken. Sometimes his daughters entice him to the
+theaters, but not often. He abuses French tragedy, as all fustian and
+bombast, Talma as a ranter, and Duchesnois as a mere termagant. It is true
+his ear is not sufficiently familiar with the language to understand French
+verse, and he generally goes to sleep during the performance. The wit of
+the French comedy is flat and pointless to him. He would not give one of
+Munden's wry faces or Liston's inexpressible looks for the whole of it.
+
+He will not admit that Paris has any advantage over London. The Seine is a
+muddy rivulet in comparison with the Thames; the West End of London
+surpasses the finest parts of the French capital; and on some one's
+observing that there was a very thick fog out of doors: "Pish!" said he,
+crustily, "it's nothing to the fogs we have in London."
+
+He has infinite trouble in bringing his table into anything like conformity
+to English rule. With his liquors, it is true, he is tolerably successful.
+He procures London porter, and a stock of port and sherry, at considerable
+expense; for he observes that he cannot stand those cursed thin French
+wines, they dilute his blood so much as to give him the rheumatism. As to
+their white wines, he stigmatizes them as mere substitutes for cider; and
+as to claret, why, "it would be port if it could." He has continual
+quarrels with his French cook, whom he renders wretched by insisting on his
+conforming to Mrs. Glass; for it is easier to convert a Frenchman from his
+religion than his cookery. The poor fellow, by dint of repeated efforts,
+once brought himself to serve up _ros bif_ sufficiently raw to suit
+what he considered the cannibal taste of his master; but then he could not
+refrain, at the last moment, adding some exquisite sauce, that put the old
+gentleman in a fury.
+
+He detests wood-fires, and has procured a quantity of coal; but not having
+a grate, he is obliged to burn it on the hearth. Here he sits poking and
+stirring the fire with one end of a tongs, while the room is as murky as a
+smithy; railing at French chimneys, French masons, and French architects;
+giving a poke at the end of every sentence, as though he were stirring up
+the very bowels of the delinquents he is anathematizing. He lives in a
+state militant with inanimate objects around him; gets into high dudgeon
+with doors and casements, because they will not come under English law, and
+has implacable feuds with sundry refractory pieces of furniture. Among
+these is one in particular with which he is sure to have a high quarrel
+every tune he goes to dress. It is a _commode_, one of those smooth,
+polished, plausible pieces of French furniture that have the perversity of
+five hundred devils. Each drawer has a will of its own, will open or not,
+just as the whim takes it, and sets lock and key at defiance. Sometimes a
+drawer will refuse to yield to either persuasion or force, and will part
+with both handles rather than yield; another will come out in the most coy
+and coquettish manner imaginable; elbowing along, zig-zag; one corner
+retreating as the other advances; making a thousand difficulties and
+objections at every move; until the old gentleman, out of all patience,
+gives a sudden jerk, and brings drawer and contents into the middle of the
+floor. His hostility to this unlucky piece of furniture increases every
+day, as if incensed that it does not grow better. He is like the fretful
+invalid who cursed his bed, that the longer he lay the harder it grew. The
+only benefit he has derived from the quarrel is that it has furnished him
+with a crusty joke, which he utters on all occasions. He swears that a
+French _commode_ is the most _incommodious_ thing in existence,
+and that although the nation cannot make a joint-stool that will stand
+steady, yet they are always talking of everything's being
+_perfectionee_.
+
+His servants understand his humor, and avail themselves of it. He was one
+day disturbed by a pertinacious rattling and shaking at one of the doors,
+and bawled out in an angry tone to know the cause of the disturbance.
+"Sir," said the footman, testily, "it's this confounded French lock!" "Ah!"
+said the old gentleman, pacified by this hit at the nation, "I thought
+there was something French at the bottom of it!"
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+
+
+
+
+ENGLISH AND FRENCH CHARACTER
+
+
+As I am a mere looker on in Europe, and hold myself as much as possible
+aloof from its quarrels and prejudices, I feel something like one
+overlooking a game, who, without any great skill of his own, can
+occasionally perceive the blunders of much abler players. This neutrality
+of feeling enables me to enjoy the contrasts of character presented in this
+time of general peace, when the various peoples of Europe, who have so long
+been sundered by wars, are brought together and placed side by side in this
+great gathering-place of nations. No greater contrast, however, is
+exhibited than that of the French and English. The peace has deluged this
+gay capital with English visitors of all ranks and conditions. They throng
+every place of curiosity and amusement; fill the public gardens, the
+galleries, the cafes, saloons, theaters; always herding together, never
+associating with the French. The two nations are like two threads of
+different colors, tangled together but never blended.
+
+In fact they present a continual antithesis, and seem to value themselves
+upon being unlike each other; yet each have their peculiar merits, which
+should entitle them to each other's esteem. The French intellect is quick
+and active. It flashes its way into a subject with the rapidity of
+lightning; seizes upon remote conclusions with a sudden bound, and its
+deductions are almost intuitive. The English intellect is less rapid, but
+more persevering; less sudden, but more sure in its deductions. The
+quickness and mobility of the French enable them to find enjoyment in the
+multiplicity of sensations. They speak and act more from immediate
+impressions than from reflection and meditation. They are therefore more
+social and communicative; more fond of society, and of places of public
+resort and amusement. An Englishman is more reflective in his habits. He
+lives in the world of his own thoughts, and seems more self-existent and
+self-dependent. He loves the quiet of his own apartment; even when abroad,
+he in a manner makes a little solitude around him by his silence and
+reserve; he moves about shy and solitary, and, as it were, buttoned up,
+body and soul.
+
+The French are great optimists; they seize upon every good as it flies, and
+revel in the passing pleasure. The Englishman is too apt to neglect the
+present good, in preparing against the possible evil. However adversities
+may lower, let the sun shine but for a moment, and forth sallies the
+mercurial Frenchman, in holiday dress and holiday spirits, gay as a
+butterfly, as though his sunshine were perpetual; but let the sun beam
+never so brightly, so there be but a cloud in the horizon, the wary
+Englishman ventures forth distrustfully, with his umbrella in his hand.
+
+The Frenchman has a wonderful facility at turning small things to
+advantage. No one can be gay and luxurious on smaller means; no one
+requires less expense to be happy. He practices a kind of gilding in his
+style of living, and hammers out every guinea into gold leaf. The
+Englishman, on the contrary, is expensive in his habits, and expensive in
+his enjoyments. He values everything, whether useful or ornamental, by what
+it costs. He has no satisfaction in show, unless it be solid and complete.
+Everything goes with him by the square foot. Whatever display he makes, the
+depth is sure to equal the surface.
+
+The Frenchman's habitation, like himself, is open, cheerful, bustling, and
+noisy. He lives in a part of a great hotel, with wide portal, paved court,
+a spacious dirty stone staircase, and a family on every floor. All is
+clatter and chatter. He is good-humored and talkative with his servants,
+sociable with his neighbors, and complaisant to all the world. Anybody has
+access to himself and his apartments; his very bedroom is open to visitors,
+whatever may be its state of confusion; and all this not from any
+peculiarly hospitable feeling, but from that communicative habit which
+predominates over his character.
+
+The Englishman, on the contrary, ensconces himself in a snug brick mansion,
+which he has all to himself; locks the front door; puts broken bottles
+along his walls, and spring guns and man-traps in his gardens; shrouds
+himself with trees and window-curtains; exults in his quiet and privacy,
+and seems disposed to keep out noise, daylight, and company. His house,
+like himself, has a reserved, inhospitable exterior; yet whoever gains
+admittance is apt to find a warm heart and warm fireside within.
+
+The French excel in wit, the English in humor; the French have gayer fancy,
+the English richer imagination. The former are full of sensibility; easily
+moved, and prone to sudden and great excitement; but their excitement is
+not durable; the English are more phlegmatic; not so readily affected, but
+capable of being aroused to great enthusiasm. The faults of these opposite
+temperaments are that the vivacity of the French is apt to sparkle up and
+be frothy, the gravity of the English to settle down and grow muddy. When
+the two characters can be fixed in a medium, the French kept from
+effervescence and the English from stagnation, both will be found
+excellent.
+
+This contrast of character may also be noticed in the great concerns of the
+two nations. The ardent Frenchman is all for military renown; he fights for
+glory, that is to say, for success in arms. For, provided the national flag
+is victorious, he cares little about the expense, the injustice, or the
+inutility of the war. It is wonderful how the poorest Frenchman will revel
+on a triumphant bulletin; a great victory is meat and drink to him; and at
+the sight of a military sovereign, bringing home captured cannon and
+captured standards, he throws up his greasy cap in the air, and is ready to
+jump out of his wooden shoes for joy.
+
+John Bull, on the contrary, is a reasoning, considerate person. If he does
+wrong, it is in the most rational way imaginable. He fights because the
+good of the world requires it. He is a moral person, and makes war upon his
+neighbor for the maintenance of peace and good order, and sound principles.
+He is a money-making personage, and fights for the prosperity of commerce
+and manufactures. Thus the two nations have been fighting, time out of
+mind, for glory and good. The French, in pursuit of glory, have had their
+capital twice taken; and John, in pursuit of good, has run himself over
+head and ears in debt.
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+
+
+
+THE TUILERIES AND WINDSOR CASTLE
+
+
+I have sometimes fancied I could discover national characteristics in
+national edifices. In the Chateau of the Tuileries, for instance, I
+perceive the same jumble of contrarieties that marks the French character;
+the same whimsical mixture of the great and the little; the splendid and
+the paltry, the sublime and the grotesque. On visiting this famous pile,
+the first thing that strikes both eye and ear is military display. The
+courts glitter with steel-clad soldiery, and resound with the tramp of
+horse, the roll of drum, and the bray of trumpet. Dismounted guardsmen
+patrol its arcades, with loaded carbines, jingling spears, and clanking
+sabers. Gigantic grenadiers are posted about its staircases; young officers
+of the guards loll from the balconies, or lounge in groups upon the
+terraces; and the gleam of bayonet from window to window, shows that
+sentinels are pacing up and down the corridors and ante-chambers. The first
+floor is brilliant with the splendors of a court. French taste has tasked
+itself in adorning the sumptuous suites of apartments; nor are the gilded
+chapel and the splendid theater forgotten, where piety and pleasure are
+next-door neighbors, and harmonize together with perfect French
+_bienseance_.
+
+Mingled up with all this regal and military magnificence is a world of
+whimsical and make-shift detail. A great part of the huge edifice is cut up
+into little chambers and nestling-places for retainers of the court,
+dependents on retainers, and hangers-on of dependents. Some are squeezed
+into narrow entre-sols, those low, dark, intermediate slices of apartments
+between floors, the inhabitants of which seem shoved in edgewise, like
+books between narrow shelves; others are perched like swallows, under the
+eaves; the high roofs, too, which are as tall and steep as a French cocked
+hat, have rows of little dormant windows, tier above tier, just large
+enough to admit light and air for some dormitory, and to enable its
+occupant to peep out at the sky. Even to the very ridge of the roof may be
+seen here and there one of these air-holes, with a stove pipe beside it, to
+carry off the smoke from the handful of fuel with which its weazen-faced
+tenant simmers his _demi-tasse_ of coffee.
+
+On approaching the palace from the Pont Royal, you take in at a glance all
+the various strata of inhabitants; the garreteer in the roof; the retainer
+in the entre-sol; the courtiers at the casements of the royal apartments;
+while on the ground-floor a steam of savory odors and a score or two of
+cooks, in white caps, bobbing their heads about the windows, betray that
+scientific and all-important laboratory, the Royal Kitchen.
+
+Go into the grand ante-chamber of the royal apartments on Sunday and see
+the mixture of Old and New France; the old emigres, returned with the
+Bourbons; little withered, spindle-shanked old noblemen, clad in court
+dresses, that figured in these saloons before the revolution, and have been
+carefully treasured up during their exile; with the solitaires and _ailes
+de pigeon_ of former days; and the court swords strutting out behind,
+like pins stuck through dry beetles. See them haunting the scenes of their
+former splendor, in hopes of a restitution of estates, like ghosts haunting
+the vicinity of buried treasure; while around them you see the Young
+France, that have grown up in the fighting school of Napoleon; all equipped
+_en militaire_; tall, hardy, frank, vigorous, sunburned,
+fierce-whiskered; with tramping boots, towering crests, and glittering
+breast-plates.
+
+It is incredible the number of ancient and hereditary feeders on royalty
+said to be housed in this establishment. Indeed all the royal palaces
+abound with noble families returned from exile, and who have
+nestling-places allotted them while they await the restoration of their
+estates, or the much-talked-of law indemnity. Some of them have fine
+quarters, but poor living. Some families have but five or six hundred
+francs a year, and all their retinue consists of a servant-woman. With all
+this, they maintain their old aristocratical hauteur, look down with vast
+contempt upon the opulent families which have risen since the revolution;
+stigmatize them all as _parvenues_ or upstarts, and refuse to visit
+them.
+
+In regarding the exterior of the Tuileries, with all its outward signs of
+internal populousness, I have often thought what a rare sight it would be
+to see it suddenly unroofed, and all its nooks and corners laid open to the
+day. It would be like turning up the stump of an old tree, and dislodging
+the world of grubs, and ants, and beetles lodged beneath. Indeed there is a
+scandalous anecdote current that in the time of one of the petty plots,
+when petards were exploded under the windows of the Tuileries, the police
+made a sudden investigation of the palace at four o'clock in the morning;
+when a scene of the most whimsical confusion ensued. Hosts of supernumerary
+inhabitants were found foisted into the huge edifice; every rat-hole had
+its occupant; and places which had been considered as tenanted only by
+spiders were found crowded with a surreptitious population. It is added
+that many ludicrous accidents occurred; great scampering and slamming of
+doors, and whisking away in nightgowns and slippers; and several persons,
+who were found by accident in their neighbors' chambers, evinced
+indubitable astonishment at the circumstance.
+
+As I have fancied I could read the French character in the national palace
+of the Tuileries, so I have pictured to myself some of the traits of John
+Bull in his royal abode of Windsor Castle. The Tuileries, outwardly a
+peaceful palace, is in effect a swaggering military hold; while the old
+castle, on the contrary, in spite of its bullying look, is completely under
+petticoat government. Every corner and nook is built up into some snug,
+cozy nestling place, some "procreant cradle," not tenanted by meager
+expectants or whiskered warriors, but by sleek placemen; knowing realizers
+of present pay and present pudding; who seem placed there not to kill and
+destroy, but to breed and multiply. Nursery maids and children shine with
+rosy faces at the windows, and swarm about the courts and terraces. The
+very soldiers have a pacific look, and when off duty may be seen loitering
+about the place with the nursery-maids; not making love to them in the gay
+gallant style of the French soldiery, but with infinite bonhomie aiding
+them to take care of the broods of children.
+
+Though the old castle is in decay, everything about it thrives; the very
+crevices of the walls are tenanted by swallows, rooks, and pigeons, all
+sure of quiet lodgment; the ivy strikes its roots deep in the fissures, and
+flourishes about the mouldering tower. [Footnote: The above sketch was
+written before the thorough repairs and magnificent additions that have
+been made of late years to Windsor Castle.] Thus it is with honest John;
+according to his own account, he is ever going to ruin, yet everything that
+lives on him thrives and waxes fat. He would fain be a soldier, and swagger
+like his neighbors; but his domestic, quiet-loving, uxorious nature
+continually gets the upper hand; and though he may mount his helmet and
+gird on his sword, yet he is apt to sink into the plodding, painstaking
+father of a family; with a troop of children at his heels, and his
+womenkind hanging on each arm.
+
+
+
+
+
+THE FIELD OF WATERLOO
+
+
+I have spoken heretofore with some levity of the contrast that exists
+between the English and French character; but it deserves more serious
+consideration. They are the two great nations of modern times most
+diametrically opposed, and most worthy of each other's rivalry; essentially
+distinct in their characters, excelling in opposite qualities, and
+reflecting luster on each other by their very opposition. In nothing is
+this contrast more strikingly evinced than in their military conduct. For
+ages have they been contending, and for ages have they crowded each other's
+history with acts of splendid heroism. Take the Battle of Waterloo, for
+instance, the last and most memorable trial of their rival prowess. Nothing
+could surpass the brilliant daring on the one side, and the steadfast
+enduring on the other. The French cavalry broke like waves on the compact
+squares of English infantry. They were seen galloping round those serried
+walls of men, seeking in vain for an entrance; tossing their arms in the
+air, in the heat of their enthusiasm, and braving the whole front of
+battle. The British troops, on the other hand, forbidden to move or fire,
+stood firm and enduring. Their columns were ripped up by cannonry; whole
+rows were swept down at a shot; the survivors closed their ranks, and stood
+firm. In this way many columns stood through the pelting of the iron
+tempest without firing a shot; without any action to stir their blood or
+excite their spirits. Death thinned their ranks, but could not shake their
+souls.
+
+A beautiful instance of the quick and generous impulses to which the French
+are prone, is given in the case of a French cavalier, in the hottest of the
+action, charging furiously upon a British officer, but perceiving in the
+moment of assault that his adversary had lost his sword-arm, dropping the
+point of his saber, and courteously riding on. Peace be with that generous
+warrior, whatever were his fate! If he went down in the storm of battle,
+with the foundering fortunes of his chieftain, may the turf of Waterloo
+grow green above his grave! and happier far would be the fate of such a
+spirit, to sink amid the tempest, unconscious of defeat, than to survive
+and mourn over the blighted laurels of his country.
+
+In this way the two armies fought through a long and bloody day. The French
+with enthusiastic valor, the English with cool, inflexible courage, until
+Fate, as if to leave the question of superiority still undecided between
+two such adversaries, brought up the Prussians to decide the fortunes of
+the field.
+
+It was several years afterward that I visited the field of Waterloo. The
+plowshare had been busy with its oblivious labors, and the frequent harvest
+had nearly obliterated the vestiges of war. Still the blackened ruins of
+Hoguemont stood, a monumental pile, to mark the violence of this vehement
+struggle. Its broken walls, pierced by bullets, and shattered by
+explosions, showed the deadly strife that had taken place within; when Gaul
+and Briton, hemmed in between narrow walls, hand to hand and foot to foot,
+fought from garden to courtyard, from courtyard to chamber, with intense
+and concentrated rivalship. Columns of smoke turned from this vortex of
+battle as from a volcano: "it was," said my guide, "like a little hell upon
+earth." Not far off, two or three broad spots of rank, unwholesome green
+still marked the places where these rival warriors, after their fierce and
+fitful struggle, slept quietly together in the lap of their common mother
+earth. Over all the rest of the field peace had resumed its sway. The
+thoughtless whistle of the peasant floated on the air, instead of the
+trumpet's clangor; the team slowly labored up the hillside, once shaken by
+the hoofs of rushing squadrons; and wide fields of corn waved peacefully
+over the soldiers' graves, as summer seas dimple over the place where many
+a tall ship lies buried.
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+To the foregoing desultory notes on the French military character, let me
+append a few traits which I picked up verbally in one of the French
+provinces. They may have already appeared in print, but I have never met
+with them.
+
+At the breaking out of the revolution, when so many of the old families
+emigrated, a descendant of the great Turenne, by the name of De Latour
+D'Auvergne, refused to accompany his relations, and entered into the
+Republican army. He served in all the campaigns of the revolution,
+distinguished himself by his valor, his accomplishments, and his generous
+spirit, and might have risen to fortune, and to the highest honors. He
+refused, however, all rank in the army, above that of captain, and would
+receive no recompense for his achievements but a sword of honor. Napoleon,
+in testimony of his merits, gave him the title of Premier Grenadier de
+France (First Grenadier of France), which was the only title he would ever
+bear. He was killed in Germany, in 1809 or '10. To honor his memory, his
+place was always retained in his regiment, as if he still occupied it; and
+whenever the regiment was mustered, and the name of De Latour D'Auvergne
+was called out, the reply was, "Dead on the field of honor!"
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+
+
+
+PARIS AT THE RESTORATION
+
+
+Paris presented a singular aspect just after the downfall of Napoleon, and
+the restoration of the Bourbons. It was filled with a restless, roaming
+population; a dark, sallow race, with fierce mustaches, black cravats, and
+feverish, menacing looks; men suddenly thrown out of employ by the return
+of peace; officers cut short in their career, and cast loose with scanty
+means, many of them in utter indigence, upon the world; the broken elements
+of armies. They haunted the places of public resort, like restless, unhappy
+spirits, taking no pleasure; hanging about, like lowering clouds that
+linger after a storm, and giving a singular air of gloom to this otherwise
+gay metropolis.
+
+The vaunted courtesy of the old school, the smooth urbanity that prevailed
+in former days of settled government and long-established aristocracy, had
+disappeared amid the savage republicanism of the revolution and the
+military furor of the empire; recent reverses had stung the national vanity
+to the quick; and English travelers, who crowded to Paris on the return of
+peace, expecting to meet with a gay, good-humored, complaisant populace,
+such as existed in the time of the "Sentimental Journey," were surprised at
+finding them irritable and fractious, quick at fancying affronts, and not
+unapt to offer insults. They accordingly inveighed with heat and bitterness
+at the rudeness they experienced in the French metropolis; yet what better
+had they to expect? Had Charles II. been reinstated in his kingdom by the
+valor of French troops; had he been wheeled triumphantly to London over the
+trampled bodies and trampled standards of England's bravest sons; had a
+French general dictated to the English capital, and a French army been
+quartered in Hyde Park; had Paris poured forth its motley population, and
+the wealthy bourgeoise of every French trading town swarmed to London;
+crowding its squares; filling its streets with their equipages; thronging
+its fashionable hotels, and places of amusements; elbowing its impoverished
+nobility out of their palaces and opera-boxes, and looking down on the
+humiliated inhabitants as a conquered people; in such a reverse of the
+case, what degree of courtesy would the populace of London have been apt to
+exercise toward their visitors? [Footnote: The above remarks were suggested
+by a conversation with the late Mr. Canning, whom the author met in Paris,
+and who expressed himself in the most liberal way concerning the
+magnanimity of the French on the occupation of their capital by strangers.]
+
+On the contrary, I have always admired the degree of magnanimity exhibited
+by the French on the occupation of their capital by the English. When we
+consider the military ambition of this nation, its love of glory; the
+splendid height to which its renown in arms had recently been carried, and
+with these, the tremendous reverses it had just undergone; its armies
+shattered, annihilated; its capital captured, garrisoned, and overrun, and
+that too by its ancient rival, the English, toward whom it had cherished
+for centuries a jealous and almost religious hostility; could we have
+wondered if the tiger spirit of this fiery people had broken out in bloody
+feuds and deadly quarrels; and that they had sought to rid themselves in
+any way of their invaders? But it is cowardly nations only, those who dare
+not wield the sword, that revenge themselves with the lurking dagger. There
+were no assassinations in Paris. The French had fought valiantly,
+desperately, in the field; but, when valor was no longer of avail, they
+submitted like gallant men to a fate they could not withstand. Some
+instances of insult from the populace were experienced by their English
+visitors; some personal rencontres, which led to duels, did take place; but
+these smacked of open and honorable hostility. No instances of lurking and
+perfidious revenge occurred, and the British soldier patroled the streets
+of Paris safe from treacherous assault.
+
+If the English met with harshness and repulse in social intercourse, it was
+in some degree a proof that the people are more sincere than has been
+represented. The emigrants who had just returned were not yet reinstated.
+Society was constituted of those who had flourished under the late regime;
+the newly ennobled, the recently enriched, who felt their prosperity and
+their consequence endangered by this change of things. The broken-down
+officer, who saw his glory tarnished, his fortune ruined, his occupation
+gone, could not be expected to look with complacency upon the authors of
+his downfall. The English visitor, flushed with health, and wealth, and
+victory, could little enter into the feelings of the blighted warrior,
+scarred with a hundred battles, an exile from the camp, broken in
+constitution by the wars, impoverished by the peace, and cast back, a needy
+stranger in the splendid but captured metropolis of his country.
+
+  "Oh! who can tell what heroes feel,
+   When all but life and honor's lost!"
+
+And here let me notice the conduct of the French soldiery on the
+dismemberment of the army of the Loire, when two hundred thousand men were
+suddenly thrown out of employ; men who had been brought up to the camp, and
+scarce knew any other home. Few in civil, peaceful life, are aware of the
+severe trial to the feelings that takes place on the dissolution of a
+regiment. There is a fraternity in arms. The community of dangers,
+hardships, enjoyments; the participation in battles and victories; the
+companionship in adventures, at a time of life when men's feelings are most
+fresh, susceptible, and ardent, all these bind the members of a regiment
+strongly together. To them the regiment is friends, family, home. They
+identify themselves with its fortunes, its glories, its disgraces. Imagine
+this romantic tie suddenly dissolved; the regiment broken up; the
+occupation of its members gone; their military pride mortified; the career
+of glory closed behind them; that of obscurity, dependence, want, neglect,
+perhaps beggary, before them. Such was the case with the soldiers of the
+army of the Loire. They were sent off in squads, with officers, to the
+principal towns where they were to be disarmed and discharged. In this way
+they passed through the country with arms in their hands, often exposed to
+slights and scoffs, to hunger and various hardships and privations; but
+they conducted themselves magnanimously, without any of those outbreaks of
+violence and wrong that so often attend the dismemberment of armies.
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+The few years that have elapsed since the time above alluded to, have
+already had their effect. The proud and angry spirits which then roamed
+about Paris unemployed begins to recover its old channels, though worn
+deeper by recent torrents. The natural urbanity of the French begins to
+find its way, like oil, to the surface, though there still remains a degree
+of roughness and bluntness of manner, partly real, and partly affected, by
+such as imagine it to indicate force and frankness. The events of the last
+thirty years have rendered the French a more reflecting people. They have
+acquired greater independence of mind and strength of judgment, together
+with a portion of that prudence which results from experiencing the
+dangerous consequences of excesses. However that period may have been
+stained by crimes, and filled with extravagances, the French have certainly
+come out of it a greater nation than before. One of their own philosophers
+observes that in one or two generations the nation will probably combine
+the ease and elegance of the old character with force and solidity. They
+were light, he says, before the revolution; then wild and savage; they have
+become more thoughtful and reflective. It is only old Frenchmen, nowadays,
+that are gay and trivial; the young are very serious personages.
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+P.S.--In the course of a morning's walk, about the time the above remarks
+were written, I observed the Duke of Wellington, who was on a brief visit
+to Paris. He was alone, simply attired in a blue frock; with an umbrella
+under his arm, and his hat drawn over his eyes, and sauntering across the
+Place Vendome, close by the Column of Napoleon. He gave a glance up at the
+column as he passed, and continued his loitering way up the Rue de la Paix;
+stopping occasionally to gaze in at the shop-windows; elbowed now and then
+by other gazers, who little suspected that the quiet, lounging individual
+they were jostling so unceremoniously was the conqueror who had twice
+entered their capital victoriously; had controlled the destinies of the
+nation, and eclipsed the glory of the military idol, at the base of whose
+column he was thus negligently sauntering.
+
+Some years afterward I was at an evening's entertainment given by the duke
+at Apsley House, to William IV. The duke had manifested his admiration of
+his great adversary, by having portraits of him in different parts of the
+house. At the bottom of the grand staircase stood the colossal statue of
+the emperor, by Canova. It was of marble, in the antique style, with one
+arm partly extended, holding a figure of victory. Over this arm the ladies,
+in tripping upstairs to the ball, had thrown their shawls. It was a
+singular office for the statue of Napoleon to perform in the mansion of the
+Duke of Wellington!
+
+  "Imperial Caesar dead, and turned to clay," etc., etc.
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+
+
+
+AMERICAN RESEARCHES IN ITALY
+
+LIFE OF TASSO: RECOVERY OF A LOST PORTRAIT OF DANTE
+
+_To the Editor of the Knickerbocker:_
+
+Sir--Permit me through the pages of your magazine to call the attention of
+the public to the learned and elegant researches in Europe of one of our
+countrymen, Mr. R. H. Wilde, of Georgia, formerly a member of the House of
+Representatives. After leaving Congress, Mr. Wilde a few years since spent
+about eighteen months in traveling through different parts of Europe, until
+he became stationary for a time in Tuscany. Here he occupied himself with
+researches concerning the private life of Tasso, whose mysterious and
+romantic love for the Princess Leonora, his madness and imprisonment, had
+recently become the theme of a literary controversy, not yet ended; curious
+in itself, and rendered still more curious by some alleged manuscripts of
+the poet's, brought forward by Count Alberti. Mr. Wilde entered into the
+investigation with the enthusiasm of a poet, and the patience and accuracy
+of a case-hunter; and has produced a work now in the press, in which the
+"vexed questions" concerning Tasso are most ably discussed, and lights
+thrown upon them by his letters, and by various of his sonnets, which last
+are rendered into English with rare felicity. While Mr. Wilde was occupied
+upon this work, he became acquainted with Signer Carlo Liverati, an artist
+of considerable merit, and especially well versed in the antiquities of
+Florence. This gentleman mentioned incidentally one day, in the course of
+conversation, that there once and probably still existed in the "Bargello,"
+anciently both the prison, and the palace of the republic, an authentic
+portrait of Dante. It was believed to be in fresco, on a wall which
+afterward, by some strange neglect or inadvertency, had been covered with
+whitewash. Signor Liverati mentioned the circumstance merely to deplore the
+loss of so precious a portrait, and to regret the almost utter hopelessness
+of its recovery.
+
+As Mr. Wilde had not as yet imbibed that enthusiastic admiration for Dante
+which possesses all Italians, by whom the poet is almost worshiped, this
+conversation made but a slight impression on him at the time. Subsequently,
+however, his researches concerning Tasso being ended, he began to amuse his
+leisure hours with attempts to translate some specimens of Italian lyric
+poetry, and to compose very short biographical sketches of the authors. In
+these specimens, which as yet exist only in manuscript, he has shown the
+same critical knowledge of the Italian language, and admirable command of
+the English, that characterize his translations of Tasso. He had not
+advanced far in these exercises, when the obscure and contradictory
+accounts of many incidents in the life of Dante caused him much
+embarrassment, and sorely piqued his curiosity. About the same time he
+received, through the courtesy of Don Neri dei Principi Corsini, what he
+had long most fervently desired, a permission from the grandduke to pursue
+his investigations in the secret archives of Florence, with power to obtain
+copies therefrom. This was a rich and almost unwrought mine of literary
+research; for to Italians themselves, as well as to foreigners, their
+archives, for the most part, have been long inaccessible. For two years Mr.
+Wilde devoted himself with indefatigable ardor to explore the records of
+the republic during the time of Dante. These being written in barbarous
+Latin and semi-Gothic characters, on parchment more or less discolored and
+mutilated, with ink sometimes faded, were rendered still more illegible by
+the arbitrary abbreviations of the notaries. They require, in fact, an
+especial study; few even of the officers employed in the "Archivio delle
+Riformagione" can read them currently and correctly.
+
+Mr. Wilde however persevered in his laborious task with a patience severely
+tried, but invincible. Being without an index, each file, each book,
+required to be examined page by page, to ascertain whether any particular
+of the immortal poet's political life had escaped the untiring industry of
+his countrymen. This toil was not wholly fruitless, and several interesting
+facts obscurely known, and others utterly unknown by the Italians
+themselves, are drawn forth by Mr. Wilde from the oblivion of these
+archives.
+
+While thus engaged, the circumstance of the lost portrait of Dante was
+again brought to Mr. Wilde's mind, but now excited intense interest. In
+perusing the notes of the late learned Canonico Moreri on Filelfo's life of
+Dante, he found it stated that a portrait of the poet by Giotto was
+formerly to be seen in the Bargello. He learned also that Signer Scotti,
+who has charge of the original drawings of the old masters in the imperial
+and royal gallery, had made several years previously an ineffectual attempt
+to set on foot a project for the recovery of the lost treasure. Here was a
+new vein of inquiry, which Mr. Wilde followed up with his usual energy and
+sagacity. He soon satisfied himself, by reference to Vasari, and to the
+still more ancient and decisive authority of Filippo Villari, who lived
+shortly after the poet, that Giotto, the friend and contemporary of Dante,
+did undoubtedly paint his likeness in the place indicated. Giotto died in
+1336, but as Dante was banished, and was even sentenced to be burned, in
+1302, it was obvious the work must have been executed before that time;
+since the portrait of one outlawed and capitally convicted as an enemy to
+the commonwealth would never have been ordered or tolerated in the chapel
+of the royal palace. It was clear, then, that the portrait must have been
+painted between 1290 and 1302.
+
+Mr. Wilde now revolved in his own mind the possibility that this precious
+relic might remain undestroyed under its coat of whitewash, and might yet
+be restored to the world. For a moment he felt an impulse to undertake the
+enterprise; but feared that, in a foreigner from a new world, any part of
+which is unrepresented at the Tuscan court, it might appear like an
+intrusion. He soon however found a zealous coadjutor. This was one Giovanni
+Aubrey Bezzi, a Piedmontese exile, who had long been a resident in England,
+and was familiar with its language and literature. He was now on a visit to
+Florence, which liberal and hospitable city is always open to men of merit
+who for political reasons have been excluded from other parts of Italy.
+Signer Bezzi partook deeply of the enthusiasm of his countrymen for the
+memory of Dante, and sympathized with Mr. Wilde in his eagerness to
+retrieve if possible the lost portrait. They had several consultations as
+to the means to be adopted to effect their purpose, without incurring the
+charge of undue officiousness. To lessen any objections that might occur
+they resolved to ask for nothing but permission to search for the fresco
+painting at their own expense; and should any remains of it be found, then
+to propose to the nobility and gentry of Florence an association for the
+purpose of completing the undertaking and effectually recovering the lost
+portrait.
+
+For the same reason the formal memorial addressed to the grandduke was
+drawn up in the name of Florentines; among whom were the celebrated
+Bartolini, now President of the School of Sculpture in the Imperial and
+Royal Academy, Signor Paolo Ferroni, of the noble family of that name, who
+has exhibited considerable talent for painting, and Signor Gasparini, also
+an artist. This petition was urged and supported with indefatigable zeal by
+Signor Bezzi; and being warmly countenanced by Count Nerli and other
+functionaries, met with more prompt success than had been anticipated.
+Signor Marini, a skillful artist, who had succeeded in similar operations,
+was now employed to remove the whitewash by a process of his own, by which
+any fresco painting that might exist beneath would be protected from
+injury. He set to work patiently and cautiously. In a short time he met
+with evidence of the existence of the fresco. From under the coat of
+whitewash the head of an angel gradually made its appearance, and was
+pronounced to be by the pencil of Giotto.
+
+The enterprise was now prosecuted with increased ardor. Several months were
+expended on the task, and three sides of the chapel wall were uncovered;
+they were all painted in fresco by Giotto, with the history of the
+Magdalen, exhibiting her conversion, her penance, and her beatification.
+The figures, however, were all those of saints and angels; no historical
+portraits had yet been discovered, and doubts began to be entertained
+whether there were any. Still the recovery of an indisputable work of
+Giotto's was considered an ample reward for any toil; and the Ministers of
+the grandduke, acting under his directions, assumed on his behalf the past
+charges and future management of the enterprise.
+
+At length, on the uncovering of the fourth wall, the undertaking was
+crowned with complete success. A number of historical figures were brought
+to light, and among them the undoubted likeness of Dante. He was
+represented in full length, in the garb of the time, with a book under his
+arm, designed most probably to represent the "Vita Nuova," for the
+"Comedia" was not yet composed, and to all appearance from thirty to
+thirty-five years of age. The face was in profile and in excellent
+preservation, excepting that at some former period a nail had unfortunately
+been driven into the eye. The outline of the eyelid was perfect, so that
+the injury could easily be remedied. The countenance was extremely
+handsome, yet bore a strong resemblance to the portraits of the poet taken
+later in life.
+
+It is not easy to appreciate the delight of Mr. Wilde and his coadjutors at
+this triumphant result of their researches; nor the sensation produced, not
+merely in Florence but throughout Italy, by this discovery of a veritable
+portrait of Dante, in the prime of his days. It was some such sensation as
+would be produced in England by the sudden discovery of a perfectly well
+authenticated likeness of Shakespeare; with a difference in intensity
+proportioned to the superior sensitiveness of the Italians.
+
+The recovery of this portrait of the "divine poet" has occasioned fresh
+inquiry into the origin of the masks said to have been made from a cast of
+his face taken after death. One of these masks, in the possession of the
+Marquess of Torrigiani, has been pronounced as certainly the
+_original_. Several artists of high talent have concurred in this
+opinion; among these may be named Jesi, the first engraver in Florence;
+Seymour Kirkup, Esq., a painter and antiquary; and our own countryman
+Powers, whose genius, by the way, is very highly appreciated by the
+Italians.
+
+We may expect from the accomplished pen of Carlo Torrigiani, son of the
+marquess, and who is advantageously known in this country, from having
+traveled here, an account of this curious and valuable relic, which has
+been upward of a century in the possession of his family.
+
+Should Mr. Wilde finish his biographical work concerning Dante, which
+promises to be a proud achievement in American literature, he intends, I
+understand, to apply for permission to have both likenesses copied, and
+should circumstances warrant the expense, to have them engraved by eminent
+artists. We shall then have the features of Dante while in the prime of
+life as well as at the moment of his death.
+
+G. C.
+
+
+
+
+THE TAKING OF THE VEIL
+
+
+One of the most remarkable personages in Parisian society during the last
+century was Renee Charlotte Victoire de Froulay De Tesse, Marchioness De
+Crequi. She sprang from the highest and proudest of the old French
+nobility, and ever maintained the most exalted notions of the purity and
+antiquity of blood, looking upon all families that could not date back
+further than three or four hundred years as mere upstarts. When a beautiful
+girl, fourteen years of age, she was presented to Louis XIV., at
+Versailles, and the ancient monarch kissed her hand with great gallantry;
+after an interval of about eighty-five years, when nearly a hundred years
+old, the same testimonial of respect was paid her at the Tuileries by
+Bonaparte, then First Consul, who promised her the restitution of the
+confiscated forests formerly belonging to her family. She was one of the
+most celebrated women of her time for intellectual grace and superiority,
+and had the courage to remain at Paris and brave all the horrors of the
+revolution, which laid waste the aristocratical world around her.
+
+The memoirs she has left behind abound with curious anecdotes and vivid
+pictures of Parisian life during the latter days of Louis XIV., the regency
+of the Duke of Orleans, and the residue of the last century; and are highly
+illustrative of the pride, splendor, and licentiousness of the French
+nobility on the very eve of their tremendous downfall.
+
+I shall draw forth a few scenes from her memoirs, taken almost at random,
+and which, though given as actual and well-known circumstances, have quite
+the air of romance.
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+All the great world of Paris were invited to be present at a grand
+ceremonial, to take place in the church of the Abbey Royal of Panthemont.
+Henrietta de Lenoncour, a young girl, of a noble family, of great beauty,
+and heiress to immense estates, was to take the black veil. Invitations had
+been issued in grand form, by her aunt and guardian, the Countess Brigitte
+de Rupelmonde, canoness of Mauberge. The circumstance caused great talk and
+wonder in the fashionable circles of Paris; everybody was at a loss to
+imagine why a young girl, beautiful and rich, in the very springtime of her
+charms, should renounce a world which she was so eminently qualified to
+embellish and enjoy.
+
+A lady of high rank, who visited the beautiful novice at the grate of her
+convent-parlor, got a clew to the mystery. She found her in great
+agitation; for a time she evidently repressed her feelings, but they at
+length broke forth in passionate exclamations. "Heaven grant me grace,"
+said she, "some day or other to pardon my cousin Gondrecourt the sorrows he
+has caused me!"
+
+"What do you mean?--what sorrows, my child?" inquired her visitor. "What
+has your cousin done to affect you?"
+
+"He is married!" cried she in accents of despair, but endeavoring to
+repress her sobs.
+
+"Married! I have heard nothing of the kind, my dear. Are you perfectly sure
+of it?"
+
+"Alas! nothing is more certain; my aunt de Rupelmonde informed me of it."
+
+The lady retired, full of surprise and commiseration. She related the scene
+in a circle of the highest nobility, in the saloon of the Marshal Prince of
+Beauvau, where the unaccountable self-sacrifice of the beautiful novice was
+under discussion.
+
+"Alas!" said she, "the poor girl is crossed in love; she is about to
+renounce the world in despair, at the marriage of her cousin De
+Gondrecourt."
+
+"What!" cried a gentleman present, "the Viscount de Gondrecourt married!
+Never was there a greater falsehood. And 'her aunt told her so'! Oh! I
+understand the plot. The countess is passionately fond of Gondrecourt, and
+jealous of her beautiful niece; but her schemes are vain; the viscount
+holds her in perfect detestation."
+
+There was a mingled expression of ridicule, disgust, and indignation at the
+thought of such a rivalry. The Countess Rupelmonde was old enough to be the
+grandmother of the viscount. She was a woman of violent passions, and
+imperious temper; robust in person, with a masculine voice, a dusky
+complexion, green eyes, and powerful eyebrows.
+
+"It is impossible," cried one of the company, "that a woman of the
+countess's age and appearance can be guilty of such folly. No, no; you
+mistake the aim of this detestable woman. She is managing to get possession
+of the estate of her lovely niece."
+
+This was admitted to be the most probable; and all concurred in believing
+the countess to be at the bottom of the intended sacrifice; for although a
+canoness, a dignitary of a religious order, she was pronounced little
+better than a devil incarnate.
+
+The Princess de Beauvau, a woman of generous spirit and intrepid zeal,
+suddenly rose from the chair in which she had been reclining. "My prince,"
+said she, addressing her husband, "if you approve of it, I will go
+immediately and have a conversation on this subject with the archbishop.
+There is not a moment to spare. It is now past midnight; the ceremony is to
+take place in the morning. A few hours and the irrevocable vows will be
+pronounced."
+
+The prince inclined his head in respectful assent. The princess set about
+her generous enterprise with a woman's promptness. Within a short time her
+carriage was at the iron gate of the archiepiscopal palace, and her
+servants rang for admission. Two Switzers, who had charge of the gate, were
+fast asleep in the porter's lodge, for it was half-past two in the morning.
+It was some time before they could be awakened, and longer before they
+could be made to come forth.
+
+"The Princess de Beauvau is at the gate!"
+
+Such a personage was not to be received in deshabille. Her dignity and the
+dignity of the archbishop demanded that the gate should be served in full
+costume. For half an hour, therefore, had the princess to wait, in feverish
+impatience, until the two dignitaries of the porter's lodge arrayed
+themselves; and three o'clock sounded from the tower of Notre Dame before
+they came forth. They were in grand livery, of a buff color, with amaranth
+galloons, plaited with silver, and fringed sword-belts reaching to their
+knees, in which were suspended long rapiers. They had small three-cornered
+hats, surmounted with plumes; and each bore in his hand a halbert. Thus
+equipped at all points, they planted themselves before the door of the
+carriage; struck the ends of their halberts on the ground with emphasis;
+and stood waiting with official importance, but profound respect, to know
+the pleasure of the princess.
+
+She demanded to speak with the archbishop. A most reverential bow and shrug
+accompanied the reply, that "His Grandeur was not at home."
+
+Not at home! Where was he to be found? Another bow and shrug: "His Grandeur
+either was, or ought to be, in retirement in the seminary of St. Magloire;
+unless he had gone to pass the Fete of St. Bruno with the reverend
+Carthusian fathers of the Rue d'Enfer; or perhaps he might have gone to
+repose himself in his castle of Conflans-sur-Seine. Though, on further
+thought, it was not unlikely he might have gone to sleep at St. Cyr, where
+the Bishop of Chartres never failed to invite him for the anniversary
+soiree of Madame de Maintenon."
+
+The princess was in despair at this multiplicity of crossroads pointed out
+for the chase; the brief interval of time was rapidly elapsing; day already
+began to dawn; she saw there was no hope of finding the archbishop before
+the moment of his entrance into the church for the morning's ceremony; so
+she returned home quite distressed.
+
+At seven o'clock in the morning the princess was in the parlor of the
+monastery of De Panthemont, and sent in an urgent request for a moment's
+conversation with the Lady Abbess. The reply brought was, that the abbess
+could not come to the parlor, being obliged to attend in the choir at the
+canonical hours. The princess entreated permission to enter the convent, to
+reveal to the Lady Abbess in two words something of the greatest
+importance. The abbess sent word in reply, that the thing was impossible,
+until she had obtained permission from the Archbishop of Paris. The
+princess retired once more to her carriage, and now, as a forlorn hope,
+took her station at the door of the church to watch for the arrival of the
+prelate.
+
+After a while the splendid company invited to this great ceremony began to
+arrive. The beauty, rank, and wealth of the novice had excited great
+attention; and, as everybody was expected to be present on the occasion,
+everybody pressed to secure a place. The street reverberated with the
+continual roll of gilded carriages and chariots; coaches of princes and
+dukes, designated by imperials of crimson velvet, and magnificent equipages
+of six horses, decked out with nodding plumes and sumptuous harnessing. At
+length the equipages ceased to arrive; empty vehicles filled the street;
+and, with a noisy and party-colored crowd of lackeys in rich liveries,
+obstructed all the entrances to De Panthemont.
+
+Eleven o'clock had struck; the last auditor had entered the church; the
+deep tones of the organ began to swell through the sacred pile, yet still
+the archbishop came not! The heart of the princess beat quicker and quicker
+with vague apprehension; when a valet, dressed in cloth of silver, trimmed
+with crimson velvet, approached her carriage precipitately. "Madame," said
+he, "the archbishop is in the church; he entered by the portal of the
+cloister; he is already in the sanctuary; the ceremony is about to
+commence!"
+
+What was to be done? To speak with the archbishop was now impossible, and
+yet on the revelation she was to make to him depended the fate of the
+lovely novice. The princess drew forth her tablets of enameled gold, wrote
+a few lines therein with a pencil, and ordered her lackey to make way for
+her through the crowd, and conduct her with all speed to the sacristy.
+
+The description given of the church and the assemblage on this occasion
+presents an idea of the aristocratical state of the times, and of the high
+interest awakened by the affecting sacrifice about to take place. The
+church was hung with superb tapestry, above which extended a band of white
+damask, fringed with gold, and covered with armorial escutcheons. A large
+pennon, emblazoned with the arms and alliances of the high-born damsel, was
+suspended, according to custom, in place of the lamp of the sanctuary. The
+lusters, girandoles, and candelabras of the king had been furnished in
+profusion, to decorate the sacred edifice, and the pavements were all
+covered with rich carpets.
+
+The sanctuary presented a reverend and august assemblage of bishops,
+canons, and monks of various orders, Benedictines, Bernardines, Raccollets,
+Capuchins, and others, all in their appropriate robes and dresses. In the
+midst presided the Archbishop of Paris, Christopher de Beaumont; surrounded
+by his four arch priests and his vicars-general. He was seated with his
+back against the altar. When his eyes were cast down, his countenance, pale
+and severe, is represented as having been somewhat sepulchral and
+death-like; but the moment he raised his large, dark, sparkling eyes, the
+whole became animated; beaming with ardor, and expressive of energy,
+penetration, and firmness.
+
+The audience that crowded the church was no less illustrious. Excepting the
+royal family, all that was elevated in rank and title was there; never had
+a ceremonial of the kind attracted an equal concourse of the high
+aristocracy of Paris.
+
+At length the grated gates of the choir creaked on their hinges, and Madame
+de Richelieu, the high and noble Abbess of De Panthemont, advanced to
+resign the novice into the hands of her aunt, the Countess Canoness De
+Rupelmonde. Every eye was turned with intense curiosity to gain a sight of
+the beautiful victim. She was sumptuously dressed, but her paleness and
+languor accorded but little with her brilliant attire. The Canoness De
+Rupelmonde conducted her niece to her praying-desk, where, as soon as the
+poor girl knelt down, she sank as if exhausted. Just then a sort of murmur
+was heard at the lower end of the church, where the servants in livery were
+gathered. A young man was borne forth, struggling in convulsions. He was in
+the uniform of an officer of the guards of King Stanislaus, Duke of
+Lorraine. A whisper circulated that it was the young Viscount de
+Gondrecourt, and that he was a lover of the novice. Almost all the young
+nobles present hurried forth to proffer him sympathy and assistance.
+
+The Archbishop of Paris remained all this time seated before the altar; his
+eyes cast down, his pallid countenance giving no signs of interest or
+participation in the scene around him. It was noticed that in one of his
+hands, which was covered with a violet glove, he grasped firmly a pair of
+tablets, of enameled gold.
+
+The Canoness de Rupelmonde conducted her niece to the prelate, to make her
+profession of self-devotion, and to utter the irrevocable vow. As the
+lovely novice knelt at his feet, the archbishop fixed on her his dark,
+beaming eyes, with a kind but earnest expression. "Sister!" said he, in the
+softest and most benevolent tone of voice, "What is your age?"
+
+"Nineteen years, monseigneur," eagerly interposed the Countess de
+Rupelmonde.
+
+"_You_ will reply to me by-and-by, madame," said the archbishop,
+dryly. He then repeated his question to the novice, who replied in a
+faltering voice, "Seventeen years."
+
+"In what diocese did you take the white veil?"
+
+"In the diocese of Toul."
+
+"How!" exclaimed the archbishop, vehemently. "In the diocese of Toul? The
+chair of Toul is vacant! The bishop of Toul died fifteen months since; and
+those who officiate in the chapter are not authorized to receive novices.
+Your novitiate, mademoiselle, is null and void, and we cannot receive your
+profession."
+
+The archbishop rose from his chair, resumed his miter, and took the crozier
+from the hands of an attendant.
+
+"My dear brethren," said he, addressing the assembly, "there is no
+necessity for our examining and interrogating Mademoiselle de Lenoncour on
+the sincerity of her religious vocation. There is a canonical impediment to
+her professing for the present; and, as to the future, we reserve to
+ourselves the consideration of the matter; interdicting to all other
+ecclesiastical persons the power of accepting her vows, under penalty of
+interdiction, of suspension, and of nullification; all which is in virtue
+of our metropolitan rights, contained in the terms of the bull _cum
+proximis_:" "_Adjutorium nostrum in nomine Domini!_" pursued he,
+chanting in a grave and solemn voice, and turning toward the altar to give
+the benediction of the holy sacrament.
+
+The noble auditory had that habitude of reserve, that empire, or rather
+tyranny, over all outward manifestations of internal emotions, which
+belongs to high aristocratical breeding. The declaration of the archbishop,
+therefore, was received as one of the most natural and ordinary things in
+the world, and all knelt down and received the pontifical benediction with
+perfect decorum. As soon, however, as they were released from the
+self-restraint imposed by etiquette, they amply indemnified themselves; and
+nothing was talked of for a month, in the fashionable saloons of Paris, but
+the loves of the handsome Viscount and the charming Henrietta; the
+wickedness of the canoness; the active benevolence and admirable address of
+the Princess de Beauvau; and the great wisdom of the archbishop, who was
+particularly extolled for his delicacy in defeating this maneuver without
+any scandal to the aristocracy, or public stigma on the name of De
+Rupelmonde, and without any departure from pastoral gentleness, by adroitly
+seizing upon an informality, and turning it to beneficial account, with as
+much authority as charitable circumspection.
+
+As to the Canoness de Rupelmonde, she was defeated at all points in her
+wicked plans against her beautiful niece. In consequence of the caveat of
+the archbishop, her superior ecclesiastic, the Abbess de Panthemont,
+formally forbade Mademoiselle de Lenoncour to resume the white veil and the
+dress of a novitiate, and instead of a novice's cell established her in a
+beautiful apartment as a boarder. The next morning the Canoness de
+Rupelmonde called at the convent to take away her niece; but, to her
+confusion, the abbess produced a lettre-de-cachet, which she had just
+received, and which forbade mademoiselle to leave the convent with any
+other person save the Prince de Beauvau.
+
+Under the auspices and the vigilant attention of the prince, the whole
+affair was wound up in the most technical and circumstantial manner. The
+Countess de Rupelmonde, by a decree of the Grand Council, was divested of
+the guardianship of her niece. All the arrears of revenues accumulated
+during Mademoiselle de Lenoncour's minority were rigorously collected, the
+accounts scrutinized and adjusted, and her noble fortune placed safely and
+entirely in her hands.
+
+In a little while the noble personages who had been invited to the ceremony
+of taking the veil received another invitation, on the part of the Countess
+dowager de Gondrecourt, and the Marshal Prince de Beauvau, to attend the
+marriage of Adrien de Gondrecourt, Viscount of Jean-sur-Moselle, and
+Henrietta de Lenoncour, Countess de Hevouwal, etc., which duly took place
+in the chapel of the archiepiscopal palace at Paris.
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+So much for the beautiful Henrietta de Lenoncour. We will now draw forth a
+companion picture of a handsome young cavalier, who figured in the gay
+world of Paris about the same time, and concerning whom the ancient
+marchioness writes with the lingering feeling of youthful romance.
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+
+
+
+THE CHARMING LETORIERES
+
+
+"A good face is a letter of recommendation," says an old proverb; and it
+was never more verified than in the case of the Chevalier Letorieres. He
+was a young gentleman of good family, but who, according to the Spanish
+phrase, had nothing but his cloak and sword (capa y espada), that is to
+say, his gentle blood and gallant bearing, to help him forward in the
+world. Through the interest of an uncle, who was an abbe, he received a
+gratuitous education at a fashionable college, but finding the terms of
+study too long, and the vacations too short, for his gay and indolent
+temper, he left college without saying a word, and launched himself upon
+Paris, with a light heart and still lighter pocket. Here he led a life to
+his humor. It is true he had to make scanty meals, and to lodge in a
+garret; but what of that? He was his own master; free from all task or
+restraint. When cold or hungry, he sallied forth, like others of the
+chameleon order, and banqueted on pure air and warm sunshine in the public
+walks and gardens; drove off the thoughts of a dinner by amusing himself
+with the gay and grotesque throngs of the metropolis; and if one of the
+poorest, was one of the merriest gentlemen upon town. Wherever he went his
+good looks and frank, graceful demeanor, had an instant and magical effect
+in securing favor. There was but one word to express his fascinating
+powers--he was "charming."
+
+Instances are given of the effect of his winning qualities upon minds of
+coarse, ordinary mold. He had once taken shelter from a heavy shower under
+a gateway. A hackney coachman, who was passing by, pulled up, and asked him
+if he wished a cast in his carriage. Letorieres declined, with a melancholy
+and dubious shake of the head. The coachman regarded him wistfully,
+repeared his solicitations, and wished to know what place he was going to
+"To the Palace of Justice, to walk in the galleries; but I will wait here
+until the rain is over."
+
+"And why so?" inquired the coachman, pertinaciously.
+
+"Because I've no money; do let me be quiet."
+
+The coachman jumped down, and, opening the door of his carriage, "It shall
+never be said," cried he, "that I left so charming a young gentleman to
+weary himself, and catch cold, merely for the sake of twenty-four sous."
+
+Arrived at the Palace of Justice, he stopped before the saloon of a famous
+restaurateur, opened the door of the carriage, and taking off his hat very
+respectfully, begged the youth to accept of a Louis-d'or. "You will meet
+with some young gentlemen within," said he, "with whom you may wish to take
+a hand at cards. The number of my coach is 144. You can find me out, and
+repay me whenever you please."
+
+The worthy Jehu was some years afterward made coachman to the Princess
+Sophia, of France, through the recommendation of the handsome youth he had
+so generously obliged.
+
+Another instance in point is given with respect to his tailor, to whom he
+owed four hundred livres. The tailor had repeatedly dunned him, but was
+always put off with the best grace in the world. The wife of the tailor
+urged her husband to assume a harsher tone. He replied that he could not
+find it in his heart to speak roughly to so charming a young gentleman.
+
+"I've no patience with such want of spirit!" cried the wife; "you have not
+the courage to show your teeth: but I'm going out to get change for this
+note of a hundred crowns; before I come home, I'll seek this 'charming'
+youth myself, and see whether he has the power to charm me. I'll warrant he
+won't be able to put _me_ off with fine looks and fine speeches."
+
+With these and many more vaunts, the good dame sallied forth. When she
+returned home, however, she wore quite a different aspect.
+
+"Well," said her husband, "how much have you received from the 'charming'
+young man?"
+
+"Let me alone," replied the wife; "I found him playing on the guitar, and
+he looked so handsome, and was so amiable and genteel, that I had not the
+heart to trouble him."
+
+"And the change for the hundred-crown note?" said the tailor.
+
+The wife hesitated a moment: "Faith," cried she, "you'll have to add the
+amount to your next bill against him. The poor young gentleman had such a
+melancholy air that--I know not how it was, but--I left the hundred crowns
+on his mantel-piece in spite of him!"
+
+The captivating looks and manners of Letorieres made his way with equal
+facility in the great world. His high connections entitled him to
+presentation at court, but some questions arose about the sufficiency of
+his proofs of nobility; whereupon the king, who had seen him walking in the
+gardens of Versailles, and had been charmed with his appearance, put an end
+to all demurs of etiquette by making him a viscount.
+
+The same kind of fascination is said to have attended him throughout his
+career. He succeeded in various difficult family suits on questions of
+honors and privileges; he had merely to appear in court to dispose the
+judges in his favor. He at length became so popular that on one occasion,
+when he appeared at the theater on recovering from a wound received in a
+duel, the audience applauded him on his entrance. Nothing, it is said,
+could have been in more perfect good taste and high breeding than his
+conduct on this occasion. When he heard the applause, he rose in his box,
+stepped forward, and surveyed both sides of the house, as if he could not
+believe that it was himself they were treating like a favorite actor, or a
+prince of the blood.
+
+His success with the fair sex may easily be presumed; but he had too much
+honor and sensibility to render his intercourse with them a series of cold
+gallantries and heartless triumphs. In the course of his attendance upon
+court, where he held a post of honor about the king, he fell deeply in love
+with the beautiful Princess Julia, of Savoy Carignan. She was young,
+tender, and simple-hearted, and returned his love with equal fervor. Her
+family took the alarm at this attachment, and procured an order that she
+should inhabit the Abbey of Montmartre, where she was treated with all
+befitting delicacy and distinction, but not permitted to go beyond the
+convent walls. The lovers found means to correspond. One of their letters
+was intercepted, and it is even hinted that a plan of elopement was
+discovered. A duel was the consequence, with one of the fiery relations of
+the princess. Letorieres received two sword-thrusts in his right side. His
+wounds were serious, yet after two or three days' confinement he could not
+resist his impatience to see the princess. He succeeded in scaling the
+walls of the abbey, and obtaining an interview in an arcade leading to the
+cloister of the cemetery. The interview of the lovers was long and tender.
+They exchanged vows of eternal fidelity, and flattered themselves with
+hopes of future happiness, which they were never to realize. After repeated
+farewells, the princess re-entered the convent, never again to behold the
+charming Letorieres. On the following morning his corpse was found stiff
+and cold on the pavement of the cloister!
+
+It would seem that the wounds of the unfortunate youth had been reopened by
+his efforts to get over the wall; that he had refrained from calling
+assistance, lest he should expose the princess, and that he had bled to
+death, without any one to aid him, or to close his dying eyes.
+
+
+
+
+THE EARLY EXPERIENCES OF RALPH RINGWOOD [Footnote: Ralph Ringwood, though a
+fictitious name, is a real personage: the worthy original is now living and
+flourishing in honorable station. I have given some anecdotes of his early
+and eccentric career in, as nearly as I can recollect, the very words in
+which he related them. They certainly afforded strong temptations to the
+embellishments of fiction; but I thought them so strikingly characteristic
+of the individual, and of the scenes and society into which his peculiar
+humors carried him, that I preferred giving them in their original
+simplicity.--G. C.]
+
+
+NOTED DOWN FROM HIS CONVERSATIONS
+
+"I am a Kentuckian by residence and choice, but a Virginian by birth. The
+cause of my first leaving the 'Ancient Dominion,' and emigrating to
+Kentucky was a jackass! You stare, but have a little patience, and I'll
+soon show you how it came to pass. My father, who was of one of the old
+Virginian families, resided in Richmond. He was a widower, and his domestic
+affairs were managed by a housekeeper of the old school, such as used to
+administer the concerns of opulent Virginian households. She was a
+dignitary that almost rivaled my father in importance, and seemed to think
+everything belonged to her; in fact, she was so considerate in her economy,
+and so careful of expense, as sometimes to vex my father, who would swear
+she was disgracing him by her meanness. She always appeared with that
+ancient insignia of housekeeping trust and authority, a great bunch of keys
+jingling at her girdle. She superintended the arrangement of the table at
+every meal, and saw that the dishes were all placed according to her
+primitive notions of symmetry. In the evening she took her stand and served
+out tea with a mingled respectfulness and pride of station, truly
+exemplary. Her great ambition was to have everything in order, and that the
+establishment under her sway should be cited as a model of good
+housekeeping. If anything went wrong, poor old Barbara would take it to
+heart, and sit in her room and cry; until a few chapters in the Bible would
+quiet her spirits, and make all calm again. The Bible, in fact, was her
+constant resort in time of trouble. She opened it indiscriminately, and
+whether she chanced among the Lamentations of Jeremiah, the Canticles of
+Solomon, or the rough enumeration of the tribes in Deuteronomy, a chapter
+was a chapter, and operated like balm to her soul. Such was our good old
+housekeeper Barbara, who was destined, unwittingly, to have a most
+important effect upon my destiny.
+
+"It came to pass, during the days of my juvenility, while I was yet what is
+termed 'an unlucky boy,' that a gentleman of our neighborhood, a great
+advocate for experiments and improvements of all kinds, took it into his
+head that it would be an immense public advantage to introduce a breed of
+mules, and accordingly imported three jacks to stock the neighborhood. This
+in a part of the country where the people cared for nothing but blood
+horses! Why, sir! they would have considered their mares disgraced and
+their whole stud dishonored by such a misalliance. The whole matter was a
+town talk and a town scandal. The worthy amalgamator of quadrupeds found
+himself in a dismal scrape: so he backed out in time, abjured the whole
+doctrine of amalgamation, and turned his jacks loose to shift for
+themselves upon the town common. There they used to run about and lead an
+idle, good-for-nothing, holiday life, the happiest animals in the country.
+
+"It so happened that my way to school lay across this common. The first
+time that I saw one of these animals it set up a braying and frightened me
+confoundedly. However, I soon got over my fright, and seeing that it had
+something of a horse look, my Virginian love for anything of the equestrian
+species predominated, and I determined to back it. I accordingly applied at
+a grocer's shop, procured a cord that had been round a loaf of sugar, and
+made a kind of halter; then summoning some of my schoolfellows, we drove
+master Jack about the common until we hemmed him in an angle of a 'worm
+fence.' After some difficulty, we fixed the halter round his muzzle, and I
+mounted. Up flew his heels, away I went over his head, and off he
+scampered. However, I was on my legs in a twinkling, gave chase, caught him
+and remounted. By dint of repeated tumbles I soon learned to stick to his
+back, so that he could no more cast me than he could his own skin. From
+that time, master Jack and his companions had a scampering life of it, for
+we all rode them between school hours, and on holiday afternoons; and you
+may be sure schoolboys' nags are never permitted to suffer the grass to
+grow under their feet. They soon became so knowing that they took to their
+heels at the very sight of a schoolboy; and we were generally much longer
+in chasing than we were in riding them.
+
+"Sunday approached, on which I projected an equestrian excursion on one of
+these long-eared steeds. As I knew the jacks would be in great demand on
+Sunday morning, I secured one overnight, and conducted him home, to be
+ready for an early outset. But where was I to quarter him for the night? I
+could not put him in the stable; our old black groom George was as absolute
+in that domain as Barbara was within doors, and would have thought his
+stable, his horses, and himself disgraced, by the introduction of a
+jackass. I recollected the smoke-house; an out-building appended to all
+Virginian establishments for the smoking of hams, and other kinds of meat.
+So I got the key, put master Jack in, locked the door, returned the key to
+its place, and went to bed, intending to release my prisoner at an early
+hour, before any of the family were awake. I was so tired, however, by the
+exertions I had made in catching the donkey, that I fell into a sound
+sleep, and the morning broke without my awaking.
+
+"Not so with dame Barbara, the housekeeper. As usual, to use her own
+phrase, 'she was up before the crow put his shoes on,' and bustled about to
+get things in order for breakfast. Her first resort was to the smoke-house.
+Scarce had she opened the door, when master Jack, tired of his confinement,
+and glad to be released from darkness, gave a loud bray, and rushed forth.
+Down dropped old Barbara; the animal trampled over her, and made off for
+the common. Poor Barbara! She had never before seen a donkey, and having
+read in the Bible that the devil went about like a roaring lion, seeking
+whom he might devour, she took it for granted that this was Beelzebub
+himself. The kitchen was soon in a hubbub; the servants hurried to the
+spot. There lay old Barbara in fits; as fast as she got out of one, the
+thoughts of the devil came over her, and she fell into another, for the
+good soul was devoutly superstitious.
+
+"As ill luck would have it, among those attracted by the noise was a
+little, cursed, fidgety, crabbed uncle of mine; one of those uneasy spirits
+that cannot rest quietly in their beds in the morning, but must be up
+early, to bother the household. He was only a kind of half-uncle, after
+all, for he had married my father's sister; yet be assumed great authority
+on the strength of this left-handed relationship, and was a universal
+intermeddler and family pest. This prying little busybody soon ferreted out
+the truth of the story, and discovered, by hook and by crook, that I was at
+the bottom of the affair, and had locked up the donkey in the smoke-house.
+He stopped to inquire no further, for he was one of those testy curmudgeons
+with whom unlucky boys are always in the wrong. Leaving old Barbara to
+wrestle in imagination with the devil, he made for my bedchamber, where I
+still lay wrapped in rosy slumbers, little dreaming of the mischief I had
+done, and the storm about to break over me.
+
+"In an instant I was awakened by a shower of thwacks, and started up in
+wild amazement, I demanded the meaning of this attack, but received no
+other reply than that I had murdered the housekeeper; while my uncle
+continued whacking away during my confusion. I seized a poker, and put
+myself on the defensive. I was a stout boy for my years, while my uncle was
+a little wiffet of a man; one that in Kentucky we would not call even an
+'individual'; nothing more than a 'remote circumstance.' I soon, therefore,
+brought him to a parley, and learned the whole extent of the charge brought
+against me. I confessed to the donkey and the smoke-house, but pleaded not
+guilty of the murder of the housekeeper. I soon found out that old Barbara
+was still alive. She continued under the doctor's hands, however, for
+several days; and whenever she had an ill turn my uncle would seek to give
+me another flogging. I appealed to my father, but got no redress. I was
+considered an 'unlucky boy,' prone to all kinds of mischief; so that
+prepossessions were against me in all cases of appeal.
+
+"I felt stung to the soul at all this. I had been beaten, degraded, and
+treated with slighting when I complained. I lost my usual good spirits and
+good humor; and, being out of temper with everybody, fancied everybody out
+of temper with me. A certain wild, roving spirit of freedom, which I
+believe is as inherent in me as it is in the partridge, was brought into
+sudden activity by the checks and restraints I suffered. 'I'll go from
+home,' thought I, 'and shift for myself.' Perhaps this notion was quickened
+by the rage for emigrating to Kentucky, which was at that time prevalent in
+Virginia. I had heard such stories of the romantic beauties of the country;
+of the abundance of game of all kinds, and of the glorious independent life
+of the hunters who ranged its noble forests, and lived by the rifle; that I
+was as much agog to get there as boys who live in seaports are to launch
+themselves among the wonders and adventures of the ocean.
+
+"After a time old Barbara got better in mind and body, and matters were
+explained to her; and she became gradually convinced that it was not the
+devil she had encountered. When she heard how harshly I had been treated on
+her account, the good old soul was extremely grieved, and spoke warmly to
+my father in my behalf. He had himself remarked the change in my behavior,
+and thought punishment might have been carried too far. He sought,
+therefore, to have some conversation with me, and to soothe my feelings;
+but it was too late. I frankly told him the course of mortification that I
+had experienced, and the fixed determination I had made to go from home.
+
+"'And where do you mean to go?'
+
+"'To Kentucky.'
+
+"'To Kentucky! Why, you know nobody there.'
+
+"'No matter: I can soon make acquaintances.'
+
+"'And what will you do when you get there?'
+
+"'Hunt!'
+
+"My father gave a long, low whistle, and looked in my face with a
+serio-comic expression. I was not far in my teens, and to talk of setting
+off alone for Kentucky, to turn hunter, seemed doubtless the idle prattle
+of a boy. He was little aware of the dogged resolution of my character; and
+his smile of incredulity but fixed me more obstinately in my purpose. I
+assured him I was serious in what I said, and would certainly set off for
+Kentucky in the spring.
+
+"Month after month passed away. My father now and then adverted slightly to
+what had passed between us; doubtless for the purpose of sounding me. I
+always expressed the same grave and fixed determination. By degrees he
+spoke to me more directly on the subject, endeavoring earnestly but kindly
+to dissuade me. My only reply was, 'I had made up my mind.'
+
+"Accordingly, as soon as the spring had fairly opened, I sought him one day
+in his study, and informed him I was about to set out for Kentucky, and had
+come to take my leave. He made no objection, for he had exhausted
+persuasion and remonstrance, and doubtless thought it best to give way to
+my humor, trusting that a little rough experience would soon bring me home
+again. I asked money for my journey. He went to a chest, took out a long
+green silk purse, well filled, and laid it on the table. I now asked for a
+horse and servant.
+
+"'A horse!' said my father, sneeringly: 'why, you would not go a mile
+without racing him, and breaking your neck; and, as to a servant, you
+cannot take care of yourself much less of him.'
+
+"'How am I to travel, then?'
+
+"'Why, I suppose you are man enough to travel on foot.'
+
+"He spoke jestingly, little thinking I would take him at his word; but I
+was thoroughly piqued in respect to my enterprise; so I pocketed the purse,
+went to my room, tied up three or four shirts in a pocket-handkerchief, put
+a dirk in my bosom, girt a couple of pistols round my waist, and felt like
+a knight errant armed cap a-pie, and ready to rove the world in quest of
+adventures.
+
+"My sister (I had but one) hung round me and wept, and entreated me to
+stay. I felt my heart swell in my throat; but I gulped it back to its
+place, and straightened myself up; I would not suffer myself to cry. I at
+length disengaged myself from her, and got to the door.
+
+"'When will you come back?' cried she.
+
+"'Never, by heavens!' cried I, 'until I come back a member of Congress from
+Kentucky. I am determined to show that I am not the tail-end of the
+family.'
+
+"Such was my first outset from home. You may suppose what a greenhorn I
+was, and how little I knew of the world I was launching into.
+
+"I do not recollect any incident of importance until I reached the borders
+of Pennsylvania. I had stopped at an inn to get some refreshment; and as I
+was eating in the back room, I overheard two men in the barroom conjecture
+who and what I could be. One determined, at length, that I was a runaway
+apprentice, and ought to be stopped, to which the other assented. When I
+had finished my meal, and paid for it, I went out at the back door, lest I
+should be stopped by my supervisors. Scorning, however, to steal off like a
+culprit, I walked round to the front of the house. One of the men advanced
+to the front door. He wore his hat on one side, and had a consequential air
+that nettled me.
+
+"'Where are you going, youngster?' demanded he.
+
+"'That's none of your business!' replied I, rather pertly.
+
+"'Yes, but it is, though! You have run away from home, and must give an
+account of yourself.'
+
+"He advanced to seize me, when I drew forth a pistol. 'If you advance
+another step, I'll shoot you!'
+
+"He sprang back as if he had trodden upon a rattlesnake, and his hat fell
+off in the movement.
+
+"'Let him alone!' cried his companion; 'he's a foolish, mad-headed boy, and
+don't know what he's about. He'll shoot you, you may rely on it.'
+
+"He did not need any caution in the matter; he was afraid even to pick up
+his hat: so I pushed forward on my way, without molestation. This incident,
+however, had its effect upon me. I became fearful of sleeping in any house
+at night, lest I should be stopped. I took my meals in the houses, in the
+course of the day, but would turn aside at night into some wood or ravine,
+make a fire, and sleep before it. This I considered was true hunter's
+style, and I wished to inure myself to it.
+
+"At length I arrived at Brownsville, leg-weary and wayworn, and in a shabby
+plight, as you may suppose, having been 'camping out' for some nights past.
+I applied at some of the inferior inns, but could gain no admission. I was
+regarded for a moment with a dubious eye, and then informed they did not
+receive foot-passengers. At last I went boldly to the principal inn. The
+landlord appeared as unwilling as the rest to receive a vagrant boy beneath
+his roof; but his wife interfered in the midst of his excuses, and half
+elbowing him aside:
+
+"'Where are you going, my lad?' said she.
+
+"'To Kentucky.'
+
+"'What are you going there for?'
+
+"'To hunt.'
+
+"She looked earnestly at me for a moment or two. 'Have you a mother
+living?' said she at length.
+
+"'No, madam: she has been dead for some time.'
+
+"'I thought so!' cried she warmly. 'I knew if you had a mother living you
+would not be here.' From that moment the good woman treated me with a
+mother's kindness.
+
+"I remained several days beneath her roof recovering from the fatigue of my
+journey. While here I purchased a rifle and practiced daily at a mark to
+prepare myself for a hunter's life. When sufficiently recruited in strength
+I took leave of my kind host and hostess and resumed my journey.
+
+"At Wheeling I embarked in a flat bottomed family boat, technically called
+a broad-horn, a prime river conveyance in those days. In this ark for two
+weeks I floated down the Ohio. The river was as yet in all its wild beauty.
+Its loftiest trees had not been thinned out. The forest overhung the
+water's edge and was occasionally skirted by immense cane-brakes. Wild
+animals of all kinds abounded. We heard them rushing through the thickets
+and plashing in the water. Deer and bears would frequently swim across the
+river; others would come down to the bank and gaze at the boat as it
+passed. I was incessantly on the alert with my rifle; but somehow or other
+the game was never within shot. Sometimes I got a chance to land and try my
+skill on shore. I shot squirrels and small birds and even wild turkeys; but
+though I caught glimpses of deer bounding away through the woods, I never
+could get a fair shot at them.
+
+"In this way we glided in our broad-horn past Cincinnati, the 'Queen of the
+West' as she is now called, then a mere group of log cabins; and the site
+of the bustling city of Louisville, then designated by a solitary house. As
+I said before, the Ohio was as yet a wild river; all was forest, forest,
+forest! Near the confluence of Green River with the Ohio, I landed, bade
+adieu to the broad-horn, and struck for the interior of Kentucky. I had no
+precise plan; my only idea was to make for one of the wildest parts of the
+country. I had relatives in Lexington and other settled places, to whom I
+thought it probable my father would write concerning me: so as I was full
+of manhood and independence, and resolutely bent on making my way in the
+world without assistance or control, I resolved to keep clear of them all.
+
+"In the course of my first day's trudge, I shot a wild turkey, and slung it
+on my back for provisions. The forest was open and clear from underwood. I
+saw deer in abundance, but always running, running. It seemed to me as if
+these animals never stood still.
+
+"At length I came to where a gang of half-starved wolves were feasting on
+the carcass of a deer which they had run down; and snarling and snapping
+and fighting like so many dogs. They were all so ravenous and intent upon
+their prey that they did not notice me, and I had time to make my
+observations. One, larger and fiercer than the rest, seemed to claim the
+larger share, and to keep the others in awe. If any one came too near him
+while eating, he would fly off, seize and shake him, and then return to his
+repast. 'This,' thought I, 'must be the captain; if I can kill him, I shall
+defeat the whole army.' I accordingly took aim, fired, and down dropped
+the old fellow. He might be only shamming dead; so I loaded and put a
+second ball through him. He never budged; all the rest ran off, and my
+victory was complete.
+
+"It would not be easy to describe my triumphant feelings on this great
+achievement. I marched on with renovated spirit, regarding myself as
+absolute lord of the forest. As night drew near, I prepared for camping. My
+first care was to collect dry wood and make a roaring fire to cook and
+sleep by, and to frighten off wolves, and bears, and panthers. I then began
+to pluck my turkey for supper. I had camped out several times in the early
+part of my expedition; but that was in comparatively more settled and
+civilized regions, where there were no wild animals of consequence in the
+forest. This was my first camping out in the real wilderness; and I was
+soon made sensible of the loneliness and wildness of my situation.
+
+"In a little while a concert of wolves commenced: there might have been a
+dozen or two, but it seemed to me as if there were thousands. I never heard
+such howling and whining. Having prepared my turkey, I divided it into two
+parts, thrust two sticks into one of the halves, and planted them on end
+before the fire, the hunter's mode of roasting. The smell of roast meat
+quickened the appetites of the wolves, and their concert became truly
+infernal. They seemed to be all around me, but I could only now and then
+get a glimpse of one of them, as he came within the glare of the light.
+
+"I did not much care for the wolves, who I knew to be a cowardly race, but
+I had heard terrible stories of panthers, and began to fear their stealthy
+prowlings in the surrounding darkness. I was thirsty, and heard a brook
+bubbling and tinkling along at no great distance, but absolutely dared not
+go there, lest some panther might lie in wait, and spring upon me.
+By-and-by a deer whistled. I had never heard one before, and thought it
+must be a panther. I now felt uneasy lest he might climb the trees, crawl
+along the branches overhead, and plump down upon me; so I kept my eyes
+fixed on the branches, until my head ached. I more than once thought I saw
+fiery eyes glaring down from--among the leaves. At length I thought of my
+supper and turned to see if my half-turkey was cooked. In crowding so near
+the fire I had pressed the meat into the flames, and it was consumed. I had
+nothing to do but toast the other half, and take better care of it. On that
+half I made my supper, without salt or bread. I was still so possessed with
+the dread of panthers that I could not close my eyes all night, but lay
+watching the trees until daybreak, when all my fears were dispelled with
+the darkness; and as I saw the morning sun sparkling down through the
+branches of the trees, I smiled to think how I had suffered myself to be
+dismayed by sounds and shadows; but I was a young woodsman, and a stranger
+in Kentucky.
+
+"Having breakfasted on the remainder of my turkey, and slaked my thirst at
+the bubbling stream, without further dread of panthers, I resumed my
+wayfaring with buoyant feelings. I again saw deer, but as usual running,
+running! I tried in vain to get a shot at them, and began to fear I never
+should. I was gazing with vexation after a herd in full scamper, when I was
+startled by a human voice. Turning round, I saw a man at a short distance
+from me in a hunting dress.
+
+"'What are you after, my lad?' cried he.
+
+"'Those deer,' replied I, pettishly: 'but it seems as if they never stand
+still.'
+
+"Upon that he burst out laughing. 'Where are you from?' said he.
+
+"'From Richmond.'
+
+"'What! In old Virginny?'
+
+"'The same.'
+
+"'And how on earth did you get here?'
+
+"'I landed at Green River from a broad-horn.
+
+"'And where are your companions?'
+
+"' I have none.'
+
+"'What?--all alone!"
+
+"'Yes.'
+
+"'Where are you going?'
+
+"'Anywhere.'
+
+"'And what have you come here for?'
+
+"'To hunt.'
+
+"'Well,' said he, laughingly, 'you'll make a real hunter; there's no
+mistaking that! Have you killed anything?'
+
+"'Nothing but a turkey; I can't get within shot of a deer: they are always
+running.'
+
+"'Oh, I'll tell you the secret of that. You're always pushing forward, and
+starting the deer at a distance, and gazing at those that are scampering;
+but you must step as slow, and silent, and cautious as a cat, and keep your
+eyes close around you, and lurk from tree to tree, if you wish to get a
+chance at deer. But come, go home with me. My name is Bill Smithers; I live
+not far off: stay with me a little while, and I'll teach you how to hunt.'
+
+"I gladly accepted the invitation of honest Bill Smithers. We soon reached
+his habitation; a mere log hut, with a square hole for a window and a
+chimney made of sticks and clay. Here he lived with a wife and child. He
+had 'girdled' the trees for an acre or two around, preparatory to clearing
+a space for corn and potatoes. In the meantime he maintained his family
+entirely by his rifle, and I soon found him to be a first-rate huntsman.
+Under his tutelage I received my first effective lessons in 'woodcraft.'
+
+"The more I knew of a hunter's life, the more I relished it. The country,
+too, which had been the promised land of my boyhood, did not, like most
+promised lands, disappoint me. No wilderness could be more beautiful than
+this part of Kentucky in those times. The forests were open and spacious,
+with noble trees, some of which looked as if they had stood for centuries.
+There were beautiful prairies, too, diversified with groves and clumps of
+trees, which looked like vast parks, and in which you could see the deer
+running, at a great distance. In the proper season these prairies would be
+covered in many places with wild strawberries, where your horses' hoofs
+would be dyed to the fetlock. I thought there could not be another place in
+the world equal to Kentucky--and I think so still.
+
+"After I had passed ten or twelve days with Bill Smithers, I thought it
+time to shift my quarters, for his house was scarce large enough for his
+own family, and I had no idea of being an encumbrance to any one. I
+accordingly made up my bundle, shouldered my rifle, took a friendly leave
+of Smithers and his wife, and set out in quest of a Nimrod of the
+wilderness, one John Miller, who lived alone, nearly forty miles off, and
+who I hoped would be well pleased to have a hunting companion.
+
+"I soon found out that one of the most important items in woodcraft in a
+new country was the skill to find one's way in the wilderness. There were
+no regular roads in the forests, but they were cut up and perplexed by
+paths leading in all directions. Some of these were made by the cattle of
+the settlers, and were called 'stock-tracks,' but others had been made by
+the immense droves of buffaloes which roamed about the country, from the
+flood until recent times. These were called buffalo-tracks, and traversed
+Kentucky from end to end, like highways. Traces of them may still be seen
+in uncultivated parts, or deeply worn in the rocks where they crossed the
+mountains. I was a young woodman, and sorely puzzled to distinguish one
+kind of track from the other, or to make out my course through this tangled
+labyrinth. While thus perplexed, I heard a distant roaring and rushing
+sound; a gloom stole over the forest: on looking up, when I could catch a
+stray glimpse of the sky, I beheld the clouds rolled up like balls, the
+lower parts as black as ink. There was now and then an explosion, like a
+burst of cannonry afar off, and the crash of a falling tree. I had heard of
+hurricanes in the woods, and surmised that one was at hand. It soon came
+crashing its way; the forest writhing, and twisting, and groaning before
+it. The hurricane did not extend far on either side, but in a manner plowed
+a furrow through the woodland; snapping off or uprooting trees that had
+stood for centuries, and filling the air with whirling branches. I was
+directly in its course, and took my stand behind an immense poplar, six
+feet in diameter. It bore for a time the full fury of the blast, but at
+length began to yield. Seeing it falling, I scrambled nimbly round the
+trunk like a squirrel. Down it went, bearing down another tree with it. I
+crept under the trunk as a shelter, and was protected from other trees
+which fell around me, but was sore all over from the twigs and branches
+driven against me by the blast.
+
+"This was the only incident of consequence that occurred on my way to John
+Miller's, where I arrived on the following day, and was received by the
+veteran with the rough kindness of a backwoodsman. He was a gray-haired
+man, hardy and weather-beaten, with a blue wart, like a great beard, over
+one eye, whence he was nicknamed by the hunters 'Bluebeard Miller.' He had
+been in these parts from the earliest settlements, and had signalized
+himself in the hard conflicts with the Indians, which gained Kentucky the
+appellation of 'the Bloody Ground.' In one of these fights he had had an
+arm broken; in another he had narrowly escaped, when hotly pursued, by
+jumping from a precipice thirty feet high into a river.
+
+"Miller willingly received me into his house as an inmate, and seemed
+pleased with the idea of making a hunter of me. His dwelling was a small
+log-house, with a loft or garret of boards, so that there was ample room
+for both of us. Under his instruction I soon made a tolerable proficiency
+in hunting. My first exploit, of any consequence, was killing a bear. I was
+hunting in company with two brothers, when we came upon the track of bruin,
+in a wood where there was an undergrowth of canes and grapevines. He was
+scrambling up a tree, when I shot him through the breast: he fell to the
+ground and lay motionless. The brothers sent in their dog, who seized the
+bear by the throat. Bruin raised one arm and gave the dog a hug that
+crushed his ribs. One yell, and all was over. I don't know which was first
+dead, the dog or the bear. The two brothers sat down and cried like
+children over their unfortunate dog. Yet they were mere rough huntsmen,
+almost as wild and untamable as Indians; but they were fine fellows.
+
+"By degrees I became known, and somewhat of a favorite among the hunters of
+the neighborhood; that is to say, men who lived within a circle of thirty
+or forty miles, and came occasionally to see John Miller, who was a
+patriarch among them. They lived widely apart, in log huts and wigwams,
+almost with the simplicity of Indians, and wellnigh as destitute of the
+comforts and inventions of civilized life. They seldom saw each other;
+weeks, and even months, would elapse, without their visiting. When they did
+meet, it was very much after the manner of Indians; loitering about all
+day, without having much to say, but becoming communicative as evening
+advanced, and sitting up half the night before the fire, telling hunting
+stories, and terrible tales of the fights of the Bloody Ground.
+
+"Sometimes several would join in a distant hunting expedition, or rather
+campaign. Expeditions of this kind lasted from November until April; during
+which we laid up our stock of summer provisions. We shifted our hunting
+camps from place to place, according as we found the game. They were
+generally pitched near a run of water, and close by a cane-brake, to screen
+us from the wind. One side of our lodge was open toward the fire. Our
+horses were hoppled and turned loose in the cane-brakes, with bells round
+their necks. One of the party stayed at home to watch the camp, prepare the
+meals and keep off the wolves; the others hunted. When a hunter killed a
+deer at a distance from the camp, he would open it and take out the
+entrails; then climbing a sapling he would bend it down, tie the deer to
+the top, and let it spring up again, so as to suspend the carcass out of
+reach of the wolves. At night he would return to the camp and give an
+account of his luck. The next morning early he would get a horse out of the
+canebrake and bring home his game. That day he would stay at home to cut up
+the carcass, while the others hunted.
+
+"Our days were thus spent in silent and lonely occupations. It was only at
+night that we would gather together before the fire and be sociable. I was
+a novice, and used to listen with open eyes and ears to the strange and
+wild stories told by the old hunters, and believed everything I heard. Some
+of their stories bordered upon the supernatural. They believed that their
+rifles might be spellbound, so as not to be able to kill a buffalo, even at
+arms-length. This superstition they had derived from the Indians, who often
+think the white hunters have laid a spell upon their rifles. Miller partook
+of this superstition, and used to tell of his rifle's having a spell upon
+it; but it often seemed to me to be a shuffling way of accounting for a bad
+shot. If a hunter grossly missed his aim he would ask, 'Who shot last with
+this rifle?'--and hint that he must have charmed it. The sure mode to
+disenchant the gun was to shoot a silver bullet out of it.
+
+"By the opening of spring we would generally have quantities of bears'-meat
+and venison salted, dried, and smoked, and numerous packs of skins. We
+would then make the best of our way home from our distant hunting-grounds;
+transporting our spoils, sometimes in canoes along the rivers, sometimes on
+horseback over land, and our return would often be celebrated by feasting
+and dancing, in true backwoods style. I have given you some idea of our
+hunting; let me now give you a sketch of our frolicking.
+
+"It was on our return from a winter's hunting in the neighborhood of Green
+River, when we received notice that there was to be a grand frolic at Bob
+Mosely's, to greet the hunters. This Bob Mosely was a prime fellow
+throughout the country. He was an indifferent hunter, it is true, and
+rather lazy to boot; but then he could play the fiddle, and that was enough
+to make him of consequence. There was no other man within a hundred miles
+that could play the fiddle, so there was no having a regular frolic without
+Bob Mosely. The hunters, therefore, were always ready to give him a share
+of their game in exchange for his music, and Bob was always ready to get up
+a carousal, whenever there was a party returning from a hunting expedition.
+The present frolic was to take place at Bob Mosely's own house, which was
+on the Pigeon Roost Fork of the Muddy, which is a branch of Rough Creek,
+which is a branch of Green River.
+
+"Everybody was agog for the revel at Bob Mosely's; and as all the fashion
+of the neighborhood was to be there, I thought I must brush up for the
+occasion. My leathern hunting-dress, which was the only one I had, was
+somewhat the worse for wear, it is true, and considerably japanned with
+blood and grease; but I was up to hunting expedients. Getting into a
+periogue, I paddled off to a part of the Green River where there was sand
+and clay, that might serve for soap; then taking off my dress, I scrubbed
+and scoured it, until I thought it looked very well. I then put it on the
+end of a stick, and hung it out of the periogue to dry, while I stretched
+myself very comfortably on the green bank of the river. Unluckily a flaw
+struck the periogue, and tipped over the stick: down went my dress to the
+bottom of the river, and I never saw it more. Here was I, left almost in a
+state of nature. I managed to make a kind of Robinson Crusoe garb of
+undressed skins, with the hair on, which enabled me to get home with
+decency; but my dream of gayety and fashion was at an end; for how could I
+think of figuring in high life at the Pigeon Roost, equipped like a mere
+Orson?
+
+"Old Miller, who really began to take some pride in me, was confounded when
+he understood that I did not intend to go to Bob Mosely's; but when I told
+him my misfortune, and that I had no dress: 'By the powers,' cried he, 'but
+you _shall_ go, and you shall be the best dressed and the best mounted
+lad there!'
+
+"He immediately set to work to cut out and make up a hunting-shirt of
+dressed deer-skin, gayly fringed at the shoulders, with leggings of the
+same, fringed from hip to heel. He then made me a rakish raccoon-cap, with
+a flaunting tail to it; mounted me on his best horse; and I may say,
+without vanity, that I was one of the smartest fellows that figured on that
+occasion at the Pigeon Roost Fork of the Muddy.
+
+"It was no small occasion, either, let me tell you. Bob Mosely's house was
+a tolerably large bark shanty, with a clap-board roof; and there were
+assembled all the young hunters and pretty girls of the country, for many a
+mile round. The young men were in their best hunting-dresses, but not one
+could compare with mine; and my raccoon-cap, with its flowing tail, was the
+admiration of everybody. The girls were mostly in doe-skin dresses; for
+there was no spinning and weaving as yet in the woods; nor any need of it.
+I never saw girls that seemed to me better dressed; and I was somewhat of a
+judge, having seen fashions at Richmond. We had a hearty dinner, and a
+merry one; for there was Jemmy Kiel, famous for raccoon-hunting, and Bob
+Tarleton, and Wesley Pigman, and Joe Taylor, and several other prime
+fellows for a frolic, that made all ring again, and laughed that you might
+have heard them a mile.
+
+"After dinner we began dancing, and were hard at it, when, about three
+o'clock in the afternoon, there was a new arrival--the two daughters of old
+Simon Schultz; two young ladies that affected fashion and late hours. Their
+arrival had nearly put an end to all our merriment. I must go a little
+roundabout in my story to explain to you how that happened.
+
+"As old Schultz, the father, was one day looking in the cane-brakes for his
+cattle, he came upon the track of horses. He knew they were none of his,
+and that none of his neighbors had horses about that place. They must be
+stray horses; or must belong to some traveler who had lost his way, as the
+track led nowhere. He accordingly followed it up, until he came to an
+unlucky peddler, with two or three pack-horses, who had been bewildered
+among the cattle-tracks, and had wandered for two or three days among woods
+and cane-brakes, until he was almost famished.
+
+"Old Schultz brought him to his house; fed him on venison, bear's-meat, and
+hominy, and at the end of a week put him in prime condition. The peddler
+could not sufficiently express his thankfulness; and when about to depart
+inquired what he had to pay? Old Schultz stepped back with surprise.
+'Stranger,' said he, 'you have been welcome under my roof. I've given you
+nothing but wild meat and hominy, because I had no better, but have been
+glad of your company. You are welcome to stay as long as you please; but,
+by Zounds! if any one offers to pay Simon Schultz for food he affronts
+him!' So saying, he walked out in a huff.
+
+"The peddler admired the hospitality of his host, but could not reconcile
+it to his conscience to go away without making some recompense. There were
+honest Simon's two daughters, two strapping, red-haired girls. He opened
+his packs and displayed riches before them of which they had no conception;
+for in those days there were no country stores in those parts, with their
+artificial finery and trinketry; and this was the first peddler that had
+wandered into that part of the wilderness. The girls were for a time
+completely dazzled, and knew not what to choose: but what caught their eyes
+most were two looking-glasses, about the size of a dollar, set in gilt tin.
+They had never seen the like before, having used no other mirror than a
+pail of water. The peddler presented them these jewels, without the least
+hesitation; nay, he gallantly hung them round their necks by red ribbons,
+almost as fine as the glasses themselves. This done, he took his departure,
+leaving them as much astonished as two princesses in a fairy tale that have
+received a magic gift from an enchanter.
+
+"It was with these looking-glasses, hung round their necks as lockets, by
+red ribbons, that old Schultz's daughters made their appearance at three
+o'clock in the afternoon, at the frolic at Bob Mosely's, on the Pigeon
+Roost Fork of the Muddy.
+
+"By the powers, but it was an event! Such a thing had never before been
+seen in Kentucky. Bob Tarleton, a strapping fellow, with a head like a
+chestnut-burr and a look like a boar in an apple orchard, stepped up,
+caught hold of the looking-glass of one of the girls, and gazing at it for
+a moment, cried out: 'Joe Taylor, come here! come here! I'll be darn'd if
+Patty Schultz ain't got a locket that you can see your face in, as clear as
+in a spring of water!'
+
+"In a twinkling all the young hunters gathered round old Schultz's
+daughters. I, who knew what looking-glasses were, did not budge. Some of
+the girls who sat near me were excessively mortified at finding themselves
+thus deserted. I heard Peggy Pugh say to Sally Pigman, 'Goodness knows,
+it's well Schultz's daughters is got them things round their necks, for
+it's the first time the young men crowded round them!'
+
+"I saw immediately the danger of the case. We were a small community, and
+could not afford to be split up by feuds. So I stepped up to the girls, and
+whispered to them: 'Polly,' said I, 'those lockets are powerful fine, and
+become you amazingly; but you don't consider that the country is not
+advanced enough in these parts for such things. You and I understand these
+matters, but these people don't. Fine things like these may do very well in
+the old settlements, but they won't answer at the Pigeon Roost Fork of the
+Muddy. You had better lay them aside for the present, or we shall have no
+peace.'
+
+"Polly and her sister luckily saw their error; they took off the lockets,
+laid them aside, and harmony was restored: otherwise, I verily believe
+there would have been an end of our community. Indeed, notwithstanding the
+great sacrifice they made on this occasion, I do not think old Schultz's
+daughters were ever much liked afterward among the young women.
+
+"This was the first time that looking-glasses were ever seen in the Green
+River part of Kentucky.
+
+"I had now lived some time with old Miller, and had become a tolerably
+expert hunter. Game, however, began to grow scarce. The buffalo had
+gathered together, as if by universal understanding, and had crossed the
+Mississippi, never to return. Strangers kept pouring into the country,
+clearing away the forests and building in all directions. The hunters began
+to grow restive. Jemmy Kiel, the same of whom I have already spoken for his
+skill in raccoon catching, came to me one day: 'I can't stand this any
+longer,' said he; 'we're getting too thick here. Simon Schultz crowds me so
+that I have no comfort of my life.'
+
+"'Why, how you talk!' said I; 'Simon Schultz lives twelve miles off.'
+
+"'No matter; his cattle run with mine, and I've no idea of living where
+another man's cattle can run with mine. That's too close neighborhood; I
+want elbow-room. This country, too, is growing too poor to live in; there's
+no game; so two or three of us have made up our minds to follow the buffalo
+to the Missouri, and we should like to have you of the party.' Other
+hunters of my acquaintance talked in the same manner. This set me thinking;
+but the more I thought the more I was perplexed. I had no one to advise
+with; old Miller and his associates knew but of one mode of life, and I had
+had no experience in any other; but I had a wide scope of thought. When out
+hunting alone I used to forget the sport, and sit for hours together on the
+trunk of a tree, with rifle in hand, buried in thought, and debating with
+myself: 'Shall I go with Jemmy Kiel and his company, or shall I remain
+here? If I remain here there will soon be nothing left to hunt; but am I to
+be a hunter all my life? Have not I something more in me than to be
+carrying a rifle on my shoulder, day after day, and dodging about after
+bears, and deer, and other brute beasts?' My vanity told me I had; and I
+called to mind my boyish boast to my sister, that I would never return home
+until I returned a member of Congress from Kentucky; but was this the way
+to fit myself for such a station?
+
+"Various plans passed through my mind, but they were abandoned almost as
+soon as formed. At length I determined on becoming a lawyer. True it is, I
+knew almost nothing. I had left school before I had learned beyond the
+'rule of three.' 'Never mind,' said I to myself, resolutely; 'I am a
+terrible fellow for hanging on to anything when I've once made up my mind;
+and if a man has but ordinary capacity, and will set to work with heart and
+soul, and stick to it, he can do almost anything.' With this maxim, which
+has been pretty much my mainstay throughout life, I fortified myself in my
+determination to attempt the law. But how was I to set about it? I must
+quit this forest life, and go to one or other of the towns, where I might
+be able to study, and to attend the courts. This too required funds. I
+examined into the state of my finances. The purse given me by my father had
+remained untouched, in the bottom of an old chest up in the loft, for money
+was scarcely needed in these parts. I had bargained away the skins acquired
+in hunting for a horse and various other matters, on which in case of need
+I could raise funds. I therefore thought I could make shift to maintain
+myself until I was fitted for the bar.
+
+"I informed my worthy host and patron, old Miller, of my plan. He shook his
+head at my turning my back upon the woods, when I was in a fair way of
+making a first-rate hunter; but he made no effort to dissuade me. I
+accordingly set off in September, on horseback, intending to visit
+Lexington, Frankfort, and other of the principal towns, in search of a
+favorable place to prosecute my studies. My choice was made sooner than I
+expected. I had put up one night at Bardstown, and found, on inquiry, that
+I could get comfortable board and accommodation in a private family for a
+dollar and a half a week. I liked the place, and resolved to look no
+further. So the next morning I prepared to turn my face homeward, and take
+my final leave of forest life.
+
+"I had taken my breakfast, and was waiting for my horse, when, in pacing up
+and down the piazza, I saw a young girl seated near a window, evidently a
+visitor. She was very pretty; with auburn hair and blue eyes, and was
+dressed in white. I had seen nothing of the kind since I had left Richmond;
+and at that time I was too much of a boy to be much struck by female
+charms. She was so delicate and dainty-looking, so different from the hale,
+buxom, brown girls of the woods; and then her white dress!--it was
+perfectly dazzling! Never was poor youth more taken by surprise, and
+suddenly bewitched. My heart yearned to know her; but how was I to accost
+her? I had grown wild in the woods, and had none of the habitudes of polite
+life. Had she been like Peggy Pugh or Sally Pigman, or any other of my
+leathern-dressed belles of the Pigeon Roost, I should have approached her
+without dread; nay, had she been as fair as Schultz's daughters, with their
+looking-glass lockets, I should not have hesitated; but that white dress,
+and those auburn ringlets, and blue eyes, and delicate looks, quite
+daunted, while they fascinated me. I don't know what put it into my head,
+but I thought, all at once, that I would kiss her! It would take a long
+acquaintance to arrive at such a boon, but I might seize upon it by sheer
+robbery. Nobody knew me here. I would just step in, snatch a kiss, mount my
+horse, and ride off. She would not be the worse for it; and that kiss--oh!
+I should die if I did not get it!
+
+"I gave no time for the thought to cool, but entered the house, and stepped
+lightly into the room. She was seated with her back to the door, looking
+out at the window, and did not hear my approach. I tapped her chair, and as
+she turned and looked up, I snatched as sweet a kiss as ever was stolen,
+and vanished in a twinkling. The next moment I was on horseback, galloping
+homeward; my very ears tingling at what I had done.
+
+"On my return home I sold my horse, and turned everything to cash; and
+found, with the remains of the paternal purse, that I had nearly four
+hundred dollars; a little capital which I resolved to manage with the
+strictest economy.
+
+"It was hard parting with old Miller, who had been like a father to me; it
+cost me, too, something of a struggle to give up the free, independent
+wild-wood life I had hitherto led; but I had marked out my course, and had
+never been one to flinch or turn back.
+
+"I footed it sturdily to Bardstown; took possession of the quarters for
+which I had bargained, shut myself up, and set to work with might and main
+to study. But what a task I had before me! I had everything to learn; not
+merely law, but all the elementary branches of knowledge. I read and read,
+for sixteen hours out of the four-and-twenty; but the more I read the more
+I became aware of my own ignorance, and shed bitter tears over my
+deficiency. It seemed as if the wilderness of knowledge expanded and grew
+more perplexed as I advanced. Every height gained only revealed a wider
+region to be traversed, and nearly filled me with despair. I grew moody,
+silent, and unsocial, but studied on doggedly and incessantly. The only
+person with whom I held any conversation was the worthy man in whose house
+I was quartered. He was honest and well meaning, but perfectly ignorant,
+and I believe would have liked me much better if I had not been so much
+addicted to reading. He considered all books filled with lies and
+impositions, and seldom could look into one without finding something to
+rouse his spleen. Nothing put him into a greater passion than the assertion
+that the world turned on its own axis every four-and-twenty hours. He swore
+it was an outrage upon common sense. 'Why, if it did,' said he, 'there
+would not be a drop of water in the well by morning, and all the milk and
+cream in the dairy would be turned topsy-turvy! And then to talk of the
+earth going round the sun! How do they know it? I've seen the sun rise
+every morning and set every evening for more than thirty years. They must
+not talk to _me_ about the earth's going round the sun!'
+
+"At another time he was in a perfect fret at being told the distance
+between the sun and moon. 'How can any one tell the distance?' cried he.
+'Who surveyed it? who carried the chain? By Jupiter! they only talk this
+way before me to annoy me. But then there's some people of sense who give
+in to this cursed humbug! There's Judge Broadnax, now, one of the best
+lawyers we have; isn't it surprising he should believe in such stuff? Why,
+sir, the other day I heard him talk of the distance from a star he called
+Mars to the sun! He must have got it out of one or other of those
+confounded books he's so fond of reading; a book some impudent fellow has
+written, who knew nobody could swear the distance was more or less.'
+
+"For my own part, feeling my own deficiency in scientific lore, I never
+ventured to unsettle his conviction that the sun made his daily circuit
+round the earth; and for aught I said to the contrary, he lived and died in
+that belief.
+
+"I had been about a year at Bardstown, living thus studiously and
+reclusely, when, as I was one day walking the street, I met two young
+girls, in one of whom I immediately recalled the little beauty whom I had
+kissed so impudently. She blushed up to the eyes, and so did I; but we both
+passed on with further sign of recognition. This second glimpse of her,
+however, caused an odd fluttering about my heart. I could not get her out
+of my thoughts for days. She quite interfered with my studies. I tried to
+think of her as a mere child, but it would not do; she had improved in
+beauty, and was tending toward womanhood; and then I myself was but little
+better than a stripling. However, I did not attempt to seek after her, or
+even to find out who she was, but returned doggedly to my books. By degrees
+she faded from my thoughts, or if she did cross them occasionally, it was
+only to increase my despondency; for I feared that with all my exertions, I
+should never be able to fit myself for the bar, or enable myself to support
+a wife.
+
+"One cold stormy evening I was seated, in dumpish mood, in the bar-room of
+the inn, looking into the fire, and turning over uncomfortable thoughts,
+when I was accosted by some one who had entered the room without my
+perceiving it. I looked up, and saw before me a tall and, as I thought,
+pompous-looking man, arrayed in small clothes and knee-buckles, with
+powdered head, and shoes nicely blacked and polished; a style of dress
+unparalleled in those days, in that rough country. I took a pique against
+him from the very portliness of his appearance, and stateliness of his
+manner, and bristled up as he accosted me. He demanded if my name was not
+Ringwood.
+
+"I was startled, for I supposed myself perfectly incog.; but I answered in
+the affirmative.
+
+"'Your family, I believe, lives in Richmond?'
+
+"My gorge began to rise. 'Yes, sir,' replied I sulkily, 'my family does
+live in Richmond.'
+
+"'And what, may I ask, has brought you into this part of the country?'
+
+"'Zounds, sir!' cried I, starting on my feet, 'what business is it of
+yours? How dare you to question me in this manner?'
+
+"The entrance of some persons prevented a reply; but I walked up and down
+the bar-room, fuming with conscious independence and insulted dignity,
+while the pompous-looking personage, who had thus trespassed upon my
+spleen, retired without proffering another word.
+
+"The next day, while seated in my room, some one tapped at the door, and,
+on being bid to enter, the stranger in the powdered head, small-clothes,
+and shining shoes and buckles, walked in with ceremonious courtesy.
+
+"My boyish pride was again in arms; but he subdued me. He was formal, but
+kind and friendly. He knew my family and understood my situation, and the
+dogged struggle I was making. A little conversation, when my jealous pride
+was once put to rest, drew everything from me. He was a lawyer of
+experience and of extensive practice, and offered at once to take me with
+him, and direct my studies. The offer was too advantageous and gratifying
+not to be immediately accepted. From that time I began to look up. I was
+put into a proper track, and was enabled to study to a proper purpose. I
+made acquaintance, too, with some of the young men of the place, who were
+in the same pursuit, and was encouraged at finding that I could 'hold my
+own' in argument with them. We instituted a debating club, in which I soon
+became prominent and popular. Men of talents, engaged in other pursuits,
+joined it, and this diversified our subjects and put me on various tracks
+of inquiry. Ladies, too, attended some of our discussions, and this gave
+them a polite tone, and had an influence on the manners of the debaters. My
+legal patron also may have had a favorable effect in correcting any
+roughness contracted in my hunter's life. He was calculated to bend me in
+an opposite direction, for he was of the old school; quoted Chesterfield on
+all occasions, and talked of Sir Charles Grandison, who was his beau
+ideal. It was Sir Charles Grandison, however, Kentuckyized.
+
+"I had always been fond of female society. My experience, however, had
+hitherto been among the rough daughters of the backwoodsmen; and I felt an
+awe of young ladies in 'store clothes,' and delicately brought up. Two or
+three of the married ladies of Bardstown, who had heard me at the debating
+club, determined that I was a genius and undertook to bring me out. I
+believe I really improved under their hands; became quiet where I had been
+shy or sulky, and easy where I had been impudent.
+
+"I called to take tea one evening with one of these ladies, when to my
+surprise, and somewhat to my confusion, I found with her the identical
+blue-eyed little beauty whom I had so audaciously kissed. I was formally
+introduced to her, but neither of us betrayed any sign of previous
+acquaintance, except by blushing to the eyes. While tea was getting ready
+the lady of the house went out of the room to give some directions, and
+left us alone.
+
+"Heavens and earth, what a situation! I would have given all the pittance I
+was worth to have been in the deepest dell of the forest. I felt the
+necessity of saying something in excuse of my former rudeness, but I could
+not conjure up an idea, nor utter a word. Every moment matters were growing
+worse. I felt at one time tempted to do as I had done when I robbed her of
+the kiss; bolt from the room, and take to flight; but I was chained to the
+spot, for I really longed to gain her good-will.
+
+"At length I plucked up courage, on seeing that she was equally confused
+with myself, and walking desperately up to her, I exclaimed:
+
+"'I have been trying to muster up something to say to you, but I cannot. I
+feel that I am in a horrible scrape. Do have pity on me, and help me out of
+it.'
+
+"A smile dimpled about her mouth, and played among the blushes of her
+cheek. She looked up with a shy, but arch glance of the eye, that expressed
+a volume of comic recollection; we both broke into a laugh, and from that
+moment all went on well.
+
+"A few evenings afterward I met her at a dance, and prosecuted the
+acquaintance. I soon became deeply attached to her; paid my court
+regularly; and before I was nineteen years of age had engaged myself to
+marry her. I spoke to her mother, a widow lady, to ask her consent. She
+seemed to demur; upon which, with my customary haste, I told her there
+would be no use in opposing the match, for if her daughter chose to have
+me, I would take her, in defiance of her family, and the whole world.
+
+"She laughed, and told me I need not give myself any uneasiness; there
+would be no unreasonable opposition. She knew my family and all about me.
+The only obstacle was that I had no means of supporting a wife, and she had
+nothing to give with her daughter.
+
+"No matter; at that moment everything was bright before me. I was in one of
+my sanguine moods. I feared nothing, doubted nothing. So it was agreed that
+I should prosecute my studies, obtain a license, and as soon as I should be
+fairly launched in business we would be married.
+
+"I now prosecuted my studies with redoubled ardor, and was up to my ears in
+law, when I received a letter from my father, who had heard of me and my
+whereabout. He applauded the course I had taken, but advised me to lay a
+foundation of general knowledge, and offered to defray my expenses, if I
+would go to college. I felt the want of a general education, and was
+staggered with this offer. It militated somewhat against the self-dependent
+course I had so proudly or rather conceitedly marked out for myself, but it
+would enable me to enter more advantageously upon my legal career. I talked
+over the matter with the lovely girl to whom I was engaged. She sided in
+opinion with my father, and talked so disinterestedly, yet tenderly, that,
+if possible, I loved her more than ever. I reluctantly, therefore, agreed
+to go to college for a couple of years, though it must necessarily postpone
+our union.
+
+"Scarcely had I formed this resolution, when her mother was taken ill and
+died, leaving her without a protector. This again altered all my plans. I
+felt as if I could protect her. I gave up all idea of collegiate studies;
+persuaded myself that by dint of industry and application I might overcome
+the deficiencies of education, and resolved to take out a license as soon
+as possible.
+
+"That very autumn I was admitted to the bar, and within a month afterward
+was married. We were a young couple, she not much above sixteen, I not
+quite twenty; and both almost without a dollar in the world. The
+establishment which we set up was suited to our circumstances: a log-house,
+with two small rooms; a bed, a table, a half dozen chairs, a half dozen
+knives and forks, a half dozen spoons; everything by half dozens; a little
+delf ware; everything in a small way; we were so poor, but then so happy!
+
+"We had not been married many days, when court was held at a county town,
+about twenty-five miles distant. It was necessary for me to go there, and
+put myself in the way of business; but how was I to go? I had expended all
+my means on our establishment; and then it was hard parting with my wife so
+soon after marriage. However, go I must. Money must be made, or we should
+soon have the wolf at the door. I accordingly borrowed a horse, and
+borrowed a little cash, and rode off from my door, leaving my wife standing
+at it, and waving her hand after me. Her last look, so sweet and beaming,
+went to my heart. I felt as if I could go through fire and water for her.
+
+"I arrived at the county town on a cool October evening. The inn was
+crowded, for the court was to commence on the following day. I knew no one,
+and wondered how I, a stranger, and a mere youngster, was to make my way in
+such a crowd, and to get business. The public room was thronged with the
+idlers of the country, who gather together on such occasions. There was
+some drinking going forward, with much noise, and a little altercation.
+Just as I entered the room I saw a rough bully of a fellow, who was partly
+intoxicated, strike an old man. He came swaggering by me, and elbowed me as
+he passed. I immediately knocked him down, and kicked him into the street.
+I needed no better introduction. In a moment I had a dozen rough shakes of
+the hand, and invitations to drink, and found myself quite a personage in
+this rough assembly.
+
+"The next morning the court opened. I took my seat among the lawyers, but
+felt as a mere spectator, not having a suit in progress or prospect, nor
+having any idea where business was to come from. In the course of the
+morning a man was put at the bar, charged with passing counterfeit money,
+and was asked if he was ready for trial. He answered in the negative. He
+had been confined in a place where there were no lawyers, and had not had
+an opportunity of consulting any. He was told to choose counsel from the
+lawyers present, and to be ready for trial on the following day. He looked
+round the court and selected me. I was thunderstruck. I could not tell why
+he should make such a choice. I, a beardless youngster; unpracticed at the
+bar; perfectly unknown. I felt diffident yet delighted, and could have
+hugged the rascal.
+
+"Before leaving the court he gave me one hundred dollars in a bag as a
+retaining fee. I could scarcely believe my senses; it seemed like a dream.
+The heaviness of the fee spoke but lightly in favor of his innocence, but
+that was no affair of mine. I was to be advocate, not judge nor jury. I
+followed him to jail, and learned from him all the particulars of his case;
+from thence I went to the clerk's office and took minutes of the
+indictment. I then examined the law on the subject, and prepared my brief
+in my room. All this occupied me until midnight, when I went to bed and
+tried to sleep. It was all in vain. Never in my life was I more wide-awake.
+A host of thoughts and fancies kept rushing through my mind; the shower of
+gold that had so unexpectedly fallen into my lap; the idea of my poor
+little wife at home, that I was to astonish with my good fortune! But then
+the awful responsibility I had undertaken!--to speak for the first time in
+a strange court; the expectations the culprit had evidently formed of my
+talents; all these, and a crowd of similar notions, kept whirling through
+my mind. I tossed about all night, fearing the morning would find me
+exhausted and incompetent; in a word, the day dawned on me, a miserable
+fellow!
+
+"I got up feverish and nervous. I walked out before breakfast, striving to
+collect my thoughts and tranquilize my feelings. It was a bright morning;
+the air was pure and frosty. I bathed my forehead and my hands in a
+beautiful running stream; but I could not allay the fever heat that raged
+within. I returned to breakfast, but could not eat. A single cup of coffee
+formed my repast. It was time to go to court, and I went there with a
+throbbing heart. I believe if it had not been for the thoughts of my little
+wife, in her lonely log house, I should have given back to the man his
+hundred dollars, and relinquished the cause. I took my seat, looking, I am
+convinced, more like a culprit than the rogue I was to defend.
+
+"When the time came for me to speak, my heart died within me. I rose
+embarrassed and dismayed, and stammered in opening my cause. I went on from
+bad to worse, and felt as if I was going down hill. Just then the public
+prosecutor, a man of talents, but somewhat rough in his practice, made a
+sarcastic remark on something I had said. It was like an electric spark,
+and ran tingling through every vein in my body. In an instant my diffidence
+was gone. My whole spirit was in arms. I answered with promptness and
+bitterness, for I felt the cruelty of such an attack upon a novice in my
+situation. The public prosecutor made a kind of apology: this, from a man
+of his redoubted powers, was a vast concession. I renewed my argument with
+a fearless glow; carried the case through triumphantly, and the man was
+acquitted.
+
+"This was the making of me. Everybody was curious to know who this new
+lawyer was, that had thus suddenly risen among them, and bearded the
+attorney-general at the very outset. The story of my debut at the inn on
+the preceding evening, when I had knocked down a bully, and kicked him out
+of doors for striking an old man, was circulated with favorable
+exaggerations. Even my very beardless chin and juvenile countenance were in
+my favor, for people gave me far more credit than I really deserved. The
+chance business which occurs in our country courts came thronging upon me.
+I was repeatedly employed in other causes; and by Saturday night, when the
+court closed, and I had paid my bill at the inn, I found myself with a
+hundred and fifty dollars in silver, three hundred dollars in notes, and a
+horse that I afterward sold for two hundred dollars more.
+
+"Never did miser gloat on his money with more delight. I locked the door of
+my room; piled the money in a heap upon the table; walked round it; sat
+with my elbows on the table, and my chin upon my hands, and gazed upon it.
+Was I thinking of the money? No! I was thinking of my little wife at home.
+Another sleepless night ensued; but what a night of golden fancies, and
+splendid air-castle! As soon as morning dawned, I was up, mounted the
+borrowed horse with which I had come to court, and led the other which I
+had received as a fee. All the way I was delighting myself with the
+thoughts of the surprise I had in store for my little wife; for both of us
+had expected nothing but that I should spend all the money I had borrowed,
+and should return in debt.
+
+"Our meeting was joyous, as you may suppose: but I played the part of the
+Indian, hunter, who, when he returns from the chase, never for a time
+speaks of his success. She had prepared a snug little rustic meal for me,
+and while it was getting ready I seated myself at an old-fashioned desk in
+one corner, and began to count over my money, and put it away. She came to
+me before I had finished, and asked who I had collected the money for.
+
+"'For myself, to be sure,' replied I, with affected coolness; 'I made it at
+court.'
+
+"She looked me for a moment in the face, incredulously. I tried to keep my
+countenance, and to play Indian, but it would not do. My muscles began to
+twitch; my feelings all at once gave way. I caught her in my arms; laughed,
+cried, and danced about the room, like a crazy man. From that time forward,
+we never wanted for money.
+
+"I had not been long in successful practice, when I was surprised one day
+by a visit from my woodland patron, old Miller. The tidings of my
+prosperity had reached him in the wilderness, and he had walked one hundred
+and fifty miles on foot to see me. By that tame I had improved my domestic
+establishment, and had all things comfortable about me. He looked around
+him with a wondering eye, at what he considered luxuries and superfluities;
+but supposed they were all right in my altered circumstances. He said he
+did not know, upon the whole, but that I had acted for the best It is true,
+if game had continued plenty, it would have been a folly for me to quit a
+hunter's life; but hunting was pretty nigh done up in Kentucky. The buffalo
+had gone to Missouri; the elk were nearly gone also; deer, too, were
+growing scarce; they might last out his time, as he was growing old, but
+they were not worth setting up life upon. He had once lived on the borders
+of Virginia. Game grew scarce there; he followed it up across Kentucky, and
+now it was again giving him the slip; but he was too old to follow it
+further.
+
+"He remained with us three days. My wife did everything in her power to
+make him comfortable; but at the end of that time he said he must be off
+again to the woods. He was tired of the village, and of having so many
+people about him. He accordingly returned to the wilderness and to hunting
+life. But I fear he did not make a good end of it; for I understand that a
+few years before his death he married Sukey Thomas, who lived at the White
+Oak Run."
+
+
+
+
+THE SEMINOLES
+
+
+From the time of the chimerical cruising of Old Ponce de Leon in search of
+the Fountain of Youth, the avaricious expedition of Pamphilo de Narvaez in
+quest of gold, and the chivalrous enterprise of Hernando de Soto, to
+discover and conquer a second Mexico, the natives of Florida have been
+continually subjected to the invasions and encroachments of white men. They
+have resisted them perseveringly but fruitlessly, and are now battling amid
+swamps and morasses for the last foothold of their native soil, with all
+the ferocity of despair. Can we wonder at the bitterness of a hostility
+that has been handed down from father to son, for upward of three
+centuries, and exasperated by the wrongs and miseries of each succeeding
+generation! The very name of the savages with which we are fighting
+betokens their fallen and homeless condition. Formed of the wrecks of once
+powerful tribes, and driven from their ancient seats of prosperity and
+dominion, they are known by the name of the Seminoles, or "Wanderers."
+
+Bartram, who traveled through Florida in the latter part of the last
+century, speaks of passing through a great extent of ancient Indian fields,
+now silent and deserted, overgrown with forests, orange groves, and rank
+vegetation, the site of the ancient Alachua, the capital of a famous and
+powerful tribe, who in days of old could assemble thousands at bull-play
+and other athletic exercises "over these then happy fields and green
+plains." "Almost every step we take," adds he, "over these fertile heights,
+discovers the remains and traces of ancient human habitations and
+cultivation."
+
+About the year 1763, when Florida was ceded by the Spaniards to the
+English, we are told that the Indians generally retired from the towns and
+the neighborhood of the whites, and burying themselves in the deep forests,
+intricate swamps and hommocks, and vast savannas of the interior, devoted
+themselves to a pastoral life, and the rearing of horses and cattle. These
+are the people that received the name of the Seminoles, or Wanderers, which
+they still retain.
+
+Bartram gives a pleasing picture of them at the time he visited them in
+their wilderness; where their distance from the abodes of the white man
+gave them a transient quiet and security. "This handful of people," says
+he, "possesses a vast territory, all East and the greatest part of West
+Florida, which being naturally cut and divided into thousands of islets,
+knolls, and eminences, by the innumerable rivers, lakes, swamps, vast
+savannas, and ponds, form so many secure retreats and temporary
+dwelling-places that effectually guard them from any sudden invasions or
+attacks from their enemies; and being such a swampy, hommocky country,
+furnishes such a plenty and variety of supplies for the nourishment of
+varieties of animals that I can venture to assert that no part of the globe
+so abounds with wild game, or creatures fit for the food of man.
+
+"Thus they enjoy a superabundance of the necessaries and conveniences of
+life, with the security of person and property, the two great concerns of
+mankind. The hides of deer, bears, tigers, and wolves, together with honey,
+wax, and other productions of the country, purchase their clothing equipage
+and domestic utensils from the whites. They seem to be free from want or
+desires. No cruel enemy to dread; nothing to give them disquietude but the
+gradual encroachments of the white people. Thus contented and undisturbed,
+they appear as blithe and free as the birds of the air, and like them as
+volatile and active, tuneful and vociferous. The visage, action, and
+deportment of the Seminoles form the most striking picture of happiness in
+this life; joy, contentment, love, and friendship, without guile or
+affectation, seem inherent in them, or predominant in their vital
+principle, for it leaves them with but the last breath of life.... They are
+fond of games and gambling, and amuse themselves like children, in relating
+extravagant stories, to cause surprise and mirth." [Footnote: Bartram's
+Travels in North America.]
+
+The same writer gives an engaging picture of his treatment by these
+savages:
+
+"Soon after entering the forests, we were met in the path by a small
+company of Indians, smiling and beckoning to us long before we joined them.
+This was a family of Talahasochte, who had been out on a hunt and were
+returning home loaded with barbecued meat, hides, and honey. Their company
+consisted of the man, his wife and children, well mounted on fine horses,
+with a number of pack-horses. The man offered us a fawn skin of honey,
+which I accepted, and at parting presented him with some fish-hooks,
+sewing-needles, etc.
+
+"On our return to camp in the evening, we were saluted by a party of young
+Indian warriors, who had pitched their tents on a green eminence near the
+lake, at a small distance from our camp, under a little grove of oaks and
+palms. This company consisted of seven young Seminoles, under the conduct
+of a young prince or chief of Talahasochte, a town southward in the
+isthmus. They were all dressed and painted with singular elegance, and
+richly ornamented with silver plates, chains, etc., after the Seminole
+mode, with waving plumes of feathers on their crests. On our coming up to
+them, they arose and shook hands; we alighted and sat a while with them by
+their cheerful fire.
+
+"The young prince informed our chief that he was in pursuit of a young
+fellow who had fled from the town carrying off with him one of his favorite
+young wives. He said, merrily, he would have the ears of both of them
+before he returned. He was rather above the middle stature, and the most
+perfect human figure I ever saw; of an amiable, engaging countenance, air,
+and deportment; free and familiar in conversation, yet retaining a becoming
+gracefulness and dignity. We arose, took leave of them, and crossed a
+little vale, covered with a charming green turf, already illuminated by the
+soft light of the full moon.
+
+"Soon after joining our companions at camp, our neighbors, the prince and
+his associates, paid us a visit. We treated them with the best fare we had,
+having till this time preserved our spirituous liquors. They left us with
+perfect cordiality and cheerfulness, wishing us a good repose, and retired
+to their own camp. Having a band of music with them, consisting of a drum,
+flutes, and a rattle-gourd, they entertained us during the night with their
+music, vocal and instrumental.
+
+"There is a languishing softness and melancholy air in the Indian convivial
+songs, especially of the amorous class, irresistibly moving attention, and
+exquisitely pleasing, especially in their solitary recesses, when all
+nature is silent."
+
+Travelers who have been among them, in more recent times, before they had
+embarked in their present desperate struggle, represent them in much the
+same light; as leading a pleasant, indolent life, in a climate that
+required little shelter or clothing, and where the spontaneous fruits of
+the earth furnished subsistence without toil. A cleanly race, delighting in
+bathing, passing much of their time under the shade of their trees, with
+heaps of oranges and other fine fruits for their refreshment; talking,
+laughing, dancing and sleeping. Every chief had a fan hanging to his side,
+made of feathers of the wild turkey, the beautiful pink-colored crane, or
+the scarlet flamingo. With this he would sit and fan himself with great
+stateliness, while the young people danced before him. The women joined in
+the dances with the men, excepting the war-dances. They wore strings of
+tortoise-shells and pebbles round their legs, which rattled in cadence to
+the music. They were treated with more attention among the Seminoles than
+among most Indian tribes.
+
+
+
+
+ORIGIN OF THE WHITE, THE RED, AND THE BLACK MEN
+
+A SEMINOLE TRADITION
+
+
+When the Floridas were erected into a territory of the United States, one
+of the earliest cares of the Governor, William P. Duval, was directed to
+the instruction and civilization of the natives. For this purpose he called
+a meeting of the chiefs, in which he informed them of the wish of their
+Great Father at Washington that they should have schools and teachers among
+them, and that their children should be instructed like the children of
+white men. The chiefs listened with their customary silence and decorum to
+a long speech, setting forth the advantages that would accrue to them from
+this measure, and when he had concluded, begged the interval of a day to
+deliberate on it.
+
+On the following day a solemn convocation was held, at which one of the
+chiefs addressed the governor in the name of all the rest. "My brother,"
+said he, "we have been thinking over the proposition of our Great Father at
+Washington, to send teachers and set up schools among us. We are very
+thankful for the interest be takes in our welfare; but after much
+deliberation have concluded to decline his offer. What will do very well
+for white men will not do for red men. I know you white men say we all come
+from the same father and mother, but you are mistaken. We have a tradition
+handed down from our forefathers, and we believe it, that the Great Spirit,
+when he undertook to make men, made the black man; it was his first
+attempt, and pretty well for a beginning; but he soon saw he had bungled;
+so he determined to try his hand again. He did so, and made the red man. He
+liked him much better than the black man, but still he was not exactly what
+he wanted. So he tried once more, and made the white man; and then he was
+satisfied. You see, therefore, that you were made last, and that is the
+reason I call you my youngest brother.
+
+"When the Great Spirit had made the three men, he called them together and
+showed them three boxes. The first was filled with books, and maps, and
+papers; the second with bows and arrows, knives and tomahawks; the third
+with spades, axes, hoes, and hammers. 'These, my sons,' said he, 'are the
+means by which you are to live: choose among them according to your fancy.'
+
+"The white man, being the favorite, had the first choice. He passed by the
+box of working-tools without notice; but when he came to the weapons for
+war and hunting, he stopped and looked hard at them. The red man trembled,
+for he had set his heart upon that box. The white man, however, after
+looking upon it for a moment, passed on, and chose the box of books and
+papers. The red man's turn came next; and you may be sure he seized with
+joy upon the bows and arrows and tomahawks. As to the black man, he had no
+choice left but to put up with the box of tools.
+
+"From this it is clear that the Great Spirit intended the white man should
+learn to read and write; to understand all about the moon and stars; and to
+make everything, even rum and whisky. That the red man should be a
+first-rate hunter, and a mighty warrior, but he was not to learn anything
+from books, as the Great Spirit had not given him any: nor was he to make
+rum and whisky, lest he should kill himself with drinking. As to the black
+man, as he had nothing but working-tools, it was clear he was to work for
+the white and red man, which he has continued to do.
+
+"We must go according to the wishes of the Great Spirit, or we shall get
+into trouble. To know how to read and write is very good for white men, but
+very bad for red men. It makes white men better, but red men worse. Some of
+the Creeks and Cherokees learned to read and write, and they are the
+greatest rascals among all the Indians. They went on to Washington, and
+said they were going to see their Great Father, to talk about the good of
+the nation. And when they got there, they all wrote upon a little piece of
+paper, without the nation at home knowing anything about it. And the first
+thing the nation at home knew of the matter, they were called together by
+the Indian agent, who showed them a little piece of paper, which he told
+them was a treaty, which their brethren had made in their name, with their
+Great Father at Washington. And as they knew not what a treaty was, he held
+up the little piece of paper, and they looked under it, and lo! it covered
+a great extent of country, and they found that their brethren, by knowing
+how to read and write, had sold their houses and their lands and the graves
+of their fathers; and that the white man, by knowing how to read and write,
+had gained them. Tell our Great Father at Washington, therefore, that we
+are very sorry we cannot receive teachers among us; for reading and
+writing, though very good for white men, is very bad for the Indians."
+
+
+
+
+THE CONSPIRACY OF NEAMATHLA
+
+AN AUTHENTIC SKETCH
+
+
+In the autumn of 1823, Governor Duval, and other commissioners on the part
+of the United States, concluded a treaty with the chiefs and warriors of
+the Florida Indians, by which the latter, for certain considerations, ceded
+all claims to the whole territory, excepting a district in the eastern
+part, to which they were to remove, and within which they were to reside
+for twenty years. Several of the chiefs signed the treaty with great
+reluctance; but none opposed it more strongly than Neamathla, principal
+chief of the Mickasookies, a fierce and warlike people, many of them Creeks
+by origin, who lived about the Mickasookie lake. Neamathla had always been
+active in those depredations on the frontiers of Georgia which had brought
+vengeance and ruin on the Seminoles. He was a remarkable man; upward of
+sixty years of age, about six feet high, with a fine eye, and a strongly
+marked countenance, over which he possessed great command. His hatred of
+the white men appeared to be mixed with contempt: on the common people he
+looked down with infinite scorn. He seemed unwilling to acknowledge any
+superiority of rank or dignity in Governor Duval, claiming to associate
+with him on terms of equality, as two great chieftains. Though he had been
+prevailed upon to sign the treaty, his heart revolted at it. In one of his
+frank conversations with Governor Duval, he observed: "This country belongs
+to the red man; and if I had the number of warriors at my command that this
+nation once had I would not leave a white man on my lands. I would
+exterminate the whole. I can say this to you, for you can understand me:
+you are a man; but I would not say it to your people. They'd cry out I was
+a savage, and would take my life. They cannot appreciate the feelings of a
+man that loves his country."
+
+As Florida had but recently been erected into a territory, everything as
+yet was in rude and simple style. The governor, to make himself acquainted
+with the Indians, and to be near at hand to keep an eye upon them, fixed
+his residence at Tallahassee, near the Fowel towns, inhabited by the
+Mickasookies. His government palace for a time was a mere log house, and he
+lived on hunters' fare. The village of Neamathla was but about three miles
+off, and thither the governor occasionally rode, to visit the old
+chieftain. In one of these visits he found Neamathla seated in his wigwam,
+in the center of the village, surrounded by his warriors. The governor had
+brought him some liquor as a present, but it mounted quickly into his brain
+and rendered him quite boastful and belligerent. The theme ever uppermost
+in his mind was the treaty with the whites. "It was true," he said, "the
+red men had made such a treaty, but the white men had not acted up to it.
+The red men had received none of the money and the cattle that had been
+promised them: the treaty, therefore, was at an end, and they did not mean
+to be bound by it."
+
+Governor Duval calmly represented to him that the time appointed in the
+treaty for the payment and delivery of the money and the cattle had not yet
+arrived. This the old chieftain knew full well, but he chose, for the
+moment, to pretend ignorance. He kept on drinking and talking, his voice
+growing louder and louder, until it resounded all over the village. He held
+in his hand a long knife, with which he had been rasping tobacco; this he
+kept flourishing backward and forward, as he talked, by way of giving
+effect to his words, brandishing it at times within an inch of the
+governor's throat. He concluded his tirade by repeating that the country
+belonged to the red men, and that sooner than give it up his bones and the
+bones of his people should bleach upon its soil.
+
+Duval saw that the object of all this bluster was to see whether he could
+be intimidated. He kept his eye, therefore, fixed steadily on the chief,
+and the moment he concluded with his menace, seized him by the bosom of his
+hunting shirt, and clinching his other fist:
+
+"I've heard what you have said," replied he. "You have made a treaty, yet
+you say your bones shall bleach before you comply with it. As sure as there
+is a sun in heaven, your bones _shall_ bleach, if you do not fulfill
+every article of that treaty I I'll let you know that I am _first_
+here, and will see that you do your duty!"
+
+Upon this, the old chieftain threw himself back, burst into a fit of
+laughing, and declared that all he had said was in joke. The governor
+suspected, however, that there was a grave meaning at the bottom of this
+jocularity.
+
+For two months, everything went on smoothly: the Indians repaired daily to
+the log-cabin palace of the governor, at Tallahassee, and appeared
+perfectly contented. All at once they ceased their visits, and for three or
+four days not one was to be seen. Governor Duval began to apprehend that
+some mischief was brewing. On the evening of the fourth day a chief named
+Yellow-Hair, a resolute, intelligent fellow, who had always evinced an
+attachment for the governor, entered his cabin about twelve o'clock at
+night, and informed him that between four and five hundred warriors,
+painted and decorated, were assembled to hold a secret war-talk at
+Neamathla's town. He had slipped off to give intelligence, at the risk of
+his life, and hastened back lest his absence should be discovered.
+
+Governor Duval passed an anxious night after this intelligence. He knew the
+talent and the daring character of Neamathla; he recollected the threats he
+had thrown out; he reflected that about eighty white families were
+scattered widely apart, over a great extent of country, and might be swept
+away at once, should the Indians, as he feared, determine to clear the
+country. That he did not exaggerate the dangers of the case has been proved
+by the horrid scenes of Indian warfare that have since desolated that
+devoted region. After a night of sleepless cogitation, Duval determined on
+a measure suited to his prompt and resolute character. Knowing the
+admiration of the savages for personal courage, he determined, by a sudden
+surprise, to endeavor to overawe and check them. It was hazarding much; but
+where so many lives were in jeopardy, he felt bound to incur the hazard.
+
+Accordingly, on the next morning, he set off on horseback, attended merely
+by a white man who had been reared among the Seminoles, and understood
+their language and manners, and who acted as interpreter. They struck into
+an Indian "trail," leading to Neamathla's village. After proceeding about
+half a mile, Governor Duval informed the interpreter of the object of his
+expedition. The latter, though a bold man, paused and remonstrated. The
+Indians among whom they were going were among the most desperate and
+discontented of the nation. Many of them were veteran warriors,
+impoverished and exasperated by defeat, and ready to set their lives at any
+hazard. He said that if they were holding a war council, it must be with
+desperate intent, and it would be certain death to intrude among them.
+
+Duval made light of his apprehensions: he said he was perfectly well
+acquainted with the Indian character, and should certainly proceed. So
+saying, he rode on. When within half a mile of the village, the interpreter
+addressed him again, in such a tremulous tone that Duval turned and looked
+him in the face. He was deadly pale, and once more urged the governor to
+return, as they would certainly be massacred if they proceeded.
+
+Duval repeated his determination to go on, but advised the other to return,
+lest his pale face should betray fear to the Indians, and they might take
+advantage of it. The interpreter replied that he would rather die a
+thousand deaths than have it said he had deserted his leader when in peril.
+
+Duval then told him he must translate faithfully all he should say to the
+Indians, without softening a word. The interpreter promised faithfully to
+do so, adding that he well knew, when they were once in the town, nothing
+but boldness could save them.
+
+They now rode into the village, and advanced to the council house. This was
+rather a group of four houses, forming a square, in the center of which was
+a great council-fire. The houses were open in front, toward the fire, and
+closed in the rear. At each corner of the square there was an interval
+between the houses, for ingress and egress. In these houses sat the old men
+and the chiefs; the young men were gathered round the fire. Neamathla
+presided at the council, elevated on a higher seat than the rest.
+
+Governor Duval entered by one of the corner intervals, and rode boldly into
+the center of the square. The young men made way for him; an old man who
+was speaking paused in the midst of his harangue. In an instant thirty or
+forty rifles were cocked and leveled. Never had Duval heard so loud a click
+of triggers; it seemed to strike on his heart. He gave one glance at the
+Indians, and turned off with an air of contempt. He did not dare, he says,
+to look again, lest it might affect his nerves; and on the firmness of his
+nerves everything depended.
+
+The chief threw up his arm. The rifles were lowered. Duval breathed more
+freely: he felt disposed to leap from his horse, but restrained himself,
+and dismounted leisurely. He then walked deliberately up to Neamathla, and
+demanded, in an authoritative tone, what were his motives for holding that
+council. The moment he made this demand the orator sat down. The chief made
+no reply, but hung his head in apparent confusion. After a moment's pause,
+Duval proceeded:
+
+"I am well aware of the meaning of this war-council; and deem it my duty to
+warn you against prosecuting the schemes you have been devising. If a
+single hair of a white man in this country falls to the ground, I will hang
+you and your chiefs on the trees around your council house! You cannot
+pretend to withstand the power of the white men. You are in the palm of the
+hand of your Great Father at Washington, who can crush you like an
+egg-shell. You may kill me: I am but one man; but recollect, white men are
+numerous as the leaves on the trees. Remember the fate of your warriors
+whose bones are whitening in battlefields. Remember your wives and children
+who perished in swamps. Do you want to provoke more hostilities? Another
+war with the white men, and there will not be a Seminole left to tell the
+story of his race."
+
+Seeing the effect of his words, he concluded by appointing a day for the
+Indians to meet him at St. Marks, and give an account of their conduct. He
+then rode off, without giving them time to recover from their surprise.
+That night he rode forty miles to Apalachicola River, to the tribe of the
+same name, who were in feud with the Seminoles. They promptly put two
+hundred and fifty warriors at his disposal, whom he ordered to be at St.
+Marks at the appointed day. He sent out runners, also, and mustered one
+hundred of the militia to repair to the same place, together with a number
+of regulars from the army. All his arrangements were successful.
+
+Having taken these measures, he returned to Tallahassee, to the
+neighborhood of the conspirators, to show them that he was not afraid. Here
+he ascertained, through Yellow-Hair, that nine towns were disaffected, and
+had been concerned in the conspiracy. He was careful to inform himself,
+from the same source, of the names of the warriors in each of those towns
+who were most popular, though poor, and destitute of rank and command.
+
+When the appointed day was at hand for the meeting at St. Marks, Governor
+Duval set off with Neamathla, who was at the head of eight or nine hundred
+warriors, but who feared to venture into the fort without him. As they
+entered the fort, and saw troops and militia drawn up there, and a force of
+Apalachicola soldiers stationed on the opposite bank of the river, they
+thought they were betrayed, and were about to fly; but Duval assured them
+they were safe, and that when the talk was over they might go home
+unmolested.
+
+A grand talk was now held, in which the late conspiracy was discussed. As
+he had foreseen, Neamathla and the other old chiefs threw all the blame
+upon the young men, "Well," replied Duval, "with us white men, when we find
+a man incompetent to govern those under him, we put him down, and appoint
+another in his place. Now as you all acknowledge you cannot manage your
+young men, we must put chiefs over them who can."
+
+So saying, he deposed Neamathla first; appointing another in his place; and
+so on with all the rest; taking care to substitute the warriors who had
+been pointed out to him as poor and popular; putting medals round their
+necks, and investing them with great ceremony. The Indians were surprised
+and delighted at finding the appointments fall upon the very men they would
+themselves have chosen, and hailed them with acclamations. The warriors
+thus unexpectedly elevated to command, and clothed with dignity, were
+secured to the interests of the governor, and sure to keep an eye on the
+disaffected. As to the great chief Neamathla, he left the country in
+disgust, and returned to the Creek nation, who elected him a chief of one
+of their towns. Thus by the resolute spirit and prompt sagacity of one man,
+a dangerous conspiracy was completely defeated. Governor Duval was
+afterward enabled to remove the whole nation, through his own personal
+influence, without the aid of the general government.
+
+To the Editor of the Knickerbocker:
+
+SIR--The following letter was scribbled to a friend during my sojourn in
+the Alhambra, in 1828. As it presents scenes and impressions noted down at
+the time, I venture to offer it for the consideration of your readers.
+Should it prove acceptable, I may from tune to time give other letters,
+written in the course of my various ramblings, and which have been kindly
+restored to me by my friends.
+
+Yours, G. C.
+
+
+
+
+LETTER FROM GRANADA
+
+GRANADA, 1828.
+
+
+My Dear--: Religious festivals furnish, in all Catholic countries,
+occasions of popular pageant and recreation; but in none more so than in
+Spain, where the great end of religion seems to be to create holidays and
+ceremonials. For two days past, Granada has been in a gay turmoil with the
+great annual fete of Corpus Christi. This most eventful and romantic city,
+as you well know, has ever been the rallying point of a mountainous region,
+studded with small towns and villages. Hither, during the time that Granada
+was the splendid capital of a Moorish kingdom, the Moslem youth repaired
+from all points, to participate in chivalrous festivities; and hither the
+Spanish populace at the present day throng from all parts of the
+surrounding country to attend the festivals of the church.
+
+As the populace like to enjoy things from the very commencement, the stir
+of Corpus Christ! began in Granada on the preceding evening. Before dark
+the gates of the city were thronged with the picturesque peasantry from the
+mountain villages, and the brown laborers from the Vega, or vast fertile
+plain. As the evening advanced, the Vivarambla thickened and swarmed with a
+motley multitude. This is the great square in the center of the city,
+famous for tilts and tourneys during the times of Moorish domination, and
+incessantly mentioned in all the old Moorish ballads of love and chivalry.
+For several days the hammer had resounded throughout this square. A gallery
+of wood had been erected all round it, forming a covered way for the grand
+procession of Corpus Christi. On this eve of the ceremonial this gallery
+was a fashionable promenade. It was brilliantly illuminated, bands of music
+were stationed in balconies on the four sides of the square, and all the
+fashion and beauty of Granada, and all its population that could boast a
+little finery of apparel, together with the majos and majas, the beaux and
+belles of the villages, in their gay Andalusian costumes, thronged this
+covered walk, anxious to see and to be seen. As to the sturdy peasantry of
+the Vega, and such of the mountaineers as did not pretend to display, but
+were content with hearty enjoyment, they swarmed in the center of the
+square; some in groups listening to the guitar and the traditional ballad;
+some dancing their favorite bolero; some seated on the ground making a
+merry though frugal supper; and some stretched out for their night's
+repose.
+
+The gay crowd of the gallery dispersed gradually toward midnight; but the
+center of the square resembled the bivouac of an army; for hundreds of the
+peasantry, men, women, and children, passed the night there, sleeping
+soundly on the bare earth, under the open canopy of heaven. A summer's
+night requires no shelter in this genial climate; and with a great part of
+the hardy peasantry of Spain a bed is a superfluity which many of them
+never enjoy, and which they affect to despise. The common Spaniard spreads
+out his manta, or mule-cloth, or wraps himself in his cloak, and lies on
+the ground, with his saddle for a pillow.
+
+The next morning I revisited the square at sunrise. It was still strewed
+with groups of sleepers; some were reposing from the dance and revel of the
+evening; others had left their villages after work, on the preceding day,
+and having trudged on foot the greater part of the night, were taking a
+sound sleep to freshen them for the festivities of the day. Numbers from
+the mountains, and the remote villages of the plain, who had set out in the
+night, continued to arrive, with their wives and children. All were in high
+spirits; greeting each other, and exchanging jokes and pleasantries. The
+gay tumult thickened as the day advanced. Now came pouring in at the city
+gates, and parading through the streets, the deputations from the various
+villages, destined to swell the grand procession. These village deputations
+were headed by their priests, bearing their respective crosses and banners,
+and images of the Blessed Virgin and of patron saints; all which were
+matters of great rivalship and jealousy among the peasantry. It was like
+the chivalrous gatherings of ancient days, when each town and village sent
+its chiefs, and warriors, and standards, to defend the capital or grace its
+festivities.
+
+At length, all these various detachments congregated into one grand
+pageant, which slowly paraded round the Vivarambla, and through the
+principal streets, where every window and balcony was hung with tapestry.
+In this procession were all the religious orders, the civil and military
+authorities, and the chief people of the parishes and villages; every
+church and convent had contributed its banners, its images, its relics, and
+poured forth its wealth for the occasion. In the center of the procession
+walked the archbishop, under a damask canopy, and surrounded by inferior
+dignitaries and their dependents. The whole moved to the swell and cadence
+of numerous bands of music, and, passing through the midst of a countless
+yet silent multitude, proceeded onward to the cathedral.
+
+I could not but be struck with the changes of times and customs, as I saw
+this monkish pageant passing through the Vivarambla, the ancient seat of
+Moslem pomp and chivalry. The contrast was indeed forced upon the mind by
+the decorations of the square. The whole front of the wooden gallery
+erected for the procession, extending several hundred feet, was faced with
+canvas, on which some humble though patriotic artist had painted, by
+contract, a series of the principal scenes and exploits of the conquest, as
+recorded in chronicle and romance. It is thus the romantic legends of
+Granada mingle themselves with everything, and are kept fresh in the public
+mind. Another great festival at Granada, answering in its popular character
+to our Fourth of July, is _El Dia de la Toma_; "The day of the
+Capture"; that is to say, the anniversary of the capture of the city by
+Ferdinand and Isabella. On this day all Granada is abandoned to revelry.
+The alarm-bell on the Terre de la Campana, or watch-tower of the Alhambra,
+keeps up a clangor from morn till night; and happy is the damsel that can
+ring that bell; it is a charm to secure a husband in the course of the
+year.
+
+The sound, which can be heard over the whole Vega, and to the top of the
+mountains, summons the peasantry to the festivities. Throughout the day the
+Alhambra is thrown open to the public. The halls and courts of the Moorish
+monarchs resound with the guitar and castanet, and gay groups, in the
+fanciful dresses of Andalusia, perform those popular dances which they have
+inherited from the Moors.
+
+In the meantime a grand procession moves through the city. The banner of
+Ferdinand and Isabella, that precious relic of the conquest, is brought
+forth from its depository, and borne by the Alferez Mayor, or grand
+standard-bearer, through the principal streets. The portable camp-altar,
+which was carried about with them in all their campaigns, is transported
+into the chapel royal, and placed before their sepulcher, where their
+effigies lie in monumental marble. The procession fills the chapel. High
+mass is performed in memory of the conquest; and at a certain part of the
+ceremony the Alferez Mayor puts on his hat, and waves the standard above
+the tomb of the conquerors.
+
+A more whimsical memorial of the conquest is exhibited on the same evening
+at the theater, where a popular drama is performed, entitled "Ave Maria."
+This turns on the oft-sung achievement of Hernando del Pulgar, surnamed El
+de las Hazanas, "He of the Exploits," the favorite hero of the populace of
+Granada.
+
+During the time that Ferdinand and Isabella besieged the city, the young
+Moorish and Spanish knights vied with each other in extravagant bravadoes.
+On one occasion Hernando del Pulgar, at the head of a handful of youthful
+followers, made a dash into Granada at the dead of night, nailed the
+inscription of Ave Maria, with his dagger, to the gate of the principal
+mosque, as a token of having consecrated it to the Virgin, and effected his
+retreat in safety.
+
+While the Moorish cavaliers admired this daring exploit, they felt bound to
+revenge it. On the following day, therefore, Tarfe, one of the stoutest of
+the infidel warriors, paraded in front of the Christian army, dragging the
+sacred inscription of Ave Maria at his horse's tail. The cause of the
+Virgin was eagerly vindicated by Garcilaso de la Vega, who slew the Moor in
+single combat, and elevated the inscription of Ave Maria, in devotion and
+triumph, at the end of his lance.
+
+The drama founded on this exploit is prodigiously popular with the common
+people. Although it has been acted time out of mind, and the people have
+seen it repeatedly, it never fails to draw crowds, and so completely to
+engross the feelings of the audience, as to have almost the effect on them
+of reality. When their favorite Pulgar strides about with many a mouthy
+speech, in the very midst of the Moorish capital, he is cheered with
+enthusiastic bravoes; and when he nails the tablet of Ave Maria to the door
+of the mosque, the theater absolutely shakes with shouts and thunders of
+applause. On the other hand, the actors who play the part of the Moors have
+to bear the brunt of the temporary indignation of their auditors; and when
+the infidel Tarfe plucks down the tablet to tie it to his horse's tail,
+many of the people absolutely rise in fury, and are ready to jump upon the
+stage to revenge this insult to the Virgin.
+
+Besides this annual festival at the capital, almost every village of the
+Vega and the mountains has its own anniversary, wherein its own deliverance
+from the Moorish yoke is celebrated with uncouth ceremony and rustic pomp.
+
+On these occasions a kind of resurrection takes place of ancient Spanish
+dresses and armor; great two-handed swords, ponderous arquebuses, with
+matchlocks, and other weapons and accouterments, once the equipments of the
+village chivalry, and treasured up from generation to generation, since the
+time of the conquest. In these hereditary and historical garbs some of the
+most sturdy of the villagers array themselves as champions of the faith,
+while its ancient opponents are represented by another band of villagers,
+dressed up as Moorish warriors. A tent is pitched in the public square of
+the village, within which is an altar and an image of the Virgin. The
+Spanish warriors approach to perform their devotions at this shrine, but
+are opposed by the infidel Moslems, who surround the tent. A mock fight
+succeeds, in the course of which the combatants sometimes forget that they
+are merely playing a part, and exchange dry blows of grievous weight; the
+fictious Moors especially are apt to bear away pretty evident marks of the
+pious zeal of their antagonists. The contest, however, invariably
+terminates in favor of the good cause. The Moors are defeated and taken
+prisoners. The image of the Virgin, rescued from thralldom, is elevated in
+triumph; and a grand procession succeeds, in which the Spanish conquerors
+figure with great vainglory and applause, and their captives are led in
+chains, to the infinite delight and edification of the populace. These
+annual festivals are the delight of the villagers, who expend considerable
+sums in their celebration. In some villages they are occasionally obliged
+to suspend them for want of funds; but when times grow better, or they have
+been enabled to save money for the purpose, they are revived with all their
+grotesque pomp and extravagance.
+
+To recur to the exploit of Hernando del Pulgar. However extravagant and
+fabulous it may seem, it is authenticated by certain traditional usages,
+and shows the vainglorious daring that prevailed between the youthful
+warriors of both nations, in that romantic war. The mosque thus consecrated
+to the Virgin was made the cathedral of the city after the conquest; and
+there is a painting of the Virgin beside the royal chapel, which was put
+there by Hernando del Pulgar. The lineal representative of the hare-brained
+cavalier has the right to this day to enter the church, on certain
+occasions, on horseback, to sit within the choir, and to put on his hat at
+the elevation of the host, though these privileges have often been
+obstinately contested by the clergy.
+
+The present lineal representative of Hernando del Pulgar is the Marquis de
+Salar, whom I have met occasionally in society. He is a young man of
+agreeable appearance and manners, and his bright black eyes would give
+indication of his inheriting the fire of his ancestor. When the paintings
+were put up in the Vivarambla, illustrating the scenes of the conquest, an
+old gray-headed family servant of the Pulgars was so delighted with those
+which related to the family hero, that he absolutely shed tears, and
+hurrying home to the marquis, urged him to hasten and behold the family
+trophies. The sudden zeal of the old man provoked the mirth of his young
+master; upon which, turning to the brother of the marquis, with that
+freedom allowed to family servants in Spain, "Come, senor," cried he, "you
+are more grave and considerate than your brother; come and see your
+ancestor in all his glory!"
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+Within two or three years after the above letter was written, the Marquis
+de Salar was married to the beautiful daughter of the Count -----,
+mentioned by the author in his anecdotes of the Alhambra. The match was
+very agreeable to all parties, and the nuptials were celebrated with great
+festivity.
+
+
+
+
+ABDERAHMAN
+
+FOUNDER OF THE DYNASTY OF THE OMMIADES OF SPAIN
+
+
+_To the Editor of the Knickerbocker:_
+
+SIR--In the following memoir I have conformed to the facts furnished by the
+Arabian chroniclers, as cited by the learned Conde. The story of Abderahman
+has almost the charm of romance; but it derives a higher interest from the
+heroic yet gentle virtues which it illustrates, and from recording the
+fortunes of the founder of that splendid dynasty, which shed such a luster
+upon Spain during the domination of the Arabs. Abderahman may, in some
+respects, be compared to our own Washington. He achieved the independence
+of Moslem Spain, freeing it from subjection to the caliphs; he united its
+jarring parts under one government; he ruled over it with justice,
+clemency, and moderation; his whole course of conduct was distinguished by
+wonderful forbearance and magnanimity; and when he died he left a legacy of
+good example and good counsel to his successors.
+
+G.C.
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+"Blessed be God!" exclaims an Arabian historian; "in His hands alone is the
+destiny of princes. He overthrows the mighty, and humbles the haughty to
+the dust; and he raises up the persecuted and afflicted from the very
+depths of despair!"
+
+The illustrious house of Omeya had swayed the scepter at Damascus for
+nearly a century, when a rebellion broke out, headed by Aboul Abbas Safah,
+who aspired to the throne of the caliphs, as being descended from Abbas,
+the uncle of the prophet. The rebellion was successful. Marvau, the last
+caliph of the house of Omeya, was defeated and slain. A general
+proscription of the Ommiades took place. Many of them fell in battle; many
+were treacherously slain, in places where they had taken refuge; above
+seventy most noble and distinguished were murdered at a banquet to which
+they had been invited, and their dead bodies covered with cloths, and made
+to serve as tables for the horrible festivity. Others were driven forth,
+forlorn and desolate wanderers in various parts of the earth, and pursued
+with relentless hatred; for it was the determination of the usurper that
+not one of the persecuted family should escape. Aboul Abbas took possession
+of three stately palaces and delicious gardens, and founded the powerful
+dynasty of the Abbassides, which, for several centuries, maintained
+dominion in the east.
+
+"Blessed be God!" again exclaims the Arabian historian; "it was written in
+His eternal decrees that, notwithstanding the fury of the Abbassides, the
+noble stock of Omeya should not be destroyed. One fruitful branch remained
+to nourish with glory and greatness in another land."
+
+When the sanguinary proscription of the Ommiades took place, two young
+princes of that line, brothers, by the names of Solyman and Abderahman were
+spared for a time. Their personal graces, noble demeanor, and winning
+affability, had made them many friends, while their extreme youth rendered
+them objects of but little dread to the usurper. Their safety, however, was
+but transient. In a little while the suspicions of Aboul Abbas were
+aroused. The unfortunate Solyman fell beneath the scimiter of the
+executioner. His brother Abderahman was warned of his danger in time.
+Several of his friends hastened to him, bringing him jewels, a disguise,
+and a fleet horse. "The emissaries of the caliph," said they, "are in
+search of thee; thy brother lies weltering in his blood; fly to the desert!
+There is no safety for thee in the habitations of man!"
+
+Abderahman took the jewels, clad himself in the disguise, and mounting his
+steed, fled for his life. As he passed, a lonely fugitive, by the palaces
+of his ancestors, in which his family had long held sway, their very walls
+seemed disposed to betray him, as they echoed the swift clattering of his
+steed.
+
+Abandoning his native country, Syria, where he was liable at each moment to
+be recognized and taken, he took refuge among the Bedouin Arabs, a
+half-savage race of shepherds. His youth, his inborn majesty and grace, and
+the sweetness and affability that shone forth in his azure eyes, won the
+hearts of these wandering men. He was but twenty years of age, and had been
+reared in the soft luxury of a palace; but he was tall and vigorous, and in
+a little while hardened himself so completely to the rustic life of the
+fields that it seemed as though he had passed all his days in the rude
+simplicity of a shepherd's cabin.
+
+His enemies, however, were upon his traces, and gave him but little rest.
+By day he scoured the plain with the Bedouins, hearing in every blast the
+sound of pursuit, and fancying in every distant cloud of dust a troop of
+the caliph's horsemen. That night was passed in broken sleep and frequent
+watchings, and at the earliest dawn he was the first to put the bridle to
+his steed.
+
+Wearied by these perpetual alarms, he bade farewell to his friendly
+Bedouins, and leaving Egypt behind, sought a safer refuge in Western
+Africa. The province of Barea was at that time governed by Aben Habib, who
+had risen to rank and fortune under the fostering favor of the Ommiades.
+"Surely," thought the unhappy prince, "I shall receive kindness and
+protection from this man; he will rejoice to show his gratitude for the
+benefits showered upon him by my kindred."
+
+Abderahman was young, and as yet knew little of mankind. None are so
+hostile to the victim of power as those whom he has befriended. They fear
+being suspected of gratitude by his persecutors, and involved in his
+misfortunes.
+
+The unfortunate Abderahman had halted for a few days to repose himself
+among a horde of Bedouins, who had received him with their characteristic
+hospitality. They would gather round him in the evenings, to listen to his
+conversation, regarding with wonder this gently-spoken stranger from the
+more refined country of Egypt. The old men marveled to find so much
+knowledge and wisdom in such early youth, and the young men, won by his
+frank and manly carriage, entreated him to remain among them.
+
+One night, when all were buried in sleep, they were roused by the tramp of
+horsemen. The Wali Aben Habib, who, like all the governors of distant
+ports, had received orders from the caliph to be on the watch for the
+fugitive prince, had heard that a young man, answering the description, had
+entered the province alone, from the frontiers of Egypt, on a steed worn
+down by travel. He had immediately sent forth horsemen in his pursuit, with
+orders to bring him to him dead or alive. The emissaries of the Wali had
+traced him to his resting-place, and demanded of the Arabs whether a young
+man, a stranger from Syria, did not sojourn among their tribe. The Bedouins
+knew by the description that the stranger must be their guest, and feared
+some evil was intended him. "Such a youth," said they, "has indeed
+sojourned among us; but he has gone, with some of our young men, to a
+distant valley, to hunt the lion." The emissaries inquired the way to the
+place, and hastened on to surprise their expected prey.
+
+The Bedouins repaired to Abderahman, who was still sleeping. "If thou hast
+aught to fear from man in power," said they, "arise and fly; for the
+horsemen of the Wali are in quest of thee! We have sent them off for a time
+on a wrong errand, but they will soon return."
+
+"Alas! whither shall I fly!" cried the unhappy prince; "my enemies hunt me
+like the ostrich of the desert. They follow me like the wind, and allow me
+neither safety nor repose!"
+
+Six of the bravest youth of the tribe stepped forward. "We have steeds,"
+said they, "that can outstrip the wind, and hands that can hurl the
+javelin. We will accompany thee in thy flight, and will fight by thy side
+while life lasts, and we have weapons to wield."
+
+Abderahman embraced them with tears of gratitude. They mounted their
+steeds, and made for the most lonely parts of the desert. By the faint
+light of the stars, they passed through dreary wastes and over hills of
+sand. The lion roared, and the hyena howled unheeded, for they fled from
+man, more cruel and relentless, when in pursuit of blood, than the savage
+beasts of the desert.
+
+At sunrise they paused to refresh themselves beside a scanty well,
+surrounded by a few palm-trees. One of the young Arabs climbed a tree, and
+looked in every direction, but not a horseman was to be seen.
+
+"We have outstripped pursuit," said the Bedouins; "whither shall we conduct
+thee? Where is thy home and the land of thy people?"
+
+"Home have I none!" replied Abderahman, mournfully, "nor family, nor
+kindred! My native land is to me a land of destruction, and my people seek
+my life!"
+
+The hearts of the youthful Bedouins were touched with compassion at these
+words, and they marveled that one so young and gentle should have suffered
+such great sorrow and persecution.
+
+Abderahman sat by the well and mused for a time. At length, breaking
+silence, "In the midst of Mauritania," said he, "dwells the tribe of
+Zeneta. My mother was of that tribe; and perhaps when her son presents
+himself, a persecuted wanderer, at their door, they will not turn him from
+the threshold."
+
+"The Zenetes," replied the Bedouins, "are among the bravest and most
+hospitable of the people of Africa. Never did the unfortunate seek refuge
+among them in vain, nor was the stranger repulsed from their door." So they
+mounted their steeds with renewed spirits, and journeyed with all speed to
+Tahart, the capital of the Zenetes.
+
+When Abderahman entered the place, followed by his six rustic Arabs, all
+wayworn and travel-stained, his noble and majestic demeanor shone through
+the simple garb of a Bedouin. A crowd gathered around him, as he alighted
+from his weary steed. Confiding in the well known character of the tribe,
+he no longer attempted concealment.
+
+"You behold before you," said he, "one of the proscribed house of Omeya. I
+am that Abderahman upon whose head a price has been set, and who has been
+driven from land to land. I come to you as my kindred. My mother was of
+your tribe, and she told me with her dying breath that in all time of need
+I would find a home and friends among the Zenetes."
+
+The words of Abderahman went straight to the hearts of his hearers. They
+pitied his youth and his great misfortunes, while they were charmed by his
+frankness, and by the manly graces of his person. The tribe was of a bold
+and generous spirit, and not to be awed by the frown of power. "Evil be
+upon us and upon our children," said they, "if we deceive the trust thou
+hast placed in us!"
+
+Then one of the noblest Xeques took Abderahman to his house, and treated
+him as his own child; and the principal people of the tribe strove who most
+should cherish him, and do him honor; endeavoring to obliterate by their
+kindness the recollection of his past misfortunes.
+
+Abderahman had resided some time among the hospitable Zenetes, when one day
+two strangers, of venerable appearance, attended by a small retinue,
+arrived at Tahart. They gave themselves out as merchants, and from the
+simple style in which they traveled, excited no attention. In a little
+while they sought out Abderahman, and, taking him apart: "Hearken," said
+they, "Abderahman, of the royal line of Omeya; we are embassadors sent on
+the part of the principal Moslems of Spain, to offer thee, not merely an
+asylum, for that thou hast already among these brave Zenetes, but an
+empire! Spain is a prey to distracting factions, and can no longer exist as
+a dependency upon a throne too remote to watch over its welfare. It needs
+to be independent of Asia and Africa, and to be under the government of a
+good prince, who shall reside within it, and devote himself entirely to its
+prosperity; a prince with sufficient title to silence all rival claims, and
+bring the warring parties into unity and peace; and at the same time with
+sufficient ability and virtue to insure the welfare of his dominions. For
+this purpose the eyes of all the honorable leaders in Spain have been
+turned to thee, as a descendant of the royal line of Omeya, and an offset
+from the same stock as our holy prophet. They have heard of thy virtues,
+and of thy admirable constancy under misfortunes; and invite thee to accept
+the sovereignty of one of the noblest countries in the world. Thou wilt
+have some difficulties to encounter from hostile men; but thou wilt have on
+thy side the bravest captains that have signalized themselves in the
+conquest of the unbelievers."
+
+The embassadors ceased, and Abderahman remained for a time lost in wonder
+and admiration. "God is great!" exclaimed he, at length; "there is but one
+God, who is God, and Mahomet is his prophet! Illustrious embassadors, you
+have put new life into my soul, for you have shown me something to live
+for. In the few years that I have lived, troubles and sorrows have been
+heaped upon my head, and I have become inured to hardships and alarms.
+Since it is the wish of the valiant Moslems of Spain, I am willing to
+become their leader and defender, and devote myself to their cause, be it
+happy or disastrous."
+
+The embassadors now cautioned him to be silent as to their errand, and to
+depart secretly for Spain. "The seaboard of Africa," said they, "swarms
+with your enemies, and a powerful faction in Spain would intercept you on
+landing, did they know your name and rank, and the object of your coming."
+
+But Abderahman replied: "I have been cherished in adversity by these brave
+Zenetes; I have been protected and honored by them, when a price was set
+upon my head, and to harbor me was great peril. How can I keep my good
+fortune from my benefactors, and desert their hospitable roofs in silence?
+He is unworthy of friendship, who withholds confidence from his friend."
+
+Charmed with the generosity of his feelings, the embassadors made no
+opposition to his wishes. The Zenetes proved themselves worthy of his
+confidence. They hailed with joy the great change in his fortunes. The
+warriors and the young men pressed forward to follow, and aid them with
+horse and weapon; "for the honor of a noble house and family," said they,
+"can be maintained only by lances and horsemen." In a few days he set
+forth, with the embassadors, at the head of nearly a thousand horsemen
+skilled in war, and exercised in the desert, and a large body of infantry,
+armed with lances. The venerable Xeque, with whom he had resided, blessed
+him and shed tears over him at parting, as though he had been his own
+child; and when the youth passed over the threshold, the house was filled
+with lamentations.
+
+Abderahman reached Spain in safely, and landed at Almanecar, with his
+little band of warlike Zenetes. Spain was at that time in a state of great
+confusion. Upward of forty years had elapsed since the conquest. The civil
+wars in Syria and Egypt had prevented the main government at Damascus from
+exercising control over this distant and recently acquired territory. Every
+Moslem commander considered the town or province committed to his charge an
+absolute property; and accordingly exercised the most arbitrary extortions.
+These excesses at length became insupportable, and, at a convocation of
+many of the principal leaders, it was determined, as a means to end these
+dissensions, to unite all the Moslem provinces of Spain under one emir, or
+general governor. Yusuf el Fehri, an ancient man, of honorable lineage, was
+chosen for this station. He began his reign with policy, and endeavored to
+conciliate all parties; but the distribution of offices soon created
+powerful enemies among the disappointed leaders. A civil war was the
+consequence, and Spain was deluged with blood. The troops of both parties
+burned and ravaged and laid every thing waste, to distress their
+antagonists; the villages were abandoned by their inhabitants, who fled to
+the cities for refuge; and flourishing towns disappeared from the face of
+the earth, or remained mere heaps of rubbish and ashes. At the time of the
+landing of Abderahman in Spain, the old Emir Yusuf had obtained a signal
+victory. He had captured Saragossa, in which was Ameer ben Amru, his
+principal enemy, together with his son and secretary. Loading his prisoners
+with chains, and putting them on camels, he set out in triumph for Cordova,
+considering himself secure in the absolute domination of Spain.
+
+He had halted one day in a valley called Wadarambla, and was reposing with
+his family in his pavilion, while his people and the prisoners made a
+repast in the open air. In the midst of his repose, his confidential
+adherent and general, the Wali Samael, galloped into the camp covered with
+dust and exhausted with fatigue. He brought tidings of the arrival of
+Abderahman and that the whole seaboard was flocking to his standard.
+Messenger after messenger came hurrying into the camp, confirming the
+fearful tidings, and adding that this descendant of the Omeyas had secretly
+been invited to Spain by Amru and his followers. Yusuf waited not to
+ascertain the truth of this accusation. Giving way to a transport of fury,
+he ordered that Amru, his son and secretary, should be cut to pieces. His
+commands were instantly executed. "And this cruelty," says the Arabian
+chronicler, "lost him the favor of Allah; for from that time success
+deserted his standard."
+
+Abderahman had indeed been hailed with joy on his landing in Spain. The old
+people hoped to find tranquillity under the sway of one supreme chieftain,
+descended from their ancient caliphs; the young men were rejoiced to have a
+youthful warrior to lead them on to victories; and the populace, charmed
+with his freshness and manly beauty, his majestic yet gracious and affable
+demeanor, shouted: "Long live Abderahman ben Moavia Meramamolin of Spain!"
+
+In a few days the youthful sovereign saw himself at the head of more than
+twenty thousand men, from the neighborhood of Elvira, Almeria, Malaga,
+Xeres, and Sidonia. Fair Seville threw open its gates at his approach, and
+celebrated his arrival with public rejoicings. He continued his march into
+the country, vanquished one of the eons of Yusuf before the gates of
+Cordova, and obliged him to take refuge within its walls, where he held him
+in close siege. Hearing, however, of the approach of Yusuf, the father,
+with a powerful army, he divided his forces, and leaving ten thousand men
+to press the siege, he hastened with the other ten to meet the coming foe.
+
+Yusuf had indeed mustered a formidable force, from the east and south of
+Spain, and accompanied by his veteran general, Samael, came with confident
+boasting to drive this intruder from the land. His confidence increased on
+beholding the small army of Abderahman. Turning to Samael, he repeated,
+with a scornful sneer, a verse from an Arabian poetess, which says:
+
+"How hard is our lot! We come, a thirsty multitude, and lo! but this cup of
+water to share among us!"
+
+There was indeed a fearful odds. On the one side were two veteran generals,
+grown gray in victory, with a mighty host of warriors, seasoned in the wars
+of Spain. On the other side was a mere youth, scarce attained to manhood,
+with a hasty levy of half-disciplined troops; but the youth was a prince,
+flushed with hope, and aspiring after fame and empire; and surrounded by a
+devoted band of warriors from Africa, whose example infused desperate zeal
+into the little army.
+
+The encounter took place at daybreak. The impetuous valor of the Zenetes
+carried everything before it. The cavalry of Yusuf was broken, and driven
+back upon the infantry, and before noon the whole host was put to headlong
+flight. Yusuf and Samael were borne along in the torrent of the fugitives,
+raging and storming, and making ineffectual efforts to rally them. They
+were separated widely in the confusion of the flight, one taking refuge in
+the Algarves, the other in the kingdom of Murcia. They afterward rallied,
+reunited their forces, and made another desperate stand near Almunecar. The
+battle was obstinate and bloody, but they were again defeated, and driven,
+with a handful of followers, to take refuge in the rugged mountains
+adjacent to Elvira.
+
+The spirit of the veteran Samael gave way before these fearful reverses.
+"In vain, oh Yusuf!" said he, "do we contend with the prosperous star of
+this youthful conqueror: the will of Allah be done! Let us submit to our
+fate, and sue for favorable terms, while we have yet the means of
+capitulation."
+
+It was a hard trial for the proud spirit of Yusuf, that had once aspired to
+uncontrolled sway; but he was compelled to capitulate. Abderahman was as
+generous as brave. He granted the two gray-headed generals the most
+honorable conditions, and even took the veteran Samael into favor,
+employing him, as a mark of confidence, to visit the eastern provinces of
+Spain, and restore them to tranquillity. Yusuf, having delivered up Elvira
+and Granada, and complied with other articles of his capitulation, was
+permitted to retire to Murcia, and rejoin his son Muhamad. A general
+amnesty to all chiefs and soldiers who should yield up their strongholds,
+and lay down their arms, completed the triumph of Abderahman, and brought
+all hearts into obedience.
+
+Thus terminated this severe struggle for the domination of Spain; and thus
+the illustrious family of Omeya, after having been cast down and almost
+exterminated in the East, took new root, and sprang forth prosperously in
+the West.
+
+Wherever Abderahman appeared, he was received with rapturous acclamations.
+As he rode through the cities, the populace rent the air with shouts of
+joy; the stately palaces were crowded with spectators, eager to gain a
+sight of his graceful form and beaming countenance; and when they beheld
+the mingled majesty and benignity of their new monarch, and the sweetness
+and gentleness of his whole conduct, they extolled him as something more
+than mortal; as a beneficent genius, sent for the happiness of Spain.
+
+In the interval of peace which now succeeded, Abderahman occupied himself
+in promoting the useful and elegant arts, and in introducing into Spain the
+refinements of the East. Considering the building and ornamenting of cities
+as among the noblest employments of the tranquil hours of princes, he
+bestowed great pains upon beautifying the city of Cordova and its environs.
+He reconstructed banks and dikes, to keep the Guadalquivir from overflowing
+its borders, and on the vast terraces thus formed he planted delightful
+gardens. In the midst of these, he erected a lofty tower, commanding a view
+of the vast and fruitful valley, enlivened by the windings of the river. In
+this tower he would pass hours of meditation, gazing on the soft and varied
+landscape, and inhaling the bland and balmy airs of that delightful region.
+At such times, his thoughts would recur to the past, and the misfortunes of
+his youth; the massacre of his family would rise to view, mingled with
+tender recollections of his native country, from which he was exiled. In
+these melancholy musings he would sit with his eyes fixed upon a palm-tree
+which he had planted in the midst of his garden. It is said to have been
+the first ever planted in Spain, and to have been the parent stock of all
+the palm-trees which grace the southern provinces of the peninsula. The
+heart of Abderahman yearned toward this tree; it was the offspring of his
+native country, and, like him, an exile. In one of his moods of tenderness,
+he composed verses upon it, which have since become famous throughout the
+world. The following is a rude but literal translation:
+
+"Beauteous Palm! thou also wert hither brought a stranger; but thy roots
+have found a kindly soil, thy head is lifted to the skies, and the sweet
+airs of Algarve fondle and kiss thy branches.
+
+"Thou hast known, like me, the storms of adverse fortune. Bitter tears
+wouldst thou shed, couldst thou feel my woes. Repeated griefs have
+overwhelmed me. With early tears I bedewed the palms on the banks of the
+Euphrates; but neither tree nor river heeded my sorrows, when driven by
+cruel fate, and the ferocious Aboul Abbas, from the scenes of my childhood
+and the sweet objects of my affection.
+
+"To thee no remembrance remains of my beloved country; I, unhappy! can
+never recall it without tears."
+
+The generosity of Abderahman to his vanquished foes was destined to be
+abused. The veteran Yusuf, in visiting certain of the cities which he had
+surrendered, found himself surrounded by zealous partisans, ready to peril
+life in his service. The love of command revived in his bosom, and he
+repented the facility with which he had suffered himself to be persuaded to
+submission. Flushed with new hopes of success, he caused arms to be
+secretly collected, and deposited in various villages, most zealous in
+their professions of devotion, and raising a considerable body of troops,
+seized upon the castle of Almodovar. The rash rebellion was short-lived. At
+the first appearance of an army sent by Abderahman, and commanded by
+Abdelmelee, governor of Seville, the villages which had so recently
+professed loyalty to Yusuf hastened to declare their attachment to the
+monarch, and to give up the concealed arms. Almodovar was soon retaken, and
+Yusuf, driven to the environs of Lorea, was surrounded by the cavalry of
+Abdelmelee. The veteran endeavored to cut a passage through the enemy, but
+after fighting with desperate fury, and with a force of arm incredible in
+one of his age, he fell beneath blows from weapons of all kinds, so that
+after the battle his body could scarcely be recognized, so numerous were
+the wounds. His head was cut off and sent to Cordova, where it was placed
+in an iron cage, over the gate of the city.
+
+The old lion was dead, but his whelps survived. Yusuf had left three sons,
+who inherited his warlike spirit, and were eager to revenge his death.
+Collecting a number of the scattered adherents of their house, they
+surprised and seized upon Toledo, during the absence of Temam, its Wali or
+commander. In this old warrior city, built upon a rock, and almost
+surrounded by the Tagus, they set up a kind of robber hold, scouring the
+surrounding country, levying tribute, seizing upon horses, and compelling
+the peasantry to join their standard. Every day cavalcades of horses and
+mules, laden with spoil, with flocks of sheep and droves of cattle, came
+pouring over the bridges on either side of the city, and thronging in at
+the gates, the plunder of the surrounding country. Those of the inhabitants
+who were still loyal to Abderahman dared not lift up their voices, for men
+of the sword bore sway. At length one day, when the sons of Yusuf, with
+their choicest troops, were out on a maraud, the watchmen on the towers
+gave the alarm. A troop of scattered horsemen were spurring wildly toward
+the gates. The banners of the sons of Yusuf were descried. Two of them
+spurred into the city, followed by a handful of warriors, covered with
+confusion, and dismay. They had been encountered and defeated by the Wali
+Temam, and one of the brothers had been slain.
+
+The gates were secured in all haste, and the walls were scarcely manned,
+when Temam appeared before them with his troops, and summoned the city to
+surrender. A great internal commotion ensued between the loyalists and the
+insurgents; the latter, however, had weapons in their hands, and prevailed;
+and for several days, trusting to the strength of their rock-built
+fortress, they set the Wali at defiance. At length some of the loyal
+inhabitants of Toledo, who knew all its secret and subterraneous passages,
+some of which, if chroniclers may be believed, have existed since the days
+of Hercules, if not of Tubal Cain, introduced Temam and a chosen band of
+his warriors into the very center of the city, where they suddenly appeared
+as if by magic. A panic seized upon the insurgents. Some sought safety in
+submission, some in concealment, some in flight. Casim, one of the sons of
+Yusuf, escaped in disguise; the youngest, unarmed, was taken, and was sent
+captive to the king, accompanied by the head of his brother, who had been
+slain in battle.
+
+When Abderahman beheld the youth laden with chains, he remembered his own
+sufferings in his early days, and had compassion on him; but, to prevent
+him from doing further mischief, he imprisoned him in a tower of the wall
+of Cordova.
+
+In the meantime Casim, who had escaped, managed to raise another band of
+warriors. Spain, in all ages a guerrilla country, prone to partisan warfare
+and petty maraud, was at that time infested by bands of licentious troops,
+who had sprung up in the civil contests; their only object pillage, their
+only dependence the sword, and ready to flock to any new and desperate
+standard, that promised the greatest license. With a ruffian force thus
+levied, Casim scoured the country, took Sidonia by storm, and surprised
+Seville while in a state of unsuspecting security.
+
+Abderahman put himself at the head of his faithful Zenetes, and took the
+field in person. By the rapidity of his movements, the rebels were
+defeated, Sidonia and Seville speedily retaken, and Casim was made
+prisoner. The generosity of Abderahman was again exhibited toward this
+unfortunate son of Yusuf. He spared his life, and sent him to be confined
+in a tower at Toledo.
+
+The veteran Samael had taken no part in these insurrections, but had
+attended faithfully to the affairs intrusted to him by Abderahman. The
+death of his old friend and colleague, Yusuf, however, and the subsequent
+disasters of his family, filled him with despondency. Fearing the
+inconstancy of fortune, and the dangers incident to public employ, he
+entreated the king to be permitted to retire to his house in Seguenza, and
+indulge a privacy and repose suited to his advanced age. His prayer was
+granted. The veteran laid by his arms, battered in a thousand conflicts;
+hung his sword and lance against the wall, and, surrounded by a few
+friends, gave himself up apparently to the sweets of quiet and unambitious
+leisure.
+
+Who can count, however, upon the tranquil content of a heart nurtured amid
+the storms of war and ambition! Under the ashes of this outward humility
+were glowing the coals of faction. In his seemingly philosophical
+retirement, Samael was concerting with his friends new treason against
+Abderahman. His plot was discovered; his house was suddenly surrounded by
+troops; and he was conveyed to a tower at Toledo, where, in the course of a
+few months, he died in captivity.
+
+The magnanimity of Abderahman was again put to the proof, by a new
+insurrection at Toledo. Hixem ben Adra, a relation of Yusuf, seized upon
+the Alcazar, or citadel, slew several of the royal adherents of the king,
+liberated Casim from his tower, and, summoning all the banditti of the
+country, soon mustered a force of ten thousand men. Abderahman was quickly
+before the walls of Toledo, with the troops of Cordova and his devoted
+Zenetes. The rebels were brought to terms, and surrendered the city on
+promise of general pardon, which was extended even to Hixem and Casim. When
+the chieftains saw Hixem and his principal confederates in the power of
+Abderahman, they advised him to put them all to death. "A promise given to
+traitors and rebels," said they, "is not binding, when it is to the
+interest of the state that it should be broken."
+
+"No!" replied Abderahman, "if the safety of my throne were at stake, I
+would not break my word." So saying, he confirmed the amnesty, and granted
+Hixem ben Adra a worthless life, to be employed in further treason.
+
+Scarcely had Abderahman returned from this expedition, when a powerful
+army, sent by the caliph, landed from Africa on the coast of the Algarves.
+The commander, Aly ben Mogueth, Emir of Cairvan, elevated a rich banner
+which he had received from the hands of the caliph. Wherever he went, he
+ordered the caliph of the East to be proclaimed by sound of trumpet,
+denouncing Abderahman as a usurper, the vagrant member of a family
+proscribed and execrated in all the mosques of the East.
+
+One of the first to join his standard was Hixem ben Adra, so recently
+pardoned by Abderahman. He seized upon the citadel of Toledo, and repairing
+to the camp of Aly, offered to deliver the city into his hands.
+
+Abderahman, as bold in war as he was gentle in peace, took the field with
+his wonted promptness; overthrew his enemies, with great slaughter, drove
+some to the seacoast to regain their ships, and others to the mountains.
+The body of Aly was found on the field of battle. Abderahman caused the
+head to be struck off, and conveyed to Cairvan, where it was affixed at
+night to a column in the public square, with this inscription: "Thus
+Abderahman, the descendant of the Omeyas, punishes the rash and arrogant."
+
+Hixem ben Adra escaped from the field of battle, and excited further
+troubles, but was eventually captured by Abdelmelee, who ordered his head
+to be struck off on the spot, lest he should again be spared, through the
+wonted clemency of Abderahman.
+
+Notwithstanding these signal triumphs, the reign of Abderahman was
+disturbed by further insurrections, and by another descent from Africa, but
+he was victorious over them all; striking the roots of his power deeper and
+deeper into the land. Under his sway, the government of Spain became more
+regular and consolidated, and acquired an independence of the empire of the
+East. The caliph continued to be considered as first pontiff and chief of
+the religion, but he ceased to have any temporal power over Spain.
+
+Having again an interval of peace, Abderahman devoted himself to the
+education of his children. Suleiman, the eldest, he appointed Wali or
+governor of Toledo; Abdallah, the second, was intrusted with the command of
+Merida; but the third son, Hixem, was the delight of his heart, the son of
+Howara, his favorite sultana, whom he loved throughout life with the utmost
+tenderness. With this youth, who was full of promise, he relaxed from the
+fatigues of government; joining in his youthful sports amid the delightful
+gardens of Cordova, and teaching him the gentle art of falconry, of which
+the king was so fond that he received the name of the Falcon of Coraixi.
+
+While Abderahman was thus indulging in the gentle propensities of his
+nature, mischief was secretly at work. Muhamad, the youngest son of Yusuf,
+had been for many years a prisoner in the tower of Cordova. Being passive
+and resigned, his keepers relaxed their vigilance, and brought him forth
+from his dungeon. He went groping about, however, in broad daylight, as if
+still in the darkness of his tower. His guards watched him narrowly, lest
+this should be a deception, but were at length convinced that the long
+absence of light had rendered him blind. They now permitted him to descend
+frequently to the lower chambers of the tower, and to sleep there
+occasionally, during the heats of summer. They even allowed him to grope
+his way to the cistern, in quest of water for his ablutions.
+
+A year passed in this way without anything to excite suspicion. During all
+this time, however, the blindness of Muhamad was entirely a deception; and
+he was concerting a plan of escape, through the aid of some friends of his
+father, who found means to visit him occasionally. One sultry evening in
+midsummer, the guards had gone to bathe in the Guadalquivir, leaving
+Muhamad alone, in the lower chambers of the tower. No sooner were they out
+of sight and hearing than he hastened to a window of the staircase, leading
+down to the cistern, lowered himself as far as his arms would reach, and
+dropped without injury to the ground. Plunging into the Guadalquivir, he
+swam across to a thick grove on the opposite side, where his friends were
+waiting to receive him. Here, mounting a horse which they had provided for
+an event of the kind, he fled across the country, by solitary roads, and
+made good his escape to the mountains of Jaen.
+
+The guardians of the tower dreaded for some time to make known his flight
+to Abderahman. When at length it was told to him, he exclaimed: "All is the
+work of eternal wisdom; it is intended to teach us that we cannot benefit
+the wicked without injuring the good. The flight of that blind man will
+cause much trouble and bloodshed."
+
+His predictions were verified. Muhamad reared the standard of rebellion on
+the mountains; the seditious and discontented of all kinds hastened to join
+it, together with soldiers of fortune, or rather wandering banditti, and he
+had soon six thousand men, well armed, hardy in habits and desperate in
+character. His brother Casim also reappeared about the same time in the
+mountains of Ronda, at the head of a daring band that laid all the
+neighboring valleys under contribution.
+
+Abderahman summoned his alcaydes from their various military posts, to
+assist in driving the rebels from their mountain fastnesses into the
+plains. It was a dangerous and protracted toil, for the mountains were
+frightfully wild and rugged. He entered them with a powerful host, driving
+the rebels from height to height and valley to valley, and harassing them
+by a galling fire from thousands of crossbows. At length a decisive battle
+took place near the river Guadalemar. The rebels were signally defeated;
+four thousand fell in action, many were drowned in the river, and Muhamad,
+with a few horsemen, escaped to the mountains of the Algarves. Here he was
+hunted by the alcaydes from one desolate retreat to another; his few
+followers grew tired of sharing the disastrous fortunes of a fated man; one
+by one deserted him, and he himself deserted the remainder, fearing they
+might give him up, to purchase their own pardon.
+
+Lonely and disguised, he plunged into the depths of the forests, or lurked
+in dens and caverns, like a famished wolf, often casting back his thoughts
+with regret to the time of his captivity in the gloomy tower of Cordova.
+Hunger at length drove him to Alarcon, at the risk of being discovered.
+Famine and misery, however, had so wasted and changed him that he was not
+recognized. He remained nearly a year in Alarcon, unnoticed and unknown,
+yet constantly tormenting himself with the dread of discovery, and with
+groundless fears of the vengeance of Abderahman. Death at length put an end
+to his wretchedness.
+
+A milder fate attended his brother Casim. Being defeated in the mountains
+of Murcia, he was conducted in chains to Cordova. On coming into the
+presence of Abderahman, his once fierce and haughty spirit, broken by
+distress, gave way; he threw himself on the earth, kissed the dust beneath
+the feet of the king, and implored his clemency. The benignant heart of
+Abderahman was filled with melancholy, rather than exultation, at beholding
+this wreck of the once haughty family of Yusuf a suppliant at his feet, and
+suing for mere existence. He thought upon the mutability of fortune, and
+felt how insecure are all her favors. He raised the unhappy Casim from the
+earth, ordered his irons to be taken off, and, not content with mere
+forgiveness, treated him with honor, and gave him possessions in Seville,
+where he might live in state conformable to the ancient dignity of his
+family. Won by this great and persevering magnanimity, Casim ever after
+remained one of the most devoted of his subjects.
+
+All the enemies of Abderahman were at length subdued; he reigned undisputed
+sovereign of the Moslems of Spain; and so benign was his government that
+every one blessed the revival of the illustrious line of Omeya. He was at
+all times accessible to the humblest of his subjects: the poor man ever
+found in him a friend, and the oppressed a protector. He improved the
+administration of justice; established schools for public instruction;
+encouraged poets and men of letters, and cultivated the sciences. He built
+mosques in every city that he visited; inculcated religion by example as
+well as by precept; and celebrated all the festivals prescribed by the
+Koran with the utmost magnificence.
+
+As a monument of gratitude to God for the prosperity with which he had been
+favored, he undertook to erect a mosque in his favorite city of Cordova
+that should rival in splendor the great mosque of Damascus, and excel the
+one recently erected in Bagdad by the Abbassides, the supplanters of his
+family.
+
+It is said that he himself furnished the plan for this famous edifice, and
+even worked on it, with his own hands, one hour in each day, to testify his
+zeal and humility in the service of God, and to animate his workmen. He did
+not live to see it completed, but it was finished according to his plans by
+his son Hixem. When finished, it surpassed the most splendid mosques of the
+east. It was six hundred feet in length, and two hundred and fifty in
+breadth. Within were twenty-eight aisles, crossed by nineteen, supported by
+a thousand and ninety-three columns of marble. There were nineteen portals,
+covered with plates of bronze of rare workmanship. The principal portal was
+covered with plates of gold. On the summit of the grand cupola were three
+gilt balls surmounted by a golden pomegranate. At night, the mosque was
+illuminated with four thousand seven hundred lamps, and great sums were
+expended in amber and aloes, which were burned as perfumes. The mosque
+remains to this day, shorn of its ancient splendor, yet still one of the
+grandest Moslem monuments in Spain.
+
+Finding himself advancing in years, Abderahman assembled in his capital of
+Cordova the principal governors and commanders of his kingdom, and in
+presence of them all, with great solemnity, nominated his son Hixem as the
+successor to the throne. All present made an oath of fealty to Abderahman
+during his life, and to Hixem after his death. The prince was younger than
+his brothers, Suleiman and Abdallah; but he was the son of Howara, the
+tenderly beloved sultana of Abderahman, and her influence, it is said,
+gained him this preference.
+
+Within a few months afterward, Abderahman fell grievously sick at Merida.
+Finding his end approaching, he summoned Hixem to his bedside: "My son,"
+said he, "the angel of death is hovering over me; treasure up, therefore,
+in thy heart this dying counsel, which I give through the great love I bear
+thee. Remember that all empire is from God, who gives and takes it away,
+according to his pleasure. Since God, through his divine goodness, has
+given us regal power and authority, let us do his holy will, which is
+nothing else than to do good to all men, and especially to those committed
+to our protection. Render equal justice, my son, to the rich and the poor,
+and never suffer injustice to be done within thy dominion, for it is the
+road to perdition. Be merciful and benignant to those dependent upon thee.
+Confide the government of thy cities and provinces to men of worth and
+experience; punish without compassion those ministers who oppress thy
+people with exorbitant exactions. Pay thy troops punctually; teach them to
+feel a certainty in thy promises; command them with gentleness but
+firmness, and make them in truth the defenders of the state, not its
+destroyers. Cultivate unceasingly the affections of thy people, for in
+their good-will consists the security of the state, in their distrust its
+peril, in their hatred its certain ruin. Protect the husbandmen who
+cultivate the earth, and yield us necessary sustenance; never permit their
+fields, and groves, and gardens to be disturbed. In a word, act in such
+wise that thy people may bless thee, and may enjoy, under the shadow of thy
+wing, a secure and tranquil life. In this consists good government; if thou
+dost practice it, thou wilt be happy among thy people, and renowned
+throughout the world."
+
+Having given this excellent counsel, the good king Abderahman blessed his
+son Hixem, and shortly after died; being but in the sixtieth year of his
+age. He was interred with great pomp; but the highest honors that
+distinguished his funeral were the tears of real sorrow shed upon his
+grave. He left behind him a name for valor, justice, and magnanimity, and
+forever famous as being the founder of the glorious line of the Ommiades in
+Spain.
+
+
+
+
+THE WIDOW'S ORDEAL
+
+OR A JUDICIAL TRIAL BY COMBAT
+
+
+The world is daily growing older and wiser. Its institutions vary with its
+years, and mark its growing wisdom; and none more so than its modes of
+investigating truth, and ascertaining guilt or innocence. In its nonage,
+when man was yet a fallible being, and doubted the accuracy of his own
+intellect, appeals were made to heaven in dark and doubtful cases of
+atrocious accusation.
+
+The accused was required to plunge his hand in boiling oil, or to walk
+across red-hot plowshares, or to maintain his innocence in armed fight and
+listed field, in person or by champion. If he passed these ordeals
+unscathed, he stood acquitted, and the result was regarded as a verdict
+from on high.
+
+It is somewhat remarkable that, in the gallant age of chivalry, the gentler
+sex should have been most frequently the subjects of these rude trials and
+perilous ordeals; and that, too, when assailed in their most delicate and
+vulnerable part--their honor.
+
+In the present very old and enlightened age of the world, when the human
+intellect is perfectly competent to the management of its own concerns, and
+needs no special interposition of heaven in its affairs, the trial by jury
+has superseded these superhuman ordeals; and the unanimity of twelve
+discordant minds is necessary to constitute a verdict. Such a unanimity
+would, at first sight, appear also to require a miracle from heaven; but it
+is produced by a simple device of human ingenuity. The twelve jurors are
+locked up in their box, there to fast until abstinence shall have so
+clarified their intellects that the whole jarring panel can discern the
+truth, and concur in a unanimous decision. One point is certain, that truth
+is one and is immutable--until the jurors all agree, they cannot all be
+right.
+
+It is not our intention, however, to discuss this great judicial point, or
+to question the avowed superiority of the mode of investigating truth
+adopted in this antiquated and very sagacious era. It is our object merely
+to exhibit to the curious reader one of the most memorable cases of
+judicial combat we find in the annals of Spain. It occurred at the bright
+commencement of the reign, and in the youthful, and, as yet, glorious days,
+of Roderick the Goth; who subsequently tarnished his fame at home by his
+misdeeds, and, finally, lost his kingdom and his life on the banks of the
+Guadalete, in that disastrous battle which gave up Spain a conquest to the
+Moors. The following is the story:
+
+There was once upon a time a certain duke of Lorraine, who was acknowledged
+throughout his domains to be one of the wisest princes that ever lived. In
+fact, there was no one measure adopted by him that did not astonish his
+privy counselors and gentlemen in attendance; and he said such witty
+things, and made such sensible speeches, that the jaws of his high
+chamberlain were wellnigh dislocated from laughing with delight at one, and
+gaping with wonder at the other.
+
+This very witty and exceedingly wise potentate lived for half a century in
+single blessedness; at length his courtiers began to think it a great pity
+so wise and wealthy a prince should not have a child after his own
+likeness, to inherit his talents and domains; so they urged him most
+respectfully to marry, for the good of his estate, and the welfare of his
+subjects.
+
+He turned their advice over in his mind some four or five years, and then
+sent forth emissaries to summon to his court all the beautiful maidens in
+the land who were ambitious of sharing a ducal crown. The court was soon
+crowded with beauties of all styles and complexions, from among whom he
+chose one in the earliest budding of her charms, and acknowledged by all
+the gentlemen to be unparalleled for grace and loveliness. The courtiers
+extolled the duke to the skies for making such a choice, and considered it
+another proof of his great wisdom. "The duke," said they, "is waxing a
+little too old, the damsel, on the other hand, is a little too young; if
+one is lacking in years, the other has a superabundance; thus a want on one
+side is balanced by the excess on the other, and the result is a
+well-assorted marriage."
+
+The duke, as is often the case with wise men who marry rather late, and
+take damsels rather youthful to their bosoms, became dotingly fond of his
+wife, and very properly indulged her in all things. He was, consequently,
+cried up by his subjects in general, and by the ladies in particular, as a
+pattern for husbands; and, in the end, from the wonderful docility with
+which he submitted to be reined and checked, acquired the amiable and
+enviable appellation of Duke Philibert the wife-ridden.
+
+There was only one thing that disturbed the conjugal felicity of this
+paragon of husbands--though a considerable tine elapsed after his marriage,
+there was still no prospect of an heir. The good duke left no means untried
+to propitiate heaven. He made vows and pilgrimages, he fasted and he
+prayed, but all to no purpose. The courtiers were all astonished at the
+circumstance. They could not account for it. While the meanest peasant in
+the country had sturdy brats by dozens, without putting up a prayer, the
+duke wore himself to skin and bone with penances and fastings, yet seemed
+further off from his object than ever.
+
+At length, the worthy prince fell dangerously ill, and felt his end
+approaching. He looked sorrowfully and dubiously upon his young and tender
+spouse, who hung over him with tears and sobbings. "Alas!" said he, "tears
+are soon dried from youthful eyes, and sorrow lies lightly on a youthful
+heart. In a little while thou wilt forget in the arms of another husband
+him who has loved thee so tenderly."
+
+"Never! never!" cried the duchess. "Never will I cleave to another! Alas,
+that my lord should think me capable of such inconstancy!"
+
+The worthy and wife-ridden duke was soothed by her assurances; for he could
+not brook the thought of giving her up even after he should be dead. Still
+he wished to have some pledge of her enduring constancy:
+
+"Far be it from me, my dearest wife," said he, "to control thee through a
+long life. A year and a day of strict fidelity will appease my troubled
+spirit. Promise to remain faithful to my memory for a year and a day, and I
+will die in peace."
+
+The duchess made a solemn vow to that effect, but the uxorious feelings of
+the duke were not yet satisfied. "Safe bind, safe find," thought he; so he
+made a will, bequeathing to her all his domains, on condition of her
+remaining true to him for a year and a day after his decease; but, should
+it appear that, within that time, she had in anywise lapsed from her
+fidelity, the inheritance should go to his nephew, the lord of a
+neighboring territory.
+
+Having made his will, the good duke died and was buried. Scarcely was he in
+his tomb, when his nephew came to take possession, thinking, as his uncle
+had died without issue, the domains would be devised to him of course. He
+was in a furious passion, when the will was produced, and the young widow
+declared inheritor of the dukedom. As he was a violent, high-handed man,
+and one of the sturdiest knights in the land, fears were entertained that
+he might attempt to seize on the territories by force. He had, however, two
+bachelor uncles for bosom counselors, swaggering, rakehelly old cavaliers,
+who, having led loose and riotous lives, prided themselves upon knowing the
+world, and being deeply experienced in human nature. "Prithee, man, be of
+good cheer," said they, "the duchess is a young and buxom widow. She has
+just buried our brother, who, God rest his soul! was somewhat too much
+given to praying and fasting, and kept his pretty wife always tied to his
+girdle. She is now like a bird from a cage. Think you she will keep her
+vow? Pooh, pooh--impossible! Take our words for it--we know mankind, and,
+above all, womankind. She cannot hold out for such a length of time; it is
+not in womanhood--it is not in widowhood--we know it, and that's enough.
+Keep a sharp lookout upon the widow, therefore, and within the twelvemonth
+you will catch her tripping--and then the dukedom is your own."
+
+The nephew was pleased with this counsel, and immediately placed spies
+round the duchess, and bribed several of her servants to keep watch upon
+her, so that she could not take a single step, even from one apartment of
+her palace to another, without being observed. Never was young and
+beautiful widow exposed to so terrible an ordeal.
+
+The duchess was aware of the watch thus kept upon her. Though confident of
+her own rectitude, she knew that it is not enough for a woman to be
+virtuous--she must be above the reach of slander. For the whole term of her
+probation, therefore, she proclaimed a strict non-intercourse with the
+other sex. She had females for cabinet ministers and chamberlains, through
+whom she transacted all her public and private concerns; and it is said
+that never were the affairs of the dukedom so adroitly administered.
+
+All males were rigorously excluded from the palace; she never went out of
+its precincts, and whenever she moved about its courts and gardens she
+surrounded herself with a bodyguard of young maids of honor, commanded by
+dames renowned for discretion. She slept in a bed without curtains, placed
+in the center of a room illuminated by innumerable wax tapers. Four ancient
+spinsters, virtuous as Virginia, perfect dragons of watchfulness, who only
+slept during the daytime, kept vigils throughout the night, seated in the
+four corners of the room on stools without backs or arms, and with seats
+cut in checkers of the hardest wood, to keep them from dozing.
+
+Thus wisely and warily did the young duchess conduct herself for twelve
+long months, and slander almost bit her tongue off in despair, at finding
+no room even for a surmise. Never was ordeal more burdensome, or more
+enduringly sustained.
+
+
+The year passed away. The last, odd day, arrived, and a long, long day it
+was. It was the twenty-first of June, the longest day in the year. It
+seemed as if it would never come to an end. A thousand times did the
+duchess and her ladies watch the sun from the windows of the palace, as he
+slowly climbed the vault of heaven, and seemed still more slowly to roll
+down. They could not help expressing their wonder, now and then, why the
+duke should have tagged this supernumerary day to the end of the year, as
+if three hundred and sixty-five days were not sufficient to try and task
+the fidelity of any woman. It is the last grain that turns the scale--the
+last drop that overflows the goblet--and the last moment of delay that
+exhausts the patience. By the time the sun sank below the horizon, the
+duchess was in a fidget that passed all bounds, and, though several hours
+were yet to pass before the day regularly expired, she could not have
+remained those hours in durance to gain a royal crown, much less a ducal
+coronet. So she gave orders, and her palfrey, magnificently caparisoned,
+was brought into the courtyard of the castle, with palfreys for all her
+ladies in attendance. In this way she sallied forth, just as the sun had
+gone down. It was a mission of piety--a pilgrim cavalcade to a convent at
+the foot of a neighboring mountain--to return thanks to the blessed Virgin,
+for having sustained her through this fearful ordeal.
+
+The orisons performed, the duchess and her ladies returned, ambling gently
+along the border of a forest. It was about that mellow hour of twilight
+when night and day are mingled and all objects are indistinct. Suddenly,
+some monstrous animal sprang from out a thicket, with fearful howlings. The
+female bodyguard was thrown into confusion, and fled different ways. It was
+some time before they recovered from their panic, and gathered once more
+together; but the duchess was not to be found. The greatest anxiety was
+felt for her safety. The hazy mist of twilight had prevented their
+distinguishing perfectly the animal which had affrighted them. Some thought
+it a wolf, others a bear, others a wild man of the woods. For upward of an
+hour did they beleaguer the forest, without daring to venture in, and were
+on the point of giving up the duchess as torn to pieces and devoured, when,
+to their great joy, they beheld her advancing in the gloom, supported by a
+stately cavalier.
+
+He was a stranger knight, whom nobody knew. It was impossible to
+distinguish his countenance in the dark; but all the ladies agreed that he
+was of noble presence and captivating address. He had rescued the duchess
+from the very fangs of the monster, which, he assured the ladies, was
+neither a wolf, nor a bear, nor yet a wild man of the woods, but a
+veritable fiery dragon, a species of monster peculiarly hostile to
+beautiful females in the days of chivalry, and which all the efforts of
+knight-errantry had not been able to extirpate.
+
+The ladies crossed themselves when they heard of the danger from which they
+had escaped, and could not enough admire the gallantry of the cavalier. The
+duchess would fain have prevailed on her deliverer to accompany her to her
+court; but he had no time to spare, being a knight-errant, who had many
+adventures on hand, and many distressed damsels and afflicted widows to
+rescue and relieve in various parts of the country. Taking a respectful
+leave, therefore, he pursued his wayfaring, and the duchess and her train
+returned to the palace. Throughout the whole way, the ladies were unwearied
+in chanting the praises of the stranger knight, nay, many of them would
+willingly have incurred the danger of the dragon to have enjoyed the happy
+deliverance of the duchess. As to the latter, she rode pensively along, but
+said nothing.
+
+No sooner was the adventure of the wood made public than a whirlwind was
+raised about the ears of the beautiful duchess. The blustering nephew of
+the deceased duke went about, armed to the teeth, with a swaggering uncle
+at each shoulder, ready to back him, and swore the duchess had forfeited
+her domain. It was in vain that she called all the saints, and angels, and
+her ladies in attendance into the bargain, to witness that she had passed a
+year and a day of immaculate fidelity. One fatal hour remained to be
+accounted for; and into the space of one little hour sins enough may be
+conjured up by evil tongues to blast the fame of a whole life of virtue.
+
+The two graceless uncles, who had seen the world, were ever ready to
+bolster the matter through, and as they were brawny, broad-shouldered
+warriors, and veterans in brawl as well as debauch, they had great sway
+with the multitude. If any one pretended to assert the innocence of the
+duchess, they interrupted him with a loud ha! ha! of derision. "A pretty
+story, truly," would they cry, "about a wolf and a dragon, and a young
+widow rescued in the dark by a sturdy varlet who dares not show his face in
+the daylight. You may tell that to those who do not know human nature, for
+our parts, we know the sex, and that's enough."
+
+If, however, the other repeated his assertion, they would suddenly knit
+their brows, swell, look big, and put their hands upon their swords. As few
+people like to fight in a cause that does not touch their own interests,
+the nephew and the uncles were suffered to have their way, and swagger
+uncontradicted.
+
+The matter was at length referred to a tribunal, composed of all the
+dignitaries of the dukedom, and many and repeated consultations were held.
+The character of the duchess throughout the year was as bright and spotless
+as the moon in a cloudless night; one fatal hour of darkness alone
+intervened to eclipse its brightness. Finding human sagacity incapable of
+dispelling the mystery, it was determined to leave the question to heaven;
+or, in other words, to decide it by the ordeal of the sword--a sage
+tribunal in the age of chivalry. The nephew and two bully uncles were to
+maintain their accusation in listed combat, and six months were allowed to
+the duchess to provide herself with three champions to meet them in the
+field. Should she fail in this, or should her champions be vanquished, her
+honor would be considered as attainted, her fidelity as forfeit, and her
+dukedom would go to the nephew, as a matter of right.
+
+With this determination the duchess was fain to comply. Proclamations were
+accordingly made, and heralds sent to various parts; but day after day,
+week after week, and month after month elapsed without any champion
+appearing to assert her loyalty throughout that darksome hour. The fair
+widow was reduced to despair, when tidings reached her of grand tournaments
+to be held at Toledo, in celebration of the nuptials of Don Roderick, the
+last of the Gothic kings, with the Morisco princess Exilona. As a last
+resort, the duchess repaired to the Spanish court, to implore the gallantry
+of its assembled chivalry.
+
+The ancient city of Toledo was a scene of gorgeous revelry on the event of
+the royal nuptials. The youthful king, brave, ardent, and magnificent, and
+his lovely bride, beaming with all the radiant beauty of the East, were
+hailed with shouts and acclamations whenever they appeared. Their nobles
+vied with each other in the luxury of their attire, their prancing steeds,
+and splendid retinues; and the haughty dames of the court appeared in a
+blaze of jewels.
+
+In the midst of all this pageantry, the beautiful, but afflicted Duchess of
+Lorraine made her approach to the throne. She was dressed in black, and
+closely veiled; for duennas of the most staid and severe aspect, and six
+beautiful demoiselles, formed her female attendants. She was guarded by
+several very ancient, withered, and grayheaded cavaliers; and her train was
+borne by one of the most deformed and diminutive dwarfs in existence.
+
+Advancing to the foot of the throne, she knelt down, and, throwing up her
+veil, revealed a countenance so beautiful that half the courtiers present
+were ready to renounce wives and mistresses, and devote themselves to her
+service; but when she made known that she came in quest of champions to
+defend her fame, every cavalier pressed forward to offer his arm and sword,
+without inquiring into the merits of the case; for it seemed clear that so
+beauteous a lady could have done nothing but what was right; and that, at
+any rate, she ought to be championed in following the bent of her humors,
+whether right or wrong.
+
+Encouraged by such gallant zeal, the duchess suffered herself to be raised
+from the ground, and related the whole story of her distress. When she
+concluded, the king remained for some time silent, charmed by the music of
+her voice. At length: "As I hope for salvation, most beautiful duchess,"
+said he, "were I not a sovereign king, and bound in duty to my kingdom, I
+myself would put lance in rest to vindicate your cause; as it is, I here
+give full permission to my knights, and promise lists and a fair field, and
+that the contest shall take place before the walls of Toledo, in presence
+of my assembled court."
+
+As soon as the pleasure of the king was known, there was a strife among the
+cavaliers present for the honor of the contest. It was decided by lot, and
+the successful candidates were objects of great envy, for every one was
+ambitious of finding favor in the eyes of the beautiful widow.
+
+Missives were sent, summoning the nephew and his two uncles to Toledo, to
+maintain their accusation, and a day was appointed for the combat. When the
+day arrived, all Toledo was in commotion at an early hour. The lists had
+been prepared in the usual place, just without the walls, at the foot of
+the rugged rocks on which the city is built, and on that beautiful meadow
+along the Tagus, known by the name of the king's garden. The populace had
+already assembled, each one eager to secure a favorable place; the
+balconies were filled with the ladies of the court, clad in their richest
+attire, and bands of youthful knights, splendidly armed and decorated with
+their ladies' devices, were managing their superbly caparisoned steeds
+about the field. The king at length came forth in state, accompanied by the
+queen Exilona. They took their seats in a raised balcony, under a canopy of
+rich damask; and, at sight of them, the people rent the air with
+acclamations.
+
+The nephew and his uncles now rode into the field, armed cap-a-pie, and
+followed by a train of cavaliers of their own roistering cast, great
+swearers and carousers, arrant swashbucklers, with clanking armor and
+jingling spurs. When the people of Toledo beheld the vaunting and
+discourteous appearance of these knights, they were more anxious than ever
+for the success of the gentle duchess; but, at the same time, the sturdy
+and stalwart frames of these warriors showed that whoever won the victory
+from them must do it at the cost of many a bitter blow.
+
+As the nephew and his riotous crew rode in at one side of the field, the
+fair widow appeared at the other, with her suite of grave grayheaded
+courtiers, her ancient duennas and dainty demoiselles, and the little dwarf
+toiling along under the weight of her train. Every one made way for her as
+she passed, and blessed her beautiful face, and prayed for success to her
+cause. She took her seat in a lower balcony, not far from the sovereigns;
+and her pale face, set off by her mourning weeds, was as the moon shining
+forth from among the clouds of night.
+
+The trumpets sounded for the combat. The warriors were just entering the
+lists, when a stranger knight, armed in panoply, and followed by two pages
+and an esquire, came galloping into the field, and, riding up to the royal
+balcony, claimed the combat as a matter of right.
+
+"In me," cried he, "behold the cavalier who had the happiness to rescue the
+beautiful duchess from the peril of the forest, and the misfortune to bring
+on her this grievous calumny. It was but recently, in the course of my
+errantry, that tidings of her wrongs have reached my ears, and I have urged
+hither at all speed, to stand forth in her vindication."
+
+No sooner did the duchess hear the accents of the knight than she
+recognized his voice, and joined her prayers with his that he might enter
+the lists. The difficulty was, to determine which of the three champions
+already appointed should yield his place, each insisting on the honor of
+the combat. The stranger knight would have settled the point, by taking the
+whole contest upon himself; but this the other knights would not permit. It
+was at length determined, as before, by lot, and the cavalier who lost the
+chance retired murmuring and disconsolate.
+
+The trumpets again sounded--the lists were opened. The arrogant nephew and
+his two drawcansir uncles appeared so completely cased in steel that they
+and their steeds were like moving masses of iron. When they understood the
+stranger knight to be the same that had rescued the duchess from her peril,
+they greeted him with the most boisterous derision:
+
+"Oh, ho! sir Knight of the Dragon," said they, "you who pretend to champion
+fair widows in the dark, come on, and vindicate your deeds of darkness in
+the open day."
+
+The only reply of the cavalier was to put lance in rest, and brace himself
+for the encounter. Needless is it to relate the particulars of a battle,
+which was like so many hundred combats that have been said and sung in
+prose and verse. Who is there but must have foreseen the event of a
+contest, where Heaven had to decide on the guilt or innocence of the most
+beautiful and immaculate of widows?
+
+The sagacious reader, deeply read in this kind of judicial combats, can
+imagine the encounter of the graceless nephew and the stranger knight. He
+sees their concussion, man to man, and horse to horse, in mid career, and
+Sir Graceless hurled to the ground and slain. He will not wonder that the
+assailants of the brawny uncles were less successful in their rude
+encounter; but he will picture to himself the stout stranger spurring to
+their rescue, in the very critical moment; he will see him transfixing one
+with his lance, and cleaving the other to the chine with a back stroke of
+his sword, thus leaving the trio of accusers dead upon the field, and
+establishing the immaculate fidelity of the duchess, and her title to the
+dukedom, beyond the shadow of a doubt.
+
+The air rang with acclamations; nothing was heard but praises of the beauty
+and virtue of the duchess, and of the prowess of the stranger knight; but
+the public joy was still more increased when the champion raised his visor,
+and revealed the countenance of one of the bravest cavaliers of Spain,
+renowned for his gallantry in the service of the sex, and who had been
+round the world in quest of similar adventures.
+
+That worthy knight, however, was severely wounded, and remained for a long
+time ill of his wounds. The lovely duchess, grateful for having twice owed
+her protection to his arm, attended him daily during his illness; and
+finally rewarded his gallantry with her hand.
+
+The king would fain have had the knight establish his title to such high
+advancement by further deeds of arms; but his courtiers declared that he
+already merited the lady, by thus vindicating her fame and fortune in a
+deadly combat _a outrance_; and the lady herself hinted that she was
+perfectly satisfied of his prowess in arms, from the proofs she had
+received in his achievement in the forest.
+
+Their nuptials were celebrated with great magnificence. The present husband
+of the duchess did not pray and fast like his predecessor, Philibert the
+wife-ridden; yet he found greater favor in the eyes of heaven, for their
+union was blessed with a numerous progeny--the daughters chaste and
+beauteous as their mother; the sons stout and valiant as their sire, and
+renowned, like him, for relieving disconsolate damsels and desolated
+widows.
+
+
+
+
+THE CREOLE VILLAGE
+
+A SKETCH FROM A STEAMBOAT
+
+First published in 1887
+
+
+In traveling about our motley country, I am often reminded of Ariosto's
+account of the moon, in which the good paladin Astolpho found everything
+garnered up that had been lost on earth. So I am apt to imagine, that many
+things lost in the old world are treasured up in the new; having been
+handed down from generation to generation, since the early days of the
+colonies. A European antiquary, therefore, curious in his researches after
+the ancient and almost obliterated customs and usages of his country, would
+do well to put himself upon the track of some early band of emigrants,
+follow them across the Atlantic, and rummage among their descendants on our
+shores.
+
+In the phraseology of New England might be found many an old English
+provincial phrase, long since obsolete in the parent country; with some
+quaint relics of the roundheads; while Virginia cherishes peculiarities
+characteristic of the days of Elizabeth and Sir Walter Raleigh.
+
+In the same way the sturdy yeomanry of New Jersey and Pennsylvania keep up
+many usages fading away in ancient Germany; while many an honest,
+broad-bottomed custom, nearly extinct in venerable Holland, may be found
+flourishing in pristine vigor and luxuriance in Dutch villages, on the
+banks of the Mohawk and the Hudson.
+
+In no part of our country, however, are the customs and peculiarities,
+imported from the old world by the earlier settlers, kept up with more
+fidelity than in the little, poverty-stricken villages of Spanish and
+French origin, which border the rivers of ancient Louisiana. Their
+population is generally made up of the descendants of those nations,
+married and interwoven together, and occasionally crossed with a slight
+dash of the Indian. The French character, however, floats on top, as, from
+its buoyant qualities, it is sure to do, whenever it forms a particle,
+however small, of an intermixture.
+
+In these serene and dilapidated villages, art and nature stand still, and
+the world forgets to turn round. The revolutions that distract other parts
+of this mutable planet reach not here, or pass over without leaving any
+trace. The fortunate inhabitants have none of that public spirit which
+extends its cares beyond its horizon, and imports trouble and perplexity
+from all quarters in newspapers. In fact, newspapers are almost unknown in
+these villages, and as French is the current language, the inhabitants have
+little community of opinion with their republican neighbors. They retain,
+therefore, their old habits of passive obedience to the decrees of
+government, as though they still lived under the absolute sway of colonial
+commandants, instead of being part and parcel of the sovereign people, and
+having a voice in public legislation.
+
+A few aged men, who have grown gray on their hereditary acres, and are of
+the good old colonial stock, exert a patriarchal sway in all matters of
+public and private import; their opinions are considered oracular, and
+their word is law.
+
+The inhabitants, moreover, have none of that eagerness for gain and rage
+for improvement which keep our people continually on the move, and our
+country towns incessantly in a state of transition. There the magic
+phrases, "town lots," "water privileges," "railroads," and other
+comprehensive and soul-stirring words from the speculator's vocabulary, are
+never heard. The residents dwell in the houses built by their forefathers,
+without thinking of enlarging or modernizing them, or pulling them down and
+turning them into granite stores. The trees, under which they have been
+born and have played in infancy, flourish undisturbed; though, by cutting
+them down, they might open new streets, and put money in their pockets. In
+a word, the almighty dollar, that great object of universal devotion
+throughout our land, seems to have no genuine devotees in these peculiar
+villages; and unless some of its missionaries penetrate there, and erect
+banking houses and other pious shrines, there is no knowing how long the
+inhabitants may remain in their present state of contented poverty.
+
+In descending one of our great Western rivers in a steam-boat, I met with
+two worthies from one of these villages, who had been on a distant
+excursion, the longest they had ever made, as they seldom ventured far from
+home. One was the great man, or grand seigneur, of the village; not that he
+enjoyed any legal privileges or power there, everything of the kind having
+been done away when the province was ceded by France to the United States.
+His sway over his neighbors was merely one of custom and convention, out of
+deference to his family. Beside, he was worth full fifty thousand dollars,
+an amount almost equal, in the imaginations of the villagers, to the
+treasures of King Solomon.
+
+This very substantial old gentleman, though of the fourth or fifth
+generation in this country, retained the true Gallic feature and
+deportment, and reminded me of one of those provincial potentates that are
+to be met with in the remote parts of France. He was of a large frame, a
+ginger-bread complexion, strong features, eyes that stood out like glass
+knobs, and a prominent nose, which he frequently regaled from a gold
+snuff-box, and occasionally blew, with a colored handkerchief, until it
+sounded like a trumpet.
+
+He was attended by an old negro, as black as ebony, with a huge mouth in a
+continual grin; evidently a privileged and favorite servant, who had grown
+up and grown old with him. He was dressed in creole style--with white
+jacket and trousers, a stiff shirt collar that threatened to cut off his
+ears, a bright Madras handkerchief tied round his head, and large gold
+earrings. He was the politest negro I met with in a Western tour; and that
+is saying a great deal, for, excepting the Indians, the negroes are the
+most gentlemanlike personages to be met with in those parts. It is true,
+they differ from the Indians in being a little extra polite and
+complimentary. He was also one of the merriest; and here, too, the negroes,
+however we may deplore their unhappy condition, have the advantage of their
+masters. The whites are, in general, too free and prosperous to be merry.
+The cares of maintaining their rights and liberties, adding to their
+wealth, and making presidents, engross all their thoughts, and dry up all
+the moisture of their souls. If you hear a broad, hearty, devil-may-care
+laugh, be assured it is a negro's.
+
+Besides this African domestic, the seigneur of the village had another no
+less cherished and privileged attendant. This was a huge dog, of the
+mastiff breed, with a deep, hanging mouth, and a look of surly gravity. He
+walked about the cabin with the air of a dog perfectly at home, and who had
+paid for his passage. At dinner time he took his seat beside his master,
+giving him a glance now and then out of a corner of his eye, which bespoke
+perfect confidence that he would not be forgotten. Nor was he--every now
+and then a huge morsel would be thrown to him, peradventure the half-picked
+leg of a fowl, which he would receive with a snap like the springing of a
+steel-trap--one gulp, and all was down; and a glance of the eye told his
+master that he was ready for another consignment.
+
+The other village worthy, traveling in company with the seigneur, was of a
+totally different stamp. Small, thin, and weazen faced, as Frenchmen are
+apt to be represented in caricature, with a bright, squirrel-like eye, and
+a gold ring in his ear. His dress was flimsy, and sat loosely on his frame,
+and he had altogether the look of one with but little coin in his pocket.
+Yet, though one of the poorest, I was assured he was one of the merriest
+and most popular personages in his native village.
+
+Compere Martin, as he was commonly called, was the factotum of the
+place-sportsman, schoolmaster, and land surveyor. He could sing, dance,
+and, above all, play on the fiddle, an invaluable accomplishment in an old
+French Creole village, for the inhabitants have a hereditary love for balls
+and fetes; if they work but little, they dance a great deal, and a fiddle
+is the joy of their heart.
+
+What had sent Compere Martin traveling with the grand seigneur I could not
+learn; he evidently looked up to him with great deference, and was
+assiduous in rendering him petty attentions; from which I concluded that he
+lived at home upon the crumbs which fell from his table. He was gayest when
+out of his sight; and had his song and his joke when forward, among the
+deck passengers; but altogether Compere Martin was out of his element on
+board of a steamboat. He was quite another being, I am told, when at home
+in his own village.
+
+Like his opulent fellow-traveler, he too had his canine follower and
+retainer--and one suited to his different fortunes--one of the civilest,
+most unoffending little dogs in the world. Unlike the lordly mastiff, he
+seemed to think he had no right on board of the steamboat; if you did but
+look hard at him, he would throw himself upon his back, and lift up his
+legs, as if imploring mercy.
+
+At table he took his seat a little distance from his master; not with the
+bluff, confident air of the mastiff, but quietly and diffidently, his head
+on one side, with one ear dubiously slouched, the other hopefully cocked
+up; his under teeth projecting beyond his black nose, and his eye wistfully
+following each morsel that went into his master's mouth.
+
+If Compere Martin now and then should venture to abstract a morsel from his
+plate to give to his humble companion, it was edifying to see with what
+diffidence the exemplary little animal would take hold of it, with the very
+tip of his teeth, as if he would almost rather not, or was fearful of
+taking too great a liberty. And then with what decorum would he eat it! How
+many efforts would he make in swallowing it, as if it stuck in his throat;
+with what daintiness would he lick his lips; and then with what an air of
+thankfulness would he resume his seat, with his teeth once more projecting
+beyond his nose, and an eye of humble expectation fixed upon his master.
+
+It was late in the afternoon when the steamboat stopped at the village
+which was the residence of these worthies. It stood on the high bank of the
+river, and bore traces of having been a frontier trading post. There were
+the remains of stockades that once protected it from the Indians, and the
+houses were in the ancient Spanish and French colonial taste, the place
+having been successively under the domination of both those nations prior
+to the cession of Louisiana to the United States.
+
+The arrival of the seigneur of fifty thousand dollars, and his humble
+companion, Compere Martin, had evidently been looked forward to as an event
+in the village. Numbers of men, women, and children, white, yellow, and
+black, were collected on the river bank; most of them clad in old-fashioned
+French garments, and their heads decorated with colored handkerchiefs, or
+white nightcaps. The moment the steamboat came within sight and hearing,
+there was a waving of handkerchiefs, and a screaming and bawling of
+salutations, and felicitations, that baffle all description.
+
+The old gentleman of fifty thousand dollars was received by a train of
+relatives, and friends, and children, and grandchildren, whom he kissed on
+each cheek, and who formed a procession in his rear, with a legion of
+domestics, of all ages, following him to a large, old-fashioned French
+house, that domineered over the village.
+
+His black valet de chambre, in white jacket and trousers, and gold
+earrings, was met on the shore by a boon, though rustic companion, a tall
+negro fellow, with a long good-humored face, and the profile of a horse,
+which stood out from beneath a narrow-rimmed straw hat, stuck on the back
+of his head. The explosions of laughter of these two varlets on meeting and
+exchanging compliments were enough to electrify the country round.
+
+The most hearty reception, however, was that given to Compere Martin.
+Everybody, young and old, hailed him before he got to land. Everybody had a
+joke for Compere Martin, and Compere Martin had a joke for everybody. Even
+his little dog appeared to partake of his popularity, and to be caressed by
+every hand. Indeed, he was quite a different animal the moment he touched
+the land. Here he was at home; here he was of consequence. He barked, he
+leaped, he frisked about his old friends, and then would skim round the
+place in a wide circle, as if mad.
+
+I traced Compere Martin and his little dog to their home. It was an old
+ruinous Spanish house, of large dimensions, with verandas overshadowed by
+ancient elms. The house had probably been the residence, in old times, of
+the Spanish commandant. In one wing of this crazy, but aristocratical
+abode, was nestled the family of my fellow-traveler; for poor devils are
+apt to be magnificently clad and lodged, in the cast-off clothes and
+abandoned palaces of the great and wealthy.
+
+The arrival of Compere Martin was welcomed by a legion of women, children,
+and mongrel curs; and, as poverty and gayety generally go hand in hand
+among the French and their descendants, the crazy mansion soon resounded
+with loud gossip and light-hearted laughter.
+
+As the steamboat paused a short time at the village, I took occasion to
+stroll about the place. Most of the houses were in the French taste, with
+casements and rickety verandas, but most of them in flimsy and ruinous
+condition. All the wagons, plows, and other utensils about the place were
+of ancient and inconvenient Gallic construction, such as had been brought
+from France in the primitive days of the colony. The very looks of the
+people reminded me of the villages of France.
+
+From one of the houses came the hum of a spinning wheel, accompanied by a
+scrap of an old French chanson, which I have heard many a time among the
+peasantry of Languedoc, doubtless a traditional song, brought over by the
+first French emigrants, and handed down from generation to generation.
+
+Half a dozen young lasses emerged from the adjacent dwellings, reminding
+me, by their light step and gay costume, of scenes in ancient France, where
+taste in dress comes natural to every class of females. The trim bodice and
+covered petticoat, and little apron, with its pockets to receive the hands
+when in an attitude for conversation; the colored kerchief wound tastefully
+round the head, with a coquettish knot perking above one ear; and the neat
+slipper and tight drawn stocking with its braid of narrow ribbon embracing
+the ankle where it peeps from its mysterious curtain. It is from this
+ambush that Cupid sends his most inciting arrows.
+
+While I was musing upon the recollections thus accidentally summoned up, I
+heard the sound of a fiddle from the mansion of Compere Martin, the signal,
+no doubt, for a joyous gathering. I was disposed to turn my steps thither,
+and witness the festivities of one of the very few villages I had met with
+in my wide tour that was yet poor enough to be merry; but the bell of the
+steamboat summoned me to re-embark.
+
+As we swept away from the shore, I cast back a wistful eye upon the
+moss-grown roofs and ancient elms of the village, and prayed that the
+inhabitants might long retain their happy ignorance, their absence of all
+enterprise and improvement, their respect for the fiddle, and their
+contempt for the almighty dollar. [Footnote: This phrase, used for the
+first time in this sketch, has since passed into current circulation, and
+by some has been questioned as savoring I fear, however, my prayer is of
+irreverence. The author, therefore, owes it to his orthodoxy to declare
+that no irreverence was intended even to the dollar itself; which he is
+aware is daily becoming more and more an object of worship.] I fear,
+however, my prayer is doomed to be of no avail. In a little while the
+steamboat whirled me to an American town, just springing into bustling
+and prosperous existence.
+
+The surrounding forest had been laid out in town lots; frames of wooden
+buildings were rising from among stumps and burned trees. The place already
+boasted a court-house, a jail, and two banks, all built of pine boards, on
+the model of Grecian temples. There were rival hotels, rival churches, and
+rival newspapers; together with the usual number of judges, and generals,
+and governors; not to speak of doctors by the dozen, and lawyers by the
+score.
+
+The place, I was told, was in an astonishing career of improvement, with a
+canal and two railroads in embryo. Lots doubled in price every week;
+everybody was speculating in land; everybody was rich; and everybody was
+growing richer. The community, however, was torn to pieces by new doctrines
+in religion and in political economy; there were camp meetings, and
+agrarian meetings; and an election was at hand, which, it was expected,
+would throw the whole country into a paroxysm.
+
+Alas! with such an enterprising neighbor, what is to become of the poor
+little Creole village!
+
+
+
+
+A CONTENTED MAN
+
+
+In the garden of the Tuileries there is a sunny corner under the wall of a
+terrace which fronts the south. Along the wall is a range of benches
+commanding a view of the walks and avenues of the garden. This genial nook
+is a place of great resort in the latter part of autumn and in fine days in
+winter, as it seems to retain the flavor of departed summer. On a calm,
+bright morning it is quite alive with nursery-maids and their playful
+little charges. Hither also resort a number of ancient ladies and
+gentlemen, who, with the laudable thrift in small pleasures and small
+expenses for which the French are to be noted, come here to enjoy sunshine
+and save firewood. Here may often be seen some cavalier of the old school,
+when the sunbeams have warmed his blood into something like a glow,
+fluttering about like a frost-bitten moth thawed before the fire, putting
+forth a feeble show of gallantry among the antiquated dames, and now and
+then eying the buxom nursery-maids with what might almost be mistaken for
+an air of libertinism.
+
+Among the habitual frequenters of this place I had often remarked an old
+gentleman whose dress was decidedly ante-revolutional. He wore the
+three-cornered cocked hat of the _ancien regime_; his hair was frizzed
+over each ear into _ailes de pigeon_, a style strongly savoring of
+Bourbonism; and a queue stuck out behind, the loyalty of which was not to
+be disputed. His dress, though ancient, had an air of decayed gentility,
+and I observed that he took his snuff out of an elegant though
+old-fashioned gold box. He appeared to be the most popular man on the walk.
+He had a compliment for every old lady, he kissed every child, and he
+patted every little dog on the head; for children and little dogs are very
+important members of society in France. I must observe, however, that he
+seldom kissed a child without, at the same time, pinching the
+nursery-maid's cheek; a Frenchman of the old school never forgets his
+devoirs to the sex.
+
+I had taken a liking to this old gentleman. There was an habitual
+expression of benevolence in his face which I have very frequently remarked
+in these relics of the politer days of France. The constant interchange of
+those thousand little courtesies which imperceptibly sweeten life have a
+happy effect upon the features, and spread a mellow evening charm over the
+wrinkles of old age.
+
+Where there is a favorable predisposition one soon forms a kind of tacit
+intimacy by often meeting on the same walks. Once or twice I accommodated
+him with a bench, after which we touched hats on passing each other; at
+length we got so far as to take a pinch of snuff together out of his box,
+which is equivalent to eating salt together in the East; from that time our
+acquaintance was established.
+
+I now became his frequent companion in his morning promenades, and derived
+much amusement from his good-humored remarks on men and manners. One
+morning, as we were strolling through an alley of the Tuileries, with the
+autumnal breeze whirling the yellow leaves about our path, my companion
+fell into a peculiarly communicative vein, and gave me several particulars
+of his history. He had once been wealthy, and possessed of a fine estate in
+the country and a noble hotel in Paris; but the revolution, which effected
+so many disastrous changes, stripped him of everything. He was secretly
+denounced by his own steward during a sanguinary period of the revolution,
+and a number of the bloodhounds of the Convention were sent to arrest him.
+He received private intelligence of their approach in time to effect his
+escape. He landed in England without money or friends, but considered
+himself singularly fortunate in having his head upon his shoulders; several
+of his neighbors having been guillotined as a punishment for being rich.
+
+When he reached London he had but a louis in his pocket, and no prospect of
+getting another. He ate a solitary dinner of beefsteak, and was almost
+poisoned by port wine, which from its color he had mistaken for claret. The
+dingy look of the chop-house, and of the little mahogany-colored box in
+which he ate his dinner, contrasted sadly with the gay saloons of Paris.
+Everything looked gloomy and disheartening. Poverty stared him in the face;
+he turned over the few shillings he had of change; did not know what was to
+become of him; and--went to the theater!
+
+He took his seat in the pit, listened attentively to a tragedy of which he
+did not understand a word, and which seemed made up of fighting, and
+stabbing, and scene shifting, and began to feel his spirits sinking within
+him; when, casting his eyes into the orchestra, what was his surprise to
+recognize an old friend and neighbor in the very act of extorting music
+from a huge violoncello.
+
+As soon as the evening's performance was over he tapped his friend on the
+shoulder; they kissed each other on each cheek, and the musician took him
+home, and shared his lodgings with him. He had learned music as an
+accomplishment; by his friend's advice he now turned to it as a means of
+support. He procured a violin, offered himself for the orchestra, was
+received, and again considered himself one of the most fortunate men upon
+earth.
+
+Here therefore he lived for many years during the ascendency of the
+terrible Napoleon. He found several emigrants living, like himself, by the
+exercise of their talents. They associated together, talked of France and
+of old times, and endeavored to keep up a semblance of Parisian life in the
+center of London.
+
+They dined at a miserable cheap French restaurant in the neighborhood of
+Leicester Square, where they were served with a caricature of French
+cookery. They took their promenade in St. James's Park, and endeavored to
+fancy it the Tuileries; in short, they made shift to accommodate themselves
+to everything but an English Sunday. Indeed the old gentleman seemed to
+have nothing to say against the English, whom he affirmed to be _braves
+gens_; and he mingled so much among them that at the end of twenty years
+he could speak their language almost well enough to be understood.
+
+The downfall of Napoleon was another epoch in his life. He had considered
+himself a fortunate man to make his escape penniless out of France, and he
+considered himself fortunate to be able to return penniless into it. It is
+true that he found his Parisian hotel had passed through several hands
+during the vicissitudes of the times, so as to be beyond the reach of
+recovery; but then he had been noticed benignantly by government, and had a
+pension of several hundred francs, upon which, with careful management, he
+lived independently, and, as far as I could judge, happily. As his once
+splendid hotel was now occupied as a _hotel garni_, he hired a small
+chamber in the attic; it was but, as he said, changing his bedroom up two
+pair of stairs--he was still in his own house. His room was decorated with
+pictures of several beauties of former times, with whom he professed to
+have been on favorable terms: among them was a favorite opera-dancer, who
+had been the admiration of Paris at the breaking out of the revolution. She
+had been a protegee of my friend, and one of the few of his youthful
+favorites who had survived the lapse of time and its various vicissitudes.
+They had renewed their acquaintance, and she now and then visited him; but
+the beautiful Psyche, once the fashion of the day and the idol of the
+_parterre_, was now a shriveled, little old woman, warped in the back
+and with a hooked nose.
+
+The old gentleman was a devout attendant upon levees; he was most zealous
+in his loyalty, and could not speak of the royal family without a burst of
+enthusiasm, for he still felt toward them as his companions in exile. As to
+his poverty he made light of it, and indeed had a good-humored way of
+consoling himself for every cross and privation. If he had lost his chateau
+in the country, he had half a dozen royal palaces, as it were, at his
+command. He had Versailles and St. Cloud for his country resorts, and the
+shady alleys of the Tuileries and the Luxembourg for his town recreation.
+Thus all his promenades and relaxations were magnificent, yet cost nothing.
+
+When I walk through these fine gardens, said he, I have only to fancy
+myself the owner of them, and they are mine. All these gay crowds are my
+visitors, and I defy the grand seignior himself to display a greater
+variety of beauty. Nay, what is better, I have not the trouble of
+entertaining them. My estate is a perfect Sans Souci, where every one does
+as he pleases, and no one troubles the owner. All Paris is my theater, and
+presents me with a continual spectacle. I have a table spread for me in
+every street, and thousands of waiters ready to fly at my bidding. When my
+servants have waited upon me I pay them, discharge them, and there's an
+end; I have no fears of their wronging or pilfering me when my back is
+turned. Upon the whole, said the old gentleman with a smile of infinite
+good humor, when I think upon the various risks I have run, and the manner
+in which I have escaped them; when I recollect all that I have suffered,
+and consider all that I at present enjoy, I cannot but look upon myself as
+a man of singular good fortune.
+
+Such was the brief history of this practical philosopher, and it is a
+picture of many a Frenchman ruined by the revolution. The French appear to
+have a greater facility than most men in accommodating themselves to the
+reverses of life, and of extracting honey out of the bitter things of this
+world. The first shock of calamity is apt to overwhelm them, but when it is
+once past, their natural buoyancy of feeling soon brings them to the
+surface. This may be called the result of levity of character, but it
+answers the end of reconciling us to misfortune, and if it be not true
+philosophy, it is something almost as efficacious. Ever since I have heard
+the story of my little Frenchman, I have treasured it up in my heart; and I
+thank my stars I have at length found what I had long considered as not to
+be found on earth--a contented man.
+
+P. S.--There is no calculating on human happiness. Since writing the
+foregoing, the law of indemnity has been passed, and my friend restored to
+a great part of his fortune. I was absent from Paris at the time, but on my
+return hastened to congratulate him. I found him magnificently lodged on
+the first floor of his hotel. I was ushered, by a servant in livery,
+through splendid saloons, to a cabinet richly furnished, where I found my
+little Frenchman reclining on a couch. He received me with his usual
+cordiality; but I saw the gayety and benevolence of his countenance had
+fled; he had an eye full of care and anxiety.
+
+I congratulated him on his good fortune. "Good fortune?" echoed he; "bah! I
+have been plundered of a princely fortune, and they give me a pittance as
+an indemnity."
+
+Alas! I found my late poor and contented friend one of the richest and most
+miserable men in Paris. Instead of rejoicing hi the ample competency
+restored to him, he is daily repining at the superfluity withheld. He no
+longer wanders in happy idleness about Paris, but is a repining attendant
+in the ante-chambers of ministers. His loyalty has evaporated with his
+gayety; he screws his mouth when the Bourbons are mentioned, and even
+shrugs his shoulders when he hears the praises of the king. In a word, he
+is one of the many philosophers undone by the law of indemnity, and his
+case is desperate, for I doubt whether even another reverse of fortune,
+which should restore him to poverty, could make him again a happy man.
+
+
+
+
+
+
+
+
+
+
+
+End of the Project Gutenberg EBook of The Crayon Papers, by Washington Irving
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diff --git a/7994.zip b/7994.zip
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+Project Gutenberg (https://www.gutenberg.org) public repository for
+eBook #7994 (https://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/7994)
diff --git a/old/7994-h.htm.2021-01-26 b/old/7994-h.htm.2021-01-26
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+   PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Strict//EN"
+   "http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-strict.dtd" >
+
+<html xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml" lang="en">
+  <head>
+    <title>The Crayon Papers, by Washington Irving</title>
+    <meta content="pg2html (binary v0.17)" />
+    <style type="text/css" xml:space="preserve">
+    body { margin:5%; background:#faebd0; text-align:justify}
+    P { text-indent: 1em; margin-top: .75em; margin-bottom: .75em; }
+    H1,H2,H3,H4,H5,H6 { text-align: center; margin-left: 15%; margin-right: 15%; }
+    hr  { width: 50%; text-align: center;}
+    .foot { margin-left: 5%; margin-right: 5%; text-align: justify; font-size: 80%; font-style: italic;}
+    blockquote {font-size: 97%; font-style: italic; margin-left: 10%; margin-right: 10%;}
+    .mynote    {background-color: #DDE; color: #000; padding: .5em; margin-left: 10%; margin-right: 10%; font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 95%;}
+    .toc       { margin-left: 10%; margin-bottom: .75em;}
+    .toc2      { margin-left: 20%;}
+    .xx-small {font-size: 60%;}
+    .x-small {font-size: 75%;}
+    .small {font-size: 85%;}
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+                font-variant: normal; font-style: normal;
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+               font-weight: bold; color: black; background: #eeeeee; border:        solid 1px;}
+    .head      { float: left; font-size: 90%; width: 98%; padding-left: 0.8em;
+               border-left: dashed thin; text-align: center;
+               text-indent: 0; font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;
+               font-weight: bold; color: black; background: #eeeeee; border:        solid 1px;}
+    p.pfirst, p.noindent {text-indent: 0}
+    span.dropcap         { float: left; margin: 0 0.1em 0 0; line-height: 0.8 }
+    pre        { font-style: italic; font-size: 90%; margin-left: 10%;}
+</style>
+  </head>
+  <body>
+
+
+<pre xml:space="preserve">
+The Project Gutenberg EBook of The Crayon Papers, by Washington Irving
+
+This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere at no cost and with
+almost no restrictions whatsoever.  You may copy it, give it away or
+re-use it under the terms of the Project Gutenberg License included
+with this eBook or online at www.gutenberg.org
+
+
+Title: The Crayon Papers
+
+Author: Washington Irving
+
+Posting Date: October 8, 2012 [EBook #7994]
+Release Date: April, 2005
+First Posted: June 10, 2003
+Last Updated: June 1, 2018
+
+
+Language: English
+
+Character set encoding: UTF-8
+
+*** START OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK THE CRAYON PAPERS ***
+
+
+
+
+Etext produced by Charles Aldarondo, Tiffany Vergon, William
+Craig, Charles Franks, and the Online Distributed
+Proofreading Team
+
+HTML file produced by David Widger
+
+
+
+
+
+
+
+</pre>
+    <div style="height: 8em;">
+      <br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br />
+    </div>
+    <h1>
+      THE CRAYON PAPERS
+    </h1>
+    <h2>
+      By Geoffrey Crayon
+    </h2>
+    <p>
+      <br /><br />
+    </p>
+    <hr />
+    <p>
+      <br /><br />
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      <b>CONTENTS</b>
+    </p>
+    <p class="toc">
+      <a href="#link2H_4_0001"> MOUNTJOY, OR SOME PASSAGES OUT OF THE LIFE OF A
+      CASTLE-BUILDER </a>
+    </p>
+    <p class="toc">
+      <a href="#link2H_4_0002"> THE GREAT MISSISSIPPI BUBBLE </a>
+    </p>
+    <p class="toc">
+      <a href="#link2H_4_0003"> DON JUAN </a>
+    </p>
+    <p class="toc">
+      <a href="#link2H_4_0004"> BROEK </a>
+    </p>
+    <p class="toc">
+      <a href="#link2H_4_0005"> SKETCHES IN PARIS IN 1825 </a>
+    </p>
+    <p class="toc">
+      <a href="#link2H_4_0006"> ENGLISH AND FRENCH CHARACTER </a>
+    </p>
+    <p class="toc">
+      <a href="#link2H_4_0007"> THE TUILERIES AND WINDSOR CASTLE </a>
+    </p>
+    <p class="toc">
+      <a href="#link2H_4_0008"> THE FIELD OF WATERLOO </a>
+    </p>
+    <p class="toc">
+      <a href="#link2H_4_0009"> PARIS AT THE RESTORATION </a>
+    </p>
+    <p class="toc">
+      <a href="#link2H_4_0010"> AMERICAN RESEARCHES IN ITALY </a>
+    </p>
+    <p class="toc">
+      <a href="#link2H_4_0011"> THE TAKING OF THE VEIL </a>
+    </p>
+    <p class="toc">
+      <a href="#link2H_4_0012"> THE CHARMING LETORIÈRES </a>
+    </p>
+    <p class="toc">
+      <a href="#link2H_4_0013"> THE EARLY EXPERIENCES OF RALPH RINGWOOD </a>
+    </p>
+    <p class="toc">
+      <a href="#link2H_4_0014"> THE SEMINOLES </a>
+    </p>
+    <p class="toc">
+      <a href="#link2H_4_0015"> ORIGIN OF THE WHITE, THE RED, AND THE BLACK MEN
+      </a>
+    </p>
+    <p class="toc">
+      <a href="#link2H_4_0016"> THE CONSPIRACY OF NEAMATHLA </a>
+    </p>
+    <p class="toc">
+      <a href="#link2H_4_0017"> LETTER FROM GRANADA </a>
+    </p>
+    <p class="toc">
+      <a href="#link2H_4_0018"> ABDERAHMAN </a>
+    </p>
+    <p class="toc">
+      <a href="#link2H_4_0019"> THE WIDOW&rsquo;S ORDEAL </a>
+    </p>
+    <p class="toc">
+      <a href="#link2H_4_0020"> THE CREOLE VILLAGE </a>
+    </p>
+    <p class="toc">
+      <a href="#link2H_4_0021"> A CONTENTED MAN </a>
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      <br /><br />
+    </p>
+    <hr />
+    <p>
+      <a name="link2H_4_0001" id="link2H_4_0001"> </a>
+    </p>
+    <div style="height: 4em;">
+      <br /><br /><br /><br />
+    </div>
+    <h2>
+      MOUNTJOY, OR SOME PASSAGES OUT OF THE LIFE OF A CASTLE-BUILDER
+    </h2>
+    <p>
+      I was born among romantic scenery, in one of the wildest parts of the
+      Hudson, which at that time was not so thickly settled as at present. My
+      father was descended from one of the old Huguenot families that came over
+      to this country on the revocation of the edict of Nantz. He lived in a
+      style of easy, rural independence, on a patrimonial estate that had been
+      for two or three generations in the family. He was an indolent,
+      good-natured man, who took the world as it went, and had a kind of
+      laughing philosophy, that parried all rubs and mishaps, and served him in
+      the place of wisdom. This was the part of his character least to my taste;
+      for I was of an enthusiastic, excitable temperament, prone to kindle up
+      with new schemes and projects, and he was apt to dash my sallying
+      enthusiasm by some unlucky joke; so that whenever I was in a glow with any
+      sudden excitement, I stood in mortal dread of his good-humor.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Yet he indulged me in every vagary; for I was an only son, and of course a
+      personage of importance in the household. I had two sisters older than
+      myself, and one younger. The former were educated at New York, under the
+      eye of a maiden aunt; the latter remained at home, and was my cherished
+      playmate, the companion of my thoughts. We were two imaginative little
+      beings, of quick susceptibility, and prone to see wonders and mysteries in
+      everything around us. Scarce had we learned to read, when our mother made
+      us holiday presents of all the nursery literature of the day; which at
+      that time consisted of little books covered with gilt paper, adorned with
+      &ldquo;cuts,&rdquo; and filled with tales of fairies, giants, and enchanters. What
+      draughts of delightful fiction did we then inhale! My sister Sophy was of
+      a soft and tender nature. She would weep over the woes of the Children in
+      the Wood, or quake at the dark romance of Blue-Beard, and the terrible
+      mysteries of the blue chamber. But I was all for enterprise and adventure.
+      I burned to emulate the deeds of that heroic prince who delivered the
+      white cat from her enchantment; or he of no less royal blood, and doughty
+      enterprise, who broke the charmed slumber of the Beauty in the Wood!
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The house in which we lived was just the kind of place to foster such
+      propensities. It was a venerable mansion, half villa, half farmhouse. The
+      oldest part was of stone, with loop-holes for musketry, having served as a
+      family fortress in the time of the Indians. To this there had been made
+      various additions, some of brick, some of wood, according to the
+      exigencies of the moment; so that it was full of nooks and crooks, and
+      chambers of all sorts and sizes. It was buried among willows, elms, and
+      cherry trees, and surrounded with roses and hollyhocks, with honeysuckle
+      and sweetbrier clambering about every window. A brood of hereditary
+      pigeons sunned themselves upon the roof; hereditary swallows and martins
+      built about the eaves and chimneys; and hereditary bees hummed about the
+      flower-beds.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Under the influence of our story-books every object around us now assumed
+      a new character, and a charmed interest. The wild flowers were no longer
+      the mere ornaments of the fields, or the resorts of the toilful bee; they
+      were the lurking-places of fairies. We would watch the humming-bird, as it
+      hovered around the trumpet creeper at our porch, and the butterfly as it
+      flitted up into the blue air, above the sunny tree-tops, and fancy them
+      some of the tiny beings from fairyland. I would call to mind all that I
+      had read of Robin Goodfellow and his power of transformation. Oh, how I
+      envied him that power! How I longed to be able to compress my form into
+      utter littleness; to ride the bold dragonfly; swing on the tall bearded
+      grass; follow the ant into his subterraneous habitation, or dive into the
+      cavernous depths of the honeysuckle!
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      While I was yet a mere child I was sent to a daily school, about two miles
+      distant. The schoolhouse was on the edge of a wood, close by a brook
+      overhung with birches, alders, and dwarf willows. We of the school who
+      lived at some distance came with our dinners put up in little baskets. In
+      the intervals of school hours we would gather round a spring, under a tuft
+      of hazel-bushes, and have a kind of picnic; interchanging the rustic
+      dainties with which our provident mothers had fitted us out. Then, when
+      our joyous repast was over, and my companions were disposed for play, I
+      would draw forth one of my cherished story-books, stretch myself on the
+      green sward, and soon lose myself in its bewitching contents.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      I became an oracle among my schoolmates on account of my superior
+      erudition, and soon imparted to them the contagion of my infected fancy.
+      Often in the evening, after school hours, we would sit on the trunk of
+      some fallen tree in the woods, and vie with each other in telling
+      extravagant stories, until the whip-poor-will began his nightly moaning,
+      and the fireflies sparkled in the gloom. Then came the perilous journey
+      homeward. What delight we would take in getting up wanton panics in some
+      dusky part of the wood; scampering like frightened deer; pausing to take
+      breath; renewing the panic, and scampering off again, wild with fictitious
+      terror!
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Our greatest trial was to pass a dark, lonely pool, covered with
+      pond-lilies, peopled with bullfrogs and water snakes, and haunted by two
+      white cranes. Oh! the terrors of that pond! How our little hearts would
+      beat as we approached it; what fearful glances we would throw around! And
+      if by chance a plash of a wild duck, or the guttural twang of a bullfrog,
+      struck our ears, as we stole quietly by&mdash;away we sped, nor paused
+      until completely out of the woods. Then, when I reached home, what a world
+      of adventures and imaginary terrors would I have to relate to my sister
+      Sophy!
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      As I advanced in years, this turn of mind increased upon me, and became
+      more confirmed. I abandoned myself to the impulses of a romantic
+      imagination, which controlled my studies, and gave a bias to all my
+      habits. My father observed me continually with a book in my hand, and
+      satisfied himself that I was a profound student; but what were my studies?
+      Works of fiction; tales of chivalry; voyages of discovery; travels in the
+      East; everything, in short, that partook of adventure and romance. I well
+      remember with what zest I entered upon that part of my studies which
+      treated of the heathen mythology, and particularly of the sylvan deities.
+      Then indeed my school books became dear to me. The neighborhood was well
+      calculated to foster the reveries of a mind like mine. It abounded with
+      solitary retreats, wild streams, solemn forests, and silent valleys. I
+      would ramble about for a whole day with a volume of Ovid&rsquo;s Metamorphoses
+      in my pocket, and work myself into a kind of self-delusion, so as to
+      identify the surrounding scenes with those of which I had just been
+      reading. I would loiter about a brook that glided through the shadowy
+      depths of the forest, picturing it to myself the haunt of Naiads. I would
+      steal round some bushy copse that opened upon a glade, as if I expected to
+      come suddenly upon Diana and her nymphs, or to behold Pan and his satyrs
+      bounding, with whoop and halloo, through the woodland. I would throw
+      myself, during the panting heats of a summer noon, under the shade of some
+      wide-spreading tree, and muse and dream away the hours, in a state of
+      mental intoxication. I drank in the very light of day, as nectar, and my
+      soul seemed to bathe with ecstasy in the deep blue of a summer sky.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      In these wanderings nothing occurred to jar my feelings, or bring me back
+      to the realities of life. There is a repose in our mighty forests that
+      gives full scope to the imagination. Now and then I would hear the distant
+      sound of the woodcutter&rsquo;s ax, or the crash of some tree which he had laid
+      low; but these noises, echoing along the quiet landscape, could easily be
+      wrought by fancy into harmony with its illusions. In general, however, the
+      woody recesses of the neighborhood were peculiarly wild and unfrequented.
+      I could ramble for a whole day, without coming upon any traces of
+      cultivation. The partridge of the wood scarcely seemed to shun my path,
+      and the squirrel, from his nut-tree, would gaze at me for an instant, with
+      sparkling eye, as if wondering at the unwonted intrusion.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      I cannot help dwelling on this delicious period of my life; when as yet I
+      had known no sorrow, nor experienced any worldly care. I have since
+      studied much, both of books and men, and of course have grown too wise to
+      be so easily pleased; yet with all my wisdom, I must confess I look back
+      with a secret feeling of regret to the days of happy ignorance before I
+      had begun to be a philosopher.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      <br /><br />
+    </p>
+    <hr />
+    <p>
+      <br /><br />
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      It must be evident that I was in a hopeful training for one who was to
+      descend into the arena of life, and wrestle with the world. The tutor,
+      also, who superintended my studies in the more advanced stage of my
+      education, was just fitted to complete the <i>fata morgana</i> which was
+      forming in my mind. His name was Glencoe. He was a pale,
+      melancholy-looking man, about forty years of age; a native of Scotland,
+      liberally educated, and who had devoted himself to the instruction of
+      youth from taste rather than necessity; for, as he said, he loved the
+      human heart, and delighted to study it in its earlier impulses. My two
+      elder sisters, having returned home from a city boarding-school, were
+      likewise placed under his care, to direct their reading in history and
+      belles-lettres.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      We all soon became attached to Glencoe. It is true, we were at first
+      somewhat prepossessed against him. His meager, pallid countenance, his
+      broad pronunciation, his inattention to the little forms of society, and
+      an awkward and embarrassed manner, on first acquaintance, were much
+      against him; but we soon discovered that under this unpromising exterior
+      existed the kindest urbanity of temper; the warmest sympathies; the most
+      enthusiastic benevolence. His mind was ingenious and acute. His reading
+      had been various, but more abstruse than profound; his memory was stored,
+      on all subjects, with facts, theories, and quotations, and crowded with
+      crude materials for thinking. These, in a moment of excitement, would be,
+      as it were, melted down, and poured forth in the lava of a heated
+      imagination. At such moments, the change in the whole man was wonderful.
+      His meager form would acquire a dignity and grace; his long, pale visage
+      would flash with a hectic glow; his eyes would beam with intense
+      speculation; and there would be pathetic tones and deep modulations in his
+      voice, that delighted the ear, and spoke movingly to the heart.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      But what most endeared him to us was the kindness and sympathy with which
+      he entered into all our interests and wishes. Instead of curbing and
+      checking our young imaginations with the reins of sober reason, he was a
+      little too apt to catch the impulse and be hurried away with us. He could
+      not withstand the excitement of any sally of feeling or fancy, and was
+      prone to lend heightening tints to the illusive coloring of youthful
+      anticipation.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Under his guidance my sisters and myself soon entered upon a more extended
+      range of studies; but while they wandered, with delighted minds, through
+      the wide field of history and belles-lettres, a nobler walk was opened to
+      my superior intellect.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The mind of Glencoe presented a singular mixture of philosophy and poetry.
+      He was fond of metaphysics and prone to indulge in abstract speculations,
+      though his metaphysics were somewhat fine spun and fanciful, and his
+      speculations were apt to partake of what my father most irreverently
+      termed &ldquo;humbug.&rdquo; For my part, I delighted in them, and the more especially
+      because they set my father to sleep and completely confounded my sisters.
+      I entered with my accustomed eagerness into this new branch of study.
+      Metaphysics were now my passion. My sisters attempted to accompany me, but
+      they soon faltered, and gave out before they had got half way through
+      Smith&rsquo;s Theory of the Moral Sentiments. I, however, went on, exulting in
+      my strength. Glencoe supplied me with books, and I devoured them with
+      appetite, if not digestion. We walked and talked together under the trees
+      before the house, or sat apart, like Milton&rsquo;s angels, and held high
+      converse upon themes beyond the grasp of ordinary intellects. Glencoe
+      possessed a kind of philosophic chivalry, in imitation of the old
+      peripatetic sages, and was continually dreaming of romantic enterprises in
+      morals, and splendid systems for the improvement of society. He had a
+      fanciful mode of illustrating abstract subjects, peculiarly to my taste;
+      clothing them with the language of poetry, and throwing round them almost
+      the magic hues of fiction. &ldquo;How charming,&rdquo; thought I, &ldquo;is divine
+      philosophy;&rdquo; not harsh and crabbed, as dull fools suppose,
+    </p>
+<pre xml:space="preserve">
+  &ldquo;But a perpetual feast of nectar&rsquo;d sweets,
+   Where no crude surfeit reigns.&rdquo;
+ </pre>
+    <p>
+      I felt a wonderful self-complacency at being on such excellent terms with
+      a man whom I considered on a parallel with the sages of antiquity, and
+      looked down with a sentiment of pity on the feebler intellects of my
+      sisters, who could comprehend nothing of metaphysics. It is true, when I
+      attempted to study them by myself, I was apt to get in a fog; but when
+      Glencoe came to my aid, everything was soon as clear to me as day. My ear
+      drank in the beauty of his words; my imagination was dazzled with the
+      splendor of his illustrations. It caught up the sparkling sands of poetry
+      that glittered through his speculations, and mistook them for the golden
+      ore of wisdom. Struck with the facility with which I seemed to imbibe and
+      relish the most abstract doctrines, I conceived a still higher opinion of
+      my mental powers, and was convinced that I also was a philosopher.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      <br /><br />
+    </p>
+    <hr />
+    <p>
+      <br /><br />
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      I was now verging toward man&rsquo;s estate, and though my education had been
+      extremely irregular&mdash;following the caprices of my humor, which I
+      mistook for the impulses of my genius&mdash;yet I was regarded with wonder
+      and delight by my mother and sisters, who considered me almost as wise and
+      infallible as I considered myself. This high opinion of me was
+      strengthened by a declamatory habit, which made me an oracle and orator at
+      the domestic board. The time was now at hand, however, that was to put my
+      philosophy to the test.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      We had passed through a long winter, and the spring at length opened upon
+      us with unusual sweetness. The soft serenity of the weather; the beauty of
+      the surrounding country; the joyous notes of the birds; the balmy breath
+      of flower and blossom, all combined to fill my bosom with indistinct
+      sensations, and nameless wishes. Amid the soft seductions of the season, I
+      lapsed into a state of utter indolence, both of body and mind.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Philosophy had lost its charms for me. Metaphysics&mdash;faugh! I tried to
+      study; took down volume after volume, ran my eye vacantly over a few
+      pages, and threw them by with distaste. I loitered about the house, with
+      my hands in my pockets, and an air of complete vacancy. Something was
+      necessary to make me happy; but what was that something? I sauntered to
+      the apartments of my sisters, hoping their conversation might amuse me.
+      They had walked out, and the room was vacant. On the table lay a volume
+      which they had been reading. It was a novel. I had never read a novel,
+      having conceived a contempt for works of the kind, from hearing them
+      universally condemned. It is true, I had remarked that they were as
+      universally read; but I considered them beneath the attention of a
+      philosopher, and never would venture to read them, lest I should lessen my
+      mental superiority in the eyes of my sisters. Nay, I had taken up a work
+      of the kind now and then, when I knew my sisters were observing me, looked
+      into it for a moment, and then laid it down, with a slight supercilious
+      smile. On the present occasion, out of mere listlessness, I took up the
+      volume and turned over a few of the first pages. I thought I heard some
+      one coming, and laid it down. I was mistaken; no one was near, and what I
+      had read tempted my curiosity to read a little further. I leaned against a
+      window-frame, and in a few minutes was completely lost in the story. How
+      long I stood there reading I know not, but I believe for nearly two hours.
+      Suddenly I heard my sisters on the stairs, when I thrust the book into my
+      bosom, and the two other volumes which lay near into my pockets, and
+      hurried out of the house to my beloved woods. Here I remained all day
+      beneath the trees, bewildered, bewitched, devouring the contents of these
+      delicious volumes, and only returned to the house when it was too dark to
+      peruse their pages.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      This novel finished, I replaced it in my sisters&rsquo; apartment, and looked
+      for others. Their stock was ample, for they had brought home all that were
+      current in the city; but my appetite demanded an immense supply. All this
+      course of reading was carried on clandestinely, for I was a little ashamed
+      of it, and fearful that my wisdom might be called in question; but this
+      very privacy gave it additional zest. It was &ldquo;bread eaten in secret&rdquo;; it
+      had the charm of a private amour.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      But think what must have been the effect of such a course of reading on a
+      youth of my temperament and turn of mind; indulged, too, amid romantic
+      scenery and in the romantic season of the year. It seemed as if I had
+      entered upon a new scene of existence. A train of combustible feelings
+      were lighted up in me, and my soul was all tenderness and passion. Never
+      was youth more completely love-sick, though as yet it was a mere general
+      sentiment, and wanted a definite object. Unfortunately, our neighborhood
+      was particularly deficient in female society, and I languished in vain for
+      some divinity to whom I might offer up this most uneasy burden of
+      affections. I was at one time seriously enamored of a lady whom I saw
+      occasionally in my rides, reading at the window of a country-seat; and
+      actually serenaded her with my flute; when, to my confusion, I discovered
+      that she was old enough to be my mother. It was a sad damper to my
+      romance; especially as my father heard of it, and made it the subject of
+      one of those household jokes which he was apt to serve up at every
+      meal-time.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      I soon recovered from this check, however, but it was only to relapse into
+      a state of amorous excitement. I passed whole days in the fields, and
+      along the brooks; for there is something in the tender passion that makes
+      us alive to the beauties of nature. A soft sunshiny morning infused a sort
+      of rapture into my breast. I flung open my arms, like the Grecian youth in
+      Ovid, as if I would take in and embrace the balmy atmosphere. [Footnote:
+      Ovid&rsquo;s Metamorphoses, Book vii] The song of the birds melted me to
+      tenderness. I would lie by the side of some rivulet for hours, and form
+      garlands of the flowers on its banks, and muse on ideal beauties, and sigh
+      from the crowd of undefined emotions that swelled my bosom.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      In this state of amorous delirium, I was strolling one morning along a
+      beautiful wild brook, which I had discovered in a glen. There was one
+      place where a small waterfall, leaping from among rocks into a natural
+      basin, made a scene such as a poet might have chosen as the haunt of some
+      shy Naiad. It was here I usually retired to banquet on my novels. In
+      visiting the place this morning I traced distinctly, on the margin of the
+      basin, which was of fine clear sand, the prints of a female foot of the
+      most slender and delicate proportions. This was sufficient for an
+      imagination like mine. Robinson Crusoe himself, when he discovered the
+      print of a savage foot on the beach of his lonely island, could not have
+      been more suddenly assailed with thick-coming fancies.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      I endeavored to track the steps, but they only passed for a few paces
+      along the fine sand, and then were lost among the herbage. I remained
+      gazing in reverie upon this passing trace of loveliness. It evidently was
+      not made by any of my sisters, for they knew nothing of this haunt;
+      besides, the foot was smaller than theirs; it was remarkable for its
+      beautiful delicacy.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      My eye accidentally caught two or three half-withered wild flowers lying
+      on the ground. The unknown nymph had doubtless dropped them from her
+      bosom! Here was a new document of taste and sentiment. I treasured them up
+      as invaluable relics. The place, too, where I found them, was remarkably
+      picturesque, and the most beautiful part of the brook. It was overhung
+      with a fine elm, entwined with grapevines. She who could select such a
+      spot, who could delight in wild brooks, and wild flowers, and silent
+      solitudes, must have fancy, and feeling, and tenderness; and with all
+      these qualities, she must be beautiful!
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      But who could be this Unknown, that had thus passed by, as in a morning
+      dream, leaving merely flowers and fairy footsteps to tell of her
+      loveliness? There was a mystery in it that bewildered me. It was so vague
+      and disembodied, like those &ldquo;airy tongues that syllable men&rsquo;s names&rdquo; in
+      solitude. Every attempt to solve the mystery was vain. I could hear of no
+      being in the neighborhood to whom this trace could be ascribed. I haunted
+      the spot, and became daily more and more enamored. Never, surely, was
+      passion more pure and spiritual, and never lover in more dubious
+      situation. My case could be compared only to that of the amorous prince in
+      the fairy tale of Cinderella; but he had a glass slipper on which to
+      lavish his tenderness. I, alas! was in love with a footstep!
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The imagination is alternately a cheat and a dupe; nay, more, it is the
+      most subtle of cheats, for it cheats itself and becomes the dupe of its
+      own delusions. It conjures up &ldquo;airy nothings,&rdquo; gives to them a &ldquo;local
+      habitation and a name,&rdquo; and then bows to their control as implicitly as
+      though they were realities. Such was now my case. The good Numa could not
+      more thoroughly have persuaded himself that the nymph Egeria hovered about
+      her sacred fountain and communed with him in spirit than I had deceived
+      myself into a kind of visionary intercourse with the airy phantom
+      fabricated in my brain. I constructed a rustic seat at the foot of the
+      tree where I had discovered the footsteps. I made a kind of bower there,
+      where I used to pass my mornings reading poetry and romances. I carved
+      hearts and darts on the tree, and hung it with garlands. My heart was full
+      to overflowing, and wanted some faithful bosom into which it might relieve
+      itself. What is a lover without a confidante? I thought at once of my
+      sister Sophy, my early playmate, the sister of my affections. She was so
+      reasonable, too, and of such correct feelings, always listening to my
+      words as oracular sayings, and admiring my scraps of poetry as the very
+      inspirations of the muse. From such a devoted, such a rational being, what
+      secrets could I have?
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      I accordingly took her one morning to my favorite retreat. She looked
+      around, with delighted surprise, upon the rustic seat, the bower, the tree
+      carved with emblems of the tender passion. She turned her eyes upon me to
+      inquire the meaning.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Oh, Sophy,&rdquo; exclaimed I, clasping both her hands in mine, and looking
+      earnestly in her face, &ldquo;I am in love.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      She started with surprise.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Sit down,&rdquo; said I, &ldquo;and I will tell you all.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      She seated herself upon the rustic bench, and I went into a full history
+      of the footstep, with all the associations of idea that had been conjured
+      up by my imagination.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Sophy was enchanted; it was like a fairy tale; she had read of such
+      mysterious visitations in books, and the loves thus conceived were always
+      for beings of superior order, and were always happy. She caught the
+      illusion in all its force; her cheek glowed; her eye brightened.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;I daresay she&rsquo;s pretty,&rdquo; said Sophy.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Pretty!&rdquo; echoed I, &ldquo;she is beautiful.&rdquo; I went through all the reasoning
+      by which I had logically proved the fact to my own satisfaction. I dwelt
+      upon the evidences of her taste, her sensibility to the beauties of
+      nature; her soft meditative habit that delighted in solitude. &ldquo;Oh,&rdquo; said
+      I, clasping my hands, &ldquo;to have such a companion to wander through these
+      scenes; to sit with her by this murmuring stream; to wreathe garlands
+      round her brows; to hear the music of her voice mingling with the
+      whisperings of these groves; to&mdash;&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Delightful! delightful!&rdquo; cried Sophy; &ldquo;what a sweet creature she must be!
+      She is just the friend I want. How I shall dote upon her! Oh, my dear
+      brother! you must not keep her all to yourself. You must let <i>me</i>
+      have some share of her!&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      I caught her to my bosom: &ldquo;You shall&mdash;you shall!&rdquo; cried I, &ldquo;my dear
+      Sophy; we will all live for each other!&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      <br /><br />
+    </p>
+    <hr />
+    <p>
+      <br /><br />
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The conversation with Sophy heightened the illusions of my mind; and the
+      manner in which she had treated my daydream identified it with facts and
+      persons and gave it still more the stamp of reality. I walked about as one
+      in a trance, heedless of the world around and lapped in an elysium of the
+      fancy.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      In this mood I met one morning with Glencoe. He accosted me with his usual
+      smile, and was proceeding with some general observations, but paused and
+      fixed on me an inquiring eye.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;What is the matter with you?&rdquo; said he, &ldquo;you seem agitated; has anything
+      in particular happened?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Nothing,&rdquo; said I, hesitating; &ldquo;at least nothing worth communicating to
+      you.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Nay, my dear young friend,&rdquo; said he, &ldquo;whatever is of sufficient
+      importance to agitate you is worthy of being communicated to me.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Well; but my thoughts are running on what you would think a frivolous
+      subject.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;No subject is frivolous that has the power to awaken strong feelings.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;What think you,&rdquo; said I, hesitating, &ldquo;what think you of love?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      Glencoe almost started at the question. &ldquo;Do you call that a frivolous
+      subject?&rdquo; replied he. &ldquo;Believe me, there is none fraught with such deep,
+      such vital interest. If you talk, indeed, of the capricious inclination
+      awakened by the mere charm of perishable beauty, I grant it to be idle in
+      the extreme; but that love which springs from the concordant sympathies of
+      virtuous hearts; that love which is awakened by the perception of moral
+      excellence, and fed by meditation on intellectual as well as personal
+      beauty; that is a passion which refines and ennobles the human heart. Oh,
+      where is there a sight more nearly approaching to the intercourse of
+      angels, than that of two young beings, free from the sins and follies of
+      the world, mingling pure thoughts, and looks, and feelings, and becoming,
+      as it were, soul of one soul and heart of one heart! How exquisite the
+      silent converse that they hold; the soft devotion of the eye, that needs
+      no words to make it eloquent! Yes, my friend, if there be anything in this
+      weary world worthy of heaven, it is the pure bliss of such a mutual
+      affection!&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      The words of my worthy tutor overcame all further reserve. &ldquo;Mr. Glencoe,&rdquo;
+       cried I, blushing still deeper, &ldquo;I am in love.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;And is that what you were ashamed to tell me? Oh, never seek to conceal
+      from your friend so important a secret. If your passion be unworthy, it is
+      for the steady hand of friendship to pluck it forth; if honorable, none
+      but an enemy would seek to stifle it. On nothing does the character and
+      happiness so much depend as on the first affection of the heart. Were you
+      caught by some fleeting and superficial charm&mdash;a bright eye, a
+      blooming cheek, a soft voice, or a voluptuous form&mdash;I would warn you
+      to beware; I would tell you that beauty is but a passing gleam of the
+      morning, a perishable flower; that accident may becloud and blight it, and
+      that at best it must soon pass away. But were you in love with such a one
+      as I could describe; young in years, but still younger in feelings; lovely
+      in person, but as a type of the mind&rsquo;s beauty; soft in voice, in token of
+      gentleness of spirit; blooming in countenance, like the rosy tints of
+      morning kindling with the promise of a genial day; an eye beaming with the
+      benignity of a happy heart; a cheerful temper, alive to all kind impulses,
+      and frankly diffusing its own felicity; a self-poised mind, that needs not
+      lean on others for support; an elegant taste, that can embellish solitude,
+      and furnish out its own enjoyments&mdash;&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;My dear sir,&rdquo; cried I, for I could contain myself no longer, &ldquo;you have
+      described the very person!&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Why, then, my dear young friend,&rdquo; said he, affectionately pressing my
+      hand, &ldquo;in God&rsquo;s name, love on!&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      <br /><br />
+    </p>
+    <hr />
+    <p>
+      <br /><br />
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      For the remainder of the day I was in some such state of dreamy beatitude
+      as a Turk is said to enjoy when under the influence of opium. It must be
+      already manifest how prone I was to bewilder myself with picturings of the
+      fancy, so as to confound them with existing realities. In the present
+      instance, Sophy and Glencoe had contributed to promote the transient
+      delusion. Sophy, dear girl, had as usual joined with me in my
+      castle-building, and indulged in the same train of imaginings, while
+      Glencoe, duped by my enthusiasm, firmly believed that I spoke of a being I
+      had seen and known. By their sympathy with my feelings they in a manner
+      became associated with the Unknown in my mind, and thus linked her with
+      the circle of my intimacy.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      In the evening, our family party was assembled in the hall, to enjoy the
+      refreshing breeze. Sophy was playing some favorite Scotch airs on the
+      piano, while Glencoe, seated apart, with his forehead resting on his hand,
+      was buried in one of those pensive reveries that made him so interesting
+      to me.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;What a fortunate being I am!&rdquo; thought I, &ldquo;blessed with such a sister and
+      such a friend! I have only to find out this amiable Unknown, to wed her,
+      and be happy! What a paradise will be my home, graced with a partner of
+      such exquisite refinement! It will be a perfect fairy bower, buried among
+      sweets and roses. Sophy shall live with us, and be the companion of all
+      our enjoyments. Glencoe, too, shall no more be the solitary being that he
+      now appears. He shall have a home with us. He shall have his study, where,
+      when he pleases, he may shut himself up from the world, and bury himself
+      in his own reflections. His retreat shall be sacred; no one shall intrude
+      there; no one but myself, who will visit him now and then, in his
+      seclusion, where we will devise grand schemes together for the improvement
+      of mankind. How delightfully our days will pass, in a round of rational
+      pleasures and elegant employments! Sometimes we will have music; sometimes
+      we will read; sometimes we will wander through the flower garden, when I
+      will smile with complacency on every flower my wife has planted; while in
+      the long winter evenings the ladies will sit at their work, and listen
+      with hushed attention to Glencoe and myself, as we discuss the abstruse
+      doctrines of metaphysics.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      From this delectable reverie, I was startled by my father&rsquo;s slapping me on
+      the shoulder. &ldquo;What possesses the lad?&rdquo; cried he; &ldquo;here have I been
+      speaking to you half a dozen times, without receiving an answer.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Pardon me, sir,&rdquo; replied I; &ldquo;I was so completely lost in thought, that I
+      did not hear you.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Lost in thought! And pray what were you thinking of? Some of your
+      philosophy, I suppose.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Upon my word,&rdquo; said my sister Charlotte, with an arch laugh, &ldquo;I suspect
+      Harry&rsquo;s in love again.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;And if were in love, Charlotte,&rdquo; said I, somewhat nettled, and
+      recollecting Glencoe&rsquo;s enthusiastic eulogy of the passion, &ldquo;if I were in
+      love, is that a matter of jest and laughter? Is the tenderest and most
+      fervid affection that can animate the human breast to be made a matter of
+      cold-hearted ridicule?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      My sister colored. &ldquo;Certainly not, brother!&mdash;nor did I mean to make
+      it so, or to say anything that should wound your feelings. Had I really
+      suspected you had formed some genuine attachment, it would have been
+      sacred in my eyes; but&mdash;but,&rdquo; said she, smiling, as if at some
+      whimsical recollection, &ldquo;I thought that you&mdash;you might be indulging
+      in another little freak of the imagination.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Ill wager any money,&rdquo; cried my father, &ldquo;he has fallen in love again with
+      some old lady at a window!&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Oh, no!&rdquo; cried my dear sister Sophy, with the most gracious warmth; &ldquo;she
+      is young and beautiful.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;From what I understand,&rdquo; said Glencoe, rousing himself, &ldquo;she must be
+      lovely in mind as in person.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      I found my friends were getting me into a fine scrape. I began to perspire
+      at every pore, and felt my ears tingle.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Well, but,&rdquo; cried my father, &ldquo;who is she?&mdash;what is she? Let us hear
+      something about her.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      This was no time to explain so delicate a matter. I caught up my hat, and
+      vanished out of the house.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The moment I was in the open air, and alone, my heart upbraided me. Was
+      this respectful treatment to my father&mdash;to <i>such</i> a father, too&mdash;who
+      had always regarded me as the pride of his age&mdash;the staff of his
+      hopes? It is true, he was apt sometimes to laugh at my enthusiastic
+      flights, and did not treat my philosophy with due respect; but when had he
+      ever thwarted a wish of my heart? Was I then to act with reserve toward
+      him, in a matter which might affect the whole current of my future life?
+      &ldquo;I have done wrong,&rdquo; thought I; &ldquo;but it is not too late to remedy it. I
+      will hasten back and open my whole heart to my father!&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      I returned accordingly, and was just on the point of entering the house,
+      with my heart full of filial piety and a contrite speech upon my lips,
+      when I heard a burst of obstreperous laughter from my father, and a loud
+      titter from my two elder sisters.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;A footstep!&rdquo; shouted he, as soon as he could recover himself; &ldquo;in love
+      with a footstep! Why, this beats the old lady at the window!&rdquo; And then
+      there was another appalling burst of laughter. Had it been a clap of
+      thunder, it could hardly have astounded me more completely. Sophy, in the
+      simplicity of her heart, had told all, and had set my father&rsquo;s risible
+      propensities in full action.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Never was poor mortal so thoroughly crestfallen as myself. The whole
+      delusion was at an end. I drew off silently from the house, shrinking
+      smaller and smaller at every fresh peal of laughter; and, wandering about
+      until the family had retired, stole quietly to my bed. Scarce any sleep,
+      however, visited my eyes that night! I lay overwhelmed with mortification,
+      and meditating how I might meet the family in the morning. The idea of
+      ridicule was always intolerable to me; but to endure it on a subject by
+      which my feelings had been so much excited seemed worse than death. I
+      almost determined, at one time, to get up, saddle my horse, and ride off,
+      I knew not whither.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      At length I came to a resolution. Before going down to breakfast, I sent
+      for Sophy, and employed her as embassador to treat formally in the matter.
+      I insisted that the subject should be buried in oblivion; otherwise I
+      would not show my face at table. It was readily agreed to; for not one of
+      the family would have given me pain for the world. They faithfully kept
+      their promise. Not a word was said of the matter; but there were wry
+      faces, and suppressed titters, that went to my soul; and whenever my
+      father looked me in the face, it was with such a tragi-comical leer&mdash;such
+      an attempt to pull down a serious brow upon a whimsical mouth&mdash;that I
+      had a thousand times rather he had laughed outright.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      <br /><br />
+    </p>
+    <hr />
+    <p>
+      <br /><br />
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      For a day or two after the mortifying occurrence just related, I kept as
+      much as possible out of the way of the family, and wandered about the
+      fields and woods by myself. I was sadly out of tune; my feelings were all
+      jarred and unstrung. The birds sang from every grove, but I took no
+      pleasure in their melody; and the flowers of the field bloomed unheeded
+      around me. To be crossed in love is bad enough; but then one can fly to
+      poetry for relief, and turn one&rsquo;s woes to account in soul-subduing
+      stanzas. But to have one&rsquo;s whole passion, object and all, annihilated,
+      dispelled, proved to be such stuff as dreams are made of&mdash;or, worse
+      than all, to be turned into a proverb and a jest&mdash;what consolation is
+      there in such a case?
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      I avoided the fatal brook where I had seen the footstep. My favorite
+      resort was now the banks of the Hudson, where I sat upon the rocks and
+      mused upon the current that dimpled by, or the waves that laved the shore;
+      or watched the bright mutations of the clouds, and the shifting lights and
+      shadows of the distant mountain. By degrees a returning serenity stole
+      over my feelings; and a sigh now and then, gentle and easy, and unattended
+      by pain, showed that my heart was recovering its susceptibility.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      As I was sitting in this musing mood my eye became gradually fixed upon an
+      object that was borne along by the tide. It proved to be a little pinnace,
+      beautifully modeled, and gayly painted and decorated. It was an unusual
+      sight in this neighborhood, which was rather lonely; indeed, it was rare
+      to see any pleasure-barks in this part of the river. As it drew nearer, I
+      perceived that there was no one on board; it had apparently drifted from
+      its anchorage. There was not a breath of air; the little bark came
+      floating along on the glassy stream, wheeling about with the eddies. At
+      length it ran aground, almost at the foot of the rock on which I was
+      seated. I descended to the margin of the river, and drawing the bark to
+      shore, admired its light and elegant proportions and the taste with which
+      it was fitted up. The benches were covered with cushions, and its long
+      streamer was of silk. On one of the cushion&rsquo;s lay a lady&rsquo;s glove, of
+      delicate size and shape, with beautifully tapered fingers. I instantly
+      seized it and thrust it in my bosom; it seemed a match for the fairy
+      footstep that had so fascinated me.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      In a moment all the romance of my bosom was again in a glow. Here was one
+      of the very incidents of fairy tale; a bark sent by some invisible power,
+      some good genius, or benevolent fairy, to waft me to some delectable
+      adventure. I recollected something of an enchanted bark, drawn by white
+      swans, that conveyed a knight down the current of the Rhine, on some
+      enterprise connected with love and beauty. The glove, too, showed that
+      there was a lady fair concerned in the present adventure. It might be a
+      gauntlet of defiance, to dare me to the enterprise.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      In the spirit of romance and the whim of the moment, I sprang on board,
+      hoisted the light sail, and pushed from shore. As if breathed by some
+      presiding power, a light breeze at that moment sprang up, swelled out the
+      sail, and dallied with the silken streamer. For a time I glided along
+      under steep umbrageous banks, or across deep sequestered bays; and then
+      stood out over a wide expansion of the river toward a high rocky
+      promontory. It was a lovely evening; the sun was setting in a congregation
+      of clouds that threw the whole heavens in a glow, and were reflected in
+      the river. I delighted myself with all kinds of fantastic fancies, as to
+      what enchanted island, or mystic bower, or necromantic palace, I was to be
+      conveyed by the fairy bark.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      In the revel of my fancy I had not noticed that the gorgeous congregation
+      of clouds which had so much delighted me was in fact a gathering thunder
+      gust. I perceived the truth too late. The clouds came hurrying on,
+      darkening as they advanced. The whole face of nature was suddenly changed,
+      and assumed that baleful and livid tint, predictive of a storm. I tried to
+      gain the shore, but before I could reach it a blast of wind struck the
+      water and lashed it at once into foam. The next moment it overtook the
+      boat. Alas! I was nothing of a sailor; and my protecting fairy forsook me
+      in the moment of peril. I endeavored to lower the sail; but in so doing I
+      had to quit the helm; the bark was overturned in an instant, and I was
+      thrown into the water. I endeavored to cling to the wreck, but missed my
+      hold; being a poor swimmer I soon found myself sinking, but grasped a
+      light oar that was floating by me. It was not sufficient for my support; I
+      again sank beneath the surface; there was a rushing and bubbling sound in
+      my ears, and all sense forsook me.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      How long I remained insensible, I know not. I had a confused notion of
+      being moved and tossed about, and of hearing strange beings and strange
+      voices around me; but all this was like a hideous dream. When I at length
+      recovered full consciousness and perception, I found myself in bed in a
+      spacious chamber, furnished with more taste than I had been accustomed to.
+      The bright rays of a morning sun were intercepted by curtains of a
+      delicate rose color, that gave a soft, voluptuous tinge to every object.
+      Not far from my bed, on a classic tripod, was a basket of beautiful exotic
+      flowers, breathing the sweetest fragrance.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Where am I? How came I here?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      I tasked my mind to catch at some previous event, from which I might trace
+      up the thread of existence to the present moment. By degrees I called to
+      mind the fairy pinnace, my daring embarkation, my adventurous voyage, and
+      my disastrous shipwreck. Beyond that, all was chaos. How came I here? What
+      unknown region had I landed upon? The people that inhabited it must be
+      gentle and amiable, and of elegant tastes, for they loved downy beds,
+      fragrant flowers, and rose-colored curtains.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      While I lay thus musing, the tones of a harp reached my ear. Presently
+      they were accompanied by a female voice. It came from the room below; but
+      in the profound stillness of my chamber not a modulation was lost. My
+      sisters were all considered good musicians, and sang very tolerably; but I
+      had never heard a voice like this. There was no attempt at difficult
+      execution, or striking effect; but there were exquisite inflections, and
+      tender turns, which art could not reach. Nothing but feeling and sentiment
+      could produce them. It was soul breathed forth in sound. I was always
+      alive to the influence of music; indeed, I was susceptible of voluptuous
+      influences of every kind&mdash;sounds, colors, shapes, and fragrant odors.
+      I was the very slave of sensation.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      I lay mute and breathless, and drank in every note of this siren strain.
+      It thrilled through my whole frame, and filled my soul with melody and
+      love. I pictured to myself, with curious logic, the form of the unseen
+      musician. Such melodious sounds and exquisite inflections could only be
+      produced by organs of the most delicate flexibility. Such organs do not
+      belong to coarse, vulgar forms; they are the harmonious results of fair
+      proportions, and admirable symmetry. A being so organized must be lovely.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Again my busy imagination was at work. I called to mind the Arabian story
+      of a prince, borne away during sleep by a good genius, to the distant
+      abode of a princess of ravishing beauty. I do not pretend to say that I
+      believed in having experienced a similar transportation; but it was my
+      inveterate habit to cheat myself with fancies of the kind, and to give the
+      tinge of illusion to surrounding realities.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The witching sound had ceased, but its vibrations still played round my
+      heart, and filled it with a tumult of soft emotions. At this moment, a
+      self-upbraiding pang shot through my bosom. &ldquo;Ah, recreant!&rdquo; a voice seemed
+      to exclaim, &ldquo;is this the stability of thine affections? What! hast thou so
+      soon forgotten the nymph of the fountain? Has one song, idly piped in
+      thine ear, been sufficient to charm away the cherished tenderness of a
+      whole summer?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      The wise may smile&mdash;but I am in a confiding mood, and must confess my
+      weakness. I felt a degree of compunction at this sudden infidelity, yet I
+      could not resist the power of present fascination. My peace of mind was
+      destroyed by conflicting claims. The nymph of the fountain came over my
+      memory, with all the associations of fairy footsteps, shady groves, soft
+      echoes, and wild streamlets; but this new passion was produced by a strain
+      of soul-subduing melody, still lingering in my ear, aided by a downy bed,
+      fragrant flowers, and rose-colored curtains. &ldquo;Unhappy youth!&rdquo; sighed I to
+      myself, &ldquo;distracted by such rival passions, and the empire of thy heart
+      thus violently contested by the sound of a voice, and the print of a
+      footstep!&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      <br /><br />
+    </p>
+    <hr />
+    <p>
+      <br /><br />
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      I had not remained long in this mood, when I heard the door of the room
+      gently opened. I turned my head to see what inhabitant of this enchanted
+      palace should appear; whether page in green, a hideous dwarf, or haggard
+      fairy. It was my own man Scipio. He advanced with cautious step, and was
+      delighted, as he said, to find me so much myself again. My first questions
+      were as to where I was and how I came there? Scipio told me a long story
+      of his having been fishing in a canoe at the time of my hare-brained
+      cruise; of his noticing the gathering squall, and my impending danger; of
+      his hastening to join me, but arriving just in time to snatch me from a
+      watery grave; of the great difficulty in restoring me to animation; and of
+      my being subsequently conveyed, in a state of insensibility, to this
+      mansion.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;But where am I?&rdquo; was the reiterated demand.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;In the house of Mr. Somerville.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Somerville&mdash;Somerville!&rdquo; I recollected to have heard that a
+      gentleman of that name had recently taken up his residence at some
+      distance from my father&rsquo;s abode, on the opposite side of the Hudson. He
+      was commonly known by the name of &ldquo;French Somerville,&rdquo; from having passed
+      part of his early life in France, and from his exhibiting traces of French
+      taste in his mode of living, and the arrangements of his house. In fact,
+      it was in his pleasure-boat, which had got adrift, that I had made my
+      fanciful and disastrous cruise. All this was simple, straightforward
+      matter of fact, and threatened to demolish all the cobweb romance I had
+      been spinning, when fortunately I again heard the tinkling of a harp. I
+      raised myself in bed and listened.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Scipio,&rdquo; said I, with some little hesitation, &ldquo;I heard some one singing
+      just now. Who was it?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Oh, that was Miss Julia.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Julia! Julia! Delightful! what a name! And, Scipio&mdash;is she&mdash;is
+      she pretty?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      Scipio grinned from ear to ear. &ldquo;Except Miss Sophy, she was the most
+      beautiful young lady he had ever seen.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      I should observe, that my sister Sophia was considered by all the servants
+      a paragon of perfection.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Scipio now offered to remove the basket of flowers; he was afraid their
+      odor might be too powerful; but Miss Julia had given them that morning to
+      be placed in my room.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      These flowers, then, had been gathered by the fairy fingers of my unseen
+      beauty; that sweet breath which had filled my ear with melody had passed
+      over them. I made Scipio hand them to me, culled several of the most
+      delicate, and laid them on my bosom.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Mr. Somerville paid me a visit not long afterward. He was an interesting
+      study for me, for he was the father of my unseen beauty, and probably
+      resembled her. I scanned him closely. He was a tall and elegant man, with
+      an open, affable manner, and an erect and graceful carriage. His eyes were
+      bluish-gray, and, though not dark, yet at times were sparkling and
+      expressive. His hair was dressed and powdered, and being lightly combed up
+      from his forehead, added to the loftiness of his aspect. He was fluent in
+      discourse, but his conversation had the quiet tone of polished society,
+      without any of those bold flights of thought, and picturings of fancy,
+      which I so much admired.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      My imagination was a little puzzled, at first, to make out of this
+      assemblage of personal and mental qualities a picture that should
+      harmonize with my previous idea of the fair unseen. By dint, however, of
+      selecting what it liked, and giving a touch here and a touch there, it
+      soon furnished out a satisfactory portrait.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Julia must be tall,&rdquo; thought I, &ldquo;and of exquisite grace and dignity. She
+      is not quite so courtly as her father, for she has been brought up in the
+      retirement of the country. Neither is she of such vivacious deportment;
+      for the tones of her voice are soft and plaintive, and she loves pathetic
+      music. She is rather pensive&mdash;yet not too pensive; just what is
+      called interesting. Her eyes are like her father&rsquo;s, except that they are
+      of a purer blue, and more tender and languishing. She has light hair&mdash;not
+      exactly flaxen, for I do not like flaxen hair, but between that and
+      auburn. In a word, she is a tall, elegant, imposing, languishing
+      blue-eyed, romantic-looking beauty.&rdquo; And having thus finished her picture,
+      I felt ten times more in love with her than ever.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      <br /><br />
+    </p>
+    <hr />
+    <p>
+      <br /><br />
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      I felt so much recovered that I would at once have left my room, but Mr.
+      Somerville objected to it. He had sent early word to my family of my
+      safety; and my father arrived in the course of the morning. He was shocked
+      at learning the risk I had run, but rejoiced to find me so much restored,
+      and was warm in his thanks to Mr. Somerville for his kindness. The other
+      only required, in return, that I might remain two or three days as his
+      guest, to give time for my recovery, and for our forming a closer
+      acquaintance; a request which my father readily granted. Scipio
+      accordingly accompanied my father home, and returned with a supply of
+      clothes, and with affectionate letters from my mother and sisters.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The next morning, aided by Scipio, I made my toilet with rather more care
+      than usual, and descended the stairs with some trepidation, eager to see
+      the original of the portrait which had been so completely pictured in my
+      imagination.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      On entering the parlor, I found it deserted. Like the rest of the house,
+      it was furnished in a foreign style. The curtains were of French silk;
+      there were Grecian couches, marble tables, pier-glasses, and chandeliers.
+      What chiefly attracted my eye, were documents of female taste that I saw
+      around me; a piano, with an ample stock of Italian music: a book of poetry
+      lying on the sofa; a vase of fresh flowers on a table, and a portfolio
+      open with a skillful and half-finished sketch of them. In the window was a
+      canary bird, in a gilt cage, and near by, the harp that had been in
+      Julia&rsquo;s arms. Happy harp! But where was the being that reigned in this
+      little empire of delicacies?&mdash;that breathed poetry and song, and
+      dwelt among birds and flowers, and rose-colored curtains?
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Suddenly I heard the hall door fly open, the quick pattering of light
+      steps, a wild, capricious strain of music, and the shrill barking of a
+      dog. A light, frolic nymph of fifteen came tripping into the room, playing
+      on a flageolet, with a little spaniel romping after her. Her gypsy hat had
+      fallen back upon her shoulders; a profusion of glossy brown hair was blown
+      in rich ringlets about her face, which beamed through them with the
+      brightness of smiles and dimples.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      At sight of me she stopped short, in the most beautiful confusion,
+      stammered out a word or two about looking for her father, glided out of
+      the door, and I heard her bounding up the staircase, like a frightened
+      fawn, with the little dog barking after her.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      When Miss Somerville returned to the parlor, she was quite a different
+      being. She entered, stealing along by her mother&rsquo;s side with noiseless
+      step, and sweet timidity; her hair was prettily adjusted, and a soft blush
+      mantled on her damask cheek. Mr. Somerville accompanied the ladies, and
+      introduced me regularly to them. There were many kind inquiries and much
+      sympathy expressed, on the subject of my nautical accident, and some
+      remarks upon the wild scenery of the neighborhood, with which the ladies
+      seemed perfectly acquainted.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;You must know,&rdquo; said Mr. Somerville, &ldquo;that we are great navigators, and
+      delight in exploring every nook and corner of the river. My daughter, too,
+      is a great hunter of the picturesque, and transfers every rock and glen to
+      her portfolio. By the way, my dear, show Mr. Mountjoy that pretty scene
+      you have lately sketched.&rdquo; Julia complied, blushing, and drew from her
+      portfolio a colored sketch. I almost started at the sight. It was my
+      favorite brook. A sudden thought darted across my mind. I glanced down my
+      eye, and beheld the divinest little foot in the world. Oh, blissful
+      conviction! The struggle of my affections was at an end. The voice and the
+      footstep were no longer at variance. Julia Somerville was the nymph of the
+      fountain!
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      <br /><br />
+    </p>
+    <hr />
+    <p>
+      <br /><br />
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      What conversation passed during breakfast I do not recollect, and hardly
+      was conscious of at the time, for my thoughts were in complete confusion.
+      I wished to gaze on Miss Somerville, but did not dare. Once, indeed, I
+      ventured a glance. She was at that moment darting a similar one from under
+      a covert of ringlets. Our eyes seemed shocked by the rencontre, and fell;
+      hers through the natural modesty of her sex, mine through a bashfulness
+      produced by the previous workings of my imagination. That glance, however,
+      went like a sunbeam to my heart.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      A convenient mirror favored my diffidence, and gave me the reflection of
+      Miss Somerville&rsquo;s form. It is true it only presented the back of her head,
+      but she had the merit of an ancient statue; contemplate her from any point
+      of view, she was beautiful. And yet she was totally different from
+      everything I had before conceived of beauty. She was not the serene,
+      meditative maid that I had pictured the nymph of the fountain; nor the
+      tall, soft, languishing, blue-eyed, dignified being that I had fancied the
+      minstrel of the harp. There was nothing of dignity about her: she was
+      girlish in her appearance, and scarcely of the middle size; but then there
+      was the tenderness of budding youth; the sweetness of the half-blown rose,
+      when not a tint of perfume has been withered or exhaled; there were smiles
+      and dimples, and all the soft witcheries of ever-varying expression. I
+      wondered that I could ever have admired any other style of beauty.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      After breakfast, Mr. Somerville departed to attend to the concerns of his
+      estate, and gave me in charge of the ladies. Mrs. Somerville also was
+      called away by her household cares, and I was left alone with Julia! Here,
+      then, was the situation which of all others I had most coveted. I was in
+      the presence of the lovely being that had so long been the desire of my
+      heart. We were alone; propitious opportunity for a lover! Did I seize upon
+      it? Did I break out in one of my accustomed rhapsodies? No such thing!
+      Never was being more awkwardly embarrassed.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;What can be the cause of this?&rdquo; thought I. &ldquo;Surely, I cannot stand in awe
+      of this young girl. I am of course her superior in intellect, and am never
+      embarrassed in company with my tutor, notwithstanding all his wisdom.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      It was passing strange. I felt that if she were an old woman, I should be
+      quite at my ease; if she were even an ugly woman, I should make out very
+      well: it was her beauty that overpowered me. How little do lovely women
+      know what awful beings they are, in the eyes of inexperienced youth! Young
+      men brought up in the fashionable circles of our cities will smile at all
+      this. Accustomed to mingle incessantly in female society, and to have the
+      romance of the heart deadened by a thousand frivolous flirtations, women
+      are nothing but women in their eyes; but to a susceptible youth like
+      myself, brought up in the country, they are perfect divinities.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Miss Somerville was at first a little embarrassed herself; but, somehow or
+      other, women have a natural adroitness in recovering their
+      self-possession; they are more alert in their minds, and graceful in their
+      manners. Besides, I was but an ordinary personage in Miss Somerville&rsquo;s
+      eyes; she was not under Hie influence of such a singular course of
+      imaginings as had surrounded her, in my eyes, with the illusions of
+      romance. Perhaps, too, she saw the confusion in the opposite camp and
+      gained courage from the discovery. At any rate she was the first to take
+      the field.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Her conversation, however, was only on commonplace topics, and in an easy,
+      well-bred style. I endeavored to respond in the same manner; but I was
+      strangely incompetent to the task. My ideas were frozen up; even words
+      seemed to fail me. I was excessively vexed at myself, for I wished to be
+      uncommonly elegant. I tried two or three times to turn a pretty thought,
+      or to utter a fine sentiment; but it would come forth so trite, so forced,
+      so mawkish, that I was ashamed of it. My very voice sounded discordantly,
+      though I sought to modulate it into the softest tones. &ldquo;The truth is,&rdquo;
+       thought I to myself, &ldquo;I cannot bring my mind down to the small talk
+      necessary for young girls; it is too masculine and robust for the mincing
+      measure of parlor gossip. I am a philosopher&mdash;and that accounts for
+      it.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      The entrance of Mrs. Somerville at length gave me relief. I at once
+      breathed freely, and felt a vast deal of confidence come over me. &ldquo;This is
+      strange,&rdquo; thought I, &ldquo;that the appearance of another woman should revive
+      my courage; that I should be a better match for two women than one.
+      However, since it is so, I will take advantage of the circumstance, and
+      let this young lady see that I am not so great a simpleton as she probably
+      thinks me.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      I accordingly took up the book of poetry which lay upon the sofa. It was
+      Milton&rsquo;s Paradise Lost. Nothing could have been more fortunate; it
+      afforded a fine scope for my favorite vein of grandiloquence. I went
+      largely into a discussion of its merits, or rather an enthusiastic eulogy
+      of them. My observations were addressed to Mrs. Somerville, for I found I
+      could talk to her with more ease than to her daughter. She appeared alive
+      to the beauties of the poet and disposed to meet me in the discussion; but
+      it was not my object to hear her talk; it was to talk myself. I
+      anticipated all she had to say, overpowered her with the copiousness of my
+      ideas, and supported and illustrated them by long citations from the
+      author.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      While thus holding forth, I cast a side glance to see how Miss Somerville
+      was affected. She had some embroidery stretched on a frame before her, but
+      had paused in her labor, and was looking down as if lost in mute
+      attention. I felt a glow of self-satisfaction, but I recollected, at the
+      same time, with a kind of pique, the advantage she had enjoyed over me in
+      our tete-a-tete. I determined to push my triumph, and accordingly kept on
+      with redoubled ardor, until I had fairly exhausted my subject, or rather
+      my thoughts.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      I had scarce come to a full stop, when Miss Somerville raised her eyes
+      from the work on which they had been fixed, and turning to her mother,
+      observed: &ldquo;I have been considering, mamma, whether to work these flowers
+      plain, or in colors.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      Had an ice-bolt shot to my heart, it could not have chilled me more
+      effectually. &ldquo;What a fool,&rdquo; thought I, &ldquo;have I been making myself&mdash;squandering
+      away fine thoughts, and fine language, upon a light mind and an ignorant
+      ear! This girl knows nothing of poetry. She has no soul, I fear, for its
+      beauties. Can any one have real sensibility of heart, and not be alive to
+      poetry? However, she is young; this part of her education has been
+      neglected; there is time enough to remedy it. I will be her preceptor. I
+      will kindle in her mind the sacred flame, and lead her through the fairy
+      land of song. But after all, it is rather unfortunate that I should have
+      fallen in love with a woman who knows nothing of poetry.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      <br /><br />
+    </p>
+    <hr />
+    <p>
+      <br /><br />
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      I passed a day not altogether satisfactory. I was a little disappointed
+      that Miss Somerville did not show more poetical feeling. &ldquo;I am afraid,
+      after all,&rdquo; said I to myself, &ldquo;she is light and girlish, and more fitted
+      to pluck wild flowers, play on the flageolet, and romp with little dogs
+      than to converse with a man of my turn.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      I believe, however, to tell the truth, I was more out of humor with
+      myself. I thought I had made the worst first appearance that ever hero
+      made, either in novel or fairy tale. I was out of all patience, when I
+      called to mind my awkward attempts at ease and elegance, in the
+      tete-a-tete. And then my intolerable long lecture about poetry to catch
+      the applause of a heedless auditor! But there I was not to blame. I had
+      certainly been eloquent: it was her fault that the eloquence was wasted.
+      To meditate upon the embroidery of a flower, when I was expatiating on the
+      beauties of Milton! She might at least have admired the poetry, if she did
+      not relish the manner in which it was delivered: though that was not
+      despicable, for I had recited passages in my best style, which my mother
+      and sisters had always considered equal to a play. &ldquo;Oh, it is evident,&rdquo;
+       thought I, &ldquo;Miss Somerville has very little soul!&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      Such were my fancies and cogitations during the day, the greater part of
+      which was spent in my chamber, for I was still languid. My evening was
+      passed in the drawing-room, where I overlooked Miss Somerville&rsquo;s portfolio
+      of sketches. They were executed with great taste, and showed a nice
+      observation of the peculiarities of nature. They were all her own, and
+      free from those cunning tints and touches of the drawing-master, by which
+      young ladies&rsquo; drawings, like their heads, are dressed up for company.
+      There was no garish and vulgar trick of colors, either; all was executed
+      with singular truth and simplicity.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;And yet,&rdquo; thought I, &ldquo;this little being, who has so pure an eye to take
+      in, as in a limpid brook, all the graceful forms and magic tints of
+      nature, has no soul for poetry!&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      Mr. Somerville, toward the latter part of the evening, observing my eye to
+      wander occasionally to the harp, interpreted and met my wishes with his
+      accustomed civility.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Julia, my dear,&rdquo; said he, &ldquo;Mr. Mountjoy would like to hear a little music
+      from your harp; let us hear, too, the sound of your voice.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      Julia immediately complied, without any of that hesitation and difficulty,
+      by which young ladies are apt to make company pay dear for bad music. She
+      sang a sprightly strain, in a brilliant style, that came trilling
+      playfully over the ear; and the bright eye and dimpling smile showed that
+      her little heart danced with the song. Her pet canary bird, who hung close
+      by, was awakened by the music, and burst forth into an emulating strain.
+      Julia smiled with a pretty air of defiance, and played louder.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      After some time the music changed, and ran into a plaintive strain, in a
+      minor key. Then it was that all the former witchery of her voice came over
+      me; then it was that she seemed to sing from the heart and to the heart.
+      Her fingers moved about the chords as if they scarcely touched them. Her
+      whole manner and appearance changed; her eyes beamed with the softest
+      expression; her countenance, her frame, all seemed subdued into
+      tenderness. She rose from the harp, leaving it still vibrating with sweet
+      sounds, and moved toward her father, to bid him good-night.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      His eyes had been fixed on her intently during her performance. As she
+      came before him he parted her shining ringlets with both his hands, and
+      looked down with the fondness of a father on her innocent face. The music
+      seemed still lingering in its lineaments, and the action of her father
+      brought a moist gleam in her eye. He kissed her fair forehead, after the
+      French mode of parental caressing: &ldquo;Goodnight, and God bless you,&rdquo; said
+      he, &ldquo;my good little girl!&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      Julia tripped away, with a tear in her eye, a dimple in her cheek, and a
+      light heart in her bosom. I thought it the prettiest picture of paternal
+      and filial affection I had ever seen.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      When I retired to bed, a new train of thoughts crowded into my brain.
+      &ldquo;After all,&rdquo; said I to myself, &ldquo;it is clear this girl has a soul, though
+      she was not moved by my eloquence. She has all the outward signs and
+      evidences of poetic feeling. She paints well, and has an eye for nature.
+      She is a fine musician, and enters into the very soul of song. What a pity
+      that she knows nothing of poetry! But we will see what is to be done? I am
+      irretrievably in love with her; what then am I to do? Come down to the
+      level of her mind, or endeavor to raise her to some kind of intellectual
+      equality with myself? That is the most generous course. She will look up
+      to me as a benefactor. I shall become associated in her mind with the
+      lofty thoughts and harmonious graces of poetry. She is apparently docile:
+      besides the difference of our ages will give me an ascendency over her.
+      She cannot be above sixteen years of age, and I am full turned to twenty.&rdquo;
+       So, having built this most delectable of air castles, I fell asleep.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      <br /><br />
+    </p>
+    <hr />
+    <p>
+      <br /><br />
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The next morning I was quite a different being. I no longer felt fearful
+      of stealing a glance at Julia; on the contrary, I contemplated her
+      steadily, with the benignant eye of a benefactor. Shortly after breakfast
+      I found myself alone with her, as I had on the preceding morning; but I
+      felt nothing of the awkwardness of our previous tete-a-tete. I was
+      elevated by the consciousness of my intellectual superiority and should
+      almost have felt a sentiment of pity for the ignorance of the lovely
+      little being, if I had not felt also the assurance that I should be able
+      to dispel it. &ldquo;But it is time,&rdquo; thought I, &ldquo;to open school.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      Julia was occupied in arranging some music on her piano. I looked over two
+      or three songs; they were Moore&rsquo;s Irish melodies.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;These are pretty things!&rdquo; said I, flirting the leaves over lightly, and
+      giving a slight shrug, by way of qualifying the opinion.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Oh, I love them of all things,&rdquo; said Julia, &ldquo;they&rsquo;re so touching!&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Then you like them for the poetry,&rdquo; said I, with an encouraging smile.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Oh, yes; she thought them charmingly written.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      Now was my time. &ldquo;Poetry,&rdquo; said I, assuming a didactic attitude and air,
+      &ldquo;poetry is one of the most pleasing studies that can occupy a youthful
+      mind. It renders us susceptible of the gentle impulses of humanity, and
+      cherishes a delicate perception of all that is virtuous and elevated in
+      morals, and graceful and beautiful in physics. It&mdash;&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      I was going on in a style that would have graced a professor of rhetoric,
+      when I saw a light smile playing about Miss Somerville&rsquo;s mouth, and that
+      she began to turn over the leaves of a music-book. I recollected her
+      inattention to my discourse of the preceding morning. &ldquo;There is no fixing
+      her light mind,&rdquo; thought I, &ldquo;by abstract theory; we will proceed
+      practically.&rdquo; As it happened, the identical volume of Milton&rsquo;s Paradise
+      Lost was lying at hand.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Let me recommend to you, my young friend,&rdquo; said I, in one of those tones
+      of persuasive admonition, which I had so often loved in Glencoe, &ldquo;let me
+      recommend to you this admirable poem; you will find in it sources of
+      intellectual enjoyment far superior to those songs which have delighted
+      you.&rdquo; Julia looked at the book, and then at me, with a whimsically dubious
+      air. &ldquo;Milton&rsquo;s Paradise Lost?&rdquo; said she; &ldquo;oh, I know the greater part of
+      that by heart.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      I had not expected to find my pupil so far advanced; however, the Paradise
+      Lost is a kind of school book, and its finest passages are given to young
+      ladies as tasks.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;I find,&rdquo; said I to myself, &ldquo;I must not treat her as so complete a novice;
+      her inattention yesterday could not have proceeded from absolute
+      ignorance, but merely from a want of poetic feeling. I&rsquo;ll try her again.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      I now determined to dazzle her with my own erudition, and launched into a
+      harangue that would have done honor to an institute. Pope, Spenser,
+      Chaucer, and the old dramatic writers were all dipped into, with the
+      excursive flight of a swallow. I did not confine myself to English poets,
+      but gave a glance at the French and Italian schools; I passed over Ariosto
+      in full wing, but paused on Tasso&rsquo;s Jerusalem Delivered. I dwelt on the
+      character of Clorinda: &ldquo;There&rsquo;s a character,&rdquo; said I, &ldquo;that you will find
+      well worthy a woman&rsquo;s study. It shows to what exalted heights of heroism
+      the sex can rise, how gloriously they may share even in the stern concerns
+      of men.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;For my part,&rdquo; said Julia, gently taking advantage of a pause, &ldquo;for my
+      part, I prefer the character of Sophronia.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      I was thunderstruck. She then had read Tasso! This girl that I had been
+      treating as an ignoramus in poetry! She proceeded with a slight glow of
+      the cheek, summoned up perhaps by a casual glow of feeling:
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;I do not admire those masculine heroines,&rdquo; said she, &ldquo;who aim at the bold
+      qualities of the opposite sex. Now Sophronia only exhibits the real
+      qualities of a woman, wrought up to their highest excitement. She is
+      modest, gentle, and retiring, as it becomes a woman to be; but she has all
+      the strength of affection proper to a woman. She cannot fight for her
+      people as Clorinda does, but she can offer herself up, and die to serve
+      them. You may admire Clorinda, but you surely would be more apt to love
+      Sophronia; at least,&rdquo; added she, suddenly appearing to recollect herself,
+      and blushing at having launched into such a discussion, &ldquo;at least that is
+      what papa observed when we read the poem together.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Indeed,&rdquo; said I, dryly, for I felt disconcerted and nettled at being
+      unexpectedly lectured by my pupil; &ldquo;indeed, I do not exactly recollect the
+      passage.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Oh,&rdquo; said Julia, &ldquo;I can repeat it to you;&rdquo; and she immediately gave it in
+      Italian.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Heavens and earth!&mdash;here was a situation! I knew no more of Italian
+      than I did of the language of Psalmanazar. What a dilemma for a
+      would-be-wise man to be placed in! I saw Julia waited for my opinion.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;In fact,&rdquo; said I, hesitating, &ldquo;I&mdash;I do not exactly understand
+      Italian.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Oh,&rdquo; said Julia, with the utmost naivete, &ldquo;I have no doubt it is very
+      beautiful in the translation.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      I was glad to break up school, and get back to my chamber, full of the
+      mortification which a wise man in love experiences on finding his mistress
+      wiser than himself. &ldquo;Translation! translation!&rdquo; muttered I to myself, as I
+      jerked the door shut behind me: &ldquo;I am surprised my father has never had me
+      instructed in the modern languages. They are all important. What is the
+      use of Latin and Greek? No one speaks them; but here, the moment I make my
+      appearance in the world, a little girl slaps Italian in my face. However,
+      thank heaven, a language is easily learned. The moment I return home, I&rsquo;ll
+      set about studying Italian; and to prevent future surprise, I will study
+      Spanish and German at the same time; and if any young lady attempts to
+      quote Italian upon me again, I&rsquo;ll bury her under a heap of High Dutch
+      poetry!&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      <br /><br />
+    </p>
+    <hr />
+    <p>
+      <br /><br />
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      I felt now like some mighty chieftain, who has carried the war into a weak
+      country, with full confidence of success, and been repulsed and obliged to
+      draw off his forces from before some inconsiderable fortress.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;However,&rdquo; thought I, &ldquo;I have as yet brought only my light artillery into
+      action; we shall see what is to be done with my heavy ordnance. Julia is
+      evidently well versed in poetry; but it is natural she should be so; it is
+      allied to painting and music, and is congenial to the light graces of the
+      female character. We will try her on graver themes.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      I felt all my pride awakened; it even for a time swelled higher than my
+      love. I was determined completely to establish my mental superiority, and
+      subdue the intellect of this little being; it would then be time to sway
+      the scepter of gentle empire, and win the affections of her heart.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Accordingly, at dinner I again took the field, <i>en potence.</i> I now
+      addressed myself to Mr. Somerville, for I was about to enter upon topics
+      in which a young girl like her could not be well versed. I led, or rather
+      forced, the conversation into a vein of historical erudition, discussing
+      several of the most prominent facts of ancient history, and accompanying
+      them with sound, indisputable apothegms.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Mr. Somerville listened to me with the air of a man receiving information.
+      I was encouraged, and went on gloriously from theme to theme of school
+      declamation. I sat with Marius on the ruins of Carthage; I defended the
+      bridge with Horatius Cocles; thrust my hand into the flame with Martius
+      Scaevola, and plunged with Curtius into the yawning gulf; I fought side by
+      side with Leonidas, at the straits of Thermopylae; and was going full
+      drive into the battle of Plataea, when my memory, which is the worst in
+      the world, failed me, just as I wanted the name of the Lacedemonian
+      commander.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Julia, my dear,&rdquo; said Mr. Somerville, &ldquo;perhaps you may recollect the name
+      of which Mr. Mountjoy is in quest?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      Julia colored slightly. &ldquo;I believe,&rdquo; said she, in a low voice, &ldquo;I believe
+      it was Pausanius.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      This unexpected sally, instead of re-enforcing me, threw my whole scheme
+      of battle into confusion, and the Athenians remained unmolested in the
+      field.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      I am half inclined, since, to think Mr. Somerville meant this as a sly hit
+      at my schoolboy pedantry; but he was too well bred not to seek to relieve
+      me from my mortification. &ldquo;Oh!&rdquo; said he, &ldquo;Julia is our family book of
+      reference for names, dates, and distances, and has an excellent memory for
+      history and geography.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      I now became desperate; as a last resource I turned to metaphysics. &ldquo;If
+      she is a philosopher in petticoats,&rdquo; thought I, &ldquo;it is all over with me.&rdquo;
+       Here, however, I had the field to myself. I gave chapter and verse of my
+      tutor&rsquo;s lectures, heightened by all his poetical illustrations; I even
+      went further than he had ever ventured, and plunged into such depths of
+      metaphysics that I was in danger of sticking in the mire at the bottom.
+      Fortunately, I had auditors who apparently could not detect my
+      flounderings. Neither Mr. Somerville nor his daughter offered the least
+      interruption.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      When the ladies had retired, Mr. Somerville sat some time with me; and as
+      I was no longer anxious to astonish, I permitted myself to listen, and
+      found that he was really agreeable. He was quite communicative, and from
+      his conversation I was enabled to form a juster idea of his daughter&rsquo;s
+      character, and the mode in which she had been brought up. Mr. Somerville
+      had mingled much with the world, and with what is termed fashionable
+      society. He had experienced its cold elegances and gay insincerities; its
+      dissipation of the spirits and squanderings of the heart. Like many men of
+      the world, though he had wandered too far from nature ever to return to
+      it, yet he had the good taste and good feeling to look back fondly to its
+      simple delights, and to determine that his child, if possible, should
+      never leave them. He had superintended her education with scrupulous care,
+      storing her mind with the graces of polite literature, and with such
+      knowledge as would enable it to furnish its own amusement and occupation,
+      and giving her all the accomplishments that sweeten and enliven the circle
+      of domestic life. He had been particularly sedulous to exclude all
+      fashionable affectations; all false sentiment, false sensibility, and
+      false romance. &ldquo;Whatever advantages she may possess,&rdquo; said he, &ldquo;she is
+      quite unconscious of them. She is a capricious little being, in everything
+      but her affections; she is, however, free from art; simple, ingenuous,
+      amiable, and, I thank God! happy.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      Such was the eulogy of a fond father, delivered with a tenderness that
+      touched me. I could not help making a casual inquiry, whether, among the
+      graces of polite literature, he had included a slight tincture of
+      metaphysics. He smiled, and told me he had not.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      On the whole, when, as usual, that night, I summed up the day&rsquo;s
+      observations on my pillow, I was not altogether dissatisfied. &ldquo;Miss
+      Somerville,&rdquo; said I, &ldquo;loves poetry, and I like her the better for it. She
+      has the advantage of me in Italian; agreed; what is it to know a variety
+      of languages, but merely to have a variety of sounds to express the same
+      idea? Original thought is the ore of the mind; language is but the
+      accidental stamp and coinage by which it is put into circulation. If I can
+      furnish an original idea, what care I how many languages she can translate
+      it into? She may be able also to quote names and dates and latitudes
+      better than I; but that is a mere effort of the memory. I admit she is
+      more accurate in history and geography than I; but then she knows nothing
+      of metaphysics.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      I had now sufficiently recovered to return home; yet I could not think of
+      leaving Mr. Somerville&rsquo;s without having a little further conversation with
+      him on the subject of his daughter&rsquo;s education.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;This Mr. Somerville,&rdquo; thought I, &ldquo;is a very accomplished, elegant man; he
+      has seen a good deal of the world, and, upon the whole, has profited by
+      what he has seen. He is not without information, and, as far as he thinks,
+      appears to think correctly; but, after all, he is rather superficial, and
+      does not think profoundly. He seems to take no delight in those
+      metaphysical abstractions that are the proper aliment of masculine minds.
+      I called to mind various occasions in which I had indulged largely in
+      metaphysical discussions, but could recollect no instance where I had been
+      able to draw him out. He had listened, it is true, with attention, and
+      smiled as if in acquiescence, but had always appeared to avoid reply.
+      Besides, I had made several sad blunders in the glow of eloquent
+      declamation; but he had never interrupted me, to notice and correct them,
+      as he would have done had he been versed in the theme.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Now, it is really a great pity,&rdquo; resumed I, &ldquo;that he should have the
+      entire management of Miss Somerville&rsquo;s education. What a vast advantage it
+      would be if she could be put for a little time under the superintendence
+      of Glencoe. He would throw some deeper shades of thought into her mind,
+      which at present is all sunshine; not but that Mr. Somerville has done
+      very well, as far as he has gone; but then he has merely prepared the soil
+      for the strong plants of useful knowledge. She is well versed in the
+      leading facts of history, and the general course of belles-lettres,&rdquo; said
+      I; &ldquo;a little more philosophy would do wonders.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      I accordingly took occasion to ask Mr. Somerville for a few moments&rsquo;
+      conversation in his study, the morning I was to depart. When we were alone
+      I opened the matter fully to him. I commenced with the warmest eulogium of
+      Glencoe&rsquo;s powers of mind and vast acquirements, and ascribed to him all my
+      proficiency in the higher branches of knowledge. I begged, therefore, to
+      recommend him as a friend calculated to direct the studies of Miss
+      Somerville; to lead her mind, by degrees, to the contemplation of abstract
+      principles, and to produce habits of philosophical analysis; &ldquo;which,&rdquo;
+       added I, gently smiling, &ldquo;are not often cultivated by young ladies.&rdquo; I
+      ventured to hint, in addition, that he would find Mr. Glencoe a most
+      valuable and interesting acquaintance for himself; one who would stimulate
+      and evolve the powers of his mind; and who might open to him tracts of
+      inquiry and speculation to which perhaps he had hitherto been a stranger.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Mr. Somerville listened with grave attention. When I had finished, he
+      thanked me in the politest manner for the interest I took in the welfare
+      of his daughter and himself. He observed that, as it regarded himself, he
+      was afraid he was too old to benefit by the instruction of Mr. Glencoe,
+      and that as to his daughter, he was afraid her mind was but little fitted
+      for the study of metaphysics. &ldquo;I do not wish,&rdquo; continued he, &ldquo;to strain
+      her intellects with subjects they cannot grasp, but to make her familiarly
+      acquainted with those that are within the limits of her capacity. I do not
+      pretend to prescribe the boundaries of female genius, and am far from
+      indulging the vulgar opinion that women are unfitted by nature for the
+      highest intellectual pursuits. I speak only with reference to my
+      daughter&rsquo;s tastes and talents. She will never make a learned woman; nor,
+      in truth, do I desire it; for such is the jealousy of our sex, as to
+      mental as well as physical ascendency, that a learned woman is not always
+      the happiest. I do not wish my daughter to excite envy, or to battle with
+      the prejudices of the world; but to glide peaceably through life, on the
+      good will and kind opinions of her friends. She has ample employment for
+      her little head, in the course I have marked out for her; and is busy at
+      present with some branches of natural history, calculated to awaken her
+      perceptions to the beauties and wonders of nature, and to the
+      inexhaustible volume of wisdom constantly spread open before her eyes. I
+      consider that woman most likely to make an agreeable companion, who can
+      draw topics of pleasing remark from every natural object; and most likely
+      to be cheerful and contented, who is continually sensible of the order,
+      the harmony, and the invariable beneficence that reign throughout the
+      beautiful world we inhabit.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;But,&rdquo; added he, smiling, &ldquo;I am betraying myself into a lecture, instead
+      of merely giving a reply to your kind offer. Permit me to take the
+      liberty, in return, of inquiring a little about your own pursuits. You
+      speak of having finished your education; but of course you have a line of
+      private study and mental occupation marked out; for you must know the
+      importance, both in point of interest and happiness, of keeping the mind
+      employed. May I ask what system you observe in your intellectual
+      exercises?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Oh, as to system,&rdquo; I observed, &ldquo;I could never bring myself into anything
+      of the kind. I thought it best to let my genius take it own course, as it
+      always acted the most vigorously when stimulated by inclination.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      Mr. Somerville shook his head. &ldquo;This same genius,&rdquo; said he, &ldquo;is a wild
+      quality that runs away with our most promising young men. It has become so
+      much the fashion, too, to give it the reins that it is now thought an
+      animal of too noble and generous a nature to be brought to harness. But it
+      is all a mistake. Nature never designed these high endowments to run riot
+      through society, and throw the whole system into confusion. No, my dear
+      sir, genius, unless it acts upon system, is very apt to be a useless
+      quality to society; sometimes an injurious, and certainly a very
+      uncomfortable one, to its possessor. I have had many opportunities of
+      seeing the progress through life of young men who were accounted geniuses,
+      and have found it too often end in early exhaustion and bitter
+      disappointment; and have as often noticed that these effects might be
+      traced to a total want of system. There were no habits of business, of
+      steady purpose, and regular application, superinduced upon the mind;
+      everything was left to chance and impulse, and native luxuriance, and
+      everything of course ran to waste and wild entanglement. Excuse me if I am
+      tedious on this point, for I feel solicitous to impress it upon you, being
+      an error extremely prevalent in our country and one into which too many of
+      our youth have fallen. I am happy, however, to observe the zeal which
+      still appears to actuate you for the acquisition of knowledge, and augur
+      every good from the elevated bent of your ambition. May I ask what has
+      been your course of study for the last six months?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      Never was question more unluckily timed. For the last six months I had
+      been absolutely buried in novels and romances.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Mr. Somerville perceived that the question was embarrassing, and, with his
+      invariable good breeding, immediately resumed the conversation, without
+      waiting for a reply. He took care, however, to turn it in such a way as to
+      draw from me an account of the whole manner in which I had been educated,
+      and the various currents of reading into which my mind had run. He then
+      went on to discuss, briefly but impressively, the different branches of
+      knowledge most important to a young man in my situation; and to my
+      surprise I found him a complete master of those studies on which I had
+      supposed him ignorant, and on which I had been descanting so confidently.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      He complimented me, however, very graciously, upon the progress I had
+      made, but advised me for the present to turn my attention to the physical
+      rather than the moral sciences. &ldquo;These studies,&rdquo; said he, &ldquo;store a man&rsquo;s
+      mind with valuable facts, and at the same time repress self-confidence, by
+      letting him know how boundless are the realms of knowledge, and how little
+      we can possibly know. Whereas metaphysical studies, though of an ingenious
+      order of intellectual employment, are apt to bewilder some minds with
+      vague speculations. They never know how far they have advanced, or what
+      may be the correctness of their favorite theory. They render many of our
+      young men verbose and declamatory, and prone to mistake the aberrations of
+      their fancy for the inspirations of divine philosophy.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      I could not but interrupt him, to assent to the truth of these remarks,
+      and to say that it had been my lot, in the course of my limited
+      experience, to encounter young men of the kind, who had overwhelmed me by
+      their verbosity.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Mr. Somerville smiled. &ldquo;I trust,&rdquo; said he, kindly, &ldquo;that you will guard
+      against these errors. Avoid the eagerness with which a young man is apt to
+      hurry into conversation, and to utter the crude and ill-digested notions
+      which he has picked up in his recent studies. Be assured that extensive
+      and accurate knowledge is the slow acquisition of a studious lifetime;
+      that a young man, however pregnant his wit, and prompt his talent, can
+      have mastered but the rudiments of learning, and, in a manner, attained
+      the implements of study. Whatever may have been your past assiduity, you
+      must be sensible that as yet you have but reached the threshold of true
+      knowledge; but at the same time you have the advantage that you are still
+      very young, and have ample time to learn.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      Here our conference ended. I walked out of the study a very different
+      being from what I was on entering it. I had gone in with the air of a
+      professor about to deliver a lecture; I came out like a student who had
+      failed in his examination, and been degraded in his class.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Very young,&rdquo; and &ldquo;on the threshold of knowledge!&rdquo; This was extremely
+      flattering to one who had considererd himself an accomplished scholar and
+      a profound philosopher.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;It is singular,&rdquo; thought I; &ldquo;there seems to have been a spell upon my
+      faculties, ever since I have been in this house. I certainly have not been
+      able to do myself justice. Whenever I have undertaken to advise, I have
+      had the tables turned upon me. It must be that I am strange and diffident
+      among people I am not accustomed to. I wish they could hear me talk at
+      home!&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;After all,&rdquo; added I, on further reflection, &ldquo;after all there is a great
+      deal of force in what Mr. Somerville has said. Somehow or other, these men
+      of the world do now and then hit upon remarks that would do credit to a
+      philosopher. Some of his general observations came so home that I almost
+      thought they were meant for myself. His advice about adopting a system of
+      study is very judicious. I will immediately put it hi practice. My mind
+      shall operate henceforward with the regularity of clock-work.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      How far I succeeded in adopting this plan, how I fared in the further
+      pursuit of knowledge, and how I succeeded in my suit to Julia Somerville,
+      may afford matter for a further communication to the public, if this
+      simple record of my early life is fortunate enough to excite any
+      curiosity.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      <br /><br />
+    </p>
+    <hr />
+    <p>
+      <a name="link2H_4_0002" id="link2H_4_0002"> </a>
+    </p>
+    <div style="height: 4em;">
+      <br /><br /><br /><br />
+    </div>
+    <h2>
+      THE GREAT MISSISSIPPI BUBBLE
+    </h2>
+    <h3>
+      &ldquo;A TIME OF UNEXAMPLED PROSPERITY&rdquo;
+     </h3>
+    <p>
+      In the course of a voyage from England, I once fell in with a convoy of
+      merchant ships bound for the West Indies. The weather was uncommonly
+      bland; and the ships vied with each other in spreading sail to catch a
+      light, favoring breeze, until their hulls were almost hidden beneath a
+      cloud of canvas. The breeze went down with the sun, and his last yellow
+      rays shone upon a thousand sails, idly flapping against the masts.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      I exulted in the beauty of the scene, and augured a prosperous voyage; but
+      the veteran master of the ship shook his head, and pronounced this halcyon
+      calm a &ldquo;weather-breeder.&rdquo; And so it proved. A storm burst forth in the
+      night; the sea roared and raged; and when the day broke, I beheld the late
+      gallant convoy scattered in every direction; some dismasted, others
+      scudding under bare poles, and many firing signals of distress.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      I have since been occasionally reminded of this scene, by those calm,
+      sunny seasons in the commercial world, which are known by the name of
+      &ldquo;times of unexampled prosperity.&rdquo; They are the sure weather-breeders of
+      traffic. Every now and then the world is visited by one of these delusive
+      seasons, when &ldquo;the credit system,&rdquo; as it is called, expands to full
+      luxuriance, everybody trusts everybody; a bad debt is a thing unheard of;
+      the broad way to certain and sudden wealth lies plain and open; and men
+      are tempted to dash forward boldly, from the facility of borrowing.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Promissory notes, interchanged between scheming individuals, are liberally
+      discounted at the banks, which become so many mints to coin words into
+      cash; and as the supply of words is inexhaustible, it may readily be
+      supposed what a vast amount of promissory capital is soon in circulation.
+      Every one now talks in thousands; nothing is heard but gigantic operations
+      in trade; great purchases and sales of real property, and immense sums
+      made at every transfer. All, to be sure, as yet exists in promise; but the
+      believer in promises calculates the aggregate as solid capital, and falls
+      back in amazement at the amount of public wealth, the &ldquo;unexampled state of
+      public prosperity.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      Now is the time for speculative and dreaming or designing men. They relate
+      their dreams and projects to the ignorant and credulous, dazzle them with
+      golden visions, and set them madding after shadows. The example of one
+      stimulates another; speculation rises on speculation; bubble rises on
+      bubble; every one helps with his breath to swell the windy superstructure,
+      and admires and wonders at the magnitude of the inflation he has
+      contributed to produce.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Speculation is the romance of trade, and casts contempt upon all its sober
+      realities. It renders the stock-jobber a magician, and the exchange a
+      region of enchantment. It elevates the merchant into a kind of
+      knight-errant, or rather a commercial Quixote. The slow but sure gains of
+      snug percentage become despicable in his eyes; no &ldquo;operation&rdquo; is thought
+      worthy of attention that does not double or treble the investment. No
+      business is worth following that does not promise an immediate fortune. As
+      he sits musing over his ledger, with pen behind his ear, he is like La
+      Mancha&rsquo;s hero in his study, dreaming over his books of chivalry. His dusty
+      counting-house fades before his eyes, or changes into a Spanish mine; he
+      gropes after diamonds, or dives after pearls. The subterranean garden of
+      Aladdin is nothing to the realms of wealth that break upon his
+      imagination.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Could this delusion always last, the life of a merchant would indeed be a
+      golden dream; but it is as short as it is brilliant. Let but a doubt
+      enter, and the &ldquo;season of unexampled prosperity&rdquo; is at end. The coinage of
+      words is suddenly curtailed; the promissory capital begins to vanish into
+      smoke; a panic succeeds, and the whole superstructure, built upon credit
+      and reared by speculation, crumbles to the ground, leaving scarce a wreck
+      behind:
+    </p>
+<pre xml:space="preserve">
+  &ldquo;It is such stuff as dreams are made of.&rdquo;
+ </pre>
+    <p>
+      When a man of business, therefore, hears on every side rumors of fortunes
+      suddenly acquired; when he finds banks liberal, and brokers busy; when he
+      sees adventurers flush of paper capital, and full of scheme and
+      enterprise; when he perceives a greater disposition to buy than to sell;
+      when trade overflows its accustomed channels and deluges the country; when
+      he hears of new regions of commercial adventure; of distant marts and
+      distant mines, swallowing merchandise and disgorging gold; when he finds
+      joint-stock companies of all kinds forming; railroads, canals, and
+      locomotive engines, springing up on every side; when idlers suddenly
+      become men of business, and dash into the game of commerce as they would
+      into the hazards of the faro table; when he beholds the streets glittering
+      with new equipages, palaces conjured up by the magic of speculation;
+      tradesmen flushed with sudden success, and vying with each other in
+      ostentatious expense; in a word, when he hears the whole community joining
+      in the theme of &ldquo;unexampled prosperity,&rdquo; let him look upon the whole as a
+      &ldquo;weather-breeder,&rdquo; and prepare for the impending storm.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The foregoing remarks are intended merely as a prelude to a narrative I am
+      about to lay before the public, of one of the most memorable instances of
+      the infatuation of gain to be found in the whole history of commerce. I
+      allude to the famous Mississippi Bubble. It is a matter that has passed
+      into a proverb, and become a phrase in every one&rsquo;s mouth, yet of which not
+      one merchant in ten has probably a distinct idea. I have therefore thought
+      that an authentic account of it would be interesting and salutary, at the
+      present moment, when we are suffering under the effects of a severe access
+      of the credit system, and just recovering from one of its ruinous
+      delusions.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Before entering into the story of this famous chimera, it is proper to
+      give a few particulars concerning the individual who engendered it. John
+      Law was born in Edinburgh in 1671. His father, William Law, was a rich
+      goldsmith, and left his son an estate of considerable value, called
+      Lauriston, situated about four miles from Edinburgh. Goldsmiths, in those
+      days, acted occasionally as bankers, and his father&rsquo;s operations, under
+      this character, may have originally turned the thoughts of the youth to
+      the science of calculation, in which he became an adept; so that at an
+      early age he excelled in playing at all games of combination.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      In 1694 he appeared in London, where a handsome person, and an easy and
+      insinuating address, gained him currency in the first circles and the
+      nickname of &ldquo;Beau Law.&rdquo; The same personal advantages gave him success in
+      the world of gallantry, until he became involved in a quarrel with Beau
+      Wilson, his rival in fashion, whom he killed in a duel, and then fled to
+      France, to avoid prosecution.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      He returned to Edinburgh in 1700, and remained there several years; during
+      which time he first broached his great credit system, offering to supply
+      the deficiency of coin by the establishment of a bank, which, according to
+      his views, might emit a paper currency equivalent to the whole landed
+      estate of the kingdom.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      His scheme excited great astonishment in Edinburgh; but, though the
+      government was not sufficiently advanced in financial knowledge to detect
+      the fallacies upon which it was founded, Scottish caution and suspicion
+      served in the place of wisdom, and the project was rejected. Law met with
+      no better success with the English Parliament; and the fatal affair of the
+      death of Wilson still hanging over him, for which he had never been able
+      to procure a pardon, he again went to France.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The financial affairs of France were at this time in a deplorable
+      condition. The wars, the pomp and profusion, of Louis XIV., and his
+      religious persecutions of whole classes of the most industrious of his
+      subjects, had exhausted his treasury, and overwhelmed the nation with
+      debt. The old monarch clung to his selfish magnificence, and could not be
+      induced to diminish his enormous expenditure; and his minister of finance
+      was driven to his wits&rsquo; end to devise all kinds of disastrous expedients
+      to keep up the royal state, and to extricate the nation from its
+      embarrassments.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      In this state of things, Law ventured to bring forward his financial
+      project. It was founded on the plan of the Bank of England, which had
+      already been in successful operation several years. He met with immediate
+      patronage, and a congenial spirit, in the Duke of Orleans, who had married
+      a natural daughter of the king. The duke had been astonished at the
+      facility with which England had supported the burden of a public debt,
+      created by the wars of Anne and William, and which exceeded in amount that
+      under which France was groaning. The whole matter was soon explained by
+      Law to his satisfaction. The latter maintained that England had stopped at
+      the mere threshold of an art capable of creating unlimited sources of
+      national wealth. The duke was dazzled with his splendid views and specious
+      reasonings, and thought he clearly comprehended his system. Demarets, the
+      Comptroller-General of Finance, was not so easily deceived. He pronounced
+      the plan of Law more pernicious than any of the disastrous expedients that
+      the government had yet been driven to. The old king also, Louis XIV.,
+      detested all innovations, especially those which came from a rival nation;
+      the project of a bank, therefore, was utterly rejected.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Law remained for a while in Paris, leading a gay and affluent existence,
+      owing to his handsome person, easy manners, flexible temper, and a
+      faro-bank which he had set up. His agreeable career was interrupted by a
+      message from D&rsquo;Argenson, Lieutenant-General of Police, ordering him to
+      quit Paris, alleging that he was &ldquo;<i>rather too skillful at the game which
+      he had introduced</i>.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      For several succeeding years he shifted his residence from state to state
+      of Italy and Germany; offering his scheme of finance to every court that
+      he visited, but without success. The Duke of Savoy, Victor Amadeus,
+      afterward king of Sardinia, was much struck with his project; but after
+      considering it for a time, replied, <i>&ldquo;I am not sufficiently powerful to
+      ruin myself.&rdquo;</i>
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The shifting, adventurous life of Law, and the equivocal means by which he
+      appeared to live, playing high, and always with great success, threw a
+      cloud of suspicion over him wherever he went, and caused him to be
+      expelled by the magistracy from the semi-commercial, semi-aristocratical
+      cities of Venice and Genoa.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The events of 1715 brought Law back again to Paris. Louis XIV. was dead.
+      Louis XV. was a mere child, and during his minority the Duke of Orleans
+      held the reins of government as Regent. Law had at length found his man.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The Duke of Orleans has been differently represented by different
+      contemporaries. He appears to have had excellent natural qualities,
+      perverted by a bad education. He was of the middle size, easy and
+      graceful, with an agreeable countenance, and open, affable demeanor. His
+      mind was quick and sagacious, rather than profound; and his quickness of
+      intellect, and excellence of memory, supplied the lack of studious
+      application. His wit was prompt and pungent; he expressed himself with
+      vivacity and precision; his imagination was vivid, his temperament
+      sanguine and joyous; his courage daring. His mother, the Duchess of
+      Orleans, expressed his character in a jeu d&rsquo;esprit. &ldquo;The fairies,&rdquo; said
+      she, &ldquo;were invited to be present at his birth, and each one conferring a
+      talent on my son, he possesses them all. Unfortunately, we had forgotten
+      to invite an old fairy, who, arriving after all the others, exclaimed, &lsquo;He
+      shall have all the talents, excepting that to make a good use of them.&rsquo;&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      Under proper tuition, the duke might have risen to real greatness; but in
+      his early years he was put under the tutelage of the Abbe Dubois, one of
+      the subtlest and basest spirits that ever intrigued its way into eminent
+      place and power. The abbe was of low origin and despicable exterior,
+      totally destitute of morals, and perfidious in the extreme; but with a
+      supple, insinuating address, and an accommodating spirit, tolerant of all
+      kinds of profligacy in others. Conscious of his own inherent baseness, he
+      sought to secure an influence over his pupil, by corrupting his principles
+      and fostering his vices; he debased him, to keep himself from being
+      despised. Unfortunately he succeeded. To the early precepts of this
+      infamous pander have been attributed those excesses that disgraced the
+      manhood of the regent, and gave a licentious character to his whole course
+      of government. His love of pleasure, quickened and indulged by those who
+      should have restrained it, led him into all kinds of sensual indulgence.
+      He had been taught to think lightly of the most serious duties and sacred
+      ties; to turn virtue into a jest, and consider religion mere hypocrisy. He
+      was a gay misanthrope, that had a sovereign but sportive contempt for
+      mankind; believed that his most devoted servant would be his enemy, if
+      interest prompted; and maintained that an honest man was he who had the
+      art to conceal that he was the contrary.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      He surrounded himself with a set of dissolute men like himself; who, let
+      loose from the restraint under which they had been held, during the latter
+      hypocritical days of Louis XIV., now gave way to every kind of debauchery.
+      With these men the regent used to shut himself up, after the hours of
+      business, and excluding all graver persons and graver concerns, celebrate
+      the most drunken and disgusting orgies; where obscenity and blasphemy
+      formed the seasoning of conversation. For the profligate companions of
+      these revels, he invented the appellation of his <i>roués</i>, the literal
+      meaning of which is men broken on the wheel; intended, no doubt, to
+      express their broken-down characters and dislocated fortunes; although a
+      contemporary asserts that it designated the punishment that most of them
+      merited. Madame de Labran, who was present at one of the regent&rsquo;s suppers,
+      was disgusted by the conduct and conversation of the host and his guests,
+      and observed, at table, that God, after he had created man, took the
+      refuse clay that was left, and made of it the souls of lackeys and
+      princes.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Such was the man that now ruled the destinies of France. Law found him
+      full of perplexities, from the disastrous state of the finances. He had
+      already tampered with the coinage, calling in the coin of the nation,
+      restamping it, and issuing it at a nominal increase of one-fifth; thus
+      defrauding the nation out of twenty per cent of its capital. He was not
+      likely, therefore, to be scrupulous about any means likely to relieve him
+      from financial difficulties; he had even been led to listen to the cruel
+      alternative of a national bankruptcy.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Under these circumstances, Law confidently brought forward his scheme of a
+      bank, that was to pay off the national debt, increase the revenue, and at
+      the same time diminish the taxes. The following is stated as the theory by
+      which he recommended his system to the regent. The credit enjoyed by a
+      banker or a merchant, he observed, increases his capital tenfold; that is
+      to say, he who has a capital of one thousand livres, may, if he possess
+      sufficient credit, extend his operations to a million, and reap profits to
+      that amount. In like manner, a state that can collect into a bank all the
+      current coin of the kingdom, would be as powerful as if its capital were
+      increased tenfold. The specie must be drawn into the bank, not by way of
+      loan, or by taxations, but in the way of deposit. This might be effected
+      in different modes, either by inspiring confidence or by exerting
+      authority. One mode, he observed, had already been in use. Each time that
+      a state makes a recoinage, it becomes momentarily the depositary of all
+      the money called in, belonging to the subjects of that state. His bank was
+      to effect the same purpose; that is to say, to receive in deposit all the
+      coin of the kingdom, but to give in exchange its bills, which, being of an
+      invariable value, bearing an interest, and being payable on demand, would
+      not only supply the place of coin, but prove a better and more profitable
+      currency.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The regent caught with avidity at the scheme. It suited his bold, reckless
+      spirit, and his grasping extravagance. Not that he was altogether the dupe
+      of Law&rsquo;s specious projects; still he was apt, like many other men,
+      unskilled in the arcana of finance, to mistake the multiplication of money
+      for the multiplication of wealth; not understanding that it was a mere
+      agent or instrument in the interchange of traffic, to represent the value
+      of the various productions of industry; and that an increased circulation
+      of coin or bank bills, in the shape of currency, only adds a
+      proportionably increased and fictitious value to such productions. Law
+      enlisted the vanity of the regent in his cause. He persuaded him that he
+      saw more clearly than others into sublime theories of finance, which were
+      quite above the ordinary apprehension. He used to declare that, excepting
+      the regent and the Duke of Savoy, no one had thoroughly comprehended his
+      system.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      It is certain that it met with strong opposition from the regent&rsquo;s
+      ministers, the Duke de Noailles and the Chancellor d&rsquo;Anguesseau; and it
+      was no less strenuously opposed by the Parliament of Paris. Law, however,
+      had a potent though secret coadjutor in the Abbe Dubois, now rising,
+      during the regency, into great political power, and who retained a baneful
+      influence over the mind of the regent. This wily priest, as avaricious as
+      he was ambitious, drew large sums from Law as subsidies, and aided him
+      greatly in many of his most pernicious operations. He aided him, in the
+      present instance, to fortify the mind of the regent against all the
+      remonstrances of his ministers and the parliament.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Accordingly, on the 2d of May, 1716, letters patent were granted to Law,
+      to establish a bank of deposit, discount, and circulation, under the firm
+      of &ldquo;Law &amp; Company,&rdquo; to continue for twenty years. The capital was
+      fixed at six millions of livres, divided into shares of five hundred
+      livres each, which were to be sold for twenty-five per cent of the
+      regent&rsquo;s debased coin, and seventy-five per cent of the public securities;
+      which were then at a great reduction from their nominal value, and which
+      then amounted to nineteen hundred millions. The ostensible object of the
+      bank, as set forth in the patent, was to encourage the commerce and
+      manufactures of France. The louis d&rsquo;ors and crowns of the bank were always
+      to retain the same standard of value, and its bills to be payable in them
+      on demand.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      At the outset, while the bank was limited in its operations, and while its
+      paper really represented the specie in its vaults, it seemed to realize
+      all that had been promised from it. It rapidly acquired public confidence,
+      and an extended circulation, and produced an activity in commerce unknown
+      under the baneful government of Louis XIV. As the bills of the bank bore
+      an interest, and as it was stipulated they would be of invariable value,
+      and as hints had been artfully circulated that the coin would experience
+      successive diminution, everybody hastened to the bank to exchange gold and
+      silver for paper. So great became the throng of depositors, and so intense
+      their eagerness, that there was quite a press and struggle at the bank
+      door, and a ludicrous panic was awakened, as if there was danger of their
+      not being admitted. An anecdote of the time relates that one of the
+      clerks, with an ominous smile, called out to the struggling multitude,
+      &ldquo;Have a little patience, my friends; we mean to take all your money;&rdquo; an
+      assertion disastrously verified in the sequel.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Thus, by the simple establishment of a bank, Law and the regent obtained
+      pledges of confidence for the consummation of further and more complicated
+      schemes, as yet hidden from the public. In a little while, the bank shares
+      rose enormously, and the amount of its notes in circulation exceeded one
+      hundred and ten millions of livres. A subtle stroke of policy had rendered
+      it popular with the aristocracy. Louis XIV. had several years previously
+      imposed an income tax of a tenth, giving his royal word that it should
+      cease in 1717. This tax had been exceedingly irksome to the privileged
+      orders; and in the present disastrous times they had dreaded an
+      augmentation of it. In consequence of the successful operation of Law&rsquo;s
+      scheme, however, the tax was abolished, and now nothing was to be heard
+      among the nobility and clergy but praises of the regent and the bank.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Hitherto all had gone well, and all might have continued to go well, had
+      not the paper system been further expanded. But Law had yet the grandest
+      part of his scheme to develop. He had to open his ideal world of
+      speculation, his El Dorado of unbounded wealth. The English had brought
+      the vast imaginary commerce of the South Seas in aid of their banking
+      operations. Law sought to bring, as an immense auxiliary of his bank, the
+      whole trade of the Mississippi. Under this name was included not merely
+      the river so called, but the vast region known as Louisiana, extending
+      from north latitude 29° up to Canada in north latitude 40°. This country
+      had been granted by Louis XIV. to the Sieur Crozat, but he had been
+      induced to resign his patent. In conformity to the plea of Mr. Law,
+      letters patent were granted in August, 1717, for the creation of a
+      commercial company, which was to have the colonizing of this country, and
+      the monopoly of its trade and resources, and of the beaver or fur trade
+      with Canada. It was called the Western, but became better known as the
+      Mississippi Company. The capital was fixed at one hundred millions of
+      livres, divided into shares, bearing an Interest of four per cent, which
+      were subscribed for in the public securities. As the bank was to
+      co-operate with the company, the regent ordered that its bills should be
+      received the same as coin, in all payments of the public revenue. Law was
+      appointed chief director of this company, which was an exact copy of the
+      Earl of Oxford&rsquo;s South Sea Company, set on foot in 1711, and which
+      distracted all England with the frenzy of speculation. In like manner with
+      the delusive picturings given in that memorable scheme of the sources of
+      rich trade to be opened in the South Sea countries, Law held forth
+      magnificent prospects of the fortunes to be made in colonizing Louisiana,
+      which was represented as a veritable land of promise, capable of yielding
+      every variety of the most precious produce. Reports, too, were artfully
+      circulated, with great mystery, as if to the &ldquo;chosen few,&rdquo; of mines of
+      gold and silver recently discovered in Louisiana, and which would insure
+      instant wealth to the early purchasers. These confidential whispers of
+      course soon became public; and were confirmed by travelers fresh from the
+      Mississippi, and doubtless bribed, who had seen the mines in question, and
+      declared them superior in richness to those of Mexico and Peru. Nay, more,
+      ocular proof was furnished to public credulity, in ingots of gold conveyed
+      to the mint, as if just brought from the mines of Louisiana.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Extraordinary measures were adopted to force a colonization. An edict was
+      issued to collect and transport settlers to the Mississippi. The police
+      lent its aid. The streets and prisons of Paris, and of the provincial
+      cities, were swept of mendicants and vagabonds of all kinds, who were
+      conveyed to Havre de Grace. About six thousand were crowded into ships,
+      where no precautions had been taken for their health or accommodation.
+      Instruments of all kinds proper for the working of mines were
+      ostentatiously paraded in public, and put on board the vessels; and the
+      whole set sail for this fabled El Dorado, which was to prove the grave of
+      the greater part of its wretched colonists.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      D&rsquo;Anguesseau, the chancellor, a man of probity and integrity, still lifted
+      his voice against the paper system of Law, and his project of
+      colonization, and was eloquent and prophetic in picturing the evils they
+      were calculated to produce; the private distress and public degradation;
+      the corruption of morals and manners; the triumph of knaves and schemers;
+      the ruin of fortunes, and downfall of families. He was incited more and
+      more to this opposition by the Duke de Noailles, the Minister of Finance,
+      who was jealous of the growing ascendency of Law over the mind of the
+      regent, but was less honest than the chancellor in his opposition. The
+      regent was excessively annoyed by the difficulties they conjured up in the
+      way of his darling schemes of finance, and the countenance they gave to
+      the opposition of parliament; which body, disgusted more and more with the
+      abuses of the regency, and the system of Law, had gone so far as to carry
+      its remonstrances to the very foot of the throne.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      He determined to relieve himself from these two ministers, who, either
+      through honesty or policy, interfered with all his plans. Accordingly, on
+      the 28th of January, 1718, he dismissed the chancellor from office, and
+      exiled him to his estate in the country; and shortly afterward removed the
+      Duke de Noailles from the administration of the finances.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The opposition of parliament to the regent and his measures was carried on
+      with increasing violence. That body aspired to an equal authority with the
+      regent in the administration of affairs, and pretended, by its decree, to
+      suspend an edict of the regency, ordering a new coinage and altering the
+      value of the currency. But its chief hostility was leveled against Law, a
+      foreigner and a heretic, and one who was considered by a majority of the
+      members in the light of a malefactor. In fact, so far was this hostility
+      carried, that secret measures were taken to investigate his malversations,
+      and to collect evidence against him; and it was resolved in parliament
+      that, should the testimony collected justify their suspicions, they would
+      have him seized and brought before them; would give him a brief trial,
+      and, if convicted, would hang him in the courtyard of the palace, and
+      throw open the gates after the execution, that the public might behold his
+      corpse!
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Law received intimation of the danger hanging over him, and was in
+      terrible trepidation. He took refuge in the Palais Royal, the residence of
+      the regent, and implored his protection. The regent himself was
+      embarrassed by the sturdy opposition of parliament, which contemplated
+      nothing less than a decree reversing most of his public measures,
+      especially those of finance. His indecision kept Law for a time in an
+      agony of terror and suspense. Finally, by assembling a board of justice,
+      and bringing to his aid the absolute authority of the king, he triumphed
+      over parliament and relieved Law from his dread of being hanged.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The system now went on with flowing sail. The Western or Mississippi
+      Company, being identified with the bank, rapidly increased in power and
+      privileges. One monopoly after another was granted to it; the trade of the
+      Indian seas; the slave trade with Senegal and Guinea; the farming of
+      tobacco; the national coinage, etc. Each new privilege was made a pretext
+      for issuing more bills, and caused an immense advance in the price of
+      stock. At length, on the 4th of December, 1718, the regent gave the
+      establishment the imposing title of &ldquo;The Royal Bank,&rdquo; and proclaimed that
+      he had effected the purchase of all the shares, the proceeds of which he
+      had added to its capital This measure seemed to shock the public feeling
+      more than any other connected with the system, and roused the indignation
+      of parliament. The French nation had been so accustomed to attach an idea
+      of everything noble, lofty, and magnificent to the royal name and person,
+      especially during the stately and sumptuous reign of Louis XIV., that they
+      could not at first tolerate the idea of royalty being in any degree
+      mingled with matters of traffic and finance, and the king being in a
+      manner a banker. It was one of the downward steps, however, by which
+      royalty lost its illusive splendor in France, and became gradually
+      cheapened in the public mind.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Arbitrary measures now began to be taken to force the bills of the bank
+      into artificial currency. On the 27th of December appeared an order in
+      council, forbidding, under severe penalties, the payment of any sum above
+      six hundred livres in gold or silver. This decree rendered bank bills
+      necessary in all transactions of purchase and sale, and called for a new
+      emission. The prohibition was occasionally evaded or opposed;
+      confiscations were the consequence; informers were rewarded, and spies and
+      traitors began to spring up in all the domestic walks of life.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The worst effect of this illusive system was the mania for gain, or rather
+      for gambling in stocks, that now seized upon the whole nation. Under the
+      exciting effects of lying reports, and the forcing effects of government
+      decrees, the shares of the company went on rising in value until they
+      reached thirteen hundred per cent. Nothing was now spoken of but the price
+      of shares, and the immense fortunes suddenly made by lucky speculators.
+      Those whom Law had deluded used every means to delude others. The most
+      extravagant dreams were indulged, concerning the wealth to flow in upon
+      the company from its colonies, its trade, and its various monopolies. It
+      is true nothing as yet had been realized, nor could in some time be
+      realized, from these distant sources, even if productive; but the
+      imaginations of speculators are ever in the advance, and their conjectures
+      are immediately converted into facts. Lying reports now flew from mouth to
+      month, of sure avenues to fortune suddenly thrown open. The more
+      extravagant the fable, the more readily was it believed. To doubt was to
+      awaken anger, or incur ridicule. In a time of public infatuation, it
+      requires no small exercise of courage to doubt a popular fallacy.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Paris now became the center of attraction for the adventurous and the
+      avaricious, who flocked to it, not merely from the provinces, but from
+      neighboring countries. A stock exchange was established in a house in the
+      Rue Quincampoix, and became immediately the gathering place of
+      stock-jobbers. The exchange opened at seven o&rsquo;clock, with the beat of drum
+      and sound of bell, and closed at night with the same signals. Guards were
+      stationed at each end of the street, to maintain order and exclude
+      carriages and horses. The whole street swarmed throughout the day like a
+      bee-hive. Bargains of all kinds were seized upon with avidity. Shares of
+      stock passed from hand to hand, mounting in value, one knew not why.
+      Fortunes were made in a moment, as if by magic; and every lucky bargain
+      prompted those around to a more desperate throw of the die. The fever went
+      on, increasing in intensity as the day declined; and when the drum beat,
+      and the bell rang, at night, to close the exchange, there were
+      exclamations of impatience and despair, as if the wheel of fortune had
+      suddenly been stopped when about to make its luckiest evolution.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      To engulf all classes in this ruinous vortex, Law now split the shares of
+      fifty millions of stock each into one hundred shares; thus, as in the
+      splitting of lottery tickets, accommodating the venture to the humblest
+      purse. Society was thus stirred up to its very dregs, and adventurers of
+      the lowest order hurried to the stock market. All honest, industrious
+      pursuits, and modest gains, were now despised. Wealth was to be obtained
+      instantly, without labor and without stint. The upper classes were as base
+      in their venality as the lower. The highest and most powerful nobles,
+      abandoning all generous pursuits and lofty aims, engaged in the vile
+      scuffle for gam. They were even baser than the lower classes; for some of
+      them, who were members of the council of the regency, abused their station
+      and their influence, and promoted measures by which shares rose while in
+      their hands, and they made immense profits.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The Duke de Bourbon, the prince of Conti, the Dukes de la Force and
+      D&rsquo;Antin were among the foremost of these illustrious stock-jobbers. They
+      were nicknamed the Mississippi Lords, and they smiled at the sneering
+      title. In fact, the usual distinctions of society had lost their
+      consequence, under the reign of this new passion. Bank, talent, military
+      fame, no longer inspired deference. All respect for others, all
+      self-respect, were forgotten in the mercenary struggle of the
+      stock-market. Even prelates and ecclesiastical corporations, forgetting
+      their true objects of devotion, mingled among the votaries of Mammon. They
+      were not behind those who wielded the civil power in fabricating
+      ordinances suited to their avaricious purposes. Theological decisions
+      forthwith appeared, in which the anathema launched by the Church against
+      usury was conveniently construed as not extending to the traffic in bank
+      shares!
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The Abbe Dubois entered into the mysteries of stockjobbing with all the
+      zeal of an apostle, and enriched himself by the spoils of the credulous;
+      and he continually drew large sums from Law, as considerations for his
+      political influence. Faithless to his country, in the course of his
+      gambling speculations he transferred to England a great amount of specie,
+      which had been paid into the royal treasury; thus contributing to the
+      subsequent dearth of the precious metals.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The female sex participated in this sordid frenzy. Princesses of the
+      blood, and ladies of the highest nobility, were among the most rapacious
+      of stock-jobbers. The regent seemed to have the riches of Croesus at his
+      command, and lavished money by hundreds of thousands upon his female
+      relatives and favorites, as well as upon his <i>roués</i>, the dissolute
+      companions of his debauches. &ldquo;My son,&rdquo; writes the regent&rsquo;s mother, in her
+      correspondence, &ldquo;gave me shares to the amount of two millions, which I
+      distributed among my household. The king also took several millions for
+      his own household. All the royal family have had them; all the children
+      and grandchildren of France, and the princes of the blood.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      Luxury and extravagance kept pace with this sudden inflation of fancied
+      wealth. The hereditary palaces of nobles were pulled down, and rebuilt on
+      a scale of augmented splendor. Entertainments were given of incredible
+      cost and magnificence. Never before had been such display in houses,
+      furniture, equipages, and amusements. This was particularly the case among
+      persons of the lower ranks, who had suddenly become possessed of millions.
+      Ludicrous anecdotes are related of some of these upstarts. One, who had
+      just launched a splendid carriage, when about to use it for the first
+      time, instead of getting in at the door, mounted, through habitude, to his
+      accustomed place behind. Some ladies of quality, seeing a well-dressed
+      woman covered with diamonds, but whom nobody knew, alight from a very
+      handsome carriage, inquired who she was of the footman. He replied, with a
+      sneer: &ldquo;It is a lady who has recently tumbled from a garret into this
+      carriage.&rdquo; Mr. Law&rsquo;s domestics were said to become in like manner suddenly
+      enriched by the crumbs that fell from his table. His coachman, having made
+      his fortune, retired from his service. Mr. Law requested him to procure a
+      coachman in his place. He appeared the next day with two, whom he
+      pronounced equally good, and told Mr. Law: &ldquo;Take which of them you choose,
+      and I will take the other!&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      Nor were these <i>novi homini</i> treated with the distance and disdain
+      they would formerly have experienced from the haughty aristocracy of
+      France. The pride of the old noblesse had been stifled by the stronger
+      instinct of avarice. They rather sought the intimacy and confidence of
+      these lucky upstarts; and it has been observed that a nobleman would
+      gladly take his seat at the table of the fortunate lackey of yesterday, in
+      hopes of learning from him the secret of growing rich!
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Law now went about with a countenance radiant with success and apparently
+      dispensing wealth on every side. &ldquo;He is admirably skilled in all that
+      relates to finance,&rdquo; writes the Duchess of Orleans, the regent&rsquo;s mother,
+      &ldquo;and has put the affairs of the state in such good order that all the
+      king&rsquo;s debts have been paid. He is so much run after that he has no repose
+      night or day. A duchess even kissed his hand publicly. If a duchess can do
+      this, what will other ladies do?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      Wherever he went, his path, we are told, was beset by a sordid throng, who
+      waited to see him pass, and sought to obtain the favor of a word, a nod,
+      or smile, as if a mere glance from him would bestow fortune. When at home,
+      his house was absolutely besieged by furious candidates for fortune. &ldquo;They
+      forced the doors,&rdquo; says the Duke de St. Simon; &ldquo;they scaled his windows
+      from the garden; they made their way into his cabinet down the chimney!&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      The same venal court was paid by all classes to his family. The highest
+      ladies of the court vied with each other in meannesses to purchase the
+      lucrative friendship of Mrs. Law and her daughter. They waited upon them
+      with as much assiduity and adulation as if they had been princesses of the
+      blood. The regent one day expressed a desire that some duchess should
+      accompany his daughter to Genoa. &ldquo;My lord,&rdquo; said some one present, &ldquo;if you
+      would have a choice from among the duchesses, you need but send to Mrs.
+      Law&rsquo;s, you will find them all assembled there.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      The wealth of Law rapidly increased with the expansion of the bubble. In
+      the course of a few months he purchased fourteen titled estates, paying
+      for them in paper; and the public hailed these sudden and vast
+      acquisitions of landed property as so many proofs of the soundness of his
+      system. In one instance he met with a shrewd bargainer, who had not the
+      general faith in his paper money. The President de Novion insisted on
+      being paid for an estate in hard coin. Law accordingly brought the amount,
+      four hundred thousand livres, in specie, saying, with a sarcastic smile,
+      that he preferred paying in money as its weight rendered it a mere
+      encumbrance. As it happened, the president could give no clear title to
+      the land, and the money had to be refunded. He paid it back <i>in paper</i>,
+      which Law dared not refuse, lest he should depreciate it in the market.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The course of illusory credit went on triumphantly for eighteen months.
+      Law had nearly fulfilled one of his promises, for the greater part of the
+      public debt had been paid off; but how paid? In bank shares, which had
+      been trumped up several hundred per cent above their value, and which were
+      to vanish like smoke in the hands of the holders.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      One of the most striking attributes of Law was the imperturbable assurance
+      and self-possession with which he replied to every objection, and found a
+      solution for every problem. He had the dexterity of a juggler in evading
+      difficulties; and what was peculiar, made figures themselves, which are
+      the very elements of exact demonstration, the means to dazzle and
+      bewilder.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Toward the latter end of 1719 the Mississippi scheme had reached its
+      highest point of glory. Half a million of strangers had crowded into Paris
+      in quest of fortune. The hotels and lodging-houses were overflowing;
+      lodgings were procured with excessive difficulty; granaries were turned
+      into bedrooms; provisions had risen enormously in price; splendid houses
+      were multiplying on every side; the streets were crowded with carriages;
+      above a thousand new equipages had been launched.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      On the eleventh of December, Law obtained another prohibitory decree, for
+      the purpose of sweeping all the remaining specie in circulation into the
+      bank. By this it was forbidden to make any payment in silver above ten
+      livres, or in gold above three hundred.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The repeated decrees of this nature, the object of which was to depreciate
+      the value of gold, and increase the illusive credit of paper, began to
+      awaken doubts of a system which required such bolstering. Capitalists
+      gradually awoke from their bewilderment. Sound and able financiers
+      consulted together, and agreed to make common cause against this continual
+      expansion of a paper system. The shares of the bank and of the company
+      began to decline in value. Wary men took the alarm, and began to <i>realize</i>,
+      a word now first brought into use, to express the conversion of <i>ideal</i>
+      property into something <i>real</i>.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The prince of Conti, one of the most prominent and grasping of the
+      Mississippi lords, was the first to give a blow to the credit of the bank.
+      There was a mixture of ingratitude in his conduct that characterized the
+      venal baseness of the times. He had received from time to time enormous
+      sums from Law, as the price of his influence and patronage. His avarice
+      had increased with every acquisition, until Law was compelled to refuse
+      one of his exactions. In revenge the prince immediately sent such an
+      amount of paper to the bank to be cashed that it required four wagons to
+      bring away the silver, and he had the meanness to loll out of the window
+      of his hotel and jest and exult as it was trundled into his portecochère.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      This was the signal for other drains of like nature. The English and Dutch
+      merchants, who had purchased a great amount of bank paper at low prices,
+      cashed them at the bank, and carried the money out of the country. Other
+      strangers did the like, thus draining the kingdom of its specie, and
+      leaving paper in its place.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The regent, perceiving these symptoms of decay in the system, sought to
+      restore it to public confidence by conferring marks of confidence upon its
+      author.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      He accordingly resolved to make Law Comptroller General of the Finances of
+      France. There was a material obstacle in his way. Law was a Protestant,
+      and the regent, unscrupulous as he was himself, did not dare publicly to
+      outrage the severe edicts which Louis XIV., in his bigot days, had
+      fulminated against all heretics. Law soon let him know that there would be
+      no difficulty on that head. He was ready at any moment to abjure his
+      religion in the way of business. For decency&rsquo;s sake, however, it was
+      judged proper he should previously be convinced and converted. A ghostly
+      instructor was soon found, ready to accomplish his conversion in the
+      shortest possible time. This was the Abbe Tencin, a profligate creature of
+      the profligate Dubois, and like him working his way to ecclesiastical
+      promotion and temporal wealth, by the basest means.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Under the instructions of the Abbe Tencin, Law soon mastered the mysteries
+      and dogmas of the Catholic doctrine; and, after a brief course of ghostly
+      training, declared himself thoroughly convinced and converted. To avoid
+      the sneers and jests of the Parisian public the ceremony of abjuration
+      took place at Melun. Law made a pious present of one hundred thousand
+      livres to the Church of St. Roque, and the Abbe Tencin was rewarded for
+      his edifying labors by sundry shares and bank bills; which he shrewdly
+      took care to convert into cash, having as little faith in the system as in
+      the piety of his new convert. A more grave and moral community might have
+      been outraged by this scandalous farce; but the Parisians laughed at it
+      with their usual levity, and contented themselves with making it the
+      subject of a number of songs and epigrams.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Law now being orthodox in his faith, took out letters of naturalization,
+      and having thus surmounted the intervening obstacles, was elevated by the
+      regent to the post of comptroller-general. So accustomed had the community
+      become to all juggles and transmutations in this hero of finance, that no
+      one seemed shocked or astonished at his sudden elevation. On the contrary,
+      being now considered perfectly established in place and power, he became
+      more than ever the object of venal adoration. Men of rank and dignity
+      thronged his antechamber, waiting patiently their turn for an audience;
+      and titled dames demeaned themselves to take the front seats of the
+      carriages of his wife and daughter, as if they had been riding with
+      princesses of the blood royal. Law&rsquo;s head grew giddy with his elevation,
+      and he began to aspire after aristocratical distinction. There was to be a
+      court ball, at which several of the young noblemen were to dance in a
+      ballet with the youthful king. Law requested that his son might be
+      admitted into the ballet, and the regent consented. The young scions of
+      nobility, however, were indignant and scouted the &ldquo;intruding upstart.&rdquo;
+       Their more worldly parents, fearful of displeasing the modern Midas,
+      reprimanded them in vain. The striplings had not yet imbibed the passion
+      for gain, and still held to their high blood. The son of the banker
+      received slights and annoyances on all sides, and the public applauded
+      them for their spirit. A fit of illness came opportunely to relieve the
+      youth from an honor which would have cost him a world of vexations and
+      affronts.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      In February, 1720, shortly after Law&rsquo;s installment in office, a decree
+      came out uniting the bank to the India Company, by which last name the
+      whole establishment was now known. The decree stated that as the bank was
+      royal, the king was bound to make good the value of its bills; that he
+      committed to the company the government of the bank for fifty years, and
+      sold to it fifty millions of stock belonging to him, for nine hundred
+      millions; a simple advance of eighteen hundred per cent. The decree
+      further declared, in the king&rsquo;s name, that he would never draw on the bank
+      until the value of his drafts had first been lodged in it by his
+      receivers-general.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The bank, it was said, had by this time issued notes to the amount of one
+      thousand millions; being more paper than all the banks of Europe were able
+      to circulate. To aid its credit, the receivers of the revenue were
+      directed to take bank notes of the sub-receivers. All payments, also, of
+      one hundred livres and upward were ordered to be made in banknotes. These
+      compulsory measures for a short time gave a false credit to the bank,
+      which proceeded to discount merchants&rsquo; notes, to lend money on jewels,
+      plate, and other valuables, as well as on mortgages.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Still further to force on the system an edict next appeared, forbidding
+      any individual, or any corporate body, civil or religious, to hold in
+      possession more than five hundred livres in current coin; that is to say,
+      about seven louis d&rsquo;ors: the value of the louis-d&rsquo;or in paper being, at
+      the time, seventy-two livres. All the gold and silver they might have
+      above this pittance was to be brought to the royal bank and exchanged
+      either for shares or bills.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      As confiscation was the penalty of disobedience to this decree, and
+      informers were assured a share of the forfeitures, a bounty was in a
+      manner held out to domestic spies and traitors; and the most odious
+      scrutiny was awakened into the pecuniary affairs of families and
+      individuals. The very confidence between friends and relatives was
+      unpaired, and all the domestic ties and virtues of society were
+      threatened, until a general sentiment of indignation broke forth, that
+      compelled the regent to rescind the odious decree. Lord Stairs, the
+      British embassador, speaking of the system of espionage encouraged by this
+      edict, observed that it was impossible to doubt that Law was a thorough
+      Catholic, since he had thus established the <i>inquisition</i>, after
+      having already proved <i>transubstantiation</i>, by changing specie into
+      paper.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Equal abuses had taken place under the colonizing project. In his thousand
+      expedients to amass capital, Law had sold parcels of land in Mississippi,
+      at the rate of three thousand livres for a league square. Many capitalists
+      had purchased estates large enough to constitute almost a principality;
+      the only evil was, Law had sold a property which he could not deliver. The
+      agents of police, who aided in recruiting the ranks of the colonists, had
+      been guilty of scandalous impositions. Under pretense of taking up
+      mendicants and vagabonds, they had scoured the streets at night, seizing
+      upon honest mechanics, or their sons, and hurrying them to their
+      crimping-houses, for the sole purpose of extorting money from them as a
+      ransom. The populace was roused to indignation by these abuses. The
+      officers of police were mobbed in the exercise of their odious functions,
+      and several of them were killed; which put an end to this flagrant abuse
+      of power.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      In March, a most extraordinary decree of the council fixed the price of
+      shares of the India Company at nine thousand livres each. All
+      ecclesiastical communities and hospitals were now prohibited from
+      investing money at interest, in anything but India stock. With all these
+      props and stays, the system continued to totter. How could it be
+      otherwise, under a despotic government that could alter the value of
+      property at every moment? The very compulsory measures that were adopted
+      to establish the credit of the bank hastened its fall; plainly showing
+      there was a want of solid security.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Law caused pamphlets to be published, setting forth, in eloquent language,
+      the vast profits that must accrue to holders of the stock, and the
+      impossibility of the king&rsquo;s ever doing it any harm. On the very back of
+      these assertions came forth an edict of the king, dated the 22d of May,
+      wherein, under pretense of having reduced the value of his coin, it was
+      declared necessary to reduce the value of his bank-notes one-half, and of
+      the India shares from nine thousand to five thousand livres.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      This decree came like a clap of thunder upon shareholders. They found
+      one-half of the pretended value of the paper in their hands annihilated in
+      an instant; and what certainty had they with respect to the other half?
+      The rich considered themselves ruined; those in humbler circumstances
+      looked forward to abject beggary.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The parliament seized the occasion to stand forth as the protector of the
+      public, and refused to register the decree. It gained the credit of
+      compelling the regent to retrace his step, though it is more probable he
+      yielded to the universal burst of public astonishment and reprobation. On
+      the 27th of May the edict was revoked, and bank bills were restored to
+      their previous value. But the fatal blow had been struck; the delusion was
+      at an end. Government itself had lost all public confidence, equally with
+      the bank it had engendered, and which its own arbitrary acts had brought
+      into discredit. &ldquo;All Paris,&rdquo; says the regent&rsquo;s mother, in her letters,
+      &ldquo;has been mourning at the cursed decree which Law has persuaded my son to
+      make. I have received anonymous letters stating that I have nothing to
+      fear on my own account, but that my son shall be pursued with fire and
+      sword.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      The regent now endeavored to avert the odium of his ruinous schemes from
+      himself. He affected to have suddenly lost confidence in Law, and, on the
+      29th of May, discharged bin from his employ as comptroller-general, and
+      stationed a Swiss guard of sixteen men in his house. He even refused to
+      see him, when, on the following day, he applied at the portal of the
+      Palais Royal for admission; but having played off this farce before the
+      public, he admitted him secretly the same night, by a private door, and
+      continued as before to co-operate with him in his financial schemes.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      On the first of June the regent issued a decree, permitting persons to
+      have as much money as they pleased in their possession. Few, however, were
+      in a state to benefit by this permission. There was a run upon the bank,
+      but a royal ordinance immediately suspended payment, until further orders.
+      To relieve the public mind, a city stock was created, of twenty-five
+      millions, bearing an interest of two and a half per cent, for which bank
+      notes were taken in exchange. The bank notes thus withdrawn from
+      circulation were publicly burned before the Hotel de Ville. The public,
+      however, had lost confidence in everything and everybody, and suspected
+      fraud and collusion in those who pretended to burn the bills.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      A general confusion now took place hi the financial world. Families who
+      had lived in opulence found themselves suddenly reduced to indigence.
+      Schemers who had been reveling in the delusion of princely fortune found
+      their estates vanishing into thin air. Those who had any property
+      remaining sought to secure it against reverses. Cautious persons found
+      there was no safety for property in a country where the coin was
+      continually shifting in value, and where a despotism was exercised over
+      public securities, and even over the private purses of individuals. They
+      began to send their effects into other countries; when lo! on the 20th of
+      June a royal edict commanded them to bring back their effects, under
+      penalty of forfeiting twice their value; and forbade them, under like
+      penalty, from investing their money in foreign stocks. This was soon
+      followed by another decree, forbidding any one to retain precious stones
+      in his possession, or to sell them to foreigners; all must be deposited in
+      the bank, in exchange for depreciating paper!
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Execrations were now poured out on all sides against Law, and menaces of
+      vengeance. What a contrast, in a short time, to the venal incense that was
+      offered up to him! &ldquo;This person,&rdquo; writes the regent&rsquo;s mother, &ldquo;who was
+      formerly worshiped as a god, is now not sure of his life. It is
+      astonishing how greatly terrified he is. He is as a dead man; he is pale
+      as a sheet, and it is said he can never get over it. My son is not
+      dismayed, though he is threatened on all sides; and is very much amused
+      with Law&rsquo;s terrors.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      About the middle of July the last grand attempt was made by Law and the
+      regent to keep up the system and provide for the immense emission of
+      paper. A decree was fabricated, giving the India Company the entire
+      monopoly of commerce, on condition that it would, in the course of a year,
+      reimburse six hundred millions of livres of its bills, at the rate of
+      fifty millions per month.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      On the 17th this decree was sent to parliament to be registered. It at
+      once raised a storm of opposition in that assembly, and a vehement
+      discussion took place. While that was going on a disastrous scene was
+      passing out of doors.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The calamitous effects of the system had reached the humblest concerns of
+      human life. Provisions had risen to an enormous price; paper money was
+      refused at all the shops; the people had not wherewithal to buy bread. It
+      had been found absolutely indispensable to relax a little from the
+      suspension of specie payments, and to allow small sums to be scantily
+      exchanged for paper. The doors of the bank and the neighboring streets
+      were immediately thronged with a famishing multitude, seeking cash for
+      bank notes of ten livres. So great was the press and struggle that several
+      persons were stifled and crushed to death. The mob carried three of the
+      bodies to the courtyard of the Palais Royal. Some cried for the regent to
+      come forth and behold the effect of his system; others demanded the death
+      of Law, the impostor, who had brought this misery and rum upon the nation.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The moment was critical, the popular fury was rising to a tempest, when Le
+      Blanc, the Secretary of State, stepped forth. He had previously sent for
+      the military, and now only sought to gain tune. Singling out six or seven
+      stout fellows, who seemed to be the ringleaders of the mob: &ldquo;My good
+      fellows,&rdquo; said he, calmly, &ldquo;carry away these bodies and place them in some
+      church, and then come back quickly to me for your pay.&rdquo; They immediately
+      obeyed; a kind of funeral procession was formed; the arrival of troops
+      dispersed those who lingered behind; and Paris was probably saved from an
+      insurrection.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      About ten o&rsquo;clock in the morning, all being quiet, Law ventured to go in
+      his carriage to the Palais Royal. He was saluted with cries and curses, as
+      he passed along the streets; and he reached the Palais Royal in a terrible
+      fright. The regent amused himself with his fears, but retained him with
+      him, and sent off his carriage, which was assailed by the mob, pelted with
+      stones, and the glasses shivered. The news of this outrage was
+      communicated to parliament in the midst of a furious discussion of the
+      decree for the commercial monopoly. The first president, who had been
+      absent for a short time, re-entered, and communicated the tidings in a
+      whimsical couplet:
+    </p>
+<pre xml:space="preserve">
+  &ldquo;Messieurs, Messieurs! bonne nouvelle!
+  Le carrosse de Law est reduite en carrelle!&rdquo;
+
+  &ldquo;Gentlemen, Gentlemen! good news!
+  The carriage of Law is shivered to atoms!&rdquo;
+ </pre>
+    <p>
+      The members sprang up with joy; &ldquo;And Law!&rdquo; exclaimed they, &ldquo;has he been
+      torn to pieces?&rdquo; The president was ignorant of the result of the tumult;
+      whereupon the debate was cut short, the decree rejected, and the house
+      adjourned; the members hurrying to learn the particulars. Such was the
+      levity with which public affairs were treated at that dissolute and
+      disastrous period.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      On the following day there was an ordinance from the king, prohibiting all
+      popular assemblages; and troops were stationed at various points, and in
+      all public places. The regiment of guards was ordered to hold itself in
+      readiness; and the musketeers to be at their hotels, with their horses
+      ready saddled. A number of small offices were opened, where people might
+      cash small notes, though with great delay and difficulty. An edict was
+      also issued declaring that whoever should refuse to take bank notes in the
+      course of trade should forfeit double the amount!
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The continued and vehement opposition of parliament to the whole delusive
+      system of finance had been a constant source of annoyance to the regent;
+      but this obstinate rejection of his last grand expedient of a commercial
+      monopoly was not to be tolerated. He determined to punish that intractable
+      body. The Abbe Dubois and Law suggested a simple mode; it was to suppress
+      the parliament altogether, being, as they observed, so far from useful
+      that it was a constant impediment to the march of public affairs. The
+      regent was half inclined to listen to their advice; but upon calmer
+      consideration, and the advice of friends, he adopted a more moderate
+      course. On the 20th of July, early in the morning, all the doors of the
+      parliament-house were taken possession of by troops. Others were sent to
+      surround the house of the first president, and others to the houses of the
+      various members; who were all at first in great alarm, until an order from
+      the king was put into their hands, to render themselves at Pontoise, in
+      the course of two days, to which place the parliament was thus suddenly
+      and arbitrarily transferred.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      This despotic act, says Voltaire, would at any other time have caused an
+      insurrection; but one half of the Parisians were occupied by their ruin,
+      and the other half by their fancied riches, which were soon to vanish. The
+      president and members of parliament acquiesced in the mandate without a
+      murmur; they even went as if on a party of pleasure, and made every
+      preparation to lead a joyous life in their exile. The musketeers, who held
+      possession of the vacated parliament-house, a gay corps of fashionable
+      young fellows, amused themselves with making songs and pasquinades, at the
+      expense of the exiled legislators; and at length, to pass away time,
+      formed themselves into a mock parliament; elected their presidents, kings,
+      ministers, and advocates; took their seats in due form, arraigned a cat at
+      their bar, in place of the Sieur Law, and, after giving it a &ldquo;fair trial,&rdquo;
+       condemned it to be hanged. In this manner public affairs and public
+      institutions were lightly turned to jest.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      As to the exiled parliament, it lived gayly and luxuriously at Pontoise,
+      at the public expense; for the regent had furnished funds, as usual, with
+      a lavish hand. The first president had the mansion of the Duke de Bouillon
+      put at his disposal, already furnished, with a vast and delightful garden
+      on the borders of a river. There he kept open house to all the members of
+      parliament. Several tables were spread every day, all furnished
+      luxuriously and splendidly; the most exquisite wines and liqueurs, the
+      choicest fruits and refreshments, of all kinds, abounded. A number of
+      small chariots for one and two horses were always at hand, for such ladies
+      and old gentlemen as wished to take an airing after dinner, and card and
+      billiard tables for such as chose to amuse themselves in that way until
+      supper. The sister and the daughter of the first president did the honors
+      of the house, and he himself presided there with an air of great ease,
+      hospitality, and magnificence. It became a party of pleasure to drive from
+      Paris to Pontoise, which was six leagues distant, and partake of the
+      amusements and festivities of the place. Business was openly slighted;
+      nothing was thought of but amusement. The regent and his government were
+      laughed at, and made the subjects of continual pleasantries; while the
+      enormous expenses incurred by this idle and lavish course of life more
+      than doubled the liberal sums provided. This was the way in which the
+      parliament resented their exile.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      During all this time the system was getting more and more involved. The
+      stock exchange had some time previously been removed to the Place Vendome;
+      but the tumult and noise becoming intolerable to the residents of that
+      polite quarter, and especially to the chancellor, whose hotel was there,
+      the Prince and Princess Carignan, both deep gamblers in Mississippi stock,
+      offered the extensive garden of the Hotel de Soissons as a rallying-place
+      for the worshipers of Mammon. The offer was accepted. A number of barracks
+      were immediately erected in the garden, as offices for the stock-brokers,
+      and an order was obtained from the regent, under pretext of police
+      regulations, that no bargain should be valid unless concluded in these
+      barracks. The rent of them immediately mounted to a hundred livres a month
+      for each, and the whole yielded these noble proprietors an ignoble revenue
+      of half a million of livres.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The mania for gain, however, was now at an end. A universal panic
+      succeeded. &ldquo;<i>Sauve qui peut!</i>&rdquo; was the watchword. Every one was
+      anxious to exchange falling paper for something of intrinsic and permanent
+      value. Since money was not to be had, jewels, precious stones, plate,
+      porcelain, trinkets of gold and silver, all commanded any price in paper.
+      Land was bought at fifty years&rsquo; purchase, and he esteemed himself happy
+      who could get it even at this price. Monopolies now became the rage among
+      the noble holders of paper. The Duke de la Force bought up nearly all the
+      tallow, grease, and soap; others the coffee and spices; others hay and
+      oats. Foreign exchanges were almost impracticable. The debts of Dutch and
+      English merchants were paid in this fictitious money, all the coin of the
+      realm having disappeared. All the relations of debtor and creditor were
+      confounded. With one thousand crowns one might pay a debt of eighteen
+      thousand livres!
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The regent&rsquo;s mother, who once exulted in the affluence of bank paper, now
+      wrote in a very different tone: &ldquo;I have often wished,&rdquo; said she in her
+      letters, &ldquo;that these bank-notes were in the depths of the infernal
+      regions. They have given my son more trouble than relief. Nobody in France
+      has a penny.... My son was once popular, but since the arrival of this
+      cursed Law, he is hated more and more. Not a week passes, without my
+      receiving letters filled with frightful threats, and speaking of him as a
+      tyrant. I have just received one threatening him with poison. When I
+      showed it to him, he did nothing but laugh.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      In the meantime, Law was dismayed by the increasing troubles, and
+      terrified at the tempest he had raised. He was not a man of real courage;
+      and fearing for his personal safety, from popular tumult, or the despair
+      of ruined individuals, he again took refuge in the palace of the regent.
+      The latter, as usual, amused himself with his terrors, and turned every
+      new disaster into a jest; but he too began to think of his own security.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      In pursuing the schemes of Law, he had no doubt calculated to carry
+      through his term of government with ease and splendor; and to enrich
+      himself, his connections, and his favorites; and had hoped that the
+      catastrophe of the system would not take place until after the expiration
+      of the regency.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      He now saw his mistake; that it was impossible much longer to prevent an
+      explosion; and he determined at once to get Law out of the way, and then
+      to charge him with the whole tissue of delusions of this paper alchemy. He
+      accordingly took occasion of the recall of parliament in December, 1720,
+      to suggest to Law the policy of his avoiding an encounter with that
+      hostile and exasperated body. Law needed no urging to the measure. His
+      only desire was to escape from Paris and its tempestuous populace. Two
+      days before the return of parliament he took his sudden and secret
+      departure. He traveled in a chaise bearing the arms of the regent, and was
+      escorted by a kind of safeguard of servants in the duke&rsquo;s livery. His
+      first place of refuge was an estate of the regent&rsquo;s, about six leagues
+      from Paris, from whence he pushed forward to Bruxelles.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      As soon as Law was fairly out of the way, the Duke of Orleans summoned a
+      council of the regency, and informed them that they were assembled to
+      deliberate on the state of the finances, and the affairs of the India
+      Company. Accordingly La Houssaye, comptroller-general, rendered a
+      perfectly clear statement, by which it appeared that there were bank bills
+      in circulation to the amount of two milliards, seven hundred millions of
+      livres, without any evidence that this enormous sum had been emitted in
+      virtue of any ordinance from the general assembly of the India Company,
+      which alone had the right to authorize such emissions.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The council was astonished at this disclosure, and looked to the regent
+      for explanation. Pushed to the extreme, the regent avowed that Law had
+      emitted bills to the amount of twelve hundred millions beyond what had
+      been fixed by ordinances, and in contradiction to express prohibitions;
+      that the thing being done, he, the regent, had legalized or rather covered
+      the transaction, by decrees ordering such emissions, which decrees he had
+      <i>antedated</i>.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      A stormy scene ensued between the regent and the Duke de Bourbon, little
+      to the credit of either, both having been deeply implicated in the
+      cabalistic operations of the system. In fact, the several members of the
+      council had been among the most venal &ldquo;beneficiaries&rdquo; of the scheme, and
+      had interests at stake which they were anxious to secure. From all the
+      circumstances of the case, I am inclined to think that others were more to
+      blame than Law, for the disastrous effects of his financial projects. His
+      bank, had it been confined to its original limits, and left to the control
+      of its own internal regulations, might have gone on prosperously, and been
+      of great benefit to the nation. It was an institution fitted for a free
+      country; but unfortunately it was subjected to the control of a despotic
+      government, that could, at its pleasure, alter the value of the specie
+      within its vaults, and compel the most extravagant expansions of its paper
+      circulation. The vital principle of a bank is security in the regularity
+      of its operations, and the immediate convertibility of its paper into
+      coin; and what confidence could be reposed in an institution or its paper
+      promises, when the sovereign could at any moment centuple those promises
+      in the market, and seize upon all the money in the bank? The compulsory
+      measures used, likewise, to force bank-notes into currency, against the
+      judgment of the public, was fatal to the system; for credit must be free
+      and uncontrolled as the common air. The regent was the evil spirit of the
+      system, that forced Law on to an expansion of his paper currency far
+      beyond what he had ever dreamed of. He it was that in a manner compelled
+      the unlucky projector to devise all kinds of collateral companies and
+      monopolies, by which to raise funds to meet the constantly and enormously
+      increasing emissions of shares and notes. Law was but like a poor conjurer
+      in the hands of a potent spirit that he has evoked, and that obliges him
+      to go on, desperately and ruinously, with his conjurations. He only
+      thought at the outset to raise the wind, but the regent compelled him to
+      raise the whirlwind.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The investigation of the affairs of the company by the council resulted in
+      nothing beneficial to the public. The princes and nobles who had enriched
+      themselves by all kinds of juggles and extortions, escaped unpunished, and
+      retained the greater part of their spoils. Many of the &ldquo;suddenly rich,&rdquo;
+       who had risen from obscurity to a giddy height of imaginary prosperity,
+      and had indulged in all kinds of vulgar and ridiculous excesses, awoke as
+      out of a dream, in their original poverty, now made more galling and
+      humiliating by their transient elevation.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The weight of the evil, however, fell on more valuable classes of society;
+      honest tradesmen and artisans, who had been seduced away from the safe
+      pursuits of industry, to the specious chances of speculation. Thousands of
+      meritorious families also, once opulent, had been reduced to indigence, by
+      a too great confidence in government. There was a general derangement in
+      the finances, that long exerted a baneful influence over the national
+      prosperity; but the most disastrous effects of the system were upon the
+      morals and manners of the nation. The faith of engagements, the sanctity
+      of promises in affairs of business, were at an end. Every expedient to
+      grasp present profit, or to evade present difficulty, was tolerated. While
+      such deplorable laxity of principle was generated in the busy classes, the
+      chivalry of France had soiled their pennons; and honor and glory, so long
+      the idols of the Gallic nobility, had been tumbled to the earth, and
+      trampled in the dirt of the stock-market.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      As to Law, the originator of the system, he appears eventually to have
+      profited but little by his schemes. &ldquo;He was a quack,&rdquo; says Voltaire, &ldquo;to
+      whom the state was given to be cured, but who poisoned it with his drugs,
+      and who poisoned himself.&rdquo; The effects which he left behind in France were
+      sold at a low price and the proceeds dissipated. His landed estates were
+      confiscated. He carried away with him barely enough to maintain himself,
+      his wife, and daughter, with decency. The chief relic of his immense
+      fortune was a great diamond, which he was often obliged to pawn. He was in
+      England in 1721, and was presented to George the First. He returned
+      shortly afterward to the continent; shifting about from place to place,
+      and died in Venice, in 1729. His wife and daughter, accustomed to live
+      with the prodigality of princesses, could not conform to their altered
+      fortunes, but dissipated the scanty means left to them, and sank into
+      abject poverty. &ldquo;I saw his wife,&rdquo; says Voltaire, &ldquo;at Bruxelles, as much
+      humiliated as she had been haughty and triumphant in Paris.&rdquo; An elder
+      brother of Law remained in France, and was protected by the Duchess of
+      Bourbon. His descendants have acquitted themselves honorably, in various
+      public employments; and one of them is the Marquis Lauriston, some time
+      lieutenant-general and peer of France.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      <br /><br />
+    </p>
+    <hr />
+    <p>
+      <br /><br /> <br /><br />
+    </p>
+    <hr />
+    <p>
+      <a name="link2H_4_0003" id="link2H_4_0003"> </a>
+    </p>
+    <div style="height: 4em;">
+      <br /><br /><br /><br />
+    </div>
+    <h2>
+      DON JUAN
+    </h2>
+    <h3>
+      A SPECTRAL RESEARCH
+    </h3>
+<pre xml:space="preserve">
+  &ldquo;I have heard of spirits walking with aerial bodies, and have been
+  wondered at by others; but I must only wonder at myself, for if they
+  be not mad, I&rsquo;me come to my own buriall.&rdquo;&mdash;SHIRLEY&rsquo;s <i>Witty Fairie
+  One</i>
+</pre>
+    <p>
+      Everybody has heard of the fate of Don Juan, the famous libertine of
+      Seville, who for his sins against the fair sex and other minor
+      peccadilloes was hurried away to the infernal regions. His story has been
+      illustrated in play, in pantomime, and farce, on every stage in
+      Christendom; until at length it has been rendered the theme of the operas,
+      and embalmed to endless duration in the glorious music of Mozart. I well
+      recollect the effect of this story upon my feelings in my boyish days,
+      though represented in grotesque pantomime; the awe with which I
+      contemplated the monumental statue on horseback of the murdered commander,
+      gleaming by pale moonlight in the convent cemetery; how my heart quaked as
+      he bowed his marble head, and accepted the impious invitation of Don Juan:
+      how each footfall of the statue smote upon my heart, as I heard it
+      approach, step by step, through the echoing corridor, and beheld it enter,
+      and advance, a moving figure of stone, to the supper table! But then the
+      convivial scene in the charnel-house, where Don Juan returned the visit of
+      the statue; was offered a banquet of skulls and bones, and on refusing to
+      partake, was hurled into a yawning gulf, under a tremendous shower of
+      fire! These were accumulated horrors enough to shake the nerves of the
+      most pantomime-loving schoolboy. Many have supposed the story of Don Juan
+      a mere fable. I myself thought so once; but &ldquo;seeing is believing.&rdquo; I have
+      since beheld the very scene where it took place, and now to indulge any
+      doubt on the subject would be preposterous.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      I was one night perambulating the streets of Seville, in company with a
+      Spanish friend, a curious investigator of the popular traditions and other
+      good-for-nothing lore of the city, and who was kind enough to imagine he
+      had met, in me, with a congenial spirit. In the course of our rambles we
+      were passing by a heavy, dark gateway, opening into the courtyard of a
+      convent, when he laid his hand upon my arm: &ldquo;Stop!&rdquo; said he, &ldquo;this is the
+      convent of San Francisco; there is a story connected with it which I am
+      sure must be known to you. You cannot but have heard of Don Juan and the
+      marble statue.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Undoubtedly,&rdquo; replied I, &ldquo;it has been familiar to me from childhood.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Well, then, it was in the cemetery of this very convent that the events
+      took place.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Why, you do not mean to say that the story is founded on fact?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Undoubtedly it is. The circumstances of the case are said to have
+      occurred during the reign of Alfonso XI. Don Juan was of the noble family
+      of Tenorio, one of the most illustrious houses of Andalusia. His father,
+      Don Diego Tenorio, was a favorite of the king, and his family ranked among
+      the <i>deintecuatros</i>, or magistrates, of the city. Presuming on his
+      high descent and powerful connections, Don Juan set no bounds to his
+      excesses: no female, high or low, was sacred from his pursuit: and he soon
+      became the scandal of Seville. One of his most daring outrages was, to
+      penetrate by night into the palace of Don Gonzalo de Ulloa, commander of
+      the order of Calatrava, and attempt to carry off his daughter. The
+      household was alarmed; a scuffle in the dark took place; Don Juan escaped,
+      but the unfortunate commander was found weltering in his blood, and
+      expired without being able to name his murderer. Suspicions attached to
+      Don Juan; he did not stop to meet the investigations of justice, and the
+      vengeance of the powerful family of Ulloa, but fled from Seville, and took
+      refuge with his uncle, Don Pedro Tenorio, at that time embassador at the
+      court of Naples. Here he remained until the agitation occasioned by the
+      murder of Don Gonzalo had time to subside; and the scandal which the
+      affair might cause to both the families of Ulloa and Tenorio had induced
+      them to hush it up. Don Juan, however, continued his libertine career at
+      Naples, until at length his excesses forfeited the protection of his
+      uncle, the embassador, and obliged him again to flee. He had made his way
+      back to Seville, trusting that his past misdeeds were forgotten, or rather
+      trusting to his dare-devil spirit and the power of his family to carry him
+      through all difficulties.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;It was shortly after his return, and while in the height of his
+      arrogance, that on visiting this very convent of Francisco, he beheld on a
+      monument the equestrian statue of the murdered commander, who had been
+      buried within the walls of this sacred edifice, where the family of Ulloa
+      had a chapel. It was on this occasion that Don Juan, in a moment of
+      impious levity, invited the statue to the banquet, the awful catastrophe
+      of which has given such celebrity to his story.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;And pray how much of this story,&rdquo; said I, &ldquo;is believed in Seville?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;The whole of it by the populace; with whom it has been a favorite
+      tradition since time immemorial, and who crowd to the theaters to see it
+      represented in dramas written long since by Tyrso de Molina, and another
+      of our popular writers. Many in our higher ranks also, accustomed from
+      childhood to this story, would feel somewhat indignant at hearing it
+      treated with contempt. An attempt has been made to explain the whole, by
+      asserting that, to put an end to the extravagances of Don Juan, and to
+      pacify the family of Ulloa, without exposing the delinquent to the
+      degrading penalties of justice, he was decoyed into this convent under a
+      false pretext, and either plunged into a perpetual dungeon, or privately
+      hurried out of existence; while the story of the statue was circulated by
+      the monks, to account for his sudden disappearance. The populace, however,
+      are not to be cajoled out of a ghost story by any of these plausible
+      explanations; and the marble statue still strides the stage, and Don Juan
+      is still plunged into the infernal regions, as an awful warning to all
+      rake-helly youngsters, in like case offending.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      While my companion was relating these anecdotes, we had entered the
+      gateway, traversed the exterior courtyard of the convent, and made our way
+      into a great interior court; partly surrounded by cloisters and
+      dormitories, partly by chapels, and having a large fountain in the center.
+      The pile had evidently once been extensive and magnificent; but it was for
+      the greater part in ruins. By the light of the stars, and of twinkling
+      lamps placed here and there in the chapels and corridors, I could see that
+      many of the columns and arches were broken; the walls were rent and riven;
+      white burned beams and rafters showed the destructive effects of fire. The
+      whole place had a desolate air; the night breeze rustled through grass and
+      weeds flaunting out of the crevices of the walls, or from the shattered
+      columns; the bat flitted about the vaulted passages, and the owl hooted
+      from the ruined belfry. Never was any scene more completely fitted for a
+      ghost story.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      While I was indulging in picturings of the fancy, proper to such a place,
+      the deep chant of the monks from the convent church came swelling upon the
+      ear. &ldquo;It is the vesper service,&rdquo; said my companion; &ldquo;follow me.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      Leading the way across the court of the cloisters, and through one or two
+      ruined passages, he reached the distant portal of the church, and pushing
+      open a wicket, cut in the folding doors, we found ourselves in the deep
+      arched vestibule of the sacred edifice. To our left was the choir, forming
+      one end of the church, and having a low vaulted ceiling, which gave it the
+      look of a cavern. About this were ranged the monks, seated on stools, and
+      chanting from immense books placed on music-stands, and having the notes
+      scored in such gigantic characters as to be legible from every part of the
+      choir. A few lights on these music-stands dimly illumined the choir,
+      gleamed on the shaven heads of the monks and threw their shadows on the
+      walls. They were gross, blue-bearded, bullet-headed men, with bass voices,
+      of deep metallic tone, that reverberated out of the cavernous choir.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      To our right extended the great body of the church. It was spacious and
+      lofty; some of the side chapels had gilded grates, and were decorated with
+      images and paintings, representing the sufferings of our Saviour. Aloft
+      was a great painting by Murillo, but too much in the dark to be
+      distinguished. The gloom of the whole church was but faintly relieved by
+      the reflected light from the choir, and the glimmering here and there of a
+      votive lamp before the shrine of a saint.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      As my eye roamed about the shadowy pile, it was struck with the dimly seen
+      figure of a man on horseback, near a distant altar. I touched my
+      companion, and pointed to it: &ldquo;The specter statue!&rdquo; said I.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;No,&rdquo; replied he; &ldquo;it is the statue of the blessed St. Iago; the statue of
+      the commander was in the cemetery of the convent, and was destroyed at the
+      tune of the conflagration. But,&rdquo; added he, &ldquo;as I see you take a proper
+      interest in these kind of stories, come with me to the other end of the
+      church, where our whisperings will not disturb these holy fathers at their
+      devotions, and I will tell you another story that has been current for
+      some generations in our city, by which you will find that Don Juan is not
+      the only libertine that has been the object of supernatural castigation in
+      Seville.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      I accordingly followed him with noiseless tread to the further part of the
+      church, where we took our seats on the steps of an altar, opposite to the
+      suspicious-looking figure on horseback, and there, in a low, mysterious
+      voice, he related to me the following narration:
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;There was once in Seville a gay young fellow, Don Manuel de Manara by
+      name, who, having come to a great estate by the death of his father, gave
+      the reins to his passions, and plunged into all kinds of dissipation. Like
+      Don Juan, whom he seemed to have taken for a model, he became famous for
+      his enterprises among the fair sex, and was the cause of doors being
+      barred and windows grated with more than usual strictness. All in vain. No
+      balcony was too high for him to scale; no bolt nor bar was proof against
+      his efforts; and his very name was a word of terror to all the jealous
+      husbands and cautious fathers of Seville. His exploits extended to country
+      as well as city; and in the village dependent on his castle, scarce a
+      rural beauty was safe from his arts and enterprises.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;As he was one day ranging the streets of Seville, with several of his
+      dissolute companions, he beheld a procession about to enter the gate of a
+      convent. In the center was a young female arrayed in the dress of a bride;
+      it was a novice, who, having accomplished her year of probation, was about
+      to take the black veil, and consecrate herself to heaven. The companions
+      of Don Manuel drew back, out of respect to the sacred pageant; but he
+      pressed forward, with his usual impetuosity, to gain a near view of the
+      novice. He almost jostled her, in passing through the portal of the
+      church, when, on her turning round, he beheld the countenance of a
+      beautiful village girl, who had been the object of his ardent pursuit, but
+      who had been spirited secretly out of his reach by her relatives. She
+      recognized him at the same moment, and fainted; but was borne within the
+      grate of the chapel. It was supposed the agitation of the ceremony and the
+      heat of the throng had overcome her. After some time, the curtain which
+      hung within the grate was drawn up: there stood the novice, pale and
+      trembling, surrounded by the abbess and the nuns. The ceremony proceeded;
+      the crown of flowers was taken from her head; she was shorn of her silken
+      tresses, received the black veil, and went passively through the remainder
+      of the ceremony.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Don Manuel de Manara, on the contrary, was roused to fury at the sight of
+      this sacrifice. His passion, which had almost faded away in the absence of
+      the object, now glowed with tenfold ardor, being inflamed by the
+      difficulties placed in his way, and piqued by the measures which had been
+      taken to defeat him. Never had the object of his pursuit appeared so
+      lovely and desirable as when within the grate of the convent; and he swore
+      to have her, in defiance of heaven and earth. By dint of bribing a female
+      servant of the convent he contrived to convey letters to her, pleading his
+      passion in the most eloquent and seductive terms. How successful they were
+      is only matter of conjecture; certain it is, he undertook one night to
+      scale the garden wall of the convent, either to carry off the nun or gain
+      admission to her cell. Just as he was mounting the wall he was suddenly
+      plucked back, and a stranger, muffled in a cloak, stood before him.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;&lsquo;Rash man, forbear!&rsquo; cried he: &lsquo;is it not enough to have violated all
+      human ties? Wouldst thou steal a bride from heaven!&rsquo;
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;The sword of Don Manuel had been drawn on the instant, and, furious at
+      this interruption, he passed it through the body of the stranger, who fell
+      dead at his feet. Hearing approaching footsteps, he fled the fatal spot,
+      and mounting his horse, which was at hand, retreated to his estate in the
+      country, at no great distance from Seville. Here he remained throughout
+      the next day, full of horror and remorse; dreading lest he should be known
+      as the murderer of the deceased, and fearing each moment the arrival of
+      the officers of justice.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;The day passed, however, without molestation; and, as the evening
+      approached, unable any longer to endure this state of uncertainty and
+      apprehension, he ventured back to Seville. Irresistibly his footsteps took
+      the direction of the convent; but he paused and hovered at a distance from
+      the scene of blood. Several persons were gathered round the place, one of
+      whom was busy nailing something against the convent wall. After a while
+      they dispersed, and one passed near to Don Manuel. The latter addressed
+      him, with a hesitating voice.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;&lsquo;Señor,&rsquo; said he, &lsquo;may I ask the reason of yonder throng?&rsquo;
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;&lsquo;A cavalier,&rsquo; replied the other, &lsquo;has been murdered.&rsquo;
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;&lsquo;Murdered!&rsquo; echoed Don Manuel; &lsquo;and can you tell me his name?&rsquo;
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;&lsquo;Don Manuel de Manara,&rsquo; replied the stranger, and passed on.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Don Manuel was startled at this mention of his own name; especially when
+      applied to the murdered man. He ventured, when it was entirely deserted,
+      to approach the fatal spot. A small cross had been nailed against the
+      wall, as is customary in Spain, to mark the place where a murder has been
+      committed; and just below it, he read, by the twinkling light of a lamp:
+      &lsquo;Here was murdered Don Manuel de Manara. Pray to God for his soul!&rsquo;
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Still more confounded and perplexed by this inscription, he wandered
+      about the streets until the night was far advanced, and all was still and
+      lonely. As he entered the principal square, the light of torches suddenly
+      broke on him, and he beheld a grand funeral procession moving across it.
+      There was a great train of priests, and many persons of dignified
+      appearance, in ancient Spanish dresses, attending as mourners, none of
+      whom he knew. Accosting a servant who followed in the train, he demanded
+      the name of the defunct.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;&lsquo;Don Manuel de Manara,&rsquo; was the reply; and it went cold to his heart. He
+      looked, and indeed beheld the armorial bearings of his family emblazoned
+      on the funeral escutcheons. Yet not one of his family was to be seen among
+      the mourners. The mystery was more and more incomprehensible.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;He followed the procession as it moved on to the cathedral. The bier was
+      deposited before the high altar; the funeral service was commenced, and
+      the grand organ began to peal through the vaulted aisles.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Again the youth ventured to question this awful pageant. &lsquo;Father,&rsquo; said
+      he, with trembling voice, to one of the priests, &lsquo;who is this you are
+      about to inter?&rsquo;
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;&lsquo;Don Manuel de Manara!&rsquo; replied the priest.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;&lsquo;Father,&rsquo; cried Don Manuel, impatiently, &lsquo;you are deceived. This is some
+      imposture. Know that Don Manuel de Manara la alive and well, and now
+      stands before you. <i>I</i> am Don Manuel de Manara!&rsquo;
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;&lsquo;Avaunt, rash youth!&rsquo; cried the priest; &lsquo;know that Don Manuel de Manara
+      is dead!&mdash;is dead!&mdash;is dead!&mdash;and we are all souls from
+      purgatory, his deceased relatives and ancestors, and others that have been
+      aided by masses of his family, who are permitted to come here and pray for
+      the repose of his soul!&rsquo;
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Don Manuel cast round a fearful glance upon the assemblage, in antiquated
+      Spanish garbs, and recognized in their pale and ghastly countenances the
+      portraits of many an ancestor that hung in the family picture-gallery. He
+      now lost all self-command, rushed up to the bier, and beheld the
+      counterpart of himself, but in the fixed and livid lineaments of death.
+      Just at that moment the whole choir burst forth with a &lsquo;Requiescat in
+      pace,&rsquo; that shook the vaults of the cathedral. Don Manuel sank senseless
+      on the pavement. He was found there early the next morning by the
+      sacristan, and conveyed to his home. When sufficiently recovered, he sent
+      for a friar and made a full confession of all that had happened.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;&lsquo;My son,&rsquo; said the friar, &lsquo;all this is a miracle and a mystery, intended
+      for thy conversion and salvation. The corpse thou hast seen was a token
+      that thou hadst died to sin and the world; take warning by it, and
+      henceforth live to righteousness and heaven!&rsquo;
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Don Manuel did take warning by it. Guided by the counsels of the worthy
+      friar, he disposed of all his temporal affairs; dedicated the greater part
+      of his wealth to pious uses, especially to the performance of masses for
+      souls in purgatory; and finally, entering a convent, became one of the
+      most zealous and exemplary monks in Seville.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      <br /><br />
+    </p>
+    <hr />
+    <p>
+      <br /><br />
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      While my companion was relating this story, my eyes wandered, from time to
+      time, about the dusky church. Methought the burly countenances of the
+      monks in their distant choir assumed a pallid, ghastly hue, and their deep
+      metallic voices had a sepulchral sound. By the time the story was ended,
+      they had ended their chant; and, extinguishing their lights, glided one by
+      one, like shadows, through a small door in the side of the choir. A deeper
+      gloom prevailed over the church; the figure opposite me on horseback grew
+      more and more spectral; and I almost expected to see it bow its head.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;It is time to be off,&rdquo; said my companion, &ldquo;unless we intend to sup with
+      the statue.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;I have no relish for such fare or such company,&rdquo; replied I; and,
+      following my companion, we groped our way through the mouldering
+      cloisters. As we passed by the ruined cemetery, keeping up a casual
+      conversation, by way of dispelling the loneliness of the scene, I called
+      to mind the words of the poet:
+    </p>
+<pre xml:space="preserve">
+                     &ldquo;&mdash;The tombs
+  And monumental caves of death look cold,
+  And shoot a chillness to my trembling heart!
+  Give me thy hand, and let me hear thy voice;
+  Nay, speak&mdash;and let me hear thy voice;
+  My own affrights me with its echoes.&rdquo;
+ </pre>
+    <p>
+      There wanted nothing but the marble statue of the commander striding along
+      the echoing cloisters to complete the haunted scene.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Since that time I never fail to attend the theater whenever the story of
+      Don Juan is represented, whether in pantomime or opera. In the sepulchral
+      scene, I feel myself quite at home; and when the statue makes his
+      appearance, I greet him as an old acquaintance. When the audience applaud,
+      I look round upon them with a degree of compassion. &ldquo;Poor souls!&rdquo; I say to
+      myself, &ldquo;they think they are pleased; they think they enjoy this piece,
+      and yet they consider the whole as a fiction! How much more would they
+      enjoy it, if like me they knew it to be true&mdash;<i>and had seen the
+      very place</i>!&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      <br /><br />
+    </p>
+    <hr />
+    <p>
+      <br /><br /> <br /><br />
+    </p>
+    <hr />
+    <p>
+      <a name="link2H_4_0004" id="link2H_4_0004"> </a>
+    </p>
+    <div style="height: 4em;">
+      <br /><br /><br /><br />
+    </div>
+    <h2>
+      BROEK
+    </h2>
+    <h3>
+      OF THE DUTCH PARADISE
+    </h3>
+    <p>
+      It has long been a matter of discussion and controversy among the pious
+      and the learned, as to the situation of the terrestrial paradise from
+      whence our first parents were exiled. This question has been put to rest
+      by certain of the faithful in Holland, who have decided in favor of the
+      village of Broek, about six miles from Amsterdam. It may not, they
+      observe, correspond in all respects to the description of the Garden of
+      Eden, handed down from days of yore, but it comes nearer to their ideas of
+      a perfect paradise than any other place on earth.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      This eulogium induced me to make some inquiries as to this favored spot in
+      the course of a sojourn at the city of Amsterdam, and the information I
+      procured fully justified the enthusiastic praises I had heard. The village
+      of Broek is situated in Waterland, in the midst of the greenest and
+      richest pastures of Holland, I may say, of Europe. These pastures are the
+      source of its wealth, for it is famous for its dairies, and for those oval
+      cheeses which regale and perfume the whole civilized world. The population
+      consists of about six hundred persons, comprising several families which
+      have inhabited the place since time immemorial, and have waxed rich on the
+      products of their meadows. They keep all their wealth among themselves,
+      intermarrying, and keeping all strangers at a wary distance. They are a
+      &ldquo;hard money&rdquo; people, and remarkable for turning the penny the right way.
+      It is said to have been an old rule, established by one of the primitive
+      financiers and legislators of Broek, that no one should leave the village
+      with more than six guilders in his pocket, or return with less than ten; a
+      shrewd regulation, well worthy the attention of modern political
+      economists, who are so anxious to fix the balance of trade.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      What, however, renders Broek so perfect an elysium in the eyes of all true
+      Hollanders is the matchless height to which the spirit of cleanliness is
+      carried there. It amounts almost to a religion among the inhabitants, who
+      pass the greater part of their time rubbing and scrubbing, and painting
+      and varnishing; each housewife vies with her neighbor in her devotion to
+      the scrubbing-brush, as zealous Catholics do in their devotion to the
+      cross; and it is said a notable housewife of the place in days of yore is
+      held in pious remembrance, and almost canonized as a saint, for having
+      died of pure exhaustion and chagrin in an ineffectual attempt to scour a
+      black man white.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      These particulars awakened my ardent curiosity to see a place which I
+      pictured to myself the very fountain-head of certain hereditary habits and
+      customs prevalent among the descendants of the original Dutch settlers of
+      my native State. I accordingly lost no time in performing a pilgrimage to
+      Broek.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Before I reached the place I beheld symptoms of the tranquil character of
+      its inhabitants. A little clump-built boat was in full sail along the lazy
+      bosom of a canal, but its sail consisted of the blades of two paddles
+      stood on end, while the navigator sat steering with a third paddle in the
+      stern, crouched down like a toad, with a slouched hat drawn over his eyes.
+      I presumed him to be some nautical lover on the way to his mistress. After
+      proceeding a little further I came in sight of the harbor or port of
+      destination of this drowsy navigator. This was the Broeken-Meer, an
+      artificial basin, or sheet of olive-green water, tranquil as a mill-pond.
+      On this the village of Broek is situated, and the borders are laboriously
+      decorated with flower-beds, box-trees clipped into all kinds of ingenious
+      shapes and fancies, and little &ldquo;lust&rdquo; houses, or pavilions.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      I alighted outside of the village, for no horse nor vehicle is permitted
+      to enter its precincts, lest it should cause defilement of the
+      well-scoured pavements. Shaking the dust off my feet, therefore, I
+      prepared to enter, with due reverence and circumspection, this <i>sanctum
+      sanctorum</i> of Dutch cleanliness. I entered by a narrow street, paved
+      with yellow bricks, laid edgewise, and so clean that one might eat from
+      them. Indeed, they were actually worn deep, not by the tread of feet, but
+      by the friction of the scrubbing-brush.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The houses were built of wood, and all appeared to have been freshly
+      painted, of green, yellow, and other bright colors. They were separated
+      from each other by gardens and orchards, and stood at some little distance
+      from the street, with wide areas or courtyards, paved in mosaic, with
+      variegated stones, polished by frequent rubbing. The areas were divided
+      from the street by curiously-wrought railings, or balustrades, of iron,
+      surmounted with brass and copper balls, scoured into dazzling effulgence.
+      The very trunks of the trees in front of the houses were by the same
+      process made to look as if they had been varnished. The porches, doors,
+      and window-frames of the houses were of exotic woods, curiously carved,
+      and polished like costly furniture. The front doors are never opened,
+      excepting on christenings, marriages, or funerals; on all ordinary
+      occasions, visitors enter by the back door. In former times, persons when
+      admitted had to put on slippers, but this Oriental ceremony is no longer
+      insisted upon.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      A poor devil Frenchman, who attended upon me as cicerone, boasted with
+      some degree of exultation of a triumph of his countrymen over the stern
+      regulations of the place. During the time that Holland was overrun by the
+      armies of the French republic, a French general, surrounded by his whole
+      état major, who had come from Amsterdam to view the wonders of Broek,
+      applied for admission at one of these taboo&rsquo;d portals. The reply was that
+      the owner never received any one who did not come introduced by some
+      friend. &ldquo;Very well,&rdquo; said the general, &ldquo;take my compliments to your
+      master, and tell him I will return here to-morrow with a company of
+      soldiers, &lsquo;<i>pour parler raison avec mon ami Hollandais</i>.&rsquo;&rdquo; Terrified
+      at the idea of having a company of soldiers billeted upon him, the owner
+      threw open his house, entertained the general and his retinue with
+      unwonted hospitality; though it is said it cost the family a month&rsquo;s
+      scrubbing and scouring to restore all things to exact order, after this
+      military invasion. My vagabond informant seemed to consider this one of
+      the greatest victories of the republic.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      I walked about the place in mute wonder and admiration. A dead stillness
+      prevailed around, like that in the deserted streets of Pompeii. No sign of
+      life was to be seen, excepting now and then a hand, and a long pipe, and
+      an occasional puff of smoke, out of the window of some &ldquo;lusthaus&rdquo;
+       overhanging a miniature canal; and on approaching a little nearer, the
+      periphery in profile of some robustious burgher.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Among the grand houses pointed out to me were those of Claes Bakker, and
+      Cornelius Bakker, richly carved and gilded, with flower gardens and
+      clipped shrubberies; and that of the Great Ditmus, who, my poor devil
+      cicerone informed me, in a whisper, was worth two millions; all these were
+      mansions shut up from the world, and only kept to be cleaned. After having
+      been conducted from one wonder to another of the village, I was ushered by
+      my guide into the grounds and gardens of Mynheer Broekker, another mighty
+      cheese-manufacturer, worth eighty thousand guilders a year. I had
+      repeatedly been struck with the similarity of all that I had seen in this
+      amphibious little village to the buildings and landscapes on Chinese
+      platters and tea-pots; but here I found the similarity complete; for I was
+      told that these gardens were modeled upon Van Bramm&rsquo;s description of those
+      of Yuen min Yuen, in China. Here were serpentine walks, with trellised
+      borders; winding canals, with fanciful Chinese bridges; flower-beds
+      resembling huge baskets, with the flower of &ldquo;love lies bleeding&rdquo; falling
+      over to the ground. But mostly had the fancy of Mynheer Broekker been
+      displayed about a stagnant little lake, on which a corpulent little
+      pinnace lay at anchor. On the border was a cottage within which were a
+      wooden man and woman seated at table, and a wooden dog beneath, all the
+      size of life; on pressing a spring, the woman commenced spinning, and the
+      dog barked furiously. On the lake were wooden swans, painted to the life;
+      some floating, others on the nest among the rushes; while a wooden
+      sportsman, crouched among the bushes, was preparing his gun to take deadly
+      aim. In another part of the garden was a dominie in his clerical robes,
+      with wig, pipe, and cocked hat; and mandarins with nodding heads, amid red
+      lions, green tigers, and blue hares. Last of all, the heathen deities, in
+      wood and plaster, male and female, naked and bare-faced as usual, and
+      seeming to stare with wonder at finding themselves in such strange
+      company.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      My shabby French guide, while he pointed out all these mechanical marvels
+      of the garden, was anxious to let me see that he had too polite a taste to
+      be pleased with them. At every new knick-knack he would screw down his
+      mouth, shrug up his shoulders, take a pinch of snuff, and exclaim: &ldquo;<i>Ma
+      foi, Monsieur, ces Hollandais sont forts pour ces bétises là</i>!&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      To attempt to gain admission to any of these stately abodes was out of the
+      question, having no company of soldiers to enforce a solicitation. I was
+      fortunate enough, however, through the aid of my guide, to make my way
+      into the kitchen of the illustrious Ditmus, and I question whether the
+      parlor would have proved more worthy of observation. The cook, a little
+      wiry, hook-nosed woman, worn thin by incessant action and friction, was
+      bustling about among her kettles and saucepans, with the scullion at her
+      heels, both clattering in wooden shoes, which were as clean and white as
+      the milk-pails; rows of vessels, of brass and copper, regiments of pewter
+      dishes, and portly porringers, gave resplendent evidence of the intensity
+      of their cleanliness; the very trammels and hangers in the fireplace were
+      highly scoured, and the burnished face of the good Saint Nicholas shone
+      forth from the iron plate of the chimney back.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Among the decorations of the kitchen was a printed sheet of woodcuts,
+      representing the various holiday customs of Holland, with explanatory
+      rhymes. Here I was delighted to recognize the jollities of New Year&rsquo;s Day;
+      the festivities of Paäs and Pinkster, and all the other merry-makings
+      handed down in my native place from the earliest times of New Amsterdam,
+      and which had been such bright spots in the year in my childhood. I
+      eagerly made myself master of this precious document for a trifling
+      consideration, and bore it off as a memento of the place; though I
+      question if, in so doing, I did not carry off with me the whole current
+      literature of Broek.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      I must not omit to mention that this village is the paradise of cows as
+      well as men; indeed you would almost suppose the cow to be as much an
+      object of worship here as the bull was among the ancient Egyptians; and
+      well does she merit it, for she is in fact the patroness of the place. The
+      same scrupulous cleanliness, however, which pervades everything else, is
+      manifested in the treatment of this venerated animal. She is not permitted
+      to perambulate the place, but in winter, when she forsakes the rich
+      pasture, a well-built house is provided for her, well painted, and
+      maintained in the most perfect order. Her stall is of ample dimensions;
+      the floor is scrubbed and polished; her hide is daily curried and brushed
+      and sponged to her heart&rsquo;s content, and her tail is daintily tucked up to
+      the ceiling, and decorated with a ribbon!
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      On my way back through the village, I passed the house of the prediger, or
+      preacher; a very comfortable mansion, which led me to augur well of the
+      state of religion in the village. On inquiry, I was told that for a long
+      time the inhabitants lived in a great state of indifference as to
+      religious matters; it was in vain that their preachers endeavored to
+      arouse their thoughts as to a future state; the joys of heaven, as
+      commonly depicted, were but little to their taste. At length a dominie
+      appeared among them who struck out in a different vein. He depicted the
+      New Jerusalem as a place all smooth and level; with beautiful dykes, and
+      ditches, and canals; and houses all shining with paint and varnish, and
+      glazed tiles; and where there should never come horse, or ass, or cat, or
+      dog, or anything that could make noise or dirt; but there should be
+      nothing but rubbing and scrubbing, and washing and painting, and gilding
+      and varnishing, for ever and ever, amen! Since that time, the good
+      housewives of Broek have all turned their faces Zionward.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      <br /><br />
+    </p>
+    <hr />
+    <p>
+      <br /><br /> <br /><br />
+    </p>
+    <hr />
+    <p>
+      <a name="link2H_4_0005" id="link2H_4_0005"> </a>
+    </p>
+    <div style="height: 4em;">
+      <br /><br /><br /><br />
+    </div>
+    <h2>
+      SKETCHES IN PARIS IN 1825
+    </h2>
+    <h3>
+      FROM THE TRAVELING NOTE-BOOK OF GEOFFREY CRAYON, GENT.
+    </h3>
+    <p>
+      A Parisian hotel is a street set on end, the grand staircase forming the
+      highway, and every floor a separate habitation. Let me describe the one in
+      which I am lodged, which may serve as a specimen of its class. It is a
+      huge quadrangular pile of stone, built round a spacious paved court. The
+      ground floor is occupied by shops, magazines, and domestic offices. Then
+      comes the <i>entre-sol</i>, with low ceilings, short windows, and dwarf
+      chambers; then succeed a succession of floors, or stories, rising one
+      above the other, to the number of Mahomet&rsquo;s heavens. Each floor is like a
+      distinct mansion, complete in itself, with ante-chamber, saloons, dining
+      and sleeping rooms, kitchen and other conveniences for the accommodation
+      of a family. Some floors are divided into two or more suites of
+      apartments. Each apartment has its main door of entrance, opening upon the
+      staircase, or landing-places, and locked like a street door. Thus several
+      families and numerous single persons live under the same roof, totally
+      independent of each other, and may live so for years without holding more
+      intercourse than is kept up in other cities by residents in the same
+      street.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Like the great world, this little microcosm has its gradations of rank and
+      style and importance. The <i>Premier</i>, or first floor, with its grand
+      saloons, lofty ceilings, and splendid furniture, is decidedly the
+      aristocratical part of the establishment. The second floor is scarcely
+      less aristocratical and magnificent; the other floors go on lessening in
+      splendor as they gain in altitude, and end with the attics, the region of
+      petty tailors, clerks, and sewing-girls. To make the filling up of the
+      mansion complete, every odd nook and corner is fitted up as a <i>joli
+      petit appartement à garçon</i> (a pretty little bachelor&rsquo;s apartment),
+      that is to say, some little dark inconvenient nestling-place for a poor
+      devil of a bachelor.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The whole domain is shut up from the street by a great <i>porte-cochère</i>,
+      or portal, calculated for the admission of carriages. This consists of two
+      massy folding-doors, that swing heavily open upon a spacious entrance,
+      passing under the front of the edifice into the courtyard. On one side is
+      a spacious staircase leading to the upper apartments. Immediately without
+      the portal is the porter&rsquo;s lodge, a small room with one or two bedrooms
+      adjacent, for the accommodation of the <i>concierge</i>, or porter and his
+      family. This is one of the most important functionaries of the hotel. He
+      is, in fact, the Cerberus of the establishment, and no one can pass in or
+      out without his knowledge and consent. The <i>porte-cochère</i> in general
+      is fastened by a sliding bolt, from which a cord or wire passes into the
+      porter&rsquo;s lodge. Whoever wishes to go out must speak to the porter, who
+      draws the bolt. A visitor from without gives a single rap with the massive
+      knocker; the bolt is immediately drawn, as if by an invisible hand; the
+      door stands ajar, the visitor pushes it open, and enters. A face presents
+      itself at the glass door of the porter&rsquo;s little chamber; the stranger
+      pronounces the name of the person he comes to seek. If the person or
+      family is of importance, occupying the first or second floor, the porter
+      sounds a bell once or twice, to give notice that a visitor is at hand. The
+      stranger in the meantime ascends the great staircase, the highway common
+      to all, and arrives at the outer door, equivalent to a street door, of the
+      suite of rooms inhabited by his friends.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Beside this hangs a bell-cord, with which he rings for admittance.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      When the family or person inquired for is of less importance, or lives in
+      some remote part of the mansion less easy to be apprised, no signal is
+      given. The applicant pronounces the name at the porter&rsquo;s door, and is
+      told, <i>&ldquo;Montez au troisième, au quatrième; sonnez à la porte à droite ou
+      à gauche.&rdquo;</i> (&ldquo;Ascend to the third or fourth story; ring the bell on the
+      right or left hand door&rdquo;); as the case may be.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The porter and his wife act as domestics to such of the inmates of the
+      mansion as do not keep servants; making their beds, arranging their rooms,
+      lighting their fires, and doing other menial offices, for which they
+      receive a monthly stipend. They are also in confidential intercourse with
+      the servants of the other inmates, and, having an eye on all the incomers
+      and outgoers, are thus enabled, by hook and by crook, to learn the secrets
+      and domestic history of every member of the little territory within the <i>porte-cochère</i>.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The porter&rsquo;s lodge is accordingly a great scene of gossip, where all the
+      private affairs of this interior neighborhood are discussed. The
+      courtyard, also, is an assembling place in the evenings for the servants
+      of the different families, and a sisterhood of sewing girls from the
+      entre-sols and the attics, to play at various games, and dance to the
+      music of their own songs, and the echoes of their feet, at which
+      assemblages the porter&rsquo;s daughter takes the lead; a fresh, pretty, buxom
+      girl, generally called &ldquo;<i>La Petite</i>,&rdquo; though almost as tall as a
+      grenadier. These little evening gatherings, so characteristic of this gay
+      country, are countenanced by the various families of the mansion, who
+      often look down from their windows and balconies, on moonlight evenings,
+      and enjoy the simple revels of their domestics. I must observe, however,
+      that the hotel I am describing is rather a quiet, retired one, where most
+      of the inmates are permanent residents from year to year, so that there is
+      more of the spirit of neighborhood than in the bustling, fashionable
+      hotels in the gay parts of Paris, which are continually changing their
+      inhabitants.
+    </p>
+    <h3>
+      MY FRENCH NEIGHBOR
+    </h3>
+    <p>
+      I often amuse myself by watching from my window (which, by the bye, is
+      tolerably elevated) the movements of the teeming little world below me;
+      and as I am on sociable terms with the porter and his wife, I gather from
+      them, as they light my fire, or serve my breakfast, anecdotes of all my
+      fellow lodgers. I have been somewhat curious in studying a little antique
+      Frenchman, who occupies one of the <i>jolie chambres à garçon</i> already
+      mentioned. He is one of those superannuated veterans who flourished before
+      the revolution, and have weathered all the storms of Paris, in
+      consequence, very probably, of being fortunately too insignificant to
+      attract attention. He has a small income, which he manages with the skill
+      of a French economist; appropriating so much for his lodgings, so much for
+      his meals; so much for his visits to St. Cloud and Versailles, and so much
+      for his seat at the theater. He has resided in the hotel for years, and
+      always in the same chamber, which he furnishes at his own expense. The
+      decorations of the room mark his various ages. There are some gallant
+      pictures which he hung up in his younger days; with a portrait of a lady
+      of rank, whom he speaks tenderly of, dressed in the old French taste; and
+      a pretty opera dancer, pirouetting in a hoop petticoat, who lately died at
+      a good old age. In a corner of this picture is stuck a prescription for
+      rheumatism, and below it stands an easy-chair. He has a small parrot at
+      the window, to amuse him when within doors, and a pug dog to accompany him
+      in his daily peregrinations. While I am writing he is crossing the court
+      to go out. He is attired in his best coat, of sky-blue, and is doubtless
+      bound for the Tuileries. His hair is dressed in the old style, with
+      powdered ear-locks and a pig-tail. His little dog trips after him,
+      sometimes on four legs, sometimes on three, and looking as if his leather
+      small-clothes were too tight for him. Now the old gentleman stops to have
+      a word with an old crony who lives in the entre-sol, and is just returning
+      from his promenade. Now they take a pinch of snuff together; now they pull
+      out huge red cotton handkerchiefs (those &ldquo;flags of abomination,&rdquo; as they
+      have well been called) and blow their noses most sonorously. Now they turn
+      to make remarks upon their two little dogs, who are exchanging the
+      morning&rsquo;s salutation; now they part, and my old gentleman stops to have a
+      passing word with the porter&rsquo;s wife; and now he sallies forth, and is
+      fairly launched upon the town for the day.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      No man is so methodical as a complete idler, and none so scrupulous in
+      measuring and portioning out his time as he whose time is worth nothing.
+      The old gentleman in question has his exact hour for rising, and for
+      shaving himself by a small mirror hung against his casement. He sallies
+      forth at a certain hour every morning to take his cup of coffee and his
+      roll at a certain cafe, where he reads the papers. He has been a regular
+      admirer of the lady who presides at the bar, and always stops to have a
+      little <i>badinage</i> with her <i>en passant</i>. He has his regular
+      walks on the Boulevards and in the Palais Royal, where he sets his watch
+      by the petard fired off by the sun at midday. He has his daily resort in
+      the Garden of the Tuileries, to meet with a knot of veteran idlers like
+      himself, who talk on pretty much the same subjects whenever they meet. He
+      has been present at all the sights and shows and rejoicings of Paris for
+      the last fifty years; has witnessed the great events of the revolution;
+      the guillotining of the king and queen; the coronation of Bonaparte; the
+      capture of Paris, and the restoration of the Bourbons. All these he speaks
+      of with the coolness of a theatrical critic; and I question whether he has
+      not been gratified by each in its turn; not from any inherent love of
+      tumult, but from that insatiable appetite for spectacle which prevails
+      among the inhabitants of this metropolis. I have been amused with a farce,
+      in which one of these systematic old triflers is represented. He sings a
+      song detailing his whole day&rsquo;s round of insignificant occupations, and
+      goes to bed delighted with the idea that his next day will be an exact
+      repetition of the same routine:
+    </p>
+<pre xml:space="preserve">
+  &ldquo;Je me couche le soir,
+   Enchanté de pouvoir
+   Recommencer mon train
+      Le lendemain
+         Matin.&rdquo;
+
+</pre>
+    <p>
+      <br /><br />
+    </p>
+    <hr />
+    <p>
+      <br /><br />
+    </p>
+    <h3>
+      THE ENGLISHMAN AT PARIS
+    </h3>
+    <p>
+      In another part of the hotel a handsome suite of rooms is occupied by an
+      old English gentleman, of great probity, some understanding, and very
+      considerable crustiness, who has come to France to live economically. He
+      has a very fair property, but his wife, being of that blessed kind
+      compared in Scripture to the fruitful vine, has overwhelmed him with a
+      family of buxom daughters, who hang clustering about him, ready to be
+      gathered by any hand. He is seldom to be seen in public without one
+      hanging on each arm, and smiling on all the world, while his own mouth is
+      drawn down at each corner like a mastiff&rsquo;s with internal growling at
+      everything about him. He adheres rigidly to English fashion in dress, and
+      trudges about in long gaiters and broad-brimmed hat; while his daughters
+      almost overshadow him with feathers, flowers, and French bonnets.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      He contrives to keep up an atmosphere of English habits, opinions, and
+      prejudices, and to carry a semblance of London into the very heart of
+      Paris. His mornings are spent at Galignani&rsquo;s news-room, where he forms one
+      of a knot of inveterate quidnuncs, who read the same articles over a dozen
+      times in a dozen different papers. He generally dines in company with some
+      of his own countrymen, and they have what is called a &ldquo;comfortable
+      sitting&rdquo; after dinner, in the English fashion, drinking wine, discussing
+      the news of the London papers, and canvassing the French character, the
+      French metropolis, and the French revolution, ending with a unanimous
+      admission of English courage, English morality, English cookery, English
+      wealth, the magnitude of London, and the ingratitude of the French.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      His evenings are chiefly spent at a club of his countrymen, where the
+      London papers are taken. Sometimes his daughters entice him to the
+      theaters, but not often. He abuses French tragedy, as all fustian and
+      bombast, Talma as a ranter, and Duchesnois as a mere termagant. It is true
+      his ear is not sufficiently familiar with the language to understand
+      French verse, and he generally goes to sleep during the performance. The
+      wit of the French comedy is flat and pointless to him. He would not give
+      one of Munden&rsquo;s wry faces or Liston&rsquo;s inexpressible looks for the whole of
+      it.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      He will not admit that Paris has any advantage over London. The Seine is a
+      muddy rivulet in comparison with the Thames; the West End of London
+      surpasses the finest parts of the French capital; and on some one&rsquo;s
+      observing that there was a very thick fog out of doors: &ldquo;Pish!&rdquo; said he,
+      crustily, &ldquo;it&rsquo;s nothing to the fogs we have in London.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      He has infinite trouble in bringing his table into anything like
+      conformity to English rule. With his liquors, it is true, he is tolerably
+      successful. He procures London porter, and a stock of port and sherry, at
+      considerable expense; for he observes that he cannot stand those cursed
+      thin French wines, they dilute his blood so much as to give him the
+      rheumatism. As to their white wines, he stigmatizes them as mere
+      substitutes for cider; and as to claret, why, &ldquo;it would be port if it
+      could.&rdquo; He has continual quarrels with his French cook, whom he renders
+      wretched by insisting on his conforming to Mrs. Glass; for it is easier to
+      convert a Frenchman from his religion than his cookery. The poor fellow,
+      by dint of repeated efforts, once brought himself to serve up <i>ros bif</i>
+      sufficiently raw to suit what he considered the cannibal taste of his
+      master; but then he could not refrain, at the last moment, adding some
+      exquisite sauce, that put the old gentleman in a fury.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      He detests wood-fires, and has procured a quantity of coal; but not having
+      a grate, he is obliged to burn it on the hearth. Here he sits poking and
+      stirring the fire with one end of a tongs, while the room is as murky as a
+      smithy; railing at French chimneys, French masons, and French architects;
+      giving a poke at the end of every sentence, as though he were stirring up
+      the very bowels of the delinquents he is anathematizing. He lives in a
+      state militant with inanimate objects around him; gets into high dudgeon
+      with doors and casements, because they will not come under English law,
+      and has implacable feuds with sundry refractory pieces of furniture. Among
+      these is one in particular with which he is sure to have a high quarrel
+      every tune he goes to dress. It is a <i>commode</i>, one of those smooth,
+      polished, plausible pieces of French furniture that have the perversity of
+      five hundred devils. Each drawer has a will of its own, will open or not,
+      just as the whim takes it, and sets lock and key at defiance. Sometimes a
+      drawer will refuse to yield to either persuasion or force, and will part
+      with both handles rather than yield; another will come out in the most coy
+      and coquettish manner imaginable; elbowing along, zig-zag; one corner
+      retreating as the other advances; making a thousand difficulties and
+      objections at every move; until the old gentleman, out of all patience,
+      gives a sudden jerk, and brings drawer and contents into the middle of the
+      floor. His hostility to this unlucky piece of furniture increases every
+      day, as if incensed that it does not grow better. He is like the fretful
+      invalid who cursed his bed, that the longer he lay the harder it grew. The
+      only benefit he has derived from the quarrel is that it has furnished him
+      with a crusty joke, which he utters on all occasions. He swears that a
+      French <i>commode</i> is the most <i>incommodious</i> thing in existence,
+      and that although the nation cannot make a joint-stool that will stand
+      steady, yet they are always talking of everything&rsquo;s being <i>perfectionée</i>.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      His servants understand his humor, and avail themselves of it. He was one
+      day disturbed by a pertinacious rattling and shaking at one of the doors,
+      and bawled out in an angry tone to know the cause of the disturbance.
+      &ldquo;Sir,&rdquo; said the footman, testily, &ldquo;it&rsquo;s this confounded French lock!&rdquo;
+       &ldquo;Ah!&rdquo; said the old gentleman, pacified by this hit at the nation, &ldquo;I
+      thought there was something French at the bottom of it!&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      <br /><br />
+    </p>
+    <hr />
+    <p>
+      <br /><br /> <br /><br />
+    </p>
+    <hr />
+    <p>
+      <a name="link2H_4_0006" id="link2H_4_0006"> </a>
+    </p>
+    <div style="height: 4em;">
+      <br /><br /><br /><br />
+    </div>
+    <h2>
+      ENGLISH AND FRENCH CHARACTER
+    </h2>
+    <p>
+      As I am a mere looker on in Europe, and hold myself as much as possible
+      aloof from its quarrels and prejudices, I feel something like one
+      overlooking a game, who, without any great skill of his own, can
+      occasionally perceive the blunders of much abler players. This neutrality
+      of feeling enables me to enjoy the contrasts of character presented in
+      this time of general peace, when the various peoples of Europe, who have
+      so long been sundered by wars, are brought together and placed side by
+      side in this great gathering-place of nations. No greater contrast,
+      however, is exhibited than that of the French and English. The peace has
+      deluged this gay capital with English visitors of all ranks and
+      conditions. They throng every place of curiosity and amusement; fill the
+      public gardens, the galleries, the cafes, saloons, theaters; always
+      herding together, never associating with the French. The two nations are
+      like two threads of different colors, tangled together but never blended.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      In fact they present a continual antithesis, and seem to value themselves
+      upon being unlike each other; yet each have their peculiar merits, which
+      should entitle them to each other&rsquo;s esteem. The French intellect is quick
+      and active. It flashes its way into a subject with the rapidity of
+      lightning; seizes upon remote conclusions with a sudden bound, and its
+      deductions are almost intuitive. The English intellect is less rapid, but
+      more persevering; less sudden, but more sure in its deductions. The
+      quickness and mobility of the French enable them to find enjoyment in the
+      multiplicity of sensations. They speak and act more from immediate
+      impressions than from reflection and meditation. They are therefore more
+      social and communicative; more fond of society, and of places of public
+      resort and amusement. An Englishman is more reflective in his habits. He
+      lives in the world of his own thoughts, and seems more self-existent and
+      self-dependent. He loves the quiet of his own apartment; even when abroad,
+      he in a manner makes a little solitude around him by his silence and
+      reserve; he moves about shy and solitary, and, as it were, buttoned up,
+      body and soul.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The French are great optimists; they seize upon every good as it flies,
+      and revel in the passing pleasure. The Englishman is too apt to neglect
+      the present good, in preparing against the possible evil. However
+      adversities may lower, let the sun shine but for a moment, and forth
+      sallies the mercurial Frenchman, in holiday dress and holiday spirits, gay
+      as a butterfly, as though his sunshine were perpetual; but let the sun
+      beam never so brightly, so there be but a cloud in the horizon, the wary
+      Englishman ventures forth distrustfully, with his umbrella in his hand.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The Frenchman has a wonderful facility at turning small things to
+      advantage. No one can be gay and luxurious on smaller means; no one
+      requires less expense to be happy. He practices a kind of gilding in his
+      style of living, and hammers out every guinea into gold leaf. The
+      Englishman, on the contrary, is expensive in his habits, and expensive in
+      his enjoyments. He values everything, whether useful or ornamental, by
+      what it costs. He has no satisfaction in show, unless it be solid and
+      complete. Everything goes with him by the square foot. Whatever display he
+      makes, the depth is sure to equal the surface.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The Frenchman&rsquo;s habitation, like himself, is open, cheerful, bustling, and
+      noisy. He lives in a part of a great hotel, with wide portal, paved court,
+      a spacious dirty stone staircase, and a family on every floor. All is
+      clatter and chatter. He is good-humored and talkative with his servants,
+      sociable with his neighbors, and complaisant to all the world. Anybody has
+      access to himself and his apartments; his very bedroom is open to
+      visitors, whatever may be its state of confusion; and all this not from
+      any peculiarly hospitable feeling, but from that communicative habit which
+      predominates over his character.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The Englishman, on the contrary, ensconces himself in a snug brick
+      mansion, which he has all to himself; locks the front door; puts broken
+      bottles along his walls, and spring guns and man-traps in his gardens;
+      shrouds himself with trees and window-curtains; exults in his quiet and
+      privacy, and seems disposed to keep out noise, daylight, and company. His
+      house, like himself, has a reserved, inhospitable exterior; yet whoever
+      gains admittance is apt to find a warm heart and warm fireside within.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The French excel in wit, the English in humor; the French have gayer
+      fancy, the English richer imagination. The former are full of sensibility;
+      easily moved, and prone to sudden and great excitement; but their
+      excitement is not durable; the English are more phlegmatic; not so readily
+      affected, but capable of being aroused to great enthusiasm. The faults of
+      these opposite temperaments are that the vivacity of the French is apt to
+      sparkle up and be frothy, the gravity of the English to settle down and
+      grow muddy. When the two characters can be fixed in a medium, the French
+      kept from effervescence and the English from stagnation, both will be
+      found excellent.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      This contrast of character may also be noticed in the great concerns of
+      the two nations. The ardent Frenchman is all for military renown; he
+      fights for glory, that is to say, for success in arms. For, provided the
+      national flag is victorious, he cares little about the expense, the
+      injustice, or the inutility of the war. It is wonderful how the poorest
+      Frenchman will revel on a triumphant bulletin; a great victory is meat and
+      drink to him; and at the sight of a military sovereign, bringing home
+      captured cannon and captured standards, he throws up his greasy cap in the
+      air, and is ready to jump out of his wooden shoes for joy.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      John Bull, on the contrary, is a reasoning, considerate person. If he does
+      wrong, it is in the most rational way imaginable. He fights because the
+      good of the world requires it. He is a moral person, and makes war upon
+      his neighbor for the maintenance of peace and good order, and sound
+      principles. He is a money-making personage, and fights for the prosperity
+      of commerce and manufactures. Thus the two nations have been fighting,
+      time out of mind, for glory and good. The French, in pursuit of glory,
+      have had their capital twice taken; and John, in pursuit of good, has run
+      himself over head and ears in debt.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      <br /><br />
+    </p>
+    <hr />
+    <p>
+      <br /><br /> <br /><br />
+    </p>
+    <hr />
+    <p>
+      <a name="link2H_4_0007" id="link2H_4_0007"> </a>
+    </p>
+    <div style="height: 4em;">
+      <br /><br /><br /><br />
+    </div>
+    <h2>
+      THE TUILERIES AND WINDSOR CASTLE
+    </h2>
+    <p>
+      I have sometimes fancied I could discover national characteristics in
+      national edifices. In the Chateau of the Tuileries, for instance, I
+      perceive the same jumble of contrarieties that marks the French character;
+      the same whimsical mixture of the great and the little; the splendid and
+      the paltry, the sublime and the grotesque. On visiting this famous pile,
+      the first thing that strikes both eye and ear is military display. The
+      courts glitter with steel-clad soldiery, and resound with the tramp of
+      horse, the roll of drum, and the bray of trumpet. Dismounted guardsmen
+      patrol its arcades, with loaded carbines, jingling spears, and clanking
+      sabers. Gigantic grenadiers are posted about its staircases; young
+      officers of the guards loll from the balconies, or lounge in groups upon
+      the terraces; and the gleam of bayonet from window to window, shows that
+      sentinels are pacing up and down the corridors and ante-chambers. The
+      first floor is brilliant with the splendors of a court. French taste has
+      tasked itself in adorning the sumptuous suites of apartments; nor are the
+      gilded chapel and the splendid theater forgotten, where piety and pleasure
+      are next-door neighbors, and harmonize together with perfect French <i>bienseance</i>.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Mingled up with all this regal and military magnificence is a world of
+      whimsical and make-shift detail. A great part of the huge edifice is cut
+      up into little chambers and nestling-places for retainers of the court,
+      dependents on retainers, and hangers-on of dependents. Some are squeezed
+      into narrow entre-sols, those low, dark, intermediate slices of apartments
+      between floors, the inhabitants of which seem shoved in edgewise, like
+      books between narrow shelves; others are perched like swallows, under the
+      eaves; the high roofs, too, which are as tall and steep as a French cocked
+      hat, have rows of little dormant windows, tier above tier, just large
+      enough to admit light and air for some dormitory, and to enable its
+      occupant to peep out at the sky. Even to the very ridge of the roof may be
+      seen here and there one of these air-holes, with a stove pipe beside it,
+      to carry off the smoke from the handful of fuel with which its
+      weazen-faced tenant simmers his <i>demi-tasse</i> of coffee.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      On approaching the palace from the Pont Royal, you take in at a glance all
+      the various strata of inhabitants; the garreteer in the roof; the retainer
+      in the entre-sol; the courtiers at the casements of the royal apartments;
+      while on the ground-floor a steam of savory odors and a score or two of
+      cooks, in white caps, bobbing their heads about the windows, betray that
+      scientific and all-important laboratory, the Royal Kitchen.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Go into the grand ante-chamber of the royal apartments on Sunday and see
+      the mixture of Old and New France; the old emigrés, returned with the
+      Bourbons; little withered, spindle-shanked old noblemen, clad in court
+      dresses, that figured in these saloons before the revolution, and have
+      been carefully treasured up during their exile; with the solitaires and <i>ailes
+      de pigeon</i> of former days; and the court swords strutting out behind,
+      like pins stuck through dry beetles. See them haunting the scenes of their
+      former splendor, in hopes of a restitution of estates, like ghosts
+      haunting the vicinity of buried treasure; while around them you see the
+      Young France, that have grown up in the fighting school of Napoleon; all
+      equipped <i>en militaire</i>; tall, hardy, frank, vigorous, sunburned,
+      fierce-whiskered; with tramping boots, towering crests, and glittering
+      breast-plates.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      It is incredible the number of ancient and hereditary feeders on royalty
+      said to be housed in this establishment. Indeed all the royal palaces
+      abound with noble families returned from exile, and who have
+      nestling-places allotted them while they await the restoration of their
+      estates, or the much-talked-of law indemnity. Some of them have fine
+      quarters, but poor living. Some families have but five or six hundred
+      francs a year, and all their retinue consists of a servant-woman. With all
+      this, they maintain their old aristocratical hauteur, look down with vast
+      contempt upon the opulent families which have risen since the revolution;
+      stigmatize them all as <i>parvenues</i> or upstarts, and refuse to visit
+      them.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      In regarding the exterior of the Tuileries, with all its outward signs of
+      internal populousness, I have often thought what a rare sight it would be
+      to see it suddenly unroofed, and all its nooks and corners laid open to
+      the day. It would be like turning up the stump of an old tree, and
+      dislodging the world of grubs, and ants, and beetles lodged beneath.
+      Indeed there is a scandalous anecdote current that in the time of one of
+      the petty plots, when petards were exploded under the windows of the
+      Tuileries, the police made a sudden investigation of the palace at four
+      o&rsquo;clock in the morning; when a scene of the most whimsical confusion
+      ensued. Hosts of supernumerary inhabitants were found foisted into the
+      huge edifice; every rat-hole had its occupant; and places which had been
+      considered as tenanted only by spiders were found crowded with a
+      surreptitious population. It is added that many ludicrous accidents
+      occurred; great scampering and slamming of doors, and whisking away in
+      nightgowns and slippers; and several persons, who were found by accident
+      in their neighbors&rsquo; chambers, evinced indubitable astonishment at the
+      circumstance.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      As I have fancied I could read the French character in the national palace
+      of the Tuileries, so I have pictured to myself some of the traits of John
+      Bull in his royal abode of Windsor Castle. The Tuileries, outwardly a
+      peaceful palace, is in effect a swaggering military hold; while the old
+      castle, on the contrary, in spite of its bullying look, is completely
+      under petticoat government. Every corner and nook is built up into some
+      snug, cozy nestling place, some &ldquo;procreant cradle,&rdquo; not tenanted by meager
+      expectants or whiskered warriors, but by sleek placemen; knowing realizers
+      of present pay and present pudding; who seem placed there not to kill and
+      destroy, but to breed and multiply. Nursery maids and children shine with
+      rosy faces at the windows, and swarm about the courts and terraces. The
+      very soldiers have a pacific look, and when off duty may be seen loitering
+      about the place with the nursery-maids; not making love to them in the gay
+      gallant style of the French soldiery, but with infinite bonhomie aiding
+      them to take care of the broods of children.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Though the old castle is in decay, everything about it thrives; the very
+      crevices of the walls are tenanted by swallows, rooks, and pigeons, all
+      sure of quiet lodgment; the ivy strikes its roots deep in the fissures,
+      and flourishes about the mouldering tower. [Footnote: The above sketch was
+      written before the thorough repairs and magnificent additions that have
+      been made of late years to Windsor Castle.] Thus it is with honest John;
+      according to his own account, he is ever going to ruin, yet everything
+      that lives on him thrives and waxes fat. He would fain be a soldier, and
+      swagger like his neighbors; but his domestic, quiet-loving, uxorious
+      nature continually gets the upper hand; and though he may mount his helmet
+      and gird on his sword, yet he is apt to sink into the plodding,
+      painstaking father of a family; with a troop of children at his heels, and
+      his womenkind hanging on each arm.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      <br /><br />
+    </p>
+    <hr />
+    <p>
+      <a name="link2H_4_0008" id="link2H_4_0008"> </a>
+    </p>
+    <div style="height: 4em;">
+      <br /><br /><br /><br />
+    </div>
+    <h2>
+      THE FIELD OF WATERLOO
+    </h2>
+    <p>
+      I have spoken heretofore with some levity of the contrast that exists
+      between the English and French character; but it deserves more serious
+      consideration. They are the two great nations of modern times most
+      diametrically opposed, and most worthy of each other&rsquo;s rivalry;
+      essentially distinct in their characters, excelling in opposite qualities,
+      and reflecting luster on each other by their very opposition. In nothing
+      is this contrast more strikingly evinced than in their military conduct.
+      For ages have they been contending, and for ages have they crowded each
+      other&rsquo;s history with acts of splendid heroism. Take the Battle of
+      Waterloo, for instance, the last and most memorable trial of their rival
+      prowess. Nothing could surpass the brilliant daring on the one side, and
+      the steadfast enduring on the other. The French cavalry broke like waves
+      on the compact squares of English infantry. They were seen galloping round
+      those serried walls of men, seeking in vain for an entrance; tossing their
+      arms in the air, in the heat of their enthusiasm, and braving the whole
+      front of battle. The British troops, on the other hand, forbidden to move
+      or fire, stood firm and enduring. Their columns were ripped up by
+      cannonry; whole rows were swept down at a shot; the survivors closed their
+      ranks, and stood firm. In this way many columns stood through the pelting
+      of the iron tempest without firing a shot; without any action to stir
+      their blood or excite their spirits. Death thinned their ranks, but could
+      not shake their souls.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      A beautiful instance of the quick and generous impulses to which the
+      French are prone, is given in the case of a French cavalier, in the
+      hottest of the action, charging furiously upon a British officer, but
+      perceiving in the moment of assault that his adversary had lost his
+      sword-arm, dropping the point of his saber, and courteously riding on.
+      Peace be with that generous warrior, whatever were his fate! If he went
+      down in the storm of battle, with the foundering fortunes of his
+      chieftain, may the turf of Waterloo grow green above his grave! and
+      happier far would be the fate of such a spirit, to sink amid the tempest,
+      unconscious of defeat, than to survive and mourn over the blighted laurels
+      of his country.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      In this way the two armies fought through a long and bloody day. The
+      French with enthusiastic valor, the English with cool, inflexible courage,
+      until Fate, as if to leave the question of superiority still undecided
+      between two such adversaries, brought up the Prussians to decide the
+      fortunes of the field.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      It was several years afterward that I visited the field of Waterloo. The
+      plowshare had been busy with its oblivious labors, and the frequent
+      harvest had nearly obliterated the vestiges of war. Still the blackened
+      ruins of Hoguemont stood, a monumental pile, to mark the violence of this
+      vehement struggle. Its broken walls, pierced by bullets, and shattered by
+      explosions, showed the deadly strife that had taken place within; when
+      Gaul and Briton, hemmed in between narrow walls, hand to hand and foot to
+      foot, fought from garden to courtyard, from courtyard to chamber, with
+      intense and concentrated rivalship. Columns of smoke turned from this
+      vortex of battle as from a volcano: &ldquo;it was,&rdquo; said my guide, &ldquo;like a
+      little hell upon earth.&rdquo; Not far off, two or three broad spots of rank,
+      unwholesome green still marked the places where these rival warriors,
+      after their fierce and fitful struggle, slept quietly together in the lap
+      of their common mother earth. Over all the rest of the field peace had
+      resumed its sway. The thoughtless whistle of the peasant floated on the
+      air, instead of the trumpet&rsquo;s clangor; the team slowly labored up the
+      hillside, once shaken by the hoofs of rushing squadrons; and wide fields
+      of corn waved peacefully over the soldiers&rsquo; graves, as summer seas dimple
+      over the place where many a tall ship lies buried.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      <br /><br />
+    </p>
+    <hr />
+    <p>
+      <br /><br />
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      To the foregoing desultory notes on the French military character, let me
+      append a few traits which I picked up verbally in one of the French
+      provinces. They may have already appeared in print, but I have never met
+      with them.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      At the breaking out of the revolution, when so many of the old families
+      emigrated, a descendant of the great Turenne, by the name of De Latour
+      D&rsquo;Auvergne, refused to accompany his relations, and entered into the
+      Republican army. He served in all the campaigns of the revolution,
+      distinguished himself by his valor, his accomplishments, and his generous
+      spirit, and might have risen to fortune, and to the highest honors. He
+      refused, however, all rank in the army, above that of captain, and would
+      receive no recompense for his achievements but a sword of honor. Napoleon,
+      in testimony of his merits, gave him the title of Premier Grenadier de
+      France (First Grenadier of France), which was the only title he would ever
+      bear. He was killed in Germany, in 1809 or &lsquo;10. To honor his memory, his
+      place was always retained in his regiment, as if he still occupied it; and
+      whenever the regiment was mustered, and the name of De Latour D&rsquo;Auvergne
+      was called out, the reply was, &ldquo;Dead on the field of honor!&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      <br /><br />
+    </p>
+    <hr />
+    <p>
+      <br /><br /> <br /><br />
+    </p>
+    <hr />
+    <p>
+      <a name="link2H_4_0009" id="link2H_4_0009"> </a>
+    </p>
+    <div style="height: 4em;">
+      <br /><br /><br /><br />
+    </div>
+    <h2>
+      PARIS AT THE RESTORATION
+    </h2>
+    <p>
+      Paris presented a singular aspect just after the downfall of Napoleon, and
+      the restoration of the Bourbons. It was filled with a restless, roaming
+      population; a dark, sallow race, with fierce mustaches, black cravats, and
+      feverish, menacing looks; men suddenly thrown out of employ by the return
+      of peace; officers cut short in their career, and cast loose with scanty
+      means, many of them in utter indigence, upon the world; the broken
+      elements of armies. They haunted the places of public resort, like
+      restless, unhappy spirits, taking no pleasure; hanging about, like
+      lowering clouds that linger after a storm, and giving a singular air of
+      gloom to this otherwise gay metropolis.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The vaunted courtesy of the old school, the smooth urbanity that prevailed
+      in former days of settled government and long-established aristocracy, had
+      disappeared amid the savage republicanism of the revolution and the
+      military furor of the empire; recent reverses had stung the national
+      vanity to the quick; and English travelers, who crowded to Paris on the
+      return of peace, expecting to meet with a gay, good-humored, complaisant
+      populace, such as existed in the time of the &ldquo;Sentimental Journey,&rdquo; were
+      surprised at finding them irritable and fractious, quick at fancying
+      affronts, and not unapt to offer insults. They accordingly inveighed with
+      heat and bitterness at the rudeness they experienced in the French
+      metropolis; yet what better had they to expect? Had Charles II. been
+      reinstated in his kingdom by the valor of French troops; had he been
+      wheeled triumphantly to London over the trampled bodies and trampled
+      standards of England&rsquo;s bravest sons; had a French general dictated to the
+      English capital, and a French army been quartered in Hyde Park; had Paris
+      poured forth its motley population, and the wealthy bourgeoise of every
+      French trading town swarmed to London; crowding its squares; filling its
+      streets with their equipages; thronging its fashionable hotels, and places
+      of amusements; elbowing its impoverished nobility out of their palaces and
+      opera-boxes, and looking down on the humiliated inhabitants as a conquered
+      people; in such a reverse of the case, what degree of courtesy would the
+      populace of London have been apt to exercise toward their visitors?
+      [Footnote: The above remarks were suggested by a conversation with the
+      late Mr. Canning, whom the author met in Paris, and who expressed himself
+      in the most liberal way concerning the magnanimity of the French on the
+      occupation of their capital by strangers.]
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      On the contrary, I have always admired the degree of magnanimity exhibited
+      by the French on the occupation of their capital by the English. When we
+      consider the military ambition of this nation, its love of glory; the
+      splendid height to which its renown in arms had recently been carried, and
+      with these, the tremendous reverses it had just undergone; its armies
+      shattered, annihilated; its capital captured, garrisoned, and overrun, and
+      that too by its ancient rival, the English, toward whom it had cherished
+      for centuries a jealous and almost religious hostility; could we have
+      wondered if the tiger spirit of this fiery people had broken out in bloody
+      feuds and deadly quarrels; and that they had sought to rid themselves in
+      any way of their invaders? But it is cowardly nations only, those who dare
+      not wield the sword, that revenge themselves with the lurking dagger.
+      There were no assassinations in Paris. The French had fought valiantly,
+      desperately, in the field; but, when valor was no longer of avail, they
+      submitted like gallant men to a fate they could not withstand. Some
+      instances of insult from the populace were experienced by their English
+      visitors; some personal rencontres, which led to duels, did take place;
+      but these smacked of open and honorable hostility. No instances of lurking
+      and perfidious revenge occurred, and the British soldier patroled the
+      streets of Paris safe from treacherous assault.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      If the English met with harshness and repulse in social intercourse, it
+      was in some degree a proof that the people are more sincere than has been
+      represented. The emigrants who had just returned were not yet reinstated.
+      Society was constituted of those who had flourished under the late regime;
+      the newly ennobled, the recently enriched, who felt their prosperity and
+      their consequence endangered by this change of things. The broken-down
+      officer, who saw his glory tarnished, his fortune ruined, his occupation
+      gone, could not be expected to look with complacency upon the authors of
+      his downfall. The English visitor, flushed with health, and wealth, and
+      victory, could little enter into the feelings of the blighted warrior,
+      scarred with a hundred battles, an exile from the camp, broken in
+      constitution by the wars, impoverished by the peace, and cast back, a
+      needy stranger in the splendid but captured metropolis of his country.
+    </p>
+<pre xml:space="preserve">
+  &ldquo;Oh! who can tell what heroes feel,
+   When all but life and honor&rsquo;s lost!&rdquo;
+ </pre>
+    <p>
+      And here let me notice the conduct of the French soldiery on the
+      dismemberment of the army of the Loire, when two hundred thousand men were
+      suddenly thrown out of employ; men who had been brought up to the camp,
+      and scarce knew any other home. Few in civil, peaceful life, are aware of
+      the severe trial to the feelings that takes place on the dissolution of a
+      regiment. There is a fraternity in arms. The community of dangers,
+      hardships, enjoyments; the participation in battles and victories; the
+      companionship in adventures, at a time of life when men&rsquo;s feelings are
+      most fresh, susceptible, and ardent, all these bind the members of a
+      regiment strongly together. To them the regiment is friends, family, home.
+      They identify themselves with its fortunes, its glories, its disgraces.
+      Imagine this romantic tie suddenly dissolved; the regiment broken up; the
+      occupation of its members gone; their military pride mortified; the career
+      of glory closed behind them; that of obscurity, dependence, want, neglect,
+      perhaps beggary, before them. Such was the case with the soldiers of the
+      army of the Loire. They were sent off in squads, with officers, to the
+      principal towns where they were to be disarmed and discharged. In this way
+      they passed through the country with arms in their hands, often exposed to
+      slights and scoffs, to hunger and various hardships and privations; but
+      they conducted themselves magnanimously, without any of those outbreaks of
+      violence and wrong that so often attend the dismemberment of armies.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      <br /><br />
+    </p>
+    <hr />
+    <p>
+      <br /><br />
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The few years that have elapsed since the time above alluded to, have
+      already had their effect. The proud and angry spirits which then roamed
+      about Paris unemployed begins to recover its old channels, though worn
+      deeper by recent torrents. The natural urbanity of the French begins to
+      find its way, like oil, to the surface, though there still remains a
+      degree of roughness and bluntness of manner, partly real, and partly
+      affected, by such as imagine it to indicate force and frankness. The
+      events of the last thirty years have rendered the French a more reflecting
+      people. They have acquired greater independence of mind and strength of
+      judgment, together with a portion of that prudence which results from
+      experiencing the dangerous consequences of excesses. However that period
+      may have been stained by crimes, and filled with extravagances, the French
+      have certainly come out of it a greater nation than before. One of their
+      own philosophers observes that in one or two generations the nation will
+      probably combine the ease and elegance of the old character with force and
+      solidity. They were light, he says, before the revolution; then wild and
+      savage; they have become more thoughtful and reflective. It is only old
+      Frenchmen, nowadays, that are gay and trivial; the young are very serious
+      personages.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      <br /><br />
+    </p>
+    <hr />
+    <p>
+      <br /><br />
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      P.S.&mdash;In the course of a morning&rsquo;s walk, about the time the above
+      remarks were written, I observed the Duke of Wellington, who was on a
+      brief visit to Paris. He was alone, simply attired in a blue frock; with
+      an umbrella under his arm, and his hat drawn over his eyes, and sauntering
+      across the Place Vendome, close by the Column of Napoleon. He gave a
+      glance up at the column as he passed, and continued his loitering way up
+      the Rue de la Paix; stopping occasionally to gaze in at the shop-windows;
+      elbowed now and then by other gazers, who little suspected that the quiet,
+      lounging individual they were jostling so unceremoniously was the
+      conqueror who had twice entered their capital victoriously; had controlled
+      the destinies of the nation, and eclipsed the glory of the military idol,
+      at the base of whose column he was thus negligently sauntering.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Some years afterward I was at an evening&rsquo;s entertainment given by the duke
+      at Apsley House, to William IV. The duke had manifested his admiration of
+      his great adversary, by having portraits of him in different parts of the
+      house. At the bottom of the grand staircase stood the colossal statue of
+      the emperor, by Canova. It was of marble, in the antique style, with one
+      arm partly extended, holding a figure of victory. Over this arm the
+      ladies, in tripping upstairs to the ball, had thrown their shawls. It was
+      a singular office for the statue of Napoleon to perform in the mansion of
+      the Duke of Wellington!
+    </p>
+<pre xml:space="preserve">
+  &ldquo;Imperial Caesar dead, and turned to clay,&rdquo; etc., etc.
+
+</pre>
+    <p>
+      <br /><br />
+    </p>
+    <hr />
+    <p>
+      <br /><br /> <br /><br />
+    </p>
+    <hr />
+    <p>
+      <a name="link2H_4_0010" id="link2H_4_0010"> </a>
+    </p>
+    <div style="height: 4em;">
+      <br /><br /><br /><br />
+    </div>
+    <h2>
+      AMERICAN RESEARCHES IN ITALY
+    </h2>
+    <h3>
+      LIFE OF TASSO: RECOVERY OF A LOST PORTRAIT OF DANTE
+    </h3>
+    <p>
+      <i>To the Editor of the Knickerbocker:</i>
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Sir&mdash;Permit me through the pages of your magazine to call the
+      attention of the public to the learned and elegant researches in Europe of
+      one of our countrymen, Mr. R. H. Wilde, of Georgia, formerly a member of
+      the House of Representatives. After leaving Congress, Mr. Wilde a few
+      years since spent about eighteen months in traveling through different
+      parts of Europe, until he became stationary for a time in Tuscany. Here he
+      occupied himself with researches concerning the private life of Tasso,
+      whose mysterious and romantic love for the Princess Leonora, his madness
+      and imprisonment, had recently become the theme of a literary controversy,
+      not yet ended; curious in itself, and rendered still more curious by some
+      alleged manuscripts of the poet&rsquo;s, brought forward by Count Alberti. Mr.
+      Wilde entered into the investigation with the enthusiasm of a poet, and
+      the patience and accuracy of a case-hunter; and has produced a work now in
+      the press, in which the &ldquo;vexed questions&rdquo; concerning Tasso are most ably
+      discussed, and lights thrown upon them by his letters, and by various of
+      his sonnets, which last are rendered into English with rare felicity.
+      While Mr. Wilde was occupied upon this work, he became acquainted with
+      Signer Carlo Liverati, an artist of considerable merit, and especially
+      well versed in the antiquities of Florence. This gentleman mentioned
+      incidentally one day, in the course of conversation, that there once and
+      probably still existed in the &ldquo;Bargello,&rdquo; anciently both the prison, and
+      the palace of the republic, an authentic portrait of Dante. It was
+      believed to be in fresco, on a wall which afterward, by some strange
+      neglect or inadvertency, had been covered with whitewash. Signor Liverati
+      mentioned the circumstance merely to deplore the loss of so precious a
+      portrait, and to regret the almost utter hopelessness of its recovery.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      As Mr. Wilde had not as yet imbibed that enthusiastic admiration for Dante
+      which possesses all Italians, by whom the poet is almost worshiped, this
+      conversation made but a slight impression on him at the time.
+      Subsequently, however, his researches concerning Tasso being ended, he
+      began to amuse his leisure hours with attempts to translate some specimens
+      of Italian lyric poetry, and to compose very short biographical sketches
+      of the authors. In these specimens, which as yet exist only in manuscript,
+      he has shown the same critical knowledge of the Italian language, and
+      admirable command of the English, that characterize his translations of
+      Tasso. He had not advanced far in these exercises, when the obscure and
+      contradictory accounts of many incidents in the life of Dante caused him
+      much embarrassment, and sorely piqued his curiosity. About the same time
+      he received, through the courtesy of Don Neri dei Principi Corsini, what
+      he had long most fervently desired, a permission from the grandduke to
+      pursue his investigations in the secret archives of Florence, with power
+      to obtain copies therefrom. This was a rich and almost unwrought mine of
+      literary research; for to Italians themselves, as well as to foreigners,
+      their archives, for the most part, have been long inaccessible. For two
+      years Mr. Wilde devoted himself with indefatigable ardor to explore the
+      records of the republic during the time of Dante. These being written in
+      barbarous Latin and semi-Gothic characters, on parchment more or less
+      discolored and mutilated, with ink sometimes faded, were rendered still
+      more illegible by the arbitrary abbreviations of the notaries. They
+      require, in fact, an especial study; few even of the officers employed in
+      the &ldquo;Archivio delle Riformagione&rdquo; can read them currently and correctly.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Mr. Wilde however persevered in his laborious task with a patience
+      severely tried, but invincible. Being without an index, each file, each
+      book, required to be examined page by page, to ascertain whether any
+      particular of the immortal poet&rsquo;s political life had escaped the untiring
+      industry of his countrymen. This toil was not wholly fruitless, and
+      several interesting facts obscurely known, and others utterly unknown by
+      the Italians themselves, are drawn forth by Mr. Wilde from the oblivion of
+      these archives.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      While thus engaged, the circumstance of the lost portrait of Dante was
+      again brought to Mr. Wilde&rsquo;s mind, but now excited intense interest. In
+      perusing the notes of the late learned Canonico Moreri on Filelfo&rsquo;s life
+      of Dante, he found it stated that a portrait of the poet by Giotto was
+      formerly to be seen in the Bargello. He learned also that Signer Scotti,
+      who has charge of the original drawings of the old masters in the imperial
+      and royal gallery, had made several years previously an ineffectual
+      attempt to set on foot a project for the recovery of the lost treasure.
+      Here was a new vein of inquiry, which Mr. Wilde followed up with his usual
+      energy and sagacity. He soon satisfied himself, by reference to Vasari,
+      and to the still more ancient and decisive authority of Filippo Villari,
+      who lived shortly after the poet, that Giotto, the friend and contemporary
+      of Dante, did undoubtedly paint his likeness in the place indicated.
+      Giotto died in 1336, but as Dante was banished, and was even sentenced to
+      be burned, in 1302, it was obvious the work must have been executed before
+      that time; since the portrait of one outlawed and capitally convicted as
+      an enemy to the commonwealth would never have been ordered or tolerated in
+      the chapel of the royal palace. It was clear, then, that the portrait must
+      have been painted between 1290 and 1302.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Mr. Wilde now revolved in his own mind the possibility that this precious
+      relic might remain undestroyed under its coat of whitewash, and might yet
+      be restored to the world. For a moment he felt an impulse to undertake the
+      enterprise; but feared that, in a foreigner from a new world, any part of
+      which is unrepresented at the Tuscan court, it might appear like an
+      intrusion. He soon however found a zealous coadjutor. This was one
+      Giovanni Aubrey Bezzi, a Piedmontese exile, who had long been a resident
+      in England, and was familiar with its language and literature. He was now
+      on a visit to Florence, which liberal and hospitable city is always open
+      to men of merit who for political reasons have been excluded from other
+      parts of Italy. Signer Bezzi partook deeply of the enthusiasm of his
+      countrymen for the memory of Dante, and sympathized with Mr. Wilde in his
+      eagerness to retrieve if possible the lost portrait. They had several
+      consultations as to the means to be adopted to effect their purpose,
+      without incurring the charge of undue officiousness. To lessen any
+      objections that might occur they resolved to ask for nothing but
+      permission to search for the fresco painting at their own expense; and
+      should any remains of it be found, then to propose to the nobility and
+      gentry of Florence an association for the purpose of completing the
+      undertaking and effectually recovering the lost portrait.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      For the same reason the formal memorial addressed to the grandduke was
+      drawn up in the name of Florentines; among whom were the celebrated
+      Bartolini, now President of the School of Sculpture in the Imperial and
+      Royal Academy, Signor Paolo Ferroni, of the noble family of that name, who
+      has exhibited considerable talent for painting, and Signor Gasparini, also
+      an artist. This petition was urged and supported with indefatigable zeal
+      by Signor Bezzi; and being warmly countenanced by Count Nerli and other
+      functionaries, met with more prompt success than had been anticipated.
+      Signor Marini, a skillful artist, who had succeeded in similar operations,
+      was now employed to remove the whitewash by a process of his own, by which
+      any fresco painting that might exist beneath would be protected from
+      injury. He set to work patiently and cautiously. In a short time he met
+      with evidence of the existence of the fresco. From under the coat of
+      whitewash the head of an angel gradually made its appearance, and was
+      pronounced to be by the pencil of Giotto.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The enterprise was now prosecuted with increased ardor. Several months
+      were expended on the task, and three sides of the chapel wall were
+      uncovered; they were all painted in fresco by Giotto, with the history of
+      the Magdalen, exhibiting her conversion, her penance, and her
+      beatification. The figures, however, were all those of saints and angels;
+      no historical portraits had yet been discovered, and doubts began to be
+      entertained whether there were any. Still the recovery of an indisputable
+      work of Giotto&rsquo;s was considered an ample reward for any toil; and the
+      Ministers of the grandduke, acting under his directions, assumed on his
+      behalf the past charges and future management of the enterprise.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      At length, on the uncovering of the fourth wall, the undertaking was
+      crowned with complete success. A number of historical figures were brought
+      to light, and among them the undoubted likeness of Dante. He was
+      represented in full length, in the garb of the time, with a book under his
+      arm, designed most probably to represent the &ldquo;Vita Nuova,&rdquo; for the
+      &ldquo;Comedia&rdquo; was not yet composed, and to all appearance from thirty to
+      thirty-five years of age. The face was in profile and in excellent
+      preservation, excepting that at some former period a nail had
+      unfortunately been driven into the eye. The outline of the eyelid was
+      perfect, so that the injury could easily be remedied. The countenance was
+      extremely handsome, yet bore a strong resemblance to the portraits of the
+      poet taken later in life.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      It is not easy to appreciate the delight of Mr. Wilde and his coadjutors
+      at this triumphant result of their researches; nor the sensation produced,
+      not merely in Florence but throughout Italy, by this discovery of a
+      veritable portrait of Dante, in the prime of his days. It was some such
+      sensation as would be produced in England by the sudden discovery of a
+      perfectly well authenticated likeness of Shakespeare; with a difference in
+      intensity proportioned to the superior sensitiveness of the Italians.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The recovery of this portrait of the &ldquo;divine poet&rdquo; has occasioned fresh
+      inquiry into the origin of the masks said to have been made from a cast of
+      his face taken after death. One of these masks, in the possession of the
+      Marquess of Torrigiani, has been pronounced as certainly the <i>original</i>.
+      Several artists of high talent have concurred in this opinion; among these
+      may be named Jesi, the first engraver in Florence; Seymour Kirkup, Esq., a
+      painter and antiquary; and our own countryman Powers, whose genius, by the
+      way, is very highly appreciated by the Italians.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      We may expect from the accomplished pen of Carlo Torrigiani, son of the
+      marquess, and who is advantageously known in this country, from having
+      traveled here, an account of this curious and valuable relic, which has
+      been upward of a century in the possession of his family.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Should Mr. Wilde finish his biographical work concerning Dante, which
+      promises to be a proud achievement in American literature, he intends, I
+      understand, to apply for permission to have both likenesses copied, and
+      should circumstances warrant the expense, to have them engraved by eminent
+      artists. We shall then have the features of Dante while in the prime of
+      life as well as at the moment of his death.
+    </p>
+    <h3>
+      G. C.
+    </h3>
+    <p>
+      <br /><br />
+    </p>
+    <hr />
+    <p>
+      <a name="link2H_4_0011" id="link2H_4_0011"> </a>
+    </p>
+    <div style="height: 4em;">
+      <br /><br /><br /><br />
+    </div>
+    <h2>
+      THE TAKING OF THE VEIL
+    </h2>
+    <p>
+      One of the most remarkable personages in Parisian society during the last
+      century was Renée Charlotte Victoire de Froulay De Tesse, Marchioness De
+      Crequi. She sprang from the highest and proudest of the old French
+      nobility, and ever maintained the most exalted notions of the purity and
+      antiquity of blood, looking upon all families that could not date back
+      further than three or four hundred years as mere upstarts. When a
+      beautiful girl, fourteen years of age, she was presented to Louis XIV., at
+      Versailles, and the ancient monarch kissed her hand with great gallantry;
+      after an interval of about eighty-five years, when nearly a hundred years
+      old, the same testimonial of respect was paid her at the Tuileries by
+      Bonaparte, then First Consul, who promised her the restitution of the
+      confiscated forests formerly belonging to her family. She was one of the
+      most celebrated women of her time for intellectual grace and superiority,
+      and had the courage to remain at Paris and brave all the horrors of the
+      revolution, which laid waste the aristocratical world around her.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The memoirs she has left behind abound with curious anecdotes and vivid
+      pictures of Parisian life during the latter days of Louis XIV., the
+      regency of the Duke of Orleans, and the residue of the last century; and
+      are highly illustrative of the pride, splendor, and licentiousness of the
+      French nobility on the very eve of their tremendous downfall.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      I shall draw forth a few scenes from her memoirs, taken almost at random,
+      and which, though given as actual and well-known circumstances, have quite
+      the air of romance.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      <br /><br />
+    </p>
+    <hr />
+    <p>
+      <br /><br />
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      All the great world of Paris were invited to be present at a grand
+      ceremonial, to take place in the church of the Abbey Royal of Panthemont.
+      Henrietta de Lenoncour, a young girl, of a noble family, of great beauty,
+      and heiress to immense estates, was to take the black veil. Invitations
+      had been issued in grand form, by her aunt and guardian, the Countess
+      Brigitte de Rupelmonde, canoness of Mauberge. The circumstance caused
+      great talk and wonder in the fashionable circles of Paris; everybody was
+      at a loss to imagine why a young girl, beautiful and rich, in the very
+      springtime of her charms, should renounce a world which she was so
+      eminently qualified to embellish and enjoy.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      A lady of high rank, who visited the beautiful novice at the grate of her
+      convent-parlor, got a clew to the mystery. She found her in great
+      agitation; for a time she evidently repressed her feelings, but they at
+      length broke forth in passionate exclamations. &ldquo;Heaven grant me grace,&rdquo;
+       said she, &ldquo;some day or other to pardon my cousin Gondrecourt the sorrows
+      he has caused me!&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;What do you mean?&mdash;what sorrows, my child?&rdquo; inquired her visitor.
+      &ldquo;What has your cousin done to affect you?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;He is married!&rdquo; cried she in accents of despair, but endeavoring to
+      repress her sobs.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Married! I have heard nothing of the kind, my dear. Are you perfectly
+      sure of it?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Alas! nothing is more certain; my aunt de Rupelmonde informed me of it.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      The lady retired, full of surprise and commiseration. She related the
+      scene in a circle of the highest nobility, in the saloon of the Marshal
+      Prince of Beauvau, where the unaccountable self-sacrifice of the beautiful
+      novice was under discussion.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Alas!&rdquo; said she, &ldquo;the poor girl is crossed in love; she is about to
+      renounce the world in despair, at the marriage of her cousin De
+      Gondrecourt.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;What!&rdquo; cried a gentleman present, &ldquo;the Viscount de Gondrecourt married!
+      Never was there a greater falsehood. And &lsquo;her aunt told her so&rsquo;! Oh! I
+      understand the plot. The countess is passionately fond of Gondrecourt, and
+      jealous of her beautiful niece; but her schemes are vain; the viscount
+      holds her in perfect detestation.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      There was a mingled expression of ridicule, disgust, and indignation at
+      the thought of such a rivalry. The Countess Rupelmonde was old enough to
+      be the grandmother of the viscount. She was a woman of violent passions,
+      and imperious temper; robust in person, with a masculine voice, a dusky
+      complexion, green eyes, and powerful eyebrows.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;It is impossible,&rdquo; cried one of the company, &ldquo;that a woman of the
+      countess&rsquo;s age and appearance can be guilty of such folly. No, no; you
+      mistake the aim of this detestable woman. She is managing to get
+      possession of the estate of her lovely niece.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      This was admitted to be the most probable; and all concurred in believing
+      the countess to be at the bottom of the intended sacrifice; for although a
+      canoness, a dignitary of a religious order, she was pronounced little
+      better than a devil incarnate.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The Princess de Beauvau, a woman of generous spirit and intrepid zeal,
+      suddenly rose from the chair in which she had been reclining. &ldquo;My prince,&rdquo;
+       said she, addressing her husband, &ldquo;if you approve of it, I will go
+      immediately and have a conversation on this subject with the archbishop.
+      There is not a moment to spare. It is now past midnight; the ceremony is
+      to take place in the morning. A few hours and the irrevocable vows will be
+      pronounced.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      The prince inclined his head in respectful assent. The princess set about
+      her generous enterprise with a woman&rsquo;s promptness. Within a short time her
+      carriage was at the iron gate of the archiepiscopal palace, and her
+      servants rang for admission. Two Switzers, who had charge of the gate,
+      were fast asleep in the porter&rsquo;s lodge, for it was half-past two in the
+      morning. It was some time before they could be awakened, and longer before
+      they could be made to come forth.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;The Princess de Beauvau is at the gate!&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      Such a personage was not to be received in deshabille. Her dignity and the
+      dignity of the archbishop demanded that the gate should be served in full
+      costume. For half an hour, therefore, had the princess to wait, in
+      feverish impatience, until the two dignitaries of the porter&rsquo;s lodge
+      arrayed themselves; and three o&rsquo;clock sounded from the tower of Notre Dame
+      before they came forth. They were in grand livery, of a buff color, with
+      amaranth galloons, plaited with silver, and fringed sword-belts reaching
+      to their knees, in which were suspended long rapiers. They had small
+      three-cornered hats, surmounted with plumes; and each bore in his hand a
+      halbert. Thus equipped at all points, they planted themselves before the
+      door of the carriage; struck the ends of their halberts on the ground with
+      emphasis; and stood waiting with official importance, but profound
+      respect, to know the pleasure of the princess.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      She demanded to speak with the archbishop. A most reverential bow and
+      shrug accompanied the reply, that &ldquo;His Grandeur was not at home.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      Not at home! Where was he to be found? Another bow and shrug: &ldquo;His
+      Grandeur either was, or ought to be, in retirement in the seminary of St.
+      Magloire; unless he had gone to pass the Fete of St. Bruno with the
+      reverend Carthusian fathers of the Rue d&rsquo;Enfer; or perhaps he might have
+      gone to repose himself in his castle of Conflans-sur-Seine. Though, on
+      further thought, it was not unlikely he might have gone to sleep at St.
+      Cyr, where the Bishop of Chartres never failed to invite him for the
+      anniversary soiree of Madame de Maintenon.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      The princess was in despair at this multiplicity of crossroads pointed out
+      for the chase; the brief interval of time was rapidly elapsing; day
+      already began to dawn; she saw there was no hope of finding the archbishop
+      before the moment of his entrance into the church for the morning&rsquo;s
+      ceremony; so she returned home quite distressed.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      At seven o&rsquo;clock in the morning the princess was in the parlor of the
+      monastery of De Panthemont, and sent in an urgent request for a moment&rsquo;s
+      conversation with the Lady Abbess. The reply brought was, that the abbess
+      could not come to the parlor, being obliged to attend in the choir at the
+      canonical hours. The princess entreated permission to enter the convent,
+      to reveal to the Lady Abbess in two words something of the greatest
+      importance. The abbess sent word in reply, that the thing was impossible,
+      until she had obtained permission from the Archbishop of Paris. The
+      princess retired once more to her carriage, and now, as a forlorn hope,
+      took her station at the door of the church to watch for the arrival of the
+      prelate.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      After a while the splendid company invited to this great ceremony began to
+      arrive. The beauty, rank, and wealth of the novice had excited great
+      attention; and, as everybody was expected to be present on the occasion,
+      everybody pressed to secure a place. The street reverberated with the
+      continual roll of gilded carriages and chariots; coaches of princes and
+      dukes, designated by imperials of crimson velvet, and magnificent
+      equipages of six horses, decked out with nodding plumes and sumptuous
+      harnessing. At length the equipages ceased to arrive; empty vehicles
+      filled the street; and, with a noisy and party-colored crowd of lackeys in
+      rich liveries, obstructed all the entrances to De Panthemont.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Eleven o&rsquo;clock had struck; the last auditor had entered the church; the
+      deep tones of the organ began to swell through the sacred pile, yet still
+      the archbishop came not! The heart of the princess beat quicker and
+      quicker with vague apprehension; when a valet, dressed in cloth of silver,
+      trimmed with crimson velvet, approached her carriage precipitately.
+      &ldquo;Madame,&rdquo; said he, &ldquo;the archbishop is in the church; he entered by the
+      portal of the cloister; he is already in the sanctuary; the ceremony is
+      about to commence!&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      What was to be done? To speak with the archbishop was now impossible, and
+      yet on the revelation she was to make to him depended the fate of the
+      lovely novice. The princess drew forth her tablets of enameled gold, wrote
+      a few lines therein with a pencil, and ordered her lackey to make way for
+      her through the crowd, and conduct her with all speed to the sacristy.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The description given of the church and the assemblage on this occasion
+      presents an idea of the aristocratical state of the times, and of the high
+      interest awakened by the affecting sacrifice about to take place. The
+      church was hung with superb tapestry, above which extended a band of white
+      damask, fringed with gold, and covered with armorial escutcheons. A large
+      pennon, emblazoned with the arms and alliances of the high-born damsel,
+      was suspended, according to custom, in place of the lamp of the sanctuary.
+      The lusters, girandoles, and candelabras of the king had been furnished in
+      profusion, to decorate the sacred edifice, and the pavements were all
+      covered with rich carpets.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The sanctuary presented a reverend and august assemblage of bishops,
+      canons, and monks of various orders, Benedictines, Bernardines,
+      Raccollets, Capuchins, and others, all in their appropriate robes and
+      dresses. In the midst presided the Archbishop of Paris, Christopher de
+      Beaumont; surrounded by his four arch priests and his vicars-general. He
+      was seated with his back against the altar. When his eyes were cast down,
+      his countenance, pale and severe, is represented as having been somewhat
+      sepulchral and death-like; but the moment he raised his large, dark,
+      sparkling eyes, the whole became animated; beaming with ardor, and
+      expressive of energy, penetration, and firmness.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The audience that crowded the church was no less illustrious. Excepting
+      the royal family, all that was elevated in rank and title was there; never
+      had a ceremonial of the kind attracted an equal concourse of the high
+      aristocracy of Paris.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      At length the grated gates of the choir creaked on their hinges, and
+      Madame de Richelieu, the high and noble Abbess of De Panthemont, advanced
+      to resign the novice into the hands of her aunt, the Countess Canoness De
+      Rupelmonde. Every eye was turned with intense curiosity to gain a sight of
+      the beautiful victim. She was sumptuously dressed, but her paleness and
+      languor accorded but little with her brilliant attire. The Canoness De
+      Rupelmonde conducted her niece to her praying-desk, where, as soon as the
+      poor girl knelt down, she sank as if exhausted. Just then a sort of murmur
+      was heard at the lower end of the church, where the servants in livery
+      were gathered. A young man was borne forth, struggling in convulsions. He
+      was in the uniform of an officer of the guards of King Stanislaus, Duke of
+      Lorraine. A whisper circulated that it was the young Viscount de
+      Gondrecourt, and that he was a lover of the novice. Almost all the young
+      nobles present hurried forth to proffer him sympathy and assistance.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The Archbishop of Paris remained all this time seated before the altar;
+      his eyes cast down, his pallid countenance giving no signs of interest or
+      participation in the scene around him. It was noticed that in one of his
+      hands, which was covered with a violet glove, he grasped firmly a pair of
+      tablets, of enameled gold.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The Canoness de Rupelmonde conducted her niece to the prelate, to make her
+      profession of self-devotion, and to utter the irrevocable vow. As the
+      lovely novice knelt at his feet, the archbishop fixed on her his dark,
+      beaming eyes, with a kind but earnest expression. &ldquo;Sister!&rdquo; said he, in
+      the softest and most benevolent tone of voice, &ldquo;What is your age?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Nineteen years, monseigneur,&rdquo; eagerly interposed the Countess de
+      Rupelmonde.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;<i>You</i> will reply to me by-and-by, madame,&rdquo; said the archbishop,
+      dryly. He then repeated his question to the novice, who replied in a
+      faltering voice, &ldquo;Seventeen years.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;In what diocese did you take the white veil?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;In the diocese of Toul.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;How!&rdquo; exclaimed the archbishop, vehemently. &ldquo;In the diocese of Toul? The
+      chair of Toul is vacant! The bishop of Toul died fifteen months since; and
+      those who officiate in the chapter are not authorized to receive novices.
+      Your novitiate, mademoiselle, is null and void, and we cannot receive your
+      profession.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      The archbishop rose from his chair, resumed his miter, and took the
+      crozier from the hands of an attendant.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;My dear brethren,&rdquo; said he, addressing the assembly, &ldquo;there is no
+      necessity for our examining and interrogating Mademoiselle de Lenoncour on
+      the sincerity of her religious vocation. There is a canonical impediment
+      to her professing for the present; and, as to the future, we reserve to
+      ourselves the consideration of the matter; interdicting to all other
+      ecclesiastical persons the power of accepting her vows, under penalty of
+      interdiction, of suspension, and of nullification; all which is in virtue
+      of our metropolitan rights, contained in the terms of the bull <i>cum
+      proximis</i>:&rdquo; &ldquo;<i>Adjutorium nostrum in nomine Domini!</i>&rdquo; pursued he,
+      chanting in a grave and solemn voice, and turning toward the altar to give
+      the benediction of the holy sacrament.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The noble auditory had that habitude of reserve, that empire, or rather
+      tyranny, over all outward manifestations of internal emotions, which
+      belongs to high aristocratical breeding. The declaration of the
+      archbishop, therefore, was received as one of the most natural and
+      ordinary things in the world, and all knelt down and received the
+      pontifical benediction with perfect decorum. As soon, however, as they
+      were released from the self-restraint imposed by etiquette, they amply
+      indemnified themselves; and nothing was talked of for a month, in the
+      fashionable saloons of Paris, but the loves of the handsome Viscount and
+      the charming Henrietta; the wickedness of the canoness; the active
+      benevolence and admirable address of the Princess de Beauvau; and the
+      great wisdom of the archbishop, who was particularly extolled for his
+      delicacy in defeating this maneuver without any scandal to the
+      aristocracy, or public stigma on the name of De Rupelmonde, and without
+      any departure from pastoral gentleness, by adroitly seizing upon an
+      informality, and turning it to beneficial account, with as much authority
+      as charitable circumspection.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      As to the Canoness de Rupelmonde, she was defeated at all points in her
+      wicked plans against her beautiful niece. In consequence of the caveat of
+      the archbishop, her superior ecclesiastic, the Abbess de Panthemont,
+      formally forbade Mademoiselle de Lenoncour to resume the white veil and
+      the dress of a novitiate, and instead of a novice&rsquo;s cell established her
+      in a beautiful apartment as a boarder. The next morning the Canoness de
+      Rupelmonde called at the convent to take away her niece; but, to her
+      confusion, the abbess produced a lettre-de-cachet, which she had just
+      received, and which forbade mademoiselle to leave the convent with any
+      other person save the Prince de Beauvau.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Under the auspices and the vigilant attention of the prince, the whole
+      affair was wound up in the most technical and circumstantial manner. The
+      Countess de Rupelmonde, by a decree of the Grand Council, was divested of
+      the guardianship of her niece. All the arrears of revenues accumulated
+      during Mademoiselle de Lenoncour&rsquo;s minority were rigorously collected, the
+      accounts scrutinized and adjusted, and her noble fortune placed safely and
+      entirely in her hands.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      In a little while the noble personages who had been invited to the
+      ceremony of taking the veil received another invitation, on the part of
+      the Countess dowager de Gondrecourt, and the Marshal Prince de Beauvau, to
+      attend the marriage of Adrien de Gondrecourt, Viscount of
+      Jean-sur-Moselle, and Henrietta de Lenoncour, Countess de Hevouwal, etc.,
+      which duly took place in the chapel of the archiepiscopal palace at Paris.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      <br /><br />
+    </p>
+    <hr />
+    <p>
+      <br /><br />
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      So much for the beautiful Henrietta de Lenoncour. We will now draw forth a
+      companion picture of a handsome young cavalier, who figured in the gay
+      world of Paris about the same time, and concerning whom the ancient
+      marchioness writes with the lingering feeling of youthful romance.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      <br /><br />
+    </p>
+    <hr />
+    <p>
+      <br /><br /> <br /><br />
+    </p>
+    <hr />
+    <p>
+      <a name="link2H_4_0012" id="link2H_4_0012"> </a>
+    </p>
+    <div style="height: 4em;">
+      <br /><br /><br /><br />
+    </div>
+    <h2>
+      THE CHARMING LETORIÈRES
+    </h2>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;A good face is a letter of recommendation,&rdquo; says an old proverb; and it
+      was never more verified than in the case of the Chevalier Letorieres. He
+      was a young gentleman of good family, but who, according to the Spanish
+      phrase, had nothing but his cloak and sword (capa y espada), that is to
+      say, his gentle blood and gallant bearing, to help him forward in the
+      world. Through the interest of an uncle, who was an abbe, he received a
+      gratuitous education at a fashionable college, but finding the terms of
+      study too long, and the vacations too short, for his gay and indolent
+      temper, he left college without saying a word, and launched himself upon
+      Paris, with a light heart and still lighter pocket. Here he led a life to
+      his humor. It is true he had to make scanty meals, and to lodge in a
+      garret; but what of that? He was his own master; free from all task or
+      restraint. When cold or hungry, he sallied forth, like others of the
+      chameleon order, and banqueted on pure air and warm sunshine in the public
+      walks and gardens; drove off the thoughts of a dinner by amusing himself
+      with the gay and grotesque throngs of the metropolis; and if one of the
+      poorest, was one of the merriest gentlemen upon town. Wherever he went his
+      good looks and frank, graceful demeanor, had an instant and magical effect
+      in securing favor. There was but one word to express his fascinating
+      powers&mdash;he was &ldquo;charming.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      Instances are given of the effect of his winning qualities upon minds of
+      coarse, ordinary mold. He had once taken shelter from a heavy shower under
+      a gateway. A hackney coachman, who was passing by, pulled up, and asked
+      him if he wished a cast in his carriage. Letorieres declined, with a
+      melancholy and dubious shake of the head. The coachman regarded him
+      wistfully, repeared his solicitations, and wished to know what place he
+      was going to &ldquo;To the Palace of Justice, to walk in the galleries; but I
+      will wait here until the rain is over.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;And why so?&rdquo; inquired the coachman, pertinaciously.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Because I&rsquo;ve no money; do let me be quiet.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      The coachman jumped down, and, opening the door of his carriage, &ldquo;It shall
+      never be said,&rdquo; cried he, &ldquo;that I left so charming a young gentleman to
+      weary himself, and catch cold, merely for the sake of twenty-four sous.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      Arrived at the Palace of Justice, he stopped before the saloon of a famous
+      restaurateur, opened the door of the carriage, and taking off his hat very
+      respectfully, begged the youth to accept of a Louis-d&rsquo;or. &ldquo;You will meet
+      with some young gentlemen within,&rdquo; said he, &ldquo;with whom you may wish to
+      take a hand at cards. The number of my coach is 144. You can find me out,
+      and repay me whenever you please.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      The worthy Jehu was some years afterward made coachman to the Princess
+      Sophia, of France, through the recommendation of the handsome youth he had
+      so generously obliged.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Another instance in point is given with respect to his tailor, to whom he
+      owed four hundred livres. The tailor had repeatedly dunned him, but was
+      always put off with the best grace in the world. The wife of the tailor
+      urged her husband to assume a harsher tone. He replied that he could not
+      find it in his heart to speak roughly to so charming a young gentleman.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;I&rsquo;ve no patience with such want of spirit!&rdquo; cried the wife; &ldquo;you have not
+      the courage to show your teeth: but I&rsquo;m going out to get change for this
+      note of a hundred crowns; before I come home, I&rsquo;ll seek this &lsquo;charming&rsquo;
+      youth myself, and see whether he has the power to charm me. I&rsquo;ll warrant
+      he won&rsquo;t be able to put <i>me</i> off with fine looks and fine speeches.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      With these and many more vaunts, the good dame sallied forth. When she
+      returned home, however, she wore quite a different aspect.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Well,&rdquo; said her husband, &ldquo;how much have you received from the &lsquo;charming&rsquo;
+      young man?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Let me alone,&rdquo; replied the wife; &ldquo;I found him playing on the guitar, and
+      he looked so handsome, and was so amiable and genteel, that I had not the
+      heart to trouble him.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;And the change for the hundred-crown note?&rdquo; said the tailor.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The wife hesitated a moment: &ldquo;Faith,&rdquo; cried she, &ldquo;you&rsquo;ll have to add the
+      amount to your next bill against him. The poor young gentleman had such a
+      melancholy air that&mdash;I know not how it was, but&mdash;I left the
+      hundred crowns on his mantel-piece in spite of him!&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      The captivating looks and manners of Letorieres made his way with equal
+      facility in the great world. His high connections entitled him to
+      presentation at court, but some questions arose about the sufficiency of
+      his proofs of nobility; whereupon the king, who had seen him walking in
+      the gardens of Versailles, and had been charmed with his appearance, put
+      an end to all demurs of etiquette by making him a viscount.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The same kind of fascination is said to have attended him throughout his
+      career. He succeeded in various difficult family suits on questions of
+      honors and privileges; he had merely to appear in court to dispose the
+      judges in his favor. He at length became so popular that on one occasion,
+      when he appeared at the theater on recovering from a wound received in a
+      duel, the audience applauded him on his entrance. Nothing, it is said,
+      could have been in more perfect good taste and high breeding than his
+      conduct on this occasion. When he heard the applause, he rose in his box,
+      stepped forward, and surveyed both sides of the house, as if he could not
+      believe that it was himself they were treating like a favorite actor, or a
+      prince of the blood.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      His success with the fair sex may easily be presumed; but he had too much
+      honor and sensibility to render his intercourse with them a series of cold
+      gallantries and heartless triumphs. In the course of his attendance upon
+      court, where he held a post of honor about the king, he fell deeply in
+      love with the beautiful Princess Julia, of Savoy Carignan. She was young,
+      tender, and simple-hearted, and returned his love with equal fervor. Her
+      family took the alarm at this attachment, and procured an order that she
+      should inhabit the Abbey of Montmartre, where she was treated with all
+      befitting delicacy and distinction, but not permitted to go beyond the
+      convent walls. The lovers found means to correspond. One of their letters
+      was intercepted, and it is even hinted that a plan of elopement was
+      discovered. A duel was the consequence, with one of the fiery relations of
+      the princess. Letorieres received two sword-thrusts in his right side. His
+      wounds were serious, yet after two or three days&rsquo; confinement he could not
+      resist his impatience to see the princess. He succeeded in scaling the
+      walls of the abbey, and obtaining an interview in an arcade leading to the
+      cloister of the cemetery. The interview of the lovers was long and tender.
+      They exchanged vows of eternal fidelity, and flattered themselves with
+      hopes of future happiness, which they were never to realize. After
+      repeated farewells, the princess re-entered the convent, never again to
+      behold the charming Letorieres. On the following morning his corpse was
+      found stiff and cold on the pavement of the cloister!
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      It would seem that the wounds of the unfortunate youth had been reopened
+      by his efforts to get over the wall; that he had refrained from calling
+      assistance, lest he should expose the princess, and that he had bled to
+      death, without any one to aid him, or to close his dying eyes.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      <br /><br />
+    </p>
+    <hr />
+    <p>
+      <a name="link2H_4_0013" id="link2H_4_0013"> </a>
+    </p>
+    <div style="height: 4em;">
+      <br /><br /><br /><br />
+    </div>
+    <h2>
+      THE EARLY EXPERIENCES OF RALPH RINGWOOD
+    </h2>
+    <p>
+      [Footnote: Ralph Ringwood, though a fictitious name, is a real personage:
+      the worthy original is now living and flourishing in honorable station. I
+      have given some anecdotes of his early and eccentric career in, as nearly
+      as I can recollect, the very words in which he related them. They
+      certainly afforded strong temptations to the embellishments of fiction;
+      but I thought them so strikingly characteristic of the individual, and of
+      the scenes and society into which his peculiar humors carried him, that I
+      preferred giving them in their original simplicity.&mdash;G. C.]
+    </p>
+    <h3>
+      NOTED DOWN FROM HIS CONVERSATIONS
+    </h3>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;I am a Kentuckian by residence and choice, but a Virginian by birth. The
+      cause of my first leaving the &lsquo;Ancient Dominion,&rsquo; and emigrating to
+      Kentucky was a jackass! You stare, but have a little patience, and I&rsquo;ll
+      soon show you how it came to pass. My father, who was of one of the old
+      Virginian families, resided in Richmond. He was a widower, and his
+      domestic affairs were managed by a housekeeper of the old school, such as
+      used to administer the concerns of opulent Virginian households. She was a
+      dignitary that almost rivaled my father in importance, and seemed to think
+      everything belonged to her; in fact, she was so considerate in her
+      economy, and so careful of expense, as sometimes to vex my father, who
+      would swear she was disgracing him by her meanness. She always appeared
+      with that ancient insignia of housekeeping trust and authority, a great
+      bunch of keys jingling at her girdle. She superintended the arrangement of
+      the table at every meal, and saw that the dishes were all placed according
+      to her primitive notions of symmetry. In the evening she took her stand
+      and served out tea with a mingled respectfulness and pride of station,
+      truly exemplary. Her great ambition was to have everything in order, and
+      that the establishment under her sway should be cited as a model of good
+      housekeeping. If anything went wrong, poor old Barbara would take it to
+      heart, and sit in her room and cry; until a few chapters in the Bible
+      would quiet her spirits, and make all calm again. The Bible, in fact, was
+      her constant resort in time of trouble. She opened it indiscriminately,
+      and whether she chanced among the Lamentations of Jeremiah, the Canticles
+      of Solomon, or the rough enumeration of the tribes in Deuteronomy, a
+      chapter was a chapter, and operated like balm to her soul. Such was our
+      good old housekeeper Barbara, who was destined, unwittingly, to have a
+      most important effect upon my destiny.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;It came to pass, during the days of my juvenility, while I was yet what
+      is termed &lsquo;an unlucky boy,&rsquo; that a gentleman of our neighborhood, a great
+      advocate for experiments and improvements of all kinds, took it into his
+      head that it would be an immense public advantage to introduce a breed of
+      mules, and accordingly imported three jacks to stock the neighborhood.
+      This in a part of the country where the people cared for nothing but blood
+      horses! Why, sir! they would have considered their mares disgraced and
+      their whole stud dishonored by such a misalliance. The whole matter was a
+      town talk and a town scandal. The worthy amalgamator of quadrupeds found
+      himself in a dismal scrape: so he backed out in time, abjured the whole
+      doctrine of amalgamation, and turned his jacks loose to shift for
+      themselves upon the town common. There they used to run about and lead an
+      idle, good-for-nothing, holiday life, the happiest animals in the country.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;It so happened that my way to school lay across this common. The first
+      time that I saw one of these animals it set up a braying and frightened me
+      confoundedly. However, I soon got over my fright, and seeing that it had
+      something of a horse look, my Virginian love for anything of the
+      equestrian species predominated, and I determined to back it. I
+      accordingly applied at a grocer&rsquo;s shop, procured a cord that had been
+      round a loaf of sugar, and made a kind of halter; then summoning some of
+      my schoolfellows, we drove master Jack about the common until we hemmed
+      him in an angle of a &lsquo;worm fence.&rsquo; After some difficulty, we fixed the
+      halter round his muzzle, and I mounted. Up flew his heels, away I went
+      over his head, and off he scampered. However, I was on my legs in a
+      twinkling, gave chase, caught him and remounted. By dint of repeated
+      tumbles I soon learned to stick to his back, so that he could no more cast
+      me than he could his own skin. From that time, master Jack and his
+      companions had a scampering life of it, for we all rode them between
+      school hours, and on holiday afternoons; and you may be sure schoolboys&rsquo;
+      nags are never permitted to suffer the grass to grow under their feet.
+      They soon became so knowing that they took to their heels at the very
+      sight of a schoolboy; and we were generally much longer in chasing than we
+      were in riding them.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Sunday approached, on which I projected an equestrian excursion on one of
+      these long-eared steeds. As I knew the jacks would be in great demand on
+      Sunday morning, I secured one overnight, and conducted him home, to be
+      ready for an early outset. But where was I to quarter him for the night? I
+      could not put him in the stable; our old black groom George was as
+      absolute in that domain as Barbara was within doors, and would have
+      thought his stable, his horses, and himself disgraced, by the introduction
+      of a jackass. I recollected the smoke-house; an out-building appended to
+      all Virginian establishments for the smoking of hams, and other kinds of
+      meat. So I got the key, put master Jack in, locked the door, returned the
+      key to its place, and went to bed, intending to release my prisoner at an
+      early hour, before any of the family were awake. I was so tired, however,
+      by the exertions I had made in catching the donkey, that I fell into a
+      sound sleep, and the morning broke without my awaking.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Not so with dame Barbara, the housekeeper. As usual, to use her own
+      phrase, &lsquo;she was up before the crow put his shoes on,&rsquo; and bustled about
+      to get things in order for breakfast. Her first resort was to the
+      smoke-house. Scarce had she opened the door, when master Jack, tired of
+      his confinement, and glad to be released from darkness, gave a loud bray,
+      and rushed forth. Down dropped old Barbara; the animal trampled over her,
+      and made off for the common. Poor Barbara! She had never before seen a
+      donkey, and having read in the Bible that the devil went about like a
+      roaring lion, seeking whom he might devour, she took it for granted that
+      this was Beelzebub himself. The kitchen was soon in a hubbub; the servants
+      hurried to the spot. There lay old Barbara in fits; as fast as she got out
+      of one, the thoughts of the devil came over her, and she fell into
+      another, for the good soul was devoutly superstitious.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;As ill luck would have it, among those attracted by the noise was a
+      little, cursed, fidgety, crabbed uncle of mine; one of those uneasy
+      spirits that cannot rest quietly in their beds in the morning, but must be
+      up early, to bother the household. He was only a kind of half-uncle, after
+      all, for he had married my father&rsquo;s sister; yet be assumed great authority
+      on the strength of this left-handed relationship, and was a universal
+      intermeddler and family pest. This prying little busybody soon ferreted
+      out the truth of the story, and discovered, by hook and by crook, that I
+      was at the bottom of the affair, and had locked up the donkey in the
+      smoke-house. He stopped to inquire no further, for he was one of those
+      testy curmudgeons with whom unlucky boys are always in the wrong. Leaving
+      old Barbara to wrestle in imagination with the devil, he made for my
+      bedchamber, where I still lay wrapped in rosy slumbers, little dreaming of
+      the mischief I had done, and the storm about to break over me.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;In an instant I was awakened by a shower of thwacks, and started up in
+      wild amazement, I demanded the meaning of this attack, but received no
+      other reply than that I had murdered the housekeeper; while my uncle
+      continued whacking away during my confusion. I seized a poker, and put
+      myself on the defensive. I was a stout boy for my years, while my uncle
+      was a little wiffet of a man; one that in Kentucky we would not call even
+      an &lsquo;individual&rsquo;; nothing more than a &lsquo;remote circumstance.&rsquo; I soon,
+      therefore, brought him to a parley, and learned the whole extent of the
+      charge brought against me. I confessed to the donkey and the smoke-house,
+      but pleaded not guilty of the murder of the housekeeper. I soon found out
+      that old Barbara was still alive. She continued under the doctor&rsquo;s hands,
+      however, for several days; and whenever she had an ill turn my uncle would
+      seek to give me another flogging. I appealed to my father, but got no
+      redress. I was considered an &lsquo;unlucky boy,&rsquo; prone to all kinds of
+      mischief; so that prepossessions were against me in all cases of appeal.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;I felt stung to the soul at all this. I had been beaten, degraded, and
+      treated with slighting when I complained. I lost my usual good spirits and
+      good humor; and, being out of temper with everybody, fancied everybody out
+      of temper with me. A certain wild, roving spirit of freedom, which I
+      believe is as inherent in me as it is in the partridge, was brought into
+      sudden activity by the checks and restraints I suffered. &lsquo;I&rsquo;ll go from
+      home,&rsquo; thought I, &lsquo;and shift for myself.&rsquo; Perhaps this notion was
+      quickened by the rage for emigrating to Kentucky, which was at that time
+      prevalent in Virginia. I had heard such stories of the romantic beauties
+      of the country; of the abundance of game of all kinds, and of the glorious
+      independent life of the hunters who ranged its noble forests, and lived by
+      the rifle; that I was as much agog to get there as boys who live in
+      seaports are to launch themselves among the wonders and adventures of the
+      ocean.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;After a time old Barbara got better in mind and body, and matters were
+      explained to her; and she became gradually convinced that it was not the
+      devil she had encountered. When she heard how harshly I had been treated
+      on her account, the good old soul was extremely grieved, and spoke warmly
+      to my father in my behalf. He had himself remarked the change in my
+      behavior, and thought punishment might have been carried too far. He
+      sought, therefore, to have some conversation with me, and to soothe my
+      feelings; but it was too late. I frankly told him the course of
+      mortification that I had experienced, and the fixed determination I had
+      made to go from home.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;&lsquo;And where do you mean to go?&rsquo;
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;&lsquo;To Kentucky.&rsquo;
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;&lsquo;To Kentucky! Why, you know nobody there.&rsquo;
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;&lsquo;No matter: I can soon make acquaintances.&rsquo;
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;&lsquo;And what will you do when you get there?&rsquo;
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;&lsquo;Hunt!&rsquo;
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;My father gave a long, low whistle, and looked in my face with a
+      serio-comic expression. I was not far in my teens, and to talk of setting
+      off alone for Kentucky, to turn hunter, seemed doubtless the idle prattle
+      of a boy. He was little aware of the dogged resolution of my character;
+      and his smile of incredulity but fixed me more obstinately in my purpose.
+      I assured him I was serious in what I said, and would certainly set off
+      for Kentucky in the spring.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Month after month passed away. My father now and then adverted slightly
+      to what had passed between us; doubtless for the purpose of sounding me. I
+      always expressed the same grave and fixed determination. By degrees he
+      spoke to me more directly on the subject, endeavoring earnestly but kindly
+      to dissuade me. My only reply was, &lsquo;I had made up my mind.&rsquo;
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Accordingly, as soon as the spring had fairly opened, I sought him one
+      day in his study, and informed him I was about to set out for Kentucky,
+      and had come to take my leave. He made no objection, for he had exhausted
+      persuasion and remonstrance, and doubtless thought it best to give way to
+      my humor, trusting that a little rough experience would soon bring me home
+      again. I asked money for my journey. He went to a chest, took out a long
+      green silk purse, well filled, and laid it on the table. I now asked for a
+      horse and servant.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;&lsquo;A horse!&rsquo; said my father, sneeringly: &lsquo;why, you would not go a mile
+      without racing him, and breaking your neck; and, as to a servant, you
+      cannot take care of yourself much less of him.&rsquo;
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;&lsquo;How am I to travel, then?&rsquo;
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;&lsquo;Why, I suppose you are man enough to travel on foot.&rsquo;
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;He spoke jestingly, little thinking I would take him at his word; but I
+      was thoroughly piqued in respect to my enterprise; so I pocketed the
+      purse, went to my room, tied up three or four shirts in a
+      pocket-handkerchief, put a dirk in my bosom, girt a couple of pistols
+      round my waist, and felt like a knight errant armed cap a-pie, and ready
+      to rove the world in quest of adventures.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;My sister (I had but one) hung round me and wept, and entreated me to
+      stay. I felt my heart swell in my throat; but I gulped it back to its
+      place, and straightened myself up; I would not suffer myself to cry. I at
+      length disengaged myself from her, and got to the door.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;&lsquo;When will you come back?&rsquo; cried she.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;&lsquo;Never, by heavens!&rsquo; cried I, &lsquo;until I come back a member of Congress
+      from Kentucky. I am determined to show that I am not the tail-end of the
+      family.&rsquo;
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Such was my first outset from home. You may suppose what a greenhorn I
+      was, and how little I knew of the world I was launching into.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;I do not recollect any incident of importance until I reached the borders
+      of Pennsylvania. I had stopped at an inn to get some refreshment; and as I
+      was eating in the back room, I overheard two men in the barroom conjecture
+      who and what I could be. One determined, at length, that I was a runaway
+      apprentice, and ought to be stopped, to which the other assented. When I
+      had finished my meal, and paid for it, I went out at the back door, lest I
+      should be stopped by my supervisors. Scorning, however, to steal off like
+      a culprit, I walked round to the front of the house. One of the men
+      advanced to the front door. He wore his hat on one side, and had a
+      consequential air that nettled me.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;&lsquo;Where are you going, youngster?&rsquo; demanded he.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;&lsquo;That&rsquo;s none of your business!&rsquo; replied I, rather pertly.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;&lsquo;Yes, but it is, though! You have run away from home, and must give an
+      account of yourself.&rsquo;
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;He advanced to seize me, when I drew forth a pistol. &lsquo;If you advance
+      another step, I&rsquo;ll shoot you!&rsquo;
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;He sprang back as if he had trodden upon a rattlesnake, and his hat fell
+      off in the movement.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;&lsquo;Let him alone!&rsquo; cried his companion; &lsquo;he&rsquo;s a foolish, mad-headed boy,
+      and don&rsquo;t know what he&rsquo;s about. He&rsquo;ll shoot you, you may rely on it.&rsquo;
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;He did not need any caution in the matter; he was afraid even to pick up
+      his hat: so I pushed forward on my way, without molestation. This
+      incident, however, had its effect upon me. I became fearful of sleeping in
+      any house at night, lest I should be stopped. I took my meals in the
+      houses, in the course of the day, but would turn aside at night into some
+      wood or ravine, make a fire, and sleep before it. This I considered was
+      true hunter&rsquo;s style, and I wished to inure myself to it.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;At length I arrived at Brownsville, leg-weary and wayworn, and in a
+      shabby plight, as you may suppose, having been &lsquo;camping out&rsquo; for some
+      nights past. I applied at some of the inferior inns, but could gain no
+      admission. I was regarded for a moment with a dubious eye, and then
+      informed they did not receive foot-passengers. At last I went boldly to
+      the principal inn. The landlord appeared as unwilling as the rest to
+      receive a vagrant boy beneath his roof; but his wife interfered in the
+      midst of his excuses, and half elbowing him aside:
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;&lsquo;Where are you going, my lad?&rsquo; said she.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;&lsquo;To Kentucky.&rsquo;
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;&lsquo;What are you going there for?&rsquo;
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;&lsquo;To hunt.&rsquo;
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;She looked earnestly at me for a moment or two. &lsquo;Have you a mother
+      living?&rsquo; said she at length.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;&lsquo;No, madam: she has been dead for some time.&rsquo;
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;&lsquo;I thought so!&rsquo; cried she warmly. &lsquo;I knew if you had a mother living you
+      would not be here.&rsquo; From that moment the good woman treated me with a
+      mother&rsquo;s kindness.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;I remained several days beneath her roof recovering from the fatigue of
+      my journey. While here I purchased a rifle and practiced daily at a mark
+      to prepare myself for a hunter&rsquo;s life. When sufficiently recruited in
+      strength I took leave of my kind host and hostess and resumed my journey.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;At Wheeling I embarked in a flat bottomed family boat, technically called
+      a broad-horn, a prime river conveyance in those days. In this ark for two
+      weeks I floated down the Ohio. The river was as yet in all its wild
+      beauty. Its loftiest trees had not been thinned out. The forest overhung
+      the water&rsquo;s edge and was occasionally skirted by immense cane-brakes. Wild
+      animals of all kinds abounded. We heard them rushing through the thickets
+      and plashing in the water. Deer and bears would frequently swim across the
+      river; others would come down to the bank and gaze at the boat as it
+      passed. I was incessantly on the alert with my rifle; but somehow or other
+      the game was never within shot. Sometimes I got a chance to land and try
+      my skill on shore. I shot squirrels and small birds and even wild turkeys;
+      but though I caught glimpses of deer bounding away through the woods, I
+      never could get a fair shot at them.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;In this way we glided in our broad-horn past Cincinnati, the &lsquo;Queen of
+      the West&rsquo; as she is now called, then a mere group of log cabins; and the
+      site of the bustling city of Louisville, then designated by a solitary
+      house. As I said before, the Ohio was as yet a wild river; all was forest,
+      forest, forest! Near the confluence of Green River with the Ohio, I
+      landed, bade adieu to the broad-horn, and struck for the interior of
+      Kentucky. I had no precise plan; my only idea was to make for one of the
+      wildest parts of the country. I had relatives in Lexington and other
+      settled places, to whom I thought it probable my father would write
+      concerning me: so as I was full of manhood and independence, and
+      resolutely bent on making my way in the world without assistance or
+      control, I resolved to keep clear of them all.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;In the course of my first day&rsquo;s trudge, I shot a wild turkey, and slung
+      it on my back for provisions. The forest was open and clear from
+      underwood. I saw deer in abundance, but always running, running. It seemed
+      to me as if these animals never stood still.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;At length I came to where a gang of half-starved wolves were feasting on
+      the carcass of a deer which they had run down; and snarling and snapping
+      and fighting like so many dogs. They were all so ravenous and intent upon
+      their prey that they did not notice me, and I had time to make my
+      observations. One, larger and fiercer than the rest, seemed to claim the
+      larger share, and to keep the others in awe. If any one came too near him
+      while eating, he would fly off, seize and shake him, and then return to
+      his repast. &lsquo;This,&rsquo; thought I, &lsquo;must be the captain; if I can kill him, I
+      shall defeat the whole army.&rsquo; I accordingly took aim, fired, and down
+      dropped the old fellow. He might be only shamming dead; so I loaded and
+      put a second ball through him. He never budged; all the rest ran off, and
+      my victory was complete.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;It would not be easy to describe my triumphant feelings on this great
+      achievement. I marched on with renovated spirit, regarding myself as
+      absolute lord of the forest. As night drew near, I prepared for camping.
+      My first care was to collect dry wood and make a roaring fire to cook and
+      sleep by, and to frighten off wolves, and bears, and panthers. I then
+      began to pluck my turkey for supper. I had camped out several times in the
+      early part of my expedition; but that was in comparatively more settled
+      and civilized regions, where there were no wild animals of consequence in
+      the forest. This was my first camping out in the real wilderness; and I
+      was soon made sensible of the loneliness and wildness of my situation.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;In a little while a concert of wolves commenced: there might have been a
+      dozen or two, but it seemed to me as if there were thousands. I never
+      heard such howling and whining. Having prepared my turkey, I divided it
+      into two parts, thrust two sticks into one of the halves, and planted them
+      on end before the fire, the hunter&rsquo;s mode of roasting. The smell of roast
+      meat quickened the appetites of the wolves, and their concert became truly
+      infernal. They seemed to be all around me, but I could only now and then
+      get a glimpse of one of them, as he came within the glare of the light.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;I did not much care for the wolves, who I knew to be a cowardly race, but
+      I had heard terrible stories of panthers, and began to fear their stealthy
+      prowlings in the surrounding darkness. I was thirsty, and heard a brook
+      bubbling and tinkling along at no great distance, but absolutely dared not
+      go there, lest some panther might lie in wait, and spring upon me.
+      By-and-by a deer whistled. I had never heard one before, and thought it
+      must be a panther. I now felt uneasy lest he might climb the trees, crawl
+      along the branches overhead, and plump down upon me; so I kept my eyes
+      fixed on the branches, until my head ached. I more than once thought I saw
+      fiery eyes glaring down from&mdash;among the leaves. At length I thought
+      of my supper and turned to see if my half-turkey was cooked. In crowding
+      so near the fire I had pressed the meat into the flames, and it was
+      consumed. I had nothing to do but toast the other half, and take better
+      care of it. On that half I made my supper, without salt or bread. I was
+      still so possessed with the dread of panthers that I could not close my
+      eyes all night, but lay watching the trees until daybreak, when all my
+      fears were dispelled with the darkness; and as I saw the morning sun
+      sparkling down through the branches of the trees, I smiled to think how I
+      had suffered myself to be dismayed by sounds and shadows; but I was a
+      young woodsman, and a stranger in Kentucky.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Having breakfasted on the remainder of my turkey, and slaked my thirst at
+      the bubbling stream, without further dread of panthers, I resumed my
+      wayfaring with buoyant feelings. I again saw deer, but as usual running,
+      running! I tried in vain to get a shot at them, and began to fear I never
+      should. I was gazing with vexation after a herd in full scamper, when I
+      was startled by a human voice. Turning round, I saw a man at a short
+      distance from me in a hunting dress.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;&lsquo;What are you after, my lad?&rsquo; cried he.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;&lsquo;Those deer,&rsquo; replied I, pettishly: &lsquo;but it seems as if they never stand
+      still.&rsquo;
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Upon that he burst out laughing. &lsquo;Where are you from?&rsquo; said he.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;&lsquo;From Richmond.&rsquo;
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;&lsquo;What! In old Virginny?&rsquo;
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;&lsquo;The same.&rsquo;
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;&lsquo;And how on earth did you get here?&rsquo;
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;&lsquo;I landed at Green River from a broad-horn.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;&lsquo;And where are your companions?&rsquo;
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;&rsquo; I have none.&rsquo;
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;&lsquo;What?&mdash;all alone!&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;&lsquo;Yes.&rsquo;
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;&lsquo;Where are you going?&rsquo;
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;&lsquo;Anywhere.&rsquo;
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;&lsquo;And what have you come here for?&rsquo;
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;&lsquo;To hunt.&rsquo;
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;&lsquo;Well,&rsquo; said he, laughingly, &lsquo;you&rsquo;ll make a real hunter; there&rsquo;s no
+      mistaking that! Have you killed anything?&rsquo;
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;&lsquo;Nothing but a turkey; I can&rsquo;t get within shot of a deer: they are always
+      running.&rsquo;
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;&lsquo;Oh, I&rsquo;ll tell you the secret of that. You&rsquo;re always pushing forward, and
+      starting the deer at a distance, and gazing at those that are scampering;
+      but you must step as slow, and silent, and cautious as a cat, and keep
+      your eyes close around you, and lurk from tree to tree, if you wish to get
+      a chance at deer. But come, go home with me. My name is Bill Smithers; I
+      live not far off: stay with me a little while, and I&rsquo;ll teach you how to
+      hunt.&rsquo;
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;I gladly accepted the invitation of honest Bill Smithers. We soon reached
+      his habitation; a mere log hut, with a square hole for a window and a
+      chimney made of sticks and clay. Here he lived with a wife and child. He
+      had &lsquo;girdled&rsquo; the trees for an acre or two around, preparatory to clearing
+      a space for corn and potatoes. In the meantime he maintained his family
+      entirely by his rifle, and I soon found him to be a first-rate huntsman.
+      Under his tutelage I received my first effective lessons in &lsquo;woodcraft.&rsquo;
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;The more I knew of a hunter&rsquo;s life, the more I relished it. The country,
+      too, which had been the promised land of my boyhood, did not, like most
+      promised lands, disappoint me. No wilderness could be more beautiful than
+      this part of Kentucky in those times. The forests were open and spacious,
+      with noble trees, some of which looked as if they had stood for centuries.
+      There were beautiful prairies, too, diversified with groves and clumps of
+      trees, which looked like vast parks, and in which you could see the deer
+      running, at a great distance. In the proper season these prairies would be
+      covered in many places with wild strawberries, where your horses&rsquo; hoofs
+      would be dyed to the fetlock. I thought there could not be another place
+      in the world equal to Kentucky&mdash;and I think so still.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;After I had passed ten or twelve days with Bill Smithers, I thought it
+      time to shift my quarters, for his house was scarce large enough for his
+      own family, and I had no idea of being an encumbrance to any one. I
+      accordingly made up my bundle, shouldered my rifle, took a friendly leave
+      of Smithers and his wife, and set out in quest of a Nimrod of the
+      wilderness, one John Miller, who lived alone, nearly forty miles off, and
+      who I hoped would be well pleased to have a hunting companion.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;I soon found out that one of the most important items in woodcraft in a
+      new country was the skill to find one&rsquo;s way in the wilderness. There were
+      no regular roads in the forests, but they were cut up and perplexed by
+      paths leading in all directions. Some of these were made by the cattle of
+      the settlers, and were called &lsquo;stock-tracks,&rsquo; but others had been made by
+      the immense droves of buffaloes which roamed about the country, from the
+      flood until recent times. These were called buffalo-tracks, and traversed
+      Kentucky from end to end, like highways. Traces of them may still be seen
+      in uncultivated parts, or deeply worn in the rocks where they crossed the
+      mountains. I was a young woodman, and sorely puzzled to distinguish one
+      kind of track from the other, or to make out my course through this
+      tangled labyrinth. While thus perplexed, I heard a distant roaring and
+      rushing sound; a gloom stole over the forest: on looking up, when I could
+      catch a stray glimpse of the sky, I beheld the clouds rolled up like
+      balls, the lower parts as black as ink. There was now and then an
+      explosion, like a burst of cannonry afar off, and the crash of a falling
+      tree. I had heard of hurricanes in the woods, and surmised that one was at
+      hand. It soon came crashing its way; the forest writhing, and twisting,
+      and groaning before it. The hurricane did not extend far on either side,
+      but in a manner plowed a furrow through the woodland; snapping off or
+      uprooting trees that had stood for centuries, and filling the air with
+      whirling branches. I was directly in its course, and took my stand behind
+      an immense poplar, six feet in diameter. It bore for a time the full fury
+      of the blast, but at length began to yield. Seeing it falling, I scrambled
+      nimbly round the trunk like a squirrel. Down it went, bearing down another
+      tree with it. I crept under the trunk as a shelter, and was protected from
+      other trees which fell around me, but was sore all over from the twigs and
+      branches driven against me by the blast.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;This was the only incident of consequence that occurred on my way to John
+      Miller&rsquo;s, where I arrived on the following day, and was received by the
+      veteran with the rough kindness of a backwoodsman. He was a gray-haired
+      man, hardy and weather-beaten, with a blue wart, like a great beard, over
+      one eye, whence he was nicknamed by the hunters &lsquo;Bluebeard Miller.&rsquo; He had
+      been in these parts from the earliest settlements, and had signalized
+      himself in the hard conflicts with the Indians, which gained Kentucky the
+      appellation of &lsquo;the Bloody Ground.&rsquo; In one of these fights he had had an
+      arm broken; in another he had narrowly escaped, when hotly pursued, by
+      jumping from a precipice thirty feet high into a river.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Miller willingly received me into his house as an inmate, and seemed
+      pleased with the idea of making a hunter of me. His dwelling was a small
+      log-house, with a loft or garret of boards, so that there was ample room
+      for both of us. Under his instruction I soon made a tolerable proficiency
+      in hunting. My first exploit, of any consequence, was killing a bear. I
+      was hunting in company with two brothers, when we came upon the track of
+      bruin, in a wood where there was an undergrowth of canes and grapevines.
+      He was scrambling up a tree, when I shot him through the breast: he fell
+      to the ground and lay motionless. The brothers sent in their dog, who
+      seized the bear by the throat. Bruin raised one arm and gave the dog a hug
+      that crushed his ribs. One yell, and all was over. I don&rsquo;t know which was
+      first dead, the dog or the bear. The two brothers sat down and cried like
+      children over their unfortunate dog. Yet they were mere rough huntsmen,
+      almost as wild and untamable as Indians; but they were fine fellows.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;By degrees I became known, and somewhat of a favorite among the hunters
+      of the neighborhood; that is to say, men who lived within a circle of
+      thirty or forty miles, and came occasionally to see John Miller, who was a
+      patriarch among them. They lived widely apart, in log huts and wigwams,
+      almost with the simplicity of Indians, and wellnigh as destitute of the
+      comforts and inventions of civilized life. They seldom saw each other;
+      weeks, and even months, would elapse, without their visiting. When they
+      did meet, it was very much after the manner of Indians; loitering about
+      all day, without having much to say, but becoming communicative as evening
+      advanced, and sitting up half the night before the fire, telling hunting
+      stories, and terrible tales of the fights of the Bloody Ground.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Sometimes several would join in a distant hunting expedition, or rather
+      campaign. Expeditions of this kind lasted from November until April;
+      during which we laid up our stock of summer provisions. We shifted our
+      hunting camps from place to place, according as we found the game. They
+      were generally pitched near a run of water, and close by a cane-brake, to
+      screen us from the wind. One side of our lodge was open toward the fire.
+      Our horses were hoppled and turned loose in the cane-brakes, with bells
+      round their necks. One of the party stayed at home to watch the camp,
+      prepare the meals and keep off the wolves; the others hunted. When a
+      hunter killed a deer at a distance from the camp, he would open it and
+      take out the entrails; then climbing a sapling he would bend it down, tie
+      the deer to the top, and let it spring up again, so as to suspend the
+      carcass out of reach of the wolves. At night he would return to the camp
+      and give an account of his luck. The next morning early he would get a
+      horse out of the canebrake and bring home his game. That day he would stay
+      at home to cut up the carcass, while the others hunted.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Our days were thus spent in silent and lonely occupations. It was only at
+      night that we would gather together before the fire and be sociable. I was
+      a novice, and used to listen with open eyes and ears to the strange and
+      wild stories told by the old hunters, and believed everything I heard.
+      Some of their stories bordered upon the supernatural. They believed that
+      their rifles might be spellbound, so as not to be able to kill a buffalo,
+      even at arms-length. This superstition they had derived from the Indians,
+      who often think the white hunters have laid a spell upon their rifles.
+      Miller partook of this superstition, and used to tell of his rifle&rsquo;s
+      having a spell upon it; but it often seemed to me to be a shuffling way of
+      accounting for a bad shot. If a hunter grossly missed his aim he would
+      ask, &lsquo;Who shot last with this rifle?&rsquo;&mdash;and hint that he must have
+      charmed it. The sure mode to disenchant the gun was to shoot a silver
+      bullet out of it.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;By the opening of spring we would generally have quantities of
+      bears&rsquo;-meat and venison salted, dried, and smoked, and numerous packs of
+      skins. We would then make the best of our way home from our distant
+      hunting-grounds; transporting our spoils, sometimes in canoes along the
+      rivers, sometimes on horseback over land, and our return would often be
+      celebrated by feasting and dancing, in true backwoods style. I have given
+      you some idea of our hunting; let me now give you a sketch of our
+      frolicking.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;It was on our return from a winter&rsquo;s hunting in the neighborhood of Green
+      River, when we received notice that there was to be a grand frolic at Bob
+      Mosely&rsquo;s, to greet the hunters. This Bob Mosely was a prime fellow
+      throughout the country. He was an indifferent hunter, it is true, and
+      rather lazy to boot; but then he could play the fiddle, and that was
+      enough to make him of consequence. There was no other man within a hundred
+      miles that could play the fiddle, so there was no having a regular frolic
+      without Bob Mosely. The hunters, therefore, were always ready to give him
+      a share of their game in exchange for his music, and Bob was always ready
+      to get up a carousal, whenever there was a party returning from a hunting
+      expedition. The present frolic was to take place at Bob Mosely&rsquo;s own
+      house, which was on the Pigeon Roost Fork of the Muddy, which is a branch
+      of Rough Creek, which is a branch of Green River.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Everybody was agog for the revel at Bob Mosely&rsquo;s; and as all the fashion
+      of the neighborhood was to be there, I thought I must brush up for the
+      occasion. My leathern hunting-dress, which was the only one I had, was
+      somewhat the worse for wear, it is true, and considerably japanned with
+      blood and grease; but I was up to hunting expedients. Getting into a
+      periogue, I paddled off to a part of the Green River where there was sand
+      and clay, that might serve for soap; then taking off my dress, I scrubbed
+      and scoured it, until I thought it looked very well. I then put it on the
+      end of a stick, and hung it out of the periogue to dry, while I stretched
+      myself very comfortably on the green bank of the river. Unluckily a flaw
+      struck the periogue, and tipped over the stick: down went my dress to the
+      bottom of the river, and I never saw it more. Here was I, left almost in a
+      state of nature. I managed to make a kind of Robinson Crusoe garb of
+      undressed skins, with the hair on, which enabled me to get home with
+      decency; but my dream of gayety and fashion was at an end; for how could I
+      think of figuring in high life at the Pigeon Roost, equipped like a mere
+      Orson?
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Old Miller, who really began to take some pride in me, was confounded
+      when he understood that I did not intend to go to Bob Mosely&rsquo;s; but when I
+      told him my misfortune, and that I had no dress: &lsquo;By the powers,&rsquo; cried
+      he, &lsquo;but you <i>shall</i> go, and you shall be the best dressed and the
+      best mounted lad there!&rsquo;
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;He immediately set to work to cut out and make up a hunting-shirt of
+      dressed deer-skin, gayly fringed at the shoulders, with leggings of the
+      same, fringed from hip to heel. He then made me a rakish raccoon-cap, with
+      a flaunting tail to it; mounted me on his best horse; and I may say,
+      without vanity, that I was one of the smartest fellows that figured on
+      that occasion at the Pigeon Roost Fork of the Muddy.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;It was no small occasion, either, let me tell you. Bob Mosely&rsquo;s house was
+      a tolerably large bark shanty, with a clap-board roof; and there were
+      assembled all the young hunters and pretty girls of the country, for many
+      a mile round. The young men were in their best hunting-dresses, but not
+      one could compare with mine; and my raccoon-cap, with its flowing tail,
+      was the admiration of everybody. The girls were mostly in doe-skin
+      dresses; for there was no spinning and weaving as yet in the woods; nor
+      any need of it. I never saw girls that seemed to me better dressed; and I
+      was somewhat of a judge, having seen fashions at Richmond. We had a hearty
+      dinner, and a merry one; for there was Jemmy Kiel, famous for
+      raccoon-hunting, and Bob Tarleton, and Wesley Pigman, and Joe Taylor, and
+      several other prime fellows for a frolic, that made all ring again, and
+      laughed that you might have heard them a mile.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;After dinner we began dancing, and were hard at it, when, about three
+      o&rsquo;clock in the afternoon, there was a new arrival&mdash;the two daughters
+      of old Simon Schultz; two young ladies that affected fashion and late
+      hours. Their arrival had nearly put an end to all our merriment. I must go
+      a little roundabout in my story to explain to you how that happened.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;As old Schultz, the father, was one day looking in the cane-brakes for
+      his cattle, he came upon the track of horses. He knew they were none of
+      his, and that none of his neighbors had horses about that place. They must
+      be stray horses; or must belong to some traveler who had lost his way, as
+      the track led nowhere. He accordingly followed it up, until he came to an
+      unlucky peddler, with two or three pack-horses, who had been bewildered
+      among the cattle-tracks, and had wandered for two or three days among
+      woods and cane-brakes, until he was almost famished.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Old Schultz brought him to his house; fed him on venison, bear&rsquo;s-meat,
+      and hominy, and at the end of a week put him in prime condition. The
+      peddler could not sufficiently express his thankfulness; and when about to
+      depart inquired what he had to pay? Old Schultz stepped back with
+      surprise. &lsquo;Stranger,&rsquo; said he, &lsquo;you have been welcome under my roof. I&rsquo;ve
+      given you nothing but wild meat and hominy, because I had no better, but
+      have been glad of your company. You are welcome to stay as long as you
+      please; but, by Zounds! if any one offers to pay Simon Schultz for food he
+      affronts him!&rsquo; So saying, he walked out in a huff.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;The peddler admired the hospitality of his host, but could not reconcile
+      it to his conscience to go away without making some recompense. There were
+      honest Simon&rsquo;s two daughters, two strapping, red-haired girls. He opened
+      his packs and displayed riches before them of which they had no
+      conception; for in those days there were no country stores in those parts,
+      with their artificial finery and trinketry; and this was the first peddler
+      that had wandered into that part of the wilderness. The girls were for a
+      time completely dazzled, and knew not what to choose: but what caught
+      their eyes most were two looking-glasses, about the size of a dollar, set
+      in gilt tin. They had never seen the like before, having used no other
+      mirror than a pail of water. The peddler presented them these jewels,
+      without the least hesitation; nay, he gallantly hung them round their
+      necks by red ribbons, almost as fine as the glasses themselves. This done,
+      he took his departure, leaving them as much astonished as two princesses
+      in a fairy tale that have received a magic gift from an enchanter.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;It was with these looking-glasses, hung round their necks as lockets, by
+      red ribbons, that old Schultz&rsquo;s daughters made their appearance at three
+      o&rsquo;clock in the afternoon, at the frolic at Bob Mosely&rsquo;s, on the Pigeon
+      Roost Fork of the Muddy.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;By the powers, but it was an event! Such a thing had never before been
+      seen in Kentucky. Bob Tarleton, a strapping fellow, with a head like a
+      chestnut-burr and a look like a boar in an apple orchard, stepped up,
+      caught hold of the looking-glass of one of the girls, and gazing at it for
+      a moment, cried out: &lsquo;Joe Taylor, come here! come here! I&rsquo;ll be darn&rsquo;d if
+      Patty Schultz ain&rsquo;t got a locket that you can see your face in, as clear
+      as in a spring of water!&rsquo;
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;In a twinkling all the young hunters gathered round old Schultz&rsquo;s
+      daughters. I, who knew what looking-glasses were, did not budge. Some of
+      the girls who sat near me were excessively mortified at finding themselves
+      thus deserted. I heard Peggy Pugh say to Sally Pigman, &lsquo;Goodness knows,
+      it&rsquo;s well Schultz&rsquo;s daughters is got them things round their necks, for
+      it&rsquo;s the first time the young men crowded round them!&rsquo;
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;I saw immediately the danger of the case. We were a small community, and
+      could not afford to be split up by feuds. So I stepped up to the girls,
+      and whispered to them: &lsquo;Polly,&rsquo; said I, &lsquo;those lockets are powerful fine,
+      and become you amazingly; but you don&rsquo;t consider that the country is not
+      advanced enough in these parts for such things. You and I understand these
+      matters, but these people don&rsquo;t. Fine things like these may do very well
+      in the old settlements, but they won&rsquo;t answer at the Pigeon Roost Fork of
+      the Muddy. You had better lay them aside for the present, or we shall have
+      no peace.&rsquo;
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Polly and her sister luckily saw their error; they took off the lockets,
+      laid them aside, and harmony was restored: otherwise, I verily believe
+      there would have been an end of our community. Indeed, notwithstanding the
+      great sacrifice they made on this occasion, I do not think old Schultz&rsquo;s
+      daughters were ever much liked afterward among the young women.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;This was the first time that looking-glasses were ever seen in the Green
+      River part of Kentucky.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;I had now lived some time with old Miller, and had become a tolerably
+      expert hunter. Game, however, began to grow scarce. The buffalo had
+      gathered together, as if by universal understanding, and had crossed the
+      Mississippi, never to return. Strangers kept pouring into the country,
+      clearing away the forests and building in all directions. The hunters
+      began to grow restive. Jemmy Kiel, the same of whom I have already spoken
+      for his skill in raccoon catching, came to me one day: &lsquo;I can&rsquo;t stand this
+      any longer,&rsquo; said he; &lsquo;we&rsquo;re getting too thick here. Simon Schultz crowds
+      me so that I have no comfort of my life.&rsquo;
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;&lsquo;Why, how you talk!&rsquo; said I; &lsquo;Simon Schultz lives twelve miles off.&rsquo;
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;&lsquo;No matter; his cattle run with mine, and I&rsquo;ve no idea of living where
+      another man&rsquo;s cattle can run with mine. That&rsquo;s too close neighborhood; I
+      want elbow-room. This country, too, is growing too poor to live in;
+      there&rsquo;s no game; so two or three of us have made up our minds to follow
+      the buffalo to the Missouri, and we should like to have you of the party.&rsquo;
+      Other hunters of my acquaintance talked in the same manner. This set me
+      thinking; but the more I thought the more I was perplexed. I had no one to
+      advise with; old Miller and his associates knew but of one mode of life,
+      and I had had no experience in any other; but I had a wide scope of
+      thought. When out hunting alone I used to forget the sport, and sit for
+      hours together on the trunk of a tree, with rifle in hand, buried in
+      thought, and debating with myself: &lsquo;Shall I go with Jemmy Kiel and his
+      company, or shall I remain here? If I remain here there will soon be
+      nothing left to hunt; but am I to be a hunter all my life? Have not I
+      something more in me than to be carrying a rifle on my shoulder, day after
+      day, and dodging about after bears, and deer, and other brute beasts?&rsquo; My
+      vanity told me I had; and I called to mind my boyish boast to my sister,
+      that I would never return home until I returned a member of Congress from
+      Kentucky; but was this the way to fit myself for such a station?
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Various plans passed through my mind, but they were abandoned almost as
+      soon as formed. At length I determined on becoming a lawyer. True it is, I
+      knew almost nothing. I had left school before I had learned beyond the
+      &lsquo;rule of three.&rsquo; &lsquo;Never mind,&rsquo; said I to myself, resolutely; &lsquo;I am a
+      terrible fellow for hanging on to anything when I&rsquo;ve once made up my mind;
+      and if a man has but ordinary capacity, and will set to work with heart
+      and soul, and stick to it, he can do almost anything.&rsquo; With this maxim,
+      which has been pretty much my mainstay throughout life, I fortified myself
+      in my determination to attempt the law. But how was I to set about it? I
+      must quit this forest life, and go to one or other of the towns, where I
+      might be able to study, and to attend the courts. This too required funds.
+      I examined into the state of my finances. The purse given me by my father
+      had remained untouched, in the bottom of an old chest up in the loft, for
+      money was scarcely needed in these parts. I had bargained away the skins
+      acquired in hunting for a horse and various other matters, on which in
+      case of need I could raise funds. I therefore thought I could make shift
+      to maintain myself until I was fitted for the bar.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;I informed my worthy host and patron, old Miller, of my plan. He shook
+      his head at my turning my back upon the woods, when I was in a fair way of
+      making a first-rate hunter; but he made no effort to dissuade me. I
+      accordingly set off in September, on horseback, intending to visit
+      Lexington, Frankfort, and other of the principal towns, in search of a
+      favorable place to prosecute my studies. My choice was made sooner than I
+      expected. I had put up one night at Bardstown, and found, on inquiry, that
+      I could get comfortable board and accommodation in a private family for a
+      dollar and a half a week. I liked the place, and resolved to look no
+      further. So the next morning I prepared to turn my face homeward, and take
+      my final leave of forest life.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;I had taken my breakfast, and was waiting for my horse, when, in pacing
+      up and down the piazza, I saw a young girl seated near a window, evidently
+      a visitor. She was very pretty; with auburn hair and blue eyes, and was
+      dressed in white. I had seen nothing of the kind since I had left
+      Richmond; and at that time I was too much of a boy to be much struck by
+      female charms. She was so delicate and dainty-looking, so different from
+      the hale, buxom, brown girls of the woods; and then her white dress!&mdash;it
+      was perfectly dazzling! Never was poor youth more taken by surprise, and
+      suddenly bewitched. My heart yearned to know her; but how was I to accost
+      her? I had grown wild in the woods, and had none of the habitudes of
+      polite life. Had she been like Peggy Pugh or Sally Pigman, or any other of
+      my leathern-dressed belles of the Pigeon Roost, I should have approached
+      her without dread; nay, had she been as fair as Schultz&rsquo;s daughters, with
+      their looking-glass lockets, I should not have hesitated; but that white
+      dress, and those auburn ringlets, and blue eyes, and delicate looks, quite
+      daunted, while they fascinated me. I don&rsquo;t know what put it into my head,
+      but I thought, all at once, that I would kiss her! It would take a long
+      acquaintance to arrive at such a boon, but I might seize upon it by sheer
+      robbery. Nobody knew me here. I would just step in, snatch a kiss, mount
+      my horse, and ride off. She would not be the worse for it; and that kiss&mdash;oh!
+      I should die if I did not get it!
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;I gave no time for the thought to cool, but entered the house, and
+      stepped lightly into the room. She was seated with her back to the door,
+      looking out at the window, and did not hear my approach. I tapped her
+      chair, and as she turned and looked up, I snatched as sweet a kiss as ever
+      was stolen, and vanished in a twinkling. The next moment I was on
+      horseback, galloping homeward; my very ears tingling at what I had done.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;On my return home I sold my horse, and turned everything to cash; and
+      found, with the remains of the paternal purse, that I had nearly four
+      hundred dollars; a little capital which I resolved to manage with the
+      strictest economy.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;It was hard parting with old Miller, who had been like a father to me; it
+      cost me, too, something of a struggle to give up the free, independent
+      wild-wood life I had hitherto led; but I had marked out my course, and had
+      never been one to flinch or turn back.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;I footed it sturdily to Bardstown; took possession of the quarters for
+      which I had bargained, shut myself up, and set to work with might and main
+      to study. But what a task I had before me! I had everything to learn; not
+      merely law, but all the elementary branches of knowledge. I read and read,
+      for sixteen hours out of the four-and-twenty; but the more I read the more
+      I became aware of my own ignorance, and shed bitter tears over my
+      deficiency. It seemed as if the wilderness of knowledge expanded and grew
+      more perplexed as I advanced. Every height gained only revealed a wider
+      region to be traversed, and nearly filled me with despair. I grew moody,
+      silent, and unsocial, but studied on doggedly and incessantly. The only
+      person with whom I held any conversation was the worthy man in whose house
+      I was quartered. He was honest and well meaning, but perfectly ignorant,
+      and I believe would have liked me much better if I had not been so much
+      addicted to reading. He considered all books filled with lies and
+      impositions, and seldom could look into one without finding something to
+      rouse his spleen. Nothing put him into a greater passion than the
+      assertion that the world turned on its own axis every four-and-twenty
+      hours. He swore it was an outrage upon common sense. &lsquo;Why, if it did,&rsquo;
+      said he, &lsquo;there would not be a drop of water in the well by morning, and
+      all the milk and cream in the dairy would be turned topsy-turvy! And then
+      to talk of the earth going round the sun! How do they know it? I&rsquo;ve seen
+      the sun rise every morning and set every evening for more than thirty
+      years. They must not talk to <i>me</i> about the earth&rsquo;s going round the
+      sun!&rsquo;
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;At another time he was in a perfect fret at being told the distance
+      between the sun and moon. &lsquo;How can any one tell the distance?&rsquo; cried he.
+      &lsquo;Who surveyed it? who carried the chain? By Jupiter! they only talk this
+      way before me to annoy me. But then there&rsquo;s some people of sense who give
+      in to this cursed humbug! There&rsquo;s Judge Broadnax, now, one of the best
+      lawyers we have; isn&rsquo;t it surprising he should believe in such stuff? Why,
+      sir, the other day I heard him talk of the distance from a star he called
+      Mars to the sun! He must have got it out of one or other of those
+      confounded books he&rsquo;s so fond of reading; a book some impudent fellow has
+      written, who knew nobody could swear the distance was more or less.&rsquo;
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;For my own part, feeling my own deficiency in scientific lore, I never
+      ventured to unsettle his conviction that the sun made his daily circuit
+      round the earth; and for aught I said to the contrary, he lived and died
+      in that belief.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;I had been about a year at Bardstown, living thus studiously and
+      reclusely, when, as I was one day walking the street, I met two young
+      girls, in one of whom I immediately recalled the little beauty whom I had
+      kissed so impudently. She blushed up to the eyes, and so did I; but we
+      both passed on with further sign of recognition. This second glimpse of
+      her, however, caused an odd fluttering about my heart. I could not get her
+      out of my thoughts for days. She quite interfered with my studies. I tried
+      to think of her as a mere child, but it would not do; she had improved in
+      beauty, and was tending toward womanhood; and then I myself was but little
+      better than a stripling. However, I did not attempt to seek after her, or
+      even to find out who she was, but returned doggedly to my books. By
+      degrees she faded from my thoughts, or if she did cross them occasionally,
+      it was only to increase my despondency; for I feared that with all my
+      exertions, I should never be able to fit myself for the bar, or enable
+      myself to support a wife.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;One cold stormy evening I was seated, in dumpish mood, in the bar-room of
+      the inn, looking into the fire, and turning over uncomfortable thoughts,
+      when I was accosted by some one who had entered the room without my
+      perceiving it. I looked up, and saw before me a tall and, as I thought,
+      pompous-looking man, arrayed in small clothes and knee-buckles, with
+      powdered head, and shoes nicely blacked and polished; a style of dress
+      unparalleled in those days, in that rough country. I took a pique against
+      him from the very portliness of his appearance, and stateliness of his
+      manner, and bristled up as he accosted me. He demanded if my name was not
+      Ringwood.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;I was startled, for I supposed myself perfectly incog.; but I answered in
+      the affirmative.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;&lsquo;Your family, I believe, lives in Richmond?&rsquo;
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;My gorge began to rise. &lsquo;Yes, sir,&rsquo; replied I sulkily, &lsquo;my family does
+      live in Richmond.&rsquo;
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;&lsquo;And what, may I ask, has brought you into this part of the country?&rsquo;
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;&lsquo;Zounds, sir!&rsquo; cried I, starting on my feet, &lsquo;what business is it of
+      yours? How dare you to question me in this manner?&rsquo;
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;The entrance of some persons prevented a reply; but I walked up and down
+      the bar-room, fuming with conscious independence and insulted dignity,
+      while the pompous-looking personage, who had thus trespassed upon my
+      spleen, retired without proffering another word.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;The next day, while seated in my room, some one tapped at the door, and,
+      on being bid to enter, the stranger in the powdered head, small-clothes,
+      and shining shoes and buckles, walked in with ceremonious courtesy.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;My boyish pride was again in arms; but he subdued me. He was formal, but
+      kind and friendly. He knew my family and understood my situation, and the
+      dogged struggle I was making. A little conversation, when my jealous pride
+      was once put to rest, drew everything from me. He was a lawyer of
+      experience and of extensive practice, and offered at once to take me with
+      him, and direct my studies. The offer was too advantageous and gratifying
+      not to be immediately accepted. From that time I began to look up. I was
+      put into a proper track, and was enabled to study to a proper purpose. I
+      made acquaintance, too, with some of the young men of the place, who were
+      in the same pursuit, and was encouraged at finding that I could &lsquo;hold my
+      own&rsquo; in argument with them. We instituted a debating club, in which I soon
+      became prominent and popular. Men of talents, engaged in other pursuits,
+      joined it, and this diversified our subjects and put me on various tracks
+      of inquiry. Ladies, too, attended some of our discussions, and this gave
+      them a polite tone, and had an influence on the manners of the debaters.
+      My legal patron also may have had a favorable effect in correcting any
+      roughness contracted in my hunter&rsquo;s life. He was calculated to bend me in
+      an opposite direction, for he was of the old school; quoted Chesterfield
+      on all occasions, and talked of Sir Charles Grandison, who was his beau
+      ideal. It was Sir Charles Grandison, however, Kentuckyized.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;I had always been fond of female society. My experience, however, had
+      hitherto been among the rough daughters of the backwoodsmen; and I felt an
+      awe of young ladies in &lsquo;store clothes,&rsquo; and delicately brought up. Two or
+      three of the married ladies of Bardstown, who had heard me at the debating
+      club, determined that I was a genius and undertook to bring me out. I
+      believe I really improved under their hands; became quiet where I had been
+      shy or sulky, and easy where I had been impudent.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;I called to take tea one evening with one of these ladies, when to my
+      surprise, and somewhat to my confusion, I found with her the identical
+      blue-eyed little beauty whom I had so audaciously kissed. I was formally
+      introduced to her, but neither of us betrayed any sign of previous
+      acquaintance, except by blushing to the eyes. While tea was getting ready
+      the lady of the house went out of the room to give some directions, and
+      left us alone.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Heavens and earth, what a situation! I would have given all the pittance
+      I was worth to have been in the deepest dell of the forest. I felt the
+      necessity of saying something in excuse of my former rudeness, but I could
+      not conjure up an idea, nor utter a word. Every moment matters were
+      growing worse. I felt at one time tempted to do as I had done when I
+      robbed her of the kiss; bolt from the room, and take to flight; but I was
+      chained to the spot, for I really longed to gain her good-will.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;At length I plucked up courage, on seeing that she was equally confused
+      with myself, and walking desperately up to her, I exclaimed:
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;&lsquo;I have been trying to muster up something to say to you, but I cannot. I
+      feel that I am in a horrible scrape. Do have pity on me, and help me out
+      of it.&rsquo;
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;A smile dimpled about her mouth, and played among the blushes of her
+      cheek. She looked up with a shy, but arch glance of the eye, that
+      expressed a volume of comic recollection; we both broke into a laugh, and
+      from that moment all went on well.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;A few evenings afterward I met her at a dance, and prosecuted the
+      acquaintance. I soon became deeply attached to her; paid my court
+      regularly; and before I was nineteen years of age had engaged myself to
+      marry her. I spoke to her mother, a widow lady, to ask her consent. She
+      seemed to demur; upon which, with my customary haste, I told her there
+      would be no use in opposing the match, for if her daughter chose to have
+      me, I would take her, in defiance of her family, and the whole world.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;She laughed, and told me I need not give myself any uneasiness; there
+      would be no unreasonable opposition. She knew my family and all about me.
+      The only obstacle was that I had no means of supporting a wife, and she
+      had nothing to give with her daughter.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;No matter; at that moment everything was bright before me. I was in one
+      of my sanguine moods. I feared nothing, doubted nothing. So it was agreed
+      that I should prosecute my studies, obtain a license, and as soon as I
+      should be fairly launched in business we would be married.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;I now prosecuted my studies with redoubled ardor, and was up to my ears
+      in law, when I received a letter from my father, who had heard of me and
+      my whereabout. He applauded the course I had taken, but advised me to lay
+      a foundation of general knowledge, and offered to defray my expenses, if I
+      would go to college. I felt the want of a general education, and was
+      staggered with this offer. It militated somewhat against the
+      self-dependent course I had so proudly or rather conceitedly marked out
+      for myself, but it would enable me to enter more advantageously upon my
+      legal career. I talked over the matter with the lovely girl to whom I was
+      engaged. She sided in opinion with my father, and talked so
+      disinterestedly, yet tenderly, that, if possible, I loved her more than
+      ever. I reluctantly, therefore, agreed to go to college for a couple of
+      years, though it must necessarily postpone our union.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Scarcely had I formed this resolution, when her mother was taken ill and
+      died, leaving her without a protector. This again altered all my plans. I
+      felt as if I could protect her. I gave up all idea of collegiate studies;
+      persuaded myself that by dint of industry and application I might overcome
+      the deficiencies of education, and resolved to take out a license as soon
+      as possible.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;That very autumn I was admitted to the bar, and within a month afterward
+      was married. We were a young couple, she not much above sixteen, I not
+      quite twenty; and both almost without a dollar in the world. The
+      establishment which we set up was suited to our circumstances: a
+      log-house, with two small rooms; a bed, a table, a half dozen chairs, a
+      half dozen knives and forks, a half dozen spoons; everything by half
+      dozens; a little delf ware; everything in a small way; we were so poor,
+      but then so happy!
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;We had not been married many days, when court was held at a county town,
+      about twenty-five miles distant. It was necessary for me to go there, and
+      put myself in the way of business; but how was I to go? I had expended all
+      my means on our establishment; and then it was hard parting with my wife
+      so soon after marriage. However, go I must. Money must be made, or we
+      should soon have the wolf at the door. I accordingly borrowed a horse, and
+      borrowed a little cash, and rode off from my door, leaving my wife
+      standing at it, and waving her hand after me. Her last look, so sweet and
+      beaming, went to my heart. I felt as if I could go through fire and water
+      for her.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;I arrived at the county town on a cool October evening. The inn was
+      crowded, for the court was to commence on the following day. I knew no
+      one, and wondered how I, a stranger, and a mere youngster, was to make my
+      way in such a crowd, and to get business. The public room was thronged
+      with the idlers of the country, who gather together on such occasions.
+      There was some drinking going forward, with much noise, and a little
+      altercation. Just as I entered the room I saw a rough bully of a fellow,
+      who was partly intoxicated, strike an old man. He came swaggering by me,
+      and elbowed me as he passed. I immediately knocked him down, and kicked
+      him into the street. I needed no better introduction. In a moment I had a
+      dozen rough shakes of the hand, and invitations to drink, and found myself
+      quite a personage in this rough assembly.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;The next morning the court opened. I took my seat among the lawyers, but
+      felt as a mere spectator, not having a suit in progress or prospect, nor
+      having any idea where business was to come from. In the course of the
+      morning a man was put at the bar, charged with passing counterfeit money,
+      and was asked if he was ready for trial. He answered in the negative. He
+      had been confined in a place where there were no lawyers, and had not had
+      an opportunity of consulting any. He was told to choose counsel from the
+      lawyers present, and to be ready for trial on the following day. He looked
+      round the court and selected me. I was thunderstruck. I could not tell why
+      he should make such a choice. I, a beardless youngster; unpracticed at the
+      bar; perfectly unknown. I felt diffident yet delighted, and could have
+      hugged the rascal.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Before leaving the court he gave me one hundred dollars in a bag as a
+      retaining fee. I could scarcely believe my senses; it seemed like a dream.
+      The heaviness of the fee spoke but lightly in favor of his innocence, but
+      that was no affair of mine. I was to be advocate, not judge nor jury. I
+      followed him to jail, and learned from him all the particulars of his
+      case; from thence I went to the clerk&rsquo;s office and took minutes of the
+      indictment. I then examined the law on the subject, and prepared my brief
+      in my room. All this occupied me until midnight, when I went to bed and
+      tried to sleep. It was all in vain. Never in my life was I more
+      wide-awake. A host of thoughts and fancies kept rushing through my mind;
+      the shower of gold that had so unexpectedly fallen into my lap; the idea
+      of my poor little wife at home, that I was to astonish with my good
+      fortune! But then the awful responsibility I had undertaken!&mdash;to
+      speak for the first time in a strange court; the expectations the culprit
+      had evidently formed of my talents; all these, and a crowd of similar
+      notions, kept whirling through my mind. I tossed about all night, fearing
+      the morning would find me exhausted and incompetent; in a word, the day
+      dawned on me, a miserable fellow!
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;I got up feverish and nervous. I walked out before breakfast, striving to
+      collect my thoughts and tranquilize my feelings. It was a bright morning;
+      the air was pure and frosty. I bathed my forehead and my hands in a
+      beautiful running stream; but I could not allay the fever heat that raged
+      within. I returned to breakfast, but could not eat. A single cup of coffee
+      formed my repast. It was time to go to court, and I went there with a
+      throbbing heart. I believe if it had not been for the thoughts of my
+      little wife, in her lonely log house, I should have given back to the man
+      his hundred dollars, and relinquished the cause. I took my seat, looking,
+      I am convinced, more like a culprit than the rogue I was to defend.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;When the time came for me to speak, my heart died within me. I rose
+      embarrassed and dismayed, and stammered in opening my cause. I went on
+      from bad to worse, and felt as if I was going down hill. Just then the
+      public prosecutor, a man of talents, but somewhat rough in his practice,
+      made a sarcastic remark on something I had said. It was like an electric
+      spark, and ran tingling through every vein in my body. In an instant my
+      diffidence was gone. My whole spirit was in arms. I answered with
+      promptness and bitterness, for I felt the cruelty of such an attack upon a
+      novice in my situation. The public prosecutor made a kind of apology:
+      this, from a man of his redoubted powers, was a vast concession. I renewed
+      my argument with a fearless glow; carried the case through triumphantly,
+      and the man was acquitted.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;This was the making of me. Everybody was curious to know who this new
+      lawyer was, that had thus suddenly risen among them, and bearded the
+      attorney-general at the very outset. The story of my debut at the inn on
+      the preceding evening, when I had knocked down a bully, and kicked him out
+      of doors for striking an old man, was circulated with favorable
+      exaggerations. Even my very beardless chin and juvenile countenance were
+      in my favor, for people gave me far more credit than I really deserved.
+      The chance business which occurs in our country courts came thronging upon
+      me. I was repeatedly employed in other causes; and by Saturday night, when
+      the court closed, and I had paid my bill at the inn, I found myself with a
+      hundred and fifty dollars in silver, three hundred dollars in notes, and a
+      horse that I afterward sold for two hundred dollars more.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Never did miser gloat on his money with more delight. I locked the door
+      of my room; piled the money in a heap upon the table; walked round it; sat
+      with my elbows on the table, and my chin upon my hands, and gazed upon it.
+      Was I thinking of the money? No! I was thinking of my little wife at home.
+      Another sleepless night ensued; but what a night of golden fancies, and
+      splendid air-castle! As soon as morning dawned, I was up, mounted the
+      borrowed horse with which I had come to court, and led the other which I
+      had received as a fee. All the way I was delighting myself with the
+      thoughts of the surprise I had in store for my little wife; for both of us
+      had expected nothing but that I should spend all the money I had borrowed,
+      and should return in debt.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Our meeting was joyous, as you may suppose: but I played the part of the
+      Indian, hunter, who, when he returns from the chase, never for a time
+      speaks of his success. She had prepared a snug little rustic meal for me,
+      and while it was getting ready I seated myself at an old-fashioned desk in
+      one corner, and began to count over my money, and put it away. She came to
+      me before I had finished, and asked who I had collected the money for.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;&lsquo;For myself, to be sure,&rsquo; replied I, with affected coolness; &lsquo;I made it
+      at court.&rsquo;
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;She looked me for a moment in the face, incredulously. I tried to keep my
+      countenance, and to play Indian, but it would not do. My muscles began to
+      twitch; my feelings all at once gave way. I caught her in my arms;
+      laughed, cried, and danced about the room, like a crazy man. From that
+      time forward, we never wanted for money.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;I had not been long in successful practice, when I was surprised one day
+      by a visit from my woodland patron, old Miller. The tidings of my
+      prosperity had reached him in the wilderness, and he had walked one
+      hundred and fifty miles on foot to see me. By that tame I had improved my
+      domestic establishment, and had all things comfortable about me. He looked
+      around him with a wondering eye, at what he considered luxuries and
+      superfluities; but supposed they were all right in my altered
+      circumstances. He said he did not know, upon the whole, but that I had
+      acted for the best It is true, if game had continued plenty, it would have
+      been a folly for me to quit a hunter&rsquo;s life; but hunting was pretty nigh
+      done up in Kentucky. The buffalo had gone to Missouri; the elk were nearly
+      gone also; deer, too, were growing scarce; they might last out his time,
+      as he was growing old, but they were not worth setting up life upon. He
+      had once lived on the borders of Virginia. Game grew scarce there; he
+      followed it up across Kentucky, and now it was again giving him the slip;
+      but he was too old to follow it further.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;He remained with us three days. My wife did everything in her power to
+      make him comfortable; but at the end of that time he said he must be off
+      again to the woods. He was tired of the village, and of having so many
+      people about him. He accordingly returned to the wilderness and to hunting
+      life. But I fear he did not make a good end of it; for I understand that a
+      few years before his death he married Sukey Thomas, who lived at the White
+      Oak Run.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      <br /><br />
+    </p>
+    <hr />
+    <p>
+      <a name="link2H_4_0014" id="link2H_4_0014"> </a>
+    </p>
+    <div style="height: 4em;">
+      <br /><br /><br /><br />
+    </div>
+    <h2>
+      THE SEMINOLES
+    </h2>
+    <p>
+      From the time of the chimerical cruising of Old Ponce de Leon in search of
+      the Fountain of Youth, the avaricious expedition of Pamphilo de Narvaez in
+      quest of gold, and the chivalrous enterprise of Hernando de Soto, to
+      discover and conquer a second Mexico, the natives of Florida have been
+      continually subjected to the invasions and encroachments of white men.
+      They have resisted them perseveringly but fruitlessly, and are now
+      battling amid swamps and morasses for the last foothold of their native
+      soil, with all the ferocity of despair. Can we wonder at the bitterness of
+      a hostility that has been handed down from father to son, for upward of
+      three centuries, and exasperated by the wrongs and miseries of each
+      succeeding generation! The very name of the savages with which we are
+      fighting betokens their fallen and homeless condition. Formed of the
+      wrecks of once powerful tribes, and driven from their ancient seats of
+      prosperity and dominion, they are known by the name of the Seminoles, or
+      &ldquo;Wanderers.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      Bartram, who traveled through Florida in the latter part of the last
+      century, speaks of passing through a great extent of ancient Indian
+      fields, now silent and deserted, overgrown with forests, orange groves,
+      and rank vegetation, the site of the ancient Alachua, the capital of a
+      famous and powerful tribe, who in days of old could assemble thousands at
+      bull-play and other athletic exercises &ldquo;over these then happy fields and
+      green plains.&rdquo; &ldquo;Almost every step we take,&rdquo; adds he, &ldquo;over these fertile
+      heights, discovers the remains and traces of ancient human habitations and
+      cultivation.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      About the year 1763, when Florida was ceded by the Spaniards to the
+      English, we are told that the Indians generally retired from the towns and
+      the neighborhood of the whites, and burying themselves in the deep
+      forests, intricate swamps and hommocks, and vast savannas of the interior,
+      devoted themselves to a pastoral life, and the rearing of horses and
+      cattle. These are the people that received the name of the Seminoles, or
+      Wanderers, which they still retain.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Bartram gives a pleasing picture of them at the time he visited them in
+      their wilderness; where their distance from the abodes of the white man
+      gave them a transient quiet and security. &ldquo;This handful of people,&rdquo; says
+      he, &ldquo;possesses a vast territory, all East and the greatest part of West
+      Florida, which being naturally cut and divided into thousands of islets,
+      knolls, and eminences, by the innumerable rivers, lakes, swamps, vast
+      savannas, and ponds, form so many secure retreats and temporary
+      dwelling-places that effectually guard them from any sudden invasions or
+      attacks from their enemies; and being such a swampy, hommocky country,
+      furnishes such a plenty and variety of supplies for the nourishment of
+      varieties of animals that I can venture to assert that no part of the
+      globe so abounds with wild game, or creatures fit for the food of man.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Thus they enjoy a superabundance of the necessaries and conveniences of
+      life, with the security of person and property, the two great concerns of
+      mankind. The hides of deer, bears, tigers, and wolves, together with
+      honey, wax, and other productions of the country, purchase their clothing
+      equipage and domestic utensils from the whites. They seem to be free from
+      want or desires. No cruel enemy to dread; nothing to give them disquietude
+      but the gradual encroachments of the white people. Thus contented and
+      undisturbed, they appear as blithe and free as the birds of the air, and
+      like them as volatile and active, tuneful and vociferous. The visage,
+      action, and deportment of the Seminoles form the most striking picture of
+      happiness in this life; joy, contentment, love, and friendship, without
+      guile or affectation, seem inherent in them, or predominant in their vital
+      principle, for it leaves them with but the last breath of life.... They
+      are fond of games and gambling, and amuse themselves like children, in
+      relating extravagant stories, to cause surprise and mirth.&rdquo; [Footnote:
+      Bartram&rsquo;s Travels in North America.]
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The same writer gives an engaging picture of his treatment by these
+      savages:
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Soon after entering the forests, we were met in the path by a small
+      company of Indians, smiling and beckoning to us long before we joined
+      them. This was a family of Talahasochte, who had been out on a hunt and
+      were returning home loaded with barbecued meat, hides, and honey. Their
+      company consisted of the man, his wife and children, well mounted on fine
+      horses, with a number of pack-horses. The man offered us a fawn skin of
+      honey, which I accepted, and at parting presented him with some
+      fish-hooks, sewing-needles, etc.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;On our return to camp in the evening, we were saluted by a party of young
+      Indian warriors, who had pitched their tents on a green eminence near the
+      lake, at a small distance from our camp, under a little grove of oaks and
+      palms. This company consisted of seven young Seminoles, under the conduct
+      of a young prince or chief of Talahasochte, a town southward in the
+      isthmus. They were all dressed and painted with singular elegance, and
+      richly ornamented with silver plates, chains, etc., after the Seminole
+      mode, with waving plumes of feathers on their crests. On our coming up to
+      them, they arose and shook hands; we alighted and sat a while with them by
+      their cheerful fire.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;The young prince informed our chief that he was in pursuit of a young
+      fellow who had fled from the town carrying off with him one of his
+      favorite young wives. He said, merrily, he would have the ears of both of
+      them before he returned. He was rather above the middle stature, and the
+      most perfect human figure I ever saw; of an amiable, engaging countenance,
+      air, and deportment; free and familiar in conversation, yet retaining a
+      becoming gracefulness and dignity. We arose, took leave of them, and
+      crossed a little vale, covered with a charming green turf, already
+      illuminated by the soft light of the full moon.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Soon after joining our companions at camp, our neighbors, the prince and
+      his associates, paid us a visit. We treated them with the best fare we
+      had, having till this time preserved our spirituous liquors. They left us
+      with perfect cordiality and cheerfulness, wishing us a good repose, and
+      retired to their own camp. Having a band of music with them, consisting of
+      a drum, flutes, and a rattle-gourd, they entertained us during the night
+      with their music, vocal and instrumental.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;There is a languishing softness and melancholy air in the Indian
+      convivial songs, especially of the amorous class, irresistibly moving
+      attention, and exquisitely pleasing, especially in their solitary
+      recesses, when all nature is silent.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      Travelers who have been among them, in more recent times, before they had
+      embarked in their present desperate struggle, represent them in much the
+      same light; as leading a pleasant, indolent life, in a climate that
+      required little shelter or clothing, and where the spontaneous fruits of
+      the earth furnished subsistence without toil. A cleanly race, delighting
+      in bathing, passing much of their time under the shade of their trees,
+      with heaps of oranges and other fine fruits for their refreshment;
+      talking, laughing, dancing and sleeping. Every chief had a fan hanging to
+      his side, made of feathers of the wild turkey, the beautiful pink-colored
+      crane, or the scarlet flamingo. With this he would sit and fan himself
+      with great stateliness, while the young people danced before him. The
+      women joined in the dances with the men, excepting the war-dances. They
+      wore strings of tortoise-shells and pebbles round their legs, which
+      rattled in cadence to the music. They were treated with more attention
+      among the Seminoles than among most Indian tribes.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      <br /><br />
+    </p>
+    <hr />
+    <p>
+      <a name="link2H_4_0015" id="link2H_4_0015"> </a>
+    </p>
+    <div style="height: 4em;">
+      <br /><br /><br /><br />
+    </div>
+    <h2>
+      ORIGIN OF THE WHITE, THE RED, AND THE BLACK MEN
+    </h2>
+    <h3>
+      A SEMINOLE TRADITION
+    </h3>
+    <p>
+      When the Floridas were erected into a territory of the United States, one
+      of the earliest cares of the Governor, William P. Duval, was directed to
+      the instruction and civilization of the natives. For this purpose he
+      called a meeting of the chiefs, in which he informed them of the wish of
+      their Great Father at Washington that they should have schools and
+      teachers among them, and that their children should be instructed like the
+      children of white men. The chiefs listened with their customary silence
+      and decorum to a long speech, setting forth the advantages that would
+      accrue to them from this measure, and when he had concluded, begged the
+      interval of a day to deliberate on it.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      On the following day a solemn convocation was held, at which one of the
+      chiefs addressed the governor in the name of all the rest. &ldquo;My brother,&rdquo;
+       said he, &ldquo;we have been thinking over the proposition of our Great Father
+      at Washington, to send teachers and set up schools among us. We are very
+      thankful for the interest be takes in our welfare; but after much
+      deliberation have concluded to decline his offer. What will do very well
+      for white men will not do for red men. I know you white men say we all
+      come from the same father and mother, but you are mistaken. We have a
+      tradition handed down from our forefathers, and we believe it, that the
+      Great Spirit, when he undertook to make men, made the black man; it was
+      his first attempt, and pretty well for a beginning; but he soon saw he had
+      bungled; so he determined to try his hand again. He did so, and made the
+      red man. He liked him much better than the black man, but still he was not
+      exactly what he wanted. So he tried once more, and made the white man; and
+      then he was satisfied. You see, therefore, that you were made last, and
+      that is the reason I call you my youngest brother.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;When the Great Spirit had made the three men, he called them together and
+      showed them three boxes. The first was filled with books, and maps, and
+      papers; the second with bows and arrows, knives and tomahawks; the third
+      with spades, axes, hoes, and hammers. &lsquo;These, my sons,&rsquo; said he, &lsquo;are the
+      means by which you are to live: choose among them according to your
+      fancy.&rsquo;
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;The white man, being the favorite, had the first choice. He passed by the
+      box of working-tools without notice; but when he came to the weapons for
+      war and hunting, he stopped and looked hard at them. The red man trembled,
+      for he had set his heart upon that box. The white man, however, after
+      looking upon it for a moment, passed on, and chose the box of books and
+      papers. The red man&rsquo;s turn came next; and you may be sure he seized with
+      joy upon the bows and arrows and tomahawks. As to the black man, he had no
+      choice left but to put up with the box of tools.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;From this it is clear that the Great Spirit intended the white man should
+      learn to read and write; to understand all about the moon and stars; and
+      to make everything, even rum and whisky. That the red man should be a
+      first-rate hunter, and a mighty warrior, but he was not to learn anything
+      from books, as the Great Spirit had not given him any: nor was he to make
+      rum and whisky, lest he should kill himself with drinking. As to the black
+      man, as he had nothing but working-tools, it was clear he was to work for
+      the white and red man, which he has continued to do.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;We must go according to the wishes of the Great Spirit, or we shall get
+      into trouble. To know how to read and write is very good for white men,
+      but very bad for red men. It makes white men better, but red men worse.
+      Some of the Creeks and Cherokees learned to read and write, and they are
+      the greatest rascals among all the Indians. They went on to Washington,
+      and said they were going to see their Great Father, to talk about the good
+      of the nation. And when they got there, they all wrote upon a little piece
+      of paper, without the nation at home knowing anything about it. And the
+      first thing the nation at home knew of the matter, they were called
+      together by the Indian agent, who showed them a little piece of paper,
+      which he told them was a treaty, which their brethren had made in their
+      name, with their Great Father at Washington. And as they knew not what a
+      treaty was, he held up the little piece of paper, and they looked under
+      it, and lo! it covered a great extent of country, and they found that
+      their brethren, by knowing how to read and write, had sold their houses
+      and their lands and the graves of their fathers; and that the white man,
+      by knowing how to read and write, had gained them. Tell our Great Father
+      at Washington, therefore, that we are very sorry we cannot receive
+      teachers among us; for reading and writing, though very good for white
+      men, is very bad for the Indians.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      <br /><br />
+    </p>
+    <hr />
+    <p>
+      <a name="link2H_4_0016" id="link2H_4_0016"> </a>
+    </p>
+    <div style="height: 4em;">
+      <br /><br /><br /><br />
+    </div>
+    <h2>
+      THE CONSPIRACY OF NEAMATHLA
+    </h2>
+    <h3>
+      AN AUTHENTIC SKETCH
+    </h3>
+    <p>
+      In the autumn of 1823, Governor Duval, and other commissioners on the part
+      of the United States, concluded a treaty with the chiefs and warriors of
+      the Florida Indians, by which the latter, for certain considerations,
+      ceded all claims to the whole territory, excepting a district in the
+      eastern part, to which they were to remove, and within which they were to
+      reside for twenty years. Several of the chiefs signed the treaty with
+      great reluctance; but none opposed it more strongly than Neamathla,
+      principal chief of the Mickasookies, a fierce and warlike people, many of
+      them Creeks by origin, who lived about the Mickasookie lake. Neamathla had
+      always been active in those depredations on the frontiers of Georgia which
+      had brought vengeance and ruin on the Seminoles. He was a remarkable man;
+      upward of sixty years of age, about six feet high, with a fine eye, and a
+      strongly marked countenance, over which he possessed great command. His
+      hatred of the white men appeared to be mixed with contempt: on the common
+      people he looked down with infinite scorn. He seemed unwilling to
+      acknowledge any superiority of rank or dignity in Governor Duval, claiming
+      to associate with him on terms of equality, as two great chieftains.
+      Though he had been prevailed upon to sign the treaty, his heart revolted
+      at it. In one of his frank conversations with Governor Duval, he observed:
+      &ldquo;This country belongs to the red man; and if I had the number of warriors
+      at my command that this nation once had I would not leave a white man on
+      my lands. I would exterminate the whole. I can say this to you, for you
+      can understand me: you are a man; but I would not say it to your people.
+      They&rsquo;d cry out I was a savage, and would take my life. They cannot
+      appreciate the feelings of a man that loves his country.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      As Florida had but recently been erected into a territory, everything as
+      yet was in rude and simple style. The governor, to make himself acquainted
+      with the Indians, and to be near at hand to keep an eye upon them, fixed
+      his residence at Tallahassee, near the Fowel towns, inhabited by the
+      Mickasookies. His government palace for a time was a mere log house, and
+      he lived on hunters&rsquo; fare. The village of Neamathla was but about three
+      miles off, and thither the governor occasionally rode, to visit the old
+      chieftain. In one of these visits he found Neamathla seated in his wigwam,
+      in the center of the village, surrounded by his warriors. The governor had
+      brought him some liquor as a present, but it mounted quickly into his
+      brain and rendered him quite boastful and belligerent. The theme ever
+      uppermost in his mind was the treaty with the whites. &ldquo;It was true,&rdquo; he
+      said, &ldquo;the red men had made such a treaty, but the white men had not acted
+      up to it. The red men had received none of the money and the cattle that
+      had been promised them: the treaty, therefore, was at an end, and they did
+      not mean to be bound by it.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      Governor Duval calmly represented to him that the time appointed in the
+      treaty for the payment and delivery of the money and the cattle had not
+      yet arrived. This the old chieftain knew full well, but he chose, for the
+      moment, to pretend ignorance. He kept on drinking and talking, his voice
+      growing louder and louder, until it resounded all over the village. He
+      held in his hand a long knife, with which he had been rasping tobacco;
+      this he kept flourishing backward and forward, as he talked, by way of
+      giving effect to his words, brandishing it at times within an inch of the
+      governor&rsquo;s throat. He concluded his tirade by repeating that the country
+      belonged to the red men, and that sooner than give it up his bones and the
+      bones of his people should bleach upon its soil.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Duval saw that the object of all this bluster was to see whether he could
+      be intimidated. He kept his eye, therefore, fixed steadily on the chief,
+      and the moment he concluded with his menace, seized him by the bosom of
+      his hunting shirt, and clinching his other fist:
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;I&rsquo;ve heard what you have said,&rdquo; replied he. &ldquo;You have made a treaty, yet
+      you say your bones shall bleach before you comply with it. As sure as
+      there is a sun in heaven, your bones <i>shall</i> bleach, if you do not
+      fulfill every article of that treaty I I&rsquo;ll let you know that I am <i>first</i>
+      here, and will see that you do your duty!&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      Upon this, the old chieftain threw himself back, burst into a fit of
+      laughing, and declared that all he had said was in joke. The governor
+      suspected, however, that there was a grave meaning at the bottom of this
+      jocularity.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      For two months, everything went on smoothly: the Indians repaired daily to
+      the log-cabin palace of the governor, at Tallahassee, and appeared
+      perfectly contented. All at once they ceased their visits, and for three
+      or four days not one was to be seen. Governor Duval began to apprehend
+      that some mischief was brewing. On the evening of the fourth day a chief
+      named Yellow-Hair, a resolute, intelligent fellow, who had always evinced
+      an attachment for the governor, entered his cabin about twelve o&rsquo;clock at
+      night, and informed him that between four and five hundred warriors,
+      painted and decorated, were assembled to hold a secret war-talk at
+      Neamathla&rsquo;s town. He had slipped off to give intelligence, at the risk of
+      his life, and hastened back lest his absence should be discovered.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Governor Duval passed an anxious night after this intelligence. He knew
+      the talent and the daring character of Neamathla; he recollected the
+      threats he had thrown out; he reflected that about eighty white families
+      were scattered widely apart, over a great extent of country, and might be
+      swept away at once, should the Indians, as he feared, determine to clear
+      the country. That he did not exaggerate the dangers of the case has been
+      proved by the horrid scenes of Indian warfare that have since desolated
+      that devoted region. After a night of sleepless cogitation, Duval
+      determined on a measure suited to his prompt and resolute character.
+      Knowing the admiration of the savages for personal courage, he determined,
+      by a sudden surprise, to endeavor to overawe and check them. It was
+      hazarding much; but where so many lives were in jeopardy, he felt bound to
+      incur the hazard.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Accordingly, on the next morning, he set off on horseback, attended merely
+      by a white man who had been reared among the Seminoles, and understood
+      their language and manners, and who acted as interpreter. They struck into
+      an Indian &ldquo;trail,&rdquo; leading to Neamathla&rsquo;s village. After proceeding about
+      half a mile, Governor Duval informed the interpreter of the object of his
+      expedition. The latter, though a bold man, paused and remonstrated. The
+      Indians among whom they were going were among the most desperate and
+      discontented of the nation. Many of them were veteran warriors,
+      impoverished and exasperated by defeat, and ready to set their lives at
+      any hazard. He said that if they were holding a war council, it must be
+      with desperate intent, and it would be certain death to intrude among
+      them.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Duval made light of his apprehensions: he said he was perfectly well
+      acquainted with the Indian character, and should certainly proceed. So
+      saying, he rode on. When within half a mile of the village, the
+      interpreter addressed him again, in such a tremulous tone that Duval
+      turned and looked him in the face. He was deadly pale, and once more urged
+      the governor to return, as they would certainly be massacred if they
+      proceeded.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Duval repeated his determination to go on, but advised the other to
+      return, lest his pale face should betray fear to the Indians, and they
+      might take advantage of it. The interpreter replied that he would rather
+      die a thousand deaths than have it said he had deserted his leader when in
+      peril.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Duval then told him he must translate faithfully all he should say to the
+      Indians, without softening a word. The interpreter promised faithfully to
+      do so, adding that he well knew, when they were once in the town, nothing
+      but boldness could save them.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      They now rode into the village, and advanced to the council house. This
+      was rather a group of four houses, forming a square, in the center of
+      which was a great council-fire. The houses were open in front, toward the
+      fire, and closed in the rear. At each corner of the square there was an
+      interval between the houses, for ingress and egress. In these houses sat
+      the old men and the chiefs; the young men were gathered round the fire.
+      Neamathla presided at the council, elevated on a higher seat than the
+      rest.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Governor Duval entered by one of the corner intervals, and rode boldly
+      into the center of the square. The young men made way for him; an old man
+      who was speaking paused in the midst of his harangue. In an instant thirty
+      or forty rifles were cocked and leveled. Never had Duval heard so loud a
+      click of triggers; it seemed to strike on his heart. He gave one glance at
+      the Indians, and turned off with an air of contempt. He did not dare, he
+      says, to look again, lest it might affect his nerves; and on the firmness
+      of his nerves everything depended.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The chief threw up his arm. The rifles were lowered. Duval breathed more
+      freely: he felt disposed to leap from his horse, but restrained himself,
+      and dismounted leisurely. He then walked deliberately up to Neamathla, and
+      demanded, in an authoritative tone, what were his motives for holding that
+      council. The moment he made this demand the orator sat down. The chief
+      made no reply, but hung his head in apparent confusion. After a moment&rsquo;s
+      pause, Duval proceeded:
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;I am well aware of the meaning of this war-council; and deem it my duty
+      to warn you against prosecuting the schemes you have been devising. If a
+      single hair of a white man in this country falls to the ground, I will
+      hang you and your chiefs on the trees around your council house! You
+      cannot pretend to withstand the power of the white men. You are in the
+      palm of the hand of your Great Father at Washington, who can crush you
+      like an egg-shell. You may kill me: I am but one man; but recollect, white
+      men are numerous as the leaves on the trees. Remember the fate of your
+      warriors whose bones are whitening in battlefields. Remember your wives
+      and children who perished in swamps. Do you want to provoke more
+      hostilities? Another war with the white men, and there will not be a
+      Seminole left to tell the story of his race.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      Seeing the effect of his words, he concluded by appointing a day for the
+      Indians to meet him at St. Marks, and give an account of their conduct. He
+      then rode off, without giving them time to recover from their surprise.
+      That night he rode forty miles to Apalachicola River, to the tribe of the
+      same name, who were in feud with the Seminoles. They promptly put two
+      hundred and fifty warriors at his disposal, whom he ordered to be at St.
+      Marks at the appointed day. He sent out runners, also, and mustered one
+      hundred of the militia to repair to the same place, together with a number
+      of regulars from the army. All his arrangements were successful.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Having taken these measures, he returned to Tallahassee, to the
+      neighborhood of the conspirators, to show them that he was not afraid.
+      Here he ascertained, through Yellow-Hair, that nine towns were
+      disaffected, and had been concerned in the conspiracy. He was careful to
+      inform himself, from the same source, of the names of the warriors in each
+      of those towns who were most popular, though poor, and destitute of rank
+      and command.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      When the appointed day was at hand for the meeting at St. Marks, Governor
+      Duval set off with Neamathla, who was at the head of eight or nine hundred
+      warriors, but who feared to venture into the fort without him. As they
+      entered the fort, and saw troops and militia drawn up there, and a force
+      of Apalachicola soldiers stationed on the opposite bank of the river, they
+      thought they were betrayed, and were about to fly; but Duval assured them
+      they were safe, and that when the talk was over they might go home
+      unmolested.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      A grand talk was now held, in which the late conspiracy was discussed. As
+      he had foreseen, Neamathla and the other old chiefs threw all the blame
+      upon the young men, &ldquo;Well,&rdquo; replied Duval, &ldquo;with us white men, when we
+      find a man incompetent to govern those under him, we put him down, and
+      appoint another in his place. Now as you all acknowledge you cannot manage
+      your young men, we must put chiefs over them who can.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      So saying, he deposed Neamathla first; appointing another in his place;
+      and so on with all the rest; taking care to substitute the warriors who
+      had been pointed out to him as poor and popular; putting medals round
+      their necks, and investing them with great ceremony. The Indians were
+      surprised and delighted at finding the appointments fall upon the very men
+      they would themselves have chosen, and hailed them with acclamations. The
+      warriors thus unexpectedly elevated to command, and clothed with dignity,
+      were secured to the interests of the governor, and sure to keep an eye on
+      the disaffected. As to the great chief Neamathla, he left the country in
+      disgust, and returned to the Creek nation, who elected him a chief of one
+      of their towns. Thus by the resolute spirit and prompt sagacity of one
+      man, a dangerous conspiracy was completely defeated. Governor Duval was
+      afterward enabled to remove the whole nation, through his own personal
+      influence, without the aid of the general government.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      To the Editor of the Knickerbocker:
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      SIR&mdash;The following letter was scribbled to a friend during my sojourn
+      in the Alhambra, in 1828. As it presents scenes and impressions noted down
+      at the time, I venture to offer it for the consideration of your readers.
+      Should it prove acceptable, I may from tune to time give other letters,
+      written in the course of my various ramblings, and which have been kindly
+      restored to me by my friends.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Yours, G. C.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      <br /><br />
+    </p>
+    <hr />
+    <p>
+      <a name="link2H_4_0017" id="link2H_4_0017"> </a>
+    </p>
+    <div style="height: 4em;">
+      <br /><br /><br /><br />
+    </div>
+    <h2>
+      LETTER FROM GRANADA
+    </h2>
+    <h3>
+      GRANADA, 1828.
+    </h3>
+    <p>
+      My Dear&mdash;: Religious festivals furnish, in all Catholic countries,
+      occasions of popular pageant and recreation; but in none more so than in
+      Spain, where the great end of religion seems to be to create holidays and
+      ceremonials. For two days past, Granada has been in a gay turmoil with the
+      great annual fete of Corpus Christi. This most eventful and romantic city,
+      as you well know, has ever been the rallying point of a mountainous
+      region, studded with small towns and villages. Hither, during the time
+      that Granada was the splendid capital of a Moorish kingdom, the Moslem
+      youth repaired from all points, to participate in chivalrous festivities;
+      and hither the Spanish populace at the present day throng from all parts
+      of the surrounding country to attend the festivals of the church.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      As the populace like to enjoy things from the very commencement, the stir
+      of Corpus Christ! began in Granada on the preceding evening. Before dark
+      the gates of the city were thronged with the picturesque peasantry from
+      the mountain villages, and the brown laborers from the Vega, or vast
+      fertile plain. As the evening advanced, the Vivarambla thickened and
+      swarmed with a motley multitude. This is the great square in the center of
+      the city, famous for tilts and tourneys during the times of Moorish
+      domination, and incessantly mentioned in all the old Moorish ballads of
+      love and chivalry. For several days the hammer had resounded throughout
+      this square. A gallery of wood had been erected all round it, forming a
+      covered way for the grand procession of Corpus Christi. On this eve of the
+      ceremonial this gallery was a fashionable promenade. It was brilliantly
+      illuminated, bands of music were stationed in balconies on the four sides
+      of the square, and all the fashion and beauty of Granada, and all its
+      population that could boast a little finery of apparel, together with the
+      majos and majas, the beaux and belles of the villages, in their gay
+      Andalusian costumes, thronged this covered walk, anxious to see and to be
+      seen. As to the sturdy peasantry of the Vega, and such of the mountaineers
+      as did not pretend to display, but were content with hearty enjoyment,
+      they swarmed in the center of the square; some in groups listening to the
+      guitar and the traditional ballad; some dancing their favorite bolero;
+      some seated on the ground making a merry though frugal supper; and some
+      stretched out for their night&rsquo;s repose.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The gay crowd of the gallery dispersed gradually toward midnight; but the
+      center of the square resembled the bivouac of an army; for hundreds of the
+      peasantry, men, women, and children, passed the night there, sleeping
+      soundly on the bare earth, under the open canopy of heaven. A summer&rsquo;s
+      night requires no shelter in this genial climate; and with a great part of
+      the hardy peasantry of Spain a bed is a superfluity which many of them
+      never enjoy, and which they affect to despise. The common Spaniard spreads
+      out his manta, or mule-cloth, or wraps himself in his cloak, and lies on
+      the ground, with his saddle for a pillow.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The next morning I revisited the square at sunrise. It was still strewed
+      with groups of sleepers; some were reposing from the dance and revel of
+      the evening; others had left their villages after work, on the preceding
+      day, and having trudged on foot the greater part of the night, were taking
+      a sound sleep to freshen them for the festivities of the day. Numbers from
+      the mountains, and the remote villages of the plain, who had set out in
+      the night, continued to arrive, with their wives and children. All were in
+      high spirits; greeting each other, and exchanging jokes and pleasantries.
+      The gay tumult thickened as the day advanced. Now came pouring in at the
+      city gates, and parading through the streets, the deputations from the
+      various villages, destined to swell the grand procession. These village
+      deputations were headed by their priests, bearing their respective crosses
+      and banners, and images of the Blessed Virgin and of patron saints; all
+      which were matters of great rivalship and jealousy among the peasantry. It
+      was like the chivalrous gatherings of ancient days, when each town and
+      village sent its chiefs, and warriors, and standards, to defend the
+      capital or grace its festivities.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      At length, all these various detachments congregated into one grand
+      pageant, which slowly paraded round the Vivarambla, and through the
+      principal streets, where every window and balcony was hung with tapestry.
+      In this procession were all the religious orders, the civil and military
+      authorities, and the chief people of the parishes and villages; every
+      church and convent had contributed its banners, its images, its relics,
+      and poured forth its wealth for the occasion. In the center of the
+      procession walked the archbishop, under a damask canopy, and surrounded by
+      inferior dignitaries and their dependents. The whole moved to the swell
+      and cadence of numerous bands of music, and, passing through the midst of
+      a countless yet silent multitude, proceeded onward to the cathedral.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      I could not but be struck with the changes of times and customs, as I saw
+      this monkish pageant passing through the Vivarambla, the ancient seat of
+      Moslem pomp and chivalry. The contrast was indeed forced upon the mind by
+      the decorations of the square. The whole front of the wooden gallery
+      erected for the procession, extending several hundred feet, was faced with
+      canvas, on which some humble though patriotic artist had painted, by
+      contract, a series of the principal scenes and exploits of the conquest,
+      as recorded in chronicle and romance. It is thus the romantic legends of
+      Granada mingle themselves with everything, and are kept fresh in the
+      public mind. Another great festival at Granada, answering in its popular
+      character to our Fourth of July, is <i>El Dia de la Toma</i>; &ldquo;The day of
+      the Capture&rdquo;; that is to say, the anniversary of the capture of the city
+      by Ferdinand and Isabella. On this day all Granada is abandoned to
+      revelry. The alarm-bell on the Terre de la Campana, or watch-tower of the
+      Alhambra, keeps up a clangor from morn till night; and happy is the damsel
+      that can ring that bell; it is a charm to secure a husband in the course
+      of the year.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The sound, which can be heard over the whole Vega, and to the top of the
+      mountains, summons the peasantry to the festivities. Throughout the day
+      the Alhambra is thrown open to the public. The halls and courts of the
+      Moorish monarchs resound with the guitar and castanet, and gay groups, in
+      the fanciful dresses of Andalusia, perform those popular dances which they
+      have inherited from the Moors.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      In the meantime a grand procession moves through the city. The banner of
+      Ferdinand and Isabella, that precious relic of the conquest, is brought
+      forth from its depository, and borne by the Alferez Mayor, or grand
+      standard-bearer, through the principal streets. The portable camp-altar,
+      which was carried about with them in all their campaigns, is transported
+      into the chapel royal, and placed before their sepulcher, where their
+      effigies lie in monumental marble. The procession fills the chapel. High
+      mass is performed in memory of the conquest; and at a certain part of the
+      ceremony the Alferez Mayor puts on his hat, and waves the standard above
+      the tomb of the conquerors.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      A more whimsical memorial of the conquest is exhibited on the same evening
+      at the theater, where a popular drama is performed, entitled &ldquo;Ave Maria.&rdquo;
+       This turns on the oft-sung achievement of Hernando del Pulgar, surnamed El
+      de las Hazanas, &ldquo;He of the Exploits,&rdquo; the favorite hero of the populace of
+      Granada.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      During the time that Ferdinand and Isabella besieged the city, the young
+      Moorish and Spanish knights vied with each other in extravagant bravadoes.
+      On one occasion Hernando del Pulgar, at the head of a handful of youthful
+      followers, made a dash into Granada at the dead of night, nailed the
+      inscription of Ave Maria, with his dagger, to the gate of the principal
+      mosque, as a token of having consecrated it to the Virgin, and effected
+      his retreat in safety.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      While the Moorish cavaliers admired this daring exploit, they felt bound
+      to revenge it. On the following day, therefore, Tarfe, one of the stoutest
+      of the infidel warriors, paraded in front of the Christian army, dragging
+      the sacred inscription of Ave Maria at his horse&rsquo;s tail. The cause of the
+      Virgin was eagerly vindicated by Garcilaso de la Vega, who slew the Moor
+      in single combat, and elevated the inscription of Ave Maria, in devotion
+      and triumph, at the end of his lance.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The drama founded on this exploit is prodigiously popular with the common
+      people. Although it has been acted time out of mind, and the people have
+      seen it repeatedly, it never fails to draw crowds, and so completely to
+      engross the feelings of the audience, as to have almost the effect on them
+      of reality. When their favorite Pulgar strides about with many a mouthy
+      speech, in the very midst of the Moorish capital, he is cheered with
+      enthusiastic bravoes; and when he nails the tablet of Ave Maria to the
+      door of the mosque, the theater absolutely shakes with shouts and thunders
+      of applause. On the other hand, the actors who play the part of the Moors
+      have to bear the brunt of the temporary indignation of their auditors; and
+      when the infidel Tarfe plucks down the tablet to tie it to his horse&rsquo;s
+      tail, many of the people absolutely rise in fury, and are ready to jump
+      upon the stage to revenge this insult to the Virgin.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Besides this annual festival at the capital, almost every village of the
+      Vega and the mountains has its own anniversary, wherein its own
+      deliverance from the Moorish yoke is celebrated with uncouth ceremony and
+      rustic pomp.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      On these occasions a kind of resurrection takes place of ancient Spanish
+      dresses and armor; great two-handed swords, ponderous arquebuses, with
+      matchlocks, and other weapons and accouterments, once the equipments of
+      the village chivalry, and treasured up from generation to generation,
+      since the time of the conquest. In these hereditary and historical garbs
+      some of the most sturdy of the villagers array themselves as champions of
+      the faith, while its ancient opponents are represented by another band of
+      villagers, dressed up as Moorish warriors. A tent is pitched in the public
+      square of the village, within which is an altar and an image of the
+      Virgin. The Spanish warriors approach to perform their devotions at this
+      shrine, but are opposed by the infidel Moslems, who surround the tent. A
+      mock fight succeeds, in the course of which the combatants sometimes
+      forget that they are merely playing a part, and exchange dry blows of
+      grievous weight; the fictious Moors especially are apt to bear away pretty
+      evident marks of the pious zeal of their antagonists. The contest,
+      however, invariably terminates in favor of the good cause. The Moors are
+      defeated and taken prisoners. The image of the Virgin, rescued from
+      thralldom, is elevated in triumph; and a grand procession succeeds, in
+      which the Spanish conquerors figure with great vainglory and applause, and
+      their captives are led in chains, to the infinite delight and edification
+      of the populace. These annual festivals are the delight of the villagers,
+      who expend considerable sums in their celebration. In some villages they
+      are occasionally obliged to suspend them for want of funds; but when times
+      grow better, or they have been enabled to save money for the purpose, they
+      are revived with all their grotesque pomp and extravagance.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      To recur to the exploit of Hernando del Pulgar. However extravagant and
+      fabulous it may seem, it is authenticated by certain traditional usages,
+      and shows the vainglorious daring that prevailed between the youthful
+      warriors of both nations, in that romantic war. The mosque thus
+      consecrated to the Virgin was made the cathedral of the city after the
+      conquest; and there is a painting of the Virgin beside the royal chapel,
+      which was put there by Hernando del Pulgar. The lineal representative of
+      the hare-brained cavalier has the right to this day to enter the church,
+      on certain occasions, on horseback, to sit within the choir, and to put on
+      his hat at the elevation of the host, though these privileges have often
+      been obstinately contested by the clergy.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The present lineal representative of Hernando del Pulgar is the Marquis de
+      Salar, whom I have met occasionally in society. He is a young man of
+      agreeable appearance and manners, and his bright black eyes would give
+      indication of his inheriting the fire of his ancestor. When the paintings
+      were put up in the Vivarambla, illustrating the scenes of the conquest, an
+      old gray-headed family servant of the Pulgars was so delighted with those
+      which related to the family hero, that he absolutely shed tears, and
+      hurrying home to the marquis, urged him to hasten and behold the family
+      trophies. The sudden zeal of the old man provoked the mirth of his young
+      master; upon which, turning to the brother of the marquis, with that
+      freedom allowed to family servants in Spain, &ldquo;Come, señor,&rdquo; cried he, &ldquo;you
+      are more grave and considerate than your brother; come and see your
+      ancestor in all his glory!&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      <br /><br />
+    </p>
+    <hr />
+    <p>
+      <br /><br />
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Within two or three years after the above letter was written, the Marquis
+      de Salar was married to the beautiful daughter of the Count &mdash;&mdash;-,
+      mentioned by the author in his anecdotes of the Alhambra. The match was
+      very agreeable to all parties, and the nuptials were celebrated with great
+      festivity.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      <br /><br />
+    </p>
+    <hr />
+    <p>
+      <a name="link2H_4_0018" id="link2H_4_0018"> </a>
+    </p>
+    <div style="height: 4em;">
+      <br /><br /><br /><br />
+    </div>
+    <h2>
+      ABDERAHMAN
+    </h2>
+    <h3>
+      FOUNDER OF THE DYNASTY OF THE OMMIADES OF SPAIN
+    </h3>
+    <p>
+      <i>To the Editor of the Knickerbocker:</i>
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      SIR&mdash;In the following memoir I have conformed to the facts furnished
+      by the Arabian chroniclers, as cited by the learned Conde. The story of
+      Abderahman has almost the charm of romance; but it derives a higher
+      interest from the heroic yet gentle virtues which it illustrates, and from
+      recording the fortunes of the founder of that splendid dynasty, which shed
+      such a luster upon Spain during the domination of the Arabs. Abderahman
+      may, in some respects, be compared to our own Washington. He achieved the
+      independence of Moslem Spain, freeing it from subjection to the caliphs;
+      he united its jarring parts under one government; he ruled over it with
+      justice, clemency, and moderation; his whole course of conduct was
+      distinguished by wonderful forbearance and magnanimity; and when he died
+      he left a legacy of good example and good counsel to his successors.
+    </p>
+    <h3>
+      G.C.
+    </h3>
+    <p>
+      <br /><br />
+    </p>
+    <hr />
+    <p>
+      <br /><br />
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Blessed be God!&rdquo; exclaims an Arabian historian; &ldquo;in His hands alone is
+      the destiny of princes. He overthrows the mighty, and humbles the haughty
+      to the dust; and he raises up the persecuted and afflicted from the very
+      depths of despair!&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      The illustrious house of Omeya had swayed the scepter at Damascus for
+      nearly a century, when a rebellion broke out, headed by Aboul Abbas Safah,
+      who aspired to the throne of the caliphs, as being descended from Abbas,
+      the uncle of the prophet. The rebellion was successful. Marvau, the last
+      caliph of the house of Omeya, was defeated and slain. A general
+      proscription of the Ommiades took place. Many of them fell in battle; many
+      were treacherously slain, in places where they had taken refuge; above
+      seventy most noble and distinguished were murdered at a banquet to which
+      they had been invited, and their dead bodies covered with cloths, and made
+      to serve as tables for the horrible festivity. Others were driven forth,
+      forlorn and desolate wanderers in various parts of the earth, and pursued
+      with relentless hatred; for it was the determination of the usurper that
+      not one of the persecuted family should escape. Aboul Abbas took
+      possession of three stately palaces and delicious gardens, and founded the
+      powerful dynasty of the Abbassides, which, for several centuries,
+      maintained dominion in the east.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Blessed be God!&rdquo; again exclaims the Arabian historian; &ldquo;it was written in
+      His eternal decrees that, notwithstanding the fury of the Abbassides, the
+      noble stock of Omeya should not be destroyed. One fruitful branch remained
+      to nourish with glory and greatness in another land.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      When the sanguinary proscription of the Ommiades took place, two young
+      princes of that line, brothers, by the names of Solyman and Abderahman
+      were spared for a time. Their personal graces, noble demeanor, and winning
+      affability, had made them many friends, while their extreme youth rendered
+      them objects of but little dread to the usurper. Their safety, however,
+      was but transient. In a little while the suspicions of Aboul Abbas were
+      aroused. The unfortunate Solyman fell beneath the scimiter of the
+      executioner. His brother Abderahman was warned of his danger in time.
+      Several of his friends hastened to him, bringing him jewels, a disguise,
+      and a fleet horse. &ldquo;The emissaries of the caliph,&rdquo; said they, &ldquo;are in
+      search of thee; thy brother lies weltering in his blood; fly to the
+      desert! There is no safety for thee in the habitations of man!&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      Abderahman took the jewels, clad himself in the disguise, and mounting his
+      steed, fled for his life. As he passed, a lonely fugitive, by the palaces
+      of his ancestors, in which his family had long held sway, their very walls
+      seemed disposed to betray him, as they echoed the swift clattering of his
+      steed.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Abandoning his native country, Syria, where he was liable at each moment
+      to be recognized and taken, he took refuge among the Bedouin Arabs, a
+      half-savage race of shepherds. His youth, his inborn majesty and grace,
+      and the sweetness and affability that shone forth in his azure eyes, won
+      the hearts of these wandering men. He was but twenty years of age, and had
+      been reared in the soft luxury of a palace; but he was tall and vigorous,
+      and in a little while hardened himself so completely to the rustic life of
+      the fields that it seemed as though he had passed all his days in the rude
+      simplicity of a shepherd&rsquo;s cabin.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      His enemies, however, were upon his traces, and gave him but little rest.
+      By day he scoured the plain with the Bedouins, hearing in every blast the
+      sound of pursuit, and fancying in every distant cloud of dust a troop of
+      the caliph&rsquo;s horsemen. That night was passed in broken sleep and frequent
+      watchings, and at the earliest dawn he was the first to put the bridle to
+      his steed.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Wearied by these perpetual alarms, he bade farewell to his friendly
+      Bedouins, and leaving Egypt behind, sought a safer refuge in Western
+      Africa. The province of Barea was at that time governed by Aben Habib, who
+      had risen to rank and fortune under the fostering favor of the Ommiades.
+      &ldquo;Surely,&rdquo; thought the unhappy prince, &ldquo;I shall receive kindness and
+      protection from this man; he will rejoice to show his gratitude for the
+      benefits showered upon him by my kindred.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      Abderahman was young, and as yet knew little of mankind. None are so
+      hostile to the victim of power as those whom he has befriended. They fear
+      being suspected of gratitude by his persecutors, and involved in his
+      misfortunes.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The unfortunate Abderahman had halted for a few days to repose himself
+      among a horde of Bedouins, who had received him with their characteristic
+      hospitality. They would gather round him in the evenings, to listen to his
+      conversation, regarding with wonder this gently-spoken stranger from the
+      more refined country of Egypt. The old men marveled to find so much
+      knowledge and wisdom in such early youth, and the young men, won by his
+      frank and manly carriage, entreated him to remain among them.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      One night, when all were buried in sleep, they were roused by the tramp of
+      horsemen. The Wali Aben Habib, who, like all the governors of distant
+      ports, had received orders from the caliph to be on the watch for the
+      fugitive prince, had heard that a young man, answering the description,
+      had entered the province alone, from the frontiers of Egypt, on a steed
+      worn down by travel. He had immediately sent forth horsemen in his
+      pursuit, with orders to bring him to him dead or alive. The emissaries of
+      the Wali had traced him to his resting-place, and demanded of the Arabs
+      whether a young man, a stranger from Syria, did not sojourn among their
+      tribe. The Bedouins knew by the description that the stranger must be
+      their guest, and feared some evil was intended him. &ldquo;Such a youth,&rdquo; said
+      they, &ldquo;has indeed sojourned among us; but he has gone, with some of our
+      young men, to a distant valley, to hunt the lion.&rdquo; The emissaries inquired
+      the way to the place, and hastened on to surprise their expected prey.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The Bedouins repaired to Abderahman, who was still sleeping. &ldquo;If thou hast
+      aught to fear from man in power,&rdquo; said they, &ldquo;arise and fly; for the
+      horsemen of the Wali are in quest of thee! We have sent them off for a
+      time on a wrong errand, but they will soon return.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Alas! whither shall I fly!&rdquo; cried the unhappy prince; &ldquo;my enemies hunt me
+      like the ostrich of the desert. They follow me like the wind, and allow me
+      neither safety nor repose!&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      Six of the bravest youth of the tribe stepped forward. &ldquo;We have steeds,&rdquo;
+       said they, &ldquo;that can outstrip the wind, and hands that can hurl the
+      javelin. We will accompany thee in thy flight, and will fight by thy side
+      while life lasts, and we have weapons to wield.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      Abderahman embraced them with tears of gratitude. They mounted their
+      steeds, and made for the most lonely parts of the desert. By the faint
+      light of the stars, they passed through dreary wastes and over hills of
+      sand. The lion roared, and the hyena howled unheeded, for they fled from
+      man, more cruel and relentless, when in pursuit of blood, than the savage
+      beasts of the desert.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      At sunrise they paused to refresh themselves beside a scanty well,
+      surrounded by a few palm-trees. One of the young Arabs climbed a tree, and
+      looked in every direction, but not a horseman was to be seen.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;We have outstripped pursuit,&rdquo; said the Bedouins; &ldquo;whither shall we
+      conduct thee? Where is thy home and the land of thy people?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Home have I none!&rdquo; replied Abderahman, mournfully, &ldquo;nor family, nor
+      kindred! My native land is to me a land of destruction, and my people seek
+      my life!&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      The hearts of the youthful Bedouins were touched with compassion at these
+      words, and they marveled that one so young and gentle should have suffered
+      such great sorrow and persecution.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Abderahman sat by the well and mused for a time. At length, breaking
+      silence, &ldquo;In the midst of Mauritania,&rdquo; said he, &ldquo;dwells the tribe of
+      Zeneta. My mother was of that tribe; and perhaps when her son presents
+      himself, a persecuted wanderer, at their door, they will not turn him from
+      the threshold.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;The Zenetes,&rdquo; replied the Bedouins, &ldquo;are among the bravest and most
+      hospitable of the people of Africa. Never did the unfortunate seek refuge
+      among them in vain, nor was the stranger repulsed from their door.&rdquo; So
+      they mounted their steeds with renewed spirits, and journeyed with all
+      speed to Tahart, the capital of the Zenetes.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      When Abderahman entered the place, followed by his six rustic Arabs, all
+      wayworn and travel-stained, his noble and majestic demeanor shone through
+      the simple garb of a Bedouin. A crowd gathered around him, as he alighted
+      from his weary steed. Confiding in the well known character of the tribe,
+      he no longer attempted concealment.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;You behold before you,&rdquo; said he, &ldquo;one of the proscribed house of Omeya. I
+      am that Abderahman upon whose head a price has been set, and who has been
+      driven from land to land. I come to you as my kindred. My mother was of
+      your tribe, and she told me with her dying breath that in all time of need
+      I would find a home and friends among the Zenetes.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      The words of Abderahman went straight to the hearts of his hearers. They
+      pitied his youth and his great misfortunes, while they were charmed by his
+      frankness, and by the manly graces of his person. The tribe was of a bold
+      and generous spirit, and not to be awed by the frown of power. &ldquo;Evil be
+      upon us and upon our children,&rdquo; said they, &ldquo;if we deceive the trust thou
+      hast placed in us!&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      Then one of the noblest Xeques took Abderahman to his house, and treated
+      him as his own child; and the principal people of the tribe strove who
+      most should cherish him, and do him honor; endeavoring to obliterate by
+      their kindness the recollection of his past misfortunes.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Abderahman had resided some time among the hospitable Zenetes, when one
+      day two strangers, of venerable appearance, attended by a small retinue,
+      arrived at Tahart. They gave themselves out as merchants, and from the
+      simple style in which they traveled, excited no attention. In a little
+      while they sought out Abderahman, and, taking him apart: &ldquo;Hearken,&rdquo; said
+      they, &ldquo;Abderahman, of the royal line of Omeya; we are embassadors sent on
+      the part of the principal Moslems of Spain, to offer thee, not merely an
+      asylum, for that thou hast already among these brave Zenetes, but an
+      empire! Spain is a prey to distracting factions, and can no longer exist
+      as a dependency upon a throne too remote to watch over its welfare. It
+      needs to be independent of Asia and Africa, and to be under the government
+      of a good prince, who shall reside within it, and devote himself entirely
+      to its prosperity; a prince with sufficient title to silence all rival
+      claims, and bring the warring parties into unity and peace; and at the
+      same time with sufficient ability and virtue to insure the welfare of his
+      dominions. For this purpose the eyes of all the honorable leaders in Spain
+      have been turned to thee, as a descendant of the royal line of Omeya, and
+      an offset from the same stock as our holy prophet. They have heard of thy
+      virtues, and of thy admirable constancy under misfortunes; and invite thee
+      to accept the sovereignty of one of the noblest countries in the world.
+      Thou wilt have some difficulties to encounter from hostile men; but thou
+      wilt have on thy side the bravest captains that have signalized themselves
+      in the conquest of the unbelievers.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      The embassadors ceased, and Abderahman remained for a time lost in wonder
+      and admiration. &ldquo;God is great!&rdquo; exclaimed he, at length; &ldquo;there is but one
+      God, who is God, and Mahomet is his prophet! Illustrious embassadors, you
+      have put new life into my soul, for you have shown me something to live
+      for. In the few years that I have lived, troubles and sorrows have been
+      heaped upon my head, and I have become inured to hardships and alarms.
+      Since it is the wish of the valiant Moslems of Spain, I am willing to
+      become their leader and defender, and devote myself to their cause, be it
+      happy or disastrous.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      The embassadors now cautioned him to be silent as to their errand, and to
+      depart secretly for Spain. &ldquo;The seaboard of Africa,&rdquo; said they, &ldquo;swarms
+      with your enemies, and a powerful faction in Spain would intercept you on
+      landing, did they know your name and rank, and the object of your coming.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      But Abderahman replied: &ldquo;I have been cherished in adversity by these brave
+      Zenetes; I have been protected and honored by them, when a price was set
+      upon my head, and to harbor me was great peril. How can I keep my good
+      fortune from my benefactors, and desert their hospitable roofs in silence?
+      He is unworthy of friendship, who withholds confidence from his friend.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      Charmed with the generosity of his feelings, the embassadors made no
+      opposition to his wishes. The Zenetes proved themselves worthy of his
+      confidence. They hailed with joy the great change in his fortunes. The
+      warriors and the young men pressed forward to follow, and aid them with
+      horse and weapon; &ldquo;for the honor of a noble house and family,&rdquo; said they,
+      &ldquo;can be maintained only by lances and horsemen.&rdquo; In a few days he set
+      forth, with the embassadors, at the head of nearly a thousand horsemen
+      skilled in war, and exercised in the desert, and a large body of infantry,
+      armed with lances. The venerable Xeque, with whom he had resided, blessed
+      him and shed tears over him at parting, as though he had been his own
+      child; and when the youth passed over the threshold, the house was filled
+      with lamentations.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Abderahman reached Spain in safely, and landed at Almanecar, with his
+      little band of warlike Zenetes. Spain was at that time in a state of great
+      confusion. Upward of forty years had elapsed since the conquest. The civil
+      wars in Syria and Egypt had prevented the main government at Damascus from
+      exercising control over this distant and recently acquired territory.
+      Every Moslem commander considered the town or province committed to his
+      charge an absolute property; and accordingly exercised the most arbitrary
+      extortions. These excesses at length became insupportable, and, at a
+      convocation of many of the principal leaders, it was determined, as a
+      means to end these dissensions, to unite all the Moslem provinces of Spain
+      under one emir, or general governor. Yusuf el Fehri, an ancient man, of
+      honorable lineage, was chosen for this station. He began his reign with
+      policy, and endeavored to conciliate all parties; but the distribution of
+      offices soon created powerful enemies among the disappointed leaders. A
+      civil war was the consequence, and Spain was deluged with blood. The
+      troops of both parties burned and ravaged and laid every thing waste, to
+      distress their antagonists; the villages were abandoned by their
+      inhabitants, who fled to the cities for refuge; and flourishing towns
+      disappeared from the face of the earth, or remained mere heaps of rubbish
+      and ashes. At the time of the landing of Abderahman in Spain, the old Emir
+      Yusuf had obtained a signal victory. He had captured Saragossa, in which
+      was Ameer ben Amru, his principal enemy, together with his son and
+      secretary. Loading his prisoners with chains, and putting them on camels,
+      he set out in triumph for Cordova, considering himself secure in the
+      absolute domination of Spain.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      He had halted one day in a valley called Wadarambla, and was reposing with
+      his family in his pavilion, while his people and the prisoners made a
+      repast in the open air. In the midst of his repose, his confidential
+      adherent and general, the Wali Samael, galloped into the camp covered with
+      dust and exhausted with fatigue. He brought tidings of the arrival of
+      Abderahman and that the whole seaboard was flocking to his standard.
+      Messenger after messenger came hurrying into the camp, confirming the
+      fearful tidings, and adding that this descendant of the Omeyas had
+      secretly been invited to Spain by Amru and his followers. Yusuf waited not
+      to ascertain the truth of this accusation. Giving way to a transport of
+      fury, he ordered that Amru, his son and secretary, should be cut to
+      pieces. His commands were instantly executed. &ldquo;And this cruelty,&rdquo; says the
+      Arabian chronicler, &ldquo;lost him the favor of Allah; for from that time
+      success deserted his standard.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      Abderahman had indeed been hailed with joy on his landing in Spain. The
+      old people hoped to find tranquillity under the sway of one supreme
+      chieftain, descended from their ancient caliphs; the young men were
+      rejoiced to have a youthful warrior to lead them on to victories; and the
+      populace, charmed with his freshness and manly beauty, his majestic yet
+      gracious and affable demeanor, shouted: &ldquo;Long live Abderahman ben Moavia
+      Meramamolin of Spain!&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      In a few days the youthful sovereign saw himself at the head of more than
+      twenty thousand men, from the neighborhood of Elvira, Almeria, Malaga,
+      Xeres, and Sidonia. Fair Seville threw open its gates at his approach, and
+      celebrated his arrival with public rejoicings. He continued his march into
+      the country, vanquished one of the eons of Yusuf before the gates of
+      Cordova, and obliged him to take refuge within its walls, where he held
+      him in close siege. Hearing, however, of the approach of Yusuf, the
+      father, with a powerful army, he divided his forces, and leaving ten
+      thousand men to press the siege, he hastened with the other ten to meet
+      the coming foe.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Yusuf had indeed mustered a formidable force, from the east and south of
+      Spain, and accompanied by his veteran general, Samael, came with confident
+      boasting to drive this intruder from the land. His confidence increased on
+      beholding the small army of Abderahman. Turning to Samael, he repeated,
+      with a scornful sneer, a verse from an Arabian poetess, which says:
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;How hard is our lot! We come, a thirsty multitude, and lo! but this cup
+      of water to share among us!&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      There was indeed a fearful odds. On the one side were two veteran
+      generals, grown gray in victory, with a mighty host of warriors, seasoned
+      in the wars of Spain. On the other side was a mere youth, scarce attained
+      to manhood, with a hasty levy of half-disciplined troops; but the youth
+      was a prince, flushed with hope, and aspiring after fame and empire; and
+      surrounded by a devoted band of warriors from Africa, whose example
+      infused desperate zeal into the little army.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The encounter took place at daybreak. The impetuous valor of the Zenetes
+      carried everything before it. The cavalry of Yusuf was broken, and driven
+      back upon the infantry, and before noon the whole host was put to headlong
+      flight. Yusuf and Samael were borne along in the torrent of the fugitives,
+      raging and storming, and making ineffectual efforts to rally them. They
+      were separated widely in the confusion of the flight, one taking refuge in
+      the Algarves, the other in the kingdom of Murcia. They afterward rallied,
+      reunited their forces, and made another desperate stand near Almunecar.
+      The battle was obstinate and bloody, but they were again defeated, and
+      driven, with a handful of followers, to take refuge in the rugged
+      mountains adjacent to Elvira.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The spirit of the veteran Samael gave way before these fearful reverses.
+      &ldquo;In vain, oh Yusuf!&rdquo; said he, &ldquo;do we contend with the prosperous star of
+      this youthful conqueror: the will of Allah be done! Let us submit to our
+      fate, and sue for favorable terms, while we have yet the means of
+      capitulation.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      It was a hard trial for the proud spirit of Yusuf, that had once aspired
+      to uncontrolled sway; but he was compelled to capitulate. Abderahman was
+      as generous as brave. He granted the two gray-headed generals the most
+      honorable conditions, and even took the veteran Samael into favor,
+      employing him, as a mark of confidence, to visit the eastern provinces of
+      Spain, and restore them to tranquillity. Yusuf, having delivered up Elvira
+      and Granada, and complied with other articles of his capitulation, was
+      permitted to retire to Murcia, and rejoin his son Muhamad. A general
+      amnesty to all chiefs and soldiers who should yield up their strongholds,
+      and lay down their arms, completed the triumph of Abderahman, and brought
+      all hearts into obedience.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Thus terminated this severe struggle for the domination of Spain; and thus
+      the illustrious family of Omeya, after having been cast down and almost
+      exterminated in the East, took new root, and sprang forth prosperously in
+      the West.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Wherever Abderahman appeared, he was received with rapturous acclamations.
+      As he rode through the cities, the populace rent the air with shouts of
+      joy; the stately palaces were crowded with spectators, eager to gain a
+      sight of his graceful form and beaming countenance; and when they beheld
+      the mingled majesty and benignity of their new monarch, and the sweetness
+      and gentleness of his whole conduct, they extolled him as something more
+      than mortal; as a beneficent genius, sent for the happiness of Spain.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      In the interval of peace which now succeeded, Abderahman occupied himself
+      in promoting the useful and elegant arts, and in introducing into Spain
+      the refinements of the East. Considering the building and ornamenting of
+      cities as among the noblest employments of the tranquil hours of princes,
+      he bestowed great pains upon beautifying the city of Cordova and its
+      environs. He reconstructed banks and dikes, to keep the Guadalquivir from
+      overflowing its borders, and on the vast terraces thus formed he planted
+      delightful gardens. In the midst of these, he erected a lofty tower,
+      commanding a view of the vast and fruitful valley, enlivened by the
+      windings of the river. In this tower he would pass hours of meditation,
+      gazing on the soft and varied landscape, and inhaling the bland and balmy
+      airs of that delightful region. At such times, his thoughts would recur to
+      the past, and the misfortunes of his youth; the massacre of his family
+      would rise to view, mingled with tender recollections of his native
+      country, from which he was exiled. In these melancholy musings he would
+      sit with his eyes fixed upon a palm-tree which he had planted in the midst
+      of his garden. It is said to have been the first ever planted in Spain,
+      and to have been the parent stock of all the palm-trees which grace the
+      southern provinces of the peninsula. The heart of Abderahman yearned
+      toward this tree; it was the offspring of his native country, and, like
+      him, an exile. In one of his moods of tenderness, he composed verses upon
+      it, which have since become famous throughout the world. The following is
+      a rude but literal translation:
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Beauteous Palm! thou also wert hither brought a stranger; but thy roots
+      have found a kindly soil, thy head is lifted to the skies, and the sweet
+      airs of Algarve fondle and kiss thy branches.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Thou hast known, like me, the storms of adverse fortune. Bitter tears
+      wouldst thou shed, couldst thou feel my woes. Repeated griefs have
+      overwhelmed me. With early tears I bedewed the palms on the banks of the
+      Euphrates; but neither tree nor river heeded my sorrows, when driven by
+      cruel fate, and the ferocious Aboul Abbas, from the scenes of my childhood
+      and the sweet objects of my affection.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;To thee no remembrance remains of my beloved country; I, unhappy! can
+      never recall it without tears.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      The generosity of Abderahman to his vanquished foes was destined to be
+      abused. The veteran Yusuf, in visiting certain of the cities which he had
+      surrendered, found himself surrounded by zealous partisans, ready to peril
+      life in his service. The love of command revived in his bosom, and he
+      repented the facility with which he had suffered himself to be persuaded
+      to submission. Flushed with new hopes of success, he caused arms to be
+      secretly collected, and deposited in various villages, most zealous in
+      their professions of devotion, and raising a considerable body of troops,
+      seized upon the castle of Almodovar. The rash rebellion was short-lived.
+      At the first appearance of an army sent by Abderahman, and commanded by
+      Abdelmelee, governor of Seville, the villages which had so recently
+      professed loyalty to Yusuf hastened to declare their attachment to the
+      monarch, and to give up the concealed arms. Almodovar was soon retaken,
+      and Yusuf, driven to the environs of Lorea, was surrounded by the cavalry
+      of Abdelmelee. The veteran endeavored to cut a passage through the enemy,
+      but after fighting with desperate fury, and with a force of arm incredible
+      in one of his age, he fell beneath blows from weapons of all kinds, so
+      that after the battle his body could scarcely be recognized, so numerous
+      were the wounds. His head was cut off and sent to Cordova, where it was
+      placed in an iron cage, over the gate of the city.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The old lion was dead, but his whelps survived. Yusuf had left three sons,
+      who inherited his warlike spirit, and were eager to revenge his death.
+      Collecting a number of the scattered adherents of their house, they
+      surprised and seized upon Toledo, during the absence of Temam, its Wali or
+      commander. In this old warrior city, built upon a rock, and almost
+      surrounded by the Tagus, they set up a kind of robber hold, scouring the
+      surrounding country, levying tribute, seizing upon horses, and compelling
+      the peasantry to join their standard. Every day cavalcades of horses and
+      mules, laden with spoil, with flocks of sheep and droves of cattle, came
+      pouring over the bridges on either side of the city, and thronging in at
+      the gates, the plunder of the surrounding country. Those of the
+      inhabitants who were still loyal to Abderahman dared not lift up their
+      voices, for men of the sword bore sway. At length one day, when the sons
+      of Yusuf, with their choicest troops, were out on a maraud, the watchmen
+      on the towers gave the alarm. A troop of scattered horsemen were spurring
+      wildly toward the gates. The banners of the sons of Yusuf were descried.
+      Two of them spurred into the city, followed by a handful of warriors,
+      covered with confusion, and dismay. They had been encountered and defeated
+      by the Wali Temam, and one of the brothers had been slain.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The gates were secured in all haste, and the walls were scarcely manned,
+      when Temam appeared before them with his troops, and summoned the city to
+      surrender. A great internal commotion ensued between the loyalists and the
+      insurgents; the latter, however, had weapons in their hands, and
+      prevailed; and for several days, trusting to the strength of their
+      rock-built fortress, they set the Wali at defiance. At length some of the
+      loyal inhabitants of Toledo, who knew all its secret and subterraneous
+      passages, some of which, if chroniclers may be believed, have existed
+      since the days of Hercules, if not of Tubal Cain, introduced Temam and a
+      chosen band of his warriors into the very center of the city, where they
+      suddenly appeared as if by magic. A panic seized upon the insurgents. Some
+      sought safety in submission, some in concealment, some in flight. Casim,
+      one of the sons of Yusuf, escaped in disguise; the youngest, unarmed, was
+      taken, and was sent captive to the king, accompanied by the head of his
+      brother, who had been slain in battle.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      When Abderahman beheld the youth laden with chains, he remembered his own
+      sufferings in his early days, and had compassion on him; but, to prevent
+      him from doing further mischief, he imprisoned him in a tower of the wall
+      of Cordova.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      In the meantime Casim, who had escaped, managed to raise another band of
+      warriors. Spain, in all ages a guerrilla country, prone to partisan
+      warfare and petty maraud, was at that time infested by bands of licentious
+      troops, who had sprung up in the civil contests; their only object
+      pillage, their only dependence the sword, and ready to flock to any new
+      and desperate standard, that promised the greatest license. With a ruffian
+      force thus levied, Casim scoured the country, took Sidonia by storm, and
+      surprised Seville while in a state of unsuspecting security.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Abderahman put himself at the head of his faithful Zenetes, and took the
+      field in person. By the rapidity of his movements, the rebels were
+      defeated, Sidonia and Seville speedily retaken, and Casim was made
+      prisoner. The generosity of Abderahman was again exhibited toward this
+      unfortunate son of Yusuf. He spared his life, and sent him to be confined
+      in a tower at Toledo.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The veteran Samael had taken no part in these insurrections, but had
+      attended faithfully to the affairs intrusted to him by Abderahman. The
+      death of his old friend and colleague, Yusuf, however, and the subsequent
+      disasters of his family, filled him with despondency. Fearing the
+      inconstancy of fortune, and the dangers incident to public employ, he
+      entreated the king to be permitted to retire to his house in Seguenza, and
+      indulge a privacy and repose suited to his advanced age. His prayer was
+      granted. The veteran laid by his arms, battered in a thousand conflicts;
+      hung his sword and lance against the wall, and, surrounded by a few
+      friends, gave himself up apparently to the sweets of quiet and unambitious
+      leisure.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Who can count, however, upon the tranquil content of a heart nurtured amid
+      the storms of war and ambition! Under the ashes of this outward humility
+      were glowing the coals of faction. In his seemingly philosophical
+      retirement, Samael was concerting with his friends new treason against
+      Abderahman. His plot was discovered; his house was suddenly surrounded by
+      troops; and he was conveyed to a tower at Toledo, where, in the course of
+      a few months, he died in captivity.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The magnanimity of Abderahman was again put to the proof, by a new
+      insurrection at Toledo. Hixem ben Adra, a relation of Yusuf, seized upon
+      the Alcazar, or citadel, slew several of the royal adherents of the king,
+      liberated Casim from his tower, and, summoning all the banditti of the
+      country, soon mustered a force of ten thousand men. Abderahman was quickly
+      before the walls of Toledo, with the troops of Cordova and his devoted
+      Zenetes. The rebels were brought to terms, and surrendered the city on
+      promise of general pardon, which was extended even to Hixem and Casim.
+      When the chieftains saw Hixem and his principal confederates in the power
+      of Abderahman, they advised him to put them all to death. &ldquo;A promise given
+      to traitors and rebels,&rdquo; said they, &ldquo;is not binding, when it is to the
+      interest of the state that it should be broken.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;No!&rdquo; replied Abderahman, &ldquo;if the safety of my throne were at stake, I
+      would not break my word.&rdquo; So saying, he confirmed the amnesty, and granted
+      Hixem ben Adra a worthless life, to be employed in further treason.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Scarcely had Abderahman returned from this expedition, when a powerful
+      army, sent by the caliph, landed from Africa on the coast of the Algarves.
+      The commander, Aly ben Mogueth, Emir of Cairvan, elevated a rich banner
+      which he had received from the hands of the caliph. Wherever he went, he
+      ordered the caliph of the East to be proclaimed by sound of trumpet,
+      denouncing Abderahman as a usurper, the vagrant member of a family
+      proscribed and execrated in all the mosques of the East.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      One of the first to join his standard was Hixem ben Adra, so recently
+      pardoned by Abderahman. He seized upon the citadel of Toledo, and
+      repairing to the camp of Aly, offered to deliver the city into his hands.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Abderahman, as bold in war as he was gentle in peace, took the field with
+      his wonted promptness; overthrew his enemies, with great slaughter, drove
+      some to the seacoast to regain their ships, and others to the mountains.
+      The body of Aly was found on the field of battle. Abderahman caused the
+      head to be struck off, and conveyed to Cairvan, where it was affixed at
+      night to a column in the public square, with this inscription: &ldquo;Thus
+      Abderahman, the descendant of the Omeyas, punishes the rash and arrogant.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      Hixem ben Adra escaped from the field of battle, and excited further
+      troubles, but was eventually captured by Abdelmelee, who ordered his head
+      to be struck off on the spot, lest he should again be spared, through the
+      wonted clemency of Abderahman.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Notwithstanding these signal triumphs, the reign of Abderahman was
+      disturbed by further insurrections, and by another descent from Africa,
+      but he was victorious over them all; striking the roots of his power
+      deeper and deeper into the land. Under his sway, the government of Spain
+      became more regular and consolidated, and acquired an independence of the
+      empire of the East. The caliph continued to be considered as first pontiff
+      and chief of the religion, but he ceased to have any temporal power over
+      Spain.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Having again an interval of peace, Abderahman devoted himself to the
+      education of his children. Suleiman, the eldest, he appointed Wali or
+      governor of Toledo; Abdallah, the second, was intrusted with the command
+      of Merida; but the third son, Hixem, was the delight of his heart, the son
+      of Howara, his favorite sultana, whom he loved throughout life with the
+      utmost tenderness. With this youth, who was full of promise, he relaxed
+      from the fatigues of government; joining in his youthful sports amid the
+      delightful gardens of Cordova, and teaching him the gentle art of
+      falconry, of which the king was so fond that he received the name of the
+      Falcon of Coraixi.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      While Abderahman was thus indulging in the gentle propensities of his
+      nature, mischief was secretly at work. Muhamad, the youngest son of Yusuf,
+      had been for many years a prisoner in the tower of Cordova. Being passive
+      and resigned, his keepers relaxed their vigilance, and brought him forth
+      from his dungeon. He went groping about, however, in broad daylight, as if
+      still in the darkness of his tower. His guards watched him narrowly, lest
+      this should be a deception, but were at length convinced that the long
+      absence of light had rendered him blind. They now permitted him to descend
+      frequently to the lower chambers of the tower, and to sleep there
+      occasionally, during the heats of summer. They even allowed him to grope
+      his way to the cistern, in quest of water for his ablutions.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      A year passed in this way without anything to excite suspicion. During all
+      this time, however, the blindness of Muhamad was entirely a deception; and
+      he was concerting a plan of escape, through the aid of some friends of his
+      father, who found means to visit him occasionally. One sultry evening in
+      midsummer, the guards had gone to bathe in the Guadalquivir, leaving
+      Muhamad alone, in the lower chambers of the tower. No sooner were they out
+      of sight and hearing than he hastened to a window of the staircase,
+      leading down to the cistern, lowered himself as far as his arms would
+      reach, and dropped without injury to the ground. Plunging into the
+      Guadalquivir, he swam across to a thick grove on the opposite side, where
+      his friends were waiting to receive him. Here, mounting a horse which they
+      had provided for an event of the kind, he fled across the country, by
+      solitary roads, and made good his escape to the mountains of Jaen.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The guardians of the tower dreaded for some time to make known his flight
+      to Abderahman. When at length it was told to him, he exclaimed: &ldquo;All is
+      the work of eternal wisdom; it is intended to teach us that we cannot
+      benefit the wicked without injuring the good. The flight of that blind man
+      will cause much trouble and bloodshed.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      His predictions were verified. Muhamad reared the standard of rebellion on
+      the mountains; the seditious and discontented of all kinds hastened to
+      join it, together with soldiers of fortune, or rather wandering banditti,
+      and he had soon six thousand men, well armed, hardy in habits and
+      desperate in character. His brother Casim also reappeared about the same
+      time in the mountains of Ronda, at the head of a daring band that laid all
+      the neighboring valleys under contribution.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Abderahman summoned his alcaydes from their various military posts, to
+      assist in driving the rebels from their mountain fastnesses into the
+      plains. It was a dangerous and protracted toil, for the mountains were
+      frightfully wild and rugged. He entered them with a powerful host, driving
+      the rebels from height to height and valley to valley, and harassing them
+      by a galling fire from thousands of crossbows. At length a decisive battle
+      took place near the river Guadalemar. The rebels were signally defeated;
+      four thousand fell in action, many were drowned in the river, and Muhamad,
+      with a few horsemen, escaped to the mountains of the Algarves. Here he was
+      hunted by the alcaydes from one desolate retreat to another; his few
+      followers grew tired of sharing the disastrous fortunes of a fated man;
+      one by one deserted him, and he himself deserted the remainder, fearing
+      they might give him up, to purchase their own pardon.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Lonely and disguised, he plunged into the depths of the forests, or lurked
+      in dens and caverns, like a famished wolf, often casting back his thoughts
+      with regret to the time of his captivity in the gloomy tower of Cordova.
+      Hunger at length drove him to Alarcon, at the risk of being discovered.
+      Famine and misery, however, had so wasted and changed him that he was not
+      recognized. He remained nearly a year in Alarcon, unnoticed and unknown,
+      yet constantly tormenting himself with the dread of discovery, and with
+      groundless fears of the vengeance of Abderahman. Death at length put an
+      end to his wretchedness.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      A milder fate attended his brother Casim. Being defeated in the mountains
+      of Murcia, he was conducted in chains to Cordova. On coming into the
+      presence of Abderahman, his once fierce and haughty spirit, broken by
+      distress, gave way; he threw himself on the earth, kissed the dust beneath
+      the feet of the king, and implored his clemency. The benignant heart of
+      Abderahman was filled with melancholy, rather than exultation, at
+      beholding this wreck of the once haughty family of Yusuf a suppliant at
+      his feet, and suing for mere existence. He thought upon the mutability of
+      fortune, and felt how insecure are all her favors. He raised the unhappy
+      Casim from the earth, ordered his irons to be taken off, and, not content
+      with mere forgiveness, treated him with honor, and gave him possessions in
+      Seville, where he might live in state conformable to the ancient dignity
+      of his family. Won by this great and persevering magnanimity, Casim ever
+      after remained one of the most devoted of his subjects.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      All the enemies of Abderahman were at length subdued; he reigned
+      undisputed sovereign of the Moslems of Spain; and so benign was his
+      government that every one blessed the revival of the illustrious line of
+      Omeya. He was at all times accessible to the humblest of his subjects: the
+      poor man ever found in him a friend, and the oppressed a protector. He
+      improved the administration of justice; established schools for public
+      instruction; encouraged poets and men of letters, and cultivated the
+      sciences. He built mosques in every city that he visited; inculcated
+      religion by example as well as by precept; and celebrated all the
+      festivals prescribed by the Koran with the utmost magnificence.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      As a monument of gratitude to God for the prosperity with which he had
+      been favored, he undertook to erect a mosque in his favorite city of
+      Cordova that should rival in splendor the great mosque of Damascus, and
+      excel the one recently erected in Bagdad by the Abbassides, the
+      supplanters of his family.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      It is said that he himself furnished the plan for this famous edifice, and
+      even worked on it, with his own hands, one hour in each day, to testify
+      his zeal and humility in the service of God, and to animate his workmen.
+      He did not live to see it completed, but it was finished according to his
+      plans by his son Hixem. When finished, it surpassed the most splendid
+      mosques of the east. It was six hundred feet in length, and two hundred
+      and fifty in breadth. Within were twenty-eight aisles, crossed by
+      nineteen, supported by a thousand and ninety-three columns of marble.
+      There were nineteen portals, covered with plates of bronze of rare
+      workmanship. The principal portal was covered with plates of gold. On the
+      summit of the grand cupola were three gilt balls surmounted by a golden
+      pomegranate. At night, the mosque was illuminated with four thousand seven
+      hundred lamps, and great sums were expended in amber and aloes, which were
+      burned as perfumes. The mosque remains to this day, shorn of its ancient
+      splendor, yet still one of the grandest Moslem monuments in Spain.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Finding himself advancing in years, Abderahman assembled in his capital of
+      Cordova the principal governors and commanders of his kingdom, and in
+      presence of them all, with great solemnity, nominated his son Hixem as the
+      successor to the throne. All present made an oath of fealty to Abderahman
+      during his life, and to Hixem after his death. The prince was younger than
+      his brothers, Suleiman and Abdallah; but he was the son of Howara, the
+      tenderly beloved sultana of Abderahman, and her influence, it is said,
+      gained him this preference.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Within a few months afterward, Abderahman fell grievously sick at Merida.
+      Finding his end approaching, he summoned Hixem to his bedside: &ldquo;My son,&rdquo;
+       said he, &ldquo;the angel of death is hovering over me; treasure up, therefore,
+      in thy heart this dying counsel, which I give through the great love I
+      bear thee. Remember that all empire is from God, who gives and takes it
+      away, according to his pleasure. Since God, through his divine goodness,
+      has given us regal power and authority, let us do his holy will, which is
+      nothing else than to do good to all men, and especially to those committed
+      to our protection. Render equal justice, my son, to the rich and the poor,
+      and never suffer injustice to be done within thy dominion, for it is the
+      road to perdition. Be merciful and benignant to those dependent upon thee.
+      Confide the government of thy cities and provinces to men of worth and
+      experience; punish without compassion those ministers who oppress thy
+      people with exorbitant exactions. Pay thy troops punctually; teach them to
+      feel a certainty in thy promises; command them with gentleness but
+      firmness, and make them in truth the defenders of the state, not its
+      destroyers. Cultivate unceasingly the affections of thy people, for in
+      their good-will consists the security of the state, in their distrust its
+      peril, in their hatred its certain ruin. Protect the husbandmen who
+      cultivate the earth, and yield us necessary sustenance; never permit their
+      fields, and groves, and gardens to be disturbed. In a word, act in such
+      wise that thy people may bless thee, and may enjoy, under the shadow of
+      thy wing, a secure and tranquil life. In this consists good government; if
+      thou dost practice it, thou wilt be happy among thy people, and renowned
+      throughout the world.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      Having given this excellent counsel, the good king Abderahman blessed his
+      son Hixem, and shortly after died; being but in the sixtieth year of his
+      age. He was interred with great pomp; but the highest honors that
+      distinguished his funeral were the tears of real sorrow shed upon his
+      grave. He left behind him a name for valor, justice, and magnanimity, and
+      forever famous as being the founder of the glorious line of the Ommiades
+      in Spain.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      <br /><br />
+    </p>
+    <hr />
+    <p>
+      <a name="link2H_4_0019" id="link2H_4_0019"> </a>
+    </p>
+    <div style="height: 4em;">
+      <br /><br /><br /><br />
+    </div>
+    <h2>
+      THE WIDOW&rsquo;S ORDEAL
+    </h2>
+    <h3>
+      OR A JUDICIAL TRIAL BY COMBAT
+    </h3>
+    <p>
+      The world is daily growing older and wiser. Its institutions vary with its
+      years, and mark its growing wisdom; and none more so than its modes of
+      investigating truth, and ascertaining guilt or innocence. In its nonage,
+      when man was yet a fallible being, and doubted the accuracy of his own
+      intellect, appeals were made to heaven in dark and doubtful cases of
+      atrocious accusation.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The accused was required to plunge his hand in boiling oil, or to walk
+      across red-hot plowshares, or to maintain his innocence in armed fight and
+      listed field, in person or by champion. If he passed these ordeals
+      unscathed, he stood acquitted, and the result was regarded as a verdict
+      from on high.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      It is somewhat remarkable that, in the gallant age of chivalry, the
+      gentler sex should have been most frequently the subjects of these rude
+      trials and perilous ordeals; and that, too, when assailed in their most
+      delicate and vulnerable part&mdash;their honor.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      In the present very old and enlightened age of the world, when the human
+      intellect is perfectly competent to the management of its own concerns,
+      and needs no special interposition of heaven in its affairs, the trial by
+      jury has superseded these superhuman ordeals; and the unanimity of twelve
+      discordant minds is necessary to constitute a verdict. Such a unanimity
+      would, at first sight, appear also to require a miracle from heaven; but
+      it is produced by a simple device of human ingenuity. The twelve jurors
+      are locked up in their box, there to fast until abstinence shall have so
+      clarified their intellects that the whole jarring panel can discern the
+      truth, and concur in a unanimous decision. One point is certain, that
+      truth is one and is immutable&mdash;until the jurors all agree, they
+      cannot all be right.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      It is not our intention, however, to discuss this great judicial point, or
+      to question the avowed superiority of the mode of investigating truth
+      adopted in this antiquated and very sagacious era. It is our object merely
+      to exhibit to the curious reader one of the most memorable cases of
+      judicial combat we find in the annals of Spain. It occurred at the bright
+      commencement of the reign, and in the youthful, and, as yet, glorious
+      days, of Roderick the Goth; who subsequently tarnished his fame at home by
+      his misdeeds, and, finally, lost his kingdom and his life on the banks of
+      the Guadalete, in that disastrous battle which gave up Spain a conquest to
+      the Moors. The following is the story:
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      There was once upon a time a certain duke of Lorraine, who was
+      acknowledged throughout his domains to be one of the wisest princes that
+      ever lived. In fact, there was no one measure adopted by him that did not
+      astonish his privy counselors and gentlemen in attendance; and he said
+      such witty things, and made such sensible speeches, that the jaws of his
+      high chamberlain were wellnigh dislocated from laughing with delight at
+      one, and gaping with wonder at the other.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      This very witty and exceedingly wise potentate lived for half a century in
+      single blessedness; at length his courtiers began to think it a great pity
+      so wise and wealthy a prince should not have a child after his own
+      likeness, to inherit his talents and domains; so they urged him most
+      respectfully to marry, for the good of his estate, and the welfare of his
+      subjects.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      He turned their advice over in his mind some four or five years, and then
+      sent forth emissaries to summon to his court all the beautiful maidens in
+      the land who were ambitious of sharing a ducal crown. The court was soon
+      crowded with beauties of all styles and complexions, from among whom he
+      chose one in the earliest budding of her charms, and acknowledged by all
+      the gentlemen to be unparalleled for grace and loveliness. The courtiers
+      extolled the duke to the skies for making such a choice, and considered it
+      another proof of his great wisdom. &ldquo;The duke,&rdquo; said they, &ldquo;is waxing a
+      little too old, the damsel, on the other hand, is a little too young; if
+      one is lacking in years, the other has a superabundance; thus a want on
+      one side is balanced by the excess on the other, and the result is a
+      well-assorted marriage.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      The duke, as is often the case with wise men who marry rather late, and
+      take damsels rather youthful to their bosoms, became dotingly fond of his
+      wife, and very properly indulged her in all things. He was, consequently,
+      cried up by his subjects in general, and by the ladies in particular, as a
+      pattern for husbands; and, in the end, from the wonderful docility with
+      which he submitted to be reined and checked, acquired the amiable and
+      enviable appellation of Duke Philibert the wife-ridden.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      There was only one thing that disturbed the conjugal felicity of this
+      paragon of husbands&mdash;though a considerable tine elapsed after his
+      marriage, there was still no prospect of an heir. The good duke left no
+      means untried to propitiate heaven. He made vows and pilgrimages, he
+      fasted and he prayed, but all to no purpose. The courtiers were all
+      astonished at the circumstance. They could not account for it. While the
+      meanest peasant in the country had sturdy brats by dozens, without putting
+      up a prayer, the duke wore himself to skin and bone with penances and
+      fastings, yet seemed further off from his object than ever.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      At length, the worthy prince fell dangerously ill, and felt his end
+      approaching. He looked sorrowfully and dubiously upon his young and tender
+      spouse, who hung over him with tears and sobbings. &ldquo;Alas!&rdquo; said he, &ldquo;tears
+      are soon dried from youthful eyes, and sorrow lies lightly on a youthful
+      heart. In a little while thou wilt forget in the arms of another husband
+      him who has loved thee so tenderly.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Never! never!&rdquo; cried the duchess. &ldquo;Never will I cleave to another! Alas,
+      that my lord should think me capable of such inconstancy!&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      The worthy and wife-ridden duke was soothed by her assurances; for he
+      could not brook the thought of giving her up even after he should be dead.
+      Still he wished to have some pledge of her enduring constancy:
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Far be it from me, my dearest wife,&rdquo; said he, &ldquo;to control thee through a
+      long life. A year and a day of strict fidelity will appease my troubled
+      spirit. Promise to remain faithful to my memory for a year and a day, and
+      I will die in peace.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      The duchess made a solemn vow to that effect, but the uxorious feelings of
+      the duke were not yet satisfied. &ldquo;Safe bind, safe find,&rdquo; thought he; so he
+      made a will, bequeathing to her all his domains, on condition of her
+      remaining true to him for a year and a day after his decease; but, should
+      it appear that, within that time, she had in anywise lapsed from her
+      fidelity, the inheritance should go to his nephew, the lord of a
+      neighboring territory.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Having made his will, the good duke died and was buried. Scarcely was he
+      in his tomb, when his nephew came to take possession, thinking, as his
+      uncle had died without issue, the domains would be devised to him of
+      course. He was in a furious passion, when the will was produced, and the
+      young widow declared inheritor of the dukedom. As he was a violent,
+      high-handed man, and one of the sturdiest knights in the land, fears were
+      entertained that he might attempt to seize on the territories by force. He
+      had, however, two bachelor uncles for bosom counselors, swaggering,
+      rakehelly old cavaliers, who, having led loose and riotous lives, prided
+      themselves upon knowing the world, and being deeply experienced in human
+      nature. &ldquo;Prithee, man, be of good cheer,&rdquo; said they, &ldquo;the duchess is a
+      young and buxom widow. She has just buried our brother, who, God rest his
+      soul! was somewhat too much given to praying and fasting, and kept his
+      pretty wife always tied to his girdle. She is now like a bird from a cage.
+      Think you she will keep her vow? Pooh, pooh&mdash;impossible! Take our
+      words for it&mdash;we know mankind, and, above all, womankind. She cannot
+      hold out for such a length of time; it is not in womanhood&mdash;it is not
+      in widowhood&mdash;we know it, and that&rsquo;s enough. Keep a sharp lookout
+      upon the widow, therefore, and within the twelvemonth you will catch her
+      tripping&mdash;and then the dukedom is your own.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      The nephew was pleased with this counsel, and immediately placed spies
+      round the duchess, and bribed several of her servants to keep watch upon
+      her, so that she could not take a single step, even from one apartment of
+      her palace to another, without being observed. Never was young and
+      beautiful widow exposed to so terrible an ordeal.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The duchess was aware of the watch thus kept upon her. Though confident of
+      her own rectitude, she knew that it is not enough for a woman to be
+      virtuous&mdash;she must be above the reach of slander. For the whole term
+      of her probation, therefore, she proclaimed a strict non-intercourse with
+      the other sex. She had females for cabinet ministers and chamberlains,
+      through whom she transacted all her public and private concerns; and it is
+      said that never were the affairs of the dukedom so adroitly administered.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      All males were rigorously excluded from the palace; she never went out of
+      its precincts, and whenever she moved about its courts and gardens she
+      surrounded herself with a bodyguard of young maids of honor, commanded by
+      dames renowned for discretion. She slept in a bed without curtains, placed
+      in the center of a room illuminated by innumerable wax tapers. Four
+      ancient spinsters, virtuous as Virginia, perfect dragons of watchfulness,
+      who only slept during the daytime, kept vigils throughout the night,
+      seated in the four corners of the room on stools without backs or arms,
+      and with seats cut in checkers of the hardest wood, to keep them from
+      dozing.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Thus wisely and warily did the young duchess conduct herself for twelve
+      long months, and slander almost bit her tongue off in despair, at finding
+      no room even for a surmise. Never was ordeal more burdensome, or more
+      enduringly sustained.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The year passed away. The last, odd day, arrived, and a long, long day it
+      was. It was the twenty-first of June, the longest day in the year. It
+      seemed as if it would never come to an end. A thousand times did the
+      duchess and her ladies watch the sun from the windows of the palace, as he
+      slowly climbed the vault of heaven, and seemed still more slowly to roll
+      down. They could not help expressing their wonder, now and then, why the
+      duke should have tagged this supernumerary day to the end of the year, as
+      if three hundred and sixty-five days were not sufficient to try and task
+      the fidelity of any woman. It is the last grain that turns the scale&mdash;the
+      last drop that overflows the goblet&mdash;and the last moment of delay
+      that exhausts the patience. By the time the sun sank below the horizon,
+      the duchess was in a fidget that passed all bounds, and, though several
+      hours were yet to pass before the day regularly expired, she could not
+      have remained those hours in durance to gain a royal crown, much less a
+      ducal coronet. So she gave orders, and her palfrey, magnificently
+      caparisoned, was brought into the courtyard of the castle, with palfreys
+      for all her ladies in attendance. In this way she sallied forth, just as
+      the sun had gone down. It was a mission of piety&mdash;a pilgrim cavalcade
+      to a convent at the foot of a neighboring mountain&mdash;to return thanks
+      to the blessed Virgin, for having sustained her through this fearful
+      ordeal.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The orisons performed, the duchess and her ladies returned, ambling gently
+      along the border of a forest. It was about that mellow hour of twilight
+      when night and day are mingled and all objects are indistinct. Suddenly,
+      some monstrous animal sprang from out a thicket, with fearful howlings.
+      The female bodyguard was thrown into confusion, and fled different ways.
+      It was some time before they recovered from their panic, and gathered once
+      more together; but the duchess was not to be found. The greatest anxiety
+      was felt for her safety. The hazy mist of twilight had prevented their
+      distinguishing perfectly the animal which had affrighted them. Some
+      thought it a wolf, others a bear, others a wild man of the woods. For
+      upward of an hour did they beleaguer the forest, without daring to venture
+      in, and were on the point of giving up the duchess as torn to pieces and
+      devoured, when, to their great joy, they beheld her advancing in the
+      gloom, supported by a stately cavalier.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      He was a stranger knight, whom nobody knew. It was impossible to
+      distinguish his countenance in the dark; but all the ladies agreed that he
+      was of noble presence and captivating address. He had rescued the duchess
+      from the very fangs of the monster, which, he assured the ladies, was
+      neither a wolf, nor a bear, nor yet a wild man of the woods, but a
+      veritable fiery dragon, a species of monster peculiarly hostile to
+      beautiful females in the days of chivalry, and which all the efforts of
+      knight-errantry had not been able to extirpate.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The ladies crossed themselves when they heard of the danger from which
+      they had escaped, and could not enough admire the gallantry of the
+      cavalier. The duchess would fain have prevailed on her deliverer to
+      accompany her to her court; but he had no time to spare, being a
+      knight-errant, who had many adventures on hand, and many distressed
+      damsels and afflicted widows to rescue and relieve in various parts of the
+      country. Taking a respectful leave, therefore, he pursued his wayfaring,
+      and the duchess and her train returned to the palace. Throughout the whole
+      way, the ladies were unwearied in chanting the praises of the stranger
+      knight, nay, many of them would willingly have incurred the danger of the
+      dragon to have enjoyed the happy deliverance of the duchess. As to the
+      latter, she rode pensively along, but said nothing.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      No sooner was the adventure of the wood made public than a whirlwind was
+      raised about the ears of the beautiful duchess. The blustering nephew of
+      the deceased duke went about, armed to the teeth, with a swaggering uncle
+      at each shoulder, ready to back him, and swore the duchess had forfeited
+      her domain. It was in vain that she called all the saints, and angels, and
+      her ladies in attendance into the bargain, to witness that she had passed
+      a year and a day of immaculate fidelity. One fatal hour remained to be
+      accounted for; and into the space of one little hour sins enough may be
+      conjured up by evil tongues to blast the fame of a whole life of virtue.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The two graceless uncles, who had seen the world, were ever ready to
+      bolster the matter through, and as they were brawny, broad-shouldered
+      warriors, and veterans in brawl as well as debauch, they had great sway
+      with the multitude. If any one pretended to assert the innocence of the
+      duchess, they interrupted him with a loud ha! ha! of derision. &ldquo;A pretty
+      story, truly,&rdquo; would they cry, &ldquo;about a wolf and a dragon, and a young
+      widow rescued in the dark by a sturdy varlet who dares not show his face
+      in the daylight. You may tell that to those who do not know human nature,
+      for our parts, we know the sex, and that&rsquo;s enough.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      If, however, the other repeated his assertion, they would suddenly knit
+      their brows, swell, look big, and put their hands upon their swords. As
+      few people like to fight in a cause that does not touch their own
+      interests, the nephew and the uncles were suffered to have their way, and
+      swagger uncontradicted.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The matter was at length referred to a tribunal, composed of all the
+      dignitaries of the dukedom, and many and repeated consultations were held.
+      The character of the duchess throughout the year was as bright and
+      spotless as the moon in a cloudless night; one fatal hour of darkness
+      alone intervened to eclipse its brightness. Finding human sagacity
+      incapable of dispelling the mystery, it was determined to leave the
+      question to heaven; or, in other words, to decide it by the ordeal of the
+      sword&mdash;a sage tribunal in the age of chivalry. The nephew and two
+      bully uncles were to maintain their accusation in listed combat, and six
+      months were allowed to the duchess to provide herself with three champions
+      to meet them in the field. Should she fail in this, or should her
+      champions be vanquished, her honor would be considered as attainted, her
+      fidelity as forfeit, and her dukedom would go to the nephew, as a matter
+      of right.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      With this determination the duchess was fain to comply. Proclamations were
+      accordingly made, and heralds sent to various parts; but day after day,
+      week after week, and month after month elapsed without any champion
+      appearing to assert her loyalty throughout that darksome hour. The fair
+      widow was reduced to despair, when tidings reached her of grand
+      tournaments to be held at Toledo, in celebration of the nuptials of Don
+      Roderick, the last of the Gothic kings, with the Morisco princess Exilona.
+      As a last resort, the duchess repaired to the Spanish court, to implore
+      the gallantry of its assembled chivalry.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The ancient city of Toledo was a scene of gorgeous revelry on the event of
+      the royal nuptials. The youthful king, brave, ardent, and magnificent, and
+      his lovely bride, beaming with all the radiant beauty of the East, were
+      hailed with shouts and acclamations whenever they appeared. Their nobles
+      vied with each other in the luxury of their attire, their prancing steeds,
+      and splendid retinues; and the haughty dames of the court appeared in a
+      blaze of jewels.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      In the midst of all this pageantry, the beautiful, but afflicted Duchess
+      of Lorraine made her approach to the throne. She was dressed in black, and
+      closely veiled; for duennas of the most staid and severe aspect, and six
+      beautiful demoiselles, formed her female attendants. She was guarded by
+      several very ancient, withered, and grayheaded cavaliers; and her train
+      was borne by one of the most deformed and diminutive dwarfs in existence.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Advancing to the foot of the throne, she knelt down, and, throwing up her
+      veil, revealed a countenance so beautiful that half the courtiers present
+      were ready to renounce wives and mistresses, and devote themselves to her
+      service; but when she made known that she came in quest of champions to
+      defend her fame, every cavalier pressed forward to offer his arm and
+      sword, without inquiring into the merits of the case; for it seemed clear
+      that so beauteous a lady could have done nothing but what was right; and
+      that, at any rate, she ought to be championed in following the bent of her
+      humors, whether right or wrong.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Encouraged by such gallant zeal, the duchess suffered herself to be raised
+      from the ground, and related the whole story of her distress. When she
+      concluded, the king remained for some time silent, charmed by the music of
+      her voice. At length: &ldquo;As I hope for salvation, most beautiful duchess,&rdquo;
+       said he, &ldquo;were I not a sovereign king, and bound in duty to my kingdom, I
+      myself would put lance in rest to vindicate your cause; as it is, I here
+      give full permission to my knights, and promise lists and a fair field,
+      and that the contest shall take place before the walls of Toledo, in
+      presence of my assembled court.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      As soon as the pleasure of the king was known, there was a strife among
+      the cavaliers present for the honor of the contest. It was decided by lot,
+      and the successful candidates were objects of great envy, for every one
+      was ambitious of finding favor in the eyes of the beautiful widow.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Missives were sent, summoning the nephew and his two uncles to Toledo, to
+      maintain their accusation, and a day was appointed for the combat. When
+      the day arrived, all Toledo was in commotion at an early hour. The lists
+      had been prepared in the usual place, just without the walls, at the foot
+      of the rugged rocks on which the city is built, and on that beautiful
+      meadow along the Tagus, known by the name of the king&rsquo;s garden. The
+      populace had already assembled, each one eager to secure a favorable
+      place; the balconies were filled with the ladies of the court, clad in
+      their richest attire, and bands of youthful knights, splendidly armed and
+      decorated with their ladies&rsquo; devices, were managing their superbly
+      caparisoned steeds about the field. The king at length came forth in
+      state, accompanied by the queen Exilona. They took their seats in a raised
+      balcony, under a canopy of rich damask; and, at sight of them, the people
+      rent the air with acclamations.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The nephew and his uncles now rode into the field, armed cap-a-pie, and
+      followed by a train of cavaliers of their own roistering cast, great
+      swearers and carousers, arrant swashbucklers, with clanking armor and
+      jingling spurs. When the people of Toledo beheld the vaunting and
+      discourteous appearance of these knights, they were more anxious than ever
+      for the success of the gentle duchess; but, at the same time, the sturdy
+      and stalwart frames of these warriors showed that whoever won the victory
+      from them must do it at the cost of many a bitter blow.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      As the nephew and his riotous crew rode in at one side of the field, the
+      fair widow appeared at the other, with her suite of grave grayheaded
+      courtiers, her ancient duennas and dainty demoiselles, and the little
+      dwarf toiling along under the weight of her train. Every one made way for
+      her as she passed, and blessed her beautiful face, and prayed for success
+      to her cause. She took her seat in a lower balcony, not far from the
+      sovereigns; and her pale face, set off by her mourning weeds, was as the
+      moon shining forth from among the clouds of night.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The trumpets sounded for the combat. The warriors were just entering the
+      lists, when a stranger knight, armed in panoply, and followed by two pages
+      and an esquire, came galloping into the field, and, riding up to the royal
+      balcony, claimed the combat as a matter of right.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;In me,&rdquo; cried he, &ldquo;behold the cavalier who had the happiness to rescue
+      the beautiful duchess from the peril of the forest, and the misfortune to
+      bring on her this grievous calumny. It was but recently, in the course of
+      my errantry, that tidings of her wrongs have reached my ears, and I have
+      urged hither at all speed, to stand forth in her vindication.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      No sooner did the duchess hear the accents of the knight than she
+      recognized his voice, and joined her prayers with his that he might enter
+      the lists. The difficulty was, to determine which of the three champions
+      already appointed should yield his place, each insisting on the honor of
+      the combat. The stranger knight would have settled the point, by taking
+      the whole contest upon himself; but this the other knights would not
+      permit. It was at length determined, as before, by lot, and the cavalier
+      who lost the chance retired murmuring and disconsolate.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The trumpets again sounded&mdash;the lists were opened. The arrogant
+      nephew and his two drawcansir uncles appeared so completely cased in steel
+      that they and their steeds were like moving masses of iron. When they
+      understood the stranger knight to be the same that had rescued the duchess
+      from her peril, they greeted him with the most boisterous derision:
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Oh, ho! sir Knight of the Dragon,&rdquo; said they, &ldquo;you who pretend to
+      champion fair widows in the dark, come on, and vindicate your deeds of
+      darkness in the open day.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      The only reply of the cavalier was to put lance in rest, and brace himself
+      for the encounter. Needless is it to relate the particulars of a battle,
+      which was like so many hundred combats that have been said and sung in
+      prose and verse. Who is there but must have foreseen the event of a
+      contest, where Heaven had to decide on the guilt or innocence of the most
+      beautiful and immaculate of widows?
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The sagacious reader, deeply read in this kind of judicial combats, can
+      imagine the encounter of the graceless nephew and the stranger knight. He
+      sees their concussion, man to man, and horse to horse, in mid career, and
+      Sir Graceless hurled to the ground and slain. He will not wonder that the
+      assailants of the brawny uncles were less successful in their rude
+      encounter; but he will picture to himself the stout stranger spurring to
+      their rescue, in the very critical moment; he will see him transfixing one
+      with his lance, and cleaving the other to the chine with a back stroke of
+      his sword, thus leaving the trio of accusers dead upon the field, and
+      establishing the immaculate fidelity of the duchess, and her title to the
+      dukedom, beyond the shadow of a doubt.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The air rang with acclamations; nothing was heard but praises of the
+      beauty and virtue of the duchess, and of the prowess of the stranger
+      knight; but the public joy was still more increased when the champion
+      raised his visor, and revealed the countenance of one of the bravest
+      cavaliers of Spain, renowned for his gallantry in the service of the sex,
+      and who had been round the world in quest of similar adventures.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      That worthy knight, however, was severely wounded, and remained for a long
+      time ill of his wounds. The lovely duchess, grateful for having twice owed
+      her protection to his arm, attended him daily during his illness; and
+      finally rewarded his gallantry with her hand.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The king would fain have had the knight establish his title to such high
+      advancement by further deeds of arms; but his courtiers declared that he
+      already merited the lady, by thus vindicating her fame and fortune in a
+      deadly combat <i>à outrance</i>; and the lady herself hinted that she was
+      perfectly satisfied of his prowess in arms, from the proofs she had
+      received in his achievement in the forest.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Their nuptials were celebrated with great magnificence. The present
+      husband of the duchess did not pray and fast like his predecessor,
+      Philibert the wife-ridden; yet he found greater favor in the eyes of
+      heaven, for their union was blessed with a numerous progeny&mdash;the
+      daughters chaste and beauteous as their mother; the sons stout and valiant
+      as their sire, and renowned, like him, for relieving disconsolate damsels
+      and desolated widows.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      <br /><br />
+    </p>
+    <hr />
+    <p>
+      <a name="link2H_4_0020" id="link2H_4_0020"> </a>
+    </p>
+    <div style="height: 4em;">
+      <br /><br /><br /><br />
+    </div>
+    <h2>
+      THE CREOLE VILLAGE
+    </h2>
+    <h3>
+      A SKETCH FROM A STEAMBOAT
+    </h3>
+    <p>
+      First published in 1887
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      In traveling about our motley country, I am often reminded of Ariosto&rsquo;s
+      account of the moon, in which the good paladin Astolpho found everything
+      garnered up that had been lost on earth. So I am apt to imagine, that many
+      things lost in the old world are treasured up in the new; having been
+      handed down from generation to generation, since the early days of the
+      colonies. A European antiquary, therefore, curious in his researches after
+      the ancient and almost obliterated customs and usages of his country,
+      would do well to put himself upon the track of some early band of
+      emigrants, follow them across the Atlantic, and rummage among their
+      descendants on our shores.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      In the phraseology of New England might be found many an old English
+      provincial phrase, long since obsolete in the parent country; with some
+      quaint relics of the roundheads; while Virginia cherishes peculiarities
+      characteristic of the days of Elizabeth and Sir Walter Raleigh.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      In the same way the sturdy yeomanry of New Jersey and Pennsylvania keep up
+      many usages fading away in ancient Germany; while many an honest,
+      broad-bottomed custom, nearly extinct in venerable Holland, may be found
+      flourishing in pristine vigor and luxuriance in Dutch villages, on the
+      banks of the Mohawk and the Hudson.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      In no part of our country, however, are the customs and peculiarities,
+      imported from the old world by the earlier settlers, kept up with more
+      fidelity than in the little, poverty-stricken villages of Spanish and
+      French origin, which border the rivers of ancient Louisiana. Their
+      population is generally made up of the descendants of those nations,
+      married and interwoven together, and occasionally crossed with a slight
+      dash of the Indian. The French character, however, floats on top, as, from
+      its buoyant qualities, it is sure to do, whenever it forms a particle,
+      however small, of an intermixture.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      In these serene and dilapidated villages, art and nature stand still, and
+      the world forgets to turn round. The revolutions that distract other parts
+      of this mutable planet reach not here, or pass over without leaving any
+      trace. The fortunate inhabitants have none of that public spirit which
+      extends its cares beyond its horizon, and imports trouble and perplexity
+      from all quarters in newspapers. In fact, newspapers are almost unknown in
+      these villages, and as French is the current language, the inhabitants
+      have little community of opinion with their republican neighbors. They
+      retain, therefore, their old habits of passive obedience to the decrees of
+      government, as though they still lived under the absolute sway of colonial
+      commandants, instead of being part and parcel of the sovereign people, and
+      having a voice in public legislation.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      A few aged men, who have grown gray on their hereditary acres, and are of
+      the good old colonial stock, exert a patriarchal sway in all matters of
+      public and private import; their opinions are considered oracular, and
+      their word is law.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The inhabitants, moreover, have none of that eagerness for gain and rage
+      for improvement which keep our people continually on the move, and our
+      country towns incessantly in a state of transition. There the magic
+      phrases, &ldquo;town lots,&rdquo; &ldquo;water privileges,&rdquo; &ldquo;railroads,&rdquo; and other
+      comprehensive and soul-stirring words from the speculator&rsquo;s vocabulary,
+      are never heard. The residents dwell in the houses built by their
+      forefathers, without thinking of enlarging or modernizing them, or pulling
+      them down and turning them into granite stores. The trees, under which
+      they have been born and have played in infancy, flourish undisturbed;
+      though, by cutting them down, they might open new streets, and put money
+      in their pockets. In a word, the almighty dollar, that great object of
+      universal devotion throughout our land, seems to have no genuine devotees
+      in these peculiar villages; and unless some of its missionaries penetrate
+      there, and erect banking houses and other pious shrines, there is no
+      knowing how long the inhabitants may remain in their present state of
+      contented poverty.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      In descending one of our great Western rivers in a steam-boat, I met with
+      two worthies from one of these villages, who had been on a distant
+      excursion, the longest they had ever made, as they seldom ventured far
+      from home. One was the great man, or grand seigneur, of the village; not
+      that he enjoyed any legal privileges or power there, everything of the
+      kind having been done away when the province was ceded by France to the
+      United States. His sway over his neighbors was merely one of custom and
+      convention, out of deference to his family. Beside, he was worth full
+      fifty thousand dollars, an amount almost equal, in the imaginations of the
+      villagers, to the treasures of King Solomon.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      This very substantial old gentleman, though of the fourth or fifth
+      generation in this country, retained the true Gallic feature and
+      deportment, and reminded me of one of those provincial potentates that are
+      to be met with in the remote parts of France. He was of a large frame, a
+      ginger-bread complexion, strong features, eyes that stood out like glass
+      knobs, and a prominent nose, which he frequently regaled from a gold
+      snuff-box, and occasionally blew, with a colored handkerchief, until it
+      sounded like a trumpet.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      He was attended by an old negro, as black as ebony, with a huge mouth in a
+      continual grin; evidently a privileged and favorite servant, who had grown
+      up and grown old with him. He was dressed in creole style&mdash;with white
+      jacket and trousers, a stiff shirt collar that threatened to cut off his
+      ears, a bright Madras handkerchief tied round his head, and large gold
+      earrings. He was the politest negro I met with in a Western tour; and that
+      is saying a great deal, for, excepting the Indians, the negroes are the
+      most gentlemanlike personages to be met with in those parts. It is true,
+      they differ from the Indians in being a little extra polite and
+      complimentary. He was also one of the merriest; and here, too, the
+      negroes, however we may deplore their unhappy condition, have the
+      advantage of their masters. The whites are, in general, too free and
+      prosperous to be merry. The cares of maintaining their rights and
+      liberties, adding to their wealth, and making presidents, engross all
+      their thoughts, and dry up all the moisture of their souls. If you hear a
+      broad, hearty, devil-may-care laugh, be assured it is a negro&rsquo;s.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Besides this African domestic, the seigneur of the village had another no
+      less cherished and privileged attendant. This was a huge dog, of the
+      mastiff breed, with a deep, hanging mouth, and a look of surly gravity. He
+      walked about the cabin with the air of a dog perfectly at home, and who
+      had paid for his passage. At dinner time he took his seat beside his
+      master, giving him a glance now and then out of a corner of his eye, which
+      bespoke perfect confidence that he would not be forgotten. Nor was he&mdash;every
+      now and then a huge morsel would be thrown to him, peradventure the
+      half-picked leg of a fowl, which he would receive with a snap like the
+      springing of a steel-trap&mdash;one gulp, and all was down; and a glance
+      of the eye told his master that he was ready for another consignment.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The other village worthy, traveling in company with the seigneur, was of a
+      totally different stamp. Small, thin, and weazen faced, as Frenchmen are
+      apt to be represented in caricature, with a bright, squirrel-like eye, and
+      a gold ring in his ear. His dress was flimsy, and sat loosely on his
+      frame, and he had altogether the look of one with but little coin in his
+      pocket. Yet, though one of the poorest, I was assured he was one of the
+      merriest and most popular personages in his native village.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Compere Martin, as he was commonly called, was the factotum of the
+      place-sportsman, schoolmaster, and land surveyor. He could sing, dance,
+      and, above all, play on the fiddle, an invaluable accomplishment in an old
+      French Creole village, for the inhabitants have a hereditary love for
+      balls and fetes; if they work but little, they dance a great deal, and a
+      fiddle is the joy of their heart.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      What had sent Compere Martin traveling with the grand seigneur I could not
+      learn; he evidently looked up to him with great deference, and was
+      assiduous in rendering him petty attentions; from which I concluded that
+      he lived at home upon the crumbs which fell from his table. He was gayest
+      when out of his sight; and had his song and his joke when forward, among
+      the deck passengers; but altogether Compere Martin was out of his element
+      on board of a steamboat. He was quite another being, I am told, when at
+      home in his own village.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Like his opulent fellow-traveler, he too had his canine follower and
+      retainer&mdash;and one suited to his different fortunes&mdash;one of the
+      civilest, most unoffending little dogs in the world. Unlike the lordly
+      mastiff, he seemed to think he had no right on board of the steamboat; if
+      you did but look hard at him, he would throw himself upon his back, and
+      lift up his legs, as if imploring mercy.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      At table he took his seat a little distance from his master; not with the
+      bluff, confident air of the mastiff, but quietly and diffidently, his head
+      on one side, with one ear dubiously slouched, the other hopefully cocked
+      up; his under teeth projecting beyond his black nose, and his eye
+      wistfully following each morsel that went into his master&rsquo;s mouth.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      If Compere Martin now and then should venture to abstract a morsel from
+      his plate to give to his humble companion, it was edifying to see with
+      what diffidence the exemplary little animal would take hold of it, with
+      the very tip of his teeth, as if he would almost rather not, or was
+      fearful of taking too great a liberty. And then with what decorum would he
+      eat it! How many efforts would he make in swallowing it, as if it stuck in
+      his throat; with what daintiness would he lick his lips; and then with
+      what an air of thankfulness would he resume his seat, with his teeth once
+      more projecting beyond his nose, and an eye of humble expectation fixed
+      upon his master.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      It was late in the afternoon when the steamboat stopped at the village
+      which was the residence of these worthies. It stood on the high bank of
+      the river, and bore traces of having been a frontier trading post. There
+      were the remains of stockades that once protected it from the Indians, and
+      the houses were in the ancient Spanish and French colonial taste, the
+      place having been successively under the domination of both those nations
+      prior to the cession of Louisiana to the United States.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The arrival of the seigneur of fifty thousand dollars, and his humble
+      companion, Compere Martin, had evidently been looked forward to as an
+      event in the village. Numbers of men, women, and children, white, yellow,
+      and black, were collected on the river bank; most of them clad in
+      old-fashioned French garments, and their heads decorated with colored
+      handkerchiefs, or white nightcaps. The moment the steamboat came within
+      sight and hearing, there was a waving of handkerchiefs, and a screaming
+      and bawling of salutations, and felicitations, that baffle all
+      description.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The old gentleman of fifty thousand dollars was received by a train of
+      relatives, and friends, and children, and grandchildren, whom he kissed on
+      each cheek, and who formed a procession in his rear, with a legion of
+      domestics, of all ages, following him to a large, old-fashioned French
+      house, that domineered over the village.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      His black valet de chambre, in white jacket and trousers, and gold
+      earrings, was met on the shore by a boon, though rustic companion, a tall
+      negro fellow, with a long good-humored face, and the profile of a horse,
+      which stood out from beneath a narrow-rimmed straw hat, stuck on the back
+      of his head. The explosions of laughter of these two varlets on meeting
+      and exchanging compliments were enough to electrify the country round.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The most hearty reception, however, was that given to Compere Martin.
+      Everybody, young and old, hailed him before he got to land. Everybody had
+      a joke for Compere Martin, and Compere Martin had a joke for everybody.
+      Even his little dog appeared to partake of his popularity, and to be
+      caressed by every hand. Indeed, he was quite a different animal the moment
+      he touched the land. Here he was at home; here he was of consequence. He
+      barked, he leaped, he frisked about his old friends, and then would skim
+      round the place in a wide circle, as if mad.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      I traced Compere Martin and his little dog to their home. It was an old
+      ruinous Spanish house, of large dimensions, with verandas overshadowed by
+      ancient elms. The house had probably been the residence, in old times, of
+      the Spanish commandant. In one wing of this crazy, but aristocratical
+      abode, was nestled the family of my fellow-traveler; for poor devils are
+      apt to be magnificently clad and lodged, in the cast-off clothes and
+      abandoned palaces of the great and wealthy.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The arrival of Compere Martin was welcomed by a legion of women, children,
+      and mongrel curs; and, as poverty and gayety generally go hand in hand
+      among the French and their descendants, the crazy mansion soon resounded
+      with loud gossip and light-hearted laughter.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      As the steamboat paused a short time at the village, I took occasion to
+      stroll about the place. Most of the houses were in the French taste, with
+      casements and rickety verandas, but most of them in flimsy and ruinous
+      condition. All the wagons, plows, and other utensils about the place were
+      of ancient and inconvenient Gallic construction, such as had been brought
+      from France in the primitive days of the colony. The very looks of the
+      people reminded me of the villages of France.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      From one of the houses came the hum of a spinning wheel, accompanied by a
+      scrap of an old French chanson, which I have heard many a time among the
+      peasantry of Languedoc, doubtless a traditional song, brought over by the
+      first French emigrants, and handed down from generation to generation.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Half a dozen young lasses emerged from the adjacent dwellings, reminding
+      me, by their light step and gay costume, of scenes in ancient France,
+      where taste in dress comes natural to every class of females. The trim
+      bodice and covered petticoat, and little apron, with its pockets to
+      receive the hands when in an attitude for conversation; the colored
+      kerchief wound tastefully round the head, with a coquettish knot perking
+      above one ear; and the neat slipper and tight drawn stocking with its
+      braid of narrow ribbon embracing the ankle where it peeps from its
+      mysterious curtain. It is from this ambush that Cupid sends his most
+      inciting arrows.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      While I was musing upon the recollections thus accidentally summoned up, I
+      heard the sound of a fiddle from the mansion of Compere Martin, the
+      signal, no doubt, for a joyous gathering. I was disposed to turn my steps
+      thither, and witness the festivities of one of the very few villages I had
+      met with in my wide tour that was yet poor enough to be merry; but the
+      bell of the steamboat summoned me to re-embark.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      As we swept away from the shore, I cast back a wistful eye upon the
+      moss-grown roofs and ancient elms of the village, and prayed that the
+      inhabitants might long retain their happy ignorance, their absence of all
+      enterprise and improvement, their respect for the fiddle, and their
+      contempt for the almighty dollar. [Footnote: This phrase, used for the
+      first time in this sketch, has since passed into current circulation, and
+      by some has been questioned as savoring I fear, however, my prayer is of
+      irreverence. The author, therefore, owes it to his orthodoxy to declare
+      that no irreverence was intended even to the dollar itself; which he is
+      aware is daily becoming more and more an object of worship.] I fear,
+      however, my prayer is doomed to be of no avail. In a little while the
+      steamboat whirled me to an American town, just springing into bustling and
+      prosperous existence.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The surrounding forest had been laid out in town lots; frames of wooden
+      buildings were rising from among stumps and burned trees. The place
+      already boasted a court-house, a jail, and two banks, all built of pine
+      boards, on the model of Grecian temples. There were rival hotels, rival
+      churches, and rival newspapers; together with the usual number of judges,
+      and generals, and governors; not to speak of doctors by the dozen, and
+      lawyers by the score.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The place, I was told, was in an astonishing career of improvement, with a
+      canal and two railroads in embryo. Lots doubled in price every week;
+      everybody was speculating in land; everybody was rich; and everybody was
+      growing richer. The community, however, was torn to pieces by new
+      doctrines in religion and in political economy; there were camp meetings,
+      and agrarian meetings; and an election was at hand, which, it was
+      expected, would throw the whole country into a paroxysm.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Alas! with such an enterprising neighbor, what is to become of the poor
+      little Creole village!
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      <br /><br />
+    </p>
+    <hr />
+    <p>
+      <a name="link2H_4_0021" id="link2H_4_0021"> </a>
+    </p>
+    <div style="height: 4em;">
+      <br /><br /><br /><br />
+    </div>
+    <h2>
+      A CONTENTED MAN
+    </h2>
+    <p>
+      In the garden of the Tuileries there is a sunny corner under the wall of a
+      terrace which fronts the south. Along the wall is a range of benches
+      commanding a view of the walks and avenues of the garden. This genial nook
+      is a place of great resort in the latter part of autumn and in fine days
+      in winter, as it seems to retain the flavor of departed summer. On a calm,
+      bright morning it is quite alive with nursery-maids and their playful
+      little charges. Hither also resort a number of ancient ladies and
+      gentlemen, who, with the laudable thrift in small pleasures and small
+      expenses for which the French are to be noted, come here to enjoy sunshine
+      and save firewood. Here may often be seen some cavalier of the old school,
+      when the sunbeams have warmed his blood into something like a glow,
+      fluttering about like a frost-bitten moth thawed before the fire, putting
+      forth a feeble show of gallantry among the antiquated dames, and now and
+      then eying the buxom nursery-maids with what might almost be mistaken for
+      an air of libertinism.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Among the habitual frequenters of this place I had often remarked an old
+      gentleman whose dress was decidedly ante-revolutional. He wore the
+      three-cornered cocked hat of the <i>ancien regime</i>; his hair was
+      frizzed over each ear into <i>ailes de pigeon</i>, a style strongly
+      savoring of Bourbonism; and a queue stuck out behind, the loyalty of which
+      was not to be disputed. His dress, though ancient, had an air of decayed
+      gentility, and I observed that he took his snuff out of an elegant though
+      old-fashioned gold box. He appeared to be the most popular man on the
+      walk. He had a compliment for every old lady, he kissed every child, and
+      he patted every little dog on the head; for children and little dogs are
+      very important members of society in France. I must observe, however, that
+      he seldom kissed a child without, at the same time, pinching the
+      nursery-maid&rsquo;s cheek; a Frenchman of the old school never forgets his
+      devoirs to the sex.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      I had taken a liking to this old gentleman. There was an habitual
+      expression of benevolence in his face which I have very frequently
+      remarked in these relics of the politer days of France. The constant
+      interchange of those thousand little courtesies which imperceptibly
+      sweeten life have a happy effect upon the features, and spread a mellow
+      evening charm over the wrinkles of old age.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Where there is a favorable predisposition one soon forms a kind of tacit
+      intimacy by often meeting on the same walks. Once or twice I accommodated
+      him with a bench, after which we touched hats on passing each other; at
+      length we got so far as to take a pinch of snuff together out of his box,
+      which is equivalent to eating salt together in the East; from that time
+      our acquaintance was established.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      I now became his frequent companion in his morning promenades, and derived
+      much amusement from his good-humored remarks on men and manners. One
+      morning, as we were strolling through an alley of the Tuileries, with the
+      autumnal breeze whirling the yellow leaves about our path, my companion
+      fell into a peculiarly communicative vein, and gave me several particulars
+      of his history. He had once been wealthy, and possessed of a fine estate
+      in the country and a noble hotel in Paris; but the revolution, which
+      effected so many disastrous changes, stripped him of everything. He was
+      secretly denounced by his own steward during a sanguinary period of the
+      revolution, and a number of the bloodhounds of the Convention were sent to
+      arrest him. He received private intelligence of their approach in time to
+      effect his escape. He landed in England without money or friends, but
+      considered himself singularly fortunate in having his head upon his
+      shoulders; several of his neighbors having been guillotined as a
+      punishment for being rich.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      When he reached London he had but a louis in his pocket, and no prospect
+      of getting another. He ate a solitary dinner of beefsteak, and was almost
+      poisoned by port wine, which from its color he had mistaken for claret.
+      The dingy look of the chop-house, and of the little mahogany-colored box
+      in which he ate his dinner, contrasted sadly with the gay saloons of
+      Paris. Everything looked gloomy and disheartening. Poverty stared him in
+      the face; he turned over the few shillings he had of change; did not know
+      what was to become of him; and&mdash;went to the theater!
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      He took his seat in the pit, listened attentively to a tragedy of which he
+      did not understand a word, and which seemed made up of fighting, and
+      stabbing, and scene shifting, and began to feel his spirits sinking within
+      him; when, casting his eyes into the orchestra, what was his surprise to
+      recognize an old friend and neighbor in the very act of extorting music
+      from a huge violoncello.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      As soon as the evening&rsquo;s performance was over he tapped his friend on the
+      shoulder; they kissed each other on each cheek, and the musician took him
+      home, and shared his lodgings with him. He had learned music as an
+      accomplishment; by his friend&rsquo;s advice he now turned to it as a means of
+      support. He procured a violin, offered himself for the orchestra, was
+      received, and again considered himself one of the most fortunate men upon
+      earth.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Here therefore he lived for many years during the ascendency of the
+      terrible Napoleon. He found several emigrants living, like himself, by the
+      exercise of their talents. They associated together, talked of France and
+      of old times, and endeavored to keep up a semblance of Parisian life in
+      the center of London.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      They dined at a miserable cheap French restaurant in the neighborhood of
+      Leicester Square, where they were served with a caricature of French
+      cookery. They took their promenade in St. James&rsquo;s Park, and endeavored to
+      fancy it the Tuileries; in short, they made shift to accommodate
+      themselves to everything but an English Sunday. Indeed the old gentleman
+      seemed to have nothing to say against the English, whom he affirmed to be
+      <i>braves gens</i>; and he mingled so much among them that at the end of
+      twenty years he could speak their language almost well enough to be
+      understood.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The downfall of Napoleon was another epoch in his life. He had considered
+      himself a fortunate man to make his escape penniless out of France, and he
+      considered himself fortunate to be able to return penniless into it. It is
+      true that he found his Parisian hotel had passed through several hands
+      during the vicissitudes of the times, so as to be beyond the reach of
+      recovery; but then he had been noticed benignantly by government, and had
+      a pension of several hundred francs, upon which, with careful management,
+      he lived independently, and, as far as I could judge, happily. As his once
+      splendid hotel was now occupied as a <i>hotel garni</i>, he hired a small
+      chamber in the attic; it was but, as he said, changing his bedroom up two
+      pair of stairs&mdash;he was still in his own house. His room was decorated
+      with pictures of several beauties of former times, with whom he professed
+      to have been on favorable terms: among them was a favorite opera-dancer,
+      who had been the admiration of Paris at the breaking out of the
+      revolution. She had been a protegee of my friend, and one of the few of
+      his youthful favorites who had survived the lapse of time and its various
+      vicissitudes. They had renewed their acquaintance, and she now and then
+      visited him; but the beautiful Psyche, once the fashion of the day and the
+      idol of the <i>parterre</i>, was now a shriveled, little old woman, warped
+      in the back and with a hooked nose.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The old gentleman was a devout attendant upon levees; he was most zealous
+      in his loyalty, and could not speak of the royal family without a burst of
+      enthusiasm, for he still felt toward them as his companions in exile. As
+      to his poverty he made light of it, and indeed had a good-humored way of
+      consoling himself for every cross and privation. If he had lost his
+      chateau in the country, he had half a dozen royal palaces, as it were, at
+      his command. He had Versailles and St. Cloud for his country resorts, and
+      the shady alleys of the Tuileries and the Luxembourg for his town
+      recreation. Thus all his promenades and relaxations were magnificent, yet
+      cost nothing.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      When I walk through these fine gardens, said he, I have only to fancy
+      myself the owner of them, and they are mine. All these gay crowds are my
+      visitors, and I defy the grand seignior himself to display a greater
+      variety of beauty. Nay, what is better, I have not the trouble of
+      entertaining them. My estate is a perfect Sans Souci, where every one does
+      as he pleases, and no one troubles the owner. All Paris is my theater, and
+      presents me with a continual spectacle. I have a table spread for me in
+      every street, and thousands of waiters ready to fly at my bidding. When my
+      servants have waited upon me I pay them, discharge them, and there&rsquo;s an
+      end; I have no fears of their wronging or pilfering me when my back is
+      turned. Upon the whole, said the old gentleman with a smile of infinite
+      good humor, when I think upon the various risks I have run, and the manner
+      in which I have escaped them; when I recollect all that I have suffered,
+      and consider all that I at present enjoy, I cannot but look upon myself as
+      a man of singular good fortune.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Such was the brief history of this practical philosopher, and it is a
+      picture of many a Frenchman ruined by the revolution. The French appear to
+      have a greater facility than most men in accommodating themselves to the
+      reverses of life, and of extracting honey out of the bitter things of this
+      world. The first shock of calamity is apt to overwhelm them, but when it
+      is once past, their natural buoyancy of feeling soon brings them to the
+      surface. This may be called the result of levity of character, but it
+      answers the end of reconciling us to misfortune, and if it be not true
+      philosophy, it is something almost as efficacious. Ever since I have heard
+      the story of my little Frenchman, I have treasured it up in my heart; and
+      I thank my stars I have at length found what I had long considered as not
+      to be found on earth&mdash;a contented man.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      P. S.&mdash;There is no calculating on human happiness. Since writing the
+      foregoing, the law of indemnity has been passed, and my friend restored to
+      a great part of his fortune. I was absent from Paris at the time, but on
+      my return hastened to congratulate him. I found him magnificently lodged
+      on the first floor of his hotel. I was ushered, by a servant in livery,
+      through splendid saloons, to a cabinet richly furnished, where I found my
+      little Frenchman reclining on a couch. He received me with his usual
+      cordiality; but I saw the gayety and benevolence of his countenance had
+      fled; he had an eye full of care and anxiety.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      I congratulated him on his good fortune. &ldquo;Good fortune?&rdquo; echoed he; &ldquo;bah!
+      I have been plundered of a princely fortune, and they give me a pittance
+      as an indemnity.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      Alas! I found my late poor and contented friend one of the richest and
+      most miserable men in Paris. Instead of rejoicing hi the ample competency
+      restored to him, he is daily repining at the superfluity withheld. He no
+      longer wanders in happy idleness about Paris, but is a repining attendant
+      in the ante-chambers of ministers. His loyalty has evaporated with his
+      gayety; he screws his mouth when the Bourbons are mentioned, and even
+      shrugs his shoulders when he hears the praises of the king. In a word, he
+      is one of the many philosophers undone by the law of indemnity, and his
+      case is desperate, for I doubt whether even another reverse of fortune,
+      which should restore him to poverty, could make him again a happy man.
+    </p>
+    <div style="height: 6em;">
+      <br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br />
+    </div>
+<pre xml:space="preserve">
+
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+</pre>
+  </body>
+</html>
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+Title: The Crayon Papers
+
+Author: Washington Irving
+
+Release Date: April, 2005  [EBook #7994]
+[This file was first posted on June 10, 2003]
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+Edition: 10
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+Language: English
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+*** START OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK, THE CRAYON PAPERS ***
+
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+E-text prepared by Charles Aldarondo, Tiffany Vergon, William Craig, Charles
+Franks, and the Online Distributed Proofreading Team
+
+
+
+THE CRAYON PAPERS
+
+by GEOFFREY CRAYON, GENT.
+
+
+
+
+
+
+
+MOUNTJOY: or Some Passages out of the Life of a Castle-Builder
+
+THE GREAT MISSISSIPPI BUBBLE--"A Time of Unexampled Prosperity"
+
+DON JUAN: A Spectral Research
+
+BROEK: or the Dutch Paradise
+
+SKETCHES IN PARIS IN 1825--From the Traveling Note-Book of Geoffrey Crayon,
+Gent.
+
+My French Neighbor The Englishman at Paris English and French Character The
+Tuileries and Windsor Castle The Field of Waterloo Paris at the Restoration
+
+AMERICAN RESEARCHES IN ITALY--Life of Tasso: Recovery of a Lost Portrait of
+Dante
+
+THE TAKING OF THE VEIL The Charming Letorieres
+
+THE EARLY EXPERIENCES OF RALPH RINGWOOD--Noted Down from his Conversations
+
+THE SEMINOLES
+
+ORIGIN OF THE WHITE, THE RED, AND THE BLACK MEN--A Seminole Tradition
+
+THE CONSPIRACY OF NEAMATHLA--An Authentic Sketch
+
+LETTER FROM GRANADA
+
+ABDERAHMAN: Founder of the Dynasty of the Ommiades in Spain
+
+THE WIDOW'S ORDEAL: or a Judicial Trial by Combat
+
+THE CREOLE VILLAGE: A Sketch from a Steamboat
+
+A CONTENTED MAN
+
+
+
+
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+MOUNTJOY
+OR SOME PASSAGES OUT OF THE LIFE OF A CASTLE-BUILDER
+
+I was born among romantic scenery, in one of the wildest parts of the
+Hudson, which at that time was not so thickly settled as at present. My
+father was descended from one of the old Huguenot families that came over
+to this country on the revocation of the edict of Nantz. He lived in a
+style of easy, rural independence, on a patrimonial estate that had been
+for two or three generations in the family. He was an indolent,
+good-natured man, who took the world as it went, and had a kind of laughing
+philosophy, that parried all rubs and mishaps, and served him in the place
+of wisdom. This was the part of his character least to my taste; for I was
+of an enthusiastic, excitable temperament, prone to kindle up with new
+schemes and projects, and he was apt to dash my sallying enthusiasm by some
+unlucky joke; so that whenever I was in a glow with any sudden excitement,
+I stood in mortal dread of his good-humor.
+
+Yet he indulged me in every vagary; for I was an only son, and of course a
+personage of importance in the household. I had two sisters older than
+myself, and one younger. The former were educated at New York, under the
+eye of a maiden aunt; the latter remained at home, and was my cherished
+playmate, the companion of my thoughts. We were two imaginative little
+beings, of quick susceptibility, and prone to see wonders and mysteries in
+everything around us. Scarce had we learned to read, when our mother made
+us holiday presents of all the nursery literature of the day; which at that
+time consisted of little books covered with gilt paper, adorned with
+"cuts," and filled with tales of fairies, giants, and enchanters. What
+draughts of delightful fiction did we then inhale! My sister Sophy was of a
+soft and tender nature. She would weep over the woes of the Children in the
+Wood, or quake at the dark romance of Blue-Beard, and the terrible
+mysteries of the blue chamber. But I was all for enterprise and adventure.
+I burned to emulate the deeds of that heroic prince who delivered the white
+cat from her enchantment; or he of no less royal blood, and doughty
+enterprise, who broke the charmed slumber of the Beauty in the Wood!
+
+The house in which we lived was just the kind of place to foster such
+propensities. It was a venerable mansion, half villa, half farmhouse. The
+oldest part was of stone, with loop-holes for musketry, having served as a
+family fortress in the time of the Indians. To this there had been made
+various additions, some of brick, some of wood, according to the exigencies
+of the moment; so that it was full of nooks and crooks, and chambers of all
+sorts and sizes. It was buried among willows, elms, and cherry trees, and
+surrounded with roses and hollyhocks, with honeysuckle and sweetbrier
+clambering about every window. A brood of hereditary pigeons sunned
+themselves upon the roof; hereditary swallows and martins built about the
+eaves and chimneys; and hereditary bees hummed about the flower-beds.
+
+Under the influence of our story-books every object around us now assumed a
+new character, and a charmed interest. The wild flowers were no longer the
+mere ornaments of the fields, or the resorts of the toilful bee; they were
+the lurking-places of fairies. We would watch the humming-bird, as it
+hovered around the trumpet creeper at our porch, and the butterfly as it
+flitted up into the blue air, above the sunny tree-tops, and fancy them
+some of the tiny beings from fairyland. I would call to mind all that I had
+read of Robin Goodfellow and his power of transformation. Oh, how I envied
+him that power! How I longed to be able to compress my form into utter
+littleness; to ride the bold dragonfly; swing on the tall bearded grass;
+follow the ant into his subterraneous habitation, or dive into the
+cavernous depths of the honeysuckle!
+
+While I was yet a mere child I was sent to a daily school, about two miles
+distant. The schoolhouse was on the edge of a wood, close by a brook
+overhung with birches, alders, and dwarf willows. We of the school who
+lived at some distance came with our dinners put up in little baskets. In
+the intervals of school hours we would gather round a spring, under a tuft
+of hazel-bushes, and have a kind of picnic; interchanging the rustic
+dainties with which our provident mothers had fitted us out. Then, when our
+joyous repast was over, and my companions were disposed for play, I would
+draw forth one of my cherished story-books, stretch myself on the green
+sward, and soon lose myself in its bewitching contents.
+
+I became an oracle among my schoolmates on account of my superior
+erudition, and soon imparted to them the contagion of my infected fancy.
+Often in the evening, after school hours, we would sit on the trunk of some
+fallen tree in the woods, and vie with each other in telling extravagant
+stories, until the whip-poor-will began his nightly moaning, and the
+fireflies sparkled in the gloom. Then came the perilous journey homeward.
+What delight we would take in getting up wanton panics in some dusky part
+of the wood; scampering like frightened deer; pausing to take breath;
+renewing the panic, and scampering off again, wild with fictitious terror!
+
+Our greatest trial was to pass a dark, lonely pool, covered with
+pond-lilies, peopled with bullfrogs and water snakes, and haunted by two
+white cranes. Oh! the terrors of that pond! How our little hearts would
+beat as we approached it; what fearful glances we would throw around! And
+if by chance a plash of a wild duck, or the guttural twang of a bullfrog,
+struck our ears, as we stole quietly by--away we sped, nor paused until
+completely out of the woods. Then, when I reached home, what a world of
+adventures and imaginary terrors would I have to relate to my sister Sophy!
+
+As I advanced in years, this turn of mind increased upon me, and became
+more confirmed. I abandoned myself to the impulses of a romantic
+imagination, which controlled my studies, and gave a bias to all my habits.
+My father observed me continually with a book in my hand, and satisfied
+himself that I was a profound student; but what were my studies? Works of
+fiction; tales of chivalry; voyages of discovery; travels in the East;
+everything, in short, that partook of adventure and romance. I well
+remember with what zest I entered upon that part of my studies which
+treated of the heathen mythology, and particularly of the sylvan deities.
+Then indeed my school books became dear to me. The neighborhood was well
+calculated to foster the reveries of a mind like mine. It abounded with
+solitary retreats, wild streams, solemn forests, and silent valleys. I
+would ramble about for a whole day with a volume of Ovid's Metamorphoses in
+my pocket, and work myself into a kind of self-delusion, so as to identify
+the surrounding scenes with those of which I had just been reading. I would
+loiter about a brook that glided through the shadowy depths of the forest,
+picturing it to myself the haunt of Naiads. I would steal round some bushy
+copse that opened upon a glade, as if I expected to come suddenly upon
+Diana and her nymphs, or to behold Pan and his satyrs bounding, with whoop
+and halloo, through the woodland. I would throw myself, during the panting
+heats of a summer noon, under the shade of some wide-spreading tree, and
+muse and dream away the hours, in a state of mental intoxication. I drank
+in the very light of day, as nectar, and my soul seemed to bathe with
+ecstasy in the deep blue of a summer sky.
+
+In these wanderings nothing occurred to jar my feelings, or bring me back
+to the realities of life. There is a repose in our mighty forests that
+gives full scope to the imagination. Now and then I would hear the distant
+sound of the woodcutter's ax, or the crash of some tree which he had laid
+low; but these noises, echoing along the quiet landscape, could easily be
+wrought by fancy into harmony with its illusions. In general, however, the
+woody recesses of the neighborhood were peculiarly wild and unfrequented. I
+could ramble for a whole day, without coming upon any traces of
+cultivation. The partridge of the wood scarcely seemed to shun my path, and
+the squirrel, from his nut-tree, would gaze at me for an instant, with
+sparkling eye, as if wondering at the unwonted intrusion.
+
+I cannot help dwelling on this delicious period of my life; when as yet I
+had known no sorrow, nor experienced any worldly care. I have since studied
+much, both of books and men, and of course have grown too wise to be so
+easily pleased; yet with all my wisdom, I must confess I look back with a
+secret feeling of regret to the days of happy ignorance before I had begun
+to be a philosopher.
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+It must be evident that I was in a hopeful training for one who was to
+descend into the arena of life, and wrestle with the world. The tutor,
+also, who superintended my studies in the more advanced stage of my
+education, was just fitted to complete the _fata morgana_ which was
+forming in my mind. His name was Glencoe. He was a pale, melancholy-looking
+man, about forty years of age; a native of Scotland, liberally educated,
+and who had devoted himself to the instruction of youth from taste rather
+than necessity; for, as he said, he loved the human heart, and delighted to
+study it in its earlier impulses. My two elder sisters, having returned
+home from a city boarding-school, were likewise placed under his care, to
+direct their reading in history and belles-lettres.
+
+We all soon became attached to Glencoe. It is true, we were at first
+somewhat prepossessed against him. His meager, pallid countenance, his
+broad pronunciation, his inattention to the little forms of society, and an
+awkward and embarrassed manner, on first acquaintance, were much against
+him; but we soon discovered that under this unpromising exterior existed
+the kindest urbanity of temper; the warmest sympathies; the most
+enthusiastic benevolence. His mind was ingenious and acute. His reading had
+been various, but more abstruse than profound; his memory was stored, on
+all subjects, with facts, theories, and quotations, and crowded with crude
+materials for thinking. These, in a moment of excitement, would be, as it
+were, melted down, and poured forth in the lava of a heated imagination. At
+such moments, the change in the whole man was wonderful. His meager form
+would acquire a dignity and grace; his long, pale visage would flash with a
+hectic glow; his eyes would beam with intense speculation; and there would
+be pathetic tones and deep modulations in his voice, that delighted the
+ear, and spoke movingly to the heart.
+
+But what most endeared him to us was the kindness and sympathy with which
+he entered into all our interests and wishes. Instead of curbing and
+checking our young imaginations with the reins of sober reason, he was a
+little too apt to catch the impulse and be hurried away with us. He could
+not withstand the excitement of any sally of feeling or fancy, and was
+prone to lend heightening tints to the illusive coloring of youthful
+anticipation.
+
+Under his guidance my sisters and myself soon entered upon a more extended
+range of studies; but while they wandered, with delighted minds, through
+the wide field of history and belles-lettres, a nobler walk was opened to
+my superior intellect.
+
+The mind of Glencoe presented a singular mixture of philosophy and poetry.
+He was fond of metaphysics and prone to indulge in abstract speculations,
+though his metaphysics were somewhat fine spun and fanciful, and his
+speculations were apt to partake of what my father most irreverently termed
+"humbug." For my part, I delighted in them, and the more especially because
+they set my father to sleep and completely confounded my sisters. I entered
+with my accustomed eagerness into this new branch of study. Metaphysics
+were now my passion. My sisters attempted to accompany me, but they soon
+faltered, and gave out before they had got half way through Smith's Theory
+of the Moral Sentiments. I, however, went on, exulting in my strength.
+Glencoe supplied me with books, and I devoured them with appetite, if not
+digestion. We walked and talked together under the trees before the house,
+or sat apart, like Milton's angels, and held high converse upon themes
+beyond the grasp of ordinary intellects. Glencoe possessed a kind of
+philosophic chivalry, in imitation of the old peripatetic sages, and was
+continually dreaming of romantic enterprises in morals, and splendid
+systems for the improvement of society. He had a fanciful mode of
+illustrating abstract subjects, peculiarly to my taste; clothing them with
+the language of poetry, and throwing round them almost the magic hues of
+fiction. "How charming," thought I, "is divine philosophy;" not harsh and
+crabbed, as dull fools suppose,
+
+  "But a perpetual feast of nectar'd sweets,
+   Where no crude surfeit reigns."
+
+I felt a wonderful self-complacency at being on such excellent terms with a
+man whom I considered on a parallel with the sages of antiquity, and looked
+down with a sentiment of pity on the feebler intellects of my sisters, who
+could comprehend nothing of metaphysics. It is true, when I attempted to
+study them by myself, I was apt to get in a fog; but when Glencoe came to
+my aid, everything was soon as clear to me as day. My ear drank in the
+beauty of his words; my imagination was dazzled with the splendor of his
+illustrations. It caught up the sparkling sands of poetry that glittered
+through his speculations, and mistook them for the golden ore of wisdom.
+Struck with the facility with which I seemed to imbibe and relish the most
+abstract doctrines, I conceived a still higher opinion of my mental powers,
+and was convinced that I also was a philosopher.
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+I was now verging toward man's estate, and though my education had been
+extremely irregular--following the caprices of my humor, which I mistook
+for the impulses of my genius--yet I was regarded with wonder and delight
+by my mother and sisters, who considered me almost as wise and infallible
+as I considered myself. This high opinion of me was strengthened by a
+declamatory habit, which made me an oracle and orator at the domestic
+board. The time was now at hand, however, that was to put my philosophy to
+the test.
+
+We had passed through a long winter, and the spring at length opened upon
+us with unusual sweetness. The soft serenity of the weather; the beauty of
+the surrounding country; the joyous notes of the birds; the balmy breath of
+flower and blossom, all combined to fill my bosom with indistinct
+sensations, and nameless wishes. Amid the soft seductions of the season, I
+lapsed into a state of utter indolence, both of body and mind.
+
+Philosophy had lost its charms for me. Metaphysics--faugh! I tried to
+study; took down volume after volume, ran my eye vacantly over a few pages,
+and threw them by with distaste. I loitered about the house, with my hands
+in my pockets, and an air of complete vacancy. Something was necessary to
+make me happy; but what was that something? I sauntered to the apartments
+of my sisters, hoping their conversation might amuse me. They had walked
+out, and the room was vacant. On the table lay a volume which they had been
+reading. It was a novel. I had never read a novel, having conceived a
+contempt for works of the kind, from hearing them universally condemned. It
+is true, I had remarked that they were as universally read; but I
+considered them beneath the attention of a philosopher, and never would
+venture to read them, lest I should lessen my mental superiority in the
+eyes of my sisters. Nay, I had taken up a work of the kind now and then,
+when I knew my sisters were observing me, looked into it for a moment, and
+then laid it down, with a slight supercilious smile. On the present
+occasion, out of mere listlessness, I took up the volume and turned over a
+few of the first pages. I thought I heard some one coming, and laid it
+down. I was mistaken; no one was near, and what I had read tempted my
+curiosity to read a little further. I leaned against a window-frame, and in
+a few minutes was completely lost in the story. How long I stood there
+reading I know not, but I believe for nearly two hours. Suddenly I heard my
+sisters on the stairs, when I thrust the book into my bosom, and the two
+other volumes which lay near into my pockets, and hurried out of the house
+to my beloved woods. Here I remained all day beneath the trees, bewildered,
+bewitched, devouring the contents of these delicious volumes, and only
+returned to the house when it was too dark to peruse their pages.
+
+This novel finished, I replaced it in my sisters' apartment, and looked for
+others. Their stock was ample, for they had brought home all that were
+current in the city; but my appetite demanded an immense supply. All this
+course of reading was carried on clandestinely, for I was a little ashamed
+of it, and fearful that my wisdom might be called in question; but this
+very privacy gave it additional zest. It was "bread eaten in secret"; it
+had the charm of a private amour.
+
+But think what must have been the effect of such a course of reading on a
+youth of my temperament and turn of mind; indulged, too, amid romantic
+scenery and in the romantic season of the year. It seemed as if I had
+entered upon a new scene of existence. A train of combustible feelings were
+lighted up in me, and my soul was all tenderness and passion. Never was
+youth more completely love-sick, though as yet it was a mere general
+sentiment, and wanted a definite object. Unfortunately, our neighborhood
+was particularly deficient in female society, and I languished in vain for
+some divinity to whom I might offer up this most uneasy burden of
+affections. I was at one time seriously enamored of a lady whom I saw
+occasionally in my rides, reading at the window of a country-seat; and
+actually serenaded her with my flute; when, to my confusion, I discovered
+that she was old enough to be my mother. It was a sad damper to my romance;
+especially as my father heard of it, and made it the subject of one of
+those household jokes which he was apt to serve up at every meal-time.
+
+I soon recovered from this check, however, but it was only to relapse into
+a state of amorous excitement. I passed whole days in the fields, and along
+the brooks; for there is something in the tender passion that makes us
+alive to the beauties of nature. A soft sunshiny morning infused a sort of
+rapture into my breast. I flung open my arms, like the Grecian youth in
+Ovid, as if I would take in and embrace the balmy atmosphere. [Footnote:
+Ovid's Metamorphoses, Book vii] The song of the birds melted me to
+tenderness. I would lie by the side of some rivulet for hours, and form
+garlands of the flowers on its banks, and muse on ideal beauties, and sigh
+from the crowd of undefined emotions that swelled my bosom.
+
+In this state of amorous delirium, I was strolling one morning along a
+beautiful wild brook, which I had discovered in a glen. There was one place
+where a small waterfall, leaping from among rocks into a natural basin,
+made a scene such as a poet might have chosen as the haunt of some shy
+Naiad. It was here I usually retired to banquet on my novels. In visiting
+the place this morning I traced distinctly, on the margin of the basin,
+which was of fine clear sand, the prints of a female foot of the most
+slender and delicate proportions. This was sufficient for an imagination
+like mine. Robinson Crusoe himself, when he discovered the print of a
+savage foot on the beach of his lonely island, could not have been more
+suddenly assailed with thick-coming fancies.
+
+I endeavored to track the steps, but they only passed for a few paces along
+the fine sand, and then were lost among the herbage. I remained gazing in
+reverie upon this passing trace of loveliness. It evidently was not made by
+any of my sisters, for they knew nothing of this haunt; besides, the foot
+was smaller than theirs; it was remarkable for its beautiful delicacy.
+
+My eye accidentally caught two or three half-withered wild flowers lying on
+the ground. The unknown nymph had doubtless dropped them from her bosom!
+Here was a new document of taste and sentiment. I treasured them up as
+invaluable relics. The place, too, where I found them, was remarkably
+picturesque, and the most beautiful part of the brook. It was overhung with
+a fine elm, entwined with grapevines. She who could select such a spot, who
+could delight in wild brooks, and wild flowers, and silent solitudes, must
+have fancy, and feeling, and tenderness; and with all these qualities, she
+must be beautiful!
+
+But who could be this Unknown, that had thus passed by, as in a morning
+dream, leaving merely flowers and fairy footsteps to tell of her
+loveliness? There was a mystery in it that bewildered me. It was so vague
+and disembodied, like those "airy tongues that syllable men's names" in
+solitude. Every attempt to solve the mystery was vain. I could hear of no
+being in the neighborhood to whom this trace could be ascribed. I haunted
+the spot, and became daily more and more enamored. Never, surely, was
+passion more pure and spiritual, and never lover in more dubious situation.
+My case could be compared only to that of the amorous prince in the fairy
+tale of Cinderella; but he had a glass slipper on which to lavish his
+tenderness. I, alas! was in love with a footstep!
+
+The imagination is alternately a cheat and a dupe; nay, more, it is the
+most subtle of cheats, for it cheats itself and becomes the dupe of its own
+delusions. It conjures up "airy nothings," gives to them a "local
+habitation and a name," and then bows to their control as implicitly as
+though they were realities. Such was now my case. The good Numa could not
+more thoroughly have persuaded himself that the nymph Egeria hovered about
+her sacred fountain and communed with him in spirit than I had deceived
+myself into a kind of visionary intercourse with the airy phantom
+fabricated in my brain. I constructed a rustic seat at the foot of the tree
+where I had discovered the footsteps. I made a kind of bower there, where I
+used to pass my mornings reading poetry and romances. I carved hearts and
+darts on the tree, and hung it with garlands. My heart was full to
+overflowing, and wanted some faithful bosom into which it might relieve
+itself. What is a lover without a confidante? I thought at once of my
+sister Sophy, my early playmate, the sister of my affections. She was so
+reasonable, too, and of such correct feelings, always listening to my words
+as oracular sayings, and admiring my scraps of poetry as the very
+inspirations of the muse. From such a devoted, such a rational being, what
+secrets could I have?
+
+I accordingly took her one morning to my favorite retreat. She looked
+around, with delighted surprise, upon the rustic seat, the bower, the tree
+carved with emblems of the tender passion. She turned her eyes upon me to
+inquire the meaning.
+
+"Oh, Sophy," exclaimed I, clasping both her hands in mine, and looking
+earnestly in her face, "I am in love."
+
+She started with surprise.
+
+"Sit down," said I, "and I will tell you all."
+
+She seated herself upon the rustic bench, and I went into a full history of
+the footstep, with all the associations of idea that had been conjured up
+by my imagination.
+
+Sophy was enchanted; it was like a fairy tale; she had read of such
+mysterious visitations in books, and the loves thus conceived were always
+for beings of superior order, and were always happy. She caught the
+illusion in all its force; her cheek glowed; her eye brightened.
+
+"I daresay she's pretty," said Sophy.
+
+"Pretty!" echoed I, "she is beautiful." I went through all the reasoning by
+which I had logically proved the fact to my own satisfaction. I dwelt upon
+the evidences of her taste, her sensibility to the beauties of nature; her
+soft meditative habit that delighted in solitude. "Oh," said I, clasping my
+hands, "to have such a companion to wander through these scenes; to sit
+with her by this murmuring stream; to wreathe garlands round her brows; to
+hear the music of her voice mingling with the whisperings of these groves;
+to--"
+
+"Delightful! delightful!" cried Sophy; "what a sweet creature she must be!
+She is just the friend I want. How I shall dote upon her! Oh, my dear
+brother! you must not keep her all to yourself. You must let _me_ have
+some share of her!"
+
+I caught her to my bosom: "You shall--you shall!" cried I, "my dear Sophy;
+we will all live for each other!"
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+The conversation with Sophy heightened the illusions of my mind; and the
+manner in which she had treated my daydream identified it with facts and
+persons and gave it still more the stamp of reality. I walked about as one
+in a trance, heedless of the world around and lapped in an elysium of the
+fancy.
+
+In this mood I met one morning with Glencoe. He accosted me with his usual
+smile, and was proceeding with some general observations, but paused and
+fixed on me an inquiring eye.
+
+"What is the matter with you?" said he, "you seem agitated; has anything in
+particular happened?"
+
+"Nothing," said I, hesitating; "at least nothing worth communicating to
+you."
+
+"Nay, my dear young friend," said he, "whatever is of sufficient importance
+to agitate you is worthy of being communicated to me."
+
+"Well; but my thoughts are running on what you would think a frivolous
+subject."
+
+"No subject is frivolous that has the power to awaken strong feelings."
+
+"What think you," said I, hesitating, "what think you of love?"
+
+Glencoe almost started at the question. "Do you call that a frivolous
+subject?" replied he. "Believe me, there is none fraught with such deep,
+such vital interest. If you talk, indeed, of the capricious inclination
+awakened by the mere charm of perishable beauty, I grant it to be idle in
+the extreme; but that love which springs from the concordant sympathies of
+virtuous hearts; that love which is awakened by the perception of moral
+excellence, and fed by meditation on intellectual as well as personal
+beauty; that is a passion which refines and ennobles the human heart. Oh,
+where is there a sight more nearly approaching to the intercourse of
+angels, than that of two young beings, free from the sins and follies of
+the world, mingling pure thoughts, and looks, and feelings, and becoming,
+as it were, soul of one soul and heart of one heart! How exquisite the
+silent converse that they hold; the soft devotion of the eye, that needs no
+words to make it eloquent! Yes, my friend, if there be anything in this
+weary world worthy of heaven, it is the pure bliss of such a mutual
+affection!"
+
+The words of my worthy tutor overcame all further reserve. "Mr. Glencoe,"
+cried I, blushing still deeper, "I am in love."
+
+"And is that what you were ashamed to tell me? Oh, never seek to conceal
+from your friend so important a secret. If your passion be unworthy, it is
+for the steady hand of friendship to pluck it forth; if honorable, none but
+an enemy would seek to stifle it. On nothing does the character and
+happiness so much depend as on the first affection of the heart. Were you
+caught by some fleeting and superficial charm--a bright eye, a blooming
+cheek, a soft voice, or a voluptuous form--I would warn you to beware; I
+would tell you that beauty is but a passing gleam of the morning, a
+perishable flower; that accident may becloud and blight it, and that at
+best it must soon pass away. But were you in love with such a one as I
+could describe; young in years, but still younger in feelings; lovely in
+person, but as a type of the mind's beauty; soft in voice, in token of
+gentleness of spirit; blooming in countenance, like the rosy tints of
+morning kindling with the promise of a genial day; an eye beaming with the
+benignity of a happy heart; a cheerful temper, alive to all kind impulses,
+and frankly diffusing its own felicity; a self-poised mind, that needs not
+lean on others for support; an elegant taste, that can embellish solitude,
+and furnish out its own enjoyments--"
+
+"My dear sir," cried I, for I could contain myself no longer, "you have
+described the very person!"
+
+"Why, then, my dear young friend," said he, affectionately pressing my
+hand, "in God's name, love on!"
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+For the remainder of the day I was in some such state of dreamy beatitude
+as a Turk is said to enjoy when under the influence of opium. It must be
+already manifest how prone I was to bewilder myself with picturings of the
+fancy, so as to confound them with existing realities. In the present
+instance, Sophy and Glencoe had contributed to promote the transient
+delusion. Sophy, dear girl, had as usual joined with me in my
+castle-building, and indulged in the same train of imaginings, while
+Glencoe, duped by my enthusiasm, firmly believed that I spoke of a being I
+had seen and known. By their sympathy with my feelings they in a manner
+became associated with the Unknown in my mind, and thus linked her with the
+circle of my intimacy.
+
+In the evening, our family party was assembled in the hall, to enjoy the
+refreshing breeze. Sophy was playing some favorite Scotch airs on the
+piano, while Glencoe, seated apart, with his forehead resting on his hand,
+was buried in one of those pensive reveries that made him so interesting to
+me.
+
+"What a fortunate being I am!" thought I, "blessed with such a sister and
+such a friend! I have only to find out this amiable Unknown, to wed her,
+and be happy! What a paradise will be my home, graced with a partner of
+such exquisite refinement! It will be a perfect fairy bower, buried among
+sweets and roses. Sophy shall live with us, and be the companion of all our
+enjoyments. Glencoe, too, shall no more be the solitary being that he now
+appears. He shall have a home with us. He shall have his study, where, when
+he pleases, he may shut himself up from the world, and bury himself in his
+own reflections. His retreat shall be sacred; no one shall intrude there;
+no one but myself, who will visit him now and then, in his seclusion, where
+we will devise grand schemes together for the improvement of mankind. How
+delightfully our days will pass, in a round of rational pleasures and
+elegant employments! Sometimes we will have music; sometimes we will read;
+sometimes we will wander through the flower garden, when I will smile with
+complacency on every flower my wife has planted; while in the long winter
+evenings the ladies will sit at their work, and listen with hushed
+attention to Glencoe and myself, as we discuss the abstruse doctrines of
+metaphysics."
+
+From this delectable reverie, I was startled by my father's slapping me on
+the shoulder. "What possesses the lad?" cried he; "here have I been
+speaking to you half a dozen times, without receiving an answer."
+
+"Pardon me, sir," replied I; "I was so completely lost in thought, that I
+did not hear you."
+
+"Lost in thought! And pray what were you thinking of? Some of your
+philosophy, I suppose."
+
+"Upon my word," said my sister Charlotte, with an arch laugh, "I suspect
+Harry's in love again."
+
+"And if were in love, Charlotte," said I, somewhat nettled, and
+recollecting Glencoe's enthusiastic eulogy of the passion, "if I were in
+love, is that a matter of jest and laughter? Is the tenderest and most
+fervid affection that can animate the human breast to be made a matter of
+cold-hearted ridicule?"
+
+My sister colored. "Certainly not, brother!--nor did I mean to make it so,
+or to say anything that should wound your feelings. Had I really suspected
+you had formed some genuine attachment, it would have been sacred in my
+eyes; but--but," said she, smiling, as if at some whimsical recollection,
+"I thought that you--you might be indulging in another little freak of the
+imagination."
+
+"Ill wager any money," cried my father, "he has fallen in love again with
+some old lady at a window!"
+
+"Oh, no!" cried my dear sister Sophy, with the most gracious warmth; "she
+is young and beautiful."
+
+"From what I understand," said Glencoe, rousing himself, "she must be
+lovely in mind as in person."
+
+I found my friends were getting me into a fine scrape. I began to perspire
+at every pore, and felt my ears tingle.
+
+"Well, but," cried my father, "who is she?--what is she? Let us hear
+something about her."
+
+This was no time to explain so delicate a matter. I caught up my hat, and
+vanished out of the house.
+
+The moment I was in the open air, and alone, my heart upbraided me. Was
+this respectful treatment to my father--to _such_ a father, too--who
+had always regarded me as the pride of his age--the staff of his hopes? It
+is true, he was apt sometimes to laugh at my enthusiastic flights, and did
+not treat my philosophy with due respect; but when had he ever thwarted a
+wish of my heart? Was I then to act with reserve toward him, in a matter
+which might affect the whole current of my future life? "I have done
+wrong," thought I; "but it is not too late to remedy it. I will hasten back
+and open my whole heart to my father!"
+
+I returned accordingly, and was just on the point of entering the house,
+with my heart full of filial piety and a contrite speech upon my lips, when
+I heard a burst of obstreperous laughter from my father, and a loud titter
+from my two elder sisters.
+
+"A footstep!" shouted he, as soon as he could recover himself; "in love
+with a footstep! Why, this beats the old lady at the window!" And then
+there was another appalling burst of laughter. Had it been a clap of
+thunder, it could hardly have astounded me more completely. Sophy, in the
+simplicity of her heart, had told all, and had set my father's risible
+propensities in full action.
+
+Never was poor mortal so thoroughly crestfallen as myself. The whole
+delusion was at an end. I drew off silently from the house, shrinking
+smaller and smaller at every fresh peal of laughter; and, wandering about
+until the family had retired, stole quietly to my bed. Scarce any sleep,
+however, visited my eyes that night! I lay overwhelmed with mortification,
+and meditating how I might meet the family in the morning. The idea of
+ridicule was always intolerable to me; but to endure it on a subject by
+which my feelings had been so much excited seemed worse than death. I
+almost determined, at one time, to get up, saddle my horse, and ride off, I
+knew not whither.
+
+At length I came to a resolution. Before going down to breakfast, I sent
+for Sophy, and employed her as embassador to treat formally in the matter.
+I insisted that the subject should be buried in oblivion; otherwise I would
+not show my face at table. It was readily agreed to; for not one of the
+family would have given me pain for the world. They faithfully kept their
+promise. Not a word was said of the matter; but there were wry faces, and
+suppressed titters, that went to my soul; and whenever my father looked me
+in the face, it was with such a tragi-comical leer--such an attempt to pull
+down a serious brow upon a whimsical mouth--that I had a thousand times
+rather he had laughed outright.
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+For a day or two after the mortifying occurrence just related, I kept as
+much as possible out of the way of the family, and wandered about the
+fields and woods by myself. I was sadly out of tune; my feelings were all
+jarred and unstrung. The birds sang from every grove, but I took no
+pleasure in their melody; and the flowers of the field bloomed unheeded
+around me. To be crossed in love is bad enough; but then one can fly to
+poetry for relief, and turn one's woes to account in soul-subduing stanzas.
+But to have one's whole passion, object and all, annihilated, dispelled,
+proved to be such stuff as dreams are made of--or, worse than all, to be
+turned into a proverb and a jest--what consolation is there in such a case?
+
+I avoided the fatal brook where I had seen the footstep. My favorite resort
+was now the banks of the Hudson, where I sat upon the rocks and mused upon
+the current that dimpled by, or the waves that laved the shore; or watched
+the bright mutations of the clouds, and the shifting lights and shadows of
+the distant mountain. By degrees a returning serenity stole over my
+feelings; and a sigh now and then, gentle and easy, and unattended by pain,
+showed that my heart was recovering its susceptibility.
+
+As I was sitting in this musing mood my eye became gradually fixed upon an
+object that was borne along by the tide. It proved to be a little pinnace,
+beautifully modeled, and gayly painted and decorated. It was an unusual
+sight in this neighborhood, which was rather lonely; indeed, it was rare to
+see any pleasure-barks in this part of the river. As it drew nearer, I
+perceived that there was no one on board; it had apparently drifted from
+its anchorage. There was not a breath of air; the little bark came floating
+along on the glassy stream, wheeling about with the eddies. At length it
+ran aground, almost at the foot of the rock on which I was seated. I
+descended to the margin of the river, and drawing the bark to shore,
+admired its light and elegant proportions and the taste with which it was
+fitted up. The benches were covered with cushions, and its long streamer
+was of silk. On one of the cushion's lay a lady's glove, of delicate size
+and shape, with beautifully tapered fingers. I instantly seized it and
+thrust it in my bosom; it seemed a match for the fairy footstep that had so
+fascinated me.
+
+In a moment all the romance of my bosom was again in a glow. Here was one
+of the very incidents of fairy tale; a bark sent by some invisible power,
+some good genius, or benevolent fairy, to waft me to some delectable
+adventure. I recollected something of an enchanted bark, drawn by white
+swans, that conveyed a knight down the current of the Rhine, on some
+enterprise connected with love and beauty. The glove, too, showed that
+there was a lady fair concerned in the present adventure. It might be a
+gauntlet of defiance, to dare me to the enterprise.
+
+In the spirit of romance and the whim of the moment, I sprang on board,
+hoisted the light sail, and pushed from shore. As if breathed by some
+presiding power, a light breeze at that moment sprang up, swelled out the
+sail, and dallied with the silken streamer. For a time I glided along under
+steep umbrageous banks, or across deep sequestered bays; and then stood out
+over a wide expansion of the river toward a high rocky promontory. It was a
+lovely evening; the sun was setting in a congregation of clouds that threw
+the whole heavens in a glow, and were reflected in the river. I delighted
+myself with all kinds of fantastic fancies, as to what enchanted island, or
+mystic bower, or necromantic palace, I was to be conveyed by the fairy
+bark.
+
+In the revel of my fancy I had not noticed that the gorgeous congregation
+of clouds which had so much delighted me was in fact a gathering thunder
+gust. I perceived the truth too late. The clouds came hurrying on,
+darkening as they advanced. The whole face of nature was suddenly changed,
+and assumed that baleful and livid tint, predictive of a storm. I tried to
+gain the shore, but before I could reach it a blast of wind struck the
+water and lashed it at once into foam. The next moment it overtook the
+boat. Alas! I was nothing of a sailor; and my protecting fairy forsook me
+in the moment of peril. I endeavored to lower the sail; but in so doing I
+had to quit the helm; the bark was overturned in an instant, and I was
+thrown into the water. I endeavored to cling to the wreck, but missed my
+hold; being a poor swimmer I soon found myself sinking, but grasped a light
+oar that was floating by me. It was not sufficient for my support; I again
+sank beneath the surface; there was a rushing and bubbling sound in my
+ears, and all sense forsook me.
+
+How long I remained insensible, I know not. I had a confused notion of
+being moved and tossed about, and of hearing strange beings and strange
+voices around me; but all this was like a hideous dream. When I at length
+recovered full consciousness and perception, I found myself in bed in a
+spacious chamber, furnished with more taste than I had been accustomed to.
+The bright rays of a morning sun were intercepted by curtains of a delicate
+rose color, that gave a soft, voluptuous tinge to every object. Not far
+from my bed, on a classic tripod, was a basket of beautiful exotic flowers,
+breathing the sweetest fragrance.
+
+"Where am I? How came I here?"
+
+I tasked my mind to catch at some previous event, from which I might trace
+up the thread of existence to the present moment. By degrees I called to
+mind the fairy pinnace, my daring embarkation, my adventurous voyage, and
+my disastrous shipwreck. Beyond that, all was chaos. How came I here? What
+unknown region had I landed upon? The people that inhabited it must be
+gentle and amiable, and of elegant tastes, for they loved downy beds,
+fragrant flowers, and rose-colored curtains.
+
+While I lay thus musing, the tones of a harp reached my ear. Presently they
+were accompanied by a female voice. It came from the room below; but in the
+profound stillness of my chamber not a modulation was lost. My sisters were
+all considered good musicians, and sang very tolerably; but I had never
+heard a voice like this. There was no attempt at difficult execution, or
+striking effect; but there were exquisite inflections, and tender turns,
+which art could not reach. Nothing but feeling and sentiment could produce
+them. It was soul breathed forth in sound. I was always alive to the
+influence of music; indeed, I was susceptible of voluptuous influences of
+every kind--sounds, colors, shapes, and fragrant odors. I was the very
+slave of sensation.
+
+I lay mute and breathless, and drank in every note of this siren strain. It
+thrilled through my whole frame, and filled my soul with melody and love. I
+pictured to myself, with curious logic, the form of the unseen musician.
+Such melodious sounds and exquisite inflections could only be produced by
+organs of the most delicate flexibility. Such organs do not belong to
+coarse, vulgar forms; they are the harmonious results of fair proportions,
+and admirable symmetry. A being so organized must be lovely.
+
+Again my busy imagination was at work. I called to mind the Arabian story
+of a prince, borne away during sleep by a good genius, to the distant abode
+of a princess of ravishing beauty. I do not pretend to say that I believed
+in having experienced a similar transportation; but it was my inveterate
+habit to cheat myself with fancies of the kind, and to give the tinge of
+illusion to surrounding realities.
+
+The witching sound had ceased, but its vibrations still played round my
+heart, and filled it with a tumult of soft emotions. At this moment, a
+self-upbraiding pang shot through my bosom. "Ah, recreant!" a voice seemed
+to exclaim, "is this the stability of thine affections? What! hast thou so
+soon forgotten the nymph of the fountain? Has one song, idly piped in thine
+ear, been sufficient to charm away the cherished tenderness of a whole
+summer?"
+
+The wise may smile--but I am in a confiding mood, and must confess my
+weakness. I felt a degree of compunction at this sudden infidelity, yet I
+could not resist the power of present fascination. My peace of mind was
+destroyed by conflicting claims. The nymph of the fountain came over my
+memory, with all the associations of fairy footsteps, shady groves, soft
+echoes, and wild streamlets; but this new passion was produced by a strain
+of soul-subduing melody, still lingering in my ear, aided by a downy bed,
+fragrant flowers, and rose-colored curtains. "Unhappy youth!" sighed I to
+myself, "distracted by such rival passions, and the empire of thy heart
+thus violently contested by the sound of a voice, and the print of a
+footstep!"
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+I had not remained long in this mood, when I heard the door of the room
+gently opened. I turned my head to see what inhabitant of this enchanted
+palace should appear; whether page in green, a hideous dwarf, or haggard
+fairy. It was my own man Scipio. He advanced with cautious step, and was
+delighted, as he said, to find me so much myself again. My first questions
+were as to where I was and how I came there? Scipio told me a long story of
+his having been fishing in a canoe at the time of my hare-brained cruise;
+of his noticing the gathering squall, and my impending danger; of his
+hastening to join me, but arriving just in time to snatch me from a watery
+grave; of the great difficulty in restoring me to animation; and of my
+being subsequently conveyed, in a state of insensibility, to this mansion.
+
+"But where am I?" was the reiterated demand.
+
+"In the house of Mr. Somerville."
+
+"Somerville--Somerville!" I recollected to have heard that a gentleman of
+that name had recently taken up his residence at some distance from my
+father's abode, on the opposite side of the Hudson. He was commonly known
+by the name of "French Somerville," from having passed part of his early
+life in France, and from his exhibiting traces of French taste in his mode
+of living, and the arrangements of his house. In fact, it was in his
+pleasure-boat, which had got adrift, that I had made my fanciful and
+disastrous cruise. All this was simple, straightforward matter of fact, and
+threatened to demolish all the cobweb romance I had been spinning, when
+fortunately I again heard the tinkling of a harp. I raised myself in bed
+and listened.
+
+"Scipio," said I, with some little hesitation, "I heard some one singing
+just now. Who was it?"
+
+"Oh, that was Miss Julia."
+
+"Julia! Julia! Delightful! what a name! And, Scipio--is she--is she
+pretty?"
+
+Scipio grinned from ear to ear. "Except Miss Sophy, she was the most
+beautiful young lady he had ever seen."
+
+I should observe, that my sister Sophia was considered by all the servants
+a paragon of perfection.
+
+Scipio now offered to remove the basket of flowers; he was afraid their
+odor might be too powerful; but Miss Julia had given them that morning to
+be placed in my room.
+
+These flowers, then, had been gathered by the fairy fingers of my unseen
+beauty; that sweet breath which had filled my ear with melody had passed
+over them. I made Scipio hand them to me, culled several of the most
+delicate, and laid them on my bosom.
+
+Mr. Somerville paid me a visit not long afterward. He was an interesting
+study for me, for he was the father of my unseen beauty, and probably
+resembled her. I scanned him closely. He was a tall and elegant man, with
+an open, affable manner, and an erect and graceful carriage. His eyes were
+bluish-gray, and, though not dark, yet at times were sparkling and
+expressive. His hair was dressed and powdered, and being lightly combed up
+from his forehead, added to the loftiness of his aspect. He was fluent in
+discourse, but his conversation had the quiet tone of polished society,
+without any of those bold flights of thought, and picturings of fancy,
+which I so much admired.
+
+My imagination was a little puzzled, at first, to make out of this
+assemblage of personal and mental qualities a picture that should harmonize
+with my previous idea of the fair unseen. By dint, however, of selecting
+what it liked, and giving a touch here and a touch there, it soon furnished
+out a satisfactory portrait.
+
+"Julia must be tall," thought I, "and of exquisite grace and dignity. She
+is not quite so courtly as her father, for she has been brought up in the
+retirement of the country. Neither is she of such vivacious deportment; for
+the tones of her voice are soft and plaintive, and she loves pathetic
+music. She is rather pensive--yet not too pensive; just what is called
+interesting. Her eyes are like her father's, except that they are of a
+purer blue, and more tender and languishing. She has light hair--not
+exactly flaxen, for I do not like flaxen hair, but between that and auburn.
+In a word, she is a tall, elegant, imposing, languishing blue-eyed,
+romantic-looking beauty." And having thus finished her picture, I felt ten
+times more in love with her than ever.
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+I felt so much recovered that I would at once have left my room, but Mr.
+Somerville objected to it. He had sent early word to my family of my
+safety; and my father arrived in the course of the morning. He was shocked
+at learning the risk I had run, but rejoiced to find me so much restored,
+and was warm in his thanks to Mr. Somerville for his kindness. The other
+only required, in return, that I might remain two or three days as his
+guest, to give time for my recovery, and for our forming a closer
+acquaintance; a request which my father readily granted. Scipio accordingly
+accompanied my father home, and returned with a supply of clothes, and with
+affectionate letters from my mother and sisters.
+
+The next morning, aided by Scipio, I made my toilet with rather more care
+than usual, and descended the stairs with some trepidation, eager to see
+the original of the portrait which had been so completely pictured in my
+imagination.
+
+On entering the parlor, I found it deserted. Like the rest of the house, it
+was furnished in a foreign style. The curtains were of French silk; there
+were Grecian couches, marble tables, pier-glasses, and chandeliers. What
+chiefly attracted my eye, were documents of female taste that I saw around
+me; a piano, with an ample stock of Italian music: a book of poetry lying
+on the sofa; a vase of fresh flowers on a table, and a portfolio open with
+a skillful and half-finished sketch of them. In the window was a canary
+bird, in a gilt cage, and near by, the harp that had been in Julia's arms.
+Happy harp! But where was the being that reigned in this little empire of
+delicacies?--that breathed poetry and song, and dwelt among birds and
+flowers, and rose-colored curtains?
+
+Suddenly I heard the hall door fly open, the quick pattering of light
+steps, a wild, capricious strain of music, and the shrill barking of a dog.
+A light, frolic nymph of fifteen came tripping into the room, playing on a
+flageolet, with a little spaniel romping after her. Her gypsy hat had
+fallen back upon her shoulders; a profusion of glossy brown hair was blown
+in rich ringlets about her face, which beamed through them with the
+brightness of smiles and dimples.
+
+At sight of me she stopped short, in the most beautiful confusion,
+stammered out a word or two about looking for her father, glided out of the
+door, and I heard her bounding up the staircase, like a frightened fawn,
+with the little dog barking after her.
+
+When Miss Somerville returned to the parlor, she was quite a different
+being. She entered, stealing along by her mother's side with noiseless
+step, and sweet timidity; her hair was prettily adjusted, and a soft blush
+mantled on her damask cheek. Mr. Somerville accompanied the ladies, and
+introduced me regularly to them. There were many kind inquiries and much
+sympathy expressed, on the subject of my nautical accident, and some
+remarks upon the wild scenery of the neighborhood, with which the ladies
+seemed perfectly acquainted.
+
+"You must know," said Mr. Somerville, "that we are great navigators, and
+delight in exploring every nook and corner of the river. My daughter, too,
+is a great hunter of the picturesque, and transfers every rock and glen to
+her portfolio. By the way, my dear, show Mr. Mountjoy that pretty scene you
+have lately sketched." Julia complied, blushing, and drew from her
+portfolio a colored sketch. I almost started at the sight. It was my
+favorite brook. A sudden thought darted across my mind. I glanced down my
+eye, and beheld the divinest little foot in the world. Oh, blissful
+conviction! The struggle of my affections was at an end. The voice and the
+footstep were no longer at variance. Julia Somerville was the nymph of the
+fountain!
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+What conversation passed during breakfast I do not recollect, and hardly
+was conscious of at the time, for my thoughts were in complete confusion. I
+wished to gaze on Miss Somerville, but did not dare. Once, indeed, I
+ventured a glance. She was at that moment darting a similar one from under
+a covert of ringlets. Our eyes seemed shocked by the rencontre, and fell;
+hers through the natural modesty of her sex, mine through a bashfulness
+produced by the previous workings of my imagination. That glance, however,
+went like a sunbeam to my heart.
+
+A convenient mirror favored my diffidence, and gave me the reflection of
+Miss Somerville's form. It is true it only presented the back of her head,
+but she had the merit of an ancient statue; contemplate her from any point
+of view, she was beautiful. And yet she was totally different from
+everything I had before conceived of beauty. She was not the serene,
+meditative maid that I had pictured the nymph of the fountain; nor the
+tall, soft, languishing, blue-eyed, dignified being that I had fancied the
+minstrel of the harp. There was nothing of dignity about her: she was
+girlish in her appearance, and scarcely of the middle size; but then there
+was the tenderness of budding youth; the sweetness of the half-blown rose,
+when not a tint of perfume has been withered or exhaled; there were smiles
+and dimples, and all the soft witcheries of ever-varying expression. I
+wondered that I could ever have admired any other style of beauty.
+
+After breakfast, Mr. Somerville departed to attend to the concerns of his
+estate, and gave me in charge of the ladies. Mrs. Somerville also was
+called away by her household cares, and I was left alone with Julia! Here,
+then, was the situation which of all others I had most coveted. I was in
+the presence of the lovely being that had so long been the desire of my
+heart. We were alone; propitious opportunity for a lover! Did I seize upon
+it? Did I break out in one of my accustomed rhapsodies? No such thing!
+Never was being more awkwardly embarrassed.
+
+"What can be the cause of this?" thought I. "Surely, I cannot stand in awe
+of this young girl. I am of course her superior in intellect, and am never
+embarrassed in company with my tutor, notwithstanding all his wisdom."
+
+It was passing strange. I felt that if she were an old woman, I should be
+quite at my ease; if she were even an ugly woman, I should make out very
+well: it was her beauty that overpowered me. How little do lovely women
+know what awful beings they are, in the eyes of inexperienced youth! Young
+men brought up in the fashionable circles of our cities will smile at all
+this. Accustomed to mingle incessantly in female society, and to have the
+romance of the heart deadened by a thousand frivolous flirtations, women
+are nothing but women in their eyes; but to a susceptible youth like
+myself, brought up in the country, they are perfect divinities.
+
+Miss Somerville was at first a little embarrassed herself; but, somehow or
+other, women have a natural adroitness in recovering their self-possession;
+they are more alert in their minds, and graceful in their manners. Besides,
+I was but an ordinary personage in Miss Somerville's eyes; she was not
+under Hie influence of such a singular course of imaginings as had
+surrounded her, in my eyes, with the illusions of romance. Perhaps, too,
+she saw the confusion in the opposite camp and gained courage from the
+discovery. At any rate she was the first to take the field.
+
+Her conversation, however, was only on commonplace topics, and in an easy,
+well-bred style. I endeavored to respond in the same manner; but I was
+strangely incompetent to the task. My ideas were frozen up; even words
+seemed to fail me. I was excessively vexed at myself, for I wished to be
+uncommonly elegant. I tried two or three times to turn a pretty thought, or
+to utter a fine sentiment; but it would come forth so trite, so forced, so
+mawkish, that I was ashamed of it. My very voice sounded discordantly,
+though I sought to modulate it into the softest tones. "The truth is,"
+thought I to myself, "I cannot bring my mind down to the small talk
+necessary for young girls; it is too masculine and robust for the mincing
+measure of parlor gossip. I am a philosopher--and that accounts for it."
+
+The entrance of Mrs. Somerville at length gave me relief. I at once
+breathed freely, and felt a vast deal of confidence come over me. "This is
+strange," thought I, "that the appearance of another woman should revive my
+courage; that I should be a better match for two women than one. However,
+since it is so, I will take advantage of the circumstance, and let this
+young lady see that I am not so great a simpleton as she probably thinks
+me."
+
+I accordingly took up the book of poetry which lay upon the sofa. It was
+Milton's Paradise Lost. Nothing could have been more fortunate; it afforded
+a fine scope for my favorite vein of grandiloquence. I went largely into a
+discussion of its merits, or rather an enthusiastic eulogy of them. My
+observations were addressed to Mrs. Somerville, for I found I could talk to
+her with more ease than to her daughter. She appeared alive to the beauties
+of the poet and disposed to meet me in the discussion; but it was not my
+object to hear her talk; it was to talk myself. I anticipated all she had
+to say, overpowered her with the copiousness of my ideas, and supported and
+illustrated them by long citations from the author.
+
+While thus holding forth, I cast a side glance to see how Miss Somerville
+was affected. She had some embroidery stretched on a frame before her, but
+had paused in her labor, and was looking down as if lost in mute attention.
+I felt a glow of self-satisfaction, but I recollected, at the same time,
+with a kind of pique, the advantage she had enjoyed over me in our
+tete-a-tete. I determined to push my triumph, and accordingly kept on with
+redoubled ardor, until I had fairly exhausted my subject, or rather my
+thoughts.
+
+I had scarce come to a full stop, when Miss Somerville raised her eyes from
+the work on which they had been fixed, and turning to her mother, observed:
+"I have been considering, mamma, whether to work these flowers plain, or in
+colors."
+
+Had an ice-bolt shot to my heart, it could not have chilled me more
+effectually. "What a fool," thought I, "have I been making
+myself--squandering away fine thoughts, and fine language, upon a light
+mind and an ignorant ear! This girl knows nothing of poetry. She has no
+soul, I fear, for its beauties. Can any one have real sensibility of heart,
+and not be alive to poetry? However, she is young; this part of her
+education has been neglected; there is time enough to remedy it. I will be
+her preceptor. I will kindle in her mind the sacred flame, and lead her
+through the fairy land of song. But after all, it is rather unfortunate
+that I should have fallen in love with a woman who knows nothing of
+poetry."
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+I passed a day not altogether satisfactory. I was a little disappointed
+that Miss Somerville did not show more poetical feeling. "I am afraid,
+after all," said I to myself, "she is light and girlish, and more fitted to
+pluck wild flowers, play on the flageolet, and romp with little dogs than
+to converse with a man of my turn."
+
+I believe, however, to tell the truth, I was more out of humor with myself.
+I thought I had made the worst first appearance that ever hero made, either
+in novel or fairy tale. I was out of all patience, when I called to mind my
+awkward attempts at ease and elegance, in the tete-a-tete. And then my
+intolerable long lecture about poetry to catch the applause of a heedless
+auditor! But there I was not to blame. I had certainly been eloquent: it
+was her fault that the eloquence was wasted. To meditate upon the
+embroidery of a flower, when I was expatiating on the beauties of Milton!
+She might at least have admired the poetry, if she did not relish the
+manner in which it was delivered: though that was not despicable, for I had
+recited passages in my best style, which my mother and sisters had always
+considered equal to a play. "Oh, it is evident," thought I, "Miss
+Somerville has very little soul!"
+
+Such were my fancies and cogitations during the day, the greater part of
+which was spent in my chamber, for I was still languid. My evening was
+passed in the drawing-room, where I overlooked Miss Somerville's portfolio
+of sketches. They were executed with great taste, and showed a nice
+observation of the peculiarities of nature. They were all her own, and free
+from those cunning tints and touches of the drawing-master, by which young
+ladies' drawings, like their heads, are dressed up for company. There was
+no garish and vulgar trick of colors, either; all was executed with
+singular truth and simplicity.
+
+"And yet," thought I, "this little being, who has so pure an eye to take
+in, as in a limpid brook, all the graceful forms and magic tints of nature,
+has no soul for poetry!"
+
+Mr. Somerville, toward the latter part of the evening, observing my eye to
+wander occasionally to the harp, interpreted and met my wishes with his
+accustomed civility.
+
+"Julia, my dear," said he, "Mr. Mountjoy would like to hear a little music
+from your harp; let us hear, too, the sound of your voice."
+
+Julia immediately complied, without any of that hesitation and difficulty,
+by which young ladies are apt to make company pay dear for bad music. She
+sang a sprightly strain, in a brilliant style, that came trilling playfully
+over the ear; and the bright eye and dimpling smile showed that her little
+heart danced with the song. Her pet canary bird, who hung close by, was
+awakened by the music, and burst forth into an emulating strain. Julia
+smiled with a pretty air of defiance, and played louder.
+
+After some time the music changed, and ran into a plaintive strain, in a
+minor key. Then it was that all the former witchery of her voice came over
+me; then it was that she seemed to sing from the heart and to the heart.
+Her fingers moved about the chords as if they scarcely touched them. Her
+whole manner and appearance changed; her eyes beamed with the softest
+expression; her countenance, her frame, all seemed subdued into tenderness.
+She rose from the harp, leaving it still vibrating with sweet sounds, and
+moved toward her father, to bid him good-night.
+
+His eyes had been fixed on her intently during her performance. As she came
+before him he parted her shining ringlets with both his hands, and looked
+down with the fondness of a father on her innocent face. The music seemed
+still lingering in its lineaments, and the action of her father brought a
+moist gleam in her eye. He kissed her fair forehead, after the French mode
+of parental caressing: "Goodnight, and God bless you," said he, "my good
+little girl!"
+
+Julia tripped away, with a tear in her eye, a dimple in her cheek, and a
+light heart in her bosom. I thought it the prettiest picture of paternal
+and filial affection I had ever seen.
+
+When I retired to bed, a new train of thoughts crowded into my brain.
+"After all," said I to myself, "it is clear this girl has a soul, though
+she was not moved by my eloquence. She has all the outward signs and
+evidences of poetic feeling. She paints well, and has an eye for nature.
+She is a fine musician, and enters into the very soul of song. What a pity
+that she knows nothing of poetry! But we will see what is to be done? I am
+irretrievably in love with her; what then am I to do? Come down to the
+level of her mind, or endeavor to raise her to some kind of intellectual
+equality with myself? That is the most generous course. She will look up to
+me as a benefactor. I shall become associated in her mind with the lofty
+thoughts and harmonious graces of poetry. She is apparently docile: besides
+the difference of our ages will give me an ascendency over her. She cannot
+be above sixteen years of age, and I am full turned to twenty." So, having
+built this most delectable of air castles, I fell asleep.
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+The next morning I was quite a different being. I no longer felt fearful of
+stealing a glance at Julia; on the contrary, I contemplated her steadily,
+with the benignant eye of a benefactor. Shortly after breakfast I found
+myself alone with her, as I had on the preceding morning; but I felt
+nothing of the awkwardness of our previous tete-a-tete. I was elevated by
+the consciousness of my intellectual superiority and should almost have
+felt a sentiment of pity for the ignorance of the lovely little being, if I
+had not felt also the assurance that I should be able to dispel it. "But it
+is time," thought I, "to open school."
+
+Julia was occupied in arranging some music on her piano. I looked over two
+or three songs; they were Moore's Irish melodies.
+
+"These are pretty things!" said I, flirting the leaves over lightly, and
+giving a slight shrug, by way of qualifying the opinion.
+
+"Oh, I love them of all things," said Julia, "they're so touching!"
+
+"Then you like them for the poetry," said I, with an encouraging smile.
+
+"Oh, yes; she thought them charmingly written."
+
+Now was my time. "Poetry," said I, assuming a didactic attitude and air,
+"poetry is one of the most pleasing studies that can occupy a youthful
+mind. It renders us susceptible of the gentle impulses of humanity, and
+cherishes a delicate perception of all that is virtuous and elevated in
+morals, and graceful and beautiful in physics. It--"
+
+I was going on in a style that would have graced a professor of rhetoric,
+when I saw a light smile playing about Miss Somerville's mouth, and that
+she began to turn over the leaves of a music-book. I recollected her
+inattention to my discourse of the preceding morning. "There is no fixing
+her light mind," thought I, "by abstract theory; we will proceed
+practically." As it happened, the identical volume of Milton's Paradise
+Lost was lying at hand.
+
+"Let me recommend to you, my young friend," said I, in one of those tones
+of persuasive admonition, which I had so often loved in Glencoe, "let me
+recommend to you this admirable poem; you will find in it sources of
+intellectual enjoyment far superior to those songs which have delighted
+you." Julia looked at the book, and then at me, with a whimsically dubious
+air. "Milton's Paradise Lost?" said she; "oh, I know the greater part of
+that by heart."
+
+I had not expected to find my pupil so far advanced; however, the Paradise
+Lost is a kind of school book, and its finest passages are given to young
+ladies as tasks.
+
+"I find," said I to myself, "I must not treat her as so complete a novice;
+her inattention yesterday could not have proceeded from absolute ignorance,
+but merely from a want of poetic feeling. I'll try her again."
+
+I now determined to dazzle her with my own erudition, and launched into a
+harangue that would have done honor to an institute. Pope, Spenser,
+Chaucer, and the old dramatic writers were all dipped into, with the
+excursive flight of a swallow. I did not confine myself to English poets,
+but gave a glance at the French and Italian schools; I passed over Ariosto
+in full wing, but paused on Tasso's Jerusalem Delivered. I dwelt on the
+character of Clorinda: "There's a character," said I, "that you will find
+well worthy a woman's study. It shows to what exalted heights of heroism
+the sex can rise, how gloriously they may share even in the stern concerns
+of men."
+
+"For my part," said Julia, gently taking advantage of a pause, "for my
+part, I prefer the character of Sophronia."
+
+I was thunderstruck. She then had read Tasso! This girl that I had been
+treating as an ignoramus in poetry! She proceeded with a slight glow of the
+cheek, summoned up perhaps by a casual glow of feeling:
+
+"I do not admire those masculine heroines," said she, "who aim at the bold
+qualities of the opposite sex. Now Sophronia only exhibits the real
+qualities of a woman, wrought up to their highest excitement. She is
+modest, gentle, and retiring, as it becomes a woman to be; but she has all
+the strength of affection proper to a woman. She cannot fight for her
+people as Clorinda does, but she can offer herself up, and die to serve
+them. You may admire Clorinda, but you surely would be more apt to love
+Sophronia; at least," added she, suddenly appearing to recollect herself,
+and blushing at having launched into such a discussion, "at least that is
+what papa observed when we read the poem together."
+
+"Indeed," said I, dryly, for I felt disconcerted and nettled at being
+unexpectedly lectured by my pupil; "indeed, I do not exactly recollect the
+passage."
+
+"Oh," said Julia, "I can repeat it to you;" and she immediately gave it in
+Italian.
+
+Heavens and earth!--here was a situation! I knew no more of Italian than I
+did of the language of Psalmanazar. What a dilemma for a would-be-wise man
+to be placed in! I saw Julia waited for my opinion.
+
+"In fact," said I, hesitating, "I--I do not exactly understand Italian."
+
+"Oh," said Julia, with the utmost naivete, "I have no doubt it is very
+beautiful in the translation."
+
+I was glad to break up school, and get back to my chamber, full of the
+mortification which a wise man in love experiences on finding his mistress
+wiser than himself. "Translation! translation!" muttered I to myself, as I
+jerked the door shut behind me: "I am surprised my father has never had me
+instructed in the modern languages. They are all important. What is the
+use of Latin and Greek? No one speaks them; but here, the moment I make my
+appearance in the world, a little girl slaps Italian in my face. However,
+thank heaven, a language is easily learned. The moment I return home, I'll
+set about studying Italian; and to prevent future surprise, I will study
+Spanish and German at the same time; and if any young lady attempts to
+quote Italian upon me again, I'll bury her under a heap of High Dutch
+poetry!"
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+I felt now like some mighty chieftain, who has carried the war into a weak
+country, with full confidence of success, and been repulsed and obliged to
+draw off his forces from before some inconsiderable fortress.
+
+"However," thought I, "I have as yet brought only my light artillery into
+action; we shall see what is to be done with my heavy ordnance. Julia is
+evidently well versed in poetry; but it is natural she should be so; it is
+allied to painting and music, and is congenial to the light graces of the
+female character. We will try her on graver themes."
+
+I felt all my pride awakened; it even for a time swelled higher than my
+love. I was determined completely to establish my mental superiority, and
+subdue the intellect of this little being; it would then be time to sway
+the scepter of gentle empire, and win the affections of her heart.
+
+Accordingly, at dinner I again took the field, _en potence._ I now
+addressed myself to Mr. Somerville, for I was about to enter upon topics in
+which a young girl like her could not be well versed. I led, or rather
+forced, the conversation into a vein of historical erudition, discussing
+several of the most prominent facts of ancient history, and accompanying
+them with sound, indisputable apothegms.
+
+Mr. Somerville listened to me with the air of a man receiving information.
+I was encouraged, and went on gloriously from theme to theme of school
+declamation. I sat with Marius on the ruins of Carthage; I defended the
+bridge with Horatius Cocles; thrust my hand into the flame with Martius
+Scaevola, and plunged with Curtius into the yawning gulf; I fought side by
+side with Leonidas, at the straits of Thermopylae; and was going full drive
+into the battle of Plataea, when my memory, which is the worst in the
+world, failed me, just as I wanted the name of the Lacedemonian commander.
+
+"Julia, my dear," said Mr. Somerville, "perhaps you may recollect the name
+of which Mr. Mountjoy is in quest?"
+
+Julia colored slightly. "I believe," said she, in a low voice, "I believe
+it was Pausanius."
+
+This unexpected sally, instead of re-enforcing me, threw my whole scheme of
+battle into confusion, and the Athenians remained unmolested in the field.
+
+I am half inclined, since, to think Mr. Somerville meant this as a sly hit
+at my schoolboy pedantry; but he was too well bred not to seek to relieve
+me from my mortification. "Oh!" said he, "Julia is our family book of
+reference for names, dates, and distances, and has an excellent memory for
+history and geography."
+
+I now became desperate; as a last resource I turned to metaphysics. "If she
+is a philosopher in petticoats," thought I, "it is all over with me." Here,
+however, I had the field to myself. I gave chapter and verse of my tutor's
+lectures, heightened by all his poetical illustrations; I even went further
+than he had ever ventured, and plunged into such depths of metaphysics that
+I was in danger of sticking in the mire at the bottom. Fortunately, I had
+auditors who apparently could not detect my flounderings. Neither Mr.
+Somerville nor his daughter offered the least interruption.
+
+When the ladies had retired, Mr. Somerville sat some time with me; and as I
+was no longer anxious to astonish, I permitted myself to listen, and found
+that he was really agreeable. He was quite communicative, and from his
+conversation I was enabled to form a juster idea of his daughter's
+character, and the mode in which she had been brought up. Mr. Somerville
+had mingled much with the world, and with what is termed fashionable
+society. He had experienced its cold elegances and gay insincerities; its
+dissipation of the spirits and squanderings of the heart. Like many men of
+the world, though he had wandered too far from nature ever to return to it,
+yet he had the good taste and good feeling to look back fondly to its
+simple delights, and to determine that his child, if possible, should never
+leave them. He had superintended her education with scrupulous care,
+storing her mind with the graces of polite literature, and with such
+knowledge as would enable it to furnish its own amusement and occupation,
+and giving her all the accomplishments that sweeten and enliven the circle
+of domestic life. He had been particularly sedulous to exclude all
+fashionable affectations; all false sentiment, false sensibility, and false
+romance. "Whatever advantages she may possess," said he, "she is quite
+unconscious of them. She is a capricious little being, in everything but
+her affections; she is, however, free from art; simple, ingenuous, amiable,
+and, I thank God! happy."
+
+Such was the eulogy of a fond father, delivered with a tenderness that
+touched me. I could not help making a casual inquiry, whether, among the
+graces of polite literature, he had included a slight tincture of
+metaphysics. He smiled, and told me he had not.
+
+On the whole, when, as usual, that night, I summed up the day's
+observations on my pillow, I was not altogether dissatisfied. "Miss
+Somerville," said I, "loves poetry, and I like her the better for it. She
+has the advantage of me in Italian; agreed; what is it to know a variety of
+languages, but merely to have a variety of sounds to express the same idea?
+Original thought is the ore of the mind; language is but the accidental
+stamp and coinage by which it is put into circulation. If I can furnish an
+original idea, what care I how many languages she can translate it into?
+She may be able also to quote names and dates and latitudes better than I;
+but that is a mere effort of the memory. I admit she is more accurate in
+history and geography than I; but then she knows nothing of metaphysics."
+
+I had now sufficiently recovered to return home; yet I could not think of
+leaving Mr. Somerville's without having a little further conversation with
+him on the subject of his daughter's education.
+
+"This Mr. Somerville," thought I, "is a very accomplished, elegant man; he
+has seen a good deal of the world, and, upon the whole, has profited by
+what he has seen. He is not without information, and, as far as he thinks,
+appears to think correctly; but, after all, he is rather superficial, and
+does not think profoundly. He seems to take no delight in those
+metaphysical abstractions that are the proper aliment of masculine minds. I
+called to mind various occasions in which I had indulged largely in
+metaphysical discussions, but could recollect no instance where I had been
+able to draw him out. He had listened, it is true, with attention, and
+smiled as if in acquiescence, but had always appeared to avoid reply.
+Besides, I had made several sad blunders in the glow of eloquent
+declamation; but he had never interrupted me, to notice and correct them,
+as he would have done had he been versed in the theme.
+
+"Now, it is really a great pity," resumed I, "that he should have the
+entire management of Miss Somerville's education. What a vast advantage it
+would be if she could be put for a little time under the superintendence of
+Glencoe. He would throw some deeper shades of thought into her mind, which
+at present is all sunshine; not but that Mr. Somerville has done very well,
+as far as he has gone; but then he has merely prepared the soil for the
+strong plants of useful knowledge. She is well versed in the leading facts
+of history, and the general course of belles-lettres," said I; "a little
+more philosophy would do wonders."
+
+I accordingly took occasion to ask Mr. Somerville for a few moments'
+conversation in his study, the morning I was to depart. When we were alone
+I opened the matter fully to him. I commenced with the warmest eulogium of
+Glencoe's powers of mind and vast acquirements, and ascribed to him all my
+proficiency in the higher branches of knowledge. I begged, therefore, to
+recommend him as a friend calculated to direct the studies of Miss
+Somerville; to lead her mind, by degrees, to the contemplation of abstract
+principles, and to produce habits of philosophical analysis; "which," added
+I, gently smiling, "are not often cultivated by young ladies." I ventured
+to hint, in addition, that he would find Mr. Glencoe a most valuable and
+interesting acquaintance for himself; one who would stimulate and evolve
+the powers of his mind; and who might open to him tracts of inquiry and
+speculation to which perhaps he had hitherto been a stranger.
+
+Mr. Somerville listened with grave attention. When I had finished, he
+thanked me in the politest manner for the interest I took in the welfare of
+his daughter and himself. He observed that, as it regarded himself, he was
+afraid he was too old to benefit by the instruction of Mr. Glencoe, and
+that as to his daughter, he was afraid her mind was but little fitted for
+the study of metaphysics. "I do not wish," continued he, "to strain her
+intellects with subjects they cannot grasp, but to make her familiarly
+acquainted with those that are within the limits of her capacity. I do not
+pretend to prescribe the boundaries of female genius, and am far from
+indulging the vulgar opinion that women are unfitted by nature for the
+highest intellectual pursuits. I speak only with reference to my daughter's
+tastes and talents. She will never make a learned woman; nor, in truth, do
+I desire it; for such is the jealousy of our sex, as to mental as well as
+physical ascendency, that a learned woman is not always the happiest. I do
+not wish my daughter to excite envy, or to battle with the prejudices of
+the world; but to glide peaceably through life, on the good will and kind
+opinions of her friends. She has ample employment for her little head, in
+the course I have marked out for her; and is busy at present with some
+branches of natural history, calculated to awaken her perceptions to the
+beauties and wonders of nature, and to the inexhaustible volume of wisdom
+constantly spread open before her eyes. I consider that woman most likely
+to make an agreeable companion, who can draw topics of pleasing remark from
+every natural object; and most likely to be cheerful and contented, who is
+continually sensible of the order, the harmony, and the invariable
+beneficence that reign throughout the beautiful world we inhabit."
+
+"But," added he, smiling, "I am betraying myself into a lecture, instead of
+merely giving a reply to your kind offer. Permit me to take the liberty, in
+return, of inquiring a little about your own pursuits. You speak of having
+finished your education; but of course you have a line of private study and
+mental occupation marked out; for you must know the importance, both in
+point of interest and happiness, of keeping the mind employed. May I ask
+what system you observe in your intellectual exercises?"
+
+"Oh, as to system," I observed, "I could never bring myself into anything
+of the kind. I thought it best to let my genius take it own course, as it
+always acted the most vigorously when stimulated by inclination."
+
+Mr. Somerville shook his head. "This same genius," said he, "is a wild
+quality that runs away with our most promising young men. It has become so
+much the fashion, too, to give it the reins that it is now thought an
+animal of too noble and generous a nature to be brought to harness. But it
+is all a mistake. Nature never designed these high endowments to run riot
+through society, and throw the whole system into confusion. No, my dear
+sir, genius, unless it acts upon system, is very apt to be a useless
+quality to society; sometimes an injurious, and certainly a very
+uncomfortable one, to its possessor. I have had many opportunities of
+seeing the progress through life of young men who were accounted geniuses,
+and have found it too often end in early exhaustion and bitter
+disappointment; and have as often noticed that these effects might be
+traced to a total want of system. There were no habits of business, of
+steady purpose, and regular application, superinduced upon the mind;
+everything was left to chance and impulse, and native luxuriance, and
+everything of course ran to waste and wild entanglement. Excuse me if I am
+tedious on this point, for I feel solicitous to impress it upon you, being
+an error extremely prevalent in our country and one into which too many of
+our youth have fallen. I am happy, however, to observe the zeal which still
+appears to actuate you for the acquisition of knowledge, and augur every
+good from the elevated bent of your ambition. May I ask what has been your
+course of study for the last six months?"
+
+Never was question more unluckily timed. For the last six months I had been
+absolutely buried in novels and romances.
+
+Mr. Somerville perceived that the question was embarrassing, and, with his
+invariable good breeding, immediately resumed the conversation, without
+waiting for a reply. He took care, however, to turn it in such a way as to
+draw from me an account of the whole manner in which I had been educated,
+and the various currents of reading into which my mind had run. He then
+went on to discuss, briefly but impressively, the different branches of
+knowledge most important to a young man in my situation; and to my surprise
+I found him a complete master of those studies on which I had supposed him
+ignorant, and on which I had been descanting so confidently.
+
+He complimented me, however, very graciously, upon the progress I had made,
+but advised me for the present to turn my attention to the physical rather
+than the moral sciences. "These studies," said he, "store a man's mind with
+valuable facts, and at the same time repress self-confidence, by letting
+him know how boundless are the realms of knowledge, and how little we can
+possibly know. Whereas metaphysical studies, though of an ingenious order
+of intellectual employment, are apt to bewilder some minds with vague
+speculations. They never know how far they have advanced, or what may be
+the correctness of their favorite theory. They render many of our young men
+verbose and declamatory, and prone to mistake the aberrations of their
+fancy for the inspirations of divine philosophy."
+
+I could not but interrupt him, to assent to the truth of these remarks, and
+to say that it had been my lot, in the course of my limited experience, to
+encounter young men of the kind, who had overwhelmed me by their verbosity.
+
+Mr. Somerville smiled. "I trust," said he, kindly, "that you will guard
+against these errors. Avoid the eagerness with which a young man is apt to
+hurry into conversation, and to utter the crude and ill-digested notions
+which he has picked up in his recent studies. Be assured that extensive and
+accurate knowledge is the slow acquisition of a studious lifetime; that a
+young man, however pregnant his wit, and prompt his talent, can have
+mastered but the rudiments of learning, and, in a manner, attained the
+implements of study. Whatever may have been your past assiduity, you must
+be sensible that as yet you have but reached the threshold of true
+knowledge; but at the same time you have the advantage that you are still
+very young, and have ample time to learn."
+
+Here our conference ended. I walked out of the study a very different being
+from what I was on entering it. I had gone in with the air of a professor
+about to deliver a lecture; I came out like a student who had failed in his
+examination, and been degraded in his class.
+
+"Very young," and "on the threshold of knowledge!" This was extremely
+flattering to one who had considererd himself an accomplished scholar and a
+profound philosopher.
+
+"It is singular," thought I; "there seems to have been a spell upon my
+faculties, ever since I have been in this house. I certainly have not been
+able to do myself justice. Whenever I have undertaken to advise, I have had
+the tables turned upon me. It must be that I am strange and diffident among
+people I am not accustomed to. I wish they could hear me talk at home!"
+
+"After all," added I, on further reflection, "after all there is a great
+deal of force in what Mr. Somerville has said. Somehow or other, these men
+of the world do now and then hit upon remarks that would do credit to a
+philosopher. Some of his general observations came so home that I almost
+thought they were meant for myself. His advice about adopting a system of
+study is very judicious. I will immediately put it hi practice. My mind
+shall operate henceforward with the regularity of clock-work."
+
+How far I succeeded in adopting this plan, how I fared in the further
+pursuit of knowledge, and how I succeeded in my suit to Julia Somerville,
+may afford matter for a further communication to the public, if this simple
+record of my early life is fortunate enough to excite any curiosity.
+
+
+
+
+
+THE GREAT MISSISSIPPI BUBBLE
+
+"A TIME OF UNEXAMPLED PROSPERITY"
+
+
+In the course of a voyage from England, I once fell in with a convoy of
+merchant ships bound for the West Indies. The weather was uncommonly bland;
+and the ships vied with each other in spreading sail to catch a light,
+favoring breeze, until their hulls were almost hidden beneath a cloud of
+canvas. The breeze went down with the sun, and his last yellow rays shone
+upon a thousand sails, idly flapping against the masts.
+
+I exulted in the beauty of the scene, and augured a prosperous voyage; but
+the veteran master of the ship shook his head, and pronounced this halcyon
+calm a "weather-breeder." And so it proved. A storm burst forth in the
+night; the sea roared and raged; and when the day broke, I beheld the late
+gallant convoy scattered in every direction; some dismasted, others
+scudding under bare poles, and many firing signals of distress.
+
+I have since been occasionally reminded of this scene, by those calm, sunny
+seasons in the commercial world, which are known by the name of "times of
+unexampled prosperity." They are the sure weather-breeders of traffic.
+Every now and then the world is visited by one of these delusive seasons,
+when "the credit system," as it is called, expands to full luxuriance,
+everybody trusts everybody; a bad debt is a thing unheard of; the broad way
+to certain and sudden wealth lies plain and open; and men are tempted to
+dash forward boldly, from the facility of borrowing.
+
+Promissory notes, interchanged between scheming individuals, are liberally
+discounted at the banks, which become so many mints to coin words into
+cash; and as the supply of words is inexhaustible, it may readily be
+supposed what a vast amount of promissory capital is soon in circulation.
+Every one now talks in thousands; nothing is heard but gigantic operations
+in trade; great purchases and sales of real property, and immense sums made
+at every transfer. All, to be sure, as yet exists in promise; but the
+believer in promises calculates the aggregate as solid capital, and falls
+back in amazement at the amount of public wealth, the "unexampled state of
+public prosperity."
+
+Now is the time for speculative and dreaming or designing men. They relate
+their dreams and projects to the ignorant and credulous, dazzle them with
+golden visions, and set them madding after shadows. The example of one
+stimulates another; speculation rises on speculation; bubble rises on
+bubble; every one helps with his breath to swell the windy superstructure,
+and admires and wonders at the magnitude of the inflation he has
+contributed to produce.
+
+Speculation is the romance of trade, and casts contempt upon all its sober
+realities. It renders the stock-jobber a magician, and the exchange a
+region of enchantment. It elevates the merchant into a kind of
+knight-errant, or rather a commercial Quixote. The slow but sure gains of
+snug percentage become despicable in his eyes; no "operation" is thought
+worthy of attention that does not double or treble the investment. No
+business is worth following that does not promise an immediate fortune. As
+he sits musing over his ledger, with pen behind his ear, he is like La
+Mancha's hero in his study, dreaming over his books of chivalry. His dusty
+counting-house fades before his eyes, or changes into a Spanish mine; he
+gropes after diamonds, or dives after pearls. The subterranean garden of
+Aladdin is nothing to the realms of wealth that break upon his imagination.
+
+Could this delusion always last, the life of a merchant would indeed be a
+golden dream; but it is as short as it is brilliant. Let but a doubt enter,
+and the "season of unexampled prosperity" is at end. The coinage of words
+is suddenly curtailed; the promissory capital begins to vanish into smoke;
+a panic succeeds, and the whole superstructure, built upon credit and
+reared by speculation, crumbles to the ground, leaving scarce a wreck
+behind:
+
+  "It is such stuff as dreams are made of."
+
+When a man of business, therefore, hears on every side rumors of fortunes
+suddenly acquired; when he finds banks liberal, and brokers busy; when he
+sees adventurers flush of paper capital, and full of scheme and enterprise;
+when he perceives a greater disposition to buy than to sell; when trade
+overflows its accustomed channels and deluges the country; when he hears of
+new regions of commercial adventure; of distant marts and distant mines,
+swallowing merchandise and disgorging gold; when he finds joint-stock
+companies of all kinds forming; railroads, canals, and locomotive engines,
+springing up on every side; when idlers suddenly become men of business,
+and dash into the game of commerce as they would into the hazards of the
+faro table; when he beholds the streets glittering with new equipages,
+palaces conjured up by the magic of speculation; tradesmen flushed with
+sudden success, and vying with each other in ostentatious expense; in a
+word, when he hears the whole community joining in the theme of "unexampled
+prosperity," let him look upon the whole as a "weather-breeder," and
+prepare for the impending storm.
+
+The foregoing remarks are intended merely as a prelude to a narrative I am
+about to lay before the public, of one of the most memorable instances of
+the infatuation of gain to be found in the whole history of commerce. I
+allude to the famous Mississippi Bubble. It is a matter that has passed
+into a proverb, and become a phrase in every one's mouth, yet of which not
+one merchant in ten has probably a distinct idea. I have therefore thought
+that an authentic account of it would be interesting and salutary, at the
+present moment, when we are suffering under the effects of a severe access
+of the credit system, and just recovering from one of its ruinous
+delusions.
+
+Before entering into the story of this famous chimera, it is proper to give
+a few particulars concerning the individual who engendered it. John Law was
+born in Edinburgh in 1671. His father, William Law, was a rich goldsmith,
+and left his son an estate of considerable value, called Lauriston,
+situated about four miles from Edinburgh. Goldsmiths, in those days, acted
+occasionally as bankers, and his father's operations, under this character,
+may have originally turned the thoughts of the youth to the science of
+calculation, in which he became an adept; so that at an early age he
+excelled in playing at all games of combination.
+
+In 1694 he appeared in London, where a handsome person, and an easy and
+insinuating address, gained him currency in the first circles and the
+nickname of "Beau Law." The same personal advantages gave him success in
+the world of gallantry, until he became involved in a quarrel with Beau
+Wilson, his rival in fashion, whom he killed in a duel, and then fled to
+France, to avoid prosecution.
+
+He returned to Edinburgh in 1700, and remained there several years; during
+which time he first broached his great credit system, offering to supply
+the deficiency of coin by the establishment of a bank, which, according to
+his views, might emit a paper currency equivalent to the whole landed
+estate of the kingdom.
+
+His scheme excited great astonishment in Edinburgh; but, though the
+government was not sufficiently advanced in financial knowledge to detect
+the fallacies upon which it was founded, Scottish caution and suspicion
+served in the place of wisdom, and the project was rejected. Law met with
+no better success with the English Parliament; and the fatal affair of the
+death of Wilson still hanging over him, for which he had never been able to
+procure a pardon, he again went to France.
+
+The financial affairs of France were at this time in a deplorable
+condition. The wars, the pomp and profusion, of Louis XIV., and his
+religious persecutions of whole classes of the most industrious of his
+subjects, had exhausted his treasury, and overwhelmed the nation with debt.
+The old monarch clung to his selfish magnificence, and could not be induced
+to diminish his enormous expenditure; and his minister of finance was
+driven to his wits' end to devise all kinds of disastrous expedients to
+keep up the royal state, and to extricate the nation from its
+embarrassments.
+
+In this state of things, Law ventured to bring forward his financial
+project. It was founded on the plan of the Bank of England, which had
+already been in successful operation several years. He met with immediate
+patronage, and a congenial spirit, in the Duke of Orleans, who had married
+a natural daughter of the king. The duke had been astonished at the
+facility with which England had supported the burden of a public debt,
+created by the wars of Anne and William, and which exceeded in amount that
+under which France was groaning. The whole matter was soon explained by Law
+to his satisfaction. The latter maintained that England had stopped at the
+mere threshold of an art capable of creating unlimited sources of national
+wealth. The duke was dazzled with his splendid views and specious
+reasonings, and thought he clearly comprehended his system. Demarets, the
+Comptroller-General of Finance, was not so easily deceived. He pronounced
+the plan of Law more pernicious than any of the disastrous expedients that
+the government had yet been driven to. The old king also, Louis XIV.,
+detested all innovations, especially those which came from a rival nation;
+the project of a bank, therefore, was utterly rejected.
+
+Law remained for a while in Paris, leading a gay and affluent existence,
+owing to his handsome person, easy manners, flexible temper, and a
+faro-bank which he had set up. His agreeable career was interrupted by a
+message from D'Argenson, Lieutenant-General of Police, ordering him to quit
+Paris, alleging that he was "_rather too skillful at the game which he
+had introduced_."
+
+For several succeeding years he shifted his residence from state to state
+of Italy and Germany; offering his scheme of finance to every court that he
+visited, but without success. The Duke of Savoy, Victor Amadeus, afterward
+king of Sardinia, was much struck with his project; but after considering
+it for a time, replied, _"I am not sufficiently powerful to ruin
+myself."_
+
+The shifting, adventurous life of Law, and the equivocal means by which he
+appeared to live, playing high, and always with great success, threw a
+cloud of suspicion over him wherever he went, and caused him to be expelled
+by the magistracy from the semi-commercial, semi-aristocratical cities of
+Venice and Genoa.
+
+The events of 1715 brought Law back again to Paris. Louis XIV. was dead.
+Louis XV. was a mere child, and during his minority the Duke of Orleans
+held the reins of government as Regent. Law had at length found his man.
+
+The Duke of Orleans has been differently represented by different
+contemporaries. He appears to have had excellent natural qualities,
+perverted by a bad education. He was of the middle size, easy and graceful,
+with an agreeable countenance, and open, affable demeanor. His mind was
+quick and sagacious, rather than profound; and his quickness of intellect,
+and excellence of memory, supplied the lack of studious application. His
+wit was prompt and pungent; he expressed himself with vivacity and
+precision; his imagination was vivid, his temperament sanguine and joyous;
+his courage daring. His mother, the Duchess of Orleans, expressed his
+character in a jeu d'esprit. "The fairies," said she, "were invited to be
+present at his birth, and each one conferring a talent on my son, he
+possesses them all. Unfortunately, we had forgotten to invite an old fairy,
+who, arriving after all the others, exclaimed, 'He shall have all the
+talents, excepting that to make a good use of them.'"
+
+Under proper tuition, the duke might have risen to real greatness; but in
+his early years he was put under the tutelage of the Abbe Dubois, one of
+the subtlest and basest spirits that ever intrigued its way into eminent
+place and power. The abbe was of low origin and despicable exterior,
+totally destitute of morals, and perfidious in the extreme; but with a
+supple, insinuating address, and an accommodating spirit, tolerant of all
+kinds of profligacy in others. Conscious of his own inherent baseness, he
+sought to secure an influence over his pupil, by corrupting his principles
+and fostering his vices; he debased him, to keep himself from being
+despised. Unfortunately he succeeded. To the early precepts of this
+infamous pander have been attributed those excesses that disgraced the
+manhood of the regent, and gave a licentious character to his whole course
+of government. His love of pleasure, quickened and indulged by those who
+should have restrained it, led him into all kinds of sensual indulgence. He
+had been taught to think lightly of the most serious duties and sacred
+ties; to turn virtue into a jest, and consider religion mere hypocrisy. He
+was a gay misanthrope, that had a sovereign but sportive contempt for
+mankind; believed that his most devoted servant would be his enemy, if
+interest prompted; and maintained that an honest man was he who had the art
+to conceal that he was the contrary.
+
+He surrounded himself with a set of dissolute men like himself; who, let
+loose from the restraint under which they had been held, during the latter
+hypocritical days of Louis XIV., now gave way to every kind of debauchery.
+With these men the regent used to shut himself up, after the hours of
+business, and excluding all graver persons and graver concerns, celebrate
+the most drunken and disgusting orgies; where obscenity and blasphemy
+formed the seasoning of conversation. For the profligate companions of
+these revels, he invented the appellation of his _roues_, the literal
+meaning of which is men broken on the wheel; intended, no doubt, to express
+their broken-down characters and dislocated fortunes; although a
+contemporary asserts that it designated the punishment that most of them
+merited. Madame de Labran, who was present at one of the regent's suppers,
+was disgusted by the conduct and conversation of the host and his guests,
+and observed, at table, that God, after he had created man, took the refuse
+clay that was left, and made of it the souls of lackeys and princes.
+
+Such was the man that now ruled the destinies of France. Law found him full
+of perplexities, from the disastrous state of the finances. He had already
+tampered with the coinage, calling in the coin of the nation, restamping
+it, and issuing it at a nominal increase of one-fifth; thus defrauding the
+nation out of twenty per cent of its capital. He was not likely, therefore,
+to be scrupulous about any means likely to relieve him from financial
+difficulties; he had even been led to listen to the cruel alternative of a
+national bankruptcy.
+
+Under these circumstances, Law confidently brought forward his scheme of a
+bank, that was to pay off the national debt, increase the revenue, and at
+the same time diminish the taxes. The following is stated as the theory by
+which he recommended his system to the regent. The credit enjoyed by a
+banker or a merchant, he observed, increases his capital tenfold; that is
+to say, he who has a capital of one thousand livres, may, if he possess
+sufficient credit, extend his operations to a million, and reap profits to
+that amount. In like manner, a state that can collect into a bank all the
+current coin of the kingdom, would be as powerful as if its capital were
+increased tenfold. The specie must be drawn into the bank, not by way of
+loan, or by taxations, but in the way of deposit. This might be effected in
+different modes, either by inspiring confidence or by exerting authority.
+One mode, he observed, had already been in use. Each time that a state
+makes a recoinage, it becomes momentarily the depositary of all the money
+called in, belonging to the subjects of that state. His bank was to effect
+the same purpose; that is to say, to receive in deposit all the coin of the
+kingdom, but to give in exchange its bills, which, being of an invariable
+value, bearing an interest, and being payable on demand, would not only
+supply the place of coin, but prove a better and more profitable currency.
+
+The regent caught with avidity at the scheme. It suited his bold, reckless
+spirit, and his grasping extravagance. Not that he was altogether the dupe
+of Law's specious projects; still he was apt, like many other men,
+unskilled in the arcana of finance, to mistake the multiplication of money
+for the multiplication of wealth; not understanding that it was a mere
+agent or instrument in the interchange of traffic, to represent the value
+of the various productions of industry; and that an increased circulation
+of coin or bank bills, in the shape of currency, only adds a proportionably
+increased and fictitious value to such productions. Law enlisted the vanity
+of the regent in his cause. He persuaded him that he saw more clearly than
+others into sublime theories of finance, which were quite above the
+ordinary apprehension. He used to declare that, excepting the regent and
+the Duke of Savoy, no one had thoroughly comprehended his system.
+
+It is certain that it met with strong opposition from the regent's
+ministers, the Duke de Noailles and the Chancellor d'Anguesseau; and it was
+no less strenuously opposed by the Parliament of Paris. Law, however, had a
+potent though secret coadjutor in the Abbe Dubois, now rising, during the
+regency, into great political power, and who retained a baneful influence
+over the mind of the regent. This wily priest, as avaricious as he was
+ambitious, drew large sums from Law as subsidies, and aided him greatly in
+many of his most pernicious operations. He aided him, in the present
+instance, to fortify the mind of the regent against all the remonstrances
+of his ministers and the parliament.
+
+Accordingly, on the 2d of May, 1716, letters patent were granted to Law, to
+establish a bank of deposit, discount, and circulation, under the firm of
+"Law & Company," to continue for twenty years. The capital was fixed at six
+millions of livres, divided into shares of five hundred livres each, which
+were to be sold for twenty-five per cent of the regent's debased coin, and
+seventy-five per cent of the public securities; which were then at a great
+reduction from their nominal value, and which then amounted to nineteen
+hundred millions. The ostensible object of the bank, as set forth in the
+patent, was to encourage the commerce and manufactures of France. The louis
+d'ors and crowns of the bank were always to retain the same standard of
+value, and its bills to be payable in them on demand.
+
+At the outset, while the bank was limited in its operations, and while its
+paper really represented the specie in its vaults, it seemed to realize all
+that had been promised from it. It rapidly acquired public confidence, and
+an extended circulation, and produced an activity in commerce unknown under
+the baneful government of Louis XIV. As the bills of the bank bore an
+interest, and as it was stipulated they would be of invariable value, and
+as hints had been artfully circulated that the coin would experience
+successive diminution, everybody hastened to the bank to exchange gold and
+silver for paper. So great became the throng of depositors, and so intense
+their eagerness, that there was quite a press and struggle at the bank
+door, and a ludicrous panic was awakened, as if there was danger of their
+not being admitted. An anecdote of the time relates that one of the clerks,
+with an ominous smile, called out to the struggling multitude, "Have a
+little patience, my friends; we mean to take all your money;" an assertion
+disastrously verified in the sequel.
+
+Thus, by the simple establishment of a bank, Law and the regent obtained
+pledges of confidence for the consummation of further and more complicated
+schemes, as yet hidden from the public. In a little while, the bank shares
+rose enormously, and the amount of its notes in circulation exceeded one
+hundred and ten millions of livres. A subtle stroke of policy had rendered
+it popular with the aristocracy. Louis XIV. had several years previously
+imposed an income tax of a tenth, giving his royal word that it should
+cease in 1717. This tax had been exceedingly irksome to the privileged
+orders; and in the present disastrous times they had dreaded an
+augmentation of it. In consequence of the successful operation of Law's
+scheme, however, the tax was abolished, and now nothing was to be heard
+among the nobility and clergy but praises of the regent and the bank.
+
+Hitherto all had gone well, and all might have continued to go well, had
+not the paper system been further expanded. But Law had yet the grandest
+part of his scheme to develop. He had to open his ideal world of
+speculation, his El Dorado of unbounded wealth. The English had brought the
+vast imaginary commerce of the South Seas in aid of their banking
+operations. Law sought to bring, as an immense auxiliary of his bank, the
+whole trade of the Mississippi. Under this name was included not merely the
+river so called, but the vast region known as Louisiana, extending from
+north latitude 29 deg. up to Canada in north latitude 40 deg.. This country had
+been granted by Louis XIV. to the Sieur Crozat, but he had been induced to
+resign his patent. In conformity to the plea of Mr. Law, letters patent
+were granted in August, 1717, for the creation of a commercial company,
+which was to have the colonizing of this country, and the monopoly of its
+trade and resources, and of the beaver or fur trade with Canada. It was
+called the Western, but became better known as the Mississippi Company. The
+capital was fixed at one hundred millions of livres, divided into shares,
+bearing an Interest of four per cent, which were subscribed for in the
+public securities. As the bank was to co-operate with the company, the
+regent ordered that its bills should be received the same as coin, in all
+payments of the public revenue. Law was appointed chief director of this
+company, which was an exact copy of the Earl of Oxford's South Sea Company,
+set on foot in 1711, and which distracted all England with the frenzy of
+speculation. In like manner with the delusive picturings given in that
+memorable scheme of the sources of rich trade to be opened in the South Sea
+countries, Law held forth magnificent prospects of the fortunes to be made
+in colonizing Louisiana, which was represented as a veritable land of
+promise, capable of yielding every variety of the most precious produce.
+Reports, too, were artfully circulated, with great mystery, as if to the
+"chosen few," of mines of gold and silver recently discovered in Louisiana,
+and which would insure instant wealth to the early purchasers. These
+confidential whispers of course soon became public; and were confirmed by
+travelers fresh from the Mississippi, and doubtless bribed, who had seen
+the mines in question, and declared them superior in richness to those of
+Mexico and Peru. Nay, more, ocular proof was furnished to public credulity,
+in ingots of gold conveyed to the mint, as if just brought from the mines
+of Louisiana.
+
+Extraordinary measures were adopted to force a colonization. An edict was
+issued to collect and transport settlers to the Mississippi. The police
+lent its aid. The streets and prisons of Paris, and of the provincial
+cities, were swept of mendicants and vagabonds of all kinds, who were
+conveyed to Havre de Grace. About six thousand were crowded into ships,
+where no precautions had been taken for their health or accommodation.
+Instruments of all kinds proper for the working of mines were
+ostentatiously paraded in public, and put on board the vessels; and the
+whole set sail for this fabled El Dorado, which was to prove the grave of
+the greater part of its wretched colonists.
+
+D'Anguesseau, the chancellor, a man of probity and integrity, still lifted
+his voice against the paper system of Law, and his project of colonization,
+and was eloquent and prophetic in picturing the evils they were calculated
+to produce; the private distress and public degradation; the corruption of
+morals and manners; the triumph of knaves and schemers; the ruin of
+fortunes, and downfall of families. He was incited more and more to this
+opposition by the Duke de Noailles, the Minister of Finance, who was
+jealous of the growing ascendency of Law over the mind of the regent, but
+was less honest than the chancellor in his opposition. The regent was
+excessively annoyed by the difficulties they conjured up in the way of his
+darling schemes of finance, and the countenance they gave to the opposition
+of parliament; which body, disgusted more and more with the abuses of the
+regency, and the system of Law, had gone so far as to carry its
+remonstrances to the very foot of the throne.
+
+He determined to relieve himself from these two ministers, who, either
+through honesty or policy, interfered with all his plans. Accordingly, on
+the 28th of January, 1718, he dismissed the chancellor from office, and
+exiled him to his estate in the country; and shortly afterward removed the
+Duke de Noailles from the administration of the finances.
+
+The opposition of parliament to the regent and his measures was carried on
+with increasing violence. That body aspired to an equal authority with the
+regent in the administration of affairs, and pretended, by its decree, to
+suspend an edict of the regency, ordering a new coinage and altering the
+value of the currency. But its chief hostility was leveled against Law, a
+foreigner and a heretic, and one who was considered by a majority of the
+members in the light of a malefactor. In fact, so far was this hostility
+carried, that secret measures were taken to investigate his malversations,
+and to collect evidence against him; and it was resolved in parliament
+that, should the testimony collected justify their suspicions, they would
+have him seized and brought before them; would give him a brief trial, and,
+if convicted, would hang him in the courtyard of the palace, and throw open
+the gates after the execution, that the public might behold his corpse!
+
+Law received intimation of the danger hanging over him, and was in terrible
+trepidation. He took refuge in the Palais Royal, the residence of the
+regent, and implored his protection. The regent himself was embarrassed by
+the sturdy opposition of parliament, which contemplated nothing less than a
+decree reversing most of his public measures, especially those of finance.
+His indecision kept Law for a time in an agony of terror and suspense.
+Finally, by assembling a board of justice, and bringing to his aid the
+absolute authority of the king, he triumphed over parliament and relieved
+Law from his dread of being hanged.
+
+The system now went on with flowing sail. The Western or Mississippi
+Company, being identified with the bank, rapidly increased in power and
+privileges. One monopoly after another was granted to it; the trade of the
+Indian seas; the slave trade with Senegal and Guinea; the farming of
+tobacco; the national coinage, etc. Each new privilege was made a pretext
+for issuing more bills, and caused an immense advance in the price of
+stock. At length, on the 4th of December, 1718, the regent gave the
+establishment the imposing title of "The Royal Bank," and proclaimed that
+he had effected the purchase of all the shares, the proceeds of which he
+had added to its capital This measure seemed to shock the public feeling
+more than any other connected with the system, and roused the indignation
+of parliament. The French nation had been so accustomed to attach an idea
+of everything noble, lofty, and magnificent to the royal name and person,
+especially during the stately and sumptuous reign of Louis XIV., that they
+could not at first tolerate the idea of royalty being in any degree mingled
+with matters of traffic and finance, and the king being in a manner a
+banker. It was one of the downward steps, however, by which royalty lost
+its illusive splendor in France, and became gradually cheapened in the
+public mind.
+
+Arbitrary measures now began to be taken to force the bills of the bank
+into artificial currency. On the 27th of December appeared an order in
+council, forbidding, under severe penalties, the payment of any sum above
+six hundred livres in gold or silver. This decree rendered bank bills
+necessary in all transactions of purchase and sale, and called for a new
+emission. The prohibition was occasionally evaded or opposed; confiscations
+were the consequence; informers were rewarded, and spies and traitors began
+to spring up in all the domestic walks of life.
+
+The worst effect of this illusive system was the mania for gain, or rather
+for gambling in stocks, that now seized upon the whole nation. Under the
+exciting effects of lying reports, and the forcing effects of government
+decrees, the shares of the company went on rising in value until they
+reached thirteen hundred per cent. Nothing was now spoken of but the price
+of shares, and the immense fortunes suddenly made by lucky speculators.
+Those whom Law had deluded used every means to delude others. The most
+extravagant dreams were indulged, concerning the wealth to flow in upon the
+company from its colonies, its trade, and its various monopolies. It is
+true nothing as yet had been realized, nor could in some time be realized,
+from these distant sources, even if productive; but the imaginations of
+speculators are ever in the advance, and their conjectures are immediately
+converted into facts. Lying reports now flew from mouth to month, of sure
+avenues to fortune suddenly thrown open. The more extravagant the fable,
+the more readily was it believed. To doubt was to awaken anger, or incur
+ridicule. In a time of public infatuation, it requires no small exercise of
+courage to doubt a popular fallacy.
+
+Paris now became the center of attraction for the adventurous and the
+avaricious, who flocked to it, not merely from the provinces, but from
+neighboring countries. A stock exchange was established in a house in the
+Rue Quincampoix, and became immediately the gathering place of
+stock-jobbers. The exchange opened at seven o'clock, with the beat of drum
+and sound of bell, and closed at night with the same signals. Guards were
+stationed at each end of the street, to maintain order and exclude
+carriages and horses. The whole street swarmed throughout the day like a
+bee-hive. Bargains of all kinds were seized upon with avidity. Shares of
+stock passed from hand to hand, mounting in value, one knew not why.
+Fortunes were made in a moment, as if by magic; and every lucky bargain
+prompted those around to a more desperate throw of the die. The fever went
+on, increasing in intensity as the day declined; and when the drum beat,
+and the bell rang, at night, to close the exchange, there were exclamations
+of impatience and despair, as if the wheel of fortune had suddenly been
+stopped when about to make its luckiest evolution.
+
+To engulf all classes in this ruinous vortex, Law now split the shares of
+fifty millions of stock each into one hundred shares; thus, as in the
+splitting of lottery tickets, accommodating the venture to the humblest
+purse. Society was thus stirred up to its very dregs, and adventurers of
+the lowest order hurried to the stock market. All honest, industrious
+pursuits, and modest gains, were now despised. Wealth was to be obtained
+instantly, without labor and without stint. The upper classes were as base
+in their venality as the lower. The highest and most powerful nobles,
+abandoning all generous pursuits and lofty aims, engaged in the vile
+scuffle for gam. They were even baser than the lower classes; for some of
+them, who were members of the council of the regency, abused their station
+and their influence, and promoted measures by which shares rose while in
+their hands, and they made immense profits.
+
+The Duke de Bourbon, the prince of Conti, the Dukes de la Force and D'Antin
+were among the foremost of these illustrious stock-jobbers. They were
+nicknamed the Mississippi Lords, and they smiled at the sneering title. In
+fact, the usual distinctions of society had lost their consequence, under
+the reign of this new passion. Bank, talent, military fame, no longer
+inspired deference. All respect for others, all self-respect, were
+forgotten in the mercenary struggle of the stock-market. Even prelates and
+ecclesiastical corporations, forgetting their true objects of devotion,
+mingled among the votaries of Mammon. They were not behind those who
+wielded the civil power in fabricating ordinances suited to their
+avaricious purposes. Theological decisions forthwith appeared, in which the
+anathema launched by the Church against usury was conveniently construed as
+not extending to the traffic in bank shares!
+
+The Abbe Dubois entered into the mysteries of stockjobbing with all the
+zeal of an apostle, and enriched himself by the spoils of the credulous;
+and he continually drew large sums from Law, as considerations for his
+political influence. Faithless to his country, in the course of his
+gambling speculations he transferred to England a great amount of specie,
+which had been paid into the royal treasury; thus contributing to the
+subsequent dearth of the precious metals.
+
+The female sex participated in this sordid frenzy. Princesses of the blood,
+and ladies of the highest nobility, were among the most rapacious of
+stock-jobbers. The regent seemed to have the riches of Croesus at his
+command, and lavished money by hundreds of thousands upon his female
+relatives and favorites, as well as upon his _roues_, the dissolute
+companions of his debauches. "My son," writes the regent's mother, in her
+correspondence, "gave me shares to the amount of two millions, which I
+distributed among my household. The king also took several millions for his
+own household. All the royal family have had them; all the children and
+grandchildren of France, and the princes of the blood."
+
+Luxury and extravagance kept pace with this sudden inflation of fancied
+wealth. The hereditary palaces of nobles were pulled down, and rebuilt on a
+scale of augmented splendor. Entertainments were given of incredible cost
+and magnificence. Never before had been such display in houses, furniture,
+equipages, and amusements. This was particularly the case among persons of
+the lower ranks, who had suddenly become possessed of millions. Ludicrous
+anecdotes are related of some of these upstarts. One, who had just launched
+a splendid carriage, when about to use it for the first time, instead of
+getting in at the door, mounted, through habitude, to his accustomed place
+behind. Some ladies of quality, seeing a well-dressed woman covered with
+diamonds, but whom nobody knew, alight from a very handsome carriage,
+inquired who she was of the footman. He replied, with a sneer: "It is a
+lady who has recently tumbled from a garret into this carriage." Mr. Law's
+domestics were said to become in like manner suddenly enriched by the
+crumbs that fell from his table. His coachman, having made his fortune,
+retired from his service. Mr. Law requested him to procure a coachman in
+his place. He appeared the next day with two, whom he pronounced equally
+good, and told Mr. Law: "Take which of them you choose, and I will take the
+other!"
+
+Nor were these _novi homini_ treated with the distance and disdain
+they would formerly have experienced from the haughty aristocracy of
+France. The pride of the old noblesse had been stifled by the stronger
+instinct of avarice. They rather sought the intimacy and confidence of
+these lucky upstarts; and it has been observed that a nobleman would gladly
+take his seat at the table of the fortunate lackey of yesterday, in hopes
+of learning from him the secret of growing rich!
+
+Law now went about with a countenance radiant with success and apparently
+dispensing wealth on every side. "He is admirably skilled in all that
+relates to finance," writes the Duchess of Orleans, the regent's mother,
+"and has put the affairs of the state in such good order that all the
+king's debts have been paid. He is so much run after that he has no repose
+night or day. A duchess even kissed his hand publicly. If a duchess can do
+this, what will other ladies do?"
+
+Wherever he went, his path, we are told, was beset by a sordid throng, who
+waited to see him pass, and sought to obtain the favor of a word, a nod, or
+smile, as if a mere glance from him would bestow fortune. When at home, his
+house was absolutely besieged by furious candidates for fortune. "They
+forced the doors," says the Duke de St. Simon; "they scaled his windows
+from the garden; they made their way into his cabinet down the chimney!"
+
+The same venal court was paid by all classes to his family. The highest
+ladies of the court vied with each other in meannesses to purchase the
+lucrative friendship of Mrs. Law and her daughter. They waited upon them
+with as much assiduity and adulation as if they had been princesses of the
+blood. The regent one day expressed a desire that some duchess should
+accompany his daughter to Genoa. "My lord," said some one present, "if you
+would have a choice from among the duchesses, you need but send to Mrs.
+Law's, you will find them all assembled there."
+
+The wealth of Law rapidly increased with the expansion of the bubble. In
+the course of a few months he purchased fourteen titled estates, paying for
+them in paper; and the public hailed these sudden and vast acquisitions of
+landed property as so many proofs of the soundness of his system. In one
+instance he met with a shrewd bargainer, who had not the general faith in
+his paper money. The President de Novion insisted on being paid for an
+estate in hard coin. Law accordingly brought the amount, four hundred
+thousand livres, in specie, saying, with a sarcastic smile, that he
+preferred paying in money as its weight rendered it a mere encumbrance. As
+it happened, the president could give no clear title to the land, and the
+money had to be refunded. He paid it back _in paper_, which Law dared
+not refuse, lest he should depreciate it in the market.
+
+The course of illusory credit went on triumphantly for eighteen months. Law
+had nearly fulfilled one of his promises, for the greater part of the
+public debt had been paid off; but how paid? In bank shares, which had been
+trumped up several hundred per cent above their value, and which were to
+vanish like smoke in the hands of the holders.
+
+One of the most striking attributes of Law was the imperturbable assurance
+and self-possession with which he replied to every objection, and found a
+solution for every problem. He had the dexterity of a juggler in evading
+difficulties; and what was peculiar, made figures themselves, which are the
+very elements of exact demonstration, the means to dazzle and bewilder.
+
+Toward the latter end of 1719 the Mississippi scheme had reached its
+highest point of glory. Half a million of strangers had crowded into Paris
+in quest of fortune. The hotels and lodging-houses were overflowing;
+lodgings were procured with excessive difficulty; granaries were turned
+into bedrooms; provisions had risen enormously in price; splendid houses
+were multiplying on every side; the streets were crowded with carriages;
+above a thousand new equipages had been launched.
+
+On the eleventh of December, Law obtained another prohibitory decree, for
+the purpose of sweeping all the remaining specie in circulation into the
+bank. By this it was forbidden to make any payment in silver above ten
+livres, or in gold above three hundred.
+
+The repeated decrees of this nature, the object of which was to depreciate
+the value of gold, and increase the illusive credit of paper, began to
+awaken doubts of a system which required such bolstering. Capitalists
+gradually awoke from their bewilderment. Sound and able financiers
+consulted together, and agreed to make common cause against this continual
+expansion of a paper system. The shares of the bank and of the company
+began to decline in value. Wary men took the alarm, and began to
+_realize_, a word now first brought into use, to express the
+conversion of _ideal_ property into something _real_.
+
+The prince of Conti, one of the most prominent and grasping of the
+Mississippi lords, was the first to give a blow to the credit of the bank.
+There was a mixture of ingratitude in his conduct that characterized the
+venal baseness of the times. He had received from time to time enormous
+sums from Law, as the price of his influence and patronage. His avarice had
+increased with every acquisition, until Law was compelled to refuse one of
+his exactions. In revenge the prince immediately sent such an amount of
+paper to the bank to be cashed that it required four wagons to bring away
+the silver, and he had the meanness to loll out of the window of his hotel
+and jest and exult as it was trundled into his portecochere.
+
+This was the signal for other drains of like nature. The English and Dutch
+merchants, who had purchased a great amount of bank paper at low prices,
+cashed them at the bank, and carried the money out of the country. Other
+strangers did the like, thus draining the kingdom of its specie, and
+leaving paper in its place.
+
+The regent, perceiving these symptoms of decay in the system, sought to
+restore it to public confidence by conferring marks of confidence upon its
+author.
+
+He accordingly resolved to make Law Comptroller General of the Finances of
+France. There was a material obstacle in his way. Law was a Protestant, and
+the regent, unscrupulous as he was himself, did not dare publicly to
+outrage the severe edicts which Louis XIV., in his bigot days, had
+fulminated against all heretics. Law soon let him know that there would be
+no difficulty on that head. He was ready at any moment to abjure his
+religion in the way of business. For decency's sake, however, it was judged
+proper he should previously be convinced and converted. A ghostly
+instructor was soon found, ready to accomplish his conversion in the
+shortest possible time. This was the Abbe Tencin, a profligate creature of
+the profligate Dubois, and like him working his way to ecclesiastical
+promotion and temporal wealth, by the basest means.
+
+Under the instructions of the Abbe Tencin, Law soon mastered the mysteries
+and dogmas of the Catholic doctrine; and, after a brief course of ghostly
+training, declared himself thoroughly convinced and converted. To avoid the
+sneers and jests of the Parisian public the ceremony of abjuration took
+place at Melun. Law made a pious present of one hundred thousand livres to
+the Church of St. Roque, and the Abbe Tencin was rewarded for his edifying
+labors by sundry shares and bank bills; which he shrewdly took care to
+convert into cash, having as little faith in the system as in the piety of
+his new convert. A more grave and moral community might have been outraged
+by this scandalous farce; but the Parisians laughed at it with their usual
+levity, and contented themselves with making it the subject of a number of
+songs and epigrams.
+
+Law now being orthodox in his faith, took out letters of naturalization,
+and having thus surmounted the intervening obstacles, was elevated by the
+regent to the post of comptroller-general. So accustomed had the community
+become to all juggles and transmutations in this hero of finance, that no
+one seemed shocked or astonished at his sudden elevation. On the contrary,
+being now considered perfectly established in place and power, he became
+more than ever the object of venal adoration. Men of rank and dignity
+thronged his antechamber, waiting patiently their turn for an audience; and
+titled dames demeaned themselves to take the front seats of the carriages
+of his wife and daughter, as if they had been riding with princesses of the
+blood royal. Law's head grew giddy with his elevation, and he began to
+aspire after aristocratical distinction. There was to be a court ball, at
+which several of the young noblemen were to dance in a ballet with the
+youthful king. Law requested that his son might be admitted into the
+ballet, and the regent consented. The young scions of nobility, however,
+were indignant and scouted the "intruding upstart." Their more worldly
+parents, fearful of displeasing the modern Midas, reprimanded them in vain.
+The striplings had not yet imbibed the passion for gain, and still held to
+their high blood. The son of the banker received slights and annoyances on
+all sides, and the public applauded them for their spirit. A fit of illness
+came opportunely to relieve the youth from an honor which would have cost
+him a world of vexations and affronts.
+
+In February, 1720, shortly after Law's installment in office, a decree came
+out uniting the bank to the India Company, by which last name the whole
+establishment was now known. The decree stated that as the bank was royal,
+the king was bound to make good the value of its bills; that he committed
+to the company the government of the bank for fifty years, and sold to it
+fifty millions of stock belonging to him, for nine hundred millions; a
+simple advance of eighteen hundred per cent. The decree further declared,
+in the king's name, that he would never draw on the bank until the value of
+his drafts had first been lodged in it by his receivers-general.
+
+The bank, it was said, had by this time issued notes to the amount of one
+thousand millions; being more paper than all the banks of Europe were able
+to circulate. To aid its credit, the receivers of the revenue were directed
+to take bank notes of the sub-receivers. All payments, also, of one hundred
+livres and upward were ordered to be made in banknotes. These compulsory
+measures for a short time gave a false credit to the bank, which proceeded
+to discount merchants' notes, to lend money on jewels, plate, and other
+valuables, as well as on mortgages.
+
+Still further to force on the system an edict next appeared, forbidding any
+individual, or any corporate body, civil or religious, to hold in
+possession more than five hundred livres in current coin; that is to say,
+about seven louis d'ors: the value of the louis-d'or in paper being, at the
+time, seventy-two livres. All the gold and silver they might have above
+this pittance was to be brought to the royal bank and exchanged either for
+shares or bills.
+
+As confiscation was the penalty of disobedience to this decree, and
+informers were assured a share of the forfeitures, a bounty was in a manner
+held out to domestic spies and traitors; and the most odious scrutiny was
+awakened into the pecuniary affairs of families and individuals. The very
+confidence between friends and relatives was unpaired, and all the domestic
+ties and virtues of society were threatened, until a general sentiment of
+indignation broke forth, that compelled the regent to rescind the odious
+decree. Lord Stairs, the British embassador, speaking of the system of
+espionage encouraged by this edict, observed that it was impossible to
+doubt that Law was a thorough Catholic, since he had thus established the
+_inquisition_, after having already proved _transubstantiation_,
+by changing specie into paper.
+
+Equal abuses had taken place under the colonizing project. In his thousand
+expedients to amass capital, Law had sold parcels of land in Mississippi,
+at the rate of three thousand livres for a league square. Many capitalists
+had purchased estates large enough to constitute almost a principality; the
+only evil was, Law had sold a property which he could not deliver. The
+agents of police, who aided in recruiting the ranks of the colonists, had
+been guilty of scandalous impositions. Under pretense of taking up
+mendicants and vagabonds, they had scoured the streets at night, seizing
+upon honest mechanics, or their sons, and hurrying them to their
+crimping-houses, for the sole purpose of extorting money from them as a
+ransom. The populace was roused to indignation by these abuses. The
+officers of police were mobbed in the exercise of their odious functions,
+and several of them were killed; which put an end to this flagrant abuse of
+power.
+
+In March, a most extraordinary decree of the council fixed the price of
+shares of the India Company at nine thousand livres each. All
+ecclesiastical communities and hospitals were now prohibited from investing
+money at interest, in anything but India stock. With all these props and
+stays, the system continued to totter. How could it be otherwise, under a
+despotic government that could alter the value of property at every moment?
+The very compulsory measures that were adopted to establish the credit of
+the bank hastened its fall; plainly showing there was a want of solid
+security.
+
+Law caused pamphlets to be published, setting forth, in eloquent language,
+the vast profits that must accrue to holders of the stock, and the
+impossibility of the king's ever doing it any harm. On the very back of
+these assertions came forth an edict of the king, dated the 22d of May,
+wherein, under pretense of having reduced the value of his coin, it was
+declared necessary to reduce the value of his bank-notes one-half, and of
+the India shares from nine thousand to five thousand livres.
+
+This decree came like a clap of thunder upon shareholders. They found
+one-half of the pretended value of the paper in their hands annihilated in
+an instant; and what certainty had they with respect to the other half? The
+rich considered themselves ruined; those in humbler circumstances looked
+forward to abject beggary.
+
+The parliament seized the occasion to stand forth as the protector of the
+public, and refused to register the decree. It gained the credit of
+compelling the regent to retrace his step, though it is more probable he
+yielded to the universal burst of public astonishment and reprobation. On
+the 27th of May the edict was revoked, and bank bills were restored to
+their previous value. But the fatal blow had been struck; the delusion was
+at an end. Government itself had lost all public confidence, equally with
+the bank it had engendered, and which its own arbitrary acts had brought
+into discredit. "All Paris," says the regent's mother, in her letters, "has
+been mourning at the cursed decree which Law has persuaded my son to make.
+I have received anonymous letters stating that I have nothing to fear on my
+own account, but that my son shall be pursued with fire and sword."
+
+The regent now endeavored to avert the odium of his ruinous schemes from
+himself. He affected to have suddenly lost confidence in Law, and, on the
+29th of May, discharged bin from his employ as comptroller-general, and
+stationed a Swiss guard of sixteen men in his house. He even refused to see
+him, when, on the following day, he applied at the portal of the Palais
+Royal for admission; but having played off this farce before the public, he
+admitted him secretly the same night, by a private door, and continued as
+before to co-operate with him in his financial schemes.
+
+On the first of June the regent issued a decree, permitting persons to have
+as much money as they pleased in their possession. Few, however, were in a
+state to benefit by this permission. There was a run upon the bank, but a
+royal ordinance immediately suspended payment, until further orders. To
+relieve the public mind, a city stock was created, of twenty-five millions,
+bearing an interest of two and a half per cent, for which bank notes were
+taken in exchange. The bank notes thus withdrawn from circulation were
+publicly burned before the Hotel de Ville. The public, however, had lost
+confidence in everything and everybody, and suspected fraud and collusion
+in those who pretended to burn the bills.
+
+A general confusion now took place hi the financial world. Families who had
+lived in opulence found themselves suddenly reduced to indigence. Schemers
+who had been reveling in the delusion of princely fortune found their
+estates vanishing into thin air. Those who had any property remaining
+sought to secure it against reverses. Cautious persons found there was no
+safety for property in a country where the coin was continually shifting in
+value, and where a despotism was exercised over public securities, and even
+over the private purses of individuals. They began to send their effects
+into other countries; when lo! on the 20th of June a royal edict commanded
+them to bring back their effects, under penalty of forfeiting twice their
+value; and forbade them, under like penalty, from investing their money in
+foreign stocks. This was soon followed by another decree, forbidding any
+one to retain precious stones in his possession, or to sell them to
+foreigners; all must be deposited in the bank, in exchange for depreciating
+paper!
+
+Execrations were now poured out on all sides against Law, and menaces of
+vengeance. What a contrast, in a short time, to the venal incense that was
+offered up to him! "This person," writes the regent's mother, "who was
+formerly worshiped as a god, is now not sure of his life. It is astonishing
+how greatly terrified he is. He is as a dead man; he is pale as a sheet,
+and it is said he can never get over it. My son is not dismayed, though he
+is threatened on all sides; and is very much amused with Law's terrors."
+
+About the middle of July the last grand attempt was made by Law and the
+regent to keep up the system and provide for the immense emission of paper.
+A decree was fabricated, giving the India Company the entire monopoly of
+commerce, on condition that it would, in the course of a year, reimburse
+six hundred millions of livres of its bills, at the rate of fifty millions
+per month.
+
+On the 17th this decree was sent to parliament to be registered. It at once
+raised a storm of opposition in that assembly, and a vehement discussion
+took place. While that was going on a disastrous scene was passing out of
+doors.
+
+The calamitous effects of the system had reached the humblest concerns of
+human life. Provisions had risen to an enormous price; paper money was
+refused at all the shops; the people had not wherewithal to buy bread. It
+had been found absolutely indispensable to relax a little from the
+suspension of specie payments, and to allow small sums to be scantily
+exchanged for paper. The doors of the bank and the neighboring streets were
+immediately thronged with a famishing multitude, seeking cash for bank
+notes of ten livres. So great was the press and struggle that several
+persons were stifled and crushed to death. The mob carried three of the
+bodies to the courtyard of the Palais Royal. Some cried for the regent to
+come forth and behold the effect of his system; others demanded the death
+of Law, the impostor, who had brought this misery and rum upon the nation.
+
+The moment was critical, the popular fury was rising to a tempest, when Le
+Blanc, the Secretary of State, stepped forth. He had previously sent for
+the military, and now only sought to gain tune. Singling out six or seven
+stout fellows, who seemed to be the ringleaders of the mob: "My good
+fellows," said he, calmly, "carry away these bodies and place them in some
+church, and then come back quickly to me for your pay." They immediately
+obeyed; a kind of funeral procession was formed; the arrival of troops
+dispersed those who lingered behind; and Paris was probably saved from an
+insurrection.
+
+About ten o'clock in the morning, all being quiet, Law ventured to go in
+his carriage to the Palais Royal. He was saluted with cries and curses, as
+he passed along the streets; and he reached the Palais Royal in a terrible
+fright. The regent amused himself with his fears, but retained him with
+him, and sent off his carriage, which was assailed by the mob, pelted with
+stones, and the glasses shivered. The news of this outrage was communicated
+to parliament in the midst of a furious discussion of the decree for the
+commercial monopoly. The first president, who had been absent for a short
+time, re-entered, and communicated the tidings in a whimsical couplet:
+
+  "Messieurs, Messieurs! bonne nouvelle!
+  Le carrosse de Law est reduite en carrelle!"
+
+  "Gentlemen, Gentlemen! good news!
+  The carriage of Law is shivered to atoms!"
+
+The members sprang up with joy; "And Law!" exclaimed they, "has he been
+torn to pieces?" The president was ignorant of the result of the tumult;
+whereupon the debate was cut short, the decree rejected, and the house
+adjourned; the members hurrying to learn the particulars. Such was the
+levity with which public affairs were treated at that dissolute and
+disastrous period.
+
+On the following day there was an ordinance from the king, prohibiting all
+popular assemblages; and troops were stationed at various points, and in
+all public places. The regiment of guards was ordered to hold itself in
+readiness; and the musketeers to be at their hotels, with their horses
+ready saddled. A number of small offices were opened, where people might
+cash small notes, though with great delay and difficulty. An edict was also
+issued declaring that whoever should refuse to take bank notes in the
+course of trade should forfeit double the amount!
+
+The continued and vehement opposition of parliament to the whole delusive
+system of finance had been a constant source of annoyance to the regent;
+but this obstinate rejection of his last grand expedient of a commercial
+monopoly was not to be tolerated. He determined to punish that intractable
+body. The Abbe Dubois and Law suggested a simple mode; it was to suppress
+the parliament altogether, being, as they observed, so far from useful that
+it was a constant impediment to the march of public affairs. The regent was
+half inclined to listen to their advice; but upon calmer consideration, and
+the advice of friends, he adopted a more moderate course. On the 20th of
+July, early in the morning, all the doors of the parliament-house were
+taken possession of by troops. Others were sent to surround the house of
+the first president, and others to the houses of the various members; who
+were all at first in great alarm, until an order from the king was put into
+their hands, to render themselves at Pontoise, in the course of two days,
+to which place the parliament was thus suddenly and arbitrarily
+transferred.
+
+This despotic act, says Voltaire, would at any other time have caused an
+insurrection; but one half of the Parisians were occupied by their ruin,
+and the other half by their fancied riches, which were soon to vanish. The
+president and members of parliament acquiesced in the mandate without a
+murmur; they even went as if on a party of pleasure, and made every
+preparation to lead a joyous life in their exile. The musketeers, who held
+possession of the vacated parliament-house, a gay corps of fashionable
+young fellows, amused themselves with making songs and pasquinades, at the
+expense of the exiled legislators; and at length, to pass away time, formed
+themselves into a mock parliament; elected their presidents, kings,
+ministers, and advocates; took their seats in due form, arraigned a cat at
+their bar, in place of the Sieur Law, and, after giving it a "fair trial,"
+condemned it to be hanged. In this manner public affairs and public
+institutions were lightly turned to jest.
+
+As to the exiled parliament, it lived gayly and luxuriously at Pontoise, at
+the public expense; for the regent had furnished funds, as usual, with a
+lavish hand. The first president had the mansion of the Duke de Bouillon
+put at his disposal, already furnished, with a vast and delightful garden
+on the borders of a river. There he kept open house to all the members of
+parliament. Several tables were spread every day, all furnished luxuriously
+and splendidly; the most exquisite wines and liqueurs, the choicest fruits
+and refreshments, of all kinds, abounded. A number of small chariots for
+one and two horses were always at hand, for such ladies and old gentlemen
+as wished to take an airing after dinner, and card and billiard tables for
+such as chose to amuse themselves in that way until supper. The sister and
+the daughter of the first president did the honors of the house, and he
+himself presided there with an air of great ease, hospitality, and
+magnificence. It became a party of pleasure to drive from Paris to
+Pontoise, which was six leagues distant, and partake of the amusements and
+festivities of the place. Business was openly slighted; nothing was thought
+of but amusement. The regent and his government were laughed at, and made
+the subjects of continual pleasantries; while the enormous expenses
+incurred by this idle and lavish course of life more than doubled the
+liberal sums provided. This was the way in which the parliament resented
+their exile.
+
+During all this time the system was getting more and more involved. The
+stock exchange had some time previously been removed to the Place Vendome;
+but the tumult and noise becoming intolerable to the residents of that
+polite quarter, and especially to the chancellor, whose hotel was there,
+the Prince and Princess Carignan, both deep gamblers in Mississippi stock,
+offered the extensive garden of the Hotel de Soissons as a rallying-place
+for the worshipers of Mammon. The offer was accepted. A number of barracks
+were immediately erected in the garden, as offices for the stock-brokers,
+and an order was obtained from the regent, under pretext of police
+regulations, that no bargain should be valid unless concluded in these
+barracks. The rent of them immediately mounted to a hundred livres a month
+for each, and the whole yielded these noble proprietors an ignoble revenue
+of half a million of livres.
+
+The mania for gain, however, was now at an end. A universal panic
+succeeded. "_Sauve qui peut!_" was the watchword. Every one was
+anxious to exchange falling paper for something of intrinsic and permanent
+value. Since money was not to be had, jewels, precious stones, plate,
+porcelain, trinkets of gold and silver, all commanded any price in paper.
+Land was bought at fifty years' purchase, and he esteemed himself happy who
+could get it even at this price. Monopolies now became the rage among the
+noble holders of paper. The Duke de la Force bought up nearly all the
+tallow, grease, and soap; others the coffee and spices; others hay and
+oats. Foreign exchanges were almost impracticable. The debts of Dutch and
+English merchants were paid in this fictitious money, all the coin of the
+realm having disappeared. All the relations of debtor and creditor were
+confounded. With one thousand crowns one might pay a debt of eighteen
+thousand livres!
+
+The regent's mother, who once exulted in the affluence of bank paper, now
+wrote in a very different tone: "I have often wished," said she in her
+letters, "that these bank-notes were in the depths of the infernal regions.
+They have given my son more trouble than relief. Nobody in France has a
+penny.... My son was once popular, but since the arrival of this cursed
+Law, he is hated more and more. Not a week passes, without my receiving
+letters filled with frightful threats, and speaking of him as a tyrant. I
+have just received one threatening him with poison. When I showed it to
+him, he did nothing but laugh."
+
+In the meantime, Law was dismayed by the increasing troubles, and terrified
+at the tempest he had raised. He was not a man of real courage; and fearing
+for his personal safety, from popular tumult, or the despair of ruined
+individuals, he again took refuge in the palace of the regent. The latter,
+as usual, amused himself with his terrors, and turned every new disaster
+into a jest; but he too began to think of his own security.
+
+In pursuing the schemes of Law, he had no doubt calculated to carry through
+his term of government with ease and splendor; and to enrich himself, his
+connections, and his favorites; and had hoped that the catastrophe of the
+system would not take place until after the expiration of the regency.
+
+He now saw his mistake; that it was impossible much longer to prevent an
+explosion; and he determined at once to get Law out of the way, and then to
+charge him with the whole tissue of delusions of this paper alchemy. He
+accordingly took occasion of the recall of parliament in December, 1720, to
+suggest to Law the policy of his avoiding an encounter with that hostile
+and exasperated body. Law needed no urging to the measure. His only desire
+was to escape from Paris and its tempestuous populace. Two days before the
+return of parliament he took his sudden and secret departure. He traveled
+in a chaise bearing the arms of the regent, and was escorted by a kind of
+safeguard of servants in the duke's livery. His first place of refuge was
+an estate of the regent's, about six leagues from Paris, from whence he
+pushed forward to Bruxelles.
+
+As soon as Law was fairly out of the way, the Duke of Orleans summoned a
+council of the regency, and informed them that they were assembled to
+deliberate on the state of the finances, and the affairs of the India
+Company. Accordingly La Houssaye, comptroller-general, rendered a perfectly
+clear statement, by which it appeared that there were bank bills in
+circulation to the amount of two milliards, seven hundred millions of
+livres, without any evidence that this enormous sum had been emitted in
+virtue of any ordinance from the general assembly of the India Company,
+which alone had the right to authorize such emissions.
+
+The council was astonished at this disclosure, and looked to the regent for
+explanation. Pushed to the extreme, the regent avowed that Law had emitted
+bills to the amount of twelve hundred millions beyond what had been fixed
+by ordinances, and in contradiction to express prohibitions; that the thing
+being done, he, the regent, had legalized or rather covered the
+transaction, by decrees ordering such emissions, which decrees he had
+_antedated_.
+
+A stormy scene ensued between the regent and the Duke de Bourbon, little to
+the credit of either, both having been deeply implicated in the cabalistic
+operations of the system. In fact, the several members of the council had
+been among the most venal "beneficiaries" of the scheme, and had interests
+at stake which they were anxious to secure. From all the circumstances of
+the case, I am inclined to think that others were more to blame than Law,
+for the disastrous effects of his financial projects. His bank, had it been
+confined to its original limits, and left to the control of its own
+internal regulations, might have gone on prosperously, and been of great
+benefit to the nation. It was an institution fitted for a free country; but
+unfortunately it was subjected to the control of a despotic government,
+that could, at its pleasure, alter the value of the specie within its
+vaults, and compel the most extravagant expansions of its paper
+circulation. The vital principle of a bank is security in the regularity of
+its operations, and the immediate convertibility of its paper into coin;
+and what confidence could be reposed in an institution or its paper
+promises, when the sovereign could at any moment centuple those promises in
+the market, and seize upon all the money in the bank? The compulsory
+measures used, likewise, to force bank-notes into currency, against the
+judgment of the public, was fatal to the system; for credit must be free
+and uncontrolled as the common air. The regent was the evil spirit of the
+system, that forced Law on to an expansion of his paper currency far beyond
+what he had ever dreamed of. He it was that in a manner compelled the
+unlucky projector to devise all kinds of collateral companies and
+monopolies, by which to raise funds to meet the constantly and enormously
+increasing emissions of shares and notes. Law was but like a poor conjurer
+in the hands of a potent spirit that he has evoked, and that obliges him to
+go on, desperately and ruinously, with his conjurations. He only thought at
+the outset to raise the wind, but the regent compelled him to raise the
+whirlwind.
+
+The investigation of the affairs of the company by the council resulted in
+nothing beneficial to the public. The princes and nobles who had enriched
+themselves by all kinds of juggles and extortions, escaped unpunished, and
+retained the greater part of their spoils. Many of the "suddenly rich," who
+had risen from obscurity to a giddy height of imaginary prosperity, and had
+indulged in all kinds of vulgar and ridiculous excesses, awoke as out of a
+dream, in their original poverty, now made more galling and humiliating by
+their transient elevation.
+
+The weight of the evil, however, fell on more valuable classes of society;
+honest tradesmen and artisans, who had been seduced away from the safe
+pursuits of industry, to the specious chances of speculation. Thousands of
+meritorious families also, once opulent, had been reduced to indigence, by
+a too great confidence in government. There was a general derangement in
+the finances, that long exerted a baneful influence over the national
+prosperity; but the most disastrous effects of the system were upon the
+morals and manners of the nation. The faith of engagements, the sanctity of
+promises in affairs of business, were at an end. Every expedient to grasp
+present profit, or to evade present difficulty, was tolerated. While such
+deplorable laxity of principle was generated in the busy classes, the
+chivalry of France had soiled their pennons; and honor and glory, so long
+the idols of the Gallic nobility, had been tumbled to the earth, and
+trampled in the dirt of the stock-market.
+
+As to Law, the originator of the system, he appears eventually to have
+profited but little by his schemes. "He was a quack," says Voltaire, "to
+whom the state was given to be cured, but who poisoned it with his drugs,
+and who poisoned himself." The effects which he left behind in France were
+sold at a low price and the proceeds dissipated. His landed estates were
+confiscated. He carried away with him barely enough to maintain himself,
+his wife, and daughter, with decency. The chief relic of his immense
+fortune was a great diamond, which he was often obliged to pawn. He was in
+England in 1721, and was presented to George the First. He returned shortly
+afterward to the continent; shifting about from place to place, and died in
+Venice, in 1729. His wife and daughter, accustomed to live with the
+prodigality of princesses, could not conform to their altered fortunes, but
+dissipated the scanty means left to them, and sank into abject poverty. "I
+saw his wife," says Voltaire, "at Bruxelles, as much humiliated as she had
+been haughty and triumphant in Paris." An elder brother of Law remained in
+France, and was protected by the Duchess of Bourbon. His descendants have
+acquitted themselves honorably, in various public employments; and one of
+them is the Marquis Lauriston, some time lieutenant-general and peer of
+France.
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+
+
+
+
+DON JUAN
+
+A SPECTRAL RESEARCH
+
+
+  "I have heard of spirits walking with aerial bodies, and have been
+  wondered at by others; but I must only wonder at myself, for if they
+  be not mad, I'me come to my own buriall."--SHIRLEY's _Witty Fairie
+  One_
+
+Everybody has heard of the fate of Don Juan, the famous libertine of
+Seville, who for his sins against the fair sex and other minor peccadilloes
+was hurried away to the infernal regions. His story has been illustrated in
+play, in pantomime, and farce, on every stage in Christendom; until at
+length it has been rendered the theme of the operas, and embalmed to
+endless duration in the glorious music of Mozart. I well recollect the
+effect of this story upon my feelings in my boyish days, though represented
+in grotesque pantomime; the awe with which I contemplated the monumental
+statue on horseback of the murdered commander, gleaming by pale moonlight
+in the convent cemetery; how my heart quaked as he bowed his marble head,
+and accepted the impious invitation of Don Juan: how each footfall of the
+statue smote upon my heart, as I heard it approach, step by step, through
+the echoing corridor, and beheld it enter, and advance, a moving figure of
+stone, to the supper table! But then the convivial scene in the
+charnel-house, where Don Juan returned the visit of the statue; was offered
+a banquet of skulls and bones, and on refusing to partake, was hurled into
+a yawning gulf, under a tremendous shower of fire! These were accumulated
+horrors enough to shake the nerves of the most pantomime-loving schoolboy.
+Many have supposed the story of Don Juan a mere fable. I myself thought so
+once; but "seeing is believing." I have since beheld the very scene where
+it took place, and now to indulge any doubt on the subject would be
+preposterous.
+
+I was one night perambulating the streets of Seville, in company with a
+Spanish friend, a curious investigator of the popular traditions and other
+good-for-nothing lore of the city, and who was kind enough to imagine he
+had met, in me, with a congenial spirit. In the course of our rambles we
+were passing by a heavy, dark gateway, opening into the courtyard of a
+convent, when he laid his hand upon my arm: "Stop!" said he, "this is the
+convent of San Francisco; there is a story connected with it which I am
+sure must be known to you. You cannot but have heard of Don Juan and the
+marble statue."
+
+"Undoubtedly," replied I, "it has been familiar to me from childhood."
+
+"Well, then, it was in the cemetery of this very convent that the events
+took place."
+
+"Why, you do not mean to say that the story is founded on fact?"
+
+"Undoubtedly it is. The circumstances of the case are said to have occurred
+during the reign of Alfonso XI. Don Juan was of the noble family of
+Tenorio, one of the most illustrious houses of Andalusia. His father, Don
+Diego Tenorio, was a favorite of the king, and his family ranked among the
+_deintecuatros_, or magistrates, of the city. Presuming on his high
+descent and powerful connections, Don Juan set no bounds to his excesses:
+no female, high or low, was sacred from his pursuit: and he soon became the
+scandal of Seville. One of his most daring outrages was, to penetrate by
+night into the palace of Don Gonzalo de Ulloa, commander of the order of
+Calatrava, and attempt to carry off his daughter. The household was
+alarmed; a scuffle in the dark took place; Don Juan escaped, but the
+unfortunate commander was found weltering in his blood, and expired without
+being able to name his murderer. Suspicions attached to Don Juan; he did
+not stop to meet the investigations of justice, and the vengeance of the
+powerful family of Ulloa, but fled from Seville, and took refuge with his
+uncle, Don Pedro Tenorio, at that time embassador at the court of Naples.
+Here he remained until the agitation occasioned by the murder of Don
+Gonzalo had time to subside; and the scandal which the affair might cause
+to both the families of Ulloa and Tenorio had induced them to hush it up.
+Don Juan, however, continued his libertine career at Naples, until at
+length his excesses forfeited the protection of his uncle, the embassador,
+and obliged him again to flee. He had made his way back to Seville,
+trusting that his past misdeeds were forgotten, or rather trusting to his
+dare-devil spirit and the power of his family to carry him through all
+difficulties.
+
+"It was shortly after his return, and while in the height of his arrogance,
+that on visiting this very convent of Francisco, he beheld on a monument
+the equestrian statue of the murdered commander, who had been buried within
+the walls of this sacred edifice, where the family of Ulloa had a chapel.
+It was on this occasion that Don Juan, in a moment of impious levity,
+invited the statue to the banquet, the awful catastrophe of which has given
+such celebrity to his story."
+
+"And pray how much of this story," said I, "is believed in Seville?"
+
+"The whole of it by the populace; with whom it has been a favorite
+tradition since time immemorial, and who crowd to the theaters to see it
+represented in dramas written long since by Tyrso de Molina, and another of
+our popular writers. Many in our higher ranks also, accustomed from
+childhood to this story, would feel somewhat indignant at hearing it
+treated with contempt. An attempt has been made to explain the whole, by
+asserting that, to put an end to the extravagances of Don Juan, and to
+pacify the family of Ulloa, without exposing the delinquent to the
+degrading penalties of justice, he was decoyed into this convent under a
+false pretext, and either plunged into a perpetual dungeon, or privately
+hurried out of existence; while the story of the statue was circulated by
+the monks, to account for his sudden disappearance. The populace, however,
+are not to be cajoled out of a ghost story by any of these plausible
+explanations; and the marble statue still strides the stage, and Don Juan
+is still plunged into the infernal regions, as an awful warning to all
+rake-helly youngsters, in like case offending."
+
+While my companion was relating these anecdotes, we had entered the
+gateway, traversed the exterior courtyard of the convent, and made our way
+into a great interior court; partly surrounded by cloisters and
+dormitories, partly by chapels, and having a large fountain in the center.
+The pile had evidently once been extensive and magnificent; but it was for
+the greater part in ruins. By the light of the stars, and of twinkling
+lamps placed here and there in the chapels and corridors, I could see that
+many of the columns and arches were broken; the walls were rent and riven;
+white burned beams and rafters showed the destructive effects of fire. The
+whole place had a desolate air; the night breeze rustled through grass and
+weeds flaunting out of the crevices of the walls, or from the shattered
+columns; the bat flitted about the vaulted passages, and the owl hooted
+from the ruined belfry. Never was any scene more completely fitted for a
+ghost story.
+
+While I was indulging in picturings of the fancy, proper to such a place,
+the deep chant of the monks from the convent church came swelling upon the
+ear. "It is the vesper service," said my companion; "follow me."
+
+Leading the way across the court of the cloisters, and through one or two
+ruined passages, he reached the distant portal of the church, and pushing
+open a wicket, cut in the folding doors, we found ourselves in the deep
+arched vestibule of the sacred edifice. To our left was the choir, forming
+one end of the church, and having a low vaulted ceiling, which gave it the
+look of a cavern. About this were ranged the monks, seated on stools, and
+chanting from immense books placed on music-stands, and having the notes
+scored in such gigantic characters as to be legible from every part of the
+choir. A few lights on these music-stands dimly illumined the choir,
+gleamed on the shaven heads of the monks and threw their shadows on the
+walls. They were gross, blue-bearded, bullet-headed men, with bass voices,
+of deep metallic tone, that reverberated out of the cavernous choir.
+
+To our right extended the great body of the church. It was spacious and
+lofty; some of the side chapels had gilded grates, and were decorated with
+images and paintings, representing the sufferings of our Saviour. Aloft was
+a great painting by Murillo, but too much in the dark to be distinguished.
+The gloom of the whole church was but faintly relieved by the reflected
+light from the choir, and the glimmering here and there of a votive lamp
+before the shrine of a saint.
+
+As my eye roamed about the shadowy pile, it was struck with the dimly seen
+figure of a man on horseback, near a distant altar. I touched my companion,
+and pointed to it: "The specter statue!" said I.
+
+"No," replied he; "it is the statue of the blessed St. Iago; the statue of
+the commander was in the cemetery of the convent, and was destroyed at the
+tune of the conflagration. But," added he, "as I see you take a proper
+interest in these kind of stories, come with me to the other end of the
+church, where our whisperings will not disturb these holy fathers at their
+devotions, and I will tell you another story that has been current for some
+generations in our city, by which you will find that Don Juan is not the
+only libertine that has been the object of supernatural castigation in
+Seville."
+
+I accordingly followed him with noiseless tread to the further part of the
+church, where we took our seats on the steps of an altar, opposite to the
+suspicious-looking figure on horseback, and there, in a low, mysterious
+voice, he related to me the following narration:
+
+"There was once in Seville a gay young fellow, Don Manuel de Manara by
+name, who, having come to a great estate by the death of his father, gave
+the reins to his passions, and plunged into all kinds of dissipation. Like
+Don Juan, whom he seemed to have taken for a model, he became famous for
+his enterprises among the fair sex, and was the cause of doors being barred
+and windows grated with more than usual strictness. All in vain. No balcony
+was too high for him to scale; no bolt nor bar was proof against his
+efforts; and his very name was a word of terror to all the jealous husbands
+and cautious fathers of Seville. His exploits extended to country as well
+as city; and in the village dependent on his castle, scarce a rural beauty
+was safe from his arts and enterprises.
+
+"As he was one day ranging the streets of Seville, with several of his
+dissolute companions, he beheld a procession about to enter the gate of a
+convent. In the center was a young female arrayed in the dress of a bride;
+it was a novice, who, having accomplished her year of probation, was about
+to take the black veil, and consecrate herself to heaven. The companions of
+Don Manuel drew back, out of respect to the sacred pageant; but he pressed
+forward, with his usual impetuosity, to gain a near view of the novice. He
+almost jostled her, in passing through the portal of the church, when, on
+her turning round, he beheld the countenance of a beautiful village girl,
+who had been the object of his ardent pursuit, but who had been spirited
+secretly out of his reach by her relatives. She recognized him at the same
+moment, and fainted; but was borne within the grate of the chapel. It was
+supposed the agitation of the ceremony and the heat of the throng had
+overcome her. After some time, the curtain which hung within the grate was
+drawn up: there stood the novice, pale and trembling, surrounded by the
+abbess and the nuns. The ceremony proceeded; the crown of flowers was taken
+from her head; she was shorn of her silken tresses, received the black
+veil, and went passively through the remainder of the ceremony.
+
+"Don Manuel de Manara, on the contrary, was roused to fury at the sight of
+this sacrifice. His passion, which had almost faded away in the absence of
+the object, now glowed with tenfold ardor, being inflamed by the
+difficulties placed in his way, and piqued by the measures which had been
+taken to defeat him. Never had the object of his pursuit appeared so lovely
+and desirable as when within the grate of the convent; and he swore to have
+her, in defiance of heaven and earth. By dint of bribing a female servant
+of the convent he contrived to convey letters to her, pleading his passion
+in the most eloquent and seductive terms. How successful they were is only
+matter of conjecture; certain it is, he undertook one night to scale the
+garden wall of the convent, either to carry off the nun or gain admission
+to her cell. Just as he was mounting the wall he was suddenly plucked back,
+and a stranger, muffled in a cloak, stood before him.
+
+"'Rash man, forbear!' cried he: 'is it not enough to have violated all
+human ties? Wouldst thou steal a bride from heaven!'
+
+"The sword of Don Manuel had been drawn on the instant, and, furious at
+this interruption, he passed it through the body of the stranger, who fell
+dead at his feet. Hearing approaching footsteps, he fled the fatal spot,
+and mounting his horse, which was at hand, retreated to his estate in the
+country, at no great distance from Seville. Here he remained throughout the
+next day, full of horror and remorse; dreading lest he should be known as
+the murderer of the deceased, and fearing each moment the arrival of the
+officers of justice.
+
+"The day passed, however, without molestation; and, as the evening
+approached, unable any longer to endure this state of uncertainty and
+apprehension, he ventured back to Seville. Irresistibly his footsteps took
+the direction of the convent; but he paused and hovered at a distance from
+the scene of blood. Several persons were gathered round the place, one of
+whom was busy nailing something against the convent wall. After a while
+they dispersed, and one passed near to Don Manuel. The latter addressed
+him, with a hesitating voice.
+
+"'Senor,' said he, 'may I ask the reason of yonder throng?'
+
+"'A cavalier,' replied the other, 'has been murdered.'
+
+"'Murdered!' echoed Don Manuel; 'and can you tell me his name?'
+
+"'Don Manuel de Manara,' replied the stranger, and passed on.
+
+"Don Manuel was startled at this mention of his own name; especially when
+applied to the murdered man. He ventured, when it was entirely deserted, to
+approach the fatal spot. A small cross had been nailed against the wall, as
+is customary in Spain, to mark the place where a murder has been committed;
+and just below it, he read, by the twinkling light of a lamp: 'Here was
+murdered Don Manuel de Manara. Pray to God for his soul!'
+
+"Still more confounded and perplexed by this inscription, he wandered about
+the streets until the night was far advanced, and all was still and lonely.
+As he entered the principal square, the light of torches suddenly broke on
+him, and he beheld a grand funeral procession moving across it. There was a
+great train of priests, and many persons of dignified appearance, in
+ancient Spanish dresses, attending as mourners, none of whom he knew.
+Accosting a servant who followed in the train, he demanded the name of the
+defunct.
+
+"'Don Manuel de Manara,' was the reply; and it went cold to his heart. He
+looked, and indeed beheld the armorial bearings of his family emblazoned on
+the funeral escutcheons. Yet not one of his family was to be seen among the
+mourners. The mystery was more and more incomprehensible.
+
+"He followed the procession as it moved on to the cathedral. The bier was
+deposited before the high altar; the funeral service was commenced, and the
+grand organ began to peal through the vaulted aisles.
+
+"Again the youth ventured to question this awful pageant. 'Father,' said
+he, with trembling voice, to one of the priests, 'who is this you are about
+to inter?'
+
+"'Don Manuel de Manara!' replied the priest.
+
+"'Father,' cried Don Manuel, impatiently, 'you are deceived. This is some
+imposture. Know that Don Manuel de Manara la alive and well, and now stands
+before you. _I_ am Don Manuel de Manara!'
+
+"'Avaunt, rash youth!' cried the priest; 'know that Don Manuel de Manara is
+dead!--is dead!--is dead!--and we are all souls from purgatory, his
+deceased relatives and ancestors, and others that have been aided by masses
+of his family, who are permitted to come here and pray for the repose of
+his soul!'
+
+"Don Manuel cast round a fearful glance upon the assemblage, in antiquated
+Spanish garbs, and recognized in their pale and ghastly countenances the
+portraits of many an ancestor that hung in the family picture-gallery. He
+now lost all self-command, rushed up to the bier, and beheld the
+counterpart of himself, but in the fixed and livid lineaments of death.
+Just at that moment the whole choir burst forth with a 'Requiescat in
+pace,' that shook the vaults of the cathedral. Don Manuel sank senseless on
+the pavement. He was found there early the next morning by the sacristan,
+and conveyed to his home. When sufficiently recovered, he sent for a friar
+and made a full confession of all that had happened.
+
+"'My son,' said the friar, 'all this is a miracle and a mystery, intended
+for thy conversion and salvation. The corpse thou hast seen was a token
+that thou hadst died to sin and the world; take warning by it, and
+henceforth live to righteousness and heaven!'
+
+"Don Manuel did take warning by it. Guided by the counsels of the worthy
+friar, he disposed of all his temporal affairs; dedicated the greater part
+of his wealth to pious uses, especially to the performance of masses for
+souls in purgatory; and finally, entering a convent, became one of the most
+zealous and exemplary monks in Seville."
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+While my companion was relating this story, my eyes wandered, from time to
+time, about the dusky church. Methought the burly countenances of the monks
+in their distant choir assumed a pallid, ghastly hue, and their deep
+metallic voices had a sepulchral sound. By the time the story was ended,
+they had ended their chant; and, extinguishing their lights, glided one by
+one, like shadows, through a small door in the side of the choir. A deeper
+gloom prevailed over the church; the figure opposite me on horseback grew
+more and more spectral; and I almost expected to see it bow its head.
+
+"It is time to be off," said my companion, "unless we intend to sup with
+the statue."
+
+"I have no relish for such fare or such company," replied I; and, following
+my companion, we groped our way through the mouldering cloisters. As we
+passed by the ruined cemetery, keeping up a casual conversation, by way of
+dispelling the loneliness of the scene, I called to mind the words of the
+poet:
+
+                     "--The tombs
+  And monumental caves of death look cold,
+  And shoot a chillness to my trembling heart!
+  Give me thy hand, and let me hear thy voice;
+  Nay, speak--and let me hear thy voice;
+  My own affrights me with its echoes."
+
+There wanted nothing but the marble statue of the commander striding along
+the echoing cloisters to complete the haunted scene.
+
+Since that time I never fail to attend the theater whenever the story of
+Don Juan is represented, whether in pantomime or opera. In the sepulchral
+scene, I feel myself quite at home; and when the statue makes his
+appearance, I greet him as an old acquaintance. When the audience applaud,
+I look round upon them with a degree of compassion. "Poor souls!" I say to
+myself, "they think they are pleased; they think they enjoy this piece, and
+yet they consider the whole as a fiction! How much more would they enjoy
+it, if like me they knew it to be true--_and had seen the very
+place_!"
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+
+
+
+BROEK
+
+OF THE DUTCH PARADISE
+
+
+It has long been a matter of discussion and controversy among the pious and
+the learned, as to the situation of the terrestrial paradise from whence
+our first parents were exiled. This question has been put to rest by
+certain of the faithful in Holland, who have decided in favor of the
+village of Broek, about six miles from Amsterdam. It may not, they observe,
+correspond in all respects to the description of the Garden of Eden, handed
+down from days of yore, but it comes nearer to their ideas of a perfect
+paradise than any other place on earth.
+
+This eulogium induced me to make some inquiries as to this favored spot in
+the course of a sojourn at the city of Amsterdam, and the information I
+procured fully justified the enthusiastic praises I had heard. The village
+of Broek is situated in Waterland, in the midst of the greenest and richest
+pastures of Holland, I may say, of Europe. These pastures are the source of
+its wealth, for it is famous for its dairies, and for those oval cheeses
+which regale and perfume the whole civilized world. The population consists
+of about six hundred persons, comprising several families which have
+inhabited the place since time immemorial, and have waxed rich on the
+products of their meadows. They keep all their wealth among themselves,
+intermarrying, and keeping all strangers at a wary distance. They are a
+"hard money" people, and remarkable for turning the penny the right way. It
+is said to have been an old rule, established by one of the primitive
+financiers and legislators of Broek, that no one should leave the village
+with more than six guilders in his pocket, or return with less than ten; a
+shrewd regulation, well worthy the attention of modern political
+economists, who are so anxious to fix the balance of trade.
+
+What, however, renders Broek so perfect an elysium in the eyes of all true
+Hollanders is the matchless height to which the spirit of cleanliness is
+carried there. It amounts almost to a religion among the inhabitants, who
+pass the greater part of their time rubbing and scrubbing, and painting and
+varnishing; each housewife vies with her neighbor in her devotion to the
+scrubbing-brush, as zealous Catholics do in their devotion to the cross;
+and it is said a notable housewife of the place in days of yore is held in
+pious remembrance, and almost canonized as a saint, for having died of pure
+exhaustion and chagrin in an ineffectual attempt to scour a black man
+white.
+
+These particulars awakened my ardent curiosity to see a place which I
+pictured to myself the very fountain-head of certain hereditary habits and
+customs prevalent among the descendants of the original Dutch settlers of
+my native State. I accordingly lost no time in performing a pilgrimage to
+Broek.
+
+Before I reached the place I beheld symptoms of the tranquil character of
+its inhabitants. A little clump-built boat was in full sail along the lazy
+bosom of a canal, but its sail consisted of the blades of two paddles stood
+on end, while the navigator sat steering with a third paddle in the stern,
+crouched down like a toad, with a slouched hat drawn over his eyes. I
+presumed him to be some nautical lover on the way to his mistress. After
+proceeding a little further I came in sight of the harbor or port of
+destination of this drowsy navigator. This was the Broeken-Meer, an
+artificial basin, or sheet of olive-green water, tranquil as a mill-pond.
+On this the village of Broek is situated, and the borders are laboriously
+decorated with flower-beds, box-trees clipped into all kinds of ingenious
+shapes and fancies, and little "lust" houses, or pavilions.
+
+I alighted outside of the village, for no horse nor vehicle is permitted to
+enter its precincts, lest it should cause defilement of the well-scoured
+pavements. Shaking the dust off my feet, therefore, I prepared to enter,
+with due reverence and circumspection, this _sanctum sanctorum_ of
+Dutch cleanliness. I entered by a narrow street, paved with yellow bricks,
+laid edgewise, and so clean that one might eat from them. Indeed, they were
+actually worn deep, not by the tread of feet, but by the friction of the
+scrubbing-brush.
+
+The houses were built of wood, and all appeared to have been freshly
+painted, of green, yellow, and other bright colors. They were separated
+from each other by gardens and orchards, and stood at some little distance
+from the street, with wide areas or courtyards, paved in mosaic, with
+variegated stones, polished by frequent rubbing. The areas were divided
+from the street by curiously-wrought railings, or balustrades, of iron,
+surmounted with brass and copper balls, scoured into dazzling effulgence.
+The very trunks of the trees in front of the houses were by the same
+process made to look as if they had been varnished. The porches, doors, and
+window-frames of the houses were of exotic woods, curiously carved, and
+polished like costly furniture. The front doors are never opened, excepting
+on christenings, marriages, or funerals; on all ordinary occasions,
+visitors enter by the back door. In former times, persons when admitted had
+to put on slippers, but this Oriental ceremony is no longer insisted upon.
+
+A poor devil Frenchman, who attended upon me as cicerone, boasted with some
+degree of exultation of a triumph of his countrymen over the stern
+regulations of the place. During the time that Holland was overrun by the
+armies of the French republic, a French general, surrounded by his whole
+etat major, who had come from Amsterdam to view the wonders of Broek,
+applied for admission at one of these taboo'd portals. The reply was that
+the owner never received any one who did not come introduced by some
+friend. "Very well," said the general, "take my compliments to your master,
+and tell him I will return here to-morrow with a company of soldiers,
+'_pour parler raison avec mon ami Hollandais_.'" Terrified at the idea
+of having a company of soldiers billeted upon him, the owner threw open his
+house, entertained the general and his retinue with unwonted hospitality;
+though it is said it cost the family a month's scrubbing and scouring to
+restore all things to exact order, after this military invasion. My
+vagabond informant seemed to consider this one of the greatest victories of
+the republic.
+
+I walked about the place in mute wonder and admiration. A dead stillness
+prevailed around, like that in the deserted streets of Pompeii. No sign of
+life was to be seen, excepting now and then a hand, and a long pipe, and an
+occasional puff of smoke, out of the window of some "lusthaus" overhanging
+a miniature canal; and on approaching a little nearer, the periphery in
+profile of some robustious burgher.
+
+Among the grand houses pointed out to me were those of Claes Bakker, and
+Cornelius Bakker, richly carved and gilded, with flower gardens and clipped
+shrubberies; and that of the Great Ditmus, who, my poor devil cicerone
+informed me, in a whisper, was worth two millions; all these were mansions
+shut up from the world, and only kept to be cleaned. After having been
+conducted from one wonder to another of the village, I was ushered by my
+guide into the grounds and gardens of Mynheer Broekker, another mighty
+cheese-manufacturer, worth eighty thousand guilders a year. I had
+repeatedly been struck with the similarity of all that I had seen in this
+amphibious little village to the buildings and landscapes on Chinese
+platters and tea-pots; but here I found the similarity complete; for I was
+told that these gardens were modeled upon Van Bramm's description of those
+of Yuen min Yuen, in China. Here were serpentine walks, with trellised
+borders; winding canals, with fanciful Chinese bridges; flower-beds
+resembling huge baskets, with the flower of "love lies bleeding" falling
+over to the ground. But mostly had the fancy of Mynheer Broekker been
+displayed about a stagnant little lake, on which a corpulent little pinnace
+lay at anchor. On the border was a cottage within which were a wooden man
+and woman seated at table, and a wooden dog beneath, all the size of life;
+on pressing a spring, the woman commenced spinning, and the dog barked
+furiously. On the lake were wooden swans, painted to the life; some
+floating, others on the nest among the rushes; while a wooden sportsman,
+crouched among the bushes, was preparing his gun to take deadly aim. In
+another part of the garden was a dominie in his clerical robes, with wig,
+pipe, and cocked hat; and mandarins with nodding heads, amid red lions,
+green tigers, and blue hares. Last of all, the heathen deities, in wood and
+plaster, male and female, naked and bare-faced as usual, and seeming to
+stare with wonder at finding themselves in such strange company.
+
+My shabby French guide, while he pointed out all these mechanical marvels
+of the garden, was anxious to let me see that he had too polite a taste to
+be pleased with them. At every new knick-knack he would screw down his
+mouth, shrug up his shoulders, take a pinch of snuff, and exclaim: "_Ma
+foi, Monsieur, ces Hollandais sont forts pour ces betises la_!"
+
+To attempt to gain admission to any of these stately abodes was out of the
+question, having no company of soldiers to enforce a solicitation. I was
+fortunate enough, however, through the aid of my guide, to make my way into
+the kitchen of the illustrious Ditmus, and I question whether the parlor
+would have proved more worthy of observation. The cook, a little wiry,
+hook-nosed woman, worn thin by incessant action and friction, was bustling
+about among her kettles and saucepans, with the scullion at her heels, both
+clattering in wooden shoes, which were as clean and white as the
+milk-pails; rows of vessels, of brass and copper, regiments of pewter
+dishes, and portly porringers, gave resplendent evidence of the intensity
+of their cleanliness; the very trammels and hangers in the fireplace were
+highly scoured, and the burnished face of the good Saint Nicholas shone
+forth from the iron plate of the chimney back.
+
+Among the decorations of the kitchen was a printed sheet of woodcuts,
+representing the various holiday customs of Holland, with explanatory
+rhymes. Here I was delighted to recognize the jollities of New Year's Day;
+the festivities of Paaes and Pinkster, and all the other merry-makings
+handed down in my native place from the earliest times of New Amsterdam,
+and which had been such bright spots in the year in my childhood. I eagerly
+made myself master of this precious document for a trifling consideration,
+and bore it off as a memento of the place; though I question if, in so
+doing, I did not carry off with me the whole current literature of Broek.
+
+I must not omit to mention that this village is the paradise of cows as
+well as men; indeed you would almost suppose the cow to be as much an
+object of worship here as the bull was among the ancient Egyptians; and
+well does she merit it, for she is in fact the patroness of the place. The
+same scrupulous cleanliness, however, which pervades everything else, is
+manifested in the treatment of this venerated animal. She is not permitted
+to perambulate the place, but in winter, when she forsakes the rich
+pasture, a well-built house is provided for her, well painted, and
+maintained in the most perfect order. Her stall is of ample dimensions; the
+floor is scrubbed and polished; her hide is daily curried and brushed and
+sponged to her heart's content, and her tail is daintily tucked up to the
+ceiling, and decorated with a ribbon!
+
+On my way back through the village, I passed the house of the prediger, or
+preacher; a very comfortable mansion, which led me to augur well of the
+state of religion in the village. On inquiry, I was told that for a long
+time the inhabitants lived in a great state of indifference as to religious
+matters; it was in vain that their preachers endeavored to arouse their
+thoughts as to a future state; the joys of heaven, as commonly depicted,
+were but little to their taste. At length a dominie appeared among them who
+struck out in a different vein. He depicted the New Jerusalem as a place
+all smooth and level; with beautiful dykes, and ditches, and canals; and
+houses all shining with paint and varnish, and glazed tiles; and where
+there should never come horse, or ass, or cat, or dog, or anything that
+could make noise or dirt; but there should be nothing but rubbing and
+scrubbing, and washing and painting, and gilding and varnishing, for ever
+and ever, amen! Since that time, the good housewives of Broek have all
+turned their faces Zionward.
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+
+
+
+SKETCHES IN PARIS IN 1825
+
+FROM THE TRAVELING NOTE-BOOK OF GEOFFREY CRAYON, GENT.
+
+
+A Parisian hotel is a street set on end, the grand staircase forming the
+highway, and every floor a separate habitation. Let me describe the one in
+which I am lodged, which may serve as a specimen of its class. It is a huge
+quadrangular pile of stone, built round a spacious paved court. The ground
+floor is occupied by shops, magazines, and domestic offices. Then comes the
+_entre-sol_, with low ceilings, short windows, and dwarf chambers;
+then succeed a succession of floors, or stories, rising one above the
+other, to the number of Mahomet's heavens. Each floor is like a distinct
+mansion, complete in itself, with ante-chamber, saloons, dining and
+sleeping rooms, kitchen and other conveniences for the accommodation of a
+family. Some floors are divided into two or more suites of apartments. Each
+apartment has its main door of entrance, opening upon the staircase, or
+landing-places, and locked like a street door. Thus several families and
+numerous single persons live under the same roof, totally independent of
+each other, and may live so for years without holding more intercourse than
+is kept up in other cities by residents in the same street.
+
+Like the great world, this little microcosm has its gradations of rank and
+style and importance. The _Premier_, or first floor, with its grand
+saloons, lofty ceilings, and splendid furniture, is decidedly the
+aristocratical part of the establishment. The second floor is scarcely less
+aristocratical and magnificent; the other floors go on lessening in
+splendor as they gain in altitude, and end with the attics, the region of
+petty tailors, clerks, and sewing-girls. To make the filling up of the
+mansion complete, every odd nook and corner is fitted up as a _joli petit
+appartement a garcon_ (a pretty little bachelor's apartment), that is to
+say, some little dark inconvenient nestling-place for a poor devil of a
+bachelor.
+
+The whole domain is shut up from the street by a great
+_porte-cochere_, or portal, calculated for the admission of carriages.
+This consists of two massy folding-doors, that swing heavily open upon a
+spacious entrance, passing under the front of the edifice into the
+courtyard. On one side is a spacious staircase leading to the upper
+apartments. Immediately without the portal is the porter's lodge, a small
+room with one or two bedrooms adjacent, for the accommodation of the
+_concierge_, or porter and his family. This is one of the most
+important functionaries of the hotel. He is, in fact, the Cerberus of the
+establishment, and no one can pass in or out without his knowledge and
+consent. The _porte-cochere_ in general is fastened by a sliding bolt,
+from which a cord or wire passes into the porter's lodge. Whoever wishes to
+go out must speak to the porter, who draws the bolt. A visitor from without
+gives a single rap with the massive knocker; the bolt is immediately drawn,
+as if by an invisible hand; the door stands ajar, the visitor pushes it
+open, and enters. A face presents itself at the glass door of the porter's
+little chamber; the stranger pronounces the name of the person he comes to
+seek. If the person or family is of importance, occupying the first or
+second floor, the porter sounds a bell once or twice, to give notice that a
+visitor is at hand. The stranger in the meantime ascends the great
+staircase, the highway common to all, and arrives at the outer door,
+equivalent to a street door, of the suite of rooms inhabited by his
+friends.
+
+Beside this hangs a bell-cord, with which he rings for admittance.
+
+When the family or person inquired for is of less importance, or lives in
+some remote part of the mansion less easy to be apprised, no signal is
+given. The applicant pronounces the name at the porter's door, and is told,
+_"Montez au troisieme, au quatrieme; sonnez a la porte a droite ou a
+gauche."_ ("Ascend to the third or fourth story; ring the bell on the
+right or left hand door"); as the case may be.
+
+The porter and his wife act as domestics to such of the inmates of the
+mansion as do not keep servants; making their beds, arranging their rooms,
+lighting their fires, and doing other menial offices, for which they
+receive a monthly stipend. They are also in confidential intercourse with
+the servants of the other inmates, and, having an eye on all the incomers
+and outgoers, are thus enabled, by hook and by crook, to learn the secrets
+and domestic history of every member of the little territory within the
+_porte-cochere_.
+
+The porter's lodge is accordingly a great scene of gossip, where all the
+private affairs of this interior neighborhood are discussed. The courtyard,
+also, is an assembling place in the evenings for the servants of the
+different families, and a sisterhood of sewing girls from the entre-sols
+and the attics, to play at various games, and dance to the music of their
+own songs, and the echoes of their feet, at which assemblages the porter's
+daughter takes the lead; a fresh, pretty, buxom girl, generally called
+"_La Petite_," though almost as tall as a grenadier. These little
+evening gatherings, so characteristic of this gay country, are countenanced
+by the various families of the mansion, who often look down from their
+windows and balconies, on moonlight evenings, and enjoy the simple revels
+of their domestics. I must observe, however, that the hotel I am describing
+is rather a quiet, retired one, where most of the inmates are permanent
+residents from year to year, so that there is more of the spirit of
+neighborhood than in the bustling, fashionable hotels in the gay parts of
+Paris, which are continually changing their inhabitants.
+
+MY FRENCH NEIGHBOR
+
+I often amuse myself by watching from my window (which, by the bye, is
+tolerably elevated) the movements of the teeming little world below me; and
+as I am on sociable terms with the porter and his wife, I gather from them,
+as they light my fire, or serve my breakfast, anecdotes of all my fellow
+lodgers. I have been somewhat curious in studying a little antique
+Frenchman, who occupies one of the _jolie chambres a garcon_ already
+mentioned. He is one of those superannuated veterans who flourished before
+the revolution, and have weathered all the storms of Paris, in consequence,
+very probably, of being fortunately too insignificant to attract attention.
+He has a small income, which he manages with the skill of a French
+economist; appropriating so much for his lodgings, so much for his meals;
+so much for his visits to St. Cloud and Versailles, and so much for his
+seat at the theater. He has resided in the hotel for years, and always in
+the same chamber, which he furnishes at his own expense. The decorations of
+the room mark his various ages. There are some gallant pictures which he
+hung up in his younger days; with a portrait of a lady of rank, whom he
+speaks tenderly of, dressed in the old French taste; and a pretty opera
+dancer, pirouetting in a hoop petticoat, who lately died at a good old age.
+In a corner of this picture is stuck a prescription for rheumatism, and
+below it stands an easy-chair. He has a small parrot at the window, to
+amuse him when within doors, and a pug dog to accompany him in his daily
+peregrinations. While I am writing he is crossing the court to go out. He
+is attired in his best coat, of sky-blue, and is doubtless bound for the
+Tuileries. His hair is dressed in the old style, with powdered ear-locks
+and a pig-tail. His little dog trips after him, sometimes on four legs,
+sometimes on three, and looking as if his leather small-clothes were too
+tight for him. Now the old gentleman stops to have a word with an old crony
+who lives in the entre-sol, and is just returning from his promenade. Now
+they take a pinch of snuff together; now they pull out huge red cotton
+handkerchiefs (those "flags of abomination," as they have well been called)
+and blow their noses most sonorously. Now they turn to make remarks upon
+their two little dogs, who are exchanging the morning's salutation; now
+they part, and my old gentleman stops to have a passing word with the
+porter's wife; and now he sallies forth, and is fairly launched upon the
+town for the day.
+
+No man is so methodical as a complete idler, and none so scrupulous in
+measuring and portioning out his time as he whose time is worth nothing.
+The old gentleman in question has his exact hour for rising, and for
+shaving himself by a small mirror hung against his casement. He sallies
+forth at a certain hour every morning to take his cup of coffee and his
+roll at a certain cafe, where he reads the papers. He has been a regular
+admirer of the lady who presides at the bar, and always stops to have a
+little _badinage_ with her _en passant_. He has his regular walks
+on the Boulevards and in the Palais Royal, where he sets his watch by the
+petard fired off by the sun at midday. He has his daily resort in the
+Garden of the Tuileries, to meet with a knot of veteran idlers like
+himself, who talk on pretty much the same subjects whenever they meet. He
+has been present at all the sights and shows and rejoicings of Paris for
+the last fifty years; has witnessed the great events of the revolution; the
+guillotining of the king and queen; the coronation of Bonaparte; the
+capture of Paris, and the restoration of the Bourbons. All these he speaks
+of with the coolness of a theatrical critic; and I question whether he has
+not been gratified by each in its turn; not from any inherent love of
+tumult, but from that insatiable appetite for spectacle which prevails
+among the inhabitants of this metropolis. I have been amused with a farce,
+in which one of these systematic old triflers is represented. He sings a
+song detailing his whole day's round of insignificant occupations, and goes
+to bed delighted with the idea that his next day will be an exact
+repetition of the same routine:
+
+  "Je me couche le soir,
+   Enchante de pouvoir
+   Recommencer mon train
+      Le lendemain
+         Matin."
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+
+THE ENGLISHMAN AT PARIS
+
+In another part of the hotel a handsome suite of rooms is occupied by an
+old English gentleman, of great probity, some understanding, and very
+considerable crustiness, who has come to France to live economically. He
+has a very fair property, but his wife, being of that blessed kind compared
+in Scripture to the fruitful vine, has overwhelmed him with a family of
+buxom daughters, who hang clustering about him, ready to be gathered by any
+hand. He is seldom to be seen in public without one hanging on each arm,
+and smiling on all the world, while his own mouth is drawn down at each
+corner like a mastiff's with internal growling at everything about him. He
+adheres rigidly to English fashion in dress, and trudges about in long
+gaiters and broad-brimmed hat; while his daughters almost overshadow him
+with feathers, flowers, and French bonnets.
+
+He contrives to keep up an atmosphere of English habits, opinions, and
+prejudices, and to carry a semblance of London into the very heart of
+Paris. His mornings are spent at Galignani's news-room, where he forms one
+of a knot of inveterate quidnuncs, who read the same articles over a dozen
+times in a dozen different papers. He generally dines in company with some
+of his own countrymen, and they have what is called a "comfortable sitting"
+after dinner, in the English fashion, drinking wine, discussing the news of
+the London papers, and canvassing the French character, the French
+metropolis, and the French revolution, ending with a unanimous admission of
+English courage, English morality, English cookery, English wealth, the
+magnitude of London, and the ingratitude of the French.
+
+His evenings are chiefly spent at a club of his countrymen, where the
+London papers are taken. Sometimes his daughters entice him to the
+theaters, but not often. He abuses French tragedy, as all fustian and
+bombast, Talma as a ranter, and Duchesnois as a mere termagant. It is true
+his ear is not sufficiently familiar with the language to understand French
+verse, and he generally goes to sleep during the performance. The wit of
+the French comedy is flat and pointless to him. He would not give one of
+Munden's wry faces or Liston's inexpressible looks for the whole of it.
+
+He will not admit that Paris has any advantage over London. The Seine is a
+muddy rivulet in comparison with the Thames; the West End of London
+surpasses the finest parts of the French capital; and on some one's
+observing that there was a very thick fog out of doors: "Pish!" said he,
+crustily, "it's nothing to the fogs we have in London."
+
+He has infinite trouble in bringing his table into anything like conformity
+to English rule. With his liquors, it is true, he is tolerably successful.
+He procures London porter, and a stock of port and sherry, at considerable
+expense; for he observes that he cannot stand those cursed thin French
+wines, they dilute his blood so much as to give him the rheumatism. As to
+their white wines, he stigmatizes them as mere substitutes for cider; and
+as to claret, why, "it would be port if it could." He has continual
+quarrels with his French cook, whom he renders wretched by insisting on his
+conforming to Mrs. Glass; for it is easier to convert a Frenchman from his
+religion than his cookery. The poor fellow, by dint of repeated efforts,
+once brought himself to serve up _ros bif_ sufficiently raw to suit
+what he considered the cannibal taste of his master; but then he could not
+refrain, at the last moment, adding some exquisite sauce, that put the old
+gentleman in a fury.
+
+He detests wood-fires, and has procured a quantity of coal; but not having
+a grate, he is obliged to burn it on the hearth. Here he sits poking and
+stirring the fire with one end of a tongs, while the room is as murky as a
+smithy; railing at French chimneys, French masons, and French architects;
+giving a poke at the end of every sentence, as though he were stirring up
+the very bowels of the delinquents he is anathematizing. He lives in a
+state militant with inanimate objects around him; gets into high dudgeon
+with doors and casements, because they will not come under English law, and
+has implacable feuds with sundry refractory pieces of furniture. Among
+these is one in particular with which he is sure to have a high quarrel
+every tune he goes to dress. It is a _commode_, one of those smooth,
+polished, plausible pieces of French furniture that have the perversity of
+five hundred devils. Each drawer has a will of its own, will open or not,
+just as the whim takes it, and sets lock and key at defiance. Sometimes a
+drawer will refuse to yield to either persuasion or force, and will part
+with both handles rather than yield; another will come out in the most coy
+and coquettish manner imaginable; elbowing along, zig-zag; one corner
+retreating as the other advances; making a thousand difficulties and
+objections at every move; until the old gentleman, out of all patience,
+gives a sudden jerk, and brings drawer and contents into the middle of the
+floor. His hostility to this unlucky piece of furniture increases every
+day, as if incensed that it does not grow better. He is like the fretful
+invalid who cursed his bed, that the longer he lay the harder it grew. The
+only benefit he has derived from the quarrel is that it has furnished him
+with a crusty joke, which he utters on all occasions. He swears that a
+French _commode_ is the most _incommodious_ thing in existence,
+and that although the nation cannot make a joint-stool that will stand
+steady, yet they are always talking of everything's being
+_perfectionee_.
+
+His servants understand his humor, and avail themselves of it. He was one
+day disturbed by a pertinacious rattling and shaking at one of the doors,
+and bawled out in an angry tone to know the cause of the disturbance.
+"Sir," said the footman, testily, "it's this confounded French lock!" "Ah!"
+said the old gentleman, pacified by this hit at the nation, "I thought
+there was something French at the bottom of it!"
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+
+
+
+
+ENGLISH AND FRENCH CHARACTER
+
+
+As I am a mere looker on in Europe, and hold myself as much as possible
+aloof from its quarrels and prejudices, I feel something like one
+overlooking a game, who, without any great skill of his own, can
+occasionally perceive the blunders of much abler players. This neutrality
+of feeling enables me to enjoy the contrasts of character presented in this
+time of general peace, when the various peoples of Europe, who have so long
+been sundered by wars, are brought together and placed side by side in this
+great gathering-place of nations. No greater contrast, however, is
+exhibited than that of the French and English. The peace has deluged this
+gay capital with English visitors of all ranks and conditions. They throng
+every place of curiosity and amusement; fill the public gardens, the
+galleries, the cafes, saloons, theaters; always herding together, never
+associating with the French. The two nations are like two threads of
+different colors, tangled together but never blended.
+
+In fact they present a continual antithesis, and seem to value themselves
+upon being unlike each other; yet each have their peculiar merits, which
+should entitle them to each other's esteem. The French intellect is quick
+and active. It flashes its way into a subject with the rapidity of
+lightning; seizes upon remote conclusions with a sudden bound, and its
+deductions are almost intuitive. The English intellect is less rapid, but
+more persevering; less sudden, but more sure in its deductions. The
+quickness and mobility of the French enable them to find enjoyment in the
+multiplicity of sensations. They speak and act more from immediate
+impressions than from reflection and meditation. They are therefore more
+social and communicative; more fond of society, and of places of public
+resort and amusement. An Englishman is more reflective in his habits. He
+lives in the world of his own thoughts, and seems more self-existent and
+self-dependent. He loves the quiet of his own apartment; even when abroad,
+he in a manner makes a little solitude around him by his silence and
+reserve; he moves about shy and solitary, and, as it were, buttoned up,
+body and soul.
+
+The French are great optimists; they seize upon every good as it flies, and
+revel in the passing pleasure. The Englishman is too apt to neglect the
+present good, in preparing against the possible evil. However adversities
+may lower, let the sun shine but for a moment, and forth sallies the
+mercurial Frenchman, in holiday dress and holiday spirits, gay as a
+butterfly, as though his sunshine were perpetual; but let the sun beam
+never so brightly, so there be but a cloud in the horizon, the wary
+Englishman ventures forth distrustfully, with his umbrella in his hand.
+
+The Frenchman has a wonderful facility at turning small things to
+advantage. No one can be gay and luxurious on smaller means; no one
+requires less expense to be happy. He practices a kind of gilding in his
+style of living, and hammers out every guinea into gold leaf. The
+Englishman, on the contrary, is expensive in his habits, and expensive in
+his enjoyments. He values everything, whether useful or ornamental, by what
+it costs. He has no satisfaction in show, unless it be solid and complete.
+Everything goes with him by the square foot. Whatever display he makes, the
+depth is sure to equal the surface.
+
+The Frenchman's habitation, like himself, is open, cheerful, bustling, and
+noisy. He lives in a part of a great hotel, with wide portal, paved court,
+a spacious dirty stone staircase, and a family on every floor. All is
+clatter and chatter. He is good-humored and talkative with his servants,
+sociable with his neighbors, and complaisant to all the world. Anybody has
+access to himself and his apartments; his very bedroom is open to visitors,
+whatever may be its state of confusion; and all this not from any
+peculiarly hospitable feeling, but from that communicative habit which
+predominates over his character.
+
+The Englishman, on the contrary, ensconces himself in a snug brick mansion,
+which he has all to himself; locks the front door; puts broken bottles
+along his walls, and spring guns and man-traps in his gardens; shrouds
+himself with trees and window-curtains; exults in his quiet and privacy,
+and seems disposed to keep out noise, daylight, and company. His house,
+like himself, has a reserved, inhospitable exterior; yet whoever gains
+admittance is apt to find a warm heart and warm fireside within.
+
+The French excel in wit, the English in humor; the French have gayer fancy,
+the English richer imagination. The former are full of sensibility; easily
+moved, and prone to sudden and great excitement; but their excitement is
+not durable; the English are more phlegmatic; not so readily affected, but
+capable of being aroused to great enthusiasm. The faults of these opposite
+temperaments are that the vivacity of the French is apt to sparkle up and
+be frothy, the gravity of the English to settle down and grow muddy. When
+the two characters can be fixed in a medium, the French kept from
+effervescence and the English from stagnation, both will be found
+excellent.
+
+This contrast of character may also be noticed in the great concerns of the
+two nations. The ardent Frenchman is all for military renown; he fights for
+glory, that is to say, for success in arms. For, provided the national flag
+is victorious, he cares little about the expense, the injustice, or the
+inutility of the war. It is wonderful how the poorest Frenchman will revel
+on a triumphant bulletin; a great victory is meat and drink to him; and at
+the sight of a military sovereign, bringing home captured cannon and
+captured standards, he throws up his greasy cap in the air, and is ready to
+jump out of his wooden shoes for joy.
+
+John Bull, on the contrary, is a reasoning, considerate person. If he does
+wrong, it is in the most rational way imaginable. He fights because the
+good of the world requires it. He is a moral person, and makes war upon his
+neighbor for the maintenance of peace and good order, and sound principles.
+He is a money-making personage, and fights for the prosperity of commerce
+and manufactures. Thus the two nations have been fighting, time out of
+mind, for glory and good. The French, in pursuit of glory, have had their
+capital twice taken; and John, in pursuit of good, has run himself over
+head and ears in debt.
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+
+
+
+THE TUILERIES AND WINDSOR CASTLE
+
+
+I have sometimes fancied I could discover national characteristics in
+national edifices. In the Chateau of the Tuileries, for instance, I
+perceive the same jumble of contrarieties that marks the French character;
+the same whimsical mixture of the great and the little; the splendid and
+the paltry, the sublime and the grotesque. On visiting this famous pile,
+the first thing that strikes both eye and ear is military display. The
+courts glitter with steel-clad soldiery, and resound with the tramp of
+horse, the roll of drum, and the bray of trumpet. Dismounted guardsmen
+patrol its arcades, with loaded carbines, jingling spears, and clanking
+sabers. Gigantic grenadiers are posted about its staircases; young officers
+of the guards loll from the balconies, or lounge in groups upon the
+terraces; and the gleam of bayonet from window to window, shows that
+sentinels are pacing up and down the corridors and ante-chambers. The first
+floor is brilliant with the splendors of a court. French taste has tasked
+itself in adorning the sumptuous suites of apartments; nor are the gilded
+chapel and the splendid theater forgotten, where piety and pleasure are
+next-door neighbors, and harmonize together with perfect French
+_bienseance_.
+
+Mingled up with all this regal and military magnificence is a world of
+whimsical and make-shift detail. A great part of the huge edifice is cut up
+into little chambers and nestling-places for retainers of the court,
+dependents on retainers, and hangers-on of dependents. Some are squeezed
+into narrow entre-sols, those low, dark, intermediate slices of apartments
+between floors, the inhabitants of which seem shoved in edgewise, like
+books between narrow shelves; others are perched like swallows, under the
+eaves; the high roofs, too, which are as tall and steep as a French cocked
+hat, have rows of little dormant windows, tier above tier, just large
+enough to admit light and air for some dormitory, and to enable its
+occupant to peep out at the sky. Even to the very ridge of the roof may be
+seen here and there one of these air-holes, with a stove pipe beside it, to
+carry off the smoke from the handful of fuel with which its weazen-faced
+tenant simmers his _demi-tasse_ of coffee.
+
+On approaching the palace from the Pont Royal, you take in at a glance all
+the various strata of inhabitants; the garreteer in the roof; the retainer
+in the entre-sol; the courtiers at the casements of the royal apartments;
+while on the ground-floor a steam of savory odors and a score or two of
+cooks, in white caps, bobbing their heads about the windows, betray that
+scientific and all-important laboratory, the Royal Kitchen.
+
+Go into the grand ante-chamber of the royal apartments on Sunday and see
+the mixture of Old and New France; the old emigres, returned with the
+Bourbons; little withered, spindle-shanked old noblemen, clad in court
+dresses, that figured in these saloons before the revolution, and have been
+carefully treasured up during their exile; with the solitaires and _ailes
+de pigeon_ of former days; and the court swords strutting out behind,
+like pins stuck through dry beetles. See them haunting the scenes of their
+former splendor, in hopes of a restitution of estates, like ghosts haunting
+the vicinity of buried treasure; while around them you see the Young
+France, that have grown up in the fighting school of Napoleon; all equipped
+_en militaire_; tall, hardy, frank, vigorous, sunburned,
+fierce-whiskered; with tramping boots, towering crests, and glittering
+breast-plates.
+
+It is incredible the number of ancient and hereditary feeders on royalty
+said to be housed in this establishment. Indeed all the royal palaces
+abound with noble families returned from exile, and who have
+nestling-places allotted them while they await the restoration of their
+estates, or the much-talked-of law indemnity. Some of them have fine
+quarters, but poor living. Some families have but five or six hundred
+francs a year, and all their retinue consists of a servant-woman. With all
+this, they maintain their old aristocratical hauteur, look down with vast
+contempt upon the opulent families which have risen since the revolution;
+stigmatize them all as _parvenues_ or upstarts, and refuse to visit
+them.
+
+In regarding the exterior of the Tuileries, with all its outward signs of
+internal populousness, I have often thought what a rare sight it would be
+to see it suddenly unroofed, and all its nooks and corners laid open to the
+day. It would be like turning up the stump of an old tree, and dislodging
+the world of grubs, and ants, and beetles lodged beneath. Indeed there is a
+scandalous anecdote current that in the time of one of the petty plots,
+when petards were exploded under the windows of the Tuileries, the police
+made a sudden investigation of the palace at four o'clock in the morning;
+when a scene of the most whimsical confusion ensued. Hosts of supernumerary
+inhabitants were found foisted into the huge edifice; every rat-hole had
+its occupant; and places which had been considered as tenanted only by
+spiders were found crowded with a surreptitious population. It is added
+that many ludicrous accidents occurred; great scampering and slamming of
+doors, and whisking away in nightgowns and slippers; and several persons,
+who were found by accident in their neighbors' chambers, evinced
+indubitable astonishment at the circumstance.
+
+As I have fancied I could read the French character in the national palace
+of the Tuileries, so I have pictured to myself some of the traits of John
+Bull in his royal abode of Windsor Castle. The Tuileries, outwardly a
+peaceful palace, is in effect a swaggering military hold; while the old
+castle, on the contrary, in spite of its bullying look, is completely under
+petticoat government. Every corner and nook is built up into some snug,
+cozy nestling place, some "procreant cradle," not tenanted by meager
+expectants or whiskered warriors, but by sleek placemen; knowing realizers
+of present pay and present pudding; who seem placed there not to kill and
+destroy, but to breed and multiply. Nursery maids and children shine with
+rosy faces at the windows, and swarm about the courts and terraces. The
+very soldiers have a pacific look, and when off duty may be seen loitering
+about the place with the nursery-maids; not making love to them in the gay
+gallant style of the French soldiery, but with infinite bonhomie aiding
+them to take care of the broods of children.
+
+Though the old castle is in decay, everything about it thrives; the very
+crevices of the walls are tenanted by swallows, rooks, and pigeons, all
+sure of quiet lodgment; the ivy strikes its roots deep in the fissures, and
+flourishes about the mouldering tower. [Footnote: The above sketch was
+written before the thorough repairs and magnificent additions that have
+been made of late years to Windsor Castle.] Thus it is with honest John;
+according to his own account, he is ever going to ruin, yet everything that
+lives on him thrives and waxes fat. He would fain be a soldier, and swagger
+like his neighbors; but his domestic, quiet-loving, uxorious nature
+continually gets the upper hand; and though he may mount his helmet and
+gird on his sword, yet he is apt to sink into the plodding, painstaking
+father of a family; with a troop of children at his heels, and his
+womenkind hanging on each arm.
+
+
+
+
+
+THE FIELD OF WATERLOO
+
+
+I have spoken heretofore with some levity of the contrast that exists
+between the English and French character; but it deserves more serious
+consideration. They are the two great nations of modern times most
+diametrically opposed, and most worthy of each other's rivalry; essentially
+distinct in their characters, excelling in opposite qualities, and
+reflecting luster on each other by their very opposition. In nothing is
+this contrast more strikingly evinced than in their military conduct. For
+ages have they been contending, and for ages have they crowded each other's
+history with acts of splendid heroism. Take the Battle of Waterloo, for
+instance, the last and most memorable trial of their rival prowess. Nothing
+could surpass the brilliant daring on the one side, and the steadfast
+enduring on the other. The French cavalry broke like waves on the compact
+squares of English infantry. They were seen galloping round those serried
+walls of men, seeking in vain for an entrance; tossing their arms in the
+air, in the heat of their enthusiasm, and braving the whole front of
+battle. The British troops, on the other hand, forbidden to move or fire,
+stood firm and enduring. Their columns were ripped up by cannonry; whole
+rows were swept down at a shot; the survivors closed their ranks, and stood
+firm. In this way many columns stood through the pelting of the iron
+tempest without firing a shot; without any action to stir their blood or
+excite their spirits. Death thinned their ranks, but could not shake their
+souls.
+
+A beautiful instance of the quick and generous impulses to which the French
+are prone, is given in the case of a French cavalier, in the hottest of the
+action, charging furiously upon a British officer, but perceiving in the
+moment of assault that his adversary had lost his sword-arm, dropping the
+point of his saber, and courteously riding on. Peace be with that generous
+warrior, whatever were his fate! If he went down in the storm of battle,
+with the foundering fortunes of his chieftain, may the turf of Waterloo
+grow green above his grave! and happier far would be the fate of such a
+spirit, to sink amid the tempest, unconscious of defeat, than to survive
+and mourn over the blighted laurels of his country.
+
+In this way the two armies fought through a long and bloody day. The French
+with enthusiastic valor, the English with cool, inflexible courage, until
+Fate, as if to leave the question of superiority still undecided between
+two such adversaries, brought up the Prussians to decide the fortunes of
+the field.
+
+It was several years afterward that I visited the field of Waterloo. The
+plowshare had been busy with its oblivious labors, and the frequent harvest
+had nearly obliterated the vestiges of war. Still the blackened ruins of
+Hoguemont stood, a monumental pile, to mark the violence of this vehement
+struggle. Its broken walls, pierced by bullets, and shattered by
+explosions, showed the deadly strife that had taken place within; when Gaul
+and Briton, hemmed in between narrow walls, hand to hand and foot to foot,
+fought from garden to courtyard, from courtyard to chamber, with intense
+and concentrated rivalship. Columns of smoke turned from this vortex of
+battle as from a volcano: "it was," said my guide, "like a little hell upon
+earth." Not far off, two or three broad spots of rank, unwholesome green
+still marked the places where these rival warriors, after their fierce and
+fitful struggle, slept quietly together in the lap of their common mother
+earth. Over all the rest of the field peace had resumed its sway. The
+thoughtless whistle of the peasant floated on the air, instead of the
+trumpet's clangor; the team slowly labored up the hillside, once shaken by
+the hoofs of rushing squadrons; and wide fields of corn waved peacefully
+over the soldiers' graves, as summer seas dimple over the place where many
+a tall ship lies buried.
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+To the foregoing desultory notes on the French military character, let me
+append a few traits which I picked up verbally in one of the French
+provinces. They may have already appeared in print, but I have never met
+with them.
+
+At the breaking out of the revolution, when so many of the old families
+emigrated, a descendant of the great Turenne, by the name of De Latour
+D'Auvergne, refused to accompany his relations, and entered into the
+Republican army. He served in all the campaigns of the revolution,
+distinguished himself by his valor, his accomplishments, and his generous
+spirit, and might have risen to fortune, and to the highest honors. He
+refused, however, all rank in the army, above that of captain, and would
+receive no recompense for his achievements but a sword of honor. Napoleon,
+in testimony of his merits, gave him the title of Premier Grenadier de
+France (First Grenadier of France), which was the only title he would ever
+bear. He was killed in Germany, in 1809 or '10. To honor his memory, his
+place was always retained in his regiment, as if he still occupied it; and
+whenever the regiment was mustered, and the name of De Latour D'Auvergne
+was called out, the reply was, "Dead on the field of honor!"
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+
+
+
+PARIS AT THE RESTORATION
+
+
+Paris presented a singular aspect just after the downfall of Napoleon, and
+the restoration of the Bourbons. It was filled with a restless, roaming
+population; a dark, sallow race, with fierce mustaches, black cravats, and
+feverish, menacing looks; men suddenly thrown out of employ by the return
+of peace; officers cut short in their career, and cast loose with scanty
+means, many of them in utter indigence, upon the world; the broken elements
+of armies. They haunted the places of public resort, like restless, unhappy
+spirits, taking no pleasure; hanging about, like lowering clouds that
+linger after a storm, and giving a singular air of gloom to this otherwise
+gay metropolis.
+
+The vaunted courtesy of the old school, the smooth urbanity that prevailed
+in former days of settled government and long-established aristocracy, had
+disappeared amid the savage republicanism of the revolution and the
+military furor of the empire; recent reverses had stung the national vanity
+to the quick; and English travelers, who crowded to Paris on the return of
+peace, expecting to meet with a gay, good-humored, complaisant populace,
+such as existed in the time of the "Sentimental Journey," were surprised at
+finding them irritable and fractious, quick at fancying affronts, and not
+unapt to offer insults. They accordingly inveighed with heat and bitterness
+at the rudeness they experienced in the French metropolis; yet what better
+had they to expect? Had Charles II. been reinstated in his kingdom by the
+valor of French troops; had he been wheeled triumphantly to London over the
+trampled bodies and trampled standards of England's bravest sons; had a
+French general dictated to the English capital, and a French army been
+quartered in Hyde Park; had Paris poured forth its motley population, and
+the wealthy bourgeoise of every French trading town swarmed to London;
+crowding its squares; filling its streets with their equipages; thronging
+its fashionable hotels, and places of amusements; elbowing its impoverished
+nobility out of their palaces and opera-boxes, and looking down on the
+humiliated inhabitants as a conquered people; in such a reverse of the
+case, what degree of courtesy would the populace of London have been apt to
+exercise toward their visitors? [Footnote: The above remarks were suggested
+by a conversation with the late Mr. Canning, whom the author met in Paris,
+and who expressed himself in the most liberal way concerning the
+magnanimity of the French on the occupation of their capital by strangers.]
+
+On the contrary, I have always admired the degree of magnanimity exhibited
+by the French on the occupation of their capital by the English. When we
+consider the military ambition of this nation, its love of glory; the
+splendid height to which its renown in arms had recently been carried, and
+with these, the tremendous reverses it had just undergone; its armies
+shattered, annihilated; its capital captured, garrisoned, and overrun, and
+that too by its ancient rival, the English, toward whom it had cherished
+for centuries a jealous and almost religious hostility; could we have
+wondered if the tiger spirit of this fiery people had broken out in bloody
+feuds and deadly quarrels; and that they had sought to rid themselves in
+any way of their invaders? But it is cowardly nations only, those who dare
+not wield the sword, that revenge themselves with the lurking dagger. There
+were no assassinations in Paris. The French had fought valiantly,
+desperately, in the field; but, when valor was no longer of avail, they
+submitted like gallant men to a fate they could not withstand. Some
+instances of insult from the populace were experienced by their English
+visitors; some personal rencontres, which led to duels, did take place; but
+these smacked of open and honorable hostility. No instances of lurking and
+perfidious revenge occurred, and the British soldier patroled the streets
+of Paris safe from treacherous assault.
+
+If the English met with harshness and repulse in social intercourse, it was
+in some degree a proof that the people are more sincere than has been
+represented. The emigrants who had just returned were not yet reinstated.
+Society was constituted of those who had flourished under the late regime;
+the newly ennobled, the recently enriched, who felt their prosperity and
+their consequence endangered by this change of things. The broken-down
+officer, who saw his glory tarnished, his fortune ruined, his occupation
+gone, could not be expected to look with complacency upon the authors of
+his downfall. The English visitor, flushed with health, and wealth, and
+victory, could little enter into the feelings of the blighted warrior,
+scarred with a hundred battles, an exile from the camp, broken in
+constitution by the wars, impoverished by the peace, and cast back, a needy
+stranger in the splendid but captured metropolis of his country.
+
+  "Oh! who can tell what heroes feel,
+   When all but life and honor's lost!"
+
+And here let me notice the conduct of the French soldiery on the
+dismemberment of the army of the Loire, when two hundred thousand men were
+suddenly thrown out of employ; men who had been brought up to the camp, and
+scarce knew any other home. Few in civil, peaceful life, are aware of the
+severe trial to the feelings that takes place on the dissolution of a
+regiment. There is a fraternity in arms. The community of dangers,
+hardships, enjoyments; the participation in battles and victories; the
+companionship in adventures, at a time of life when men's feelings are most
+fresh, susceptible, and ardent, all these bind the members of a regiment
+strongly together. To them the regiment is friends, family, home. They
+identify themselves with its fortunes, its glories, its disgraces. Imagine
+this romantic tie suddenly dissolved; the regiment broken up; the
+occupation of its members gone; their military pride mortified; the career
+of glory closed behind them; that of obscurity, dependence, want, neglect,
+perhaps beggary, before them. Such was the case with the soldiers of the
+army of the Loire. They were sent off in squads, with officers, to the
+principal towns where they were to be disarmed and discharged. In this way
+they passed through the country with arms in their hands, often exposed to
+slights and scoffs, to hunger and various hardships and privations; but
+they conducted themselves magnanimously, without any of those outbreaks of
+violence and wrong that so often attend the dismemberment of armies.
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+The few years that have elapsed since the time above alluded to, have
+already had their effect. The proud and angry spirits which then roamed
+about Paris unemployed begins to recover its old channels, though worn
+deeper by recent torrents. The natural urbanity of the French begins to
+find its way, like oil, to the surface, though there still remains a degree
+of roughness and bluntness of manner, partly real, and partly affected, by
+such as imagine it to indicate force and frankness. The events of the last
+thirty years have rendered the French a more reflecting people. They have
+acquired greater independence of mind and strength of judgment, together
+with a portion of that prudence which results from experiencing the
+dangerous consequences of excesses. However that period may have been
+stained by crimes, and filled with extravagances, the French have certainly
+come out of it a greater nation than before. One of their own philosophers
+observes that in one or two generations the nation will probably combine
+the ease and elegance of the old character with force and solidity. They
+were light, he says, before the revolution; then wild and savage; they have
+become more thoughtful and reflective. It is only old Frenchmen, nowadays,
+that are gay and trivial; the young are very serious personages.
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+P.S.--In the course of a morning's walk, about the time the above remarks
+were written, I observed the Duke of Wellington, who was on a brief visit
+to Paris. He was alone, simply attired in a blue frock; with an umbrella
+under his arm, and his hat drawn over his eyes, and sauntering across the
+Place Vendome, close by the Column of Napoleon. He gave a glance up at the
+column as he passed, and continued his loitering way up the Rue de la Paix;
+stopping occasionally to gaze in at the shop-windows; elbowed now and then
+by other gazers, who little suspected that the quiet, lounging individual
+they were jostling so unceremoniously was the conqueror who had twice
+entered their capital victoriously; had controlled the destinies of the
+nation, and eclipsed the glory of the military idol, at the base of whose
+column he was thus negligently sauntering.
+
+Some years afterward I was at an evening's entertainment given by the duke
+at Apsley House, to William IV. The duke had manifested his admiration of
+his great adversary, by having portraits of him in different parts of the
+house. At the bottom of the grand staircase stood the colossal statue of
+the emperor, by Canova. It was of marble, in the antique style, with one
+arm partly extended, holding a figure of victory. Over this arm the ladies,
+in tripping upstairs to the ball, had thrown their shawls. It was a
+singular office for the statue of Napoleon to perform in the mansion of the
+Duke of Wellington!
+
+  "Imperial Caesar dead, and turned to clay," etc., etc.
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+
+
+
+AMERICAN RESEARCHES IN ITALY
+
+LIFE OF TASSO: RECOVERY OF A LOST PORTRAIT OF DANTE
+
+_To the Editor of the Knickerbocker:_
+
+Sir--Permit me through the pages of your magazine to call the attention of
+the public to the learned and elegant researches in Europe of one of our
+countrymen, Mr. R. H. Wilde, of Georgia, formerly a member of the House of
+Representatives. After leaving Congress, Mr. Wilde a few years since spent
+about eighteen months in traveling through different parts of Europe, until
+he became stationary for a time in Tuscany. Here he occupied himself with
+researches concerning the private life of Tasso, whose mysterious and
+romantic love for the Princess Leonora, his madness and imprisonment, had
+recently become the theme of a literary controversy, not yet ended; curious
+in itself, and rendered still more curious by some alleged manuscripts of
+the poet's, brought forward by Count Alberti. Mr. Wilde entered into the
+investigation with the enthusiasm of a poet, and the patience and accuracy
+of a case-hunter; and has produced a work now in the press, in which the
+"vexed questions" concerning Tasso are most ably discussed, and lights
+thrown upon them by his letters, and by various of his sonnets, which last
+are rendered into English with rare felicity. While Mr. Wilde was occupied
+upon this work, he became acquainted with Signer Carlo Liverati, an artist
+of considerable merit, and especially well versed in the antiquities of
+Florence. This gentleman mentioned incidentally one day, in the course of
+conversation, that there once and probably still existed in the "Bargello,"
+anciently both the prison, and the palace of the republic, an authentic
+portrait of Dante. It was believed to be in fresco, on a wall which
+afterward, by some strange neglect or inadvertency, had been covered with
+whitewash. Signor Liverati mentioned the circumstance merely to deplore the
+loss of so precious a portrait, and to regret the almost utter hopelessness
+of its recovery.
+
+As Mr. Wilde had not as yet imbibed that enthusiastic admiration for Dante
+which possesses all Italians, by whom the poet is almost worshiped, this
+conversation made but a slight impression on him at the time. Subsequently,
+however, his researches concerning Tasso being ended, he began to amuse his
+leisure hours with attempts to translate some specimens of Italian lyric
+poetry, and to compose very short biographical sketches of the authors. In
+these specimens, which as yet exist only in manuscript, he has shown the
+same critical knowledge of the Italian language, and admirable command of
+the English, that characterize his translations of Tasso. He had not
+advanced far in these exercises, when the obscure and contradictory
+accounts of many incidents in the life of Dante caused him much
+embarrassment, and sorely piqued his curiosity. About the same time he
+received, through the courtesy of Don Neri dei Principi Corsini, what he
+had long most fervently desired, a permission from the grandduke to pursue
+his investigations in the secret archives of Florence, with power to obtain
+copies therefrom. This was a rich and almost unwrought mine of literary
+research; for to Italians themselves, as well as to foreigners, their
+archives, for the most part, have been long inaccessible. For two years Mr.
+Wilde devoted himself with indefatigable ardor to explore the records of
+the republic during the time of Dante. These being written in barbarous
+Latin and semi-Gothic characters, on parchment more or less discolored and
+mutilated, with ink sometimes faded, were rendered still more illegible by
+the arbitrary abbreviations of the notaries. They require, in fact, an
+especial study; few even of the officers employed in the "Archivio delle
+Riformagione" can read them currently and correctly.
+
+Mr. Wilde however persevered in his laborious task with a patience severely
+tried, but invincible. Being without an index, each file, each book,
+required to be examined page by page, to ascertain whether any particular
+of the immortal poet's political life had escaped the untiring industry of
+his countrymen. This toil was not wholly fruitless, and several interesting
+facts obscurely known, and others utterly unknown by the Italians
+themselves, are drawn forth by Mr. Wilde from the oblivion of these
+archives.
+
+While thus engaged, the circumstance of the lost portrait of Dante was
+again brought to Mr. Wilde's mind, but now excited intense interest. In
+perusing the notes of the late learned Canonico Moreri on Filelfo's life of
+Dante, he found it stated that a portrait of the poet by Giotto was
+formerly to be seen in the Bargello. He learned also that Signer Scotti,
+who has charge of the original drawings of the old masters in the imperial
+and royal gallery, had made several years previously an ineffectual attempt
+to set on foot a project for the recovery of the lost treasure. Here was a
+new vein of inquiry, which Mr. Wilde followed up with his usual energy and
+sagacity. He soon satisfied himself, by reference to Vasari, and to the
+still more ancient and decisive authority of Filippo Villari, who lived
+shortly after the poet, that Giotto, the friend and contemporary of Dante,
+did undoubtedly paint his likeness in the place indicated. Giotto died in
+1336, but as Dante was banished, and was even sentenced to be burned, in
+1302, it was obvious the work must have been executed before that time;
+since the portrait of one outlawed and capitally convicted as an enemy to
+the commonwealth would never have been ordered or tolerated in the chapel
+of the royal palace. It was clear, then, that the portrait must have been
+painted between 1290 and 1302.
+
+Mr. Wilde now revolved in his own mind the possibility that this precious
+relic might remain undestroyed under its coat of whitewash, and might yet
+be restored to the world. For a moment he felt an impulse to undertake the
+enterprise; but feared that, in a foreigner from a new world, any part of
+which is unrepresented at the Tuscan court, it might appear like an
+intrusion. He soon however found a zealous coadjutor. This was one Giovanni
+Aubrey Bezzi, a Piedmontese exile, who had long been a resident in England,
+and was familiar with its language and literature. He was now on a visit to
+Florence, which liberal and hospitable city is always open to men of merit
+who for political reasons have been excluded from other parts of Italy.
+Signer Bezzi partook deeply of the enthusiasm of his countrymen for the
+memory of Dante, and sympathized with Mr. Wilde in his eagerness to
+retrieve if possible the lost portrait. They had several consultations as
+to the means to be adopted to effect their purpose, without incurring the
+charge of undue officiousness. To lessen any objections that might occur
+they resolved to ask for nothing but permission to search for the fresco
+painting at their own expense; and should any remains of it be found, then
+to propose to the nobility and gentry of Florence an association for the
+purpose of completing the undertaking and effectually recovering the lost
+portrait.
+
+For the same reason the formal memorial addressed to the grandduke was
+drawn up in the name of Florentines; among whom were the celebrated
+Bartolini, now President of the School of Sculpture in the Imperial and
+Royal Academy, Signor Paolo Ferroni, of the noble family of that name, who
+has exhibited considerable talent for painting, and Signor Gasparini, also
+an artist. This petition was urged and supported with indefatigable zeal by
+Signor Bezzi; and being warmly countenanced by Count Nerli and other
+functionaries, met with more prompt success than had been anticipated.
+Signor Marini, a skillful artist, who had succeeded in similar operations,
+was now employed to remove the whitewash by a process of his own, by which
+any fresco painting that might exist beneath would be protected from
+injury. He set to work patiently and cautiously. In a short time he met
+with evidence of the existence of the fresco. From under the coat of
+whitewash the head of an angel gradually made its appearance, and was
+pronounced to be by the pencil of Giotto.
+
+The enterprise was now prosecuted with increased ardor. Several months were
+expended on the task, and three sides of the chapel wall were uncovered;
+they were all painted in fresco by Giotto, with the history of the
+Magdalen, exhibiting her conversion, her penance, and her beatification.
+The figures, however, were all those of saints and angels; no historical
+portraits had yet been discovered, and doubts began to be entertained
+whether there were any. Still the recovery of an indisputable work of
+Giotto's was considered an ample reward for any toil; and the Ministers of
+the grandduke, acting under his directions, assumed on his behalf the past
+charges and future management of the enterprise.
+
+At length, on the uncovering of the fourth wall, the undertaking was
+crowned with complete success. A number of historical figures were brought
+to light, and among them the undoubted likeness of Dante. He was
+represented in full length, in the garb of the time, with a book under his
+arm, designed most probably to represent the "Vita Nuova," for the
+"Comedia" was not yet composed, and to all appearance from thirty to
+thirty-five years of age. The face was in profile and in excellent
+preservation, excepting that at some former period a nail had unfortunately
+been driven into the eye. The outline of the eyelid was perfect, so that
+the injury could easily be remedied. The countenance was extremely
+handsome, yet bore a strong resemblance to the portraits of the poet taken
+later in life.
+
+It is not easy to appreciate the delight of Mr. Wilde and his coadjutors at
+this triumphant result of their researches; nor the sensation produced, not
+merely in Florence but throughout Italy, by this discovery of a veritable
+portrait of Dante, in the prime of his days. It was some such sensation as
+would be produced in England by the sudden discovery of a perfectly well
+authenticated likeness of Shakespeare; with a difference in intensity
+proportioned to the superior sensitiveness of the Italians.
+
+The recovery of this portrait of the "divine poet" has occasioned fresh
+inquiry into the origin of the masks said to have been made from a cast of
+his face taken after death. One of these masks, in the possession of the
+Marquess of Torrigiani, has been pronounced as certainly the
+_original_. Several artists of high talent have concurred in this
+opinion; among these may be named Jesi, the first engraver in Florence;
+Seymour Kirkup, Esq., a painter and antiquary; and our own countryman
+Powers, whose genius, by the way, is very highly appreciated by the
+Italians.
+
+We may expect from the accomplished pen of Carlo Torrigiani, son of the
+marquess, and who is advantageously known in this country, from having
+traveled here, an account of this curious and valuable relic, which has
+been upward of a century in the possession of his family.
+
+Should Mr. Wilde finish his biographical work concerning Dante, which
+promises to be a proud achievement in American literature, he intends, I
+understand, to apply for permission to have both likenesses copied, and
+should circumstances warrant the expense, to have them engraved by eminent
+artists. We shall then have the features of Dante while in the prime of
+life as well as at the moment of his death.
+
+G. C.
+
+
+
+
+THE TAKING OF THE VEIL
+
+
+One of the most remarkable personages in Parisian society during the last
+century was Renee Charlotte Victoire de Froulay De Tesse, Marchioness De
+Crequi. She sprang from the highest and proudest of the old French
+nobility, and ever maintained the most exalted notions of the purity and
+antiquity of blood, looking upon all families that could not date back
+further than three or four hundred years as mere upstarts. When a beautiful
+girl, fourteen years of age, she was presented to Louis XIV., at
+Versailles, and the ancient monarch kissed her hand with great gallantry;
+after an interval of about eighty-five years, when nearly a hundred years
+old, the same testimonial of respect was paid her at the Tuileries by
+Bonaparte, then First Consul, who promised her the restitution of the
+confiscated forests formerly belonging to her family. She was one of the
+most celebrated women of her time for intellectual grace and superiority,
+and had the courage to remain at Paris and brave all the horrors of the
+revolution, which laid waste the aristocratical world around her.
+
+The memoirs she has left behind abound with curious anecdotes and vivid
+pictures of Parisian life during the latter days of Louis XIV., the regency
+of the Duke of Orleans, and the residue of the last century; and are highly
+illustrative of the pride, splendor, and licentiousness of the French
+nobility on the very eve of their tremendous downfall.
+
+I shall draw forth a few scenes from her memoirs, taken almost at random,
+and which, though given as actual and well-known circumstances, have quite
+the air of romance.
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+All the great world of Paris were invited to be present at a grand
+ceremonial, to take place in the church of the Abbey Royal of Panthemont.
+Henrietta de Lenoncour, a young girl, of a noble family, of great beauty,
+and heiress to immense estates, was to take the black veil. Invitations had
+been issued in grand form, by her aunt and guardian, the Countess Brigitte
+de Rupelmonde, canoness of Mauberge. The circumstance caused great talk and
+wonder in the fashionable circles of Paris; everybody was at a loss to
+imagine why a young girl, beautiful and rich, in the very springtime of her
+charms, should renounce a world which she was so eminently qualified to
+embellish and enjoy.
+
+A lady of high rank, who visited the beautiful novice at the grate of her
+convent-parlor, got a clew to the mystery. She found her in great
+agitation; for a time she evidently repressed her feelings, but they at
+length broke forth in passionate exclamations. "Heaven grant me grace,"
+said she, "some day or other to pardon my cousin Gondrecourt the sorrows he
+has caused me!"
+
+"What do you mean?--what sorrows, my child?" inquired her visitor. "What
+has your cousin done to affect you?"
+
+"He is married!" cried she in accents of despair, but endeavoring to
+repress her sobs.
+
+"Married! I have heard nothing of the kind, my dear. Are you perfectly sure
+of it?"
+
+"Alas! nothing is more certain; my aunt de Rupelmonde informed me of it."
+
+The lady retired, full of surprise and commiseration. She related the scene
+in a circle of the highest nobility, in the saloon of the Marshal Prince of
+Beauvau, where the unaccountable self-sacrifice of the beautiful novice was
+under discussion.
+
+"Alas!" said she, "the poor girl is crossed in love; she is about to
+renounce the world in despair, at the marriage of her cousin De
+Gondrecourt."
+
+"What!" cried a gentleman present, "the Viscount de Gondrecourt married!
+Never was there a greater falsehood. And 'her aunt told her so'! Oh! I
+understand the plot. The countess is passionately fond of Gondrecourt, and
+jealous of her beautiful niece; but her schemes are vain; the viscount
+holds her in perfect detestation."
+
+There was a mingled expression of ridicule, disgust, and indignation at the
+thought of such a rivalry. The Countess Rupelmonde was old enough to be the
+grandmother of the viscount. She was a woman of violent passions, and
+imperious temper; robust in person, with a masculine voice, a dusky
+complexion, green eyes, and powerful eyebrows.
+
+"It is impossible," cried one of the company, "that a woman of the
+countess's age and appearance can be guilty of such folly. No, no; you
+mistake the aim of this detestable woman. She is managing to get possession
+of the estate of her lovely niece."
+
+This was admitted to be the most probable; and all concurred in believing
+the countess to be at the bottom of the intended sacrifice; for although a
+canoness, a dignitary of a religious order, she was pronounced little
+better than a devil incarnate.
+
+The Princess de Beauvau, a woman of generous spirit and intrepid zeal,
+suddenly rose from the chair in which she had been reclining. "My prince,"
+said she, addressing her husband, "if you approve of it, I will go
+immediately and have a conversation on this subject with the archbishop.
+There is not a moment to spare. It is now past midnight; the ceremony is to
+take place in the morning. A few hours and the irrevocable vows will be
+pronounced."
+
+The prince inclined his head in respectful assent. The princess set about
+her generous enterprise with a woman's promptness. Within a short time her
+carriage was at the iron gate of the archiepiscopal palace, and her
+servants rang for admission. Two Switzers, who had charge of the gate, were
+fast asleep in the porter's lodge, for it was half-past two in the morning.
+It was some time before they could be awakened, and longer before they
+could be made to come forth.
+
+"The Princess de Beauvau is at the gate!"
+
+Such a personage was not to be received in deshabille. Her dignity and the
+dignity of the archbishop demanded that the gate should be served in full
+costume. For half an hour, therefore, had the princess to wait, in feverish
+impatience, until the two dignitaries of the porter's lodge arrayed
+themselves; and three o'clock sounded from the tower of Notre Dame before
+they came forth. They were in grand livery, of a buff color, with amaranth
+galloons, plaited with silver, and fringed sword-belts reaching to their
+knees, in which were suspended long rapiers. They had small three-cornered
+hats, surmounted with plumes; and each bore in his hand a halbert. Thus
+equipped at all points, they planted themselves before the door of the
+carriage; struck the ends of their halberts on the ground with emphasis;
+and stood waiting with official importance, but profound respect, to know
+the pleasure of the princess.
+
+She demanded to speak with the archbishop. A most reverential bow and shrug
+accompanied the reply, that "His Grandeur was not at home."
+
+Not at home! Where was he to be found? Another bow and shrug: "His Grandeur
+either was, or ought to be, in retirement in the seminary of St. Magloire;
+unless he had gone to pass the Fete of St. Bruno with the reverend
+Carthusian fathers of the Rue d'Enfer; or perhaps he might have gone to
+repose himself in his castle of Conflans-sur-Seine. Though, on further
+thought, it was not unlikely he might have gone to sleep at St. Cyr, where
+the Bishop of Chartres never failed to invite him for the anniversary
+soiree of Madame de Maintenon."
+
+The princess was in despair at this multiplicity of crossroads pointed out
+for the chase; the brief interval of time was rapidly elapsing; day already
+began to dawn; she saw there was no hope of finding the archbishop before
+the moment of his entrance into the church for the morning's ceremony; so
+she returned home quite distressed.
+
+At seven o'clock in the morning the princess was in the parlor of the
+monastery of De Panthemont, and sent in an urgent request for a moment's
+conversation with the Lady Abbess. The reply brought was, that the abbess
+could not come to the parlor, being obliged to attend in the choir at the
+canonical hours. The princess entreated permission to enter the convent, to
+reveal to the Lady Abbess in two words something of the greatest
+importance. The abbess sent word in reply, that the thing was impossible,
+until she had obtained permission from the Archbishop of Paris. The
+princess retired once more to her carriage, and now, as a forlorn hope,
+took her station at the door of the church to watch for the arrival of the
+prelate.
+
+After a while the splendid company invited to this great ceremony began to
+arrive. The beauty, rank, and wealth of the novice had excited great
+attention; and, as everybody was expected to be present on the occasion,
+everybody pressed to secure a place. The street reverberated with the
+continual roll of gilded carriages and chariots; coaches of princes and
+dukes, designated by imperials of crimson velvet, and magnificent equipages
+of six horses, decked out with nodding plumes and sumptuous harnessing. At
+length the equipages ceased to arrive; empty vehicles filled the street;
+and, with a noisy and party-colored crowd of lackeys in rich liveries,
+obstructed all the entrances to De Panthemont.
+
+Eleven o'clock had struck; the last auditor had entered the church; the
+deep tones of the organ began to swell through the sacred pile, yet still
+the archbishop came not! The heart of the princess beat quicker and quicker
+with vague apprehension; when a valet, dressed in cloth of silver, trimmed
+with crimson velvet, approached her carriage precipitately. "Madame," said
+he, "the archbishop is in the church; he entered by the portal of the
+cloister; he is already in the sanctuary; the ceremony is about to
+commence!"
+
+What was to be done? To speak with the archbishop was now impossible, and
+yet on the revelation she was to make to him depended the fate of the
+lovely novice. The princess drew forth her tablets of enameled gold, wrote
+a few lines therein with a pencil, and ordered her lackey to make way for
+her through the crowd, and conduct her with all speed to the sacristy.
+
+The description given of the church and the assemblage on this occasion
+presents an idea of the aristocratical state of the times, and of the high
+interest awakened by the affecting sacrifice about to take place. The
+church was hung with superb tapestry, above which extended a band of white
+damask, fringed with gold, and covered with armorial escutcheons. A large
+pennon, emblazoned with the arms and alliances of the high-born damsel, was
+suspended, according to custom, in place of the lamp of the sanctuary. The
+lusters, girandoles, and candelabras of the king had been furnished in
+profusion, to decorate the sacred edifice, and the pavements were all
+covered with rich carpets.
+
+The sanctuary presented a reverend and august assemblage of bishops,
+canons, and monks of various orders, Benedictines, Bernardines, Raccollets,
+Capuchins, and others, all in their appropriate robes and dresses. In the
+midst presided the Archbishop of Paris, Christopher de Beaumont; surrounded
+by his four arch priests and his vicars-general. He was seated with his
+back against the altar. When his eyes were cast down, his countenance, pale
+and severe, is represented as having been somewhat sepulchral and
+death-like; but the moment he raised his large, dark, sparkling eyes, the
+whole became animated; beaming with ardor, and expressive of energy,
+penetration, and firmness.
+
+The audience that crowded the church was no less illustrious. Excepting the
+royal family, all that was elevated in rank and title was there; never had
+a ceremonial of the kind attracted an equal concourse of the high
+aristocracy of Paris.
+
+At length the grated gates of the choir creaked on their hinges, and Madame
+de Richelieu, the high and noble Abbess of De Panthemont, advanced to
+resign the novice into the hands of her aunt, the Countess Canoness De
+Rupelmonde. Every eye was turned with intense curiosity to gain a sight of
+the beautiful victim. She was sumptuously dressed, but her paleness and
+languor accorded but little with her brilliant attire. The Canoness De
+Rupelmonde conducted her niece to her praying-desk, where, as soon as the
+poor girl knelt down, she sank as if exhausted. Just then a sort of murmur
+was heard at the lower end of the church, where the servants in livery were
+gathered. A young man was borne forth, struggling in convulsions. He was in
+the uniform of an officer of the guards of King Stanislaus, Duke of
+Lorraine. A whisper circulated that it was the young Viscount de
+Gondrecourt, and that he was a lover of the novice. Almost all the young
+nobles present hurried forth to proffer him sympathy and assistance.
+
+The Archbishop of Paris remained all this time seated before the altar; his
+eyes cast down, his pallid countenance giving no signs of interest or
+participation in the scene around him. It was noticed that in one of his
+hands, which was covered with a violet glove, he grasped firmly a pair of
+tablets, of enameled gold.
+
+The Canoness de Rupelmonde conducted her niece to the prelate, to make her
+profession of self-devotion, and to utter the irrevocable vow. As the
+lovely novice knelt at his feet, the archbishop fixed on her his dark,
+beaming eyes, with a kind but earnest expression. "Sister!" said he, in the
+softest and most benevolent tone of voice, "What is your age?"
+
+"Nineteen years, monseigneur," eagerly interposed the Countess de
+Rupelmonde.
+
+"_You_ will reply to me by-and-by, madame," said the archbishop,
+dryly. He then repeated his question to the novice, who replied in a
+faltering voice, "Seventeen years."
+
+"In what diocese did you take the white veil?"
+
+"In the diocese of Toul."
+
+"How!" exclaimed the archbishop, vehemently. "In the diocese of Toul? The
+chair of Toul is vacant! The bishop of Toul died fifteen months since; and
+those who officiate in the chapter are not authorized to receive novices.
+Your novitiate, mademoiselle, is null and void, and we cannot receive your
+profession."
+
+The archbishop rose from his chair, resumed his miter, and took the crozier
+from the hands of an attendant.
+
+"My dear brethren," said he, addressing the assembly, "there is no
+necessity for our examining and interrogating Mademoiselle de Lenoncour on
+the sincerity of her religious vocation. There is a canonical impediment to
+her professing for the present; and, as to the future, we reserve to
+ourselves the consideration of the matter; interdicting to all other
+ecclesiastical persons the power of accepting her vows, under penalty of
+interdiction, of suspension, and of nullification; all which is in virtue
+of our metropolitan rights, contained in the terms of the bull _cum
+proximis_:" "_Adjutorium nostrum in nomine Domini!_" pursued he,
+chanting in a grave and solemn voice, and turning toward the altar to give
+the benediction of the holy sacrament.
+
+The noble auditory had that habitude of reserve, that empire, or rather
+tyranny, over all outward manifestations of internal emotions, which
+belongs to high aristocratical breeding. The declaration of the archbishop,
+therefore, was received as one of the most natural and ordinary things in
+the world, and all knelt down and received the pontifical benediction with
+perfect decorum. As soon, however, as they were released from the
+self-restraint imposed by etiquette, they amply indemnified themselves; and
+nothing was talked of for a month, in the fashionable saloons of Paris, but
+the loves of the handsome Viscount and the charming Henrietta; the
+wickedness of the canoness; the active benevolence and admirable address of
+the Princess de Beauvau; and the great wisdom of the archbishop, who was
+particularly extolled for his delicacy in defeating this maneuver without
+any scandal to the aristocracy, or public stigma on the name of De
+Rupelmonde, and without any departure from pastoral gentleness, by adroitly
+seizing upon an informality, and turning it to beneficial account, with as
+much authority as charitable circumspection.
+
+As to the Canoness de Rupelmonde, she was defeated at all points in her
+wicked plans against her beautiful niece. In consequence of the caveat of
+the archbishop, her superior ecclesiastic, the Abbess de Panthemont,
+formally forbade Mademoiselle de Lenoncour to resume the white veil and the
+dress of a novitiate, and instead of a novice's cell established her in a
+beautiful apartment as a boarder. The next morning the Canoness de
+Rupelmonde called at the convent to take away her niece; but, to her
+confusion, the abbess produced a lettre-de-cachet, which she had just
+received, and which forbade mademoiselle to leave the convent with any
+other person save the Prince de Beauvau.
+
+Under the auspices and the vigilant attention of the prince, the whole
+affair was wound up in the most technical and circumstantial manner. The
+Countess de Rupelmonde, by a decree of the Grand Council, was divested of
+the guardianship of her niece. All the arrears of revenues accumulated
+during Mademoiselle de Lenoncour's minority were rigorously collected, the
+accounts scrutinized and adjusted, and her noble fortune placed safely and
+entirely in her hands.
+
+In a little while the noble personages who had been invited to the ceremony
+of taking the veil received another invitation, on the part of the Countess
+dowager de Gondrecourt, and the Marshal Prince de Beauvau, to attend the
+marriage of Adrien de Gondrecourt, Viscount of Jean-sur-Moselle, and
+Henrietta de Lenoncour, Countess de Hevouwal, etc., which duly took place
+in the chapel of the archiepiscopal palace at Paris.
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+So much for the beautiful Henrietta de Lenoncour. We will now draw forth a
+companion picture of a handsome young cavalier, who figured in the gay
+world of Paris about the same time, and concerning whom the ancient
+marchioness writes with the lingering feeling of youthful romance.
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+
+
+
+THE CHARMING LETORIERES
+
+
+"A good face is a letter of recommendation," says an old proverb; and it
+was never more verified than in the case of the Chevalier Letorieres. He
+was a young gentleman of good family, but who, according to the Spanish
+phrase, had nothing but his cloak and sword (capa y espada), that is to
+say, his gentle blood and gallant bearing, to help him forward in the
+world. Through the interest of an uncle, who was an abbe, he received a
+gratuitous education at a fashionable college, but finding the terms of
+study too long, and the vacations too short, for his gay and indolent
+temper, he left college without saying a word, and launched himself upon
+Paris, with a light heart and still lighter pocket. Here he led a life to
+his humor. It is true he had to make scanty meals, and to lodge in a
+garret; but what of that? He was his own master; free from all task or
+restraint. When cold or hungry, he sallied forth, like others of the
+chameleon order, and banqueted on pure air and warm sunshine in the public
+walks and gardens; drove off the thoughts of a dinner by amusing himself
+with the gay and grotesque throngs of the metropolis; and if one of the
+poorest, was one of the merriest gentlemen upon town. Wherever he went his
+good looks and frank, graceful demeanor, had an instant and magical effect
+in securing favor. There was but one word to express his fascinating
+powers--he was "charming."
+
+Instances are given of the effect of his winning qualities upon minds of
+coarse, ordinary mold. He had once taken shelter from a heavy shower under
+a gateway. A hackney coachman, who was passing by, pulled up, and asked him
+if he wished a cast in his carriage. Letorieres declined, with a melancholy
+and dubious shake of the head. The coachman regarded him wistfully,
+repeared his solicitations, and wished to know what place he was going to
+"To the Palace of Justice, to walk in the galleries; but I will wait here
+until the rain is over."
+
+"And why so?" inquired the coachman, pertinaciously.
+
+"Because I've no money; do let me be quiet."
+
+The coachman jumped down, and, opening the door of his carriage, "It shall
+never be said," cried he, "that I left so charming a young gentleman to
+weary himself, and catch cold, merely for the sake of twenty-four sous."
+
+Arrived at the Palace of Justice, he stopped before the saloon of a famous
+restaurateur, opened the door of the carriage, and taking off his hat very
+respectfully, begged the youth to accept of a Louis-d'or. "You will meet
+with some young gentlemen within," said he, "with whom you may wish to take
+a hand at cards. The number of my coach is 144. You can find me out, and
+repay me whenever you please."
+
+The worthy Jehu was some years afterward made coachman to the Princess
+Sophia, of France, through the recommendation of the handsome youth he had
+so generously obliged.
+
+Another instance in point is given with respect to his tailor, to whom he
+owed four hundred livres. The tailor had repeatedly dunned him, but was
+always put off with the best grace in the world. The wife of the tailor
+urged her husband to assume a harsher tone. He replied that he could not
+find it in his heart to speak roughly to so charming a young gentleman.
+
+"I've no patience with such want of spirit!" cried the wife; "you have not
+the courage to show your teeth: but I'm going out to get change for this
+note of a hundred crowns; before I come home, I'll seek this 'charming'
+youth myself, and see whether he has the power to charm me. I'll warrant he
+won't be able to put _me_ off with fine looks and fine speeches."
+
+With these and many more vaunts, the good dame sallied forth. When she
+returned home, however, she wore quite a different aspect.
+
+"Well," said her husband, "how much have you received from the 'charming'
+young man?"
+
+"Let me alone," replied the wife; "I found him playing on the guitar, and
+he looked so handsome, and was so amiable and genteel, that I had not the
+heart to trouble him."
+
+"And the change for the hundred-crown note?" said the tailor.
+
+The wife hesitated a moment: "Faith," cried she, "you'll have to add the
+amount to your next bill against him. The poor young gentleman had such a
+melancholy air that--I know not how it was, but--I left the hundred crowns
+on his mantel-piece in spite of him!"
+
+The captivating looks and manners of Letorieres made his way with equal
+facility in the great world. His high connections entitled him to
+presentation at court, but some questions arose about the sufficiency of
+his proofs of nobility; whereupon the king, who had seen him walking in the
+gardens of Versailles, and had been charmed with his appearance, put an end
+to all demurs of etiquette by making him a viscount.
+
+The same kind of fascination is said to have attended him throughout his
+career. He succeeded in various difficult family suits on questions of
+honors and privileges; he had merely to appear in court to dispose the
+judges in his favor. He at length became so popular that on one occasion,
+when he appeared at the theater on recovering from a wound received in a
+duel, the audience applauded him on his entrance. Nothing, it is said,
+could have been in more perfect good taste and high breeding than his
+conduct on this occasion. When he heard the applause, he rose in his box,
+stepped forward, and surveyed both sides of the house, as if he could not
+believe that it was himself they were treating like a favorite actor, or a
+prince of the blood.
+
+His success with the fair sex may easily be presumed; but he had too much
+honor and sensibility to render his intercourse with them a series of cold
+gallantries and heartless triumphs. In the course of his attendance upon
+court, where he held a post of honor about the king, he fell deeply in love
+with the beautiful Princess Julia, of Savoy Carignan. She was young,
+tender, and simple-hearted, and returned his love with equal fervor. Her
+family took the alarm at this attachment, and procured an order that she
+should inhabit the Abbey of Montmartre, where she was treated with all
+befitting delicacy and distinction, but not permitted to go beyond the
+convent walls. The lovers found means to correspond. One of their letters
+was intercepted, and it is even hinted that a plan of elopement was
+discovered. A duel was the consequence, with one of the fiery relations of
+the princess. Letorieres received two sword-thrusts in his right side. His
+wounds were serious, yet after two or three days' confinement he could not
+resist his impatience to see the princess. He succeeded in scaling the
+walls of the abbey, and obtaining an interview in an arcade leading to the
+cloister of the cemetery. The interview of the lovers was long and tender.
+They exchanged vows of eternal fidelity, and flattered themselves with
+hopes of future happiness, which they were never to realize. After repeated
+farewells, the princess re-entered the convent, never again to behold the
+charming Letorieres. On the following morning his corpse was found stiff
+and cold on the pavement of the cloister!
+
+It would seem that the wounds of the unfortunate youth had been reopened by
+his efforts to get over the wall; that he had refrained from calling
+assistance, lest he should expose the princess, and that he had bled to
+death, without any one to aid him, or to close his dying eyes.
+
+
+
+
+THE EARLY EXPERIENCES OF RALPH RINGWOOD [Footnote: Ralph Ringwood, though a
+fictitious name, is a real personage: the worthy original is now living and
+flourishing in honorable station. I have given some anecdotes of his early
+and eccentric career in, as nearly as I can recollect, the very words in
+which he related them. They certainly afforded strong temptations to the
+embellishments of fiction; but I thought them so strikingly characteristic
+of the individual, and of the scenes and society into which his peculiar
+humors carried him, that I preferred giving them in their original
+simplicity.--G. C.]
+
+
+NOTED DOWN FROM HIS CONVERSATIONS
+
+"I am a Kentuckian by residence and choice, but a Virginian by birth. The
+cause of my first leaving the 'Ancient Dominion,' and emigrating to
+Kentucky was a jackass! You stare, but have a little patience, and I'll
+soon show you how it came to pass. My father, who was of one of the old
+Virginian families, resided in Richmond. He was a widower, and his domestic
+affairs were managed by a housekeeper of the old school, such as used to
+administer the concerns of opulent Virginian households. She was a
+dignitary that almost rivaled my father in importance, and seemed to think
+everything belonged to her; in fact, she was so considerate in her economy,
+and so careful of expense, as sometimes to vex my father, who would swear
+she was disgracing him by her meanness. She always appeared with that
+ancient insignia of housekeeping trust and authority, a great bunch of keys
+jingling at her girdle. She superintended the arrangement of the table at
+every meal, and saw that the dishes were all placed according to her
+primitive notions of symmetry. In the evening she took her stand and served
+out tea with a mingled respectfulness and pride of station, truly
+exemplary. Her great ambition was to have everything in order, and that the
+establishment under her sway should be cited as a model of good
+housekeeping. If anything went wrong, poor old Barbara would take it to
+heart, and sit in her room and cry; until a few chapters in the Bible would
+quiet her spirits, and make all calm again. The Bible, in fact, was her
+constant resort in time of trouble. She opened it indiscriminately, and
+whether she chanced among the Lamentations of Jeremiah, the Canticles of
+Solomon, or the rough enumeration of the tribes in Deuteronomy, a chapter
+was a chapter, and operated like balm to her soul. Such was our good old
+housekeeper Barbara, who was destined, unwittingly, to have a most
+important effect upon my destiny.
+
+"It came to pass, during the days of my juvenility, while I was yet what is
+termed 'an unlucky boy,' that a gentleman of our neighborhood, a great
+advocate for experiments and improvements of all kinds, took it into his
+head that it would be an immense public advantage to introduce a breed of
+mules, and accordingly imported three jacks to stock the neighborhood. This
+in a part of the country where the people cared for nothing but blood
+horses! Why, sir! they would have considered their mares disgraced and
+their whole stud dishonored by such a misalliance. The whole matter was a
+town talk and a town scandal. The worthy amalgamator of quadrupeds found
+himself in a dismal scrape: so he backed out in time, abjured the whole
+doctrine of amalgamation, and turned his jacks loose to shift for
+themselves upon the town common. There they used to run about and lead an
+idle, good-for-nothing, holiday life, the happiest animals in the country.
+
+"It so happened that my way to school lay across this common. The first
+time that I saw one of these animals it set up a braying and frightened me
+confoundedly. However, I soon got over my fright, and seeing that it had
+something of a horse look, my Virginian love for anything of the equestrian
+species predominated, and I determined to back it. I accordingly applied at
+a grocer's shop, procured a cord that had been round a loaf of sugar, and
+made a kind of halter; then summoning some of my schoolfellows, we drove
+master Jack about the common until we hemmed him in an angle of a 'worm
+fence.' After some difficulty, we fixed the halter round his muzzle, and I
+mounted. Up flew his heels, away I went over his head, and off he
+scampered. However, I was on my legs in a twinkling, gave chase, caught him
+and remounted. By dint of repeated tumbles I soon learned to stick to his
+back, so that he could no more cast me than he could his own skin. From
+that time, master Jack and his companions had a scampering life of it, for
+we all rode them between school hours, and on holiday afternoons; and you
+may be sure schoolboys' nags are never permitted to suffer the grass to
+grow under their feet. They soon became so knowing that they took to their
+heels at the very sight of a schoolboy; and we were generally much longer
+in chasing than we were in riding them.
+
+"Sunday approached, on which I projected an equestrian excursion on one of
+these long-eared steeds. As I knew the jacks would be in great demand on
+Sunday morning, I secured one overnight, and conducted him home, to be
+ready for an early outset. But where was I to quarter him for the night? I
+could not put him in the stable; our old black groom George was as absolute
+in that domain as Barbara was within doors, and would have thought his
+stable, his horses, and himself disgraced, by the introduction of a
+jackass. I recollected the smoke-house; an out-building appended to all
+Virginian establishments for the smoking of hams, and other kinds of meat.
+So I got the key, put master Jack in, locked the door, returned the key to
+its place, and went to bed, intending to release my prisoner at an early
+hour, before any of the family were awake. I was so tired, however, by the
+exertions I had made in catching the donkey, that I fell into a sound
+sleep, and the morning broke without my awaking.
+
+"Not so with dame Barbara, the housekeeper. As usual, to use her own
+phrase, 'she was up before the crow put his shoes on,' and bustled about to
+get things in order for breakfast. Her first resort was to the smoke-house.
+Scarce had she opened the door, when master Jack, tired of his confinement,
+and glad to be released from darkness, gave a loud bray, and rushed forth.
+Down dropped old Barbara; the animal trampled over her, and made off for
+the common. Poor Barbara! She had never before seen a donkey, and having
+read in the Bible that the devil went about like a roaring lion, seeking
+whom he might devour, she took it for granted that this was Beelzebub
+himself. The kitchen was soon in a hubbub; the servants hurried to the
+spot. There lay old Barbara in fits; as fast as she got out of one, the
+thoughts of the devil came over her, and she fell into another, for the
+good soul was devoutly superstitious.
+
+"As ill luck would have it, among those attracted by the noise was a
+little, cursed, fidgety, crabbed uncle of mine; one of those uneasy spirits
+that cannot rest quietly in their beds in the morning, but must be up
+early, to bother the household. He was only a kind of half-uncle, after
+all, for he had married my father's sister; yet be assumed great authority
+on the strength of this left-handed relationship, and was a universal
+intermeddler and family pest. This prying little busybody soon ferreted out
+the truth of the story, and discovered, by hook and by crook, that I was at
+the bottom of the affair, and had locked up the donkey in the smoke-house.
+He stopped to inquire no further, for he was one of those testy curmudgeons
+with whom unlucky boys are always in the wrong. Leaving old Barbara to
+wrestle in imagination with the devil, he made for my bedchamber, where I
+still lay wrapped in rosy slumbers, little dreaming of the mischief I had
+done, and the storm about to break over me.
+
+"In an instant I was awakened by a shower of thwacks, and started up in
+wild amazement, I demanded the meaning of this attack, but received no
+other reply than that I had murdered the housekeeper; while my uncle
+continued whacking away during my confusion. I seized a poker, and put
+myself on the defensive. I was a stout boy for my years, while my uncle was
+a little wiffet of a man; one that in Kentucky we would not call even an
+'individual'; nothing more than a 'remote circumstance.' I soon, therefore,
+brought him to a parley, and learned the whole extent of the charge brought
+against me. I confessed to the donkey and the smoke-house, but pleaded not
+guilty of the murder of the housekeeper. I soon found out that old Barbara
+was still alive. She continued under the doctor's hands, however, for
+several days; and whenever she had an ill turn my uncle would seek to give
+me another flogging. I appealed to my father, but got no redress. I was
+considered an 'unlucky boy,' prone to all kinds of mischief; so that
+prepossessions were against me in all cases of appeal.
+
+"I felt stung to the soul at all this. I had been beaten, degraded, and
+treated with slighting when I complained. I lost my usual good spirits and
+good humor; and, being out of temper with everybody, fancied everybody out
+of temper with me. A certain wild, roving spirit of freedom, which I
+believe is as inherent in me as it is in the partridge, was brought into
+sudden activity by the checks and restraints I suffered. 'I'll go from
+home,' thought I, 'and shift for myself.' Perhaps this notion was quickened
+by the rage for emigrating to Kentucky, which was at that time prevalent in
+Virginia. I had heard such stories of the romantic beauties of the country;
+of the abundance of game of all kinds, and of the glorious independent life
+of the hunters who ranged its noble forests, and lived by the rifle; that I
+was as much agog to get there as boys who live in seaports are to launch
+themselves among the wonders and adventures of the ocean.
+
+"After a time old Barbara got better in mind and body, and matters were
+explained to her; and she became gradually convinced that it was not the
+devil she had encountered. When she heard how harshly I had been treated on
+her account, the good old soul was extremely grieved, and spoke warmly to
+my father in my behalf. He had himself remarked the change in my behavior,
+and thought punishment might have been carried too far. He sought,
+therefore, to have some conversation with me, and to soothe my feelings;
+but it was too late. I frankly told him the course of mortification that I
+had experienced, and the fixed determination I had made to go from home.
+
+"'And where do you mean to go?'
+
+"'To Kentucky.'
+
+"'To Kentucky! Why, you know nobody there.'
+
+"'No matter: I can soon make acquaintances.'
+
+"'And what will you do when you get there?'
+
+"'Hunt!'
+
+"My father gave a long, low whistle, and looked in my face with a
+serio-comic expression. I was not far in my teens, and to talk of setting
+off alone for Kentucky, to turn hunter, seemed doubtless the idle prattle
+of a boy. He was little aware of the dogged resolution of my character; and
+his smile of incredulity but fixed me more obstinately in my purpose. I
+assured him I was serious in what I said, and would certainly set off for
+Kentucky in the spring.
+
+"Month after month passed away. My father now and then adverted slightly to
+what had passed between us; doubtless for the purpose of sounding me. I
+always expressed the same grave and fixed determination. By degrees he
+spoke to me more directly on the subject, endeavoring earnestly but kindly
+to dissuade me. My only reply was, 'I had made up my mind.'
+
+"Accordingly, as soon as the spring had fairly opened, I sought him one day
+in his study, and informed him I was about to set out for Kentucky, and had
+come to take my leave. He made no objection, for he had exhausted
+persuasion and remonstrance, and doubtless thought it best to give way to
+my humor, trusting that a little rough experience would soon bring me home
+again. I asked money for my journey. He went to a chest, took out a long
+green silk purse, well filled, and laid it on the table. I now asked for a
+horse and servant.
+
+"'A horse!' said my father, sneeringly: 'why, you would not go a mile
+without racing him, and breaking your neck; and, as to a servant, you
+cannot take care of yourself much less of him.'
+
+"'How am I to travel, then?'
+
+"'Why, I suppose you are man enough to travel on foot.'
+
+"He spoke jestingly, little thinking I would take him at his word; but I
+was thoroughly piqued in respect to my enterprise; so I pocketed the purse,
+went to my room, tied up three or four shirts in a pocket-handkerchief, put
+a dirk in my bosom, girt a couple of pistols round my waist, and felt like
+a knight errant armed cap a-pie, and ready to rove the world in quest of
+adventures.
+
+"My sister (I had but one) hung round me and wept, and entreated me to
+stay. I felt my heart swell in my throat; but I gulped it back to its
+place, and straightened myself up; I would not suffer myself to cry. I at
+length disengaged myself from her, and got to the door.
+
+"'When will you come back?' cried she.
+
+"'Never, by heavens!' cried I, 'until I come back a member of Congress from
+Kentucky. I am determined to show that I am not the tail-end of the
+family.'
+
+"Such was my first outset from home. You may suppose what a greenhorn I
+was, and how little I knew of the world I was launching into.
+
+"I do not recollect any incident of importance until I reached the borders
+of Pennsylvania. I had stopped at an inn to get some refreshment; and as I
+was eating in the back room, I overheard two men in the barroom conjecture
+who and what I could be. One determined, at length, that I was a runaway
+apprentice, and ought to be stopped, to which the other assented. When I
+had finished my meal, and paid for it, I went out at the back door, lest I
+should be stopped by my supervisors. Scorning, however, to steal off like a
+culprit, I walked round to the front of the house. One of the men advanced
+to the front door. He wore his hat on one side, and had a consequential air
+that nettled me.
+
+"'Where are you going, youngster?' demanded he.
+
+"'That's none of your business!' replied I, rather pertly.
+
+"'Yes, but it is, though! You have run away from home, and must give an
+account of yourself.'
+
+"He advanced to seize me, when I drew forth a pistol. 'If you advance
+another step, I'll shoot you!'
+
+"He sprang back as if he had trodden upon a rattlesnake, and his hat fell
+off in the movement.
+
+"'Let him alone!' cried his companion; 'he's a foolish, mad-headed boy, and
+don't know what he's about. He'll shoot you, you may rely on it.'
+
+"He did not need any caution in the matter; he was afraid even to pick up
+his hat: so I pushed forward on my way, without molestation. This incident,
+however, had its effect upon me. I became fearful of sleeping in any house
+at night, lest I should be stopped. I took my meals in the houses, in the
+course of the day, but would turn aside at night into some wood or ravine,
+make a fire, and sleep before it. This I considered was true hunter's
+style, and I wished to inure myself to it.
+
+"At length I arrived at Brownsville, leg-weary and wayworn, and in a shabby
+plight, as you may suppose, having been 'camping out' for some nights past.
+I applied at some of the inferior inns, but could gain no admission. I was
+regarded for a moment with a dubious eye, and then informed they did not
+receive foot-passengers. At last I went boldly to the principal inn. The
+landlord appeared as unwilling as the rest to receive a vagrant boy beneath
+his roof; but his wife interfered in the midst of his excuses, and half
+elbowing him aside:
+
+"'Where are you going, my lad?' said she.
+
+"'To Kentucky.'
+
+"'What are you going there for?'
+
+"'To hunt.'
+
+"She looked earnestly at me for a moment or two. 'Have you a mother
+living?' said she at length.
+
+"'No, madam: she has been dead for some time.'
+
+"'I thought so!' cried she warmly. 'I knew if you had a mother living you
+would not be here.' From that moment the good woman treated me with a
+mother's kindness.
+
+"I remained several days beneath her roof recovering from the fatigue of my
+journey. While here I purchased a rifle and practiced daily at a mark to
+prepare myself for a hunter's life. When sufficiently recruited in strength
+I took leave of my kind host and hostess and resumed my journey.
+
+"At Wheeling I embarked in a flat bottomed family boat, technically called
+a broad-horn, a prime river conveyance in those days. In this ark for two
+weeks I floated down the Ohio. The river was as yet in all its wild beauty.
+Its loftiest trees had not been thinned out. The forest overhung the
+water's edge and was occasionally skirted by immense cane-brakes. Wild
+animals of all kinds abounded. We heard them rushing through the thickets
+and plashing in the water. Deer and bears would frequently swim across the
+river; others would come down to the bank and gaze at the boat as it
+passed. I was incessantly on the alert with my rifle; but somehow or other
+the game was never within shot. Sometimes I got a chance to land and try my
+skill on shore. I shot squirrels and small birds and even wild turkeys; but
+though I caught glimpses of deer bounding away through the woods, I never
+could get a fair shot at them.
+
+"In this way we glided in our broad-horn past Cincinnati, the 'Queen of the
+West' as she is now called, then a mere group of log cabins; and the site
+of the bustling city of Louisville, then designated by a solitary house. As
+I said before, the Ohio was as yet a wild river; all was forest, forest,
+forest! Near the confluence of Green River with the Ohio, I landed, bade
+adieu to the broad-horn, and struck for the interior of Kentucky. I had no
+precise plan; my only idea was to make for one of the wildest parts of the
+country. I had relatives in Lexington and other settled places, to whom I
+thought it probable my father would write concerning me: so as I was full
+of manhood and independence, and resolutely bent on making my way in the
+world without assistance or control, I resolved to keep clear of them all.
+
+"In the course of my first day's trudge, I shot a wild turkey, and slung it
+on my back for provisions. The forest was open and clear from underwood. I
+saw deer in abundance, but always running, running. It seemed to me as if
+these animals never stood still.
+
+"At length I came to where a gang of half-starved wolves were feasting on
+the carcass of a deer which they had run down; and snarling and snapping
+and fighting like so many dogs. They were all so ravenous and intent upon
+their prey that they did not notice me, and I had time to make my
+observations. One, larger and fiercer than the rest, seemed to claim the
+larger share, and to keep the others in awe. If any one came too near him
+while eating, he would fly off, seize and shake him, and then return to his
+repast. 'This,' thought I, 'must be the captain; if I can kill him, I shall
+defeat the whole army.' I accordingly took aim, fired, and down dropped
+the old fellow. He might be only shamming dead; so I loaded and put a
+second ball through him. He never budged; all the rest ran off, and my
+victory was complete.
+
+"It would not be easy to describe my triumphant feelings on this great
+achievement. I marched on with renovated spirit, regarding myself as
+absolute lord of the forest. As night drew near, I prepared for camping. My
+first care was to collect dry wood and make a roaring fire to cook and
+sleep by, and to frighten off wolves, and bears, and panthers. I then began
+to pluck my turkey for supper. I had camped out several times in the early
+part of my expedition; but that was in comparatively more settled and
+civilized regions, where there were no wild animals of consequence in the
+forest. This was my first camping out in the real wilderness; and I was
+soon made sensible of the loneliness and wildness of my situation.
+
+"In a little while a concert of wolves commenced: there might have been a
+dozen or two, but it seemed to me as if there were thousands. I never heard
+such howling and whining. Having prepared my turkey, I divided it into two
+parts, thrust two sticks into one of the halves, and planted them on end
+before the fire, the hunter's mode of roasting. The smell of roast meat
+quickened the appetites of the wolves, and their concert became truly
+infernal. They seemed to be all around me, but I could only now and then
+get a glimpse of one of them, as he came within the glare of the light.
+
+"I did not much care for the wolves, who I knew to be a cowardly race, but
+I had heard terrible stories of panthers, and began to fear their stealthy
+prowlings in the surrounding darkness. I was thirsty, and heard a brook
+bubbling and tinkling along at no great distance, but absolutely dared not
+go there, lest some panther might lie in wait, and spring upon me.
+By-and-by a deer whistled. I had never heard one before, and thought it
+must be a panther. I now felt uneasy lest he might climb the trees, crawl
+along the branches overhead, and plump down upon me; so I kept my eyes
+fixed on the branches, until my head ached. I more than once thought I saw
+fiery eyes glaring down from--among the leaves. At length I thought of my
+supper and turned to see if my half-turkey was cooked. In crowding so near
+the fire I had pressed the meat into the flames, and it was consumed. I had
+nothing to do but toast the other half, and take better care of it. On that
+half I made my supper, without salt or bread. I was still so possessed with
+the dread of panthers that I could not close my eyes all night, but lay
+watching the trees until daybreak, when all my fears were dispelled with
+the darkness; and as I saw the morning sun sparkling down through the
+branches of the trees, I smiled to think how I had suffered myself to be
+dismayed by sounds and shadows; but I was a young woodsman, and a stranger
+in Kentucky.
+
+"Having breakfasted on the remainder of my turkey, and slaked my thirst at
+the bubbling stream, without further dread of panthers, I resumed my
+wayfaring with buoyant feelings. I again saw deer, but as usual running,
+running! I tried in vain to get a shot at them, and began to fear I never
+should. I was gazing with vexation after a herd in full scamper, when I was
+startled by a human voice. Turning round, I saw a man at a short distance
+from me in a hunting dress.
+
+"'What are you after, my lad?' cried he.
+
+"'Those deer,' replied I, pettishly: 'but it seems as if they never stand
+still.'
+
+"Upon that he burst out laughing. 'Where are you from?' said he.
+
+"'From Richmond.'
+
+"'What! In old Virginny?'
+
+"'The same.'
+
+"'And how on earth did you get here?'
+
+"'I landed at Green River from a broad-horn.
+
+"'And where are your companions?'
+
+"' I have none.'
+
+"'What?--all alone!"
+
+"'Yes.'
+
+"'Where are you going?'
+
+"'Anywhere.'
+
+"'And what have you come here for?'
+
+"'To hunt.'
+
+"'Well,' said he, laughingly, 'you'll make a real hunter; there's no
+mistaking that! Have you killed anything?'
+
+"'Nothing but a turkey; I can't get within shot of a deer: they are always
+running.'
+
+"'Oh, I'll tell you the secret of that. You're always pushing forward, and
+starting the deer at a distance, and gazing at those that are scampering;
+but you must step as slow, and silent, and cautious as a cat, and keep your
+eyes close around you, and lurk from tree to tree, if you wish to get a
+chance at deer. But come, go home with me. My name is Bill Smithers; I live
+not far off: stay with me a little while, and I'll teach you how to hunt.'
+
+"I gladly accepted the invitation of honest Bill Smithers. We soon reached
+his habitation; a mere log hut, with a square hole for a window and a
+chimney made of sticks and clay. Here he lived with a wife and child. He
+had 'girdled' the trees for an acre or two around, preparatory to clearing
+a space for corn and potatoes. In the meantime he maintained his family
+entirely by his rifle, and I soon found him to be a first-rate huntsman.
+Under his tutelage I received my first effective lessons in 'woodcraft.'
+
+"The more I knew of a hunter's life, the more I relished it. The country,
+too, which had been the promised land of my boyhood, did not, like most
+promised lands, disappoint me. No wilderness could be more beautiful than
+this part of Kentucky in those times. The forests were open and spacious,
+with noble trees, some of which looked as if they had stood for centuries.
+There were beautiful prairies, too, diversified with groves and clumps of
+trees, which looked like vast parks, and in which you could see the deer
+running, at a great distance. In the proper season these prairies would be
+covered in many places with wild strawberries, where your horses' hoofs
+would be dyed to the fetlock. I thought there could not be another place in
+the world equal to Kentucky--and I think so still.
+
+"After I had passed ten or twelve days with Bill Smithers, I thought it
+time to shift my quarters, for his house was scarce large enough for his
+own family, and I had no idea of being an encumbrance to any one. I
+accordingly made up my bundle, shouldered my rifle, took a friendly leave
+of Smithers and his wife, and set out in quest of a Nimrod of the
+wilderness, one John Miller, who lived alone, nearly forty miles off, and
+who I hoped would be well pleased to have a hunting companion.
+
+"I soon found out that one of the most important items in woodcraft in a
+new country was the skill to find one's way in the wilderness. There were
+no regular roads in the forests, but they were cut up and perplexed by
+paths leading in all directions. Some of these were made by the cattle of
+the settlers, and were called 'stock-tracks,' but others had been made by
+the immense droves of buffaloes which roamed about the country, from the
+flood until recent times. These were called buffalo-tracks, and traversed
+Kentucky from end to end, like highways. Traces of them may still be seen
+in uncultivated parts, or deeply worn in the rocks where they crossed the
+mountains. I was a young woodman, and sorely puzzled to distinguish one
+kind of track from the other, or to make out my course through this tangled
+labyrinth. While thus perplexed, I heard a distant roaring and rushing
+sound; a gloom stole over the forest: on looking up, when I could catch a
+stray glimpse of the sky, I beheld the clouds rolled up like balls, the
+lower parts as black as ink. There was now and then an explosion, like a
+burst of cannonry afar off, and the crash of a falling tree. I had heard of
+hurricanes in the woods, and surmised that one was at hand. It soon came
+crashing its way; the forest writhing, and twisting, and groaning before
+it. The hurricane did not extend far on either side, but in a manner plowed
+a furrow through the woodland; snapping off or uprooting trees that had
+stood for centuries, and filling the air with whirling branches. I was
+directly in its course, and took my stand behind an immense poplar, six
+feet in diameter. It bore for a time the full fury of the blast, but at
+length began to yield. Seeing it falling, I scrambled nimbly round the
+trunk like a squirrel. Down it went, bearing down another tree with it. I
+crept under the trunk as a shelter, and was protected from other trees
+which fell around me, but was sore all over from the twigs and branches
+driven against me by the blast.
+
+"This was the only incident of consequence that occurred on my way to John
+Miller's, where I arrived on the following day, and was received by the
+veteran with the rough kindness of a backwoodsman. He was a gray-haired
+man, hardy and weather-beaten, with a blue wart, like a great beard, over
+one eye, whence he was nicknamed by the hunters 'Bluebeard Miller.' He had
+been in these parts from the earliest settlements, and had signalized
+himself in the hard conflicts with the Indians, which gained Kentucky the
+appellation of 'the Bloody Ground.' In one of these fights he had had an
+arm broken; in another he had narrowly escaped, when hotly pursued, by
+jumping from a precipice thirty feet high into a river.
+
+"Miller willingly received me into his house as an inmate, and seemed
+pleased with the idea of making a hunter of me. His dwelling was a small
+log-house, with a loft or garret of boards, so that there was ample room
+for both of us. Under his instruction I soon made a tolerable proficiency
+in hunting. My first exploit, of any consequence, was killing a bear. I was
+hunting in company with two brothers, when we came upon the track of bruin,
+in a wood where there was an undergrowth of canes and grapevines. He was
+scrambling up a tree, when I shot him through the breast: he fell to the
+ground and lay motionless. The brothers sent in their dog, who seized the
+bear by the throat. Bruin raised one arm and gave the dog a hug that
+crushed his ribs. One yell, and all was over. I don't know which was first
+dead, the dog or the bear. The two brothers sat down and cried like
+children over their unfortunate dog. Yet they were mere rough huntsmen,
+almost as wild and untamable as Indians; but they were fine fellows.
+
+"By degrees I became known, and somewhat of a favorite among the hunters of
+the neighborhood; that is to say, men who lived within a circle of thirty
+or forty miles, and came occasionally to see John Miller, who was a
+patriarch among them. They lived widely apart, in log huts and wigwams,
+almost with the simplicity of Indians, and wellnigh as destitute of the
+comforts and inventions of civilized life. They seldom saw each other;
+weeks, and even months, would elapse, without their visiting. When they did
+meet, it was very much after the manner of Indians; loitering about all
+day, without having much to say, but becoming communicative as evening
+advanced, and sitting up half the night before the fire, telling hunting
+stories, and terrible tales of the fights of the Bloody Ground.
+
+"Sometimes several would join in a distant hunting expedition, or rather
+campaign. Expeditions of this kind lasted from November until April; during
+which we laid up our stock of summer provisions. We shifted our hunting
+camps from place to place, according as we found the game. They were
+generally pitched near a run of water, and close by a cane-brake, to screen
+us from the wind. One side of our lodge was open toward the fire. Our
+horses were hoppled and turned loose in the cane-brakes, with bells round
+their necks. One of the party stayed at home to watch the camp, prepare the
+meals and keep off the wolves; the others hunted. When a hunter killed a
+deer at a distance from the camp, he would open it and take out the
+entrails; then climbing a sapling he would bend it down, tie the deer to
+the top, and let it spring up again, so as to suspend the carcass out of
+reach of the wolves. At night he would return to the camp and give an
+account of his luck. The next morning early he would get a horse out of the
+canebrake and bring home his game. That day he would stay at home to cut up
+the carcass, while the others hunted.
+
+"Our days were thus spent in silent and lonely occupations. It was only at
+night that we would gather together before the fire and be sociable. I was
+a novice, and used to listen with open eyes and ears to the strange and
+wild stories told by the old hunters, and believed everything I heard. Some
+of their stories bordered upon the supernatural. They believed that their
+rifles might be spellbound, so as not to be able to kill a buffalo, even at
+arms-length. This superstition they had derived from the Indians, who often
+think the white hunters have laid a spell upon their rifles. Miller partook
+of this superstition, and used to tell of his rifle's having a spell upon
+it; but it often seemed to me to be a shuffling way of accounting for a bad
+shot. If a hunter grossly missed his aim he would ask, 'Who shot last with
+this rifle?'--and hint that he must have charmed it. The sure mode to
+disenchant the gun was to shoot a silver bullet out of it.
+
+"By the opening of spring we would generally have quantities of bears'-meat
+and venison salted, dried, and smoked, and numerous packs of skins. We
+would then make the best of our way home from our distant hunting-grounds;
+transporting our spoils, sometimes in canoes along the rivers, sometimes on
+horseback over land, and our return would often be celebrated by feasting
+and dancing, in true backwoods style. I have given you some idea of our
+hunting; let me now give you a sketch of our frolicking.
+
+"It was on our return from a winter's hunting in the neighborhood of Green
+River, when we received notice that there was to be a grand frolic at Bob
+Mosely's, to greet the hunters. This Bob Mosely was a prime fellow
+throughout the country. He was an indifferent hunter, it is true, and
+rather lazy to boot; but then he could play the fiddle, and that was enough
+to make him of consequence. There was no other man within a hundred miles
+that could play the fiddle, so there was no having a regular frolic without
+Bob Mosely. The hunters, therefore, were always ready to give him a share
+of their game in exchange for his music, and Bob was always ready to get up
+a carousal, whenever there was a party returning from a hunting expedition.
+The present frolic was to take place at Bob Mosely's own house, which was
+on the Pigeon Roost Fork of the Muddy, which is a branch of Rough Creek,
+which is a branch of Green River.
+
+"Everybody was agog for the revel at Bob Mosely's; and as all the fashion
+of the neighborhood was to be there, I thought I must brush up for the
+occasion. My leathern hunting-dress, which was the only one I had, was
+somewhat the worse for wear, it is true, and considerably japanned with
+blood and grease; but I was up to hunting expedients. Getting into a
+periogue, I paddled off to a part of the Green River where there was sand
+and clay, that might serve for soap; then taking off my dress, I scrubbed
+and scoured it, until I thought it looked very well. I then put it on the
+end of a stick, and hung it out of the periogue to dry, while I stretched
+myself very comfortably on the green bank of the river. Unluckily a flaw
+struck the periogue, and tipped over the stick: down went my dress to the
+bottom of the river, and I never saw it more. Here was I, left almost in a
+state of nature. I managed to make a kind of Robinson Crusoe garb of
+undressed skins, with the hair on, which enabled me to get home with
+decency; but my dream of gayety and fashion was at an end; for how could I
+think of figuring in high life at the Pigeon Roost, equipped like a mere
+Orson?
+
+"Old Miller, who really began to take some pride in me, was confounded when
+he understood that I did not intend to go to Bob Mosely's; but when I told
+him my misfortune, and that I had no dress: 'By the powers,' cried he, 'but
+you _shall_ go, and you shall be the best dressed and the best mounted
+lad there!'
+
+"He immediately set to work to cut out and make up a hunting-shirt of
+dressed deer-skin, gayly fringed at the shoulders, with leggings of the
+same, fringed from hip to heel. He then made me a rakish raccoon-cap, with
+a flaunting tail to it; mounted me on his best horse; and I may say,
+without vanity, that I was one of the smartest fellows that figured on that
+occasion at the Pigeon Roost Fork of the Muddy.
+
+"It was no small occasion, either, let me tell you. Bob Mosely's house was
+a tolerably large bark shanty, with a clap-board roof; and there were
+assembled all the young hunters and pretty girls of the country, for many a
+mile round. The young men were in their best hunting-dresses, but not one
+could compare with mine; and my raccoon-cap, with its flowing tail, was the
+admiration of everybody. The girls were mostly in doe-skin dresses; for
+there was no spinning and weaving as yet in the woods; nor any need of it.
+I never saw girls that seemed to me better dressed; and I was somewhat of a
+judge, having seen fashions at Richmond. We had a hearty dinner, and a
+merry one; for there was Jemmy Kiel, famous for raccoon-hunting, and Bob
+Tarleton, and Wesley Pigman, and Joe Taylor, and several other prime
+fellows for a frolic, that made all ring again, and laughed that you might
+have heard them a mile.
+
+"After dinner we began dancing, and were hard at it, when, about three
+o'clock in the afternoon, there was a new arrival--the two daughters of old
+Simon Schultz; two young ladies that affected fashion and late hours. Their
+arrival had nearly put an end to all our merriment. I must go a little
+roundabout in my story to explain to you how that happened.
+
+"As old Schultz, the father, was one day looking in the cane-brakes for his
+cattle, he came upon the track of horses. He knew they were none of his,
+and that none of his neighbors had horses about that place. They must be
+stray horses; or must belong to some traveler who had lost his way, as the
+track led nowhere. He accordingly followed it up, until he came to an
+unlucky peddler, with two or three pack-horses, who had been bewildered
+among the cattle-tracks, and had wandered for two or three days among woods
+and cane-brakes, until he was almost famished.
+
+"Old Schultz brought him to his house; fed him on venison, bear's-meat, and
+hominy, and at the end of a week put him in prime condition. The peddler
+could not sufficiently express his thankfulness; and when about to depart
+inquired what he had to pay? Old Schultz stepped back with surprise.
+'Stranger,' said he, 'you have been welcome under my roof. I've given you
+nothing but wild meat and hominy, because I had no better, but have been
+glad of your company. You are welcome to stay as long as you please; but,
+by Zounds! if any one offers to pay Simon Schultz for food he affronts
+him!' So saying, he walked out in a huff.
+
+"The peddler admired the hospitality of his host, but could not reconcile
+it to his conscience to go away without making some recompense. There were
+honest Simon's two daughters, two strapping, red-haired girls. He opened
+his packs and displayed riches before them of which they had no conception;
+for in those days there were no country stores in those parts, with their
+artificial finery and trinketry; and this was the first peddler that had
+wandered into that part of the wilderness. The girls were for a time
+completely dazzled, and knew not what to choose: but what caught their eyes
+most were two looking-glasses, about the size of a dollar, set in gilt tin.
+They had never seen the like before, having used no other mirror than a
+pail of water. The peddler presented them these jewels, without the least
+hesitation; nay, he gallantly hung them round their necks by red ribbons,
+almost as fine as the glasses themselves. This done, he took his departure,
+leaving them as much astonished as two princesses in a fairy tale that have
+received a magic gift from an enchanter.
+
+"It was with these looking-glasses, hung round their necks as lockets, by
+red ribbons, that old Schultz's daughters made their appearance at three
+o'clock in the afternoon, at the frolic at Bob Mosely's, on the Pigeon
+Roost Fork of the Muddy.
+
+"By the powers, but it was an event! Such a thing had never before been
+seen in Kentucky. Bob Tarleton, a strapping fellow, with a head like a
+chestnut-burr and a look like a boar in an apple orchard, stepped up,
+caught hold of the looking-glass of one of the girls, and gazing at it for
+a moment, cried out: 'Joe Taylor, come here! come here! I'll be darn'd if
+Patty Schultz ain't got a locket that you can see your face in, as clear as
+in a spring of water!'
+
+"In a twinkling all the young hunters gathered round old Schultz's
+daughters. I, who knew what looking-glasses were, did not budge. Some of
+the girls who sat near me were excessively mortified at finding themselves
+thus deserted. I heard Peggy Pugh say to Sally Pigman, 'Goodness knows,
+it's well Schultz's daughters is got them things round their necks, for
+it's the first time the young men crowded round them!'
+
+"I saw immediately the danger of the case. We were a small community, and
+could not afford to be split up by feuds. So I stepped up to the girls, and
+whispered to them: 'Polly,' said I, 'those lockets are powerful fine, and
+become you amazingly; but you don't consider that the country is not
+advanced enough in these parts for such things. You and I understand these
+matters, but these people don't. Fine things like these may do very well in
+the old settlements, but they won't answer at the Pigeon Roost Fork of the
+Muddy. You had better lay them aside for the present, or we shall have no
+peace.'
+
+"Polly and her sister luckily saw their error; they took off the lockets,
+laid them aside, and harmony was restored: otherwise, I verily believe
+there would have been an end of our community. Indeed, notwithstanding the
+great sacrifice they made on this occasion, I do not think old Schultz's
+daughters were ever much liked afterward among the young women.
+
+"This was the first time that looking-glasses were ever seen in the Green
+River part of Kentucky.
+
+"I had now lived some time with old Miller, and had become a tolerably
+expert hunter. Game, however, began to grow scarce. The buffalo had
+gathered together, as if by universal understanding, and had crossed the
+Mississippi, never to return. Strangers kept pouring into the country,
+clearing away the forests and building in all directions. The hunters began
+to grow restive. Jemmy Kiel, the same of whom I have already spoken for his
+skill in raccoon catching, came to me one day: 'I can't stand this any
+longer,' said he; 'we're getting too thick here. Simon Schultz crowds me so
+that I have no comfort of my life.'
+
+"'Why, how you talk!' said I; 'Simon Schultz lives twelve miles off.'
+
+"'No matter; his cattle run with mine, and I've no idea of living where
+another man's cattle can run with mine. That's too close neighborhood; I
+want elbow-room. This country, too, is growing too poor to live in; there's
+no game; so two or three of us have made up our minds to follow the buffalo
+to the Missouri, and we should like to have you of the party.' Other
+hunters of my acquaintance talked in the same manner. This set me thinking;
+but the more I thought the more I was perplexed. I had no one to advise
+with; old Miller and his associates knew but of one mode of life, and I had
+had no experience in any other; but I had a wide scope of thought. When out
+hunting alone I used to forget the sport, and sit for hours together on the
+trunk of a tree, with rifle in hand, buried in thought, and debating with
+myself: 'Shall I go with Jemmy Kiel and his company, or shall I remain
+here? If I remain here there will soon be nothing left to hunt; but am I to
+be a hunter all my life? Have not I something more in me than to be
+carrying a rifle on my shoulder, day after day, and dodging about after
+bears, and deer, and other brute beasts?' My vanity told me I had; and I
+called to mind my boyish boast to my sister, that I would never return home
+until I returned a member of Congress from Kentucky; but was this the way
+to fit myself for such a station?
+
+"Various plans passed through my mind, but they were abandoned almost as
+soon as formed. At length I determined on becoming a lawyer. True it is, I
+knew almost nothing. I had left school before I had learned beyond the
+'rule of three.' 'Never mind,' said I to myself, resolutely; 'I am a
+terrible fellow for hanging on to anything when I've once made up my mind;
+and if a man has but ordinary capacity, and will set to work with heart and
+soul, and stick to it, he can do almost anything.' With this maxim, which
+has been pretty much my mainstay throughout life, I fortified myself in my
+determination to attempt the law. But how was I to set about it? I must
+quit this forest life, and go to one or other of the towns, where I might
+be able to study, and to attend the courts. This too required funds. I
+examined into the state of my finances. The purse given me by my father had
+remained untouched, in the bottom of an old chest up in the loft, for money
+was scarcely needed in these parts. I had bargained away the skins acquired
+in hunting for a horse and various other matters, on which in case of need
+I could raise funds. I therefore thought I could make shift to maintain
+myself until I was fitted for the bar.
+
+"I informed my worthy host and patron, old Miller, of my plan. He shook his
+head at my turning my back upon the woods, when I was in a fair way of
+making a first-rate hunter; but he made no effort to dissuade me. I
+accordingly set off in September, on horseback, intending to visit
+Lexington, Frankfort, and other of the principal towns, in search of a
+favorable place to prosecute my studies. My choice was made sooner than I
+expected. I had put up one night at Bardstown, and found, on inquiry, that
+I could get comfortable board and accommodation in a private family for a
+dollar and a half a week. I liked the place, and resolved to look no
+further. So the next morning I prepared to turn my face homeward, and take
+my final leave of forest life.
+
+"I had taken my breakfast, and was waiting for my horse, when, in pacing up
+and down the piazza, I saw a young girl seated near a window, evidently a
+visitor. She was very pretty; with auburn hair and blue eyes, and was
+dressed in white. I had seen nothing of the kind since I had left Richmond;
+and at that time I was too much of a boy to be much struck by female
+charms. She was so delicate and dainty-looking, so different from the hale,
+buxom, brown girls of the woods; and then her white dress!--it was
+perfectly dazzling! Never was poor youth more taken by surprise, and
+suddenly bewitched. My heart yearned to know her; but how was I to accost
+her? I had grown wild in the woods, and had none of the habitudes of polite
+life. Had she been like Peggy Pugh or Sally Pigman, or any other of my
+leathern-dressed belles of the Pigeon Roost, I should have approached her
+without dread; nay, had she been as fair as Schultz's daughters, with their
+looking-glass lockets, I should not have hesitated; but that white dress,
+and those auburn ringlets, and blue eyes, and delicate looks, quite
+daunted, while they fascinated me. I don't know what put it into my head,
+but I thought, all at once, that I would kiss her! It would take a long
+acquaintance to arrive at such a boon, but I might seize upon it by sheer
+robbery. Nobody knew me here. I would just step in, snatch a kiss, mount my
+horse, and ride off. She would not be the worse for it; and that kiss--oh!
+I should die if I did not get it!
+
+"I gave no time for the thought to cool, but entered the house, and stepped
+lightly into the room. She was seated with her back to the door, looking
+out at the window, and did not hear my approach. I tapped her chair, and as
+she turned and looked up, I snatched as sweet a kiss as ever was stolen,
+and vanished in a twinkling. The next moment I was on horseback, galloping
+homeward; my very ears tingling at what I had done.
+
+"On my return home I sold my horse, and turned everything to cash; and
+found, with the remains of the paternal purse, that I had nearly four
+hundred dollars; a little capital which I resolved to manage with the
+strictest economy.
+
+"It was hard parting with old Miller, who had been like a father to me; it
+cost me, too, something of a struggle to give up the free, independent
+wild-wood life I had hitherto led; but I had marked out my course, and had
+never been one to flinch or turn back.
+
+"I footed it sturdily to Bardstown; took possession of the quarters for
+which I had bargained, shut myself up, and set to work with might and main
+to study. But what a task I had before me! I had everything to learn; not
+merely law, but all the elementary branches of knowledge. I read and read,
+for sixteen hours out of the four-and-twenty; but the more I read the more
+I became aware of my own ignorance, and shed bitter tears over my
+deficiency. It seemed as if the wilderness of knowledge expanded and grew
+more perplexed as I advanced. Every height gained only revealed a wider
+region to be traversed, and nearly filled me with despair. I grew moody,
+silent, and unsocial, but studied on doggedly and incessantly. The only
+person with whom I held any conversation was the worthy man in whose house
+I was quartered. He was honest and well meaning, but perfectly ignorant,
+and I believe would have liked me much better if I had not been so much
+addicted to reading. He considered all books filled with lies and
+impositions, and seldom could look into one without finding something to
+rouse his spleen. Nothing put him into a greater passion than the assertion
+that the world turned on its own axis every four-and-twenty hours. He swore
+it was an outrage upon common sense. 'Why, if it did,' said he, 'there
+would not be a drop of water in the well by morning, and all the milk and
+cream in the dairy would be turned topsy-turvy! And then to talk of the
+earth going round the sun! How do they know it? I've seen the sun rise
+every morning and set every evening for more than thirty years. They must
+not talk to _me_ about the earth's going round the sun!'
+
+"At another time he was in a perfect fret at being told the distance
+between the sun and moon. 'How can any one tell the distance?' cried he.
+'Who surveyed it? who carried the chain? By Jupiter! they only talk this
+way before me to annoy me. But then there's some people of sense who give
+in to this cursed humbug! There's Judge Broadnax, now, one of the best
+lawyers we have; isn't it surprising he should believe in such stuff? Why,
+sir, the other day I heard him talk of the distance from a star he called
+Mars to the sun! He must have got it out of one or other of those
+confounded books he's so fond of reading; a book some impudent fellow has
+written, who knew nobody could swear the distance was more or less.'
+
+"For my own part, feeling my own deficiency in scientific lore, I never
+ventured to unsettle his conviction that the sun made his daily circuit
+round the earth; and for aught I said to the contrary, he lived and died in
+that belief.
+
+"I had been about a year at Bardstown, living thus studiously and
+reclusely, when, as I was one day walking the street, I met two young
+girls, in one of whom I immediately recalled the little beauty whom I had
+kissed so impudently. She blushed up to the eyes, and so did I; but we both
+passed on with further sign of recognition. This second glimpse of her,
+however, caused an odd fluttering about my heart. I could not get her out
+of my thoughts for days. She quite interfered with my studies. I tried to
+think of her as a mere child, but it would not do; she had improved in
+beauty, and was tending toward womanhood; and then I myself was but little
+better than a stripling. However, I did not attempt to seek after her, or
+even to find out who she was, but returned doggedly to my books. By degrees
+she faded from my thoughts, or if she did cross them occasionally, it was
+only to increase my despondency; for I feared that with all my exertions, I
+should never be able to fit myself for the bar, or enable myself to support
+a wife.
+
+"One cold stormy evening I was seated, in dumpish mood, in the bar-room of
+the inn, looking into the fire, and turning over uncomfortable thoughts,
+when I was accosted by some one who had entered the room without my
+perceiving it. I looked up, and saw before me a tall and, as I thought,
+pompous-looking man, arrayed in small clothes and knee-buckles, with
+powdered head, and shoes nicely blacked and polished; a style of dress
+unparalleled in those days, in that rough country. I took a pique against
+him from the very portliness of his appearance, and stateliness of his
+manner, and bristled up as he accosted me. He demanded if my name was not
+Ringwood.
+
+"I was startled, for I supposed myself perfectly incog.; but I answered in
+the affirmative.
+
+"'Your family, I believe, lives in Richmond?'
+
+"My gorge began to rise. 'Yes, sir,' replied I sulkily, 'my family does
+live in Richmond.'
+
+"'And what, may I ask, has brought you into this part of the country?'
+
+"'Zounds, sir!' cried I, starting on my feet, 'what business is it of
+yours? How dare you to question me in this manner?'
+
+"The entrance of some persons prevented a reply; but I walked up and down
+the bar-room, fuming with conscious independence and insulted dignity,
+while the pompous-looking personage, who had thus trespassed upon my
+spleen, retired without proffering another word.
+
+"The next day, while seated in my room, some one tapped at the door, and,
+on being bid to enter, the stranger in the powdered head, small-clothes,
+and shining shoes and buckles, walked in with ceremonious courtesy.
+
+"My boyish pride was again in arms; but he subdued me. He was formal, but
+kind and friendly. He knew my family and understood my situation, and the
+dogged struggle I was making. A little conversation, when my jealous pride
+was once put to rest, drew everything from me. He was a lawyer of
+experience and of extensive practice, and offered at once to take me with
+him, and direct my studies. The offer was too advantageous and gratifying
+not to be immediately accepted. From that time I began to look up. I was
+put into a proper track, and was enabled to study to a proper purpose. I
+made acquaintance, too, with some of the young men of the place, who were
+in the same pursuit, and was encouraged at finding that I could 'hold my
+own' in argument with them. We instituted a debating club, in which I soon
+became prominent and popular. Men of talents, engaged in other pursuits,
+joined it, and this diversified our subjects and put me on various tracks
+of inquiry. Ladies, too, attended some of our discussions, and this gave
+them a polite tone, and had an influence on the manners of the debaters. My
+legal patron also may have had a favorable effect in correcting any
+roughness contracted in my hunter's life. He was calculated to bend me in
+an opposite direction, for he was of the old school; quoted Chesterfield on
+all occasions, and talked of Sir Charles Grandison, who was his beau
+ideal. It was Sir Charles Grandison, however, Kentuckyized.
+
+"I had always been fond of female society. My experience, however, had
+hitherto been among the rough daughters of the backwoodsmen; and I felt an
+awe of young ladies in 'store clothes,' and delicately brought up. Two or
+three of the married ladies of Bardstown, who had heard me at the debating
+club, determined that I was a genius and undertook to bring me out. I
+believe I really improved under their hands; became quiet where I had been
+shy or sulky, and easy where I had been impudent.
+
+"I called to take tea one evening with one of these ladies, when to my
+surprise, and somewhat to my confusion, I found with her the identical
+blue-eyed little beauty whom I had so audaciously kissed. I was formally
+introduced to her, but neither of us betrayed any sign of previous
+acquaintance, except by blushing to the eyes. While tea was getting ready
+the lady of the house went out of the room to give some directions, and
+left us alone.
+
+"Heavens and earth, what a situation! I would have given all the pittance I
+was worth to have been in the deepest dell of the forest. I felt the
+necessity of saying something in excuse of my former rudeness, but I could
+not conjure up an idea, nor utter a word. Every moment matters were growing
+worse. I felt at one time tempted to do as I had done when I robbed her of
+the kiss; bolt from the room, and take to flight; but I was chained to the
+spot, for I really longed to gain her good-will.
+
+"At length I plucked up courage, on seeing that she was equally confused
+with myself, and walking desperately up to her, I exclaimed:
+
+"'I have been trying to muster up something to say to you, but I cannot. I
+feel that I am in a horrible scrape. Do have pity on me, and help me out of
+it.'
+
+"A smile dimpled about her mouth, and played among the blushes of her
+cheek. She looked up with a shy, but arch glance of the eye, that expressed
+a volume of comic recollection; we both broke into a laugh, and from that
+moment all went on well.
+
+"A few evenings afterward I met her at a dance, and prosecuted the
+acquaintance. I soon became deeply attached to her; paid my court
+regularly; and before I was nineteen years of age had engaged myself to
+marry her. I spoke to her mother, a widow lady, to ask her consent. She
+seemed to demur; upon which, with my customary haste, I told her there
+would be no use in opposing the match, for if her daughter chose to have
+me, I would take her, in defiance of her family, and the whole world.
+
+"She laughed, and told me I need not give myself any uneasiness; there
+would be no unreasonable opposition. She knew my family and all about me.
+The only obstacle was that I had no means of supporting a wife, and she had
+nothing to give with her daughter.
+
+"No matter; at that moment everything was bright before me. I was in one of
+my sanguine moods. I feared nothing, doubted nothing. So it was agreed that
+I should prosecute my studies, obtain a license, and as soon as I should be
+fairly launched in business we would be married.
+
+"I now prosecuted my studies with redoubled ardor, and was up to my ears in
+law, when I received a letter from my father, who had heard of me and my
+whereabout. He applauded the course I had taken, but advised me to lay a
+foundation of general knowledge, and offered to defray my expenses, if I
+would go to college. I felt the want of a general education, and was
+staggered with this offer. It militated somewhat against the self-dependent
+course I had so proudly or rather conceitedly marked out for myself, but it
+would enable me to enter more advantageously upon my legal career. I talked
+over the matter with the lovely girl to whom I was engaged. She sided in
+opinion with my father, and talked so disinterestedly, yet tenderly, that,
+if possible, I loved her more than ever. I reluctantly, therefore, agreed
+to go to college for a couple of years, though it must necessarily postpone
+our union.
+
+"Scarcely had I formed this resolution, when her mother was taken ill and
+died, leaving her without a protector. This again altered all my plans. I
+felt as if I could protect her. I gave up all idea of collegiate studies;
+persuaded myself that by dint of industry and application I might overcome
+the deficiencies of education, and resolved to take out a license as soon
+as possible.
+
+"That very autumn I was admitted to the bar, and within a month afterward
+was married. We were a young couple, she not much above sixteen, I not
+quite twenty; and both almost without a dollar in the world. The
+establishment which we set up was suited to our circumstances: a log-house,
+with two small rooms; a bed, a table, a half dozen chairs, a half dozen
+knives and forks, a half dozen spoons; everything by half dozens; a little
+delf ware; everything in a small way; we were so poor, but then so happy!
+
+"We had not been married many days, when court was held at a county town,
+about twenty-five miles distant. It was necessary for me to go there, and
+put myself in the way of business; but how was I to go? I had expended all
+my means on our establishment; and then it was hard parting with my wife so
+soon after marriage. However, go I must. Money must be made, or we should
+soon have the wolf at the door. I accordingly borrowed a horse, and
+borrowed a little cash, and rode off from my door, leaving my wife standing
+at it, and waving her hand after me. Her last look, so sweet and beaming,
+went to my heart. I felt as if I could go through fire and water for her.
+
+"I arrived at the county town on a cool October evening. The inn was
+crowded, for the court was to commence on the following day. I knew no one,
+and wondered how I, a stranger, and a mere youngster, was to make my way in
+such a crowd, and to get business. The public room was thronged with the
+idlers of the country, who gather together on such occasions. There was
+some drinking going forward, with much noise, and a little altercation.
+Just as I entered the room I saw a rough bully of a fellow, who was partly
+intoxicated, strike an old man. He came swaggering by me, and elbowed me as
+he passed. I immediately knocked him down, and kicked him into the street.
+I needed no better introduction. In a moment I had a dozen rough shakes of
+the hand, and invitations to drink, and found myself quite a personage in
+this rough assembly.
+
+"The next morning the court opened. I took my seat among the lawyers, but
+felt as a mere spectator, not having a suit in progress or prospect, nor
+having any idea where business was to come from. In the course of the
+morning a man was put at the bar, charged with passing counterfeit money,
+and was asked if he was ready for trial. He answered in the negative. He
+had been confined in a place where there were no lawyers, and had not had
+an opportunity of consulting any. He was told to choose counsel from the
+lawyers present, and to be ready for trial on the following day. He looked
+round the court and selected me. I was thunderstruck. I could not tell why
+he should make such a choice. I, a beardless youngster; unpracticed at the
+bar; perfectly unknown. I felt diffident yet delighted, and could have
+hugged the rascal.
+
+"Before leaving the court he gave me one hundred dollars in a bag as a
+retaining fee. I could scarcely believe my senses; it seemed like a dream.
+The heaviness of the fee spoke but lightly in favor of his innocence, but
+that was no affair of mine. I was to be advocate, not judge nor jury. I
+followed him to jail, and learned from him all the particulars of his case;
+from thence I went to the clerk's office and took minutes of the
+indictment. I then examined the law on the subject, and prepared my brief
+in my room. All this occupied me until midnight, when I went to bed and
+tried to sleep. It was all in vain. Never in my life was I more wide-awake.
+A host of thoughts and fancies kept rushing through my mind; the shower of
+gold that had so unexpectedly fallen into my lap; the idea of my poor
+little wife at home, that I was to astonish with my good fortune! But then
+the awful responsibility I had undertaken!--to speak for the first time in
+a strange court; the expectations the culprit had evidently formed of my
+talents; all these, and a crowd of similar notions, kept whirling through
+my mind. I tossed about all night, fearing the morning would find me
+exhausted and incompetent; in a word, the day dawned on me, a miserable
+fellow!
+
+"I got up feverish and nervous. I walked out before breakfast, striving to
+collect my thoughts and tranquilize my feelings. It was a bright morning;
+the air was pure and frosty. I bathed my forehead and my hands in a
+beautiful running stream; but I could not allay the fever heat that raged
+within. I returned to breakfast, but could not eat. A single cup of coffee
+formed my repast. It was time to go to court, and I went there with a
+throbbing heart. I believe if it had not been for the thoughts of my little
+wife, in her lonely log house, I should have given back to the man his
+hundred dollars, and relinquished the cause. I took my seat, looking, I am
+convinced, more like a culprit than the rogue I was to defend.
+
+"When the time came for me to speak, my heart died within me. I rose
+embarrassed and dismayed, and stammered in opening my cause. I went on from
+bad to worse, and felt as if I was going down hill. Just then the public
+prosecutor, a man of talents, but somewhat rough in his practice, made a
+sarcastic remark on something I had said. It was like an electric spark,
+and ran tingling through every vein in my body. In an instant my diffidence
+was gone. My whole spirit was in arms. I answered with promptness and
+bitterness, for I felt the cruelty of such an attack upon a novice in my
+situation. The public prosecutor made a kind of apology: this, from a man
+of his redoubted powers, was a vast concession. I renewed my argument with
+a fearless glow; carried the case through triumphantly, and the man was
+acquitted.
+
+"This was the making of me. Everybody was curious to know who this new
+lawyer was, that had thus suddenly risen among them, and bearded the
+attorney-general at the very outset. The story of my debut at the inn on
+the preceding evening, when I had knocked down a bully, and kicked him out
+of doors for striking an old man, was circulated with favorable
+exaggerations. Even my very beardless chin and juvenile countenance were in
+my favor, for people gave me far more credit than I really deserved. The
+chance business which occurs in our country courts came thronging upon me.
+I was repeatedly employed in other causes; and by Saturday night, when the
+court closed, and I had paid my bill at the inn, I found myself with a
+hundred and fifty dollars in silver, three hundred dollars in notes, and a
+horse that I afterward sold for two hundred dollars more.
+
+"Never did miser gloat on his money with more delight. I locked the door of
+my room; piled the money in a heap upon the table; walked round it; sat
+with my elbows on the table, and my chin upon my hands, and gazed upon it.
+Was I thinking of the money? No! I was thinking of my little wife at home.
+Another sleepless night ensued; but what a night of golden fancies, and
+splendid air-castle! As soon as morning dawned, I was up, mounted the
+borrowed horse with which I had come to court, and led the other which I
+had received as a fee. All the way I was delighting myself with the
+thoughts of the surprise I had in store for my little wife; for both of us
+had expected nothing but that I should spend all the money I had borrowed,
+and should return in debt.
+
+"Our meeting was joyous, as you may suppose: but I played the part of the
+Indian, hunter, who, when he returns from the chase, never for a time
+speaks of his success. She had prepared a snug little rustic meal for me,
+and while it was getting ready I seated myself at an old-fashioned desk in
+one corner, and began to count over my money, and put it away. She came to
+me before I had finished, and asked who I had collected the money for.
+
+"'For myself, to be sure,' replied I, with affected coolness; 'I made it at
+court.'
+
+"She looked me for a moment in the face, incredulously. I tried to keep my
+countenance, and to play Indian, but it would not do. My muscles began to
+twitch; my feelings all at once gave way. I caught her in my arms; laughed,
+cried, and danced about the room, like a crazy man. From that time forward,
+we never wanted for money.
+
+"I had not been long in successful practice, when I was surprised one day
+by a visit from my woodland patron, old Miller. The tidings of my
+prosperity had reached him in the wilderness, and he had walked one hundred
+and fifty miles on foot to see me. By that tame I had improved my domestic
+establishment, and had all things comfortable about me. He looked around
+him with a wondering eye, at what he considered luxuries and superfluities;
+but supposed they were all right in my altered circumstances. He said he
+did not know, upon the whole, but that I had acted for the best It is true,
+if game had continued plenty, it would have been a folly for me to quit a
+hunter's life; but hunting was pretty nigh done up in Kentucky. The buffalo
+had gone to Missouri; the elk were nearly gone also; deer, too, were
+growing scarce; they might last out his time, as he was growing old, but
+they were not worth setting up life upon. He had once lived on the borders
+of Virginia. Game grew scarce there; he followed it up across Kentucky, and
+now it was again giving him the slip; but he was too old to follow it
+further.
+
+"He remained with us three days. My wife did everything in her power to
+make him comfortable; but at the end of that time he said he must be off
+again to the woods. He was tired of the village, and of having so many
+people about him. He accordingly returned to the wilderness and to hunting
+life. But I fear he did not make a good end of it; for I understand that a
+few years before his death he married Sukey Thomas, who lived at the White
+Oak Run."
+
+
+
+
+THE SEMINOLES
+
+
+From the time of the chimerical cruising of Old Ponce de Leon in search of
+the Fountain of Youth, the avaricious expedition of Pamphilo de Narvaez in
+quest of gold, and the chivalrous enterprise of Hernando de Soto, to
+discover and conquer a second Mexico, the natives of Florida have been
+continually subjected to the invasions and encroachments of white men. They
+have resisted them perseveringly but fruitlessly, and are now battling amid
+swamps and morasses for the last foothold of their native soil, with all
+the ferocity of despair. Can we wonder at the bitterness of a hostility
+that has been handed down from father to son, for upward of three
+centuries, and exasperated by the wrongs and miseries of each succeeding
+generation! The very name of the savages with which we are fighting
+betokens their fallen and homeless condition. Formed of the wrecks of once
+powerful tribes, and driven from their ancient seats of prosperity and
+dominion, they are known by the name of the Seminoles, or "Wanderers."
+
+Bartram, who traveled through Florida in the latter part of the last
+century, speaks of passing through a great extent of ancient Indian fields,
+now silent and deserted, overgrown with forests, orange groves, and rank
+vegetation, the site of the ancient Alachua, the capital of a famous and
+powerful tribe, who in days of old could assemble thousands at bull-play
+and other athletic exercises "over these then happy fields and green
+plains." "Almost every step we take," adds he, "over these fertile heights,
+discovers the remains and traces of ancient human habitations and
+cultivation."
+
+About the year 1763, when Florida was ceded by the Spaniards to the
+English, we are told that the Indians generally retired from the towns and
+the neighborhood of the whites, and burying themselves in the deep forests,
+intricate swamps and hommocks, and vast savannas of the interior, devoted
+themselves to a pastoral life, and the rearing of horses and cattle. These
+are the people that received the name of the Seminoles, or Wanderers, which
+they still retain.
+
+Bartram gives a pleasing picture of them at the time he visited them in
+their wilderness; where their distance from the abodes of the white man
+gave them a transient quiet and security. "This handful of people," says
+he, "possesses a vast territory, all East and the greatest part of West
+Florida, which being naturally cut and divided into thousands of islets,
+knolls, and eminences, by the innumerable rivers, lakes, swamps, vast
+savannas, and ponds, form so many secure retreats and temporary
+dwelling-places that effectually guard them from any sudden invasions or
+attacks from their enemies; and being such a swampy, hommocky country,
+furnishes such a plenty and variety of supplies for the nourishment of
+varieties of animals that I can venture to assert that no part of the globe
+so abounds with wild game, or creatures fit for the food of man.
+
+"Thus they enjoy a superabundance of the necessaries and conveniences of
+life, with the security of person and property, the two great concerns of
+mankind. The hides of deer, bears, tigers, and wolves, together with honey,
+wax, and other productions of the country, purchase their clothing equipage
+and domestic utensils from the whites. They seem to be free from want or
+desires. No cruel enemy to dread; nothing to give them disquietude but the
+gradual encroachments of the white people. Thus contented and undisturbed,
+they appear as blithe and free as the birds of the air, and like them as
+volatile and active, tuneful and vociferous. The visage, action, and
+deportment of the Seminoles form the most striking picture of happiness in
+this life; joy, contentment, love, and friendship, without guile or
+affectation, seem inherent in them, or predominant in their vital
+principle, for it leaves them with but the last breath of life.... They are
+fond of games and gambling, and amuse themselves like children, in relating
+extravagant stories, to cause surprise and mirth." [Footnote: Bartram's
+Travels in North America.]
+
+The same writer gives an engaging picture of his treatment by these
+savages:
+
+"Soon after entering the forests, we were met in the path by a small
+company of Indians, smiling and beckoning to us long before we joined them.
+This was a family of Talahasochte, who had been out on a hunt and were
+returning home loaded with barbecued meat, hides, and honey. Their company
+consisted of the man, his wife and children, well mounted on fine horses,
+with a number of pack-horses. The man offered us a fawn skin of honey,
+which I accepted, and at parting presented him with some fish-hooks,
+sewing-needles, etc.
+
+"On our return to camp in the evening, we were saluted by a party of young
+Indian warriors, who had pitched their tents on a green eminence near the
+lake, at a small distance from our camp, under a little grove of oaks and
+palms. This company consisted of seven young Seminoles, under the conduct
+of a young prince or chief of Talahasochte, a town southward in the
+isthmus. They were all dressed and painted with singular elegance, and
+richly ornamented with silver plates, chains, etc., after the Seminole
+mode, with waving plumes of feathers on their crests. On our coming up to
+them, they arose and shook hands; we alighted and sat a while with them by
+their cheerful fire.
+
+"The young prince informed our chief that he was in pursuit of a young
+fellow who had fled from the town carrying off with him one of his favorite
+young wives. He said, merrily, he would have the ears of both of them
+before he returned. He was rather above the middle stature, and the most
+perfect human figure I ever saw; of an amiable, engaging countenance, air,
+and deportment; free and familiar in conversation, yet retaining a becoming
+gracefulness and dignity. We arose, took leave of them, and crossed a
+little vale, covered with a charming green turf, already illuminated by the
+soft light of the full moon.
+
+"Soon after joining our companions at camp, our neighbors, the prince and
+his associates, paid us a visit. We treated them with the best fare we had,
+having till this time preserved our spirituous liquors. They left us with
+perfect cordiality and cheerfulness, wishing us a good repose, and retired
+to their own camp. Having a band of music with them, consisting of a drum,
+flutes, and a rattle-gourd, they entertained us during the night with their
+music, vocal and instrumental.
+
+"There is a languishing softness and melancholy air in the Indian convivial
+songs, especially of the amorous class, irresistibly moving attention, and
+exquisitely pleasing, especially in their solitary recesses, when all
+nature is silent."
+
+Travelers who have been among them, in more recent times, before they had
+embarked in their present desperate struggle, represent them in much the
+same light; as leading a pleasant, indolent life, in a climate that
+required little shelter or clothing, and where the spontaneous fruits of
+the earth furnished subsistence without toil. A cleanly race, delighting in
+bathing, passing much of their time under the shade of their trees, with
+heaps of oranges and other fine fruits for their refreshment; talking,
+laughing, dancing and sleeping. Every chief had a fan hanging to his side,
+made of feathers of the wild turkey, the beautiful pink-colored crane, or
+the scarlet flamingo. With this he would sit and fan himself with great
+stateliness, while the young people danced before him. The women joined in
+the dances with the men, excepting the war-dances. They wore strings of
+tortoise-shells and pebbles round their legs, which rattled in cadence to
+the music. They were treated with more attention among the Seminoles than
+among most Indian tribes.
+
+
+
+
+ORIGIN OF THE WHITE, THE RED, AND THE BLACK MEN
+
+A SEMINOLE TRADITION
+
+
+When the Floridas were erected into a territory of the United States, one
+of the earliest cares of the Governor, William P. Duval, was directed to
+the instruction and civilization of the natives. For this purpose he called
+a meeting of the chiefs, in which he informed them of the wish of their
+Great Father at Washington that they should have schools and teachers among
+them, and that their children should be instructed like the children of
+white men. The chiefs listened with their customary silence and decorum to
+a long speech, setting forth the advantages that would accrue to them from
+this measure, and when he had concluded, begged the interval of a day to
+deliberate on it.
+
+On the following day a solemn convocation was held, at which one of the
+chiefs addressed the governor in the name of all the rest. "My brother,"
+said he, "we have been thinking over the proposition of our Great Father at
+Washington, to send teachers and set up schools among us. We are very
+thankful for the interest be takes in our welfare; but after much
+deliberation have concluded to decline his offer. What will do very well
+for white men will not do for red men. I know you white men say we all come
+from the same father and mother, but you are mistaken. We have a tradition
+handed down from our forefathers, and we believe it, that the Great Spirit,
+when he undertook to make men, made the black man; it was his first
+attempt, and pretty well for a beginning; but he soon saw he had bungled;
+so he determined to try his hand again. He did so, and made the red man. He
+liked him much better than the black man, but still he was not exactly what
+he wanted. So he tried once more, and made the white man; and then he was
+satisfied. You see, therefore, that you were made last, and that is the
+reason I call you my youngest brother.
+
+"When the Great Spirit had made the three men, he called them together and
+showed them three boxes. The first was filled with books, and maps, and
+papers; the second with bows and arrows, knives and tomahawks; the third
+with spades, axes, hoes, and hammers. 'These, my sons,' said he, 'are the
+means by which you are to live: choose among them according to your fancy.'
+
+"The white man, being the favorite, had the first choice. He passed by the
+box of working-tools without notice; but when he came to the weapons for
+war and hunting, he stopped and looked hard at them. The red man trembled,
+for he had set his heart upon that box. The white man, however, after
+looking upon it for a moment, passed on, and chose the box of books and
+papers. The red man's turn came next; and you may be sure he seized with
+joy upon the bows and arrows and tomahawks. As to the black man, he had no
+choice left but to put up with the box of tools.
+
+"From this it is clear that the Great Spirit intended the white man should
+learn to read and write; to understand all about the moon and stars; and to
+make everything, even rum and whisky. That the red man should be a
+first-rate hunter, and a mighty warrior, but he was not to learn anything
+from books, as the Great Spirit had not given him any: nor was he to make
+rum and whisky, lest he should kill himself with drinking. As to the black
+man, as he had nothing but working-tools, it was clear he was to work for
+the white and red man, which he has continued to do.
+
+"We must go according to the wishes of the Great Spirit, or we shall get
+into trouble. To know how to read and write is very good for white men, but
+very bad for red men. It makes white men better, but red men worse. Some of
+the Creeks and Cherokees learned to read and write, and they are the
+greatest rascals among all the Indians. They went on to Washington, and
+said they were going to see their Great Father, to talk about the good of
+the nation. And when they got there, they all wrote upon a little piece of
+paper, without the nation at home knowing anything about it. And the first
+thing the nation at home knew of the matter, they were called together by
+the Indian agent, who showed them a little piece of paper, which he told
+them was a treaty, which their brethren had made in their name, with their
+Great Father at Washington. And as they knew not what a treaty was, he held
+up the little piece of paper, and they looked under it, and lo! it covered
+a great extent of country, and they found that their brethren, by knowing
+how to read and write, had sold their houses and their lands and the graves
+of their fathers; and that the white man, by knowing how to read and write,
+had gained them. Tell our Great Father at Washington, therefore, that we
+are very sorry we cannot receive teachers among us; for reading and
+writing, though very good for white men, is very bad for the Indians."
+
+
+
+
+THE CONSPIRACY OF NEAMATHLA
+
+AN AUTHENTIC SKETCH
+
+
+In the autumn of 1823, Governor Duval, and other commissioners on the part
+of the United States, concluded a treaty with the chiefs and warriors of
+the Florida Indians, by which the latter, for certain considerations, ceded
+all claims to the whole territory, excepting a district in the eastern
+part, to which they were to remove, and within which they were to reside
+for twenty years. Several of the chiefs signed the treaty with great
+reluctance; but none opposed it more strongly than Neamathla, principal
+chief of the Mickasookies, a fierce and warlike people, many of them Creeks
+by origin, who lived about the Mickasookie lake. Neamathla had always been
+active in those depredations on the frontiers of Georgia which had brought
+vengeance and ruin on the Seminoles. He was a remarkable man; upward of
+sixty years of age, about six feet high, with a fine eye, and a strongly
+marked countenance, over which he possessed great command. His hatred of
+the white men appeared to be mixed with contempt: on the common people he
+looked down with infinite scorn. He seemed unwilling to acknowledge any
+superiority of rank or dignity in Governor Duval, claiming to associate
+with him on terms of equality, as two great chieftains. Though he had been
+prevailed upon to sign the treaty, his heart revolted at it. In one of his
+frank conversations with Governor Duval, he observed: "This country belongs
+to the red man; and if I had the number of warriors at my command that this
+nation once had I would not leave a white man on my lands. I would
+exterminate the whole. I can say this to you, for you can understand me:
+you are a man; but I would not say it to your people. They'd cry out I was
+a savage, and would take my life. They cannot appreciate the feelings of a
+man that loves his country."
+
+As Florida had but recently been erected into a territory, everything as
+yet was in rude and simple style. The governor, to make himself acquainted
+with the Indians, and to be near at hand to keep an eye upon them, fixed
+his residence at Tallahassee, near the Fowel towns, inhabited by the
+Mickasookies. His government palace for a time was a mere log house, and he
+lived on hunters' fare. The village of Neamathla was but about three miles
+off, and thither the governor occasionally rode, to visit the old
+chieftain. In one of these visits he found Neamathla seated in his wigwam,
+in the center of the village, surrounded by his warriors. The governor had
+brought him some liquor as a present, but it mounted quickly into his brain
+and rendered him quite boastful and belligerent. The theme ever uppermost
+in his mind was the treaty with the whites. "It was true," he said, "the
+red men had made such a treaty, but the white men had not acted up to it.
+The red men had received none of the money and the cattle that had been
+promised them: the treaty, therefore, was at an end, and they did not mean
+to be bound by it."
+
+Governor Duval calmly represented to him that the time appointed in the
+treaty for the payment and delivery of the money and the cattle had not yet
+arrived. This the old chieftain knew full well, but he chose, for the
+moment, to pretend ignorance. He kept on drinking and talking, his voice
+growing louder and louder, until it resounded all over the village. He held
+in his hand a long knife, with which he had been rasping tobacco; this he
+kept flourishing backward and forward, as he talked, by way of giving
+effect to his words, brandishing it at times within an inch of the
+governor's throat. He concluded his tirade by repeating that the country
+belonged to the red men, and that sooner than give it up his bones and the
+bones of his people should bleach upon its soil.
+
+Duval saw that the object of all this bluster was to see whether he could
+be intimidated. He kept his eye, therefore, fixed steadily on the chief,
+and the moment he concluded with his menace, seized him by the bosom of his
+hunting shirt, and clinching his other fist:
+
+"I've heard what you have said," replied he. "You have made a treaty, yet
+you say your bones shall bleach before you comply with it. As sure as there
+is a sun in heaven, your bones _shall_ bleach, if you do not fulfill
+every article of that treaty I I'll let you know that I am _first_
+here, and will see that you do your duty!"
+
+Upon this, the old chieftain threw himself back, burst into a fit of
+laughing, and declared that all he had said was in joke. The governor
+suspected, however, that there was a grave meaning at the bottom of this
+jocularity.
+
+For two months, everything went on smoothly: the Indians repaired daily to
+the log-cabin palace of the governor, at Tallahassee, and appeared
+perfectly contented. All at once they ceased their visits, and for three or
+four days not one was to be seen. Governor Duval began to apprehend that
+some mischief was brewing. On the evening of the fourth day a chief named
+Yellow-Hair, a resolute, intelligent fellow, who had always evinced an
+attachment for the governor, entered his cabin about twelve o'clock at
+night, and informed him that between four and five hundred warriors,
+painted and decorated, were assembled to hold a secret war-talk at
+Neamathla's town. He had slipped off to give intelligence, at the risk of
+his life, and hastened back lest his absence should be discovered.
+
+Governor Duval passed an anxious night after this intelligence. He knew the
+talent and the daring character of Neamathla; he recollected the threats he
+had thrown out; he reflected that about eighty white families were
+scattered widely apart, over a great extent of country, and might be swept
+away at once, should the Indians, as he feared, determine to clear the
+country. That he did not exaggerate the dangers of the case has been proved
+by the horrid scenes of Indian warfare that have since desolated that
+devoted region. After a night of sleepless cogitation, Duval determined on
+a measure suited to his prompt and resolute character. Knowing the
+admiration of the savages for personal courage, he determined, by a sudden
+surprise, to endeavor to overawe and check them. It was hazarding much; but
+where so many lives were in jeopardy, he felt bound to incur the hazard.
+
+Accordingly, on the next morning, he set off on horseback, attended merely
+by a white man who had been reared among the Seminoles, and understood
+their language and manners, and who acted as interpreter. They struck into
+an Indian "trail," leading to Neamathla's village. After proceeding about
+half a mile, Governor Duval informed the interpreter of the object of his
+expedition. The latter, though a bold man, paused and remonstrated. The
+Indians among whom they were going were among the most desperate and
+discontented of the nation. Many of them were veteran warriors,
+impoverished and exasperated by defeat, and ready to set their lives at any
+hazard. He said that if they were holding a war council, it must be with
+desperate intent, and it would be certain death to intrude among them.
+
+Duval made light of his apprehensions: he said he was perfectly well
+acquainted with the Indian character, and should certainly proceed. So
+saying, he rode on. When within half a mile of the village, the interpreter
+addressed him again, in such a tremulous tone that Duval turned and looked
+him in the face. He was deadly pale, and once more urged the governor to
+return, as they would certainly be massacred if they proceeded.
+
+Duval repeated his determination to go on, but advised the other to return,
+lest his pale face should betray fear to the Indians, and they might take
+advantage of it. The interpreter replied that he would rather die a
+thousand deaths than have it said he had deserted his leader when in peril.
+
+Duval then told him he must translate faithfully all he should say to the
+Indians, without softening a word. The interpreter promised faithfully to
+do so, adding that he well knew, when they were once in the town, nothing
+but boldness could save them.
+
+They now rode into the village, and advanced to the council house. This was
+rather a group of four houses, forming a square, in the center of which was
+a great council-fire. The houses were open in front, toward the fire, and
+closed in the rear. At each corner of the square there was an interval
+between the houses, for ingress and egress. In these houses sat the old men
+and the chiefs; the young men were gathered round the fire. Neamathla
+presided at the council, elevated on a higher seat than the rest.
+
+Governor Duval entered by one of the corner intervals, and rode boldly into
+the center of the square. The young men made way for him; an old man who
+was speaking paused in the midst of his harangue. In an instant thirty or
+forty rifles were cocked and leveled. Never had Duval heard so loud a click
+of triggers; it seemed to strike on his heart. He gave one glance at the
+Indians, and turned off with an air of contempt. He did not dare, he says,
+to look again, lest it might affect his nerves; and on the firmness of his
+nerves everything depended.
+
+The chief threw up his arm. The rifles were lowered. Duval breathed more
+freely: he felt disposed to leap from his horse, but restrained himself,
+and dismounted leisurely. He then walked deliberately up to Neamathla, and
+demanded, in an authoritative tone, what were his motives for holding that
+council. The moment he made this demand the orator sat down. The chief made
+no reply, but hung his head in apparent confusion. After a moment's pause,
+Duval proceeded:
+
+"I am well aware of the meaning of this war-council; and deem it my duty to
+warn you against prosecuting the schemes you have been devising. If a
+single hair of a white man in this country falls to the ground, I will hang
+you and your chiefs on the trees around your council house! You cannot
+pretend to withstand the power of the white men. You are in the palm of the
+hand of your Great Father at Washington, who can crush you like an
+egg-shell. You may kill me: I am but one man; but recollect, white men are
+numerous as the leaves on the trees. Remember the fate of your warriors
+whose bones are whitening in battlefields. Remember your wives and children
+who perished in swamps. Do you want to provoke more hostilities? Another
+war with the white men, and there will not be a Seminole left to tell the
+story of his race."
+
+Seeing the effect of his words, he concluded by appointing a day for the
+Indians to meet him at St. Marks, and give an account of their conduct. He
+then rode off, without giving them time to recover from their surprise.
+That night he rode forty miles to Apalachicola River, to the tribe of the
+same name, who were in feud with the Seminoles. They promptly put two
+hundred and fifty warriors at his disposal, whom he ordered to be at St.
+Marks at the appointed day. He sent out runners, also, and mustered one
+hundred of the militia to repair to the same place, together with a number
+of regulars from the army. All his arrangements were successful.
+
+Having taken these measures, he returned to Tallahassee, to the
+neighborhood of the conspirators, to show them that he was not afraid. Here
+he ascertained, through Yellow-Hair, that nine towns were disaffected, and
+had been concerned in the conspiracy. He was careful to inform himself,
+from the same source, of the names of the warriors in each of those towns
+who were most popular, though poor, and destitute of rank and command.
+
+When the appointed day was at hand for the meeting at St. Marks, Governor
+Duval set off with Neamathla, who was at the head of eight or nine hundred
+warriors, but who feared to venture into the fort without him. As they
+entered the fort, and saw troops and militia drawn up there, and a force of
+Apalachicola soldiers stationed on the opposite bank of the river, they
+thought they were betrayed, and were about to fly; but Duval assured them
+they were safe, and that when the talk was over they might go home
+unmolested.
+
+A grand talk was now held, in which the late conspiracy was discussed. As
+he had foreseen, Neamathla and the other old chiefs threw all the blame
+upon the young men, "Well," replied Duval, "with us white men, when we find
+a man incompetent to govern those under him, we put him down, and appoint
+another in his place. Now as you all acknowledge you cannot manage your
+young men, we must put chiefs over them who can."
+
+So saying, he deposed Neamathla first; appointing another in his place; and
+so on with all the rest; taking care to substitute the warriors who had
+been pointed out to him as poor and popular; putting medals round their
+necks, and investing them with great ceremony. The Indians were surprised
+and delighted at finding the appointments fall upon the very men they would
+themselves have chosen, and hailed them with acclamations. The warriors
+thus unexpectedly elevated to command, and clothed with dignity, were
+secured to the interests of the governor, and sure to keep an eye on the
+disaffected. As to the great chief Neamathla, he left the country in
+disgust, and returned to the Creek nation, who elected him a chief of one
+of their towns. Thus by the resolute spirit and prompt sagacity of one man,
+a dangerous conspiracy was completely defeated. Governor Duval was
+afterward enabled to remove the whole nation, through his own personal
+influence, without the aid of the general government.
+
+To the Editor of the Knickerbocker:
+
+SIR--The following letter was scribbled to a friend during my sojourn in
+the Alhambra, in 1828. As it presents scenes and impressions noted down at
+the time, I venture to offer it for the consideration of your readers.
+Should it prove acceptable, I may from tune to time give other letters,
+written in the course of my various ramblings, and which have been kindly
+restored to me by my friends.
+
+Yours, G. C.
+
+
+
+
+LETTER FROM GRANADA
+
+GRANADA, 1828.
+
+
+My Dear--: Religious festivals furnish, in all Catholic countries,
+occasions of popular pageant and recreation; but in none more so than in
+Spain, where the great end of religion seems to be to create holidays and
+ceremonials. For two days past, Granada has been in a gay turmoil with the
+great annual fete of Corpus Christi. This most eventful and romantic city,
+as you well know, has ever been the rallying point of a mountainous region,
+studded with small towns and villages. Hither, during the time that Granada
+was the splendid capital of a Moorish kingdom, the Moslem youth repaired
+from all points, to participate in chivalrous festivities; and hither the
+Spanish populace at the present day throng from all parts of the
+surrounding country to attend the festivals of the church.
+
+As the populace like to enjoy things from the very commencement, the stir
+of Corpus Christ! began in Granada on the preceding evening. Before dark
+the gates of the city were thronged with the picturesque peasantry from the
+mountain villages, and the brown laborers from the Vega, or vast fertile
+plain. As the evening advanced, the Vivarambla thickened and swarmed with a
+motley multitude. This is the great square in the center of the city,
+famous for tilts and tourneys during the times of Moorish domination, and
+incessantly mentioned in all the old Moorish ballads of love and chivalry.
+For several days the hammer had resounded throughout this square. A gallery
+of wood had been erected all round it, forming a covered way for the grand
+procession of Corpus Christi. On this eve of the ceremonial this gallery
+was a fashionable promenade. It was brilliantly illuminated, bands of music
+were stationed in balconies on the four sides of the square, and all the
+fashion and beauty of Granada, and all its population that could boast a
+little finery of apparel, together with the majos and majas, the beaux and
+belles of the villages, in their gay Andalusian costumes, thronged this
+covered walk, anxious to see and to be seen. As to the sturdy peasantry of
+the Vega, and such of the mountaineers as did not pretend to display, but
+were content with hearty enjoyment, they swarmed in the center of the
+square; some in groups listening to the guitar and the traditional ballad;
+some dancing their favorite bolero; some seated on the ground making a
+merry though frugal supper; and some stretched out for their night's
+repose.
+
+The gay crowd of the gallery dispersed gradually toward midnight; but the
+center of the square resembled the bivouac of an army; for hundreds of the
+peasantry, men, women, and children, passed the night there, sleeping
+soundly on the bare earth, under the open canopy of heaven. A summer's
+night requires no shelter in this genial climate; and with a great part of
+the hardy peasantry of Spain a bed is a superfluity which many of them
+never enjoy, and which they affect to despise. The common Spaniard spreads
+out his manta, or mule-cloth, or wraps himself in his cloak, and lies on
+the ground, with his saddle for a pillow.
+
+The next morning I revisited the square at sunrise. It was still strewed
+with groups of sleepers; some were reposing from the dance and revel of the
+evening; others had left their villages after work, on the preceding day,
+and having trudged on foot the greater part of the night, were taking a
+sound sleep to freshen them for the festivities of the day. Numbers from
+the mountains, and the remote villages of the plain, who had set out in the
+night, continued to arrive, with their wives and children. All were in high
+spirits; greeting each other, and exchanging jokes and pleasantries. The
+gay tumult thickened as the day advanced. Now came pouring in at the city
+gates, and parading through the streets, the deputations from the various
+villages, destined to swell the grand procession. These village deputations
+were headed by their priests, bearing their respective crosses and banners,
+and images of the Blessed Virgin and of patron saints; all which were
+matters of great rivalship and jealousy among the peasantry. It was like
+the chivalrous gatherings of ancient days, when each town and village sent
+its chiefs, and warriors, and standards, to defend the capital or grace its
+festivities.
+
+At length, all these various detachments congregated into one grand
+pageant, which slowly paraded round the Vivarambla, and through the
+principal streets, where every window and balcony was hung with tapestry.
+In this procession were all the religious orders, the civil and military
+authorities, and the chief people of the parishes and villages; every
+church and convent had contributed its banners, its images, its relics, and
+poured forth its wealth for the occasion. In the center of the procession
+walked the archbishop, under a damask canopy, and surrounded by inferior
+dignitaries and their dependents. The whole moved to the swell and cadence
+of numerous bands of music, and, passing through the midst of a countless
+yet silent multitude, proceeded onward to the cathedral.
+
+I could not but be struck with the changes of times and customs, as I saw
+this monkish pageant passing through the Vivarambla, the ancient seat of
+Moslem pomp and chivalry. The contrast was indeed forced upon the mind by
+the decorations of the square. The whole front of the wooden gallery
+erected for the procession, extending several hundred feet, was faced with
+canvas, on which some humble though patriotic artist had painted, by
+contract, a series of the principal scenes and exploits of the conquest, as
+recorded in chronicle and romance. It is thus the romantic legends of
+Granada mingle themselves with everything, and are kept fresh in the public
+mind. Another great festival at Granada, answering in its popular character
+to our Fourth of July, is _El Dia de la Toma_; "The day of the
+Capture"; that is to say, the anniversary of the capture of the city by
+Ferdinand and Isabella. On this day all Granada is abandoned to revelry.
+The alarm-bell on the Terre de la Campana, or watch-tower of the Alhambra,
+keeps up a clangor from morn till night; and happy is the damsel that can
+ring that bell; it is a charm to secure a husband in the course of the
+year.
+
+The sound, which can be heard over the whole Vega, and to the top of the
+mountains, summons the peasantry to the festivities. Throughout the day the
+Alhambra is thrown open to the public. The halls and courts of the Moorish
+monarchs resound with the guitar and castanet, and gay groups, in the
+fanciful dresses of Andalusia, perform those popular dances which they have
+inherited from the Moors.
+
+In the meantime a grand procession moves through the city. The banner of
+Ferdinand and Isabella, that precious relic of the conquest, is brought
+forth from its depository, and borne by the Alferez Mayor, or grand
+standard-bearer, through the principal streets. The portable camp-altar,
+which was carried about with them in all their campaigns, is transported
+into the chapel royal, and placed before their sepulcher, where their
+effigies lie in monumental marble. The procession fills the chapel. High
+mass is performed in memory of the conquest; and at a certain part of the
+ceremony the Alferez Mayor puts on his hat, and waves the standard above
+the tomb of the conquerors.
+
+A more whimsical memorial of the conquest is exhibited on the same evening
+at the theater, where a popular drama is performed, entitled "Ave Maria."
+This turns on the oft-sung achievement of Hernando del Pulgar, surnamed El
+de las Hazanas, "He of the Exploits," the favorite hero of the populace of
+Granada.
+
+During the time that Ferdinand and Isabella besieged the city, the young
+Moorish and Spanish knights vied with each other in extravagant bravadoes.
+On one occasion Hernando del Pulgar, at the head of a handful of youthful
+followers, made a dash into Granada at the dead of night, nailed the
+inscription of Ave Maria, with his dagger, to the gate of the principal
+mosque, as a token of having consecrated it to the Virgin, and effected his
+retreat in safety.
+
+While the Moorish cavaliers admired this daring exploit, they felt bound to
+revenge it. On the following day, therefore, Tarfe, one of the stoutest of
+the infidel warriors, paraded in front of the Christian army, dragging the
+sacred inscription of Ave Maria at his horse's tail. The cause of the
+Virgin was eagerly vindicated by Garcilaso de la Vega, who slew the Moor in
+single combat, and elevated the inscription of Ave Maria, in devotion and
+triumph, at the end of his lance.
+
+The drama founded on this exploit is prodigiously popular with the common
+people. Although it has been acted time out of mind, and the people have
+seen it repeatedly, it never fails to draw crowds, and so completely to
+engross the feelings of the audience, as to have almost the effect on them
+of reality. When their favorite Pulgar strides about with many a mouthy
+speech, in the very midst of the Moorish capital, he is cheered with
+enthusiastic bravoes; and when he nails the tablet of Ave Maria to the door
+of the mosque, the theater absolutely shakes with shouts and thunders of
+applause. On the other hand, the actors who play the part of the Moors have
+to bear the brunt of the temporary indignation of their auditors; and when
+the infidel Tarfe plucks down the tablet to tie it to his horse's tail,
+many of the people absolutely rise in fury, and are ready to jump upon the
+stage to revenge this insult to the Virgin.
+
+Besides this annual festival at the capital, almost every village of the
+Vega and the mountains has its own anniversary, wherein its own deliverance
+from the Moorish yoke is celebrated with uncouth ceremony and rustic pomp.
+
+On these occasions a kind of resurrection takes place of ancient Spanish
+dresses and armor; great two-handed swords, ponderous arquebuses, with
+matchlocks, and other weapons and accouterments, once the equipments of the
+village chivalry, and treasured up from generation to generation, since the
+time of the conquest. In these hereditary and historical garbs some of the
+most sturdy of the villagers array themselves as champions of the faith,
+while its ancient opponents are represented by another band of villagers,
+dressed up as Moorish warriors. A tent is pitched in the public square of
+the village, within which is an altar and an image of the Virgin. The
+Spanish warriors approach to perform their devotions at this shrine, but
+are opposed by the infidel Moslems, who surround the tent. A mock fight
+succeeds, in the course of which the combatants sometimes forget that they
+are merely playing a part, and exchange dry blows of grievous weight; the
+fictious Moors especially are apt to bear away pretty evident marks of the
+pious zeal of their antagonists. The contest, however, invariably
+terminates in favor of the good cause. The Moors are defeated and taken
+prisoners. The image of the Virgin, rescued from thralldom, is elevated in
+triumph; and a grand procession succeeds, in which the Spanish conquerors
+figure with great vainglory and applause, and their captives are led in
+chains, to the infinite delight and edification of the populace. These
+annual festivals are the delight of the villagers, who expend considerable
+sums in their celebration. In some villages they are occasionally obliged
+to suspend them for want of funds; but when times grow better, or they have
+been enabled to save money for the purpose, they are revived with all their
+grotesque pomp and extravagance.
+
+To recur to the exploit of Hernando del Pulgar. However extravagant and
+fabulous it may seem, it is authenticated by certain traditional usages,
+and shows the vainglorious daring that prevailed between the youthful
+warriors of both nations, in that romantic war. The mosque thus consecrated
+to the Virgin was made the cathedral of the city after the conquest; and
+there is a painting of the Virgin beside the royal chapel, which was put
+there by Hernando del Pulgar. The lineal representative of the hare-brained
+cavalier has the right to this day to enter the church, on certain
+occasions, on horseback, to sit within the choir, and to put on his hat at
+the elevation of the host, though these privileges have often been
+obstinately contested by the clergy.
+
+The present lineal representative of Hernando del Pulgar is the Marquis de
+Salar, whom I have met occasionally in society. He is a young man of
+agreeable appearance and manners, and his bright black eyes would give
+indication of his inheriting the fire of his ancestor. When the paintings
+were put up in the Vivarambla, illustrating the scenes of the conquest, an
+old gray-headed family servant of the Pulgars was so delighted with those
+which related to the family hero, that he absolutely shed tears, and
+hurrying home to the marquis, urged him to hasten and behold the family
+trophies. The sudden zeal of the old man provoked the mirth of his young
+master; upon which, turning to the brother of the marquis, with that
+freedom allowed to family servants in Spain, "Come, senor," cried he, "you
+are more grave and considerate than your brother; come and see your
+ancestor in all his glory!"
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+Within two or three years after the above letter was written, the Marquis
+de Salar was married to the beautiful daughter of the Count -----,
+mentioned by the author in his anecdotes of the Alhambra. The match was
+very agreeable to all parties, and the nuptials were celebrated with great
+festivity.
+
+
+
+
+ABDERAHMAN
+
+FOUNDER OF THE DYNASTY OF THE OMMIADES OF SPAIN
+
+
+_To the Editor of the Knickerbocker:_
+
+SIR--In the following memoir I have conformed to the facts furnished by the
+Arabian chroniclers, as cited by the learned Conde. The story of Abderahman
+has almost the charm of romance; but it derives a higher interest from the
+heroic yet gentle virtues which it illustrates, and from recording the
+fortunes of the founder of that splendid dynasty, which shed such a luster
+upon Spain during the domination of the Arabs. Abderahman may, in some
+respects, be compared to our own Washington. He achieved the independence
+of Moslem Spain, freeing it from subjection to the caliphs; he united its
+jarring parts under one government; he ruled over it with justice,
+clemency, and moderation; his whole course of conduct was distinguished by
+wonderful forbearance and magnanimity; and when he died he left a legacy of
+good example and good counsel to his successors.
+
+G.C.
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+"Blessed be God!" exclaims an Arabian historian; "in His hands alone is the
+destiny of princes. He overthrows the mighty, and humbles the haughty to
+the dust; and he raises up the persecuted and afflicted from the very
+depths of despair!"
+
+The illustrious house of Omeya had swayed the scepter at Damascus for
+nearly a century, when a rebellion broke out, headed by Aboul Abbas Safah,
+who aspired to the throne of the caliphs, as being descended from Abbas,
+the uncle of the prophet. The rebellion was successful. Marvau, the last
+caliph of the house of Omeya, was defeated and slain. A general
+proscription of the Ommiades took place. Many of them fell in battle; many
+were treacherously slain, in places where they had taken refuge; above
+seventy most noble and distinguished were murdered at a banquet to which
+they had been invited, and their dead bodies covered with cloths, and made
+to serve as tables for the horrible festivity. Others were driven forth,
+forlorn and desolate wanderers in various parts of the earth, and pursued
+with relentless hatred; for it was the determination of the usurper that
+not one of the persecuted family should escape. Aboul Abbas took possession
+of three stately palaces and delicious gardens, and founded the powerful
+dynasty of the Abbassides, which, for several centuries, maintained
+dominion in the east.
+
+"Blessed be God!" again exclaims the Arabian historian; "it was written in
+His eternal decrees that, notwithstanding the fury of the Abbassides, the
+noble stock of Omeya should not be destroyed. One fruitful branch remained
+to nourish with glory and greatness in another land."
+
+When the sanguinary proscription of the Ommiades took place, two young
+princes of that line, brothers, by the names of Solyman and Abderahman were
+spared for a time. Their personal graces, noble demeanor, and winning
+affability, had made them many friends, while their extreme youth rendered
+them objects of but little dread to the usurper. Their safety, however, was
+but transient. In a little while the suspicions of Aboul Abbas were
+aroused. The unfortunate Solyman fell beneath the scimiter of the
+executioner. His brother Abderahman was warned of his danger in time.
+Several of his friends hastened to him, bringing him jewels, a disguise,
+and a fleet horse. "The emissaries of the caliph," said they, "are in
+search of thee; thy brother lies weltering in his blood; fly to the desert!
+There is no safety for thee in the habitations of man!"
+
+Abderahman took the jewels, clad himself in the disguise, and mounting his
+steed, fled for his life. As he passed, a lonely fugitive, by the palaces
+of his ancestors, in which his family had long held sway, their very walls
+seemed disposed to betray him, as they echoed the swift clattering of his
+steed.
+
+Abandoning his native country, Syria, where he was liable at each moment to
+be recognized and taken, he took refuge among the Bedouin Arabs, a
+half-savage race of shepherds. His youth, his inborn majesty and grace, and
+the sweetness and affability that shone forth in his azure eyes, won the
+hearts of these wandering men. He was but twenty years of age, and had been
+reared in the soft luxury of a palace; but he was tall and vigorous, and in
+a little while hardened himself so completely to the rustic life of the
+fields that it seemed as though he had passed all his days in the rude
+simplicity of a shepherd's cabin.
+
+His enemies, however, were upon his traces, and gave him but little rest.
+By day he scoured the plain with the Bedouins, hearing in every blast the
+sound of pursuit, and fancying in every distant cloud of dust a troop of
+the caliph's horsemen. That night was passed in broken sleep and frequent
+watchings, and at the earliest dawn he was the first to put the bridle to
+his steed.
+
+Wearied by these perpetual alarms, he bade farewell to his friendly
+Bedouins, and leaving Egypt behind, sought a safer refuge in Western
+Africa. The province of Barea was at that time governed by Aben Habib, who
+had risen to rank and fortune under the fostering favor of the Ommiades.
+"Surely," thought the unhappy prince, "I shall receive kindness and
+protection from this man; he will rejoice to show his gratitude for the
+benefits showered upon him by my kindred."
+
+Abderahman was young, and as yet knew little of mankind. None are so
+hostile to the victim of power as those whom he has befriended. They fear
+being suspected of gratitude by his persecutors, and involved in his
+misfortunes.
+
+The unfortunate Abderahman had halted for a few days to repose himself
+among a horde of Bedouins, who had received him with their characteristic
+hospitality. They would gather round him in the evenings, to listen to his
+conversation, regarding with wonder this gently-spoken stranger from the
+more refined country of Egypt. The old men marveled to find so much
+knowledge and wisdom in such early youth, and the young men, won by his
+frank and manly carriage, entreated him to remain among them.
+
+One night, when all were buried in sleep, they were roused by the tramp of
+horsemen. The Wali Aben Habib, who, like all the governors of distant
+ports, had received orders from the caliph to be on the watch for the
+fugitive prince, had heard that a young man, answering the description, had
+entered the province alone, from the frontiers of Egypt, on a steed worn
+down by travel. He had immediately sent forth horsemen in his pursuit, with
+orders to bring him to him dead or alive. The emissaries of the Wali had
+traced him to his resting-place, and demanded of the Arabs whether a young
+man, a stranger from Syria, did not sojourn among their tribe. The Bedouins
+knew by the description that the stranger must be their guest, and feared
+some evil was intended him. "Such a youth," said they, "has indeed
+sojourned among us; but he has gone, with some of our young men, to a
+distant valley, to hunt the lion." The emissaries inquired the way to the
+place, and hastened on to surprise their expected prey.
+
+The Bedouins repaired to Abderahman, who was still sleeping. "If thou hast
+aught to fear from man in power," said they, "arise and fly; for the
+horsemen of the Wali are in quest of thee! We have sent them off for a time
+on a wrong errand, but they will soon return."
+
+"Alas! whither shall I fly!" cried the unhappy prince; "my enemies hunt me
+like the ostrich of the desert. They follow me like the wind, and allow me
+neither safety nor repose!"
+
+Six of the bravest youth of the tribe stepped forward. "We have steeds,"
+said they, "that can outstrip the wind, and hands that can hurl the
+javelin. We will accompany thee in thy flight, and will fight by thy side
+while life lasts, and we have weapons to wield."
+
+Abderahman embraced them with tears of gratitude. They mounted their
+steeds, and made for the most lonely parts of the desert. By the faint
+light of the stars, they passed through dreary wastes and over hills of
+sand. The lion roared, and the hyena howled unheeded, for they fled from
+man, more cruel and relentless, when in pursuit of blood, than the savage
+beasts of the desert.
+
+At sunrise they paused to refresh themselves beside a scanty well,
+surrounded by a few palm-trees. One of the young Arabs climbed a tree, and
+looked in every direction, but not a horseman was to be seen.
+
+"We have outstripped pursuit," said the Bedouins; "whither shall we conduct
+thee? Where is thy home and the land of thy people?"
+
+"Home have I none!" replied Abderahman, mournfully, "nor family, nor
+kindred! My native land is to me a land of destruction, and my people seek
+my life!"
+
+The hearts of the youthful Bedouins were touched with compassion at these
+words, and they marveled that one so young and gentle should have suffered
+such great sorrow and persecution.
+
+Abderahman sat by the well and mused for a time. At length, breaking
+silence, "In the midst of Mauritania," said he, "dwells the tribe of
+Zeneta. My mother was of that tribe; and perhaps when her son presents
+himself, a persecuted wanderer, at their door, they will not turn him from
+the threshold."
+
+"The Zenetes," replied the Bedouins, "are among the bravest and most
+hospitable of the people of Africa. Never did the unfortunate seek refuge
+among them in vain, nor was the stranger repulsed from their door." So they
+mounted their steeds with renewed spirits, and journeyed with all speed to
+Tahart, the capital of the Zenetes.
+
+When Abderahman entered the place, followed by his six rustic Arabs, all
+wayworn and travel-stained, his noble and majestic demeanor shone through
+the simple garb of a Bedouin. A crowd gathered around him, as he alighted
+from his weary steed. Confiding in the well known character of the tribe,
+he no longer attempted concealment.
+
+"You behold before you," said he, "one of the proscribed house of Omeya. I
+am that Abderahman upon whose head a price has been set, and who has been
+driven from land to land. I come to you as my kindred. My mother was of
+your tribe, and she told me with her dying breath that in all time of need
+I would find a home and friends among the Zenetes."
+
+The words of Abderahman went straight to the hearts of his hearers. They
+pitied his youth and his great misfortunes, while they were charmed by his
+frankness, and by the manly graces of his person. The tribe was of a bold
+and generous spirit, and not to be awed by the frown of power. "Evil be
+upon us and upon our children," said they, "if we deceive the trust thou
+hast placed in us!"
+
+Then one of the noblest Xeques took Abderahman to his house, and treated
+him as his own child; and the principal people of the tribe strove who most
+should cherish him, and do him honor; endeavoring to obliterate by their
+kindness the recollection of his past misfortunes.
+
+Abderahman had resided some time among the hospitable Zenetes, when one day
+two strangers, of venerable appearance, attended by a small retinue,
+arrived at Tahart. They gave themselves out as merchants, and from the
+simple style in which they traveled, excited no attention. In a little
+while they sought out Abderahman, and, taking him apart: "Hearken," said
+they, "Abderahman, of the royal line of Omeya; we are embassadors sent on
+the part of the principal Moslems of Spain, to offer thee, not merely an
+asylum, for that thou hast already among these brave Zenetes, but an
+empire! Spain is a prey to distracting factions, and can no longer exist as
+a dependency upon a throne too remote to watch over its welfare. It needs
+to be independent of Asia and Africa, and to be under the government of a
+good prince, who shall reside within it, and devote himself entirely to its
+prosperity; a prince with sufficient title to silence all rival claims, and
+bring the warring parties into unity and peace; and at the same time with
+sufficient ability and virtue to insure the welfare of his dominions. For
+this purpose the eyes of all the honorable leaders in Spain have been
+turned to thee, as a descendant of the royal line of Omeya, and an offset
+from the same stock as our holy prophet. They have heard of thy virtues,
+and of thy admirable constancy under misfortunes; and invite thee to accept
+the sovereignty of one of the noblest countries in the world. Thou wilt
+have some difficulties to encounter from hostile men; but thou wilt have on
+thy side the bravest captains that have signalized themselves in the
+conquest of the unbelievers."
+
+The embassadors ceased, and Abderahman remained for a time lost in wonder
+and admiration. "God is great!" exclaimed he, at length; "there is but one
+God, who is God, and Mahomet is his prophet! Illustrious embassadors, you
+have put new life into my soul, for you have shown me something to live
+for. In the few years that I have lived, troubles and sorrows have been
+heaped upon my head, and I have become inured to hardships and alarms.
+Since it is the wish of the valiant Moslems of Spain, I am willing to
+become their leader and defender, and devote myself to their cause, be it
+happy or disastrous."
+
+The embassadors now cautioned him to be silent as to their errand, and to
+depart secretly for Spain. "The seaboard of Africa," said they, "swarms
+with your enemies, and a powerful faction in Spain would intercept you on
+landing, did they know your name and rank, and the object of your coming."
+
+But Abderahman replied: "I have been cherished in adversity by these brave
+Zenetes; I have been protected and honored by them, when a price was set
+upon my head, and to harbor me was great peril. How can I keep my good
+fortune from my benefactors, and desert their hospitable roofs in silence?
+He is unworthy of friendship, who withholds confidence from his friend."
+
+Charmed with the generosity of his feelings, the embassadors made no
+opposition to his wishes. The Zenetes proved themselves worthy of his
+confidence. They hailed with joy the great change in his fortunes. The
+warriors and the young men pressed forward to follow, and aid them with
+horse and weapon; "for the honor of a noble house and family," said they,
+"can be maintained only by lances and horsemen." In a few days he set
+forth, with the embassadors, at the head of nearly a thousand horsemen
+skilled in war, and exercised in the desert, and a large body of infantry,
+armed with lances. The venerable Xeque, with whom he had resided, blessed
+him and shed tears over him at parting, as though he had been his own
+child; and when the youth passed over the threshold, the house was filled
+with lamentations.
+
+Abderahman reached Spain in safely, and landed at Almanecar, with his
+little band of warlike Zenetes. Spain was at that time in a state of great
+confusion. Upward of forty years had elapsed since the conquest. The civil
+wars in Syria and Egypt had prevented the main government at Damascus from
+exercising control over this distant and recently acquired territory. Every
+Moslem commander considered the town or province committed to his charge an
+absolute property; and accordingly exercised the most arbitrary extortions.
+These excesses at length became insupportable, and, at a convocation of
+many of the principal leaders, it was determined, as a means to end these
+dissensions, to unite all the Moslem provinces of Spain under one emir, or
+general governor. Yusuf el Fehri, an ancient man, of honorable lineage, was
+chosen for this station. He began his reign with policy, and endeavored to
+conciliate all parties; but the distribution of offices soon created
+powerful enemies among the disappointed leaders. A civil war was the
+consequence, and Spain was deluged with blood. The troops of both parties
+burned and ravaged and laid every thing waste, to distress their
+antagonists; the villages were abandoned by their inhabitants, who fled to
+the cities for refuge; and flourishing towns disappeared from the face of
+the earth, or remained mere heaps of rubbish and ashes. At the time of the
+landing of Abderahman in Spain, the old Emir Yusuf had obtained a signal
+victory. He had captured Saragossa, in which was Ameer ben Amru, his
+principal enemy, together with his son and secretary. Loading his prisoners
+with chains, and putting them on camels, he set out in triumph for Cordova,
+considering himself secure in the absolute domination of Spain.
+
+He had halted one day in a valley called Wadarambla, and was reposing with
+his family in his pavilion, while his people and the prisoners made a
+repast in the open air. In the midst of his repose, his confidential
+adherent and general, the Wali Samael, galloped into the camp covered with
+dust and exhausted with fatigue. He brought tidings of the arrival of
+Abderahman and that the whole seaboard was flocking to his standard.
+Messenger after messenger came hurrying into the camp, confirming the
+fearful tidings, and adding that this descendant of the Omeyas had secretly
+been invited to Spain by Amru and his followers. Yusuf waited not to
+ascertain the truth of this accusation. Giving way to a transport of fury,
+he ordered that Amru, his son and secretary, should be cut to pieces. His
+commands were instantly executed. "And this cruelty," says the Arabian
+chronicler, "lost him the favor of Allah; for from that time success
+deserted his standard."
+
+Abderahman had indeed been hailed with joy on his landing in Spain. The old
+people hoped to find tranquillity under the sway of one supreme chieftain,
+descended from their ancient caliphs; the young men were rejoiced to have a
+youthful warrior to lead them on to victories; and the populace, charmed
+with his freshness and manly beauty, his majestic yet gracious and affable
+demeanor, shouted: "Long live Abderahman ben Moavia Meramamolin of Spain!"
+
+In a few days the youthful sovereign saw himself at the head of more than
+twenty thousand men, from the neighborhood of Elvira, Almeria, Malaga,
+Xeres, and Sidonia. Fair Seville threw open its gates at his approach, and
+celebrated his arrival with public rejoicings. He continued his march into
+the country, vanquished one of the eons of Yusuf before the gates of
+Cordova, and obliged him to take refuge within its walls, where he held him
+in close siege. Hearing, however, of the approach of Yusuf, the father,
+with a powerful army, he divided his forces, and leaving ten thousand men
+to press the siege, he hastened with the other ten to meet the coming foe.
+
+Yusuf had indeed mustered a formidable force, from the east and south of
+Spain, and accompanied by his veteran general, Samael, came with confident
+boasting to drive this intruder from the land. His confidence increased on
+beholding the small army of Abderahman. Turning to Samael, he repeated,
+with a scornful sneer, a verse from an Arabian poetess, which says:
+
+"How hard is our lot! We come, a thirsty multitude, and lo! but this cup of
+water to share among us!"
+
+There was indeed a fearful odds. On the one side were two veteran generals,
+grown gray in victory, with a mighty host of warriors, seasoned in the wars
+of Spain. On the other side was a mere youth, scarce attained to manhood,
+with a hasty levy of half-disciplined troops; but the youth was a prince,
+flushed with hope, and aspiring after fame and empire; and surrounded by a
+devoted band of warriors from Africa, whose example infused desperate zeal
+into the little army.
+
+The encounter took place at daybreak. The impetuous valor of the Zenetes
+carried everything before it. The cavalry of Yusuf was broken, and driven
+back upon the infantry, and before noon the whole host was put to headlong
+flight. Yusuf and Samael were borne along in the torrent of the fugitives,
+raging and storming, and making ineffectual efforts to rally them. They
+were separated widely in the confusion of the flight, one taking refuge in
+the Algarves, the other in the kingdom of Murcia. They afterward rallied,
+reunited their forces, and made another desperate stand near Almunecar. The
+battle was obstinate and bloody, but they were again defeated, and driven,
+with a handful of followers, to take refuge in the rugged mountains
+adjacent to Elvira.
+
+The spirit of the veteran Samael gave way before these fearful reverses.
+"In vain, oh Yusuf!" said he, "do we contend with the prosperous star of
+this youthful conqueror: the will of Allah be done! Let us submit to our
+fate, and sue for favorable terms, while we have yet the means of
+capitulation."
+
+It was a hard trial for the proud spirit of Yusuf, that had once aspired to
+uncontrolled sway; but he was compelled to capitulate. Abderahman was as
+generous as brave. He granted the two gray-headed generals the most
+honorable conditions, and even took the veteran Samael into favor,
+employing him, as a mark of confidence, to visit the eastern provinces of
+Spain, and restore them to tranquillity. Yusuf, having delivered up Elvira
+and Granada, and complied with other articles of his capitulation, was
+permitted to retire to Murcia, and rejoin his son Muhamad. A general
+amnesty to all chiefs and soldiers who should yield up their strongholds,
+and lay down their arms, completed the triumph of Abderahman, and brought
+all hearts into obedience.
+
+Thus terminated this severe struggle for the domination of Spain; and thus
+the illustrious family of Omeya, after having been cast down and almost
+exterminated in the East, took new root, and sprang forth prosperously in
+the West.
+
+Wherever Abderahman appeared, he was received with rapturous acclamations.
+As he rode through the cities, the populace rent the air with shouts of
+joy; the stately palaces were crowded with spectators, eager to gain a
+sight of his graceful form and beaming countenance; and when they beheld
+the mingled majesty and benignity of their new monarch, and the sweetness
+and gentleness of his whole conduct, they extolled him as something more
+than mortal; as a beneficent genius, sent for the happiness of Spain.
+
+In the interval of peace which now succeeded, Abderahman occupied himself
+in promoting the useful and elegant arts, and in introducing into Spain the
+refinements of the East. Considering the building and ornamenting of cities
+as among the noblest employments of the tranquil hours of princes, he
+bestowed great pains upon beautifying the city of Cordova and its environs.
+He reconstructed banks and dikes, to keep the Guadalquivir from overflowing
+its borders, and on the vast terraces thus formed he planted delightful
+gardens. In the midst of these, he erected a lofty tower, commanding a view
+of the vast and fruitful valley, enlivened by the windings of the river. In
+this tower he would pass hours of meditation, gazing on the soft and varied
+landscape, and inhaling the bland and balmy airs of that delightful region.
+At such times, his thoughts would recur to the past, and the misfortunes of
+his youth; the massacre of his family would rise to view, mingled with
+tender recollections of his native country, from which he was exiled. In
+these melancholy musings he would sit with his eyes fixed upon a palm-tree
+which he had planted in the midst of his garden. It is said to have been
+the first ever planted in Spain, and to have been the parent stock of all
+the palm-trees which grace the southern provinces of the peninsula. The
+heart of Abderahman yearned toward this tree; it was the offspring of his
+native country, and, like him, an exile. In one of his moods of tenderness,
+he composed verses upon it, which have since become famous throughout the
+world. The following is a rude but literal translation:
+
+"Beauteous Palm! thou also wert hither brought a stranger; but thy roots
+have found a kindly soil, thy head is lifted to the skies, and the sweet
+airs of Algarve fondle and kiss thy branches.
+
+"Thou hast known, like me, the storms of adverse fortune. Bitter tears
+wouldst thou shed, couldst thou feel my woes. Repeated griefs have
+overwhelmed me. With early tears I bedewed the palms on the banks of the
+Euphrates; but neither tree nor river heeded my sorrows, when driven by
+cruel fate, and the ferocious Aboul Abbas, from the scenes of my childhood
+and the sweet objects of my affection.
+
+"To thee no remembrance remains of my beloved country; I, unhappy! can
+never recall it without tears."
+
+The generosity of Abderahman to his vanquished foes was destined to be
+abused. The veteran Yusuf, in visiting certain of the cities which he had
+surrendered, found himself surrounded by zealous partisans, ready to peril
+life in his service. The love of command revived in his bosom, and he
+repented the facility with which he had suffered himself to be persuaded to
+submission. Flushed with new hopes of success, he caused arms to be
+secretly collected, and deposited in various villages, most zealous in
+their professions of devotion, and raising a considerable body of troops,
+seized upon the castle of Almodovar. The rash rebellion was short-lived. At
+the first appearance of an army sent by Abderahman, and commanded by
+Abdelmelee, governor of Seville, the villages which had so recently
+professed loyalty to Yusuf hastened to declare their attachment to the
+monarch, and to give up the concealed arms. Almodovar was soon retaken, and
+Yusuf, driven to the environs of Lorea, was surrounded by the cavalry of
+Abdelmelee. The veteran endeavored to cut a passage through the enemy, but
+after fighting with desperate fury, and with a force of arm incredible in
+one of his age, he fell beneath blows from weapons of all kinds, so that
+after the battle his body could scarcely be recognized, so numerous were
+the wounds. His head was cut off and sent to Cordova, where it was placed
+in an iron cage, over the gate of the city.
+
+The old lion was dead, but his whelps survived. Yusuf had left three sons,
+who inherited his warlike spirit, and were eager to revenge his death.
+Collecting a number of the scattered adherents of their house, they
+surprised and seized upon Toledo, during the absence of Temam, its Wali or
+commander. In this old warrior city, built upon a rock, and almost
+surrounded by the Tagus, they set up a kind of robber hold, scouring the
+surrounding country, levying tribute, seizing upon horses, and compelling
+the peasantry to join their standard. Every day cavalcades of horses and
+mules, laden with spoil, with flocks of sheep and droves of cattle, came
+pouring over the bridges on either side of the city, and thronging in at
+the gates, the plunder of the surrounding country. Those of the inhabitants
+who were still loyal to Abderahman dared not lift up their voices, for men
+of the sword bore sway. At length one day, when the sons of Yusuf, with
+their choicest troops, were out on a maraud, the watchmen on the towers
+gave the alarm. A troop of scattered horsemen were spurring wildly toward
+the gates. The banners of the sons of Yusuf were descried. Two of them
+spurred into the city, followed by a handful of warriors, covered with
+confusion, and dismay. They had been encountered and defeated by the Wali
+Temam, and one of the brothers had been slain.
+
+The gates were secured in all haste, and the walls were scarcely manned,
+when Temam appeared before them with his troops, and summoned the city to
+surrender. A great internal commotion ensued between the loyalists and the
+insurgents; the latter, however, had weapons in their hands, and prevailed;
+and for several days, trusting to the strength of their rock-built
+fortress, they set the Wali at defiance. At length some of the loyal
+inhabitants of Toledo, who knew all its secret and subterraneous passages,
+some of which, if chroniclers may be believed, have existed since the days
+of Hercules, if not of Tubal Cain, introduced Temam and a chosen band of
+his warriors into the very center of the city, where they suddenly appeared
+as if by magic. A panic seized upon the insurgents. Some sought safety in
+submission, some in concealment, some in flight. Casim, one of the sons of
+Yusuf, escaped in disguise; the youngest, unarmed, was taken, and was sent
+captive to the king, accompanied by the head of his brother, who had been
+slain in battle.
+
+When Abderahman beheld the youth laden with chains, he remembered his own
+sufferings in his early days, and had compassion on him; but, to prevent
+him from doing further mischief, he imprisoned him in a tower of the wall
+of Cordova.
+
+In the meantime Casim, who had escaped, managed to raise another band of
+warriors. Spain, in all ages a guerrilla country, prone to partisan warfare
+and petty maraud, was at that time infested by bands of licentious troops,
+who had sprung up in the civil contests; their only object pillage, their
+only dependence the sword, and ready to flock to any new and desperate
+standard, that promised the greatest license. With a ruffian force thus
+levied, Casim scoured the country, took Sidonia by storm, and surprised
+Seville while in a state of unsuspecting security.
+
+Abderahman put himself at the head of his faithful Zenetes, and took the
+field in person. By the rapidity of his movements, the rebels were
+defeated, Sidonia and Seville speedily retaken, and Casim was made
+prisoner. The generosity of Abderahman was again exhibited toward this
+unfortunate son of Yusuf. He spared his life, and sent him to be confined
+in a tower at Toledo.
+
+The veteran Samael had taken no part in these insurrections, but had
+attended faithfully to the affairs intrusted to him by Abderahman. The
+death of his old friend and colleague, Yusuf, however, and the subsequent
+disasters of his family, filled him with despondency. Fearing the
+inconstancy of fortune, and the dangers incident to public employ, he
+entreated the king to be permitted to retire to his house in Seguenza, and
+indulge a privacy and repose suited to his advanced age. His prayer was
+granted. The veteran laid by his arms, battered in a thousand conflicts;
+hung his sword and lance against the wall, and, surrounded by a few
+friends, gave himself up apparently to the sweets of quiet and unambitious
+leisure.
+
+Who can count, however, upon the tranquil content of a heart nurtured amid
+the storms of war and ambition! Under the ashes of this outward humility
+were glowing the coals of faction. In his seemingly philosophical
+retirement, Samael was concerting with his friends new treason against
+Abderahman. His plot was discovered; his house was suddenly surrounded by
+troops; and he was conveyed to a tower at Toledo, where, in the course of a
+few months, he died in captivity.
+
+The magnanimity of Abderahman was again put to the proof, by a new
+insurrection at Toledo. Hixem ben Adra, a relation of Yusuf, seized upon
+the Alcazar, or citadel, slew several of the royal adherents of the king,
+liberated Casim from his tower, and, summoning all the banditti of the
+country, soon mustered a force of ten thousand men. Abderahman was quickly
+before the walls of Toledo, with the troops of Cordova and his devoted
+Zenetes. The rebels were brought to terms, and surrendered the city on
+promise of general pardon, which was extended even to Hixem and Casim. When
+the chieftains saw Hixem and his principal confederates in the power of
+Abderahman, they advised him to put them all to death. "A promise given to
+traitors and rebels," said they, "is not binding, when it is to the
+interest of the state that it should be broken."
+
+"No!" replied Abderahman, "if the safety of my throne were at stake, I
+would not break my word." So saying, he confirmed the amnesty, and granted
+Hixem ben Adra a worthless life, to be employed in further treason.
+
+Scarcely had Abderahman returned from this expedition, when a powerful
+army, sent by the caliph, landed from Africa on the coast of the Algarves.
+The commander, Aly ben Mogueth, Emir of Cairvan, elevated a rich banner
+which he had received from the hands of the caliph. Wherever he went, he
+ordered the caliph of the East to be proclaimed by sound of trumpet,
+denouncing Abderahman as a usurper, the vagrant member of a family
+proscribed and execrated in all the mosques of the East.
+
+One of the first to join his standard was Hixem ben Adra, so recently
+pardoned by Abderahman. He seized upon the citadel of Toledo, and repairing
+to the camp of Aly, offered to deliver the city into his hands.
+
+Abderahman, as bold in war as he was gentle in peace, took the field with
+his wonted promptness; overthrew his enemies, with great slaughter, drove
+some to the seacoast to regain their ships, and others to the mountains.
+The body of Aly was found on the field of battle. Abderahman caused the
+head to be struck off, and conveyed to Cairvan, where it was affixed at
+night to a column in the public square, with this inscription: "Thus
+Abderahman, the descendant of the Omeyas, punishes the rash and arrogant."
+
+Hixem ben Adra escaped from the field of battle, and excited further
+troubles, but was eventually captured by Abdelmelee, who ordered his head
+to be struck off on the spot, lest he should again be spared, through the
+wonted clemency of Abderahman.
+
+Notwithstanding these signal triumphs, the reign of Abderahman was
+disturbed by further insurrections, and by another descent from Africa, but
+he was victorious over them all; striking the roots of his power deeper and
+deeper into the land. Under his sway, the government of Spain became more
+regular and consolidated, and acquired an independence of the empire of the
+East. The caliph continued to be considered as first pontiff and chief of
+the religion, but he ceased to have any temporal power over Spain.
+
+Having again an interval of peace, Abderahman devoted himself to the
+education of his children. Suleiman, the eldest, he appointed Wali or
+governor of Toledo; Abdallah, the second, was intrusted with the command of
+Merida; but the third son, Hixem, was the delight of his heart, the son of
+Howara, his favorite sultana, whom he loved throughout life with the utmost
+tenderness. With this youth, who was full of promise, he relaxed from the
+fatigues of government; joining in his youthful sports amid the delightful
+gardens of Cordova, and teaching him the gentle art of falconry, of which
+the king was so fond that he received the name of the Falcon of Coraixi.
+
+While Abderahman was thus indulging in the gentle propensities of his
+nature, mischief was secretly at work. Muhamad, the youngest son of Yusuf,
+had been for many years a prisoner in the tower of Cordova. Being passive
+and resigned, his keepers relaxed their vigilance, and brought him forth
+from his dungeon. He went groping about, however, in broad daylight, as if
+still in the darkness of his tower. His guards watched him narrowly, lest
+this should be a deception, but were at length convinced that the long
+absence of light had rendered him blind. They now permitted him to descend
+frequently to the lower chambers of the tower, and to sleep there
+occasionally, during the heats of summer. They even allowed him to grope
+his way to the cistern, in quest of water for his ablutions.
+
+A year passed in this way without anything to excite suspicion. During all
+this time, however, the blindness of Muhamad was entirely a deception; and
+he was concerting a plan of escape, through the aid of some friends of his
+father, who found means to visit him occasionally. One sultry evening in
+midsummer, the guards had gone to bathe in the Guadalquivir, leaving
+Muhamad alone, in the lower chambers of the tower. No sooner were they out
+of sight and hearing than he hastened to a window of the staircase, leading
+down to the cistern, lowered himself as far as his arms would reach, and
+dropped without injury to the ground. Plunging into the Guadalquivir, he
+swam across to a thick grove on the opposite side, where his friends were
+waiting to receive him. Here, mounting a horse which they had provided for
+an event of the kind, he fled across the country, by solitary roads, and
+made good his escape to the mountains of Jaen.
+
+The guardians of the tower dreaded for some time to make known his flight
+to Abderahman. When at length it was told to him, he exclaimed: "All is the
+work of eternal wisdom; it is intended to teach us that we cannot benefit
+the wicked without injuring the good. The flight of that blind man will
+cause much trouble and bloodshed."
+
+His predictions were verified. Muhamad reared the standard of rebellion on
+the mountains; the seditious and discontented of all kinds hastened to join
+it, together with soldiers of fortune, or rather wandering banditti, and he
+had soon six thousand men, well armed, hardy in habits and desperate in
+character. His brother Casim also reappeared about the same time in the
+mountains of Ronda, at the head of a daring band that laid all the
+neighboring valleys under contribution.
+
+Abderahman summoned his alcaydes from their various military posts, to
+assist in driving the rebels from their mountain fastnesses into the
+plains. It was a dangerous and protracted toil, for the mountains were
+frightfully wild and rugged. He entered them with a powerful host, driving
+the rebels from height to height and valley to valley, and harassing them
+by a galling fire from thousands of crossbows. At length a decisive battle
+took place near the river Guadalemar. The rebels were signally defeated;
+four thousand fell in action, many were drowned in the river, and Muhamad,
+with a few horsemen, escaped to the mountains of the Algarves. Here he was
+hunted by the alcaydes from one desolate retreat to another; his few
+followers grew tired of sharing the disastrous fortunes of a fated man; one
+by one deserted him, and he himself deserted the remainder, fearing they
+might give him up, to purchase their own pardon.
+
+Lonely and disguised, he plunged into the depths of the forests, or lurked
+in dens and caverns, like a famished wolf, often casting back his thoughts
+with regret to the time of his captivity in the gloomy tower of Cordova.
+Hunger at length drove him to Alarcon, at the risk of being discovered.
+Famine and misery, however, had so wasted and changed him that he was not
+recognized. He remained nearly a year in Alarcon, unnoticed and unknown,
+yet constantly tormenting himself with the dread of discovery, and with
+groundless fears of the vengeance of Abderahman. Death at length put an end
+to his wretchedness.
+
+A milder fate attended his brother Casim. Being defeated in the mountains
+of Murcia, he was conducted in chains to Cordova. On coming into the
+presence of Abderahman, his once fierce and haughty spirit, broken by
+distress, gave way; he threw himself on the earth, kissed the dust beneath
+the feet of the king, and implored his clemency. The benignant heart of
+Abderahman was filled with melancholy, rather than exultation, at beholding
+this wreck of the once haughty family of Yusuf a suppliant at his feet, and
+suing for mere existence. He thought upon the mutability of fortune, and
+felt how insecure are all her favors. He raised the unhappy Casim from the
+earth, ordered his irons to be taken off, and, not content with mere
+forgiveness, treated him with honor, and gave him possessions in Seville,
+where he might live in state conformable to the ancient dignity of his
+family. Won by this great and persevering magnanimity, Casim ever after
+remained one of the most devoted of his subjects.
+
+All the enemies of Abderahman were at length subdued; he reigned undisputed
+sovereign of the Moslems of Spain; and so benign was his government that
+every one blessed the revival of the illustrious line of Omeya. He was at
+all times accessible to the humblest of his subjects: the poor man ever
+found in him a friend, and the oppressed a protector. He improved the
+administration of justice; established schools for public instruction;
+encouraged poets and men of letters, and cultivated the sciences. He built
+mosques in every city that he visited; inculcated religion by example as
+well as by precept; and celebrated all the festivals prescribed by the
+Koran with the utmost magnificence.
+
+As a monument of gratitude to God for the prosperity with which he had been
+favored, he undertook to erect a mosque in his favorite city of Cordova
+that should rival in splendor the great mosque of Damascus, and excel the
+one recently erected in Bagdad by the Abbassides, the supplanters of his
+family.
+
+It is said that he himself furnished the plan for this famous edifice, and
+even worked on it, with his own hands, one hour in each day, to testify his
+zeal and humility in the service of God, and to animate his workmen. He did
+not live to see it completed, but it was finished according to his plans by
+his son Hixem. When finished, it surpassed the most splendid mosques of the
+east. It was six hundred feet in length, and two hundred and fifty in
+breadth. Within were twenty-eight aisles, crossed by nineteen, supported by
+a thousand and ninety-three columns of marble. There were nineteen portals,
+covered with plates of bronze of rare workmanship. The principal portal was
+covered with plates of gold. On the summit of the grand cupola were three
+gilt balls surmounted by a golden pomegranate. At night, the mosque was
+illuminated with four thousand seven hundred lamps, and great sums were
+expended in amber and aloes, which were burned as perfumes. The mosque
+remains to this day, shorn of its ancient splendor, yet still one of the
+grandest Moslem monuments in Spain.
+
+Finding himself advancing in years, Abderahman assembled in his capital of
+Cordova the principal governors and commanders of his kingdom, and in
+presence of them all, with great solemnity, nominated his son Hixem as the
+successor to the throne. All present made an oath of fealty to Abderahman
+during his life, and to Hixem after his death. The prince was younger than
+his brothers, Suleiman and Abdallah; but he was the son of Howara, the
+tenderly beloved sultana of Abderahman, and her influence, it is said,
+gained him this preference.
+
+Within a few months afterward, Abderahman fell grievously sick at Merida.
+Finding his end approaching, he summoned Hixem to his bedside: "My son,"
+said he, "the angel of death is hovering over me; treasure up, therefore,
+in thy heart this dying counsel, which I give through the great love I bear
+thee. Remember that all empire is from God, who gives and takes it away,
+according to his pleasure. Since God, through his divine goodness, has
+given us regal power and authority, let us do his holy will, which is
+nothing else than to do good to all men, and especially to those committed
+to our protection. Render equal justice, my son, to the rich and the poor,
+and never suffer injustice to be done within thy dominion, for it is the
+road to perdition. Be merciful and benignant to those dependent upon thee.
+Confide the government of thy cities and provinces to men of worth and
+experience; punish without compassion those ministers who oppress thy
+people with exorbitant exactions. Pay thy troops punctually; teach them to
+feel a certainty in thy promises; command them with gentleness but
+firmness, and make them in truth the defenders of the state, not its
+destroyers. Cultivate unceasingly the affections of thy people, for in
+their good-will consists the security of the state, in their distrust its
+peril, in their hatred its certain ruin. Protect the husbandmen who
+cultivate the earth, and yield us necessary sustenance; never permit their
+fields, and groves, and gardens to be disturbed. In a word, act in such
+wise that thy people may bless thee, and may enjoy, under the shadow of thy
+wing, a secure and tranquil life. In this consists good government; if thou
+dost practice it, thou wilt be happy among thy people, and renowned
+throughout the world."
+
+Having given this excellent counsel, the good king Abderahman blessed his
+son Hixem, and shortly after died; being but in the sixtieth year of his
+age. He was interred with great pomp; but the highest honors that
+distinguished his funeral were the tears of real sorrow shed upon his
+grave. He left behind him a name for valor, justice, and magnanimity, and
+forever famous as being the founder of the glorious line of the Ommiades in
+Spain.
+
+
+
+
+THE WIDOW'S ORDEAL
+
+OR A JUDICIAL TRIAL BY COMBAT
+
+
+The world is daily growing older and wiser. Its institutions vary with its
+years, and mark its growing wisdom; and none more so than its modes of
+investigating truth, and ascertaining guilt or innocence. In its nonage,
+when man was yet a fallible being, and doubted the accuracy of his own
+intellect, appeals were made to heaven in dark and doubtful cases of
+atrocious accusation.
+
+The accused was required to plunge his hand in boiling oil, or to walk
+across red-hot plowshares, or to maintain his innocence in armed fight and
+listed field, in person or by champion. If he passed these ordeals
+unscathed, he stood acquitted, and the result was regarded as a verdict
+from on high.
+
+It is somewhat remarkable that, in the gallant age of chivalry, the gentler
+sex should have been most frequently the subjects of these rude trials and
+perilous ordeals; and that, too, when assailed in their most delicate and
+vulnerable part--their honor.
+
+In the present very old and enlightened age of the world, when the human
+intellect is perfectly competent to the management of its own concerns, and
+needs no special interposition of heaven in its affairs, the trial by jury
+has superseded these superhuman ordeals; and the unanimity of twelve
+discordant minds is necessary to constitute a verdict. Such a unanimity
+would, at first sight, appear also to require a miracle from heaven; but it
+is produced by a simple device of human ingenuity. The twelve jurors are
+locked up in their box, there to fast until abstinence shall have so
+clarified their intellects that the whole jarring panel can discern the
+truth, and concur in a unanimous decision. One point is certain, that truth
+is one and is immutable--until the jurors all agree, they cannot all be
+right.
+
+It is not our intention, however, to discuss this great judicial point, or
+to question the avowed superiority of the mode of investigating truth
+adopted in this antiquated and very sagacious era. It is our object merely
+to exhibit to the curious reader one of the most memorable cases of
+judicial combat we find in the annals of Spain. It occurred at the bright
+commencement of the reign, and in the youthful, and, as yet, glorious days,
+of Roderick the Goth; who subsequently tarnished his fame at home by his
+misdeeds, and, finally, lost his kingdom and his life on the banks of the
+Guadalete, in that disastrous battle which gave up Spain a conquest to the
+Moors. The following is the story:
+
+There was once upon a time a certain duke of Lorraine, who was acknowledged
+throughout his domains to be one of the wisest princes that ever lived. In
+fact, there was no one measure adopted by him that did not astonish his
+privy counselors and gentlemen in attendance; and he said such witty
+things, and made such sensible speeches, that the jaws of his high
+chamberlain were wellnigh dislocated from laughing with delight at one, and
+gaping with wonder at the other.
+
+This very witty and exceedingly wise potentate lived for half a century in
+single blessedness; at length his courtiers began to think it a great pity
+so wise and wealthy a prince should not have a child after his own
+likeness, to inherit his talents and domains; so they urged him most
+respectfully to marry, for the good of his estate, and the welfare of his
+subjects.
+
+He turned their advice over in his mind some four or five years, and then
+sent forth emissaries to summon to his court all the beautiful maidens in
+the land who were ambitious of sharing a ducal crown. The court was soon
+crowded with beauties of all styles and complexions, from among whom he
+chose one in the earliest budding of her charms, and acknowledged by all
+the gentlemen to be unparalleled for grace and loveliness. The courtiers
+extolled the duke to the skies for making such a choice, and considered it
+another proof of his great wisdom. "The duke," said they, "is waxing a
+little too old, the damsel, on the other hand, is a little too young; if
+one is lacking in years, the other has a superabundance; thus a want on one
+side is balanced by the excess on the other, and the result is a
+well-assorted marriage."
+
+The duke, as is often the case with wise men who marry rather late, and
+take damsels rather youthful to their bosoms, became dotingly fond of his
+wife, and very properly indulged her in all things. He was, consequently,
+cried up by his subjects in general, and by the ladies in particular, as a
+pattern for husbands; and, in the end, from the wonderful docility with
+which he submitted to be reined and checked, acquired the amiable and
+enviable appellation of Duke Philibert the wife-ridden.
+
+There was only one thing that disturbed the conjugal felicity of this
+paragon of husbands--though a considerable tine elapsed after his marriage,
+there was still no prospect of an heir. The good duke left no means untried
+to propitiate heaven. He made vows and pilgrimages, he fasted and he
+prayed, but all to no purpose. The courtiers were all astonished at the
+circumstance. They could not account for it. While the meanest peasant in
+the country had sturdy brats by dozens, without putting up a prayer, the
+duke wore himself to skin and bone with penances and fastings, yet seemed
+further off from his object than ever.
+
+At length, the worthy prince fell dangerously ill, and felt his end
+approaching. He looked sorrowfully and dubiously upon his young and tender
+spouse, who hung over him with tears and sobbings. "Alas!" said he, "tears
+are soon dried from youthful eyes, and sorrow lies lightly on a youthful
+heart. In a little while thou wilt forget in the arms of another husband
+him who has loved thee so tenderly."
+
+"Never! never!" cried the duchess. "Never will I cleave to another! Alas,
+that my lord should think me capable of such inconstancy!"
+
+The worthy and wife-ridden duke was soothed by her assurances; for he could
+not brook the thought of giving her up even after he should be dead. Still
+he wished to have some pledge of her enduring constancy:
+
+"Far be it from me, my dearest wife," said he, "to control thee through a
+long life. A year and a day of strict fidelity will appease my troubled
+spirit. Promise to remain faithful to my memory for a year and a day, and I
+will die in peace."
+
+The duchess made a solemn vow to that effect, but the uxorious feelings of
+the duke were not yet satisfied. "Safe bind, safe find," thought he; so he
+made a will, bequeathing to her all his domains, on condition of her
+remaining true to him for a year and a day after his decease; but, should
+it appear that, within that time, she had in anywise lapsed from her
+fidelity, the inheritance should go to his nephew, the lord of a
+neighboring territory.
+
+Having made his will, the good duke died and was buried. Scarcely was he in
+his tomb, when his nephew came to take possession, thinking, as his uncle
+had died without issue, the domains would be devised to him of course. He
+was in a furious passion, when the will was produced, and the young widow
+declared inheritor of the dukedom. As he was a violent, high-handed man,
+and one of the sturdiest knights in the land, fears were entertained that
+he might attempt to seize on the territories by force. He had, however, two
+bachelor uncles for bosom counselors, swaggering, rakehelly old cavaliers,
+who, having led loose and riotous lives, prided themselves upon knowing the
+world, and being deeply experienced in human nature. "Prithee, man, be of
+good cheer," said they, "the duchess is a young and buxom widow. She has
+just buried our brother, who, God rest his soul! was somewhat too much
+given to praying and fasting, and kept his pretty wife always tied to his
+girdle. She is now like a bird from a cage. Think you she will keep her
+vow? Pooh, pooh--impossible! Take our words for it--we know mankind, and,
+above all, womankind. She cannot hold out for such a length of time; it is
+not in womanhood--it is not in widowhood--we know it, and that's enough.
+Keep a sharp lookout upon the widow, therefore, and within the twelvemonth
+you will catch her tripping--and then the dukedom is your own."
+
+The nephew was pleased with this counsel, and immediately placed spies
+round the duchess, and bribed several of her servants to keep watch upon
+her, so that she could not take a single step, even from one apartment of
+her palace to another, without being observed. Never was young and
+beautiful widow exposed to so terrible an ordeal.
+
+The duchess was aware of the watch thus kept upon her. Though confident of
+her own rectitude, she knew that it is not enough for a woman to be
+virtuous--she must be above the reach of slander. For the whole term of her
+probation, therefore, she proclaimed a strict non-intercourse with the
+other sex. She had females for cabinet ministers and chamberlains, through
+whom she transacted all her public and private concerns; and it is said
+that never were the affairs of the dukedom so adroitly administered.
+
+All males were rigorously excluded from the palace; she never went out of
+its precincts, and whenever she moved about its courts and gardens she
+surrounded herself with a bodyguard of young maids of honor, commanded by
+dames renowned for discretion. She slept in a bed without curtains, placed
+in the center of a room illuminated by innumerable wax tapers. Four ancient
+spinsters, virtuous as Virginia, perfect dragons of watchfulness, who only
+slept during the daytime, kept vigils throughout the night, seated in the
+four corners of the room on stools without backs or arms, and with seats
+cut in checkers of the hardest wood, to keep them from dozing.
+
+Thus wisely and warily did the young duchess conduct herself for twelve
+long months, and slander almost bit her tongue off in despair, at finding
+no room even for a surmise. Never was ordeal more burdensome, or more
+enduringly sustained.
+
+
+The year passed away. The last, odd day, arrived, and a long, long day it
+was. It was the twenty-first of June, the longest day in the year. It
+seemed as if it would never come to an end. A thousand times did the
+duchess and her ladies watch the sun from the windows of the palace, as he
+slowly climbed the vault of heaven, and seemed still more slowly to roll
+down. They could not help expressing their wonder, now and then, why the
+duke should have tagged this supernumerary day to the end of the year, as
+if three hundred and sixty-five days were not sufficient to try and task
+the fidelity of any woman. It is the last grain that turns the scale--the
+last drop that overflows the goblet--and the last moment of delay that
+exhausts the patience. By the time the sun sank below the horizon, the
+duchess was in a fidget that passed all bounds, and, though several hours
+were yet to pass before the day regularly expired, she could not have
+remained those hours in durance to gain a royal crown, much less a ducal
+coronet. So she gave orders, and her palfrey, magnificently caparisoned,
+was brought into the courtyard of the castle, with palfreys for all her
+ladies in attendance. In this way she sallied forth, just as the sun had
+gone down. It was a mission of piety--a pilgrim cavalcade to a convent at
+the foot of a neighboring mountain--to return thanks to the blessed Virgin,
+for having sustained her through this fearful ordeal.
+
+The orisons performed, the duchess and her ladies returned, ambling gently
+along the border of a forest. It was about that mellow hour of twilight
+when night and day are mingled and all objects are indistinct. Suddenly,
+some monstrous animal sprang from out a thicket, with fearful howlings. The
+female bodyguard was thrown into confusion, and fled different ways. It was
+some time before they recovered from their panic, and gathered once more
+together; but the duchess was not to be found. The greatest anxiety was
+felt for her safety. The hazy mist of twilight had prevented their
+distinguishing perfectly the animal which had affrighted them. Some thought
+it a wolf, others a bear, others a wild man of the woods. For upward of an
+hour did they beleaguer the forest, without daring to venture in, and were
+on the point of giving up the duchess as torn to pieces and devoured, when,
+to their great joy, they beheld her advancing in the gloom, supported by a
+stately cavalier.
+
+He was a stranger knight, whom nobody knew. It was impossible to
+distinguish his countenance in the dark; but all the ladies agreed that he
+was of noble presence and captivating address. He had rescued the duchess
+from the very fangs of the monster, which, he assured the ladies, was
+neither a wolf, nor a bear, nor yet a wild man of the woods, but a
+veritable fiery dragon, a species of monster peculiarly hostile to
+beautiful females in the days of chivalry, and which all the efforts of
+knight-errantry had not been able to extirpate.
+
+The ladies crossed themselves when they heard of the danger from which they
+had escaped, and could not enough admire the gallantry of the cavalier. The
+duchess would fain have prevailed on her deliverer to accompany her to her
+court; but he had no time to spare, being a knight-errant, who had many
+adventures on hand, and many distressed damsels and afflicted widows to
+rescue and relieve in various parts of the country. Taking a respectful
+leave, therefore, he pursued his wayfaring, and the duchess and her train
+returned to the palace. Throughout the whole way, the ladies were unwearied
+in chanting the praises of the stranger knight, nay, many of them would
+willingly have incurred the danger of the dragon to have enjoyed the happy
+deliverance of the duchess. As to the latter, she rode pensively along, but
+said nothing.
+
+No sooner was the adventure of the wood made public than a whirlwind was
+raised about the ears of the beautiful duchess. The blustering nephew of
+the deceased duke went about, armed to the teeth, with a swaggering uncle
+at each shoulder, ready to back him, and swore the duchess had forfeited
+her domain. It was in vain that she called all the saints, and angels, and
+her ladies in attendance into the bargain, to witness that she had passed a
+year and a day of immaculate fidelity. One fatal hour remained to be
+accounted for; and into the space of one little hour sins enough may be
+conjured up by evil tongues to blast the fame of a whole life of virtue.
+
+The two graceless uncles, who had seen the world, were ever ready to
+bolster the matter through, and as they were brawny, broad-shouldered
+warriors, and veterans in brawl as well as debauch, they had great sway
+with the multitude. If any one pretended to assert the innocence of the
+duchess, they interrupted him with a loud ha! ha! of derision. "A pretty
+story, truly," would they cry, "about a wolf and a dragon, and a young
+widow rescued in the dark by a sturdy varlet who dares not show his face in
+the daylight. You may tell that to those who do not know human nature, for
+our parts, we know the sex, and that's enough."
+
+If, however, the other repeated his assertion, they would suddenly knit
+their brows, swell, look big, and put their hands upon their swords. As few
+people like to fight in a cause that does not touch their own interests,
+the nephew and the uncles were suffered to have their way, and swagger
+uncontradicted.
+
+The matter was at length referred to a tribunal, composed of all the
+dignitaries of the dukedom, and many and repeated consultations were held.
+The character of the duchess throughout the year was as bright and spotless
+as the moon in a cloudless night; one fatal hour of darkness alone
+intervened to eclipse its brightness. Finding human sagacity incapable of
+dispelling the mystery, it was determined to leave the question to heaven;
+or, in other words, to decide it by the ordeal of the sword--a sage
+tribunal in the age of chivalry. The nephew and two bully uncles were to
+maintain their accusation in listed combat, and six months were allowed to
+the duchess to provide herself with three champions to meet them in the
+field. Should she fail in this, or should her champions be vanquished, her
+honor would be considered as attainted, her fidelity as forfeit, and her
+dukedom would go to the nephew, as a matter of right.
+
+With this determination the duchess was fain to comply. Proclamations were
+accordingly made, and heralds sent to various parts; but day after day,
+week after week, and month after month elapsed without any champion
+appearing to assert her loyalty throughout that darksome hour. The fair
+widow was reduced to despair, when tidings reached her of grand tournaments
+to be held at Toledo, in celebration of the nuptials of Don Roderick, the
+last of the Gothic kings, with the Morisco princess Exilona. As a last
+resort, the duchess repaired to the Spanish court, to implore the gallantry
+of its assembled chivalry.
+
+The ancient city of Toledo was a scene of gorgeous revelry on the event of
+the royal nuptials. The youthful king, brave, ardent, and magnificent, and
+his lovely bride, beaming with all the radiant beauty of the East, were
+hailed with shouts and acclamations whenever they appeared. Their nobles
+vied with each other in the luxury of their attire, their prancing steeds,
+and splendid retinues; and the haughty dames of the court appeared in a
+blaze of jewels.
+
+In the midst of all this pageantry, the beautiful, but afflicted Duchess of
+Lorraine made her approach to the throne. She was dressed in black, and
+closely veiled; for duennas of the most staid and severe aspect, and six
+beautiful demoiselles, formed her female attendants. She was guarded by
+several very ancient, withered, and grayheaded cavaliers; and her train was
+borne by one of the most deformed and diminutive dwarfs in existence.
+
+Advancing to the foot of the throne, she knelt down, and, throwing up her
+veil, revealed a countenance so beautiful that half the courtiers present
+were ready to renounce wives and mistresses, and devote themselves to her
+service; but when she made known that she came in quest of champions to
+defend her fame, every cavalier pressed forward to offer his arm and sword,
+without inquiring into the merits of the case; for it seemed clear that so
+beauteous a lady could have done nothing but what was right; and that, at
+any rate, she ought to be championed in following the bent of her humors,
+whether right or wrong.
+
+Encouraged by such gallant zeal, the duchess suffered herself to be raised
+from the ground, and related the whole story of her distress. When she
+concluded, the king remained for some time silent, charmed by the music of
+her voice. At length: "As I hope for salvation, most beautiful duchess,"
+said he, "were I not a sovereign king, and bound in duty to my kingdom, I
+myself would put lance in rest to vindicate your cause; as it is, I here
+give full permission to my knights, and promise lists and a fair field, and
+that the contest shall take place before the walls of Toledo, in presence
+of my assembled court."
+
+As soon as the pleasure of the king was known, there was a strife among the
+cavaliers present for the honor of the contest. It was decided by lot, and
+the successful candidates were objects of great envy, for every one was
+ambitious of finding favor in the eyes of the beautiful widow.
+
+Missives were sent, summoning the nephew and his two uncles to Toledo, to
+maintain their accusation, and a day was appointed for the combat. When the
+day arrived, all Toledo was in commotion at an early hour. The lists had
+been prepared in the usual place, just without the walls, at the foot of
+the rugged rocks on which the city is built, and on that beautiful meadow
+along the Tagus, known by the name of the king's garden. The populace had
+already assembled, each one eager to secure a favorable place; the
+balconies were filled with the ladies of the court, clad in their richest
+attire, and bands of youthful knights, splendidly armed and decorated with
+their ladies' devices, were managing their superbly caparisoned steeds
+about the field. The king at length came forth in state, accompanied by the
+queen Exilona. They took their seats in a raised balcony, under a canopy of
+rich damask; and, at sight of them, the people rent the air with
+acclamations.
+
+The nephew and his uncles now rode into the field, armed cap-a-pie, and
+followed by a train of cavaliers of their own roistering cast, great
+swearers and carousers, arrant swashbucklers, with clanking armor and
+jingling spurs. When the people of Toledo beheld the vaunting and
+discourteous appearance of these knights, they were more anxious than ever
+for the success of the gentle duchess; but, at the same time, the sturdy
+and stalwart frames of these warriors showed that whoever won the victory
+from them must do it at the cost of many a bitter blow.
+
+As the nephew and his riotous crew rode in at one side of the field, the
+fair widow appeared at the other, with her suite of grave grayheaded
+courtiers, her ancient duennas and dainty demoiselles, and the little dwarf
+toiling along under the weight of her train. Every one made way for her as
+she passed, and blessed her beautiful face, and prayed for success to her
+cause. She took her seat in a lower balcony, not far from the sovereigns;
+and her pale face, set off by her mourning weeds, was as the moon shining
+forth from among the clouds of night.
+
+The trumpets sounded for the combat. The warriors were just entering the
+lists, when a stranger knight, armed in panoply, and followed by two pages
+and an esquire, came galloping into the field, and, riding up to the royal
+balcony, claimed the combat as a matter of right.
+
+"In me," cried he, "behold the cavalier who had the happiness to rescue the
+beautiful duchess from the peril of the forest, and the misfortune to bring
+on her this grievous calumny. It was but recently, in the course of my
+errantry, that tidings of her wrongs have reached my ears, and I have urged
+hither at all speed, to stand forth in her vindication."
+
+No sooner did the duchess hear the accents of the knight than she
+recognized his voice, and joined her prayers with his that he might enter
+the lists. The difficulty was, to determine which of the three champions
+already appointed should yield his place, each insisting on the honor of
+the combat. The stranger knight would have settled the point, by taking the
+whole contest upon himself; but this the other knights would not permit. It
+was at length determined, as before, by lot, and the cavalier who lost the
+chance retired murmuring and disconsolate.
+
+The trumpets again sounded--the lists were opened. The arrogant nephew and
+his two drawcansir uncles appeared so completely cased in steel that they
+and their steeds were like moving masses of iron. When they understood the
+stranger knight to be the same that had rescued the duchess from her peril,
+they greeted him with the most boisterous derision:
+
+"Oh, ho! sir Knight of the Dragon," said they, "you who pretend to champion
+fair widows in the dark, come on, and vindicate your deeds of darkness in
+the open day."
+
+The only reply of the cavalier was to put lance in rest, and brace himself
+for the encounter. Needless is it to relate the particulars of a battle,
+which was like so many hundred combats that have been said and sung in
+prose and verse. Who is there but must have foreseen the event of a
+contest, where Heaven had to decide on the guilt or innocence of the most
+beautiful and immaculate of widows?
+
+The sagacious reader, deeply read in this kind of judicial combats, can
+imagine the encounter of the graceless nephew and the stranger knight. He
+sees their concussion, man to man, and horse to horse, in mid career, and
+Sir Graceless hurled to the ground and slain. He will not wonder that the
+assailants of the brawny uncles were less successful in their rude
+encounter; but he will picture to himself the stout stranger spurring to
+their rescue, in the very critical moment; he will see him transfixing one
+with his lance, and cleaving the other to the chine with a back stroke of
+his sword, thus leaving the trio of accusers dead upon the field, and
+establishing the immaculate fidelity of the duchess, and her title to the
+dukedom, beyond the shadow of a doubt.
+
+The air rang with acclamations; nothing was heard but praises of the beauty
+and virtue of the duchess, and of the prowess of the stranger knight; but
+the public joy was still more increased when the champion raised his visor,
+and revealed the countenance of one of the bravest cavaliers of Spain,
+renowned for his gallantry in the service of the sex, and who had been
+round the world in quest of similar adventures.
+
+That worthy knight, however, was severely wounded, and remained for a long
+time ill of his wounds. The lovely duchess, grateful for having twice owed
+her protection to his arm, attended him daily during his illness; and
+finally rewarded his gallantry with her hand.
+
+The king would fain have had the knight establish his title to such high
+advancement by further deeds of arms; but his courtiers declared that he
+already merited the lady, by thus vindicating her fame and fortune in a
+deadly combat _a outrance_; and the lady herself hinted that she was
+perfectly satisfied of his prowess in arms, from the proofs she had
+received in his achievement in the forest.
+
+Their nuptials were celebrated with great magnificence. The present husband
+of the duchess did not pray and fast like his predecessor, Philibert the
+wife-ridden; yet he found greater favor in the eyes of heaven, for their
+union was blessed with a numerous progeny--the daughters chaste and
+beauteous as their mother; the sons stout and valiant as their sire, and
+renowned, like him, for relieving disconsolate damsels and desolated
+widows.
+
+
+
+
+THE CREOLE VILLAGE
+
+A SKETCH FROM A STEAMBOAT
+
+First published in 1887
+
+
+In traveling about our motley country, I am often reminded of Ariosto's
+account of the moon, in which the good paladin Astolpho found everything
+garnered up that had been lost on earth. So I am apt to imagine, that many
+things lost in the old world are treasured up in the new; having been
+handed down from generation to generation, since the early days of the
+colonies. A European antiquary, therefore, curious in his researches after
+the ancient and almost obliterated customs and usages of his country, would
+do well to put himself upon the track of some early band of emigrants,
+follow them across the Atlantic, and rummage among their descendants on our
+shores.
+
+In the phraseology of New England might be found many an old English
+provincial phrase, long since obsolete in the parent country; with some
+quaint relics of the roundheads; while Virginia cherishes peculiarities
+characteristic of the days of Elizabeth and Sir Walter Raleigh.
+
+In the same way the sturdy yeomanry of New Jersey and Pennsylvania keep up
+many usages fading away in ancient Germany; while many an honest,
+broad-bottomed custom, nearly extinct in venerable Holland, may be found
+flourishing in pristine vigor and luxuriance in Dutch villages, on the
+banks of the Mohawk and the Hudson.
+
+In no part of our country, however, are the customs and peculiarities,
+imported from the old world by the earlier settlers, kept up with more
+fidelity than in the little, poverty-stricken villages of Spanish and
+French origin, which border the rivers of ancient Louisiana. Their
+population is generally made up of the descendants of those nations,
+married and interwoven together, and occasionally crossed with a slight
+dash of the Indian. The French character, however, floats on top, as, from
+its buoyant qualities, it is sure to do, whenever it forms a particle,
+however small, of an intermixture.
+
+In these serene and dilapidated villages, art and nature stand still, and
+the world forgets to turn round. The revolutions that distract other parts
+of this mutable planet reach not here, or pass over without leaving any
+trace. The fortunate inhabitants have none of that public spirit which
+extends its cares beyond its horizon, and imports trouble and perplexity
+from all quarters in newspapers. In fact, newspapers are almost unknown in
+these villages, and as French is the current language, the inhabitants have
+little community of opinion with their republican neighbors. They retain,
+therefore, their old habits of passive obedience to the decrees of
+government, as though they still lived under the absolute sway of colonial
+commandants, instead of being part and parcel of the sovereign people, and
+having a voice in public legislation.
+
+A few aged men, who have grown gray on their hereditary acres, and are of
+the good old colonial stock, exert a patriarchal sway in all matters of
+public and private import; their opinions are considered oracular, and
+their word is law.
+
+The inhabitants, moreover, have none of that eagerness for gain and rage
+for improvement which keep our people continually on the move, and our
+country towns incessantly in a state of transition. There the magic
+phrases, "town lots," "water privileges," "railroads," and other
+comprehensive and soul-stirring words from the speculator's vocabulary, are
+never heard. The residents dwell in the houses built by their forefathers,
+without thinking of enlarging or modernizing them, or pulling them down and
+turning them into granite stores. The trees, under which they have been
+born and have played in infancy, flourish undisturbed; though, by cutting
+them down, they might open new streets, and put money in their pockets. In
+a word, the almighty dollar, that great object of universal devotion
+throughout our land, seems to have no genuine devotees in these peculiar
+villages; and unless some of its missionaries penetrate there, and erect
+banking houses and other pious shrines, there is no knowing how long the
+inhabitants may remain in their present state of contented poverty.
+
+In descending one of our great Western rivers in a steam-boat, I met with
+two worthies from one of these villages, who had been on a distant
+excursion, the longest they had ever made, as they seldom ventured far from
+home. One was the great man, or grand seigneur, of the village; not that he
+enjoyed any legal privileges or power there, everything of the kind having
+been done away when the province was ceded by France to the United States.
+His sway over his neighbors was merely one of custom and convention, out of
+deference to his family. Beside, he was worth full fifty thousand dollars,
+an amount almost equal, in the imaginations of the villagers, to the
+treasures of King Solomon.
+
+This very substantial old gentleman, though of the fourth or fifth
+generation in this country, retained the true Gallic feature and
+deportment, and reminded me of one of those provincial potentates that are
+to be met with in the remote parts of France. He was of a large frame, a
+ginger-bread complexion, strong features, eyes that stood out like glass
+knobs, and a prominent nose, which he frequently regaled from a gold
+snuff-box, and occasionally blew, with a colored handkerchief, until it
+sounded like a trumpet.
+
+He was attended by an old negro, as black as ebony, with a huge mouth in a
+continual grin; evidently a privileged and favorite servant, who had grown
+up and grown old with him. He was dressed in creole style--with white
+jacket and trousers, a stiff shirt collar that threatened to cut off his
+ears, a bright Madras handkerchief tied round his head, and large gold
+earrings. He was the politest negro I met with in a Western tour; and that
+is saying a great deal, for, excepting the Indians, the negroes are the
+most gentlemanlike personages to be met with in those parts. It is true,
+they differ from the Indians in being a little extra polite and
+complimentary. He was also one of the merriest; and here, too, the negroes,
+however we may deplore their unhappy condition, have the advantage of their
+masters. The whites are, in general, too free and prosperous to be merry.
+The cares of maintaining their rights and liberties, adding to their
+wealth, and making presidents, engross all their thoughts, and dry up all
+the moisture of their souls. If you hear a broad, hearty, devil-may-care
+laugh, be assured it is a negro's.
+
+Besides this African domestic, the seigneur of the village had another no
+less cherished and privileged attendant. This was a huge dog, of the
+mastiff breed, with a deep, hanging mouth, and a look of surly gravity. He
+walked about the cabin with the air of a dog perfectly at home, and who had
+paid for his passage. At dinner time he took his seat beside his master,
+giving him a glance now and then out of a corner of his eye, which bespoke
+perfect confidence that he would not be forgotten. Nor was he--every now
+and then a huge morsel would be thrown to him, peradventure the half-picked
+leg of a fowl, which he would receive with a snap like the springing of a
+steel-trap--one gulp, and all was down; and a glance of the eye told his
+master that he was ready for another consignment.
+
+The other village worthy, traveling in company with the seigneur, was of a
+totally different stamp. Small, thin, and weazen faced, as Frenchmen are
+apt to be represented in caricature, with a bright, squirrel-like eye, and
+a gold ring in his ear. His dress was flimsy, and sat loosely on his frame,
+and he had altogether the look of one with but little coin in his pocket.
+Yet, though one of the poorest, I was assured he was one of the merriest
+and most popular personages in his native village.
+
+Compere Martin, as he was commonly called, was the factotum of the
+place-sportsman, schoolmaster, and land surveyor. He could sing, dance,
+and, above all, play on the fiddle, an invaluable accomplishment in an old
+French Creole village, for the inhabitants have a hereditary love for balls
+and fetes; if they work but little, they dance a great deal, and a fiddle
+is the joy of their heart.
+
+What had sent Compere Martin traveling with the grand seigneur I could not
+learn; he evidently looked up to him with great deference, and was
+assiduous in rendering him petty attentions; from which I concluded that he
+lived at home upon the crumbs which fell from his table. He was gayest when
+out of his sight; and had his song and his joke when forward, among the
+deck passengers; but altogether Compere Martin was out of his element on
+board of a steamboat. He was quite another being, I am told, when at home
+in his own village.
+
+Like his opulent fellow-traveler, he too had his canine follower and
+retainer--and one suited to his different fortunes--one of the civilest,
+most unoffending little dogs in the world. Unlike the lordly mastiff, he
+seemed to think he had no right on board of the steamboat; if you did but
+look hard at him, he would throw himself upon his back, and lift up his
+legs, as if imploring mercy.
+
+At table he took his seat a little distance from his master; not with the
+bluff, confident air of the mastiff, but quietly and diffidently, his head
+on one side, with one ear dubiously slouched, the other hopefully cocked
+up; his under teeth projecting beyond his black nose, and his eye wistfully
+following each morsel that went into his master's mouth.
+
+If Compere Martin now and then should venture to abstract a morsel from his
+plate to give to his humble companion, it was edifying to see with what
+diffidence the exemplary little animal would take hold of it, with the very
+tip of his teeth, as if he would almost rather not, or was fearful of
+taking too great a liberty. And then with what decorum would he eat it! How
+many efforts would he make in swallowing it, as if it stuck in his throat;
+with what daintiness would he lick his lips; and then with what an air of
+thankfulness would he resume his seat, with his teeth once more projecting
+beyond his nose, and an eye of humble expectation fixed upon his master.
+
+It was late in the afternoon when the steamboat stopped at the village
+which was the residence of these worthies. It stood on the high bank of the
+river, and bore traces of having been a frontier trading post. There were
+the remains of stockades that once protected it from the Indians, and the
+houses were in the ancient Spanish and French colonial taste, the place
+having been successively under the domination of both those nations prior
+to the cession of Louisiana to the United States.
+
+The arrival of the seigneur of fifty thousand dollars, and his humble
+companion, Compere Martin, had evidently been looked forward to as an event
+in the village. Numbers of men, women, and children, white, yellow, and
+black, were collected on the river bank; most of them clad in old-fashioned
+French garments, and their heads decorated with colored handkerchiefs, or
+white nightcaps. The moment the steamboat came within sight and hearing,
+there was a waving of handkerchiefs, and a screaming and bawling of
+salutations, and felicitations, that baffle all description.
+
+The old gentleman of fifty thousand dollars was received by a train of
+relatives, and friends, and children, and grandchildren, whom he kissed on
+each cheek, and who formed a procession in his rear, with a legion of
+domestics, of all ages, following him to a large, old-fashioned French
+house, that domineered over the village.
+
+His black valet de chambre, in white jacket and trousers, and gold
+earrings, was met on the shore by a boon, though rustic companion, a tall
+negro fellow, with a long good-humored face, and the profile of a horse,
+which stood out from beneath a narrow-rimmed straw hat, stuck on the back
+of his head. The explosions of laughter of these two varlets on meeting and
+exchanging compliments were enough to electrify the country round.
+
+The most hearty reception, however, was that given to Compere Martin.
+Everybody, young and old, hailed him before he got to land. Everybody had a
+joke for Compere Martin, and Compere Martin had a joke for everybody. Even
+his little dog appeared to partake of his popularity, and to be caressed by
+every hand. Indeed, he was quite a different animal the moment he touched
+the land. Here he was at home; here he was of consequence. He barked, he
+leaped, he frisked about his old friends, and then would skim round the
+place in a wide circle, as if mad.
+
+I traced Compere Martin and his little dog to their home. It was an old
+ruinous Spanish house, of large dimensions, with verandas overshadowed by
+ancient elms. The house had probably been the residence, in old times, of
+the Spanish commandant. In one wing of this crazy, but aristocratical
+abode, was nestled the family of my fellow-traveler; for poor devils are
+apt to be magnificently clad and lodged, in the cast-off clothes and
+abandoned palaces of the great and wealthy.
+
+The arrival of Compere Martin was welcomed by a legion of women, children,
+and mongrel curs; and, as poverty and gayety generally go hand in hand
+among the French and their descendants, the crazy mansion soon resounded
+with loud gossip and light-hearted laughter.
+
+As the steamboat paused a short time at the village, I took occasion to
+stroll about the place. Most of the houses were in the French taste, with
+casements and rickety verandas, but most of them in flimsy and ruinous
+condition. All the wagons, plows, and other utensils about the place were
+of ancient and inconvenient Gallic construction, such as had been brought
+from France in the primitive days of the colony. The very looks of the
+people reminded me of the villages of France.
+
+From one of the houses came the hum of a spinning wheel, accompanied by a
+scrap of an old French chanson, which I have heard many a time among the
+peasantry of Languedoc, doubtless a traditional song, brought over by the
+first French emigrants, and handed down from generation to generation.
+
+Half a dozen young lasses emerged from the adjacent dwellings, reminding
+me, by their light step and gay costume, of scenes in ancient France, where
+taste in dress comes natural to every class of females. The trim bodice and
+covered petticoat, and little apron, with its pockets to receive the hands
+when in an attitude for conversation; the colored kerchief wound tastefully
+round the head, with a coquettish knot perking above one ear; and the neat
+slipper and tight drawn stocking with its braid of narrow ribbon embracing
+the ankle where it peeps from its mysterious curtain. It is from this
+ambush that Cupid sends his most inciting arrows.
+
+While I was musing upon the recollections thus accidentally summoned up, I
+heard the sound of a fiddle from the mansion of Compere Martin, the signal,
+no doubt, for a joyous gathering. I was disposed to turn my steps thither,
+and witness the festivities of one of the very few villages I had met with
+in my wide tour that was yet poor enough to be merry; but the bell of the
+steamboat summoned me to re-embark.
+
+As we swept away from the shore, I cast back a wistful eye upon the
+moss-grown roofs and ancient elms of the village, and prayed that the
+inhabitants might long retain their happy ignorance, their absence of all
+enterprise and improvement, their respect for the fiddle, and their
+contempt for the almighty dollar. [Footnote: This phrase, used for the
+first time in this sketch, has since passed into current circulation, and
+by some has been questioned as savoring I fear, however, my prayer is of
+irreverence. The author, therefore, owes it to his orthodoxy to declare
+that no irreverence was intended even to the dollar itself; which he is
+aware is daily becoming more and more an object of worship.] I fear,
+however, my prayer is doomed to be of no avail. In a little while the
+steamboat whirled me to an American town, just springing into bustling
+and prosperous existence.
+
+The surrounding forest had been laid out in town lots; frames of wooden
+buildings were rising from among stumps and burned trees. The place already
+boasted a court-house, a jail, and two banks, all built of pine boards, on
+the model of Grecian temples. There were rival hotels, rival churches, and
+rival newspapers; together with the usual number of judges, and generals,
+and governors; not to speak of doctors by the dozen, and lawyers by the
+score.
+
+The place, I was told, was in an astonishing career of improvement, with a
+canal and two railroads in embryo. Lots doubled in price every week;
+everybody was speculating in land; everybody was rich; and everybody was
+growing richer. The community, however, was torn to pieces by new doctrines
+in religion and in political economy; there were camp meetings, and
+agrarian meetings; and an election was at hand, which, it was expected,
+would throw the whole country into a paroxysm.
+
+Alas! with such an enterprising neighbor, what is to become of the poor
+little Creole village!
+
+
+
+
+A CONTENTED MAN
+
+
+In the garden of the Tuileries there is a sunny corner under the wall of a
+terrace which fronts the south. Along the wall is a range of benches
+commanding a view of the walks and avenues of the garden. This genial nook
+is a place of great resort in the latter part of autumn and in fine days in
+winter, as it seems to retain the flavor of departed summer. On a calm,
+bright morning it is quite alive with nursery-maids and their playful
+little charges. Hither also resort a number of ancient ladies and
+gentlemen, who, with the laudable thrift in small pleasures and small
+expenses for which the French are to be noted, come here to enjoy sunshine
+and save firewood. Here may often be seen some cavalier of the old school,
+when the sunbeams have warmed his blood into something like a glow,
+fluttering about like a frost-bitten moth thawed before the fire, putting
+forth a feeble show of gallantry among the antiquated dames, and now and
+then eying the buxom nursery-maids with what might almost be mistaken for
+an air of libertinism.
+
+Among the habitual frequenters of this place I had often remarked an old
+gentleman whose dress was decidedly ante-revolutional. He wore the
+three-cornered cocked hat of the _ancien regime_; his hair was frizzed
+over each ear into _ailes de pigeon_, a style strongly savoring of
+Bourbonism; and a queue stuck out behind, the loyalty of which was not to
+be disputed. His dress, though ancient, had an air of decayed gentility,
+and I observed that he took his snuff out of an elegant though
+old-fashioned gold box. He appeared to be the most popular man on the walk.
+He had a compliment for every old lady, he kissed every child, and he
+patted every little dog on the head; for children and little dogs are very
+important members of society in France. I must observe, however, that he
+seldom kissed a child without, at the same time, pinching the
+nursery-maid's cheek; a Frenchman of the old school never forgets his
+devoirs to the sex.
+
+I had taken a liking to this old gentleman. There was an habitual
+expression of benevolence in his face which I have very frequently remarked
+in these relics of the politer days of France. The constant interchange of
+those thousand little courtesies which imperceptibly sweeten life have a
+happy effect upon the features, and spread a mellow evening charm over the
+wrinkles of old age.
+
+Where there is a favorable predisposition one soon forms a kind of tacit
+intimacy by often meeting on the same walks. Once or twice I accommodated
+him with a bench, after which we touched hats on passing each other; at
+length we got so far as to take a pinch of snuff together out of his box,
+which is equivalent to eating salt together in the East; from that time our
+acquaintance was established.
+
+I now became his frequent companion in his morning promenades, and derived
+much amusement from his good-humored remarks on men and manners. One
+morning, as we were strolling through an alley of the Tuileries, with the
+autumnal breeze whirling the yellow leaves about our path, my companion
+fell into a peculiarly communicative vein, and gave me several particulars
+of his history. He had once been wealthy, and possessed of a fine estate in
+the country and a noble hotel in Paris; but the revolution, which effected
+so many disastrous changes, stripped him of everything. He was secretly
+denounced by his own steward during a sanguinary period of the revolution,
+and a number of the bloodhounds of the Convention were sent to arrest him.
+He received private intelligence of their approach in time to effect his
+escape. He landed in England without money or friends, but considered
+himself singularly fortunate in having his head upon his shoulders; several
+of his neighbors having been guillotined as a punishment for being rich.
+
+When he reached London he had but a louis in his pocket, and no prospect of
+getting another. He ate a solitary dinner of beefsteak, and was almost
+poisoned by port wine, which from its color he had mistaken for claret. The
+dingy look of the chop-house, and of the little mahogany-colored box in
+which he ate his dinner, contrasted sadly with the gay saloons of Paris.
+Everything looked gloomy and disheartening. Poverty stared him in the face;
+he turned over the few shillings he had of change; did not know what was to
+become of him; and--went to the theater!
+
+He took his seat in the pit, listened attentively to a tragedy of which he
+did not understand a word, and which seemed made up of fighting, and
+stabbing, and scene shifting, and began to feel his spirits sinking within
+him; when, casting his eyes into the orchestra, what was his surprise to
+recognize an old friend and neighbor in the very act of extorting music
+from a huge violoncello.
+
+As soon as the evening's performance was over he tapped his friend on the
+shoulder; they kissed each other on each cheek, and the musician took him
+home, and shared his lodgings with him. He had learned music as an
+accomplishment; by his friend's advice he now turned to it as a means of
+support. He procured a violin, offered himself for the orchestra, was
+received, and again considered himself one of the most fortunate men upon
+earth.
+
+Here therefore he lived for many years during the ascendency of the
+terrible Napoleon. He found several emigrants living, like himself, by the
+exercise of their talents. They associated together, talked of France and
+of old times, and endeavored to keep up a semblance of Parisian life in the
+center of London.
+
+They dined at a miserable cheap French restaurant in the neighborhood of
+Leicester Square, where they were served with a caricature of French
+cookery. They took their promenade in St. James's Park, and endeavored to
+fancy it the Tuileries; in short, they made shift to accommodate themselves
+to everything but an English Sunday. Indeed the old gentleman seemed to
+have nothing to say against the English, whom he affirmed to be _braves
+gens_; and he mingled so much among them that at the end of twenty years
+he could speak their language almost well enough to be understood.
+
+The downfall of Napoleon was another epoch in his life. He had considered
+himself a fortunate man to make his escape penniless out of France, and he
+considered himself fortunate to be able to return penniless into it. It is
+true that he found his Parisian hotel had passed through several hands
+during the vicissitudes of the times, so as to be beyond the reach of
+recovery; but then he had been noticed benignantly by government, and had a
+pension of several hundred francs, upon which, with careful management, he
+lived independently, and, as far as I could judge, happily. As his once
+splendid hotel was now occupied as a _hotel garni_, he hired a small
+chamber in the attic; it was but, as he said, changing his bedroom up two
+pair of stairs--he was still in his own house. His room was decorated with
+pictures of several beauties of former times, with whom he professed to
+have been on favorable terms: among them was a favorite opera-dancer, who
+had been the admiration of Paris at the breaking out of the revolution. She
+had been a protegee of my friend, and one of the few of his youthful
+favorites who had survived the lapse of time and its various vicissitudes.
+They had renewed their acquaintance, and she now and then visited him; but
+the beautiful Psyche, once the fashion of the day and the idol of the
+_parterre_, was now a shriveled, little old woman, warped in the back
+and with a hooked nose.
+
+The old gentleman was a devout attendant upon levees; he was most zealous
+in his loyalty, and could not speak of the royal family without a burst of
+enthusiasm, for he still felt toward them as his companions in exile. As to
+his poverty he made light of it, and indeed had a good-humored way of
+consoling himself for every cross and privation. If he had lost his chateau
+in the country, he had half a dozen royal palaces, as it were, at his
+command. He had Versailles and St. Cloud for his country resorts, and the
+shady alleys of the Tuileries and the Luxembourg for his town recreation.
+Thus all his promenades and relaxations were magnificent, yet cost nothing.
+
+When I walk through these fine gardens, said he, I have only to fancy
+myself the owner of them, and they are mine. All these gay crowds are my
+visitors, and I defy the grand seignior himself to display a greater
+variety of beauty. Nay, what is better, I have not the trouble of
+entertaining them. My estate is a perfect Sans Souci, where every one does
+as he pleases, and no one troubles the owner. All Paris is my theater, and
+presents me with a continual spectacle. I have a table spread for me in
+every street, and thousands of waiters ready to fly at my bidding. When my
+servants have waited upon me I pay them, discharge them, and there's an
+end; I have no fears of their wronging or pilfering me when my back is
+turned. Upon the whole, said the old gentleman with a smile of infinite
+good humor, when I think upon the various risks I have run, and the manner
+in which I have escaped them; when I recollect all that I have suffered,
+and consider all that I at present enjoy, I cannot but look upon myself as
+a man of singular good fortune.
+
+Such was the brief history of this practical philosopher, and it is a
+picture of many a Frenchman ruined by the revolution. The French appear to
+have a greater facility than most men in accommodating themselves to the
+reverses of life, and of extracting honey out of the bitter things of this
+world. The first shock of calamity is apt to overwhelm them, but when it is
+once past, their natural buoyancy of feeling soon brings them to the
+surface. This may be called the result of levity of character, but it
+answers the end of reconciling us to misfortune, and if it be not true
+philosophy, it is something almost as efficacious. Ever since I have heard
+the story of my little Frenchman, I have treasured it up in my heart; and I
+thank my stars I have at length found what I had long considered as not to
+be found on earth--a contented man.
+
+P. S.--There is no calculating on human happiness. Since writing the
+foregoing, the law of indemnity has been passed, and my friend restored to
+a great part of his fortune. I was absent from Paris at the time, but on my
+return hastened to congratulate him. I found him magnificently lodged on
+the first floor of his hotel. I was ushered, by a servant in livery,
+through splendid saloons, to a cabinet richly furnished, where I found my
+little Frenchman reclining on a couch. He received me with his usual
+cordiality; but I saw the gayety and benevolence of his countenance had
+fled; he had an eye full of care and anxiety.
+
+I congratulated him on his good fortune. "Good fortune?" echoed he; "bah! I
+have been plundered of a princely fortune, and they give me a pittance as
+an indemnity."
+
+Alas! I found my late poor and contented friend one of the richest and most
+miserable men in Paris. Instead of rejoicing hi the ample competency
+restored to him, he is daily repining at the superfluity withheld. He no
+longer wanders in happy idleness about Paris, but is a repining attendant
+in the ante-chambers of ministers. His loyalty has evaporated with his
+gayety; he screws his mouth when the Bourbons are mentioned, and even
+shrugs his shoulders when he hears the praises of the king. In a word, he
+is one of the many philosophers undone by the law of indemnity, and his
+case is desperate, for I doubt whether even another reverse of fortune,
+which should restore him to poverty, could make him again a happy man.
+
+
+
+
+*** END OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK, THE CRAYON PAPERS ***
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+The Project Gutenberg EBook of The Crayon Papers, by Washington Irving
+
+Copyright laws are changing all over the world. Be sure to check the
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+*****These eBooks Were Prepared By Thousands of Volunteers!*****
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+Title: The Crayon Papers
+
+Author: Washington Irving
+
+Release Date: April, 2005  [EBook #7994]
+[This file was first posted on June 10, 2003]
+
+Edition: 10
+
+Language: English
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+Character set encoding: ISO-8859-1
+
+*** START OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK, THE CRAYON PAPERS ***
+
+
+
+
+E-text prepared by Charles Aldarondo, Tiffany Vergon, William Craig, Charles
+Franks, and the Online Distributed Proofreading Team
+
+
+
+THE CRAYON PAPERS
+
+by GEOFFREY CRAYON, GENT.
+
+
+
+
+
+
+
+MOUNTJOY: or Some Passages out of the Life of a Castle-Builder
+
+THE GREAT MISSISSIPPI BUBBLE--"A Time of Unexampled Prosperity"
+
+DON JUAN: A Spectral Research
+
+BROEK: or the Dutch Paradise
+
+SKETCHES IN PARIS IN 1825--From the Traveling Note-Book of Geoffrey Crayon,
+Gent.
+
+My French Neighbor The Englishman at Paris English and French Character The
+Tuileries and Windsor Castle The Field of Waterloo Paris at the Restoration
+
+AMERICAN RESEARCHES IN ITALY--Life of Tasso: Recovery of a Lost Portrait of
+Dante
+
+THE TAKING OF THE VEIL The Charming Letorières
+
+THE EARLY EXPERIENCES OF RALPH RINGWOOD--Noted Down from his Conversations
+
+THE SEMINOLES
+
+ORIGIN OF THE WHITE, THE RED, AND THE BLACK MEN--A Seminole Tradition
+
+THE CONSPIRACY OF NEAMATHLA--An Authentic Sketch
+
+LETTER FROM GRANADA
+
+ABDERAHMAN: Founder of the Dynasty of the Ommiades in Spain
+
+THE WIDOW'S ORDEAL: or a Judicial Trial by Combat
+
+THE CREOLE VILLAGE: A Sketch from a Steamboat
+
+A CONTENTED MAN
+
+
+
+
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+MOUNTJOY
+OR SOME PASSAGES OUT OF THE LIFE OF A CASTLE-BUILDER
+
+I was born among romantic scenery, in one of the wildest parts of the
+Hudson, which at that time was not so thickly settled as at present. My
+father was descended from one of the old Huguenot families that came over
+to this country on the revocation of the edict of Nantz. He lived in a
+style of easy, rural independence, on a patrimonial estate that had been
+for two or three generations in the family. He was an indolent,
+good-natured man, who took the world as it went, and had a kind of laughing
+philosophy, that parried all rubs and mishaps, and served him in the place
+of wisdom. This was the part of his character least to my taste; for I was
+of an enthusiastic, excitable temperament, prone to kindle up with new
+schemes and projects, and he was apt to dash my sallying enthusiasm by some
+unlucky joke; so that whenever I was in a glow with any sudden excitement,
+I stood in mortal dread of his good-humor.
+
+Yet he indulged me in every vagary; for I was an only son, and of course a
+personage of importance in the household. I had two sisters older than
+myself, and one younger. The former were educated at New York, under the
+eye of a maiden aunt; the latter remained at home, and was my cherished
+playmate, the companion of my thoughts. We were two imaginative little
+beings, of quick susceptibility, and prone to see wonders and mysteries in
+everything around us. Scarce had we learned to read, when our mother made
+us holiday presents of all the nursery literature of the day; which at that
+time consisted of little books covered with gilt paper, adorned with
+"cuts," and filled with tales of fairies, giants, and enchanters. What
+draughts of delightful fiction did we then inhale! My sister Sophy was of a
+soft and tender nature. She would weep over the woes of the Children in the
+Wood, or quake at the dark romance of Blue-Beard, and the terrible
+mysteries of the blue chamber. But I was all for enterprise and adventure.
+I burned to emulate the deeds of that heroic prince who delivered the white
+cat from her enchantment; or he of no less royal blood, and doughty
+enterprise, who broke the charmed slumber of the Beauty in the Wood!
+
+The house in which we lived was just the kind of place to foster such
+propensities. It was a venerable mansion, half villa, half farmhouse. The
+oldest part was of stone, with loop-holes for musketry, having served as a
+family fortress in the time of the Indians. To this there had been made
+various additions, some of brick, some of wood, according to the exigencies
+of the moment; so that it was full of nooks and crooks, and chambers of all
+sorts and sizes. It was buried among willows, elms, and cherry trees, and
+surrounded with roses and hollyhocks, with honeysuckle and sweetbrier
+clambering about every window. A brood of hereditary pigeons sunned
+themselves upon the roof; hereditary swallows and martins built about the
+eaves and chimneys; and hereditary bees hummed about the flower-beds.
+
+Under the influence of our story-books every object around us now assumed a
+new character, and a charmed interest. The wild flowers were no longer the
+mere ornaments of the fields, or the resorts of the toilful bee; they were
+the lurking-places of fairies. We would watch the humming-bird, as it
+hovered around the trumpet creeper at our porch, and the butterfly as it
+flitted up into the blue air, above the sunny tree-tops, and fancy them
+some of the tiny beings from fairyland. I would call to mind all that I had
+read of Robin Goodfellow and his power of transformation. Oh, how I envied
+him that power! How I longed to be able to compress my form into utter
+littleness; to ride the bold dragonfly; swing on the tall bearded grass;
+follow the ant into his subterraneous habitation, or dive into the
+cavernous depths of the honeysuckle!
+
+While I was yet a mere child I was sent to a daily school, about two miles
+distant. The schoolhouse was on the edge of a wood, close by a brook
+overhung with birches, alders, and dwarf willows. We of the school who
+lived at some distance came with our dinners put up in little baskets. In
+the intervals of school hours we would gather round a spring, under a tuft
+of hazel-bushes, and have a kind of picnic; interchanging the rustic
+dainties with which our provident mothers had fitted us out. Then, when our
+joyous repast was over, and my companions were disposed for play, I would
+draw forth one of my cherished story-books, stretch myself on the green
+sward, and soon lose myself in its bewitching contents.
+
+I became an oracle among my schoolmates on account of my superior
+erudition, and soon imparted to them the contagion of my infected fancy.
+Often in the evening, after school hours, we would sit on the trunk of some
+fallen tree in the woods, and vie with each other in telling extravagant
+stories, until the whip-poor-will began his nightly moaning, and the
+fireflies sparkled in the gloom. Then came the perilous journey homeward.
+What delight we would take in getting up wanton panics in some dusky part
+of the wood; scampering like frightened deer; pausing to take breath;
+renewing the panic, and scampering off again, wild with fictitious terror!
+
+Our greatest trial was to pass a dark, lonely pool, covered with
+pond-lilies, peopled with bullfrogs and water snakes, and haunted by two
+white cranes. Oh! the terrors of that pond! How our little hearts would
+beat as we approached it; what fearful glances we would throw around! And
+if by chance a plash of a wild duck, or the guttural twang of a bullfrog,
+struck our ears, as we stole quietly by--away we sped, nor paused until
+completely out of the woods. Then, when I reached home, what a world of
+adventures and imaginary terrors would I have to relate to my sister Sophy!
+
+As I advanced in years, this turn of mind increased upon me, and became
+more confirmed. I abandoned myself to the impulses of a romantic
+imagination, which controlled my studies, and gave a bias to all my habits.
+My father observed me continually with a book in my hand, and satisfied
+himself that I was a profound student; but what were my studies? Works of
+fiction; tales of chivalry; voyages of discovery; travels in the East;
+everything, in short, that partook of adventure and romance. I well
+remember with what zest I entered upon that part of my studies which
+treated of the heathen mythology, and particularly of the sylvan deities.
+Then indeed my school books became dear to me. The neighborhood was well
+calculated to foster the reveries of a mind like mine. It abounded with
+solitary retreats, wild streams, solemn forests, and silent valleys. I
+would ramble about for a whole day with a volume of Ovid's Metamorphoses in
+my pocket, and work myself into a kind of self-delusion, so as to identify
+the surrounding scenes with those of which I had just been reading. I would
+loiter about a brook that glided through the shadowy depths of the forest,
+picturing it to myself the haunt of Naiads. I would steal round some bushy
+copse that opened upon a glade, as if I expected to come suddenly upon
+Diana and her nymphs, or to behold Pan and his satyrs bounding, with whoop
+and halloo, through the woodland. I would throw myself, during the panting
+heats of a summer noon, under the shade of some wide-spreading tree, and
+muse and dream away the hours, in a state of mental intoxication. I drank
+in the very light of day, as nectar, and my soul seemed to bathe with
+ecstasy in the deep blue of a summer sky.
+
+In these wanderings nothing occurred to jar my feelings, or bring me back
+to the realities of life. There is a repose in our mighty forests that
+gives full scope to the imagination. Now and then I would hear the distant
+sound of the woodcutter's ax, or the crash of some tree which he had laid
+low; but these noises, echoing along the quiet landscape, could easily be
+wrought by fancy into harmony with its illusions. In general, however, the
+woody recesses of the neighborhood were peculiarly wild and unfrequented. I
+could ramble for a whole day, without coming upon any traces of
+cultivation. The partridge of the wood scarcely seemed to shun my path, and
+the squirrel, from his nut-tree, would gaze at me for an instant, with
+sparkling eye, as if wondering at the unwonted intrusion.
+
+I cannot help dwelling on this delicious period of my life; when as yet I
+had known no sorrow, nor experienced any worldly care. I have since studied
+much, both of books and men, and of course have grown too wise to be so
+easily pleased; yet with all my wisdom, I must confess I look back with a
+secret feeling of regret to the days of happy ignorance before I had begun
+to be a philosopher.
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+It must be evident that I was in a hopeful training for one who was to
+descend into the arena of life, and wrestle with the world. The tutor,
+also, who superintended my studies in the more advanced stage of my
+education, was just fitted to complete the _fata morgana_ which was
+forming in my mind. His name was Glencoe. He was a pale, melancholy-looking
+man, about forty years of age; a native of Scotland, liberally educated,
+and who had devoted himself to the instruction of youth from taste rather
+than necessity; for, as he said, he loved the human heart, and delighted to
+study it in its earlier impulses. My two elder sisters, having returned
+home from a city boarding-school, were likewise placed under his care, to
+direct their reading in history and belles-lettres.
+
+We all soon became attached to Glencoe. It is true, we were at first
+somewhat prepossessed against him. His meager, pallid countenance, his
+broad pronunciation, his inattention to the little forms of society, and an
+awkward and embarrassed manner, on first acquaintance, were much against
+him; but we soon discovered that under this unpromising exterior existed
+the kindest urbanity of temper; the warmest sympathies; the most
+enthusiastic benevolence. His mind was ingenious and acute. His reading had
+been various, but more abstruse than profound; his memory was stored, on
+all subjects, with facts, theories, and quotations, and crowded with crude
+materials for thinking. These, in a moment of excitement, would be, as it
+were, melted down, and poured forth in the lava of a heated imagination. At
+such moments, the change in the whole man was wonderful. His meager form
+would acquire a dignity and grace; his long, pale visage would flash with a
+hectic glow; his eyes would beam with intense speculation; and there would
+be pathetic tones and deep modulations in his voice, that delighted the
+ear, and spoke movingly to the heart.
+
+But what most endeared him to us was the kindness and sympathy with which
+he entered into all our interests and wishes. Instead of curbing and
+checking our young imaginations with the reins of sober reason, he was a
+little too apt to catch the impulse and be hurried away with us. He could
+not withstand the excitement of any sally of feeling or fancy, and was
+prone to lend heightening tints to the illusive coloring of youthful
+anticipation.
+
+Under his guidance my sisters and myself soon entered upon a more extended
+range of studies; but while they wandered, with delighted minds, through
+the wide field of history and belles-lettres, a nobler walk was opened to
+my superior intellect.
+
+The mind of Glencoe presented a singular mixture of philosophy and poetry.
+He was fond of metaphysics and prone to indulge in abstract speculations,
+though his metaphysics were somewhat fine spun and fanciful, and his
+speculations were apt to partake of what my father most irreverently termed
+"humbug." For my part, I delighted in them, and the more especially because
+they set my father to sleep and completely confounded my sisters. I entered
+with my accustomed eagerness into this new branch of study. Metaphysics
+were now my passion. My sisters attempted to accompany me, but they soon
+faltered, and gave out before they had got half way through Smith's Theory
+of the Moral Sentiments. I, however, went on, exulting in my strength.
+Glencoe supplied me with books, and I devoured them with appetite, if not
+digestion. We walked and talked together under the trees before the house,
+or sat apart, like Milton's angels, and held high converse upon themes
+beyond the grasp of ordinary intellects. Glencoe possessed a kind of
+philosophic chivalry, in imitation of the old peripatetic sages, and was
+continually dreaming of romantic enterprises in morals, and splendid
+systems for the improvement of society. He had a fanciful mode of
+illustrating abstract subjects, peculiarly to my taste; clothing them with
+the language of poetry, and throwing round them almost the magic hues of
+fiction. "How charming," thought I, "is divine philosophy;" not harsh and
+crabbed, as dull fools suppose,
+
+  "But a perpetual feast of nectar'd sweets,
+   Where no crude surfeit reigns."
+
+I felt a wonderful self-complacency at being on such excellent terms with a
+man whom I considered on a parallel with the sages of antiquity, and looked
+down with a sentiment of pity on the feebler intellects of my sisters, who
+could comprehend nothing of metaphysics. It is true, when I attempted to
+study them by myself, I was apt to get in a fog; but when Glencoe came to
+my aid, everything was soon as clear to me as day. My ear drank in the
+beauty of his words; my imagination was dazzled with the splendor of his
+illustrations. It caught up the sparkling sands of poetry that glittered
+through his speculations, and mistook them for the golden ore of wisdom.
+Struck with the facility with which I seemed to imbibe and relish the most
+abstract doctrines, I conceived a still higher opinion of my mental powers,
+and was convinced that I also was a philosopher.
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+I was now verging toward man's estate, and though my education had been
+extremely irregular--following the caprices of my humor, which I mistook
+for the impulses of my genius--yet I was regarded with wonder and delight
+by my mother and sisters, who considered me almost as wise and infallible
+as I considered myself. This high opinion of me was strengthened by a
+declamatory habit, which made me an oracle and orator at the domestic
+board. The time was now at hand, however, that was to put my philosophy to
+the test.
+
+We had passed through a long winter, and the spring at length opened upon
+us with unusual sweetness. The soft serenity of the weather; the beauty of
+the surrounding country; the joyous notes of the birds; the balmy breath of
+flower and blossom, all combined to fill my bosom with indistinct
+sensations, and nameless wishes. Amid the soft seductions of the season, I
+lapsed into a state of utter indolence, both of body and mind.
+
+Philosophy had lost its charms for me. Metaphysics--faugh! I tried to
+study; took down volume after volume, ran my eye vacantly over a few pages,
+and threw them by with distaste. I loitered about the house, with my hands
+in my pockets, and an air of complete vacancy. Something was necessary to
+make me happy; but what was that something? I sauntered to the apartments
+of my sisters, hoping their conversation might amuse me. They had walked
+out, and the room was vacant. On the table lay a volume which they had been
+reading. It was a novel. I had never read a novel, having conceived a
+contempt for works of the kind, from hearing them universally condemned. It
+is true, I had remarked that they were as universally read; but I
+considered them beneath the attention of a philosopher, and never would
+venture to read them, lest I should lessen my mental superiority in the
+eyes of my sisters. Nay, I had taken up a work of the kind now and then,
+when I knew my sisters were observing me, looked into it for a moment, and
+then laid it down, with a slight supercilious smile. On the present
+occasion, out of mere listlessness, I took up the volume and turned over a
+few of the first pages. I thought I heard some one coming, and laid it
+down. I was mistaken; no one was near, and what I had read tempted my
+curiosity to read a little further. I leaned against a window-frame, and in
+a few minutes was completely lost in the story. How long I stood there
+reading I know not, but I believe for nearly two hours. Suddenly I heard my
+sisters on the stairs, when I thrust the book into my bosom, and the two
+other volumes which lay near into my pockets, and hurried out of the house
+to my beloved woods. Here I remained all day beneath the trees, bewildered,
+bewitched, devouring the contents of these delicious volumes, and only
+returned to the house when it was too dark to peruse their pages.
+
+This novel finished, I replaced it in my sisters' apartment, and looked for
+others. Their stock was ample, for they had brought home all that were
+current in the city; but my appetite demanded an immense supply. All this
+course of reading was carried on clandestinely, for I was a little ashamed
+of it, and fearful that my wisdom might be called in question; but this
+very privacy gave it additional zest. It was "bread eaten in secret"; it
+had the charm of a private amour.
+
+But think what must have been the effect of such a course of reading on a
+youth of my temperament and turn of mind; indulged, too, amid romantic
+scenery and in the romantic season of the year. It seemed as if I had
+entered upon a new scene of existence. A train of combustible feelings were
+lighted up in me, and my soul was all tenderness and passion. Never was
+youth more completely love-sick, though as yet it was a mere general
+sentiment, and wanted a definite object. Unfortunately, our neighborhood
+was particularly deficient in female society, and I languished in vain for
+some divinity to whom I might offer up this most uneasy burden of
+affections. I was at one time seriously enamored of a lady whom I saw
+occasionally in my rides, reading at the window of a country-seat; and
+actually serenaded her with my flute; when, to my confusion, I discovered
+that she was old enough to be my mother. It was a sad damper to my romance;
+especially as my father heard of it, and made it the subject of one of
+those household jokes which he was apt to serve up at every meal-time.
+
+I soon recovered from this check, however, but it was only to relapse into
+a state of amorous excitement. I passed whole days in the fields, and along
+the brooks; for there is something in the tender passion that makes us
+alive to the beauties of nature. A soft sunshiny morning infused a sort of
+rapture into my breast. I flung open my arms, like the Grecian youth in
+Ovid, as if I would take in and embrace the balmy atmosphere. [Footnote:
+Ovid's Metamorphoses, Book vii] The song of the birds melted me to
+tenderness. I would lie by the side of some rivulet for hours, and form
+garlands of the flowers on its banks, and muse on ideal beauties, and sigh
+from the crowd of undefined emotions that swelled my bosom.
+
+In this state of amorous delirium, I was strolling one morning along a
+beautiful wild brook, which I had discovered in a glen. There was one place
+where a small waterfall, leaping from among rocks into a natural basin,
+made a scene such as a poet might have chosen as the haunt of some shy
+Naiad. It was here I usually retired to banquet on my novels. In visiting
+the place this morning I traced distinctly, on the margin of the basin,
+which was of fine clear sand, the prints of a female foot of the most
+slender and delicate proportions. This was sufficient for an imagination
+like mine. Robinson Crusoe himself, when he discovered the print of a
+savage foot on the beach of his lonely island, could not have been more
+suddenly assailed with thick-coming fancies.
+
+I endeavored to track the steps, but they only passed for a few paces along
+the fine sand, and then were lost among the herbage. I remained gazing in
+reverie upon this passing trace of loveliness. It evidently was not made by
+any of my sisters, for they knew nothing of this haunt; besides, the foot
+was smaller than theirs; it was remarkable for its beautiful delicacy.
+
+My eye accidentally caught two or three half-withered wild flowers lying on
+the ground. The unknown nymph had doubtless dropped them from her bosom!
+Here was a new document of taste and sentiment. I treasured them up as
+invaluable relics. The place, too, where I found them, was remarkably
+picturesque, and the most beautiful part of the brook. It was overhung with
+a fine elm, entwined with grapevines. She who could select such a spot, who
+could delight in wild brooks, and wild flowers, and silent solitudes, must
+have fancy, and feeling, and tenderness; and with all these qualities, she
+must be beautiful!
+
+But who could be this Unknown, that had thus passed by, as in a morning
+dream, leaving merely flowers and fairy footsteps to tell of her
+loveliness? There was a mystery in it that bewildered me. It was so vague
+and disembodied, like those "airy tongues that syllable men's names" in
+solitude. Every attempt to solve the mystery was vain. I could hear of no
+being in the neighborhood to whom this trace could be ascribed. I haunted
+the spot, and became daily more and more enamored. Never, surely, was
+passion more pure and spiritual, and never lover in more dubious situation.
+My case could be compared only to that of the amorous prince in the fairy
+tale of Cinderella; but he had a glass slipper on which to lavish his
+tenderness. I, alas! was in love with a footstep!
+
+The imagination is alternately a cheat and a dupe; nay, more, it is the
+most subtle of cheats, for it cheats itself and becomes the dupe of its own
+delusions. It conjures up "airy nothings," gives to them a "local
+habitation and a name," and then bows to their control as implicitly as
+though they were realities. Such was now my case. The good Numa could not
+more thoroughly have persuaded himself that the nymph Egeria hovered about
+her sacred fountain and communed with him in spirit than I had deceived
+myself into a kind of visionary intercourse with the airy phantom
+fabricated in my brain. I constructed a rustic seat at the foot of the tree
+where I had discovered the footsteps. I made a kind of bower there, where I
+used to pass my mornings reading poetry and romances. I carved hearts and
+darts on the tree, and hung it with garlands. My heart was full to
+overflowing, and wanted some faithful bosom into which it might relieve
+itself. What is a lover without a confidante? I thought at once of my
+sister Sophy, my early playmate, the sister of my affections. She was so
+reasonable, too, and of such correct feelings, always listening to my words
+as oracular sayings, and admiring my scraps of poetry as the very
+inspirations of the muse. From such a devoted, such a rational being, what
+secrets could I have?
+
+I accordingly took her one morning to my favorite retreat. She looked
+around, with delighted surprise, upon the rustic seat, the bower, the tree
+carved with emblems of the tender passion. She turned her eyes upon me to
+inquire the meaning.
+
+"Oh, Sophy," exclaimed I, clasping both her hands in mine, and looking
+earnestly in her face, "I am in love."
+
+She started with surprise.
+
+"Sit down," said I, "and I will tell you all."
+
+She seated herself upon the rustic bench, and I went into a full history of
+the footstep, with all the associations of idea that had been conjured up
+by my imagination.
+
+Sophy was enchanted; it was like a fairy tale; she had read of such
+mysterious visitations in books, and the loves thus conceived were always
+for beings of superior order, and were always happy. She caught the
+illusion in all its force; her cheek glowed; her eye brightened.
+
+"I daresay she's pretty," said Sophy.
+
+"Pretty!" echoed I, "she is beautiful." I went through all the reasoning by
+which I had logically proved the fact to my own satisfaction. I dwelt upon
+the evidences of her taste, her sensibility to the beauties of nature; her
+soft meditative habit that delighted in solitude. "Oh," said I, clasping my
+hands, "to have such a companion to wander through these scenes; to sit
+with her by this murmuring stream; to wreathe garlands round her brows; to
+hear the music of her voice mingling with the whisperings of these groves;
+to--"
+
+"Delightful! delightful!" cried Sophy; "what a sweet creature she must be!
+She is just the friend I want. How I shall dote upon her! Oh, my dear
+brother! you must not keep her all to yourself. You must let _me_ have
+some share of her!"
+
+I caught her to my bosom: "You shall--you shall!" cried I, "my dear Sophy;
+we will all live for each other!"
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+The conversation with Sophy heightened the illusions of my mind; and the
+manner in which she had treated my daydream identified it with facts and
+persons and gave it still more the stamp of reality. I walked about as one
+in a trance, heedless of the world around and lapped in an elysium of the
+fancy.
+
+In this mood I met one morning with Glencoe. He accosted me with his usual
+smile, and was proceeding with some general observations, but paused and
+fixed on me an inquiring eye.
+
+"What is the matter with you?" said he, "you seem agitated; has anything in
+particular happened?"
+
+"Nothing," said I, hesitating; "at least nothing worth communicating to
+you."
+
+"Nay, my dear young friend," said he, "whatever is of sufficient importance
+to agitate you is worthy of being communicated to me."
+
+"Well; but my thoughts are running on what you would think a frivolous
+subject."
+
+"No subject is frivolous that has the power to awaken strong feelings."
+
+"What think you," said I, hesitating, "what think you of love?"
+
+Glencoe almost started at the question. "Do you call that a frivolous
+subject?" replied he. "Believe me, there is none fraught with such deep,
+such vital interest. If you talk, indeed, of the capricious inclination
+awakened by the mere charm of perishable beauty, I grant it to be idle in
+the extreme; but that love which springs from the concordant sympathies of
+virtuous hearts; that love which is awakened by the perception of moral
+excellence, and fed by meditation on intellectual as well as personal
+beauty; that is a passion which refines and ennobles the human heart. Oh,
+where is there a sight more nearly approaching to the intercourse of
+angels, than that of two young beings, free from the sins and follies of
+the world, mingling pure thoughts, and looks, and feelings, and becoming,
+as it were, soul of one soul and heart of one heart! How exquisite the
+silent converse that they hold; the soft devotion of the eye, that needs no
+words to make it eloquent! Yes, my friend, if there be anything in this
+weary world worthy of heaven, it is the pure bliss of such a mutual
+affection!"
+
+The words of my worthy tutor overcame all further reserve. "Mr. Glencoe,"
+cried I, blushing still deeper, "I am in love."
+
+"And is that what you were ashamed to tell me? Oh, never seek to conceal
+from your friend so important a secret. If your passion be unworthy, it is
+for the steady hand of friendship to pluck it forth; if honorable, none but
+an enemy would seek to stifle it. On nothing does the character and
+happiness so much depend as on the first affection of the heart. Were you
+caught by some fleeting and superficial charm--a bright eye, a blooming
+cheek, a soft voice, or a voluptuous form--I would warn you to beware; I
+would tell you that beauty is but a passing gleam of the morning, a
+perishable flower; that accident may becloud and blight it, and that at
+best it must soon pass away. But were you in love with such a one as I
+could describe; young in years, but still younger in feelings; lovely in
+person, but as a type of the mind's beauty; soft in voice, in token of
+gentleness of spirit; blooming in countenance, like the rosy tints of
+morning kindling with the promise of a genial day; an eye beaming with the
+benignity of a happy heart; a cheerful temper, alive to all kind impulses,
+and frankly diffusing its own felicity; a self-poised mind, that needs not
+lean on others for support; an elegant taste, that can embellish solitude,
+and furnish out its own enjoyments--"
+
+"My dear sir," cried I, for I could contain myself no longer, "you have
+described the very person!"
+
+"Why, then, my dear young friend," said he, affectionately pressing my
+hand, "in God's name, love on!"
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+For the remainder of the day I was in some such state of dreamy beatitude
+as a Turk is said to enjoy when under the influence of opium. It must be
+already manifest how prone I was to bewilder myself with picturings of the
+fancy, so as to confound them with existing realities. In the present
+instance, Sophy and Glencoe had contributed to promote the transient
+delusion. Sophy, dear girl, had as usual joined with me in my
+castle-building, and indulged in the same train of imaginings, while
+Glencoe, duped by my enthusiasm, firmly believed that I spoke of a being I
+had seen and known. By their sympathy with my feelings they in a manner
+became associated with the Unknown in my mind, and thus linked her with the
+circle of my intimacy.
+
+In the evening, our family party was assembled in the hall, to enjoy the
+refreshing breeze. Sophy was playing some favorite Scotch airs on the
+piano, while Glencoe, seated apart, with his forehead resting on his hand,
+was buried in one of those pensive reveries that made him so interesting to
+me.
+
+"What a fortunate being I am!" thought I, "blessed with such a sister and
+such a friend! I have only to find out this amiable Unknown, to wed her,
+and be happy! What a paradise will be my home, graced with a partner of
+such exquisite refinement! It will be a perfect fairy bower, buried among
+sweets and roses. Sophy shall live with us, and be the companion of all our
+enjoyments. Glencoe, too, shall no more be the solitary being that he now
+appears. He shall have a home with us. He shall have his study, where, when
+he pleases, he may shut himself up from the world, and bury himself in his
+own reflections. His retreat shall be sacred; no one shall intrude there;
+no one but myself, who will visit him now and then, in his seclusion, where
+we will devise grand schemes together for the improvement of mankind. How
+delightfully our days will pass, in a round of rational pleasures and
+elegant employments! Sometimes we will have music; sometimes we will read;
+sometimes we will wander through the flower garden, when I will smile with
+complacency on every flower my wife has planted; while in the long winter
+evenings the ladies will sit at their work, and listen with hushed
+attention to Glencoe and myself, as we discuss the abstruse doctrines of
+metaphysics."
+
+From this delectable reverie, I was startled by my father's slapping me on
+the shoulder. "What possesses the lad?" cried he; "here have I been
+speaking to you half a dozen times, without receiving an answer."
+
+"Pardon me, sir," replied I; "I was so completely lost in thought, that I
+did not hear you."
+
+"Lost in thought! And pray what were you thinking of? Some of your
+philosophy, I suppose."
+
+"Upon my word," said my sister Charlotte, with an arch laugh, "I suspect
+Harry's in love again."
+
+"And if were in love, Charlotte," said I, somewhat nettled, and
+recollecting Glencoe's enthusiastic eulogy of the passion, "if I were in
+love, is that a matter of jest and laughter? Is the tenderest and most
+fervid affection that can animate the human breast to be made a matter of
+cold-hearted ridicule?"
+
+My sister colored. "Certainly not, brother!--nor did I mean to make it so,
+or to say anything that should wound your feelings. Had I really suspected
+you had formed some genuine attachment, it would have been sacred in my
+eyes; but--but," said she, smiling, as if at some whimsical recollection,
+"I thought that you--you might be indulging in another little freak of the
+imagination."
+
+"Ill wager any money," cried my father, "he has fallen in love again with
+some old lady at a window!"
+
+"Oh, no!" cried my dear sister Sophy, with the most gracious warmth; "she
+is young and beautiful."
+
+"From what I understand," said Glencoe, rousing himself, "she must be
+lovely in mind as in person."
+
+I found my friends were getting me into a fine scrape. I began to perspire
+at every pore, and felt my ears tingle.
+
+"Well, but," cried my father, "who is she?--what is she? Let us hear
+something about her."
+
+This was no time to explain so delicate a matter. I caught up my hat, and
+vanished out of the house.
+
+The moment I was in the open air, and alone, my heart upbraided me. Was
+this respectful treatment to my father--to _such_ a father, too--who
+had always regarded me as the pride of his age--the staff of his hopes? It
+is true, he was apt sometimes to laugh at my enthusiastic flights, and did
+not treat my philosophy with due respect; but when had he ever thwarted a
+wish of my heart? Was I then to act with reserve toward him, in a matter
+which might affect the whole current of my future life? "I have done
+wrong," thought I; "but it is not too late to remedy it. I will hasten back
+and open my whole heart to my father!"
+
+I returned accordingly, and was just on the point of entering the house,
+with my heart full of filial piety and a contrite speech upon my lips, when
+I heard a burst of obstreperous laughter from my father, and a loud titter
+from my two elder sisters.
+
+"A footstep!" shouted he, as soon as he could recover himself; "in love
+with a footstep! Why, this beats the old lady at the window!" And then
+there was another appalling burst of laughter. Had it been a clap of
+thunder, it could hardly have astounded me more completely. Sophy, in the
+simplicity of her heart, had told all, and had set my father's risible
+propensities in full action.
+
+Never was poor mortal so thoroughly crestfallen as myself. The whole
+delusion was at an end. I drew off silently from the house, shrinking
+smaller and smaller at every fresh peal of laughter; and, wandering about
+until the family had retired, stole quietly to my bed. Scarce any sleep,
+however, visited my eyes that night! I lay overwhelmed with mortification,
+and meditating how I might meet the family in the morning. The idea of
+ridicule was always intolerable to me; but to endure it on a subject by
+which my feelings had been so much excited seemed worse than death. I
+almost determined, at one time, to get up, saddle my horse, and ride off, I
+knew not whither.
+
+At length I came to a resolution. Before going down to breakfast, I sent
+for Sophy, and employed her as embassador to treat formally in the matter.
+I insisted that the subject should be buried in oblivion; otherwise I would
+not show my face at table. It was readily agreed to; for not one of the
+family would have given me pain for the world. They faithfully kept their
+promise. Not a word was said of the matter; but there were wry faces, and
+suppressed titters, that went to my soul; and whenever my father looked me
+in the face, it was with such a tragi-comical leer--such an attempt to pull
+down a serious brow upon a whimsical mouth--that I had a thousand times
+rather he had laughed outright.
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+For a day or two after the mortifying occurrence just related, I kept as
+much as possible out of the way of the family, and wandered about the
+fields and woods by myself. I was sadly out of tune; my feelings were all
+jarred and unstrung. The birds sang from every grove, but I took no
+pleasure in their melody; and the flowers of the field bloomed unheeded
+around me. To be crossed in love is bad enough; but then one can fly to
+poetry for relief, and turn one's woes to account in soul-subduing stanzas.
+But to have one's whole passion, object and all, annihilated, dispelled,
+proved to be such stuff as dreams are made of--or, worse than all, to be
+turned into a proverb and a jest--what consolation is there in such a case?
+
+I avoided the fatal brook where I had seen the footstep. My favorite resort
+was now the banks of the Hudson, where I sat upon the rocks and mused upon
+the current that dimpled by, or the waves that laved the shore; or watched
+the bright mutations of the clouds, and the shifting lights and shadows of
+the distant mountain. By degrees a returning serenity stole over my
+feelings; and a sigh now and then, gentle and easy, and unattended by pain,
+showed that my heart was recovering its susceptibility.
+
+As I was sitting in this musing mood my eye became gradually fixed upon an
+object that was borne along by the tide. It proved to be a little pinnace,
+beautifully modeled, and gayly painted and decorated. It was an unusual
+sight in this neighborhood, which was rather lonely; indeed, it was rare to
+see any pleasure-barks in this part of the river. As it drew nearer, I
+perceived that there was no one on board; it had apparently drifted from
+its anchorage. There was not a breath of air; the little bark came floating
+along on the glassy stream, wheeling about with the eddies. At length it
+ran aground, almost at the foot of the rock on which I was seated. I
+descended to the margin of the river, and drawing the bark to shore,
+admired its light and elegant proportions and the taste with which it was
+fitted up. The benches were covered with cushions, and its long streamer
+was of silk. On one of the cushion's lay a lady's glove, of delicate size
+and shape, with beautifully tapered fingers. I instantly seized it and
+thrust it in my bosom; it seemed a match for the fairy footstep that had so
+fascinated me.
+
+In a moment all the romance of my bosom was again in a glow. Here was one
+of the very incidents of fairy tale; a bark sent by some invisible power,
+some good genius, or benevolent fairy, to waft me to some delectable
+adventure. I recollected something of an enchanted bark, drawn by white
+swans, that conveyed a knight down the current of the Rhine, on some
+enterprise connected with love and beauty. The glove, too, showed that
+there was a lady fair concerned in the present adventure. It might be a
+gauntlet of defiance, to dare me to the enterprise.
+
+In the spirit of romance and the whim of the moment, I sprang on board,
+hoisted the light sail, and pushed from shore. As if breathed by some
+presiding power, a light breeze at that moment sprang up, swelled out the
+sail, and dallied with the silken streamer. For a time I glided along under
+steep umbrageous banks, or across deep sequestered bays; and then stood out
+over a wide expansion of the river toward a high rocky promontory. It was a
+lovely evening; the sun was setting in a congregation of clouds that threw
+the whole heavens in a glow, and were reflected in the river. I delighted
+myself with all kinds of fantastic fancies, as to what enchanted island, or
+mystic bower, or necromantic palace, I was to be conveyed by the fairy
+bark.
+
+In the revel of my fancy I had not noticed that the gorgeous congregation
+of clouds which had so much delighted me was in fact a gathering thunder
+gust. I perceived the truth too late. The clouds came hurrying on,
+darkening as they advanced. The whole face of nature was suddenly changed,
+and assumed that baleful and livid tint, predictive of a storm. I tried to
+gain the shore, but before I could reach it a blast of wind struck the
+water and lashed it at once into foam. The next moment it overtook the
+boat. Alas! I was nothing of a sailor; and my protecting fairy forsook me
+in the moment of peril. I endeavored to lower the sail; but in so doing I
+had to quit the helm; the bark was overturned in an instant, and I was
+thrown into the water. I endeavored to cling to the wreck, but missed my
+hold; being a poor swimmer I soon found myself sinking, but grasped a light
+oar that was floating by me. It was not sufficient for my support; I again
+sank beneath the surface; there was a rushing and bubbling sound in my
+ears, and all sense forsook me.
+
+How long I remained insensible, I know not. I had a confused notion of
+being moved and tossed about, and of hearing strange beings and strange
+voices around me; but all this was like a hideous dream. When I at length
+recovered full consciousness and perception, I found myself in bed in a
+spacious chamber, furnished with more taste than I had been accustomed to.
+The bright rays of a morning sun were intercepted by curtains of a delicate
+rose color, that gave a soft, voluptuous tinge to every object. Not far
+from my bed, on a classic tripod, was a basket of beautiful exotic flowers,
+breathing the sweetest fragrance.
+
+"Where am I? How came I here?"
+
+I tasked my mind to catch at some previous event, from which I might trace
+up the thread of existence to the present moment. By degrees I called to
+mind the fairy pinnace, my daring embarkation, my adventurous voyage, and
+my disastrous shipwreck. Beyond that, all was chaos. How came I here? What
+unknown region had I landed upon? The people that inhabited it must be
+gentle and amiable, and of elegant tastes, for they loved downy beds,
+fragrant flowers, and rose-colored curtains.
+
+While I lay thus musing, the tones of a harp reached my ear. Presently they
+were accompanied by a female voice. It came from the room below; but in the
+profound stillness of my chamber not a modulation was lost. My sisters were
+all considered good musicians, and sang very tolerably; but I had never
+heard a voice like this. There was no attempt at difficult execution, or
+striking effect; but there were exquisite inflections, and tender turns,
+which art could not reach. Nothing but feeling and sentiment could produce
+them. It was soul breathed forth in sound. I was always alive to the
+influence of music; indeed, I was susceptible of voluptuous influences of
+every kind--sounds, colors, shapes, and fragrant odors. I was the very
+slave of sensation.
+
+I lay mute and breathless, and drank in every note of this siren strain. It
+thrilled through my whole frame, and filled my soul with melody and love. I
+pictured to myself, with curious logic, the form of the unseen musician.
+Such melodious sounds and exquisite inflections could only be produced by
+organs of the most delicate flexibility. Such organs do not belong to
+coarse, vulgar forms; they are the harmonious results of fair proportions,
+and admirable symmetry. A being so organized must be lovely.
+
+Again my busy imagination was at work. I called to mind the Arabian story
+of a prince, borne away during sleep by a good genius, to the distant abode
+of a princess of ravishing beauty. I do not pretend to say that I believed
+in having experienced a similar transportation; but it was my inveterate
+habit to cheat myself with fancies of the kind, and to give the tinge of
+illusion to surrounding realities.
+
+The witching sound had ceased, but its vibrations still played round my
+heart, and filled it with a tumult of soft emotions. At this moment, a
+self-upbraiding pang shot through my bosom. "Ah, recreant!" a voice seemed
+to exclaim, "is this the stability of thine affections? What! hast thou so
+soon forgotten the nymph of the fountain? Has one song, idly piped in thine
+ear, been sufficient to charm away the cherished tenderness of a whole
+summer?"
+
+The wise may smile--but I am in a confiding mood, and must confess my
+weakness. I felt a degree of compunction at this sudden infidelity, yet I
+could not resist the power of present fascination. My peace of mind was
+destroyed by conflicting claims. The nymph of the fountain came over my
+memory, with all the associations of fairy footsteps, shady groves, soft
+echoes, and wild streamlets; but this new passion was produced by a strain
+of soul-subduing melody, still lingering in my ear, aided by a downy bed,
+fragrant flowers, and rose-colored curtains. "Unhappy youth!" sighed I to
+myself, "distracted by such rival passions, and the empire of thy heart
+thus violently contested by the sound of a voice, and the print of a
+footstep!"
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+I had not remained long in this mood, when I heard the door of the room
+gently opened. I turned my head to see what inhabitant of this enchanted
+palace should appear; whether page in green, a hideous dwarf, or haggard
+fairy. It was my own man Scipio. He advanced with cautious step, and was
+delighted, as he said, to find me so much myself again. My first questions
+were as to where I was and how I came there? Scipio told me a long story of
+his having been fishing in a canoe at the time of my hare-brained cruise;
+of his noticing the gathering squall, and my impending danger; of his
+hastening to join me, but arriving just in time to snatch me from a watery
+grave; of the great difficulty in restoring me to animation; and of my
+being subsequently conveyed, in a state of insensibility, to this mansion.
+
+"But where am I?" was the reiterated demand.
+
+"In the house of Mr. Somerville."
+
+"Somerville--Somerville!" I recollected to have heard that a gentleman of
+that name had recently taken up his residence at some distance from my
+father's abode, on the opposite side of the Hudson. He was commonly known
+by the name of "French Somerville," from having passed part of his early
+life in France, and from his exhibiting traces of French taste in his mode
+of living, and the arrangements of his house. In fact, it was in his
+pleasure-boat, which had got adrift, that I had made my fanciful and
+disastrous cruise. All this was simple, straightforward matter of fact, and
+threatened to demolish all the cobweb romance I had been spinning, when
+fortunately I again heard the tinkling of a harp. I raised myself in bed
+and listened.
+
+"Scipio," said I, with some little hesitation, "I heard some one singing
+just now. Who was it?"
+
+"Oh, that was Miss Julia."
+
+"Julia! Julia! Delightful! what a name! And, Scipio--is she--is she
+pretty?"
+
+Scipio grinned from ear to ear. "Except Miss Sophy, she was the most
+beautiful young lady he had ever seen."
+
+I should observe, that my sister Sophia was considered by all the servants
+a paragon of perfection.
+
+Scipio now offered to remove the basket of flowers; he was afraid their
+odor might be too powerful; but Miss Julia had given them that morning to
+be placed in my room.
+
+These flowers, then, had been gathered by the fairy fingers of my unseen
+beauty; that sweet breath which had filled my ear with melody had passed
+over them. I made Scipio hand them to me, culled several of the most
+delicate, and laid them on my bosom.
+
+Mr. Somerville paid me a visit not long afterward. He was an interesting
+study for me, for he was the father of my unseen beauty, and probably
+resembled her. I scanned him closely. He was a tall and elegant man, with
+an open, affable manner, and an erect and graceful carriage. His eyes were
+bluish-gray, and, though not dark, yet at times were sparkling and
+expressive. His hair was dressed and powdered, and being lightly combed up
+from his forehead, added to the loftiness of his aspect. He was fluent in
+discourse, but his conversation had the quiet tone of polished society,
+without any of those bold flights of thought, and picturings of fancy,
+which I so much admired.
+
+My imagination was a little puzzled, at first, to make out of this
+assemblage of personal and mental qualities a picture that should harmonize
+with my previous idea of the fair unseen. By dint, however, of selecting
+what it liked, and giving a touch here and a touch there, it soon furnished
+out a satisfactory portrait.
+
+"Julia must be tall," thought I, "and of exquisite grace and dignity. She
+is not quite so courtly as her father, for she has been brought up in the
+retirement of the country. Neither is she of such vivacious deportment; for
+the tones of her voice are soft and plaintive, and she loves pathetic
+music. She is rather pensive--yet not too pensive; just what is called
+interesting. Her eyes are like her father's, except that they are of a
+purer blue, and more tender and languishing. She has light hair--not
+exactly flaxen, for I do not like flaxen hair, but between that and auburn.
+In a word, she is a tall, elegant, imposing, languishing blue-eyed,
+romantic-looking beauty." And having thus finished her picture, I felt ten
+times more in love with her than ever.
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+I felt so much recovered that I would at once have left my room, but Mr.
+Somerville objected to it. He had sent early word to my family of my
+safety; and my father arrived in the course of the morning. He was shocked
+at learning the risk I had run, but rejoiced to find me so much restored,
+and was warm in his thanks to Mr. Somerville for his kindness. The other
+only required, in return, that I might remain two or three days as his
+guest, to give time for my recovery, and for our forming a closer
+acquaintance; a request which my father readily granted. Scipio accordingly
+accompanied my father home, and returned with a supply of clothes, and with
+affectionate letters from my mother and sisters.
+
+The next morning, aided by Scipio, I made my toilet with rather more care
+than usual, and descended the stairs with some trepidation, eager to see
+the original of the portrait which had been so completely pictured in my
+imagination.
+
+On entering the parlor, I found it deserted. Like the rest of the house, it
+was furnished in a foreign style. The curtains were of French silk; there
+were Grecian couches, marble tables, pier-glasses, and chandeliers. What
+chiefly attracted my eye, were documents of female taste that I saw around
+me; a piano, with an ample stock of Italian music: a book of poetry lying
+on the sofa; a vase of fresh flowers on a table, and a portfolio open with
+a skillful and half-finished sketch of them. In the window was a canary
+bird, in a gilt cage, and near by, the harp that had been in Julia's arms.
+Happy harp! But where was the being that reigned in this little empire of
+delicacies?--that breathed poetry and song, and dwelt among birds and
+flowers, and rose-colored curtains?
+
+Suddenly I heard the hall door fly open, the quick pattering of light
+steps, a wild, capricious strain of music, and the shrill barking of a dog.
+A light, frolic nymph of fifteen came tripping into the room, playing on a
+flageolet, with a little spaniel romping after her. Her gypsy hat had
+fallen back upon her shoulders; a profusion of glossy brown hair was blown
+in rich ringlets about her face, which beamed through them with the
+brightness of smiles and dimples.
+
+At sight of me she stopped short, in the most beautiful confusion,
+stammered out a word or two about looking for her father, glided out of the
+door, and I heard her bounding up the staircase, like a frightened fawn,
+with the little dog barking after her.
+
+When Miss Somerville returned to the parlor, she was quite a different
+being. She entered, stealing along by her mother's side with noiseless
+step, and sweet timidity; her hair was prettily adjusted, and a soft blush
+mantled on her damask cheek. Mr. Somerville accompanied the ladies, and
+introduced me regularly to them. There were many kind inquiries and much
+sympathy expressed, on the subject of my nautical accident, and some
+remarks upon the wild scenery of the neighborhood, with which the ladies
+seemed perfectly acquainted.
+
+"You must know," said Mr. Somerville, "that we are great navigators, and
+delight in exploring every nook and corner of the river. My daughter, too,
+is a great hunter of the picturesque, and transfers every rock and glen to
+her portfolio. By the way, my dear, show Mr. Mountjoy that pretty scene you
+have lately sketched." Julia complied, blushing, and drew from her
+portfolio a colored sketch. I almost started at the sight. It was my
+favorite brook. A sudden thought darted across my mind. I glanced down my
+eye, and beheld the divinest little foot in the world. Oh, blissful
+conviction! The struggle of my affections was at an end. The voice and the
+footstep were no longer at variance. Julia Somerville was the nymph of the
+fountain!
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+What conversation passed during breakfast I do not recollect, and hardly
+was conscious of at the time, for my thoughts were in complete confusion. I
+wished to gaze on Miss Somerville, but did not dare. Once, indeed, I
+ventured a glance. She was at that moment darting a similar one from under
+a covert of ringlets. Our eyes seemed shocked by the rencontre, and fell;
+hers through the natural modesty of her sex, mine through a bashfulness
+produced by the previous workings of my imagination. That glance, however,
+went like a sunbeam to my heart.
+
+A convenient mirror favored my diffidence, and gave me the reflection of
+Miss Somerville's form. It is true it only presented the back of her head,
+but she had the merit of an ancient statue; contemplate her from any point
+of view, she was beautiful. And yet she was totally different from
+everything I had before conceived of beauty. She was not the serene,
+meditative maid that I had pictured the nymph of the fountain; nor the
+tall, soft, languishing, blue-eyed, dignified being that I had fancied the
+minstrel of the harp. There was nothing of dignity about her: she was
+girlish in her appearance, and scarcely of the middle size; but then there
+was the tenderness of budding youth; the sweetness of the half-blown rose,
+when not a tint of perfume has been withered or exhaled; there were smiles
+and dimples, and all the soft witcheries of ever-varying expression. I
+wondered that I could ever have admired any other style of beauty.
+
+After breakfast, Mr. Somerville departed to attend to the concerns of his
+estate, and gave me in charge of the ladies. Mrs. Somerville also was
+called away by her household cares, and I was left alone with Julia! Here,
+then, was the situation which of all others I had most coveted. I was in
+the presence of the lovely being that had so long been the desire of my
+heart. We were alone; propitious opportunity for a lover! Did I seize upon
+it? Did I break out in one of my accustomed rhapsodies? No such thing!
+Never was being more awkwardly embarrassed.
+
+"What can be the cause of this?" thought I. "Surely, I cannot stand in awe
+of this young girl. I am of course her superior in intellect, and am never
+embarrassed in company with my tutor, notwithstanding all his wisdom."
+
+It was passing strange. I felt that if she were an old woman, I should be
+quite at my ease; if she were even an ugly woman, I should make out very
+well: it was her beauty that overpowered me. How little do lovely women
+know what awful beings they are, in the eyes of inexperienced youth! Young
+men brought up in the fashionable circles of our cities will smile at all
+this. Accustomed to mingle incessantly in female society, and to have the
+romance of the heart deadened by a thousand frivolous flirtations, women
+are nothing but women in their eyes; but to a susceptible youth like
+myself, brought up in the country, they are perfect divinities.
+
+Miss Somerville was at first a little embarrassed herself; but, somehow or
+other, women have a natural adroitness in recovering their self-possession;
+they are more alert in their minds, and graceful in their manners. Besides,
+I was but an ordinary personage in Miss Somerville's eyes; she was not
+under Hie influence of such a singular course of imaginings as had
+surrounded her, in my eyes, with the illusions of romance. Perhaps, too,
+she saw the confusion in the opposite camp and gained courage from the
+discovery. At any rate she was the first to take the field.
+
+Her conversation, however, was only on commonplace topics, and in an easy,
+well-bred style. I endeavored to respond in the same manner; but I was
+strangely incompetent to the task. My ideas were frozen up; even words
+seemed to fail me. I was excessively vexed at myself, for I wished to be
+uncommonly elegant. I tried two or three times to turn a pretty thought, or
+to utter a fine sentiment; but it would come forth so trite, so forced, so
+mawkish, that I was ashamed of it. My very voice sounded discordantly,
+though I sought to modulate it into the softest tones. "The truth is,"
+thought I to myself, "I cannot bring my mind down to the small talk
+necessary for young girls; it is too masculine and robust for the mincing
+measure of parlor gossip. I am a philosopher--and that accounts for it."
+
+The entrance of Mrs. Somerville at length gave me relief. I at once
+breathed freely, and felt a vast deal of confidence come over me. "This is
+strange," thought I, "that the appearance of another woman should revive my
+courage; that I should be a better match for two women than one. However,
+since it is so, I will take advantage of the circumstance, and let this
+young lady see that I am not so great a simpleton as she probably thinks
+me."
+
+I accordingly took up the book of poetry which lay upon the sofa. It was
+Milton's Paradise Lost. Nothing could have been more fortunate; it afforded
+a fine scope for my favorite vein of grandiloquence. I went largely into a
+discussion of its merits, or rather an enthusiastic eulogy of them. My
+observations were addressed to Mrs. Somerville, for I found I could talk to
+her with more ease than to her daughter. She appeared alive to the beauties
+of the poet and disposed to meet me in the discussion; but it was not my
+object to hear her talk; it was to talk myself. I anticipated all she had
+to say, overpowered her with the copiousness of my ideas, and supported and
+illustrated them by long citations from the author.
+
+While thus holding forth, I cast a side glance to see how Miss Somerville
+was affected. She had some embroidery stretched on a frame before her, but
+had paused in her labor, and was looking down as if lost in mute attention.
+I felt a glow of self-satisfaction, but I recollected, at the same time,
+with a kind of pique, the advantage she had enjoyed over me in our
+tete-a-tete. I determined to push my triumph, and accordingly kept on with
+redoubled ardor, until I had fairly exhausted my subject, or rather my
+thoughts.
+
+I had scarce come to a full stop, when Miss Somerville raised her eyes from
+the work on which they had been fixed, and turning to her mother, observed:
+"I have been considering, mamma, whether to work these flowers plain, or in
+colors."
+
+Had an ice-bolt shot to my heart, it could not have chilled me more
+effectually. "What a fool," thought I, "have I been making
+myself--squandering away fine thoughts, and fine language, upon a light
+mind and an ignorant ear! This girl knows nothing of poetry. She has no
+soul, I fear, for its beauties. Can any one have real sensibility of heart,
+and not be alive to poetry? However, she is young; this part of her
+education has been neglected; there is time enough to remedy it. I will be
+her preceptor. I will kindle in her mind the sacred flame, and lead her
+through the fairy land of song. But after all, it is rather unfortunate
+that I should have fallen in love with a woman who knows nothing of
+poetry."
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+I passed a day not altogether satisfactory. I was a little disappointed
+that Miss Somerville did not show more poetical feeling. "I am afraid,
+after all," said I to myself, "she is light and girlish, and more fitted to
+pluck wild flowers, play on the flageolet, and romp with little dogs than
+to converse with a man of my turn."
+
+I believe, however, to tell the truth, I was more out of humor with myself.
+I thought I had made the worst first appearance that ever hero made, either
+in novel or fairy tale. I was out of all patience, when I called to mind my
+awkward attempts at ease and elegance, in the tete-a-tete. And then my
+intolerable long lecture about poetry to catch the applause of a heedless
+auditor! But there I was not to blame. I had certainly been eloquent: it
+was her fault that the eloquence was wasted. To meditate upon the
+embroidery of a flower, when I was expatiating on the beauties of Milton!
+She might at least have admired the poetry, if she did not relish the
+manner in which it was delivered: though that was not despicable, for I had
+recited passages in my best style, which my mother and sisters had always
+considered equal to a play. "Oh, it is evident," thought I, "Miss
+Somerville has very little soul!"
+
+Such were my fancies and cogitations during the day, the greater part of
+which was spent in my chamber, for I was still languid. My evening was
+passed in the drawing-room, where I overlooked Miss Somerville's portfolio
+of sketches. They were executed with great taste, and showed a nice
+observation of the peculiarities of nature. They were all her own, and free
+from those cunning tints and touches of the drawing-master, by which young
+ladies' drawings, like their heads, are dressed up for company. There was
+no garish and vulgar trick of colors, either; all was executed with
+singular truth and simplicity.
+
+"And yet," thought I, "this little being, who has so pure an eye to take
+in, as in a limpid brook, all the graceful forms and magic tints of nature,
+has no soul for poetry!"
+
+Mr. Somerville, toward the latter part of the evening, observing my eye to
+wander occasionally to the harp, interpreted and met my wishes with his
+accustomed civility.
+
+"Julia, my dear," said he, "Mr. Mountjoy would like to hear a little music
+from your harp; let us hear, too, the sound of your voice."
+
+Julia immediately complied, without any of that hesitation and difficulty,
+by which young ladies are apt to make company pay dear for bad music. She
+sang a sprightly strain, in a brilliant style, that came trilling playfully
+over the ear; and the bright eye and dimpling smile showed that her little
+heart danced with the song. Her pet canary bird, who hung close by, was
+awakened by the music, and burst forth into an emulating strain. Julia
+smiled with a pretty air of defiance, and played louder.
+
+After some time the music changed, and ran into a plaintive strain, in a
+minor key. Then it was that all the former witchery of her voice came over
+me; then it was that she seemed to sing from the heart and to the heart.
+Her fingers moved about the chords as if they scarcely touched them. Her
+whole manner and appearance changed; her eyes beamed with the softest
+expression; her countenance, her frame, all seemed subdued into tenderness.
+She rose from the harp, leaving it still vibrating with sweet sounds, and
+moved toward her father, to bid him good-night.
+
+His eyes had been fixed on her intently during her performance. As she came
+before him he parted her shining ringlets with both his hands, and looked
+down with the fondness of a father on her innocent face. The music seemed
+still lingering in its lineaments, and the action of her father brought a
+moist gleam in her eye. He kissed her fair forehead, after the French mode
+of parental caressing: "Goodnight, and God bless you," said he, "my good
+little girl!"
+
+Julia tripped away, with a tear in her eye, a dimple in her cheek, and a
+light heart in her bosom. I thought it the prettiest picture of paternal
+and filial affection I had ever seen.
+
+When I retired to bed, a new train of thoughts crowded into my brain.
+"After all," said I to myself, "it is clear this girl has a soul, though
+she was not moved by my eloquence. She has all the outward signs and
+evidences of poetic feeling. She paints well, and has an eye for nature.
+She is a fine musician, and enters into the very soul of song. What a pity
+that she knows nothing of poetry! But we will see what is to be done? I am
+irretrievably in love with her; what then am I to do? Come down to the
+level of her mind, or endeavor to raise her to some kind of intellectual
+equality with myself? That is the most generous course. She will look up to
+me as a benefactor. I shall become associated in her mind with the lofty
+thoughts and harmonious graces of poetry. She is apparently docile: besides
+the difference of our ages will give me an ascendency over her. She cannot
+be above sixteen years of age, and I am full turned to twenty." So, having
+built this most delectable of air castles, I fell asleep.
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+The next morning I was quite a different being. I no longer felt fearful of
+stealing a glance at Julia; on the contrary, I contemplated her steadily,
+with the benignant eye of a benefactor. Shortly after breakfast I found
+myself alone with her, as I had on the preceding morning; but I felt
+nothing of the awkwardness of our previous tete-a-tete. I was elevated by
+the consciousness of my intellectual superiority and should almost have
+felt a sentiment of pity for the ignorance of the lovely little being, if I
+had not felt also the assurance that I should be able to dispel it. "But it
+is time," thought I, "to open school."
+
+Julia was occupied in arranging some music on her piano. I looked over two
+or three songs; they were Moore's Irish melodies.
+
+"These are pretty things!" said I, flirting the leaves over lightly, and
+giving a slight shrug, by way of qualifying the opinion.
+
+"Oh, I love them of all things," said Julia, "they're so touching!"
+
+"Then you like them for the poetry," said I, with an encouraging smile.
+
+"Oh, yes; she thought them charmingly written."
+
+Now was my time. "Poetry," said I, assuming a didactic attitude and air,
+"poetry is one of the most pleasing studies that can occupy a youthful
+mind. It renders us susceptible of the gentle impulses of humanity, and
+cherishes a delicate perception of all that is virtuous and elevated in
+morals, and graceful and beautiful in physics. It--"
+
+I was going on in a style that would have graced a professor of rhetoric,
+when I saw a light smile playing about Miss Somerville's mouth, and that
+she began to turn over the leaves of a music-book. I recollected her
+inattention to my discourse of the preceding morning. "There is no fixing
+her light mind," thought I, "by abstract theory; we will proceed
+practically." As it happened, the identical volume of Milton's Paradise
+Lost was lying at hand.
+
+"Let me recommend to you, my young friend," said I, in one of those tones
+of persuasive admonition, which I had so often loved in Glencoe, "let me
+recommend to you this admirable poem; you will find in it sources of
+intellectual enjoyment far superior to those songs which have delighted
+you." Julia looked at the book, and then at me, with a whimsically dubious
+air. "Milton's Paradise Lost?" said she; "oh, I know the greater part of
+that by heart."
+
+I had not expected to find my pupil so far advanced; however, the Paradise
+Lost is a kind of school book, and its finest passages are given to young
+ladies as tasks.
+
+"I find," said I to myself, "I must not treat her as so complete a novice;
+her inattention yesterday could not have proceeded from absolute ignorance,
+but merely from a want of poetic feeling. I'll try her again."
+
+I now determined to dazzle her with my own erudition, and launched into a
+harangue that would have done honor to an institute. Pope, Spenser,
+Chaucer, and the old dramatic writers were all dipped into, with the
+excursive flight of a swallow. I did not confine myself to English poets,
+but gave a glance at the French and Italian schools; I passed over Ariosto
+in full wing, but paused on Tasso's Jerusalem Delivered. I dwelt on the
+character of Clorinda: "There's a character," said I, "that you will find
+well worthy a woman's study. It shows to what exalted heights of heroism
+the sex can rise, how gloriously they may share even in the stern concerns
+of men."
+
+"For my part," said Julia, gently taking advantage of a pause, "for my
+part, I prefer the character of Sophronia."
+
+I was thunderstruck. She then had read Tasso! This girl that I had been
+treating as an ignoramus in poetry! She proceeded with a slight glow of the
+cheek, summoned up perhaps by a casual glow of feeling:
+
+"I do not admire those masculine heroines," said she, "who aim at the bold
+qualities of the opposite sex. Now Sophronia only exhibits the real
+qualities of a woman, wrought up to their highest excitement. She is
+modest, gentle, and retiring, as it becomes a woman to be; but she has all
+the strength of affection proper to a woman. She cannot fight for her
+people as Clorinda does, but she can offer herself up, and die to serve
+them. You may admire Clorinda, but you surely would be more apt to love
+Sophronia; at least," added she, suddenly appearing to recollect herself,
+and blushing at having launched into such a discussion, "at least that is
+what papa observed when we read the poem together."
+
+"Indeed," said I, dryly, for I felt disconcerted and nettled at being
+unexpectedly lectured by my pupil; "indeed, I do not exactly recollect the
+passage."
+
+"Oh," said Julia, "I can repeat it to you;" and she immediately gave it in
+Italian.
+
+Heavens and earth!--here was a situation! I knew no more of Italian than I
+did of the language of Psalmanazar. What a dilemma for a would-be-wise man
+to be placed in! I saw Julia waited for my opinion.
+
+"In fact," said I, hesitating, "I--I do not exactly understand Italian."
+
+"Oh," said Julia, with the utmost naivete, "I have no doubt it is very
+beautiful in the translation."
+
+I was glad to break up school, and get back to my chamber, full of the
+mortification which a wise man in love experiences on finding his mistress
+wiser than himself. "Translation! translation!" muttered I to myself, as I
+jerked the door shut behind me: "I am surprised my father has never had me
+instructed in the modern languages. They are all important. What is the
+use of Latin and Greek? No one speaks them; but here, the moment I make my
+appearance in the world, a little girl slaps Italian in my face. However,
+thank heaven, a language is easily learned. The moment I return home, I'll
+set about studying Italian; and to prevent future surprise, I will study
+Spanish and German at the same time; and if any young lady attempts to
+quote Italian upon me again, I'll bury her under a heap of High Dutch
+poetry!"
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+I felt now like some mighty chieftain, who has carried the war into a weak
+country, with full confidence of success, and been repulsed and obliged to
+draw off his forces from before some inconsiderable fortress.
+
+"However," thought I, "I have as yet brought only my light artillery into
+action; we shall see what is to be done with my heavy ordnance. Julia is
+evidently well versed in poetry; but it is natural she should be so; it is
+allied to painting and music, and is congenial to the light graces of the
+female character. We will try her on graver themes."
+
+I felt all my pride awakened; it even for a time swelled higher than my
+love. I was determined completely to establish my mental superiority, and
+subdue the intellect of this little being; it would then be time to sway
+the scepter of gentle empire, and win the affections of her heart.
+
+Accordingly, at dinner I again took the field, _en potence._ I now
+addressed myself to Mr. Somerville, for I was about to enter upon topics in
+which a young girl like her could not be well versed. I led, or rather
+forced, the conversation into a vein of historical erudition, discussing
+several of the most prominent facts of ancient history, and accompanying
+them with sound, indisputable apothegms.
+
+Mr. Somerville listened to me with the air of a man receiving information.
+I was encouraged, and went on gloriously from theme to theme of school
+declamation. I sat with Marius on the ruins of Carthage; I defended the
+bridge with Horatius Cocles; thrust my hand into the flame with Martius
+Scaevola, and plunged with Curtius into the yawning gulf; I fought side by
+side with Leonidas, at the straits of Thermopylae; and was going full drive
+into the battle of Plataea, when my memory, which is the worst in the
+world, failed me, just as I wanted the name of the Lacedemonian commander.
+
+"Julia, my dear," said Mr. Somerville, "perhaps you may recollect the name
+of which Mr. Mountjoy is in quest?"
+
+Julia colored slightly. "I believe," said she, in a low voice, "I believe
+it was Pausanius."
+
+This unexpected sally, instead of re-enforcing me, threw my whole scheme of
+battle into confusion, and the Athenians remained unmolested in the field.
+
+I am half inclined, since, to think Mr. Somerville meant this as a sly hit
+at my schoolboy pedantry; but he was too well bred not to seek to relieve
+me from my mortification. "Oh!" said he, "Julia is our family book of
+reference for names, dates, and distances, and has an excellent memory for
+history and geography."
+
+I now became desperate; as a last resource I turned to metaphysics. "If she
+is a philosopher in petticoats," thought I, "it is all over with me." Here,
+however, I had the field to myself. I gave chapter and verse of my tutor's
+lectures, heightened by all his poetical illustrations; I even went further
+than he had ever ventured, and plunged into such depths of metaphysics that
+I was in danger of sticking in the mire at the bottom. Fortunately, I had
+auditors who apparently could not detect my flounderings. Neither Mr.
+Somerville nor his daughter offered the least interruption.
+
+When the ladies had retired, Mr. Somerville sat some time with me; and as I
+was no longer anxious to astonish, I permitted myself to listen, and found
+that he was really agreeable. He was quite communicative, and from his
+conversation I was enabled to form a juster idea of his daughter's
+character, and the mode in which she had been brought up. Mr. Somerville
+had mingled much with the world, and with what is termed fashionable
+society. He had experienced its cold elegances and gay insincerities; its
+dissipation of the spirits and squanderings of the heart. Like many men of
+the world, though he had wandered too far from nature ever to return to it,
+yet he had the good taste and good feeling to look back fondly to its
+simple delights, and to determine that his child, if possible, should never
+leave them. He had superintended her education with scrupulous care,
+storing her mind with the graces of polite literature, and with such
+knowledge as would enable it to furnish its own amusement and occupation,
+and giving her all the accomplishments that sweeten and enliven the circle
+of domestic life. He had been particularly sedulous to exclude all
+fashionable affectations; all false sentiment, false sensibility, and false
+romance. "Whatever advantages she may possess," said he, "she is quite
+unconscious of them. She is a capricious little being, in everything but
+her affections; she is, however, free from art; simple, ingenuous, amiable,
+and, I thank God! happy."
+
+Such was the eulogy of a fond father, delivered with a tenderness that
+touched me. I could not help making a casual inquiry, whether, among the
+graces of polite literature, he had included a slight tincture of
+metaphysics. He smiled, and told me he had not.
+
+On the whole, when, as usual, that night, I summed up the day's
+observations on my pillow, I was not altogether dissatisfied. "Miss
+Somerville," said I, "loves poetry, and I like her the better for it. She
+has the advantage of me in Italian; agreed; what is it to know a variety of
+languages, but merely to have a variety of sounds to express the same idea?
+Original thought is the ore of the mind; language is but the accidental
+stamp and coinage by which it is put into circulation. If I can furnish an
+original idea, what care I how many languages she can translate it into?
+She may be able also to quote names and dates and latitudes better than I;
+but that is a mere effort of the memory. I admit she is more accurate in
+history and geography than I; but then she knows nothing of metaphysics."
+
+I had now sufficiently recovered to return home; yet I could not think of
+leaving Mr. Somerville's without having a little further conversation with
+him on the subject of his daughter's education.
+
+"This Mr. Somerville," thought I, "is a very accomplished, elegant man; he
+has seen a good deal of the world, and, upon the whole, has profited by
+what he has seen. He is not without information, and, as far as he thinks,
+appears to think correctly; but, after all, he is rather superficial, and
+does not think profoundly. He seems to take no delight in those
+metaphysical abstractions that are the proper aliment of masculine minds. I
+called to mind various occasions in which I had indulged largely in
+metaphysical discussions, but could recollect no instance where I had been
+able to draw him out. He had listened, it is true, with attention, and
+smiled as if in acquiescence, but had always appeared to avoid reply.
+Besides, I had made several sad blunders in the glow of eloquent
+declamation; but he had never interrupted me, to notice and correct them,
+as he would have done had he been versed in the theme.
+
+"Now, it is really a great pity," resumed I, "that he should have the
+entire management of Miss Somerville's education. What a vast advantage it
+would be if she could be put for a little time under the superintendence of
+Glencoe. He would throw some deeper shades of thought into her mind, which
+at present is all sunshine; not but that Mr. Somerville has done very well,
+as far as he has gone; but then he has merely prepared the soil for the
+strong plants of useful knowledge. She is well versed in the leading facts
+of history, and the general course of belles-lettres," said I; "a little
+more philosophy would do wonders."
+
+I accordingly took occasion to ask Mr. Somerville for a few moments'
+conversation in his study, the morning I was to depart. When we were alone
+I opened the matter fully to him. I commenced with the warmest eulogium of
+Glencoe's powers of mind and vast acquirements, and ascribed to him all my
+proficiency in the higher branches of knowledge. I begged, therefore, to
+recommend him as a friend calculated to direct the studies of Miss
+Somerville; to lead her mind, by degrees, to the contemplation of abstract
+principles, and to produce habits of philosophical analysis; "which," added
+I, gently smiling, "are not often cultivated by young ladies." I ventured
+to hint, in addition, that he would find Mr. Glencoe a most valuable and
+interesting acquaintance for himself; one who would stimulate and evolve
+the powers of his mind; and who might open to him tracts of inquiry and
+speculation to which perhaps he had hitherto been a stranger.
+
+Mr. Somerville listened with grave attention. When I had finished, he
+thanked me in the politest manner for the interest I took in the welfare of
+his daughter and himself. He observed that, as it regarded himself, he was
+afraid he was too old to benefit by the instruction of Mr. Glencoe, and
+that as to his daughter, he was afraid her mind was but little fitted for
+the study of metaphysics. "I do not wish," continued he, "to strain her
+intellects with subjects they cannot grasp, but to make her familiarly
+acquainted with those that are within the limits of her capacity. I do not
+pretend to prescribe the boundaries of female genius, and am far from
+indulging the vulgar opinion that women are unfitted by nature for the
+highest intellectual pursuits. I speak only with reference to my daughter's
+tastes and talents. She will never make a learned woman; nor, in truth, do
+I desire it; for such is the jealousy of our sex, as to mental as well as
+physical ascendency, that a learned woman is not always the happiest. I do
+not wish my daughter to excite envy, or to battle with the prejudices of
+the world; but to glide peaceably through life, on the good will and kind
+opinions of her friends. She has ample employment for her little head, in
+the course I have marked out for her; and is busy at present with some
+branches of natural history, calculated to awaken her perceptions to the
+beauties and wonders of nature, and to the inexhaustible volume of wisdom
+constantly spread open before her eyes. I consider that woman most likely
+to make an agreeable companion, who can draw topics of pleasing remark from
+every natural object; and most likely to be cheerful and contented, who is
+continually sensible of the order, the harmony, and the invariable
+beneficence that reign throughout the beautiful world we inhabit."
+
+"But," added he, smiling, "I am betraying myself into a lecture, instead of
+merely giving a reply to your kind offer. Permit me to take the liberty, in
+return, of inquiring a little about your own pursuits. You speak of having
+finished your education; but of course you have a line of private study and
+mental occupation marked out; for you must know the importance, both in
+point of interest and happiness, of keeping the mind employed. May I ask
+what system you observe in your intellectual exercises?"
+
+"Oh, as to system," I observed, "I could never bring myself into anything
+of the kind. I thought it best to let my genius take it own course, as it
+always acted the most vigorously when stimulated by inclination."
+
+Mr. Somerville shook his head. "This same genius," said he, "is a wild
+quality that runs away with our most promising young men. It has become so
+much the fashion, too, to give it the reins that it is now thought an
+animal of too noble and generous a nature to be brought to harness. But it
+is all a mistake. Nature never designed these high endowments to run riot
+through society, and throw the whole system into confusion. No, my dear
+sir, genius, unless it acts upon system, is very apt to be a useless
+quality to society; sometimes an injurious, and certainly a very
+uncomfortable one, to its possessor. I have had many opportunities of
+seeing the progress through life of young men who were accounted geniuses,
+and have found it too often end in early exhaustion and bitter
+disappointment; and have as often noticed that these effects might be
+traced to a total want of system. There were no habits of business, of
+steady purpose, and regular application, superinduced upon the mind;
+everything was left to chance and impulse, and native luxuriance, and
+everything of course ran to waste and wild entanglement. Excuse me if I am
+tedious on this point, for I feel solicitous to impress it upon you, being
+an error extremely prevalent in our country and one into which too many of
+our youth have fallen. I am happy, however, to observe the zeal which still
+appears to actuate you for the acquisition of knowledge, and augur every
+good from the elevated bent of your ambition. May I ask what has been your
+course of study for the last six months?"
+
+Never was question more unluckily timed. For the last six months I had been
+absolutely buried in novels and romances.
+
+Mr. Somerville perceived that the question was embarrassing, and, with his
+invariable good breeding, immediately resumed the conversation, without
+waiting for a reply. He took care, however, to turn it in such a way as to
+draw from me an account of the whole manner in which I had been educated,
+and the various currents of reading into which my mind had run. He then
+went on to discuss, briefly but impressively, the different branches of
+knowledge most important to a young man in my situation; and to my surprise
+I found him a complete master of those studies on which I had supposed him
+ignorant, and on which I had been descanting so confidently.
+
+He complimented me, however, very graciously, upon the progress I had made,
+but advised me for the present to turn my attention to the physical rather
+than the moral sciences. "These studies," said he, "store a man's mind with
+valuable facts, and at the same time repress self-confidence, by letting
+him know how boundless are the realms of knowledge, and how little we can
+possibly know. Whereas metaphysical studies, though of an ingenious order
+of intellectual employment, are apt to bewilder some minds with vague
+speculations. They never know how far they have advanced, or what may be
+the correctness of their favorite theory. They render many of our young men
+verbose and declamatory, and prone to mistake the aberrations of their
+fancy for the inspirations of divine philosophy."
+
+I could not but interrupt him, to assent to the truth of these remarks, and
+to say that it had been my lot, in the course of my limited experience, to
+encounter young men of the kind, who had overwhelmed me by their verbosity.
+
+Mr. Somerville smiled. "I trust," said he, kindly, "that you will guard
+against these errors. Avoid the eagerness with which a young man is apt to
+hurry into conversation, and to utter the crude and ill-digested notions
+which he has picked up in his recent studies. Be assured that extensive and
+accurate knowledge is the slow acquisition of a studious lifetime; that a
+young man, however pregnant his wit, and prompt his talent, can have
+mastered but the rudiments of learning, and, in a manner, attained the
+implements of study. Whatever may have been your past assiduity, you must
+be sensible that as yet you have but reached the threshold of true
+knowledge; but at the same time you have the advantage that you are still
+very young, and have ample time to learn."
+
+Here our conference ended. I walked out of the study a very different being
+from what I was on entering it. I had gone in with the air of a professor
+about to deliver a lecture; I came out like a student who had failed in his
+examination, and been degraded in his class.
+
+"Very young," and "on the threshold of knowledge!" This was extremely
+flattering to one who had considererd himself an accomplished scholar and a
+profound philosopher.
+
+"It is singular," thought I; "there seems to have been a spell upon my
+faculties, ever since I have been in this house. I certainly have not been
+able to do myself justice. Whenever I have undertaken to advise, I have had
+the tables turned upon me. It must be that I am strange and diffident among
+people I am not accustomed to. I wish they could hear me talk at home!"
+
+"After all," added I, on further reflection, "after all there is a great
+deal of force in what Mr. Somerville has said. Somehow or other, these men
+of the world do now and then hit upon remarks that would do credit to a
+philosopher. Some of his general observations came so home that I almost
+thought they were meant for myself. His advice about adopting a system of
+study is very judicious. I will immediately put it hi practice. My mind
+shall operate henceforward with the regularity of clock-work."
+
+How far I succeeded in adopting this plan, how I fared in the further
+pursuit of knowledge, and how I succeeded in my suit to Julia Somerville,
+may afford matter for a further communication to the public, if this simple
+record of my early life is fortunate enough to excite any curiosity.
+
+
+
+
+
+THE GREAT MISSISSIPPI BUBBLE
+
+"A TIME OF UNEXAMPLED PROSPERITY"
+
+
+In the course of a voyage from England, I once fell in with a convoy of
+merchant ships bound for the West Indies. The weather was uncommonly bland;
+and the ships vied with each other in spreading sail to catch a light,
+favoring breeze, until their hulls were almost hidden beneath a cloud of
+canvas. The breeze went down with the sun, and his last yellow rays shone
+upon a thousand sails, idly flapping against the masts.
+
+I exulted in the beauty of the scene, and augured a prosperous voyage; but
+the veteran master of the ship shook his head, and pronounced this halcyon
+calm a "weather-breeder." And so it proved. A storm burst forth in the
+night; the sea roared and raged; and when the day broke, I beheld the late
+gallant convoy scattered in every direction; some dismasted, others
+scudding under bare poles, and many firing signals of distress.
+
+I have since been occasionally reminded of this scene, by those calm, sunny
+seasons in the commercial world, which are known by the name of "times of
+unexampled prosperity." They are the sure weather-breeders of traffic.
+Every now and then the world is visited by one of these delusive seasons,
+when "the credit system," as it is called, expands to full luxuriance,
+everybody trusts everybody; a bad debt is a thing unheard of; the broad way
+to certain and sudden wealth lies plain and open; and men are tempted to
+dash forward boldly, from the facility of borrowing.
+
+Promissory notes, interchanged between scheming individuals, are liberally
+discounted at the banks, which become so many mints to coin words into
+cash; and as the supply of words is inexhaustible, it may readily be
+supposed what a vast amount of promissory capital is soon in circulation.
+Every one now talks in thousands; nothing is heard but gigantic operations
+in trade; great purchases and sales of real property, and immense sums made
+at every transfer. All, to be sure, as yet exists in promise; but the
+believer in promises calculates the aggregate as solid capital, and falls
+back in amazement at the amount of public wealth, the "unexampled state of
+public prosperity."
+
+Now is the time for speculative and dreaming or designing men. They relate
+their dreams and projects to the ignorant and credulous, dazzle them with
+golden visions, and set them madding after shadows. The example of one
+stimulates another; speculation rises on speculation; bubble rises on
+bubble; every one helps with his breath to swell the windy superstructure,
+and admires and wonders at the magnitude of the inflation he has
+contributed to produce.
+
+Speculation is the romance of trade, and casts contempt upon all its sober
+realities. It renders the stock-jobber a magician, and the exchange a
+region of enchantment. It elevates the merchant into a kind of
+knight-errant, or rather a commercial Quixote. The slow but sure gains of
+snug percentage become despicable in his eyes; no "operation" is thought
+worthy of attention that does not double or treble the investment. No
+business is worth following that does not promise an immediate fortune. As
+he sits musing over his ledger, with pen behind his ear, he is like La
+Mancha's hero in his study, dreaming over his books of chivalry. His dusty
+counting-house fades before his eyes, or changes into a Spanish mine; he
+gropes after diamonds, or dives after pearls. The subterranean garden of
+Aladdin is nothing to the realms of wealth that break upon his imagination.
+
+Could this delusion always last, the life of a merchant would indeed be a
+golden dream; but it is as short as it is brilliant. Let but a doubt enter,
+and the "season of unexampled prosperity" is at end. The coinage of words
+is suddenly curtailed; the promissory capital begins to vanish into smoke;
+a panic succeeds, and the whole superstructure, built upon credit and
+reared by speculation, crumbles to the ground, leaving scarce a wreck
+behind:
+
+  "It is such stuff as dreams are made of."
+
+When a man of business, therefore, hears on every side rumors of fortunes
+suddenly acquired; when he finds banks liberal, and brokers busy; when he
+sees adventurers flush of paper capital, and full of scheme and enterprise;
+when he perceives a greater disposition to buy than to sell; when trade
+overflows its accustomed channels and deluges the country; when he hears of
+new regions of commercial adventure; of distant marts and distant mines,
+swallowing merchandise and disgorging gold; when he finds joint-stock
+companies of all kinds forming; railroads, canals, and locomotive engines,
+springing up on every side; when idlers suddenly become men of business,
+and dash into the game of commerce as they would into the hazards of the
+faro table; when he beholds the streets glittering with new equipages,
+palaces conjured up by the magic of speculation; tradesmen flushed with
+sudden success, and vying with each other in ostentatious expense; in a
+word, when he hears the whole community joining in the theme of "unexampled
+prosperity," let him look upon the whole as a "weather-breeder," and
+prepare for the impending storm.
+
+The foregoing remarks are intended merely as a prelude to a narrative I am
+about to lay before the public, of one of the most memorable instances of
+the infatuation of gain to be found in the whole history of commerce. I
+allude to the famous Mississippi Bubble. It is a matter that has passed
+into a proverb, and become a phrase in every one's mouth, yet of which not
+one merchant in ten has probably a distinct idea. I have therefore thought
+that an authentic account of it would be interesting and salutary, at the
+present moment, when we are suffering under the effects of a severe access
+of the credit system, and just recovering from one of its ruinous
+delusions.
+
+Before entering into the story of this famous chimera, it is proper to give
+a few particulars concerning the individual who engendered it. John Law was
+born in Edinburgh in 1671. His father, William Law, was a rich goldsmith,
+and left his son an estate of considerable value, called Lauriston,
+situated about four miles from Edinburgh. Goldsmiths, in those days, acted
+occasionally as bankers, and his father's operations, under this character,
+may have originally turned the thoughts of the youth to the science of
+calculation, in which he became an adept; so that at an early age he
+excelled in playing at all games of combination.
+
+In 1694 he appeared in London, where a handsome person, and an easy and
+insinuating address, gained him currency in the first circles and the
+nickname of "Beau Law." The same personal advantages gave him success in
+the world of gallantry, until he became involved in a quarrel with Beau
+Wilson, his rival in fashion, whom he killed in a duel, and then fled to
+France, to avoid prosecution.
+
+He returned to Edinburgh in 1700, and remained there several years; during
+which time he first broached his great credit system, offering to supply
+the deficiency of coin by the establishment of a bank, which, according to
+his views, might emit a paper currency equivalent to the whole landed
+estate of the kingdom.
+
+His scheme excited great astonishment in Edinburgh; but, though the
+government was not sufficiently advanced in financial knowledge to detect
+the fallacies upon which it was founded, Scottish caution and suspicion
+served in the place of wisdom, and the project was rejected. Law met with
+no better success with the English Parliament; and the fatal affair of the
+death of Wilson still hanging over him, for which he had never been able to
+procure a pardon, he again went to France.
+
+The financial affairs of France were at this time in a deplorable
+condition. The wars, the pomp and profusion, of Louis XIV., and his
+religious persecutions of whole classes of the most industrious of his
+subjects, had exhausted his treasury, and overwhelmed the nation with debt.
+The old monarch clung to his selfish magnificence, and could not be induced
+to diminish his enormous expenditure; and his minister of finance was
+driven to his wits' end to devise all kinds of disastrous expedients to
+keep up the royal state, and to extricate the nation from its
+embarrassments.
+
+In this state of things, Law ventured to bring forward his financial
+project. It was founded on the plan of the Bank of England, which had
+already been in successful operation several years. He met with immediate
+patronage, and a congenial spirit, in the Duke of Orleans, who had married
+a natural daughter of the king. The duke had been astonished at the
+facility with which England had supported the burden of a public debt,
+created by the wars of Anne and William, and which exceeded in amount that
+under which France was groaning. The whole matter was soon explained by Law
+to his satisfaction. The latter maintained that England had stopped at the
+mere threshold of an art capable of creating unlimited sources of national
+wealth. The duke was dazzled with his splendid views and specious
+reasonings, and thought he clearly comprehended his system. Demarets, the
+Comptroller-General of Finance, was not so easily deceived. He pronounced
+the plan of Law more pernicious than any of the disastrous expedients that
+the government had yet been driven to. The old king also, Louis XIV.,
+detested all innovations, especially those which came from a rival nation;
+the project of a bank, therefore, was utterly rejected.
+
+Law remained for a while in Paris, leading a gay and affluent existence,
+owing to his handsome person, easy manners, flexible temper, and a
+faro-bank which he had set up. His agreeable career was interrupted by a
+message from D'Argenson, Lieutenant-General of Police, ordering him to quit
+Paris, alleging that he was "_rather too skillful at the game which he
+had introduced_."
+
+For several succeeding years he shifted his residence from state to state
+of Italy and Germany; offering his scheme of finance to every court that he
+visited, but without success. The Duke of Savoy, Victor Amadeus, afterward
+king of Sardinia, was much struck with his project; but after considering
+it for a time, replied, _"I am not sufficiently powerful to ruin
+myself."_
+
+The shifting, adventurous life of Law, and the equivocal means by which he
+appeared to live, playing high, and always with great success, threw a
+cloud of suspicion over him wherever he went, and caused him to be expelled
+by the magistracy from the semi-commercial, semi-aristocratical cities of
+Venice and Genoa.
+
+The events of 1715 brought Law back again to Paris. Louis XIV. was dead.
+Louis XV. was a mere child, and during his minority the Duke of Orleans
+held the reins of government as Regent. Law had at length found his man.
+
+The Duke of Orleans has been differently represented by different
+contemporaries. He appears to have had excellent natural qualities,
+perverted by a bad education. He was of the middle size, easy and graceful,
+with an agreeable countenance, and open, affable demeanor. His mind was
+quick and sagacious, rather than profound; and his quickness of intellect,
+and excellence of memory, supplied the lack of studious application. His
+wit was prompt and pungent; he expressed himself with vivacity and
+precision; his imagination was vivid, his temperament sanguine and joyous;
+his courage daring. His mother, the Duchess of Orleans, expressed his
+character in a jeu d'esprit. "The fairies," said she, "were invited to be
+present at his birth, and each one conferring a talent on my son, he
+possesses them all. Unfortunately, we had forgotten to invite an old fairy,
+who, arriving after all the others, exclaimed, 'He shall have all the
+talents, excepting that to make a good use of them.'"
+
+Under proper tuition, the duke might have risen to real greatness; but in
+his early years he was put under the tutelage of the Abbe Dubois, one of
+the subtlest and basest spirits that ever intrigued its way into eminent
+place and power. The abbe was of low origin and despicable exterior,
+totally destitute of morals, and perfidious in the extreme; but with a
+supple, insinuating address, and an accommodating spirit, tolerant of all
+kinds of profligacy in others. Conscious of his own inherent baseness, he
+sought to secure an influence over his pupil, by corrupting his principles
+and fostering his vices; he debased him, to keep himself from being
+despised. Unfortunately he succeeded. To the early precepts of this
+infamous pander have been attributed those excesses that disgraced the
+manhood of the regent, and gave a licentious character to his whole course
+of government. His love of pleasure, quickened and indulged by those who
+should have restrained it, led him into all kinds of sensual indulgence. He
+had been taught to think lightly of the most serious duties and sacred
+ties; to turn virtue into a jest, and consider religion mere hypocrisy. He
+was a gay misanthrope, that had a sovereign but sportive contempt for
+mankind; believed that his most devoted servant would be his enemy, if
+interest prompted; and maintained that an honest man was he who had the art
+to conceal that he was the contrary.
+
+He surrounded himself with a set of dissolute men like himself; who, let
+loose from the restraint under which they had been held, during the latter
+hypocritical days of Louis XIV., now gave way to every kind of debauchery.
+With these men the regent used to shut himself up, after the hours of
+business, and excluding all graver persons and graver concerns, celebrate
+the most drunken and disgusting orgies; where obscenity and blasphemy
+formed the seasoning of conversation. For the profligate companions of
+these revels, he invented the appellation of his _roués_, the literal
+meaning of which is men broken on the wheel; intended, no doubt, to express
+their broken-down characters and dislocated fortunes; although a
+contemporary asserts that it designated the punishment that most of them
+merited. Madame de Labran, who was present at one of the regent's suppers,
+was disgusted by the conduct and conversation of the host and his guests,
+and observed, at table, that God, after he had created man, took the refuse
+clay that was left, and made of it the souls of lackeys and princes.
+
+Such was the man that now ruled the destinies of France. Law found him full
+of perplexities, from the disastrous state of the finances. He had already
+tampered with the coinage, calling in the coin of the nation, restamping
+it, and issuing it at a nominal increase of one-fifth; thus defrauding the
+nation out of twenty per cent of its capital. He was not likely, therefore,
+to be scrupulous about any means likely to relieve him from financial
+difficulties; he had even been led to listen to the cruel alternative of a
+national bankruptcy.
+
+Under these circumstances, Law confidently brought forward his scheme of a
+bank, that was to pay off the national debt, increase the revenue, and at
+the same time diminish the taxes. The following is stated as the theory by
+which he recommended his system to the regent. The credit enjoyed by a
+banker or a merchant, he observed, increases his capital tenfold; that is
+to say, he who has a capital of one thousand livres, may, if he possess
+sufficient credit, extend his operations to a million, and reap profits to
+that amount. In like manner, a state that can collect into a bank all the
+current coin of the kingdom, would be as powerful as if its capital were
+increased tenfold. The specie must be drawn into the bank, not by way of
+loan, or by taxations, but in the way of deposit. This might be effected in
+different modes, either by inspiring confidence or by exerting authority.
+One mode, he observed, had already been in use. Each time that a state
+makes a recoinage, it becomes momentarily the depositary of all the money
+called in, belonging to the subjects of that state. His bank was to effect
+the same purpose; that is to say, to receive in deposit all the coin of the
+kingdom, but to give in exchange its bills, which, being of an invariable
+value, bearing an interest, and being payable on demand, would not only
+supply the place of coin, but prove a better and more profitable currency.
+
+The regent caught with avidity at the scheme. It suited his bold, reckless
+spirit, and his grasping extravagance. Not that he was altogether the dupe
+of Law's specious projects; still he was apt, like many other men,
+unskilled in the arcana of finance, to mistake the multiplication of money
+for the multiplication of wealth; not understanding that it was a mere
+agent or instrument in the interchange of traffic, to represent the value
+of the various productions of industry; and that an increased circulation
+of coin or bank bills, in the shape of currency, only adds a proportionably
+increased and fictitious value to such productions. Law enlisted the vanity
+of the regent in his cause. He persuaded him that he saw more clearly than
+others into sublime theories of finance, which were quite above the
+ordinary apprehension. He used to declare that, excepting the regent and
+the Duke of Savoy, no one had thoroughly comprehended his system.
+
+It is certain that it met with strong opposition from the regent's
+ministers, the Duke de Noailles and the Chancellor d'Anguesseau; and it was
+no less strenuously opposed by the Parliament of Paris. Law, however, had a
+potent though secret coadjutor in the Abbe Dubois, now rising, during the
+regency, into great political power, and who retained a baneful influence
+over the mind of the regent. This wily priest, as avaricious as he was
+ambitious, drew large sums from Law as subsidies, and aided him greatly in
+many of his most pernicious operations. He aided him, in the present
+instance, to fortify the mind of the regent against all the remonstrances
+of his ministers and the parliament.
+
+Accordingly, on the 2d of May, 1716, letters patent were granted to Law, to
+establish a bank of deposit, discount, and circulation, under the firm of
+"Law & Company," to continue for twenty years. The capital was fixed at six
+millions of livres, divided into shares of five hundred livres each, which
+were to be sold for twenty-five per cent of the regent's debased coin, and
+seventy-five per cent of the public securities; which were then at a great
+reduction from their nominal value, and which then amounted to nineteen
+hundred millions. The ostensible object of the bank, as set forth in the
+patent, was to encourage the commerce and manufactures of France. The louis
+d'ors and crowns of the bank were always to retain the same standard of
+value, and its bills to be payable in them on demand.
+
+At the outset, while the bank was limited in its operations, and while its
+paper really represented the specie in its vaults, it seemed to realize all
+that had been promised from it. It rapidly acquired public confidence, and
+an extended circulation, and produced an activity in commerce unknown under
+the baneful government of Louis XIV. As the bills of the bank bore an
+interest, and as it was stipulated they would be of invariable value, and
+as hints had been artfully circulated that the coin would experience
+successive diminution, everybody hastened to the bank to exchange gold and
+silver for paper. So great became the throng of depositors, and so intense
+their eagerness, that there was quite a press and struggle at the bank
+door, and a ludicrous panic was awakened, as if there was danger of their
+not being admitted. An anecdote of the time relates that one of the clerks,
+with an ominous smile, called out to the struggling multitude, "Have a
+little patience, my friends; we mean to take all your money;" an assertion
+disastrously verified in the sequel.
+
+Thus, by the simple establishment of a bank, Law and the regent obtained
+pledges of confidence for the consummation of further and more complicated
+schemes, as yet hidden from the public. In a little while, the bank shares
+rose enormously, and the amount of its notes in circulation exceeded one
+hundred and ten millions of livres. A subtle stroke of policy had rendered
+it popular with the aristocracy. Louis XIV. had several years previously
+imposed an income tax of a tenth, giving his royal word that it should
+cease in 1717. This tax had been exceedingly irksome to the privileged
+orders; and in the present disastrous times they had dreaded an
+augmentation of it. In consequence of the successful operation of Law's
+scheme, however, the tax was abolished, and now nothing was to be heard
+among the nobility and clergy but praises of the regent and the bank.
+
+Hitherto all had gone well, and all might have continued to go well, had
+not the paper system been further expanded. But Law had yet the grandest
+part of his scheme to develop. He had to open his ideal world of
+speculation, his El Dorado of unbounded wealth. The English had brought the
+vast imaginary commerce of the South Seas in aid of their banking
+operations. Law sought to bring, as an immense auxiliary of his bank, the
+whole trade of the Mississippi. Under this name was included not merely the
+river so called, but the vast region known as Louisiana, extending from
+north latitude 29° up to Canada in north latitude 40°. This country had
+been granted by Louis XIV. to the Sieur Crozat, but he had been induced to
+resign his patent. In conformity to the plea of Mr. Law, letters patent
+were granted in August, 1717, for the creation of a commercial company,
+which was to have the colonizing of this country, and the monopoly of its
+trade and resources, and of the beaver or fur trade with Canada. It was
+called the Western, but became better known as the Mississippi Company. The
+capital was fixed at one hundred millions of livres, divided into shares,
+bearing an Interest of four per cent, which were subscribed for in the
+public securities. As the bank was to co-operate with the company, the
+regent ordered that its bills should be received the same as coin, in all
+payments of the public revenue. Law was appointed chief director of this
+company, which was an exact copy of the Earl of Oxford's South Sea Company,
+set on foot in 1711, and which distracted all England with the frenzy of
+speculation. In like manner with the delusive picturings given in that
+memorable scheme of the sources of rich trade to be opened in the South Sea
+countries, Law held forth magnificent prospects of the fortunes to be made
+in colonizing Louisiana, which was represented as a veritable land of
+promise, capable of yielding every variety of the most precious produce.
+Reports, too, were artfully circulated, with great mystery, as if to the
+"chosen few," of mines of gold and silver recently discovered in Louisiana,
+and which would insure instant wealth to the early purchasers. These
+confidential whispers of course soon became public; and were confirmed by
+travelers fresh from the Mississippi, and doubtless bribed, who had seen
+the mines in question, and declared them superior in richness to those of
+Mexico and Peru. Nay, more, ocular proof was furnished to public credulity,
+in ingots of gold conveyed to the mint, as if just brought from the mines
+of Louisiana.
+
+Extraordinary measures were adopted to force a colonization. An edict was
+issued to collect and transport settlers to the Mississippi. The police
+lent its aid. The streets and prisons of Paris, and of the provincial
+cities, were swept of mendicants and vagabonds of all kinds, who were
+conveyed to Havre de Grace. About six thousand were crowded into ships,
+where no precautions had been taken for their health or accommodation.
+Instruments of all kinds proper for the working of mines were
+ostentatiously paraded in public, and put on board the vessels; and the
+whole set sail for this fabled El Dorado, which was to prove the grave of
+the greater part of its wretched colonists.
+
+D'Anguesseau, the chancellor, a man of probity and integrity, still lifted
+his voice against the paper system of Law, and his project of colonization,
+and was eloquent and prophetic in picturing the evils they were calculated
+to produce; the private distress and public degradation; the corruption of
+morals and manners; the triumph of knaves and schemers; the ruin of
+fortunes, and downfall of families. He was incited more and more to this
+opposition by the Duke de Noailles, the Minister of Finance, who was
+jealous of the growing ascendency of Law over the mind of the regent, but
+was less honest than the chancellor in his opposition. The regent was
+excessively annoyed by the difficulties they conjured up in the way of his
+darling schemes of finance, and the countenance they gave to the opposition
+of parliament; which body, disgusted more and more with the abuses of the
+regency, and the system of Law, had gone so far as to carry its
+remonstrances to the very foot of the throne.
+
+He determined to relieve himself from these two ministers, who, either
+through honesty or policy, interfered with all his plans. Accordingly, on
+the 28th of January, 1718, he dismissed the chancellor from office, and
+exiled him to his estate in the country; and shortly afterward removed the
+Duke de Noailles from the administration of the finances.
+
+The opposition of parliament to the regent and his measures was carried on
+with increasing violence. That body aspired to an equal authority with the
+regent in the administration of affairs, and pretended, by its decree, to
+suspend an edict of the regency, ordering a new coinage and altering the
+value of the currency. But its chief hostility was leveled against Law, a
+foreigner and a heretic, and one who was considered by a majority of the
+members in the light of a malefactor. In fact, so far was this hostility
+carried, that secret measures were taken to investigate his malversations,
+and to collect evidence against him; and it was resolved in parliament
+that, should the testimony collected justify their suspicions, they would
+have him seized and brought before them; would give him a brief trial, and,
+if convicted, would hang him in the courtyard of the palace, and throw open
+the gates after the execution, that the public might behold his corpse!
+
+Law received intimation of the danger hanging over him, and was in terrible
+trepidation. He took refuge in the Palais Royal, the residence of the
+regent, and implored his protection. The regent himself was embarrassed by
+the sturdy opposition of parliament, which contemplated nothing less than a
+decree reversing most of his public measures, especially those of finance.
+His indecision kept Law for a time in an agony of terror and suspense.
+Finally, by assembling a board of justice, and bringing to his aid the
+absolute authority of the king, he triumphed over parliament and relieved
+Law from his dread of being hanged.
+
+The system now went on with flowing sail. The Western or Mississippi
+Company, being identified with the bank, rapidly increased in power and
+privileges. One monopoly after another was granted to it; the trade of the
+Indian seas; the slave trade with Senegal and Guinea; the farming of
+tobacco; the national coinage, etc. Each new privilege was made a pretext
+for issuing more bills, and caused an immense advance in the price of
+stock. At length, on the 4th of December, 1718, the regent gave the
+establishment the imposing title of "The Royal Bank," and proclaimed that
+he had effected the purchase of all the shares, the proceeds of which he
+had added to its capital This measure seemed to shock the public feeling
+more than any other connected with the system, and roused the indignation
+of parliament. The French nation had been so accustomed to attach an idea
+of everything noble, lofty, and magnificent to the royal name and person,
+especially during the stately and sumptuous reign of Louis XIV., that they
+could not at first tolerate the idea of royalty being in any degree mingled
+with matters of traffic and finance, and the king being in a manner a
+banker. It was one of the downward steps, however, by which royalty lost
+its illusive splendor in France, and became gradually cheapened in the
+public mind.
+
+Arbitrary measures now began to be taken to force the bills of the bank
+into artificial currency. On the 27th of December appeared an order in
+council, forbidding, under severe penalties, the payment of any sum above
+six hundred livres in gold or silver. This decree rendered bank bills
+necessary in all transactions of purchase and sale, and called for a new
+emission. The prohibition was occasionally evaded or opposed; confiscations
+were the consequence; informers were rewarded, and spies and traitors began
+to spring up in all the domestic walks of life.
+
+The worst effect of this illusive system was the mania for gain, or rather
+for gambling in stocks, that now seized upon the whole nation. Under the
+exciting effects of lying reports, and the forcing effects of government
+decrees, the shares of the company went on rising in value until they
+reached thirteen hundred per cent. Nothing was now spoken of but the price
+of shares, and the immense fortunes suddenly made by lucky speculators.
+Those whom Law had deluded used every means to delude others. The most
+extravagant dreams were indulged, concerning the wealth to flow in upon the
+company from its colonies, its trade, and its various monopolies. It is
+true nothing as yet had been realized, nor could in some time be realized,
+from these distant sources, even if productive; but the imaginations of
+speculators are ever in the advance, and their conjectures are immediately
+converted into facts. Lying reports now flew from mouth to month, of sure
+avenues to fortune suddenly thrown open. The more extravagant the fable,
+the more readily was it believed. To doubt was to awaken anger, or incur
+ridicule. In a time of public infatuation, it requires no small exercise of
+courage to doubt a popular fallacy.
+
+Paris now became the center of attraction for the adventurous and the
+avaricious, who flocked to it, not merely from the provinces, but from
+neighboring countries. A stock exchange was established in a house in the
+Rue Quincampoix, and became immediately the gathering place of
+stock-jobbers. The exchange opened at seven o'clock, with the beat of drum
+and sound of bell, and closed at night with the same signals. Guards were
+stationed at each end of the street, to maintain order and exclude
+carriages and horses. The whole street swarmed throughout the day like a
+bee-hive. Bargains of all kinds were seized upon with avidity. Shares of
+stock passed from hand to hand, mounting in value, one knew not why.
+Fortunes were made in a moment, as if by magic; and every lucky bargain
+prompted those around to a more desperate throw of the die. The fever went
+on, increasing in intensity as the day declined; and when the drum beat,
+and the bell rang, at night, to close the exchange, there were exclamations
+of impatience and despair, as if the wheel of fortune had suddenly been
+stopped when about to make its luckiest evolution.
+
+To engulf all classes in this ruinous vortex, Law now split the shares of
+fifty millions of stock each into one hundred shares; thus, as in the
+splitting of lottery tickets, accommodating the venture to the humblest
+purse. Society was thus stirred up to its very dregs, and adventurers of
+the lowest order hurried to the stock market. All honest, industrious
+pursuits, and modest gains, were now despised. Wealth was to be obtained
+instantly, without labor and without stint. The upper classes were as base
+in their venality as the lower. The highest and most powerful nobles,
+abandoning all generous pursuits and lofty aims, engaged in the vile
+scuffle for gam. They were even baser than the lower classes; for some of
+them, who were members of the council of the regency, abused their station
+and their influence, and promoted measures by which shares rose while in
+their hands, and they made immense profits.
+
+The Duke de Bourbon, the prince of Conti, the Dukes de la Force and D'Antin
+were among the foremost of these illustrious stock-jobbers. They were
+nicknamed the Mississippi Lords, and they smiled at the sneering title. In
+fact, the usual distinctions of society had lost their consequence, under
+the reign of this new passion. Bank, talent, military fame, no longer
+inspired deference. All respect for others, all self-respect, were
+forgotten in the mercenary struggle of the stock-market. Even prelates and
+ecclesiastical corporations, forgetting their true objects of devotion,
+mingled among the votaries of Mammon. They were not behind those who
+wielded the civil power in fabricating ordinances suited to their
+avaricious purposes. Theological decisions forthwith appeared, in which the
+anathema launched by the Church against usury was conveniently construed as
+not extending to the traffic in bank shares!
+
+The Abbe Dubois entered into the mysteries of stockjobbing with all the
+zeal of an apostle, and enriched himself by the spoils of the credulous;
+and he continually drew large sums from Law, as considerations for his
+political influence. Faithless to his country, in the course of his
+gambling speculations he transferred to England a great amount of specie,
+which had been paid into the royal treasury; thus contributing to the
+subsequent dearth of the precious metals.
+
+The female sex participated in this sordid frenzy. Princesses of the blood,
+and ladies of the highest nobility, were among the most rapacious of
+stock-jobbers. The regent seemed to have the riches of Croesus at his
+command, and lavished money by hundreds of thousands upon his female
+relatives and favorites, as well as upon his _roués_, the dissolute
+companions of his debauches. "My son," writes the regent's mother, in her
+correspondence, "gave me shares to the amount of two millions, which I
+distributed among my household. The king also took several millions for his
+own household. All the royal family have had them; all the children and
+grandchildren of France, and the princes of the blood."
+
+Luxury and extravagance kept pace with this sudden inflation of fancied
+wealth. The hereditary palaces of nobles were pulled down, and rebuilt on a
+scale of augmented splendor. Entertainments were given of incredible cost
+and magnificence. Never before had been such display in houses, furniture,
+equipages, and amusements. This was particularly the case among persons of
+the lower ranks, who had suddenly become possessed of millions. Ludicrous
+anecdotes are related of some of these upstarts. One, who had just launched
+a splendid carriage, when about to use it for the first time, instead of
+getting in at the door, mounted, through habitude, to his accustomed place
+behind. Some ladies of quality, seeing a well-dressed woman covered with
+diamonds, but whom nobody knew, alight from a very handsome carriage,
+inquired who she was of the footman. He replied, with a sneer: "It is a
+lady who has recently tumbled from a garret into this carriage." Mr. Law's
+domestics were said to become in like manner suddenly enriched by the
+crumbs that fell from his table. His coachman, having made his fortune,
+retired from his service. Mr. Law requested him to procure a coachman in
+his place. He appeared the next day with two, whom he pronounced equally
+good, and told Mr. Law: "Take which of them you choose, and I will take the
+other!"
+
+Nor were these _novi homini_ treated with the distance and disdain
+they would formerly have experienced from the haughty aristocracy of
+France. The pride of the old noblesse had been stifled by the stronger
+instinct of avarice. They rather sought the intimacy and confidence of
+these lucky upstarts; and it has been observed that a nobleman would gladly
+take his seat at the table of the fortunate lackey of yesterday, in hopes
+of learning from him the secret of growing rich!
+
+Law now went about with a countenance radiant with success and apparently
+dispensing wealth on every side. "He is admirably skilled in all that
+relates to finance," writes the Duchess of Orleans, the regent's mother,
+"and has put the affairs of the state in such good order that all the
+king's debts have been paid. He is so much run after that he has no repose
+night or day. A duchess even kissed his hand publicly. If a duchess can do
+this, what will other ladies do?"
+
+Wherever he went, his path, we are told, was beset by a sordid throng, who
+waited to see him pass, and sought to obtain the favor of a word, a nod, or
+smile, as if a mere glance from him would bestow fortune. When at home, his
+house was absolutely besieged by furious candidates for fortune. "They
+forced the doors," says the Duke de St. Simon; "they scaled his windows
+from the garden; they made their way into his cabinet down the chimney!"
+
+The same venal court was paid by all classes to his family. The highest
+ladies of the court vied with each other in meannesses to purchase the
+lucrative friendship of Mrs. Law and her daughter. They waited upon them
+with as much assiduity and adulation as if they had been princesses of the
+blood. The regent one day expressed a desire that some duchess should
+accompany his daughter to Genoa. "My lord," said some one present, "if you
+would have a choice from among the duchesses, you need but send to Mrs.
+Law's, you will find them all assembled there."
+
+The wealth of Law rapidly increased with the expansion of the bubble. In
+the course of a few months he purchased fourteen titled estates, paying for
+them in paper; and the public hailed these sudden and vast acquisitions of
+landed property as so many proofs of the soundness of his system. In one
+instance he met with a shrewd bargainer, who had not the general faith in
+his paper money. The President de Novion insisted on being paid for an
+estate in hard coin. Law accordingly brought the amount, four hundred
+thousand livres, in specie, saying, with a sarcastic smile, that he
+preferred paying in money as its weight rendered it a mere encumbrance. As
+it happened, the president could give no clear title to the land, and the
+money had to be refunded. He paid it back _in paper_, which Law dared
+not refuse, lest he should depreciate it in the market.
+
+The course of illusory credit went on triumphantly for eighteen months. Law
+had nearly fulfilled one of his promises, for the greater part of the
+public debt had been paid off; but how paid? In bank shares, which had been
+trumped up several hundred per cent above their value, and which were to
+vanish like smoke in the hands of the holders.
+
+One of the most striking attributes of Law was the imperturbable assurance
+and self-possession with which he replied to every objection, and found a
+solution for every problem. He had the dexterity of a juggler in evading
+difficulties; and what was peculiar, made figures themselves, which are the
+very elements of exact demonstration, the means to dazzle and bewilder.
+
+Toward the latter end of 1719 the Mississippi scheme had reached its
+highest point of glory. Half a million of strangers had crowded into Paris
+in quest of fortune. The hotels and lodging-houses were overflowing;
+lodgings were procured with excessive difficulty; granaries were turned
+into bedrooms; provisions had risen enormously in price; splendid houses
+were multiplying on every side; the streets were crowded with carriages;
+above a thousand new equipages had been launched.
+
+On the eleventh of December, Law obtained another prohibitory decree, for
+the purpose of sweeping all the remaining specie in circulation into the
+bank. By this it was forbidden to make any payment in silver above ten
+livres, or in gold above three hundred.
+
+The repeated decrees of this nature, the object of which was to depreciate
+the value of gold, and increase the illusive credit of paper, began to
+awaken doubts of a system which required such bolstering. Capitalists
+gradually awoke from their bewilderment. Sound and able financiers
+consulted together, and agreed to make common cause against this continual
+expansion of a paper system. The shares of the bank and of the company
+began to decline in value. Wary men took the alarm, and began to
+_realize_, a word now first brought into use, to express the
+conversion of _ideal_ property into something _real_.
+
+The prince of Conti, one of the most prominent and grasping of the
+Mississippi lords, was the first to give a blow to the credit of the bank.
+There was a mixture of ingratitude in his conduct that characterized the
+venal baseness of the times. He had received from time to time enormous
+sums from Law, as the price of his influence and patronage. His avarice had
+increased with every acquisition, until Law was compelled to refuse one of
+his exactions. In revenge the prince immediately sent such an amount of
+paper to the bank to be cashed that it required four wagons to bring away
+the silver, and he had the meanness to loll out of the window of his hotel
+and jest and exult as it was trundled into his portecochère.
+
+This was the signal for other drains of like nature. The English and Dutch
+merchants, who had purchased a great amount of bank paper at low prices,
+cashed them at the bank, and carried the money out of the country. Other
+strangers did the like, thus draining the kingdom of its specie, and
+leaving paper in its place.
+
+The regent, perceiving these symptoms of decay in the system, sought to
+restore it to public confidence by conferring marks of confidence upon its
+author.
+
+He accordingly resolved to make Law Comptroller General of the Finances of
+France. There was a material obstacle in his way. Law was a Protestant, and
+the regent, unscrupulous as he was himself, did not dare publicly to
+outrage the severe edicts which Louis XIV., in his bigot days, had
+fulminated against all heretics. Law soon let him know that there would be
+no difficulty on that head. He was ready at any moment to abjure his
+religion in the way of business. For decency's sake, however, it was judged
+proper he should previously be convinced and converted. A ghostly
+instructor was soon found, ready to accomplish his conversion in the
+shortest possible time. This was the Abbe Tencin, a profligate creature of
+the profligate Dubois, and like him working his way to ecclesiastical
+promotion and temporal wealth, by the basest means.
+
+Under the instructions of the Abbe Tencin, Law soon mastered the mysteries
+and dogmas of the Catholic doctrine; and, after a brief course of ghostly
+training, declared himself thoroughly convinced and converted. To avoid the
+sneers and jests of the Parisian public the ceremony of abjuration took
+place at Melun. Law made a pious present of one hundred thousand livres to
+the Church of St. Roque, and the Abbe Tencin was rewarded for his edifying
+labors by sundry shares and bank bills; which he shrewdly took care to
+convert into cash, having as little faith in the system as in the piety of
+his new convert. A more grave and moral community might have been outraged
+by this scandalous farce; but the Parisians laughed at it with their usual
+levity, and contented themselves with making it the subject of a number of
+songs and epigrams.
+
+Law now being orthodox in his faith, took out letters of naturalization,
+and having thus surmounted the intervening obstacles, was elevated by the
+regent to the post of comptroller-general. So accustomed had the community
+become to all juggles and transmutations in this hero of finance, that no
+one seemed shocked or astonished at his sudden elevation. On the contrary,
+being now considered perfectly established in place and power, he became
+more than ever the object of venal adoration. Men of rank and dignity
+thronged his antechamber, waiting patiently their turn for an audience; and
+titled dames demeaned themselves to take the front seats of the carriages
+of his wife and daughter, as if they had been riding with princesses of the
+blood royal. Law's head grew giddy with his elevation, and he began to
+aspire after aristocratical distinction. There was to be a court ball, at
+which several of the young noblemen were to dance in a ballet with the
+youthful king. Law requested that his son might be admitted into the
+ballet, and the regent consented. The young scions of nobility, however,
+were indignant and scouted the "intruding upstart." Their more worldly
+parents, fearful of displeasing the modern Midas, reprimanded them in vain.
+The striplings had not yet imbibed the passion for gain, and still held to
+their high blood. The son of the banker received slights and annoyances on
+all sides, and the public applauded them for their spirit. A fit of illness
+came opportunely to relieve the youth from an honor which would have cost
+him a world of vexations and affronts.
+
+In February, 1720, shortly after Law's installment in office, a decree came
+out uniting the bank to the India Company, by which last name the whole
+establishment was now known. The decree stated that as the bank was royal,
+the king was bound to make good the value of its bills; that he committed
+to the company the government of the bank for fifty years, and sold to it
+fifty millions of stock belonging to him, for nine hundred millions; a
+simple advance of eighteen hundred per cent. The decree further declared,
+in the king's name, that he would never draw on the bank until the value of
+his drafts had first been lodged in it by his receivers-general.
+
+The bank, it was said, had by this time issued notes to the amount of one
+thousand millions; being more paper than all the banks of Europe were able
+to circulate. To aid its credit, the receivers of the revenue were directed
+to take bank notes of the sub-receivers. All payments, also, of one hundred
+livres and upward were ordered to be made in banknotes. These compulsory
+measures for a short time gave a false credit to the bank, which proceeded
+to discount merchants' notes, to lend money on jewels, plate, and other
+valuables, as well as on mortgages.
+
+Still further to force on the system an edict next appeared, forbidding any
+individual, or any corporate body, civil or religious, to hold in
+possession more than five hundred livres in current coin; that is to say,
+about seven louis d'ors: the value of the louis-d'or in paper being, at the
+time, seventy-two livres. All the gold and silver they might have above
+this pittance was to be brought to the royal bank and exchanged either for
+shares or bills.
+
+As confiscation was the penalty of disobedience to this decree, and
+informers were assured a share of the forfeitures, a bounty was in a manner
+held out to domestic spies and traitors; and the most odious scrutiny was
+awakened into the pecuniary affairs of families and individuals. The very
+confidence between friends and relatives was unpaired, and all the domestic
+ties and virtues of society were threatened, until a general sentiment of
+indignation broke forth, that compelled the regent to rescind the odious
+decree. Lord Stairs, the British embassador, speaking of the system of
+espionage encouraged by this edict, observed that it was impossible to
+doubt that Law was a thorough Catholic, since he had thus established the
+_inquisition_, after having already proved _transubstantiation_,
+by changing specie into paper.
+
+Equal abuses had taken place under the colonizing project. In his thousand
+expedients to amass capital, Law had sold parcels of land in Mississippi,
+at the rate of three thousand livres for a league square. Many capitalists
+had purchased estates large enough to constitute almost a principality; the
+only evil was, Law had sold a property which he could not deliver. The
+agents of police, who aided in recruiting the ranks of the colonists, had
+been guilty of scandalous impositions. Under pretense of taking up
+mendicants and vagabonds, they had scoured the streets at night, seizing
+upon honest mechanics, or their sons, and hurrying them to their
+crimping-houses, for the sole purpose of extorting money from them as a
+ransom. The populace was roused to indignation by these abuses. The
+officers of police were mobbed in the exercise of their odious functions,
+and several of them were killed; which put an end to this flagrant abuse of
+power.
+
+In March, a most extraordinary decree of the council fixed the price of
+shares of the India Company at nine thousand livres each. All
+ecclesiastical communities and hospitals were now prohibited from investing
+money at interest, in anything but India stock. With all these props and
+stays, the system continued to totter. How could it be otherwise, under a
+despotic government that could alter the value of property at every moment?
+The very compulsory measures that were adopted to establish the credit of
+the bank hastened its fall; plainly showing there was a want of solid
+security.
+
+Law caused pamphlets to be published, setting forth, in eloquent language,
+the vast profits that must accrue to holders of the stock, and the
+impossibility of the king's ever doing it any harm. On the very back of
+these assertions came forth an edict of the king, dated the 22d of May,
+wherein, under pretense of having reduced the value of his coin, it was
+declared necessary to reduce the value of his bank-notes one-half, and of
+the India shares from nine thousand to five thousand livres.
+
+This decree came like a clap of thunder upon shareholders. They found
+one-half of the pretended value of the paper in their hands annihilated in
+an instant; and what certainty had they with respect to the other half? The
+rich considered themselves ruined; those in humbler circumstances looked
+forward to abject beggary.
+
+The parliament seized the occasion to stand forth as the protector of the
+public, and refused to register the decree. It gained the credit of
+compelling the regent to retrace his step, though it is more probable he
+yielded to the universal burst of public astonishment and reprobation. On
+the 27th of May the edict was revoked, and bank bills were restored to
+their previous value. But the fatal blow had been struck; the delusion was
+at an end. Government itself had lost all public confidence, equally with
+the bank it had engendered, and which its own arbitrary acts had brought
+into discredit. "All Paris," says the regent's mother, in her letters, "has
+been mourning at the cursed decree which Law has persuaded my son to make.
+I have received anonymous letters stating that I have nothing to fear on my
+own account, but that my son shall be pursued with fire and sword."
+
+The regent now endeavored to avert the odium of his ruinous schemes from
+himself. He affected to have suddenly lost confidence in Law, and, on the
+29th of May, discharged bin from his employ as comptroller-general, and
+stationed a Swiss guard of sixteen men in his house. He even refused to see
+him, when, on the following day, he applied at the portal of the Palais
+Royal for admission; but having played off this farce before the public, he
+admitted him secretly the same night, by a private door, and continued as
+before to co-operate with him in his financial schemes.
+
+On the first of June the regent issued a decree, permitting persons to have
+as much money as they pleased in their possession. Few, however, were in a
+state to benefit by this permission. There was a run upon the bank, but a
+royal ordinance immediately suspended payment, until further orders. To
+relieve the public mind, a city stock was created, of twenty-five millions,
+bearing an interest of two and a half per cent, for which bank notes were
+taken in exchange. The bank notes thus withdrawn from circulation were
+publicly burned before the Hotel de Ville. The public, however, had lost
+confidence in everything and everybody, and suspected fraud and collusion
+in those who pretended to burn the bills.
+
+A general confusion now took place hi the financial world. Families who had
+lived in opulence found themselves suddenly reduced to indigence. Schemers
+who had been reveling in the delusion of princely fortune found their
+estates vanishing into thin air. Those who had any property remaining
+sought to secure it against reverses. Cautious persons found there was no
+safety for property in a country where the coin was continually shifting in
+value, and where a despotism was exercised over public securities, and even
+over the private purses of individuals. They began to send their effects
+into other countries; when lo! on the 20th of June a royal edict commanded
+them to bring back their effects, under penalty of forfeiting twice their
+value; and forbade them, under like penalty, from investing their money in
+foreign stocks. This was soon followed by another decree, forbidding any
+one to retain precious stones in his possession, or to sell them to
+foreigners; all must be deposited in the bank, in exchange for depreciating
+paper!
+
+Execrations were now poured out on all sides against Law, and menaces of
+vengeance. What a contrast, in a short time, to the venal incense that was
+offered up to him! "This person," writes the regent's mother, "who was
+formerly worshiped as a god, is now not sure of his life. It is astonishing
+how greatly terrified he is. He is as a dead man; he is pale as a sheet,
+and it is said he can never get over it. My son is not dismayed, though he
+is threatened on all sides; and is very much amused with Law's terrors."
+
+About the middle of July the last grand attempt was made by Law and the
+regent to keep up the system and provide for the immense emission of paper.
+A decree was fabricated, giving the India Company the entire monopoly of
+commerce, on condition that it would, in the course of a year, reimburse
+six hundred millions of livres of its bills, at the rate of fifty millions
+per month.
+
+On the 17th this decree was sent to parliament to be registered. It at once
+raised a storm of opposition in that assembly, and a vehement discussion
+took place. While that was going on a disastrous scene was passing out of
+doors.
+
+The calamitous effects of the system had reached the humblest concerns of
+human life. Provisions had risen to an enormous price; paper money was
+refused at all the shops; the people had not wherewithal to buy bread. It
+had been found absolutely indispensable to relax a little from the
+suspension of specie payments, and to allow small sums to be scantily
+exchanged for paper. The doors of the bank and the neighboring streets were
+immediately thronged with a famishing multitude, seeking cash for bank
+notes of ten livres. So great was the press and struggle that several
+persons were stifled and crushed to death. The mob carried three of the
+bodies to the courtyard of the Palais Royal. Some cried for the regent to
+come forth and behold the effect of his system; others demanded the death
+of Law, the impostor, who had brought this misery and rum upon the nation.
+
+The moment was critical, the popular fury was rising to a tempest, when Le
+Blanc, the Secretary of State, stepped forth. He had previously sent for
+the military, and now only sought to gain tune. Singling out six or seven
+stout fellows, who seemed to be the ringleaders of the mob: "My good
+fellows," said he, calmly, "carry away these bodies and place them in some
+church, and then come back quickly to me for your pay." They immediately
+obeyed; a kind of funeral procession was formed; the arrival of troops
+dispersed those who lingered behind; and Paris was probably saved from an
+insurrection.
+
+About ten o'clock in the morning, all being quiet, Law ventured to go in
+his carriage to the Palais Royal. He was saluted with cries and curses, as
+he passed along the streets; and he reached the Palais Royal in a terrible
+fright. The regent amused himself with his fears, but retained him with
+him, and sent off his carriage, which was assailed by the mob, pelted with
+stones, and the glasses shivered. The news of this outrage was communicated
+to parliament in the midst of a furious discussion of the decree for the
+commercial monopoly. The first president, who had been absent for a short
+time, re-entered, and communicated the tidings in a whimsical couplet:
+
+  "Messieurs, Messieurs! bonne nouvelle!
+  Le carrosse de Law est reduite en carrelle!"
+
+  "Gentlemen, Gentlemen! good news!
+  The carriage of Law is shivered to atoms!"
+
+The members sprang up with joy; "And Law!" exclaimed they, "has he been
+torn to pieces?" The president was ignorant of the result of the tumult;
+whereupon the debate was cut short, the decree rejected, and the house
+adjourned; the members hurrying to learn the particulars. Such was the
+levity with which public affairs were treated at that dissolute and
+disastrous period.
+
+On the following day there was an ordinance from the king, prohibiting all
+popular assemblages; and troops were stationed at various points, and in
+all public places. The regiment of guards was ordered to hold itself in
+readiness; and the musketeers to be at their hotels, with their horses
+ready saddled. A number of small offices were opened, where people might
+cash small notes, though with great delay and difficulty. An edict was also
+issued declaring that whoever should refuse to take bank notes in the
+course of trade should forfeit double the amount!
+
+The continued and vehement opposition of parliament to the whole delusive
+system of finance had been a constant source of annoyance to the regent;
+but this obstinate rejection of his last grand expedient of a commercial
+monopoly was not to be tolerated. He determined to punish that intractable
+body. The Abbe Dubois and Law suggested a simple mode; it was to suppress
+the parliament altogether, being, as they observed, so far from useful that
+it was a constant impediment to the march of public affairs. The regent was
+half inclined to listen to their advice; but upon calmer consideration, and
+the advice of friends, he adopted a more moderate course. On the 20th of
+July, early in the morning, all the doors of the parliament-house were
+taken possession of by troops. Others were sent to surround the house of
+the first president, and others to the houses of the various members; who
+were all at first in great alarm, until an order from the king was put into
+their hands, to render themselves at Pontoise, in the course of two days,
+to which place the parliament was thus suddenly and arbitrarily
+transferred.
+
+This despotic act, says Voltaire, would at any other time have caused an
+insurrection; but one half of the Parisians were occupied by their ruin,
+and the other half by their fancied riches, which were soon to vanish. The
+president and members of parliament acquiesced in the mandate without a
+murmur; they even went as if on a party of pleasure, and made every
+preparation to lead a joyous life in their exile. The musketeers, who held
+possession of the vacated parliament-house, a gay corps of fashionable
+young fellows, amused themselves with making songs and pasquinades, at the
+expense of the exiled legislators; and at length, to pass away time, formed
+themselves into a mock parliament; elected their presidents, kings,
+ministers, and advocates; took their seats in due form, arraigned a cat at
+their bar, in place of the Sieur Law, and, after giving it a "fair trial,"
+condemned it to be hanged. In this manner public affairs and public
+institutions were lightly turned to jest.
+
+As to the exiled parliament, it lived gayly and luxuriously at Pontoise, at
+the public expense; for the regent had furnished funds, as usual, with a
+lavish hand. The first president had the mansion of the Duke de Bouillon
+put at his disposal, already furnished, with a vast and delightful garden
+on the borders of a river. There he kept open house to all the members of
+parliament. Several tables were spread every day, all furnished luxuriously
+and splendidly; the most exquisite wines and liqueurs, the choicest fruits
+and refreshments, of all kinds, abounded. A number of small chariots for
+one and two horses were always at hand, for such ladies and old gentlemen
+as wished to take an airing after dinner, and card and billiard tables for
+such as chose to amuse themselves in that way until supper. The sister and
+the daughter of the first president did the honors of the house, and he
+himself presided there with an air of great ease, hospitality, and
+magnificence. It became a party of pleasure to drive from Paris to
+Pontoise, which was six leagues distant, and partake of the amusements and
+festivities of the place. Business was openly slighted; nothing was thought
+of but amusement. The regent and his government were laughed at, and made
+the subjects of continual pleasantries; while the enormous expenses
+incurred by this idle and lavish course of life more than doubled the
+liberal sums provided. This was the way in which the parliament resented
+their exile.
+
+During all this time the system was getting more and more involved. The
+stock exchange had some time previously been removed to the Place Vendome;
+but the tumult and noise becoming intolerable to the residents of that
+polite quarter, and especially to the chancellor, whose hotel was there,
+the Prince and Princess Carignan, both deep gamblers in Mississippi stock,
+offered the extensive garden of the Hotel de Soissons as a rallying-place
+for the worshipers of Mammon. The offer was accepted. A number of barracks
+were immediately erected in the garden, as offices for the stock-brokers,
+and an order was obtained from the regent, under pretext of police
+regulations, that no bargain should be valid unless concluded in these
+barracks. The rent of them immediately mounted to a hundred livres a month
+for each, and the whole yielded these noble proprietors an ignoble revenue
+of half a million of livres.
+
+The mania for gain, however, was now at an end. A universal panic
+succeeded. "_Sauve qui peut!_" was the watchword. Every one was
+anxious to exchange falling paper for something of intrinsic and permanent
+value. Since money was not to be had, jewels, precious stones, plate,
+porcelain, trinkets of gold and silver, all commanded any price in paper.
+Land was bought at fifty years' purchase, and he esteemed himself happy who
+could get it even at this price. Monopolies now became the rage among the
+noble holders of paper. The Duke de la Force bought up nearly all the
+tallow, grease, and soap; others the coffee and spices; others hay and
+oats. Foreign exchanges were almost impracticable. The debts of Dutch and
+English merchants were paid in this fictitious money, all the coin of the
+realm having disappeared. All the relations of debtor and creditor were
+confounded. With one thousand crowns one might pay a debt of eighteen
+thousand livres!
+
+The regent's mother, who once exulted in the affluence of bank paper, now
+wrote in a very different tone: "I have often wished," said she in her
+letters, "that these bank-notes were in the depths of the infernal regions.
+They have given my son more trouble than relief. Nobody in France has a
+penny.... My son was once popular, but since the arrival of this cursed
+Law, he is hated more and more. Not a week passes, without my receiving
+letters filled with frightful threats, and speaking of him as a tyrant. I
+have just received one threatening him with poison. When I showed it to
+him, he did nothing but laugh."
+
+In the meantime, Law was dismayed by the increasing troubles, and terrified
+at the tempest he had raised. He was not a man of real courage; and fearing
+for his personal safety, from popular tumult, or the despair of ruined
+individuals, he again took refuge in the palace of the regent. The latter,
+as usual, amused himself with his terrors, and turned every new disaster
+into a jest; but he too began to think of his own security.
+
+In pursuing the schemes of Law, he had no doubt calculated to carry through
+his term of government with ease and splendor; and to enrich himself, his
+connections, and his favorites; and had hoped that the catastrophe of the
+system would not take place until after the expiration of the regency.
+
+He now saw his mistake; that it was impossible much longer to prevent an
+explosion; and he determined at once to get Law out of the way, and then to
+charge him with the whole tissue of delusions of this paper alchemy. He
+accordingly took occasion of the recall of parliament in December, 1720, to
+suggest to Law the policy of his avoiding an encounter with that hostile
+and exasperated body. Law needed no urging to the measure. His only desire
+was to escape from Paris and its tempestuous populace. Two days before the
+return of parliament he took his sudden and secret departure. He traveled
+in a chaise bearing the arms of the regent, and was escorted by a kind of
+safeguard of servants in the duke's livery. His first place of refuge was
+an estate of the regent's, about six leagues from Paris, from whence he
+pushed forward to Bruxelles.
+
+As soon as Law was fairly out of the way, the Duke of Orleans summoned a
+council of the regency, and informed them that they were assembled to
+deliberate on the state of the finances, and the affairs of the India
+Company. Accordingly La Houssaye, comptroller-general, rendered a perfectly
+clear statement, by which it appeared that there were bank bills in
+circulation to the amount of two milliards, seven hundred millions of
+livres, without any evidence that this enormous sum had been emitted in
+virtue of any ordinance from the general assembly of the India Company,
+which alone had the right to authorize such emissions.
+
+The council was astonished at this disclosure, and looked to the regent for
+explanation. Pushed to the extreme, the regent avowed that Law had emitted
+bills to the amount of twelve hundred millions beyond what had been fixed
+by ordinances, and in contradiction to express prohibitions; that the thing
+being done, he, the regent, had legalized or rather covered the
+transaction, by decrees ordering such emissions, which decrees he had
+_antedated_.
+
+A stormy scene ensued between the regent and the Duke de Bourbon, little to
+the credit of either, both having been deeply implicated in the cabalistic
+operations of the system. In fact, the several members of the council had
+been among the most venal "beneficiaries" of the scheme, and had interests
+at stake which they were anxious to secure. From all the circumstances of
+the case, I am inclined to think that others were more to blame than Law,
+for the disastrous effects of his financial projects. His bank, had it been
+confined to its original limits, and left to the control of its own
+internal regulations, might have gone on prosperously, and been of great
+benefit to the nation. It was an institution fitted for a free country; but
+unfortunately it was subjected to the control of a despotic government,
+that could, at its pleasure, alter the value of the specie within its
+vaults, and compel the most extravagant expansions of its paper
+circulation. The vital principle of a bank is security in the regularity of
+its operations, and the immediate convertibility of its paper into coin;
+and what confidence could be reposed in an institution or its paper
+promises, when the sovereign could at any moment centuple those promises in
+the market, and seize upon all the money in the bank? The compulsory
+measures used, likewise, to force bank-notes into currency, against the
+judgment of the public, was fatal to the system; for credit must be free
+and uncontrolled as the common air. The regent was the evil spirit of the
+system, that forced Law on to an expansion of his paper currency far beyond
+what he had ever dreamed of. He it was that in a manner compelled the
+unlucky projector to devise all kinds of collateral companies and
+monopolies, by which to raise funds to meet the constantly and enormously
+increasing emissions of shares and notes. Law was but like a poor conjurer
+in the hands of a potent spirit that he has evoked, and that obliges him to
+go on, desperately and ruinously, with his conjurations. He only thought at
+the outset to raise the wind, but the regent compelled him to raise the
+whirlwind.
+
+The investigation of the affairs of the company by the council resulted in
+nothing beneficial to the public. The princes and nobles who had enriched
+themselves by all kinds of juggles and extortions, escaped unpunished, and
+retained the greater part of their spoils. Many of the "suddenly rich," who
+had risen from obscurity to a giddy height of imaginary prosperity, and had
+indulged in all kinds of vulgar and ridiculous excesses, awoke as out of a
+dream, in their original poverty, now made more galling and humiliating by
+their transient elevation.
+
+The weight of the evil, however, fell on more valuable classes of society;
+honest tradesmen and artisans, who had been seduced away from the safe
+pursuits of industry, to the specious chances of speculation. Thousands of
+meritorious families also, once opulent, had been reduced to indigence, by
+a too great confidence in government. There was a general derangement in
+the finances, that long exerted a baneful influence over the national
+prosperity; but the most disastrous effects of the system were upon the
+morals and manners of the nation. The faith of engagements, the sanctity of
+promises in affairs of business, were at an end. Every expedient to grasp
+present profit, or to evade present difficulty, was tolerated. While such
+deplorable laxity of principle was generated in the busy classes, the
+chivalry of France had soiled their pennons; and honor and glory, so long
+the idols of the Gallic nobility, had been tumbled to the earth, and
+trampled in the dirt of the stock-market.
+
+As to Law, the originator of the system, he appears eventually to have
+profited but little by his schemes. "He was a quack," says Voltaire, "to
+whom the state was given to be cured, but who poisoned it with his drugs,
+and who poisoned himself." The effects which he left behind in France were
+sold at a low price and the proceeds dissipated. His landed estates were
+confiscated. He carried away with him barely enough to maintain himself,
+his wife, and daughter, with decency. The chief relic of his immense
+fortune was a great diamond, which he was often obliged to pawn. He was in
+England in 1721, and was presented to George the First. He returned shortly
+afterward to the continent; shifting about from place to place, and died in
+Venice, in 1729. His wife and daughter, accustomed to live with the
+prodigality of princesses, could not conform to their altered fortunes, but
+dissipated the scanty means left to them, and sank into abject poverty. "I
+saw his wife," says Voltaire, "at Bruxelles, as much humiliated as she had
+been haughty and triumphant in Paris." An elder brother of Law remained in
+France, and was protected by the Duchess of Bourbon. His descendants have
+acquitted themselves honorably, in various public employments; and one of
+them is the Marquis Lauriston, some time lieutenant-general and peer of
+France.
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+
+
+
+
+DON JUAN
+
+A SPECTRAL RESEARCH
+
+
+  "I have heard of spirits walking with aerial bodies, and have been
+  wondered at by others; but I must only wonder at myself, for if they
+  be not mad, I'me come to my own buriall."--SHIRLEY's _Witty Fairie
+  One_
+
+Everybody has heard of the fate of Don Juan, the famous libertine of
+Seville, who for his sins against the fair sex and other minor peccadilloes
+was hurried away to the infernal regions. His story has been illustrated in
+play, in pantomime, and farce, on every stage in Christendom; until at
+length it has been rendered the theme of the operas, and embalmed to
+endless duration in the glorious music of Mozart. I well recollect the
+effect of this story upon my feelings in my boyish days, though represented
+in grotesque pantomime; the awe with which I contemplated the monumental
+statue on horseback of the murdered commander, gleaming by pale moonlight
+in the convent cemetery; how my heart quaked as he bowed his marble head,
+and accepted the impious invitation of Don Juan: how each footfall of the
+statue smote upon my heart, as I heard it approach, step by step, through
+the echoing corridor, and beheld it enter, and advance, a moving figure of
+stone, to the supper table! But then the convivial scene in the
+charnel-house, where Don Juan returned the visit of the statue; was offered
+a banquet of skulls and bones, and on refusing to partake, was hurled into
+a yawning gulf, under a tremendous shower of fire! These were accumulated
+horrors enough to shake the nerves of the most pantomime-loving schoolboy.
+Many have supposed the story of Don Juan a mere fable. I myself thought so
+once; but "seeing is believing." I have since beheld the very scene where
+it took place, and now to indulge any doubt on the subject would be
+preposterous.
+
+I was one night perambulating the streets of Seville, in company with a
+Spanish friend, a curious investigator of the popular traditions and other
+good-for-nothing lore of the city, and who was kind enough to imagine he
+had met, in me, with a congenial spirit. In the course of our rambles we
+were passing by a heavy, dark gateway, opening into the courtyard of a
+convent, when he laid his hand upon my arm: "Stop!" said he, "this is the
+convent of San Francisco; there is a story connected with it which I am
+sure must be known to you. You cannot but have heard of Don Juan and the
+marble statue."
+
+"Undoubtedly," replied I, "it has been familiar to me from childhood."
+
+"Well, then, it was in the cemetery of this very convent that the events
+took place."
+
+"Why, you do not mean to say that the story is founded on fact?"
+
+"Undoubtedly it is. The circumstances of the case are said to have occurred
+during the reign of Alfonso XI. Don Juan was of the noble family of
+Tenorio, one of the most illustrious houses of Andalusia. His father, Don
+Diego Tenorio, was a favorite of the king, and his family ranked among the
+_deintecuatros_, or magistrates, of the city. Presuming on his high
+descent and powerful connections, Don Juan set no bounds to his excesses:
+no female, high or low, was sacred from his pursuit: and he soon became the
+scandal of Seville. One of his most daring outrages was, to penetrate by
+night into the palace of Don Gonzalo de Ulloa, commander of the order of
+Calatrava, and attempt to carry off his daughter. The household was
+alarmed; a scuffle in the dark took place; Don Juan escaped, but the
+unfortunate commander was found weltering in his blood, and expired without
+being able to name his murderer. Suspicions attached to Don Juan; he did
+not stop to meet the investigations of justice, and the vengeance of the
+powerful family of Ulloa, but fled from Seville, and took refuge with his
+uncle, Don Pedro Tenorio, at that time embassador at the court of Naples.
+Here he remained until the agitation occasioned by the murder of Don
+Gonzalo had time to subside; and the scandal which the affair might cause
+to both the families of Ulloa and Tenorio had induced them to hush it up.
+Don Juan, however, continued his libertine career at Naples, until at
+length his excesses forfeited the protection of his uncle, the embassador,
+and obliged him again to flee. He had made his way back to Seville,
+trusting that his past misdeeds were forgotten, or rather trusting to his
+dare-devil spirit and the power of his family to carry him through all
+difficulties.
+
+"It was shortly after his return, and while in the height of his arrogance,
+that on visiting this very convent of Francisco, he beheld on a monument
+the equestrian statue of the murdered commander, who had been buried within
+the walls of this sacred edifice, where the family of Ulloa had a chapel.
+It was on this occasion that Don Juan, in a moment of impious levity,
+invited the statue to the banquet, the awful catastrophe of which has given
+such celebrity to his story."
+
+"And pray how much of this story," said I, "is believed in Seville?"
+
+"The whole of it by the populace; with whom it has been a favorite
+tradition since time immemorial, and who crowd to the theaters to see it
+represented in dramas written long since by Tyrso de Molina, and another of
+our popular writers. Many in our higher ranks also, accustomed from
+childhood to this story, would feel somewhat indignant at hearing it
+treated with contempt. An attempt has been made to explain the whole, by
+asserting that, to put an end to the extravagances of Don Juan, and to
+pacify the family of Ulloa, without exposing the delinquent to the
+degrading penalties of justice, he was decoyed into this convent under a
+false pretext, and either plunged into a perpetual dungeon, or privately
+hurried out of existence; while the story of the statue was circulated by
+the monks, to account for his sudden disappearance. The populace, however,
+are not to be cajoled out of a ghost story by any of these plausible
+explanations; and the marble statue still strides the stage, and Don Juan
+is still plunged into the infernal regions, as an awful warning to all
+rake-helly youngsters, in like case offending."
+
+While my companion was relating these anecdotes, we had entered the
+gateway, traversed the exterior courtyard of the convent, and made our way
+into a great interior court; partly surrounded by cloisters and
+dormitories, partly by chapels, and having a large fountain in the center.
+The pile had evidently once been extensive and magnificent; but it was for
+the greater part in ruins. By the light of the stars, and of twinkling
+lamps placed here and there in the chapels and corridors, I could see that
+many of the columns and arches were broken; the walls were rent and riven;
+white burned beams and rafters showed the destructive effects of fire. The
+whole place had a desolate air; the night breeze rustled through grass and
+weeds flaunting out of the crevices of the walls, or from the shattered
+columns; the bat flitted about the vaulted passages, and the owl hooted
+from the ruined belfry. Never was any scene more completely fitted for a
+ghost story.
+
+While I was indulging in picturings of the fancy, proper to such a place,
+the deep chant of the monks from the convent church came swelling upon the
+ear. "It is the vesper service," said my companion; "follow me."
+
+Leading the way across the court of the cloisters, and through one or two
+ruined passages, he reached the distant portal of the church, and pushing
+open a wicket, cut in the folding doors, we found ourselves in the deep
+arched vestibule of the sacred edifice. To our left was the choir, forming
+one end of the church, and having a low vaulted ceiling, which gave it the
+look of a cavern. About this were ranged the monks, seated on stools, and
+chanting from immense books placed on music-stands, and having the notes
+scored in such gigantic characters as to be legible from every part of the
+choir. A few lights on these music-stands dimly illumined the choir,
+gleamed on the shaven heads of the monks and threw their shadows on the
+walls. They were gross, blue-bearded, bullet-headed men, with bass voices,
+of deep metallic tone, that reverberated out of the cavernous choir.
+
+To our right extended the great body of the church. It was spacious and
+lofty; some of the side chapels had gilded grates, and were decorated with
+images and paintings, representing the sufferings of our Saviour. Aloft was
+a great painting by Murillo, but too much in the dark to be distinguished.
+The gloom of the whole church was but faintly relieved by the reflected
+light from the choir, and the glimmering here and there of a votive lamp
+before the shrine of a saint.
+
+As my eye roamed about the shadowy pile, it was struck with the dimly seen
+figure of a man on horseback, near a distant altar. I touched my companion,
+and pointed to it: "The specter statue!" said I.
+
+"No," replied he; "it is the statue of the blessed St. Iago; the statue of
+the commander was in the cemetery of the convent, and was destroyed at the
+tune of the conflagration. But," added he, "as I see you take a proper
+interest in these kind of stories, come with me to the other end of the
+church, where our whisperings will not disturb these holy fathers at their
+devotions, and I will tell you another story that has been current for some
+generations in our city, by which you will find that Don Juan is not the
+only libertine that has been the object of supernatural castigation in
+Seville."
+
+I accordingly followed him with noiseless tread to the further part of the
+church, where we took our seats on the steps of an altar, opposite to the
+suspicious-looking figure on horseback, and there, in a low, mysterious
+voice, he related to me the following narration:
+
+"There was once in Seville a gay young fellow, Don Manuel de Manara by
+name, who, having come to a great estate by the death of his father, gave
+the reins to his passions, and plunged into all kinds of dissipation. Like
+Don Juan, whom he seemed to have taken for a model, he became famous for
+his enterprises among the fair sex, and was the cause of doors being barred
+and windows grated with more than usual strictness. All in vain. No balcony
+was too high for him to scale; no bolt nor bar was proof against his
+efforts; and his very name was a word of terror to all the jealous husbands
+and cautious fathers of Seville. His exploits extended to country as well
+as city; and in the village dependent on his castle, scarce a rural beauty
+was safe from his arts and enterprises.
+
+"As he was one day ranging the streets of Seville, with several of his
+dissolute companions, he beheld a procession about to enter the gate of a
+convent. In the center was a young female arrayed in the dress of a bride;
+it was a novice, who, having accomplished her year of probation, was about
+to take the black veil, and consecrate herself to heaven. The companions of
+Don Manuel drew back, out of respect to the sacred pageant; but he pressed
+forward, with his usual impetuosity, to gain a near view of the novice. He
+almost jostled her, in passing through the portal of the church, when, on
+her turning round, he beheld the countenance of a beautiful village girl,
+who had been the object of his ardent pursuit, but who had been spirited
+secretly out of his reach by her relatives. She recognized him at the same
+moment, and fainted; but was borne within the grate of the chapel. It was
+supposed the agitation of the ceremony and the heat of the throng had
+overcome her. After some time, the curtain which hung within the grate was
+drawn up: there stood the novice, pale and trembling, surrounded by the
+abbess and the nuns. The ceremony proceeded; the crown of flowers was taken
+from her head; she was shorn of her silken tresses, received the black
+veil, and went passively through the remainder of the ceremony.
+
+"Don Manuel de Manara, on the contrary, was roused to fury at the sight of
+this sacrifice. His passion, which had almost faded away in the absence of
+the object, now glowed with tenfold ardor, being inflamed by the
+difficulties placed in his way, and piqued by the measures which had been
+taken to defeat him. Never had the object of his pursuit appeared so lovely
+and desirable as when within the grate of the convent; and he swore to have
+her, in defiance of heaven and earth. By dint of bribing a female servant
+of the convent he contrived to convey letters to her, pleading his passion
+in the most eloquent and seductive terms. How successful they were is only
+matter of conjecture; certain it is, he undertook one night to scale the
+garden wall of the convent, either to carry off the nun or gain admission
+to her cell. Just as he was mounting the wall he was suddenly plucked back,
+and a stranger, muffled in a cloak, stood before him.
+
+"'Rash man, forbear!' cried he: 'is it not enough to have violated all
+human ties? Wouldst thou steal a bride from heaven!'
+
+"The sword of Don Manuel had been drawn on the instant, and, furious at
+this interruption, he passed it through the body of the stranger, who fell
+dead at his feet. Hearing approaching footsteps, he fled the fatal spot,
+and mounting his horse, which was at hand, retreated to his estate in the
+country, at no great distance from Seville. Here he remained throughout the
+next day, full of horror and remorse; dreading lest he should be known as
+the murderer of the deceased, and fearing each moment the arrival of the
+officers of justice.
+
+"The day passed, however, without molestation; and, as the evening
+approached, unable any longer to endure this state of uncertainty and
+apprehension, he ventured back to Seville. Irresistibly his footsteps took
+the direction of the convent; but he paused and hovered at a distance from
+the scene of blood. Several persons were gathered round the place, one of
+whom was busy nailing something against the convent wall. After a while
+they dispersed, and one passed near to Don Manuel. The latter addressed
+him, with a hesitating voice.
+
+"'Señor,' said he, 'may I ask the reason of yonder throng?'
+
+"'A cavalier,' replied the other, 'has been murdered.'
+
+"'Murdered!' echoed Don Manuel; 'and can you tell me his name?'
+
+"'Don Manuel de Manara,' replied the stranger, and passed on.
+
+"Don Manuel was startled at this mention of his own name; especially when
+applied to the murdered man. He ventured, when it was entirely deserted, to
+approach the fatal spot. A small cross had been nailed against the wall, as
+is customary in Spain, to mark the place where a murder has been committed;
+and just below it, he read, by the twinkling light of a lamp: 'Here was
+murdered Don Manuel de Manara. Pray to God for his soul!'
+
+"Still more confounded and perplexed by this inscription, he wandered about
+the streets until the night was far advanced, and all was still and lonely.
+As he entered the principal square, the light of torches suddenly broke on
+him, and he beheld a grand funeral procession moving across it. There was a
+great train of priests, and many persons of dignified appearance, in
+ancient Spanish dresses, attending as mourners, none of whom he knew.
+Accosting a servant who followed in the train, he demanded the name of the
+defunct.
+
+"'Don Manuel de Manara,' was the reply; and it went cold to his heart. He
+looked, and indeed beheld the armorial bearings of his family emblazoned on
+the funeral escutcheons. Yet not one of his family was to be seen among the
+mourners. The mystery was more and more incomprehensible.
+
+"He followed the procession as it moved on to the cathedral. The bier was
+deposited before the high altar; the funeral service was commenced, and the
+grand organ began to peal through the vaulted aisles.
+
+"Again the youth ventured to question this awful pageant. 'Father,' said
+he, with trembling voice, to one of the priests, 'who is this you are about
+to inter?'
+
+"'Don Manuel de Manara!' replied the priest.
+
+"'Father,' cried Don Manuel, impatiently, 'you are deceived. This is some
+imposture. Know that Don Manuel de Manara la alive and well, and now stands
+before you. _I_ am Don Manuel de Manara!'
+
+"'Avaunt, rash youth!' cried the priest; 'know that Don Manuel de Manara is
+dead!--is dead!--is dead!--and we are all souls from purgatory, his
+deceased relatives and ancestors, and others that have been aided by masses
+of his family, who are permitted to come here and pray for the repose of
+his soul!'
+
+"Don Manuel cast round a fearful glance upon the assemblage, in antiquated
+Spanish garbs, and recognized in their pale and ghastly countenances the
+portraits of many an ancestor that hung in the family picture-gallery. He
+now lost all self-command, rushed up to the bier, and beheld the
+counterpart of himself, but in the fixed and livid lineaments of death.
+Just at that moment the whole choir burst forth with a 'Requiescat in
+pace,' that shook the vaults of the cathedral. Don Manuel sank senseless on
+the pavement. He was found there early the next morning by the sacristan,
+and conveyed to his home. When sufficiently recovered, he sent for a friar
+and made a full confession of all that had happened.
+
+"'My son,' said the friar, 'all this is a miracle and a mystery, intended
+for thy conversion and salvation. The corpse thou hast seen was a token
+that thou hadst died to sin and the world; take warning by it, and
+henceforth live to righteousness and heaven!'
+
+"Don Manuel did take warning by it. Guided by the counsels of the worthy
+friar, he disposed of all his temporal affairs; dedicated the greater part
+of his wealth to pious uses, especially to the performance of masses for
+souls in purgatory; and finally, entering a convent, became one of the most
+zealous and exemplary monks in Seville."
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+While my companion was relating this story, my eyes wandered, from time to
+time, about the dusky church. Methought the burly countenances of the monks
+in their distant choir assumed a pallid, ghastly hue, and their deep
+metallic voices had a sepulchral sound. By the time the story was ended,
+they had ended their chant; and, extinguishing their lights, glided one by
+one, like shadows, through a small door in the side of the choir. A deeper
+gloom prevailed over the church; the figure opposite me on horseback grew
+more and more spectral; and I almost expected to see it bow its head.
+
+"It is time to be off," said my companion, "unless we intend to sup with
+the statue."
+
+"I have no relish for such fare or such company," replied I; and, following
+my companion, we groped our way through the mouldering cloisters. As we
+passed by the ruined cemetery, keeping up a casual conversation, by way of
+dispelling the loneliness of the scene, I called to mind the words of the
+poet:
+
+                     "--The tombs
+  And monumental caves of death look cold,
+  And shoot a chillness to my trembling heart!
+  Give me thy hand, and let me hear thy voice;
+  Nay, speak--and let me hear thy voice;
+  My own affrights me with its echoes."
+
+There wanted nothing but the marble statue of the commander striding along
+the echoing cloisters to complete the haunted scene.
+
+Since that time I never fail to attend the theater whenever the story of
+Don Juan is represented, whether in pantomime or opera. In the sepulchral
+scene, I feel myself quite at home; and when the statue makes his
+appearance, I greet him as an old acquaintance. When the audience applaud,
+I look round upon them with a degree of compassion. "Poor souls!" I say to
+myself, "they think they are pleased; they think they enjoy this piece, and
+yet they consider the whole as a fiction! How much more would they enjoy
+it, if like me they knew it to be true--_and had seen the very
+place_!"
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+
+
+
+BROEK
+
+OF THE DUTCH PARADISE
+
+
+It has long been a matter of discussion and controversy among the pious and
+the learned, as to the situation of the terrestrial paradise from whence
+our first parents were exiled. This question has been put to rest by
+certain of the faithful in Holland, who have decided in favor of the
+village of Broek, about six miles from Amsterdam. It may not, they observe,
+correspond in all respects to the description of the Garden of Eden, handed
+down from days of yore, but it comes nearer to their ideas of a perfect
+paradise than any other place on earth.
+
+This eulogium induced me to make some inquiries as to this favored spot in
+the course of a sojourn at the city of Amsterdam, and the information I
+procured fully justified the enthusiastic praises I had heard. The village
+of Broek is situated in Waterland, in the midst of the greenest and richest
+pastures of Holland, I may say, of Europe. These pastures are the source of
+its wealth, for it is famous for its dairies, and for those oval cheeses
+which regale and perfume the whole civilized world. The population consists
+of about six hundred persons, comprising several families which have
+inhabited the place since time immemorial, and have waxed rich on the
+products of their meadows. They keep all their wealth among themselves,
+intermarrying, and keeping all strangers at a wary distance. They are a
+"hard money" people, and remarkable for turning the penny the right way. It
+is said to have been an old rule, established by one of the primitive
+financiers and legislators of Broek, that no one should leave the village
+with more than six guilders in his pocket, or return with less than ten; a
+shrewd regulation, well worthy the attention of modern political
+economists, who are so anxious to fix the balance of trade.
+
+What, however, renders Broek so perfect an elysium in the eyes of all true
+Hollanders is the matchless height to which the spirit of cleanliness is
+carried there. It amounts almost to a religion among the inhabitants, who
+pass the greater part of their time rubbing and scrubbing, and painting and
+varnishing; each housewife vies with her neighbor in her devotion to the
+scrubbing-brush, as zealous Catholics do in their devotion to the cross;
+and it is said a notable housewife of the place in days of yore is held in
+pious remembrance, and almost canonized as a saint, for having died of pure
+exhaustion and chagrin in an ineffectual attempt to scour a black man
+white.
+
+These particulars awakened my ardent curiosity to see a place which I
+pictured to myself the very fountain-head of certain hereditary habits and
+customs prevalent among the descendants of the original Dutch settlers of
+my native State. I accordingly lost no time in performing a pilgrimage to
+Broek.
+
+Before I reached the place I beheld symptoms of the tranquil character of
+its inhabitants. A little clump-built boat was in full sail along the lazy
+bosom of a canal, but its sail consisted of the blades of two paddles stood
+on end, while the navigator sat steering with a third paddle in the stern,
+crouched down like a toad, with a slouched hat drawn over his eyes. I
+presumed him to be some nautical lover on the way to his mistress. After
+proceeding a little further I came in sight of the harbor or port of
+destination of this drowsy navigator. This was the Broeken-Meer, an
+artificial basin, or sheet of olive-green water, tranquil as a mill-pond.
+On this the village of Broek is situated, and the borders are laboriously
+decorated with flower-beds, box-trees clipped into all kinds of ingenious
+shapes and fancies, and little "lust" houses, or pavilions.
+
+I alighted outside of the village, for no horse nor vehicle is permitted to
+enter its precincts, lest it should cause defilement of the well-scoured
+pavements. Shaking the dust off my feet, therefore, I prepared to enter,
+with due reverence and circumspection, this _sanctum sanctorum_ of
+Dutch cleanliness. I entered by a narrow street, paved with yellow bricks,
+laid edgewise, and so clean that one might eat from them. Indeed, they were
+actually worn deep, not by the tread of feet, but by the friction of the
+scrubbing-brush.
+
+The houses were built of wood, and all appeared to have been freshly
+painted, of green, yellow, and other bright colors. They were separated
+from each other by gardens and orchards, and stood at some little distance
+from the street, with wide areas or courtyards, paved in mosaic, with
+variegated stones, polished by frequent rubbing. The areas were divided
+from the street by curiously-wrought railings, or balustrades, of iron,
+surmounted with brass and copper balls, scoured into dazzling effulgence.
+The very trunks of the trees in front of the houses were by the same
+process made to look as if they had been varnished. The porches, doors, and
+window-frames of the houses were of exotic woods, curiously carved, and
+polished like costly furniture. The front doors are never opened, excepting
+on christenings, marriages, or funerals; on all ordinary occasions,
+visitors enter by the back door. In former times, persons when admitted had
+to put on slippers, but this Oriental ceremony is no longer insisted upon.
+
+A poor devil Frenchman, who attended upon me as cicerone, boasted with some
+degree of exultation of a triumph of his countrymen over the stern
+regulations of the place. During the time that Holland was overrun by the
+armies of the French republic, a French general, surrounded by his whole
+état major, who had come from Amsterdam to view the wonders of Broek,
+applied for admission at one of these taboo'd portals. The reply was that
+the owner never received any one who did not come introduced by some
+friend. "Very well," said the general, "take my compliments to your master,
+and tell him I will return here to-morrow with a company of soldiers,
+'_pour parler raison avec mon ami Hollandais_.'" Terrified at the idea
+of having a company of soldiers billeted upon him, the owner threw open his
+house, entertained the general and his retinue with unwonted hospitality;
+though it is said it cost the family a month's scrubbing and scouring to
+restore all things to exact order, after this military invasion. My
+vagabond informant seemed to consider this one of the greatest victories of
+the republic.
+
+I walked about the place in mute wonder and admiration. A dead stillness
+prevailed around, like that in the deserted streets of Pompeii. No sign of
+life was to be seen, excepting now and then a hand, and a long pipe, and an
+occasional puff of smoke, out of the window of some "lusthaus" overhanging
+a miniature canal; and on approaching a little nearer, the periphery in
+profile of some robustious burgher.
+
+Among the grand houses pointed out to me were those of Claes Bakker, and
+Cornelius Bakker, richly carved and gilded, with flower gardens and clipped
+shrubberies; and that of the Great Ditmus, who, my poor devil cicerone
+informed me, in a whisper, was worth two millions; all these were mansions
+shut up from the world, and only kept to be cleaned. After having been
+conducted from one wonder to another of the village, I was ushered by my
+guide into the grounds and gardens of Mynheer Broekker, another mighty
+cheese-manufacturer, worth eighty thousand guilders a year. I had
+repeatedly been struck with the similarity of all that I had seen in this
+amphibious little village to the buildings and landscapes on Chinese
+platters and tea-pots; but here I found the similarity complete; for I was
+told that these gardens were modeled upon Van Bramm's description of those
+of Yuen min Yuen, in China. Here were serpentine walks, with trellised
+borders; winding canals, with fanciful Chinese bridges; flower-beds
+resembling huge baskets, with the flower of "love lies bleeding" falling
+over to the ground. But mostly had the fancy of Mynheer Broekker been
+displayed about a stagnant little lake, on which a corpulent little pinnace
+lay at anchor. On the border was a cottage within which were a wooden man
+and woman seated at table, and a wooden dog beneath, all the size of life;
+on pressing a spring, the woman commenced spinning, and the dog barked
+furiously. On the lake were wooden swans, painted to the life; some
+floating, others on the nest among the rushes; while a wooden sportsman,
+crouched among the bushes, was preparing his gun to take deadly aim. In
+another part of the garden was a dominie in his clerical robes, with wig,
+pipe, and cocked hat; and mandarins with nodding heads, amid red lions,
+green tigers, and blue hares. Last of all, the heathen deities, in wood and
+plaster, male and female, naked and bare-faced as usual, and seeming to
+stare with wonder at finding themselves in such strange company.
+
+My shabby French guide, while he pointed out all these mechanical marvels
+of the garden, was anxious to let me see that he had too polite a taste to
+be pleased with them. At every new knick-knack he would screw down his
+mouth, shrug up his shoulders, take a pinch of snuff, and exclaim: "_Ma
+foi, Monsieur, ces Hollandais sont forts pour ces bétises là_!"
+
+To attempt to gain admission to any of these stately abodes was out of the
+question, having no company of soldiers to enforce a solicitation. I was
+fortunate enough, however, through the aid of my guide, to make my way into
+the kitchen of the illustrious Ditmus, and I question whether the parlor
+would have proved more worthy of observation. The cook, a little wiry,
+hook-nosed woman, worn thin by incessant action and friction, was bustling
+about among her kettles and saucepans, with the scullion at her heels, both
+clattering in wooden shoes, which were as clean and white as the
+milk-pails; rows of vessels, of brass and copper, regiments of pewter
+dishes, and portly porringers, gave resplendent evidence of the intensity
+of their cleanliness; the very trammels and hangers in the fireplace were
+highly scoured, and the burnished face of the good Saint Nicholas shone
+forth from the iron plate of the chimney back.
+
+Among the decorations of the kitchen was a printed sheet of woodcuts,
+representing the various holiday customs of Holland, with explanatory
+rhymes. Here I was delighted to recognize the jollities of New Year's Day;
+the festivities of Paäs and Pinkster, and all the other merry-makings
+handed down in my native place from the earliest times of New Amsterdam,
+and which had been such bright spots in the year in my childhood. I eagerly
+made myself master of this precious document for a trifling consideration,
+and bore it off as a memento of the place; though I question if, in so
+doing, I did not carry off with me the whole current literature of Broek.
+
+I must not omit to mention that this village is the paradise of cows as
+well as men; indeed you would almost suppose the cow to be as much an
+object of worship here as the bull was among the ancient Egyptians; and
+well does she merit it, for she is in fact the patroness of the place. The
+same scrupulous cleanliness, however, which pervades everything else, is
+manifested in the treatment of this venerated animal. She is not permitted
+to perambulate the place, but in winter, when she forsakes the rich
+pasture, a well-built house is provided for her, well painted, and
+maintained in the most perfect order. Her stall is of ample dimensions; the
+floor is scrubbed and polished; her hide is daily curried and brushed and
+sponged to her heart's content, and her tail is daintily tucked up to the
+ceiling, and decorated with a ribbon!
+
+On my way back through the village, I passed the house of the prediger, or
+preacher; a very comfortable mansion, which led me to augur well of the
+state of religion in the village. On inquiry, I was told that for a long
+time the inhabitants lived in a great state of indifference as to religious
+matters; it was in vain that their preachers endeavored to arouse their
+thoughts as to a future state; the joys of heaven, as commonly depicted,
+were but little to their taste. At length a dominie appeared among them who
+struck out in a different vein. He depicted the New Jerusalem as a place
+all smooth and level; with beautiful dykes, and ditches, and canals; and
+houses all shining with paint and varnish, and glazed tiles; and where
+there should never come horse, or ass, or cat, or dog, or anything that
+could make noise or dirt; but there should be nothing but rubbing and
+scrubbing, and washing and painting, and gilding and varnishing, for ever
+and ever, amen! Since that time, the good housewives of Broek have all
+turned their faces Zionward.
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+
+
+
+SKETCHES IN PARIS IN 1825
+
+FROM THE TRAVELING NOTE-BOOK OF GEOFFREY CRAYON, GENT.
+
+
+A Parisian hotel is a street set on end, the grand staircase forming the
+highway, and every floor a separate habitation. Let me describe the one in
+which I am lodged, which may serve as a specimen of its class. It is a huge
+quadrangular pile of stone, built round a spacious paved court. The ground
+floor is occupied by shops, magazines, and domestic offices. Then comes the
+_entre-sol_, with low ceilings, short windows, and dwarf chambers;
+then succeed a succession of floors, or stories, rising one above the
+other, to the number of Mahomet's heavens. Each floor is like a distinct
+mansion, complete in itself, with ante-chamber, saloons, dining and
+sleeping rooms, kitchen and other conveniences for the accommodation of a
+family. Some floors are divided into two or more suites of apartments. Each
+apartment has its main door of entrance, opening upon the staircase, or
+landing-places, and locked like a street door. Thus several families and
+numerous single persons live under the same roof, totally independent of
+each other, and may live so for years without holding more intercourse than
+is kept up in other cities by residents in the same street.
+
+Like the great world, this little microcosm has its gradations of rank and
+style and importance. The _Premier_, or first floor, with its grand
+saloons, lofty ceilings, and splendid furniture, is decidedly the
+aristocratical part of the establishment. The second floor is scarcely less
+aristocratical and magnificent; the other floors go on lessening in
+splendor as they gain in altitude, and end with the attics, the region of
+petty tailors, clerks, and sewing-girls. To make the filling up of the
+mansion complete, every odd nook and corner is fitted up as a _joli petit
+appartement à garçon_ (a pretty little bachelor's apartment), that is to
+say, some little dark inconvenient nestling-place for a poor devil of a
+bachelor.
+
+The whole domain is shut up from the street by a great
+_porte-cochère_, or portal, calculated for the admission of carriages.
+This consists of two massy folding-doors, that swing heavily open upon a
+spacious entrance, passing under the front of the edifice into the
+courtyard. On one side is a spacious staircase leading to the upper
+apartments. Immediately without the portal is the porter's lodge, a small
+room with one or two bedrooms adjacent, for the accommodation of the
+_concierge_, or porter and his family. This is one of the most
+important functionaries of the hotel. He is, in fact, the Cerberus of the
+establishment, and no one can pass in or out without his knowledge and
+consent. The _porte-cochère_ in general is fastened by a sliding bolt,
+from which a cord or wire passes into the porter's lodge. Whoever wishes to
+go out must speak to the porter, who draws the bolt. A visitor from without
+gives a single rap with the massive knocker; the bolt is immediately drawn,
+as if by an invisible hand; the door stands ajar, the visitor pushes it
+open, and enters. A face presents itself at the glass door of the porter's
+little chamber; the stranger pronounces the name of the person he comes to
+seek. If the person or family is of importance, occupying the first or
+second floor, the porter sounds a bell once or twice, to give notice that a
+visitor is at hand. The stranger in the meantime ascends the great
+staircase, the highway common to all, and arrives at the outer door,
+equivalent to a street door, of the suite of rooms inhabited by his
+friends.
+
+Beside this hangs a bell-cord, with which he rings for admittance.
+
+When the family or person inquired for is of less importance, or lives in
+some remote part of the mansion less easy to be apprised, no signal is
+given. The applicant pronounces the name at the porter's door, and is told,
+_"Montez au troisième, au quatrième; sonnez à la porte à droite ou à
+gauche."_ ("Ascend to the third or fourth story; ring the bell on the
+right or left hand door"); as the case may be.
+
+The porter and his wife act as domestics to such of the inmates of the
+mansion as do not keep servants; making their beds, arranging their rooms,
+lighting their fires, and doing other menial offices, for which they
+receive a monthly stipend. They are also in confidential intercourse with
+the servants of the other inmates, and, having an eye on all the incomers
+and outgoers, are thus enabled, by hook and by crook, to learn the secrets
+and domestic history of every member of the little territory within the
+_porte-cochère_.
+
+The porter's lodge is accordingly a great scene of gossip, where all the
+private affairs of this interior neighborhood are discussed. The courtyard,
+also, is an assembling place in the evenings for the servants of the
+different families, and a sisterhood of sewing girls from the entre-sols
+and the attics, to play at various games, and dance to the music of their
+own songs, and the echoes of their feet, at which assemblages the porter's
+daughter takes the lead; a fresh, pretty, buxom girl, generally called
+"_La Petite_," though almost as tall as a grenadier. These little
+evening gatherings, so characteristic of this gay country, are countenanced
+by the various families of the mansion, who often look down from their
+windows and balconies, on moonlight evenings, and enjoy the simple revels
+of their domestics. I must observe, however, that the hotel I am describing
+is rather a quiet, retired one, where most of the inmates are permanent
+residents from year to year, so that there is more of the spirit of
+neighborhood than in the bustling, fashionable hotels in the gay parts of
+Paris, which are continually changing their inhabitants.
+
+MY FRENCH NEIGHBOR
+
+I often amuse myself by watching from my window (which, by the bye, is
+tolerably elevated) the movements of the teeming little world below me; and
+as I am on sociable terms with the porter and his wife, I gather from them,
+as they light my fire, or serve my breakfast, anecdotes of all my fellow
+lodgers. I have been somewhat curious in studying a little antique
+Frenchman, who occupies one of the _jolie chambres à garçon_ already
+mentioned. He is one of those superannuated veterans who flourished before
+the revolution, and have weathered all the storms of Paris, in consequence,
+very probably, of being fortunately too insignificant to attract attention.
+He has a small income, which he manages with the skill of a French
+economist; appropriating so much for his lodgings, so much for his meals;
+so much for his visits to St. Cloud and Versailles, and so much for his
+seat at the theater. He has resided in the hotel for years, and always in
+the same chamber, which he furnishes at his own expense. The decorations of
+the room mark his various ages. There are some gallant pictures which he
+hung up in his younger days; with a portrait of a lady of rank, whom he
+speaks tenderly of, dressed in the old French taste; and a pretty opera
+dancer, pirouetting in a hoop petticoat, who lately died at a good old age.
+In a corner of this picture is stuck a prescription for rheumatism, and
+below it stands an easy-chair. He has a small parrot at the window, to
+amuse him when within doors, and a pug dog to accompany him in his daily
+peregrinations. While I am writing he is crossing the court to go out. He
+is attired in his best coat, of sky-blue, and is doubtless bound for the
+Tuileries. His hair is dressed in the old style, with powdered ear-locks
+and a pig-tail. His little dog trips after him, sometimes on four legs,
+sometimes on three, and looking as if his leather small-clothes were too
+tight for him. Now the old gentleman stops to have a word with an old crony
+who lives in the entre-sol, and is just returning from his promenade. Now
+they take a pinch of snuff together; now they pull out huge red cotton
+handkerchiefs (those "flags of abomination," as they have well been called)
+and blow their noses most sonorously. Now they turn to make remarks upon
+their two little dogs, who are exchanging the morning's salutation; now
+they part, and my old gentleman stops to have a passing word with the
+porter's wife; and now he sallies forth, and is fairly launched upon the
+town for the day.
+
+No man is so methodical as a complete idler, and none so scrupulous in
+measuring and portioning out his time as he whose time is worth nothing.
+The old gentleman in question has his exact hour for rising, and for
+shaving himself by a small mirror hung against his casement. He sallies
+forth at a certain hour every morning to take his cup of coffee and his
+roll at a certain cafe, where he reads the papers. He has been a regular
+admirer of the lady who presides at the bar, and always stops to have a
+little _badinage_ with her _en passant_. He has his regular walks
+on the Boulevards and in the Palais Royal, where he sets his watch by the
+petard fired off by the sun at midday. He has his daily resort in the
+Garden of the Tuileries, to meet with a knot of veteran idlers like
+himself, who talk on pretty much the same subjects whenever they meet. He
+has been present at all the sights and shows and rejoicings of Paris for
+the last fifty years; has witnessed the great events of the revolution; the
+guillotining of the king and queen; the coronation of Bonaparte; the
+capture of Paris, and the restoration of the Bourbons. All these he speaks
+of with the coolness of a theatrical critic; and I question whether he has
+not been gratified by each in its turn; not from any inherent love of
+tumult, but from that insatiable appetite for spectacle which prevails
+among the inhabitants of this metropolis. I have been amused with a farce,
+in which one of these systematic old triflers is represented. He sings a
+song detailing his whole day's round of insignificant occupations, and goes
+to bed delighted with the idea that his next day will be an exact
+repetition of the same routine:
+
+  "Je me couche le soir,
+   Enchanté de pouvoir
+   Recommencer mon train
+      Le lendemain
+         Matin."
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+
+THE ENGLISHMAN AT PARIS
+
+In another part of the hotel a handsome suite of rooms is occupied by an
+old English gentleman, of great probity, some understanding, and very
+considerable crustiness, who has come to France to live economically. He
+has a very fair property, but his wife, being of that blessed kind compared
+in Scripture to the fruitful vine, has overwhelmed him with a family of
+buxom daughters, who hang clustering about him, ready to be gathered by any
+hand. He is seldom to be seen in public without one hanging on each arm,
+and smiling on all the world, while his own mouth is drawn down at each
+corner like a mastiff's with internal growling at everything about him. He
+adheres rigidly to English fashion in dress, and trudges about in long
+gaiters and broad-brimmed hat; while his daughters almost overshadow him
+with feathers, flowers, and French bonnets.
+
+He contrives to keep up an atmosphere of English habits, opinions, and
+prejudices, and to carry a semblance of London into the very heart of
+Paris. His mornings are spent at Galignani's news-room, where he forms one
+of a knot of inveterate quidnuncs, who read the same articles over a dozen
+times in a dozen different papers. He generally dines in company with some
+of his own countrymen, and they have what is called a "comfortable sitting"
+after dinner, in the English fashion, drinking wine, discussing the news of
+the London papers, and canvassing the French character, the French
+metropolis, and the French revolution, ending with a unanimous admission of
+English courage, English morality, English cookery, English wealth, the
+magnitude of London, and the ingratitude of the French.
+
+His evenings are chiefly spent at a club of his countrymen, where the
+London papers are taken. Sometimes his daughters entice him to the
+theaters, but not often. He abuses French tragedy, as all fustian and
+bombast, Talma as a ranter, and Duchesnois as a mere termagant. It is true
+his ear is not sufficiently familiar with the language to understand French
+verse, and he generally goes to sleep during the performance. The wit of
+the French comedy is flat and pointless to him. He would not give one of
+Munden's wry faces or Liston's inexpressible looks for the whole of it.
+
+He will not admit that Paris has any advantage over London. The Seine is a
+muddy rivulet in comparison with the Thames; the West End of London
+surpasses the finest parts of the French capital; and on some one's
+observing that there was a very thick fog out of doors: "Pish!" said he,
+crustily, "it's nothing to the fogs we have in London."
+
+He has infinite trouble in bringing his table into anything like conformity
+to English rule. With his liquors, it is true, he is tolerably successful.
+He procures London porter, and a stock of port and sherry, at considerable
+expense; for he observes that he cannot stand those cursed thin French
+wines, they dilute his blood so much as to give him the rheumatism. As to
+their white wines, he stigmatizes them as mere substitutes for cider; and
+as to claret, why, "it would be port if it could." He has continual
+quarrels with his French cook, whom he renders wretched by insisting on his
+conforming to Mrs. Glass; for it is easier to convert a Frenchman from his
+religion than his cookery. The poor fellow, by dint of repeated efforts,
+once brought himself to serve up _ros bif_ sufficiently raw to suit
+what he considered the cannibal taste of his master; but then he could not
+refrain, at the last moment, adding some exquisite sauce, that put the old
+gentleman in a fury.
+
+He detests wood-fires, and has procured a quantity of coal; but not having
+a grate, he is obliged to burn it on the hearth. Here he sits poking and
+stirring the fire with one end of a tongs, while the room is as murky as a
+smithy; railing at French chimneys, French masons, and French architects;
+giving a poke at the end of every sentence, as though he were stirring up
+the very bowels of the delinquents he is anathematizing. He lives in a
+state militant with inanimate objects around him; gets into high dudgeon
+with doors and casements, because they will not come under English law, and
+has implacable feuds with sundry refractory pieces of furniture. Among
+these is one in particular with which he is sure to have a high quarrel
+every tune he goes to dress. It is a _commode_, one of those smooth,
+polished, plausible pieces of French furniture that have the perversity of
+five hundred devils. Each drawer has a will of its own, will open or not,
+just as the whim takes it, and sets lock and key at defiance. Sometimes a
+drawer will refuse to yield to either persuasion or force, and will part
+with both handles rather than yield; another will come out in the most coy
+and coquettish manner imaginable; elbowing along, zig-zag; one corner
+retreating as the other advances; making a thousand difficulties and
+objections at every move; until the old gentleman, out of all patience,
+gives a sudden jerk, and brings drawer and contents into the middle of the
+floor. His hostility to this unlucky piece of furniture increases every
+day, as if incensed that it does not grow better. He is like the fretful
+invalid who cursed his bed, that the longer he lay the harder it grew. The
+only benefit he has derived from the quarrel is that it has furnished him
+with a crusty joke, which he utters on all occasions. He swears that a
+French _commode_ is the most _incommodious_ thing in existence,
+and that although the nation cannot make a joint-stool that will stand
+steady, yet they are always talking of everything's being
+_perfectionée_.
+
+His servants understand his humor, and avail themselves of it. He was one
+day disturbed by a pertinacious rattling and shaking at one of the doors,
+and bawled out in an angry tone to know the cause of the disturbance.
+"Sir," said the footman, testily, "it's this confounded French lock!" "Ah!"
+said the old gentleman, pacified by this hit at the nation, "I thought
+there was something French at the bottom of it!"
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+
+
+
+
+ENGLISH AND FRENCH CHARACTER
+
+
+As I am a mere looker on in Europe, and hold myself as much as possible
+aloof from its quarrels and prejudices, I feel something like one
+overlooking a game, who, without any great skill of his own, can
+occasionally perceive the blunders of much abler players. This neutrality
+of feeling enables me to enjoy the contrasts of character presented in this
+time of general peace, when the various peoples of Europe, who have so long
+been sundered by wars, are brought together and placed side by side in this
+great gathering-place of nations. No greater contrast, however, is
+exhibited than that of the French and English. The peace has deluged this
+gay capital with English visitors of all ranks and conditions. They throng
+every place of curiosity and amusement; fill the public gardens, the
+galleries, the cafes, saloons, theaters; always herding together, never
+associating with the French. The two nations are like two threads of
+different colors, tangled together but never blended.
+
+In fact they present a continual antithesis, and seem to value themselves
+upon being unlike each other; yet each have their peculiar merits, which
+should entitle them to each other's esteem. The French intellect is quick
+and active. It flashes its way into a subject with the rapidity of
+lightning; seizes upon remote conclusions with a sudden bound, and its
+deductions are almost intuitive. The English intellect is less rapid, but
+more persevering; less sudden, but more sure in its deductions. The
+quickness and mobility of the French enable them to find enjoyment in the
+multiplicity of sensations. They speak and act more from immediate
+impressions than from reflection and meditation. They are therefore more
+social and communicative; more fond of society, and of places of public
+resort and amusement. An Englishman is more reflective in his habits. He
+lives in the world of his own thoughts, and seems more self-existent and
+self-dependent. He loves the quiet of his own apartment; even when abroad,
+he in a manner makes a little solitude around him by his silence and
+reserve; he moves about shy and solitary, and, as it were, buttoned up,
+body and soul.
+
+The French are great optimists; they seize upon every good as it flies, and
+revel in the passing pleasure. The Englishman is too apt to neglect the
+present good, in preparing against the possible evil. However adversities
+may lower, let the sun shine but for a moment, and forth sallies the
+mercurial Frenchman, in holiday dress and holiday spirits, gay as a
+butterfly, as though his sunshine were perpetual; but let the sun beam
+never so brightly, so there be but a cloud in the horizon, the wary
+Englishman ventures forth distrustfully, with his umbrella in his hand.
+
+The Frenchman has a wonderful facility at turning small things to
+advantage. No one can be gay and luxurious on smaller means; no one
+requires less expense to be happy. He practices a kind of gilding in his
+style of living, and hammers out every guinea into gold leaf. The
+Englishman, on the contrary, is expensive in his habits, and expensive in
+his enjoyments. He values everything, whether useful or ornamental, by what
+it costs. He has no satisfaction in show, unless it be solid and complete.
+Everything goes with him by the square foot. Whatever display he makes, the
+depth is sure to equal the surface.
+
+The Frenchman's habitation, like himself, is open, cheerful, bustling, and
+noisy. He lives in a part of a great hotel, with wide portal, paved court,
+a spacious dirty stone staircase, and a family on every floor. All is
+clatter and chatter. He is good-humored and talkative with his servants,
+sociable with his neighbors, and complaisant to all the world. Anybody has
+access to himself and his apartments; his very bedroom is open to visitors,
+whatever may be its state of confusion; and all this not from any
+peculiarly hospitable feeling, but from that communicative habit which
+predominates over his character.
+
+The Englishman, on the contrary, ensconces himself in a snug brick mansion,
+which he has all to himself; locks the front door; puts broken bottles
+along his walls, and spring guns and man-traps in his gardens; shrouds
+himself with trees and window-curtains; exults in his quiet and privacy,
+and seems disposed to keep out noise, daylight, and company. His house,
+like himself, has a reserved, inhospitable exterior; yet whoever gains
+admittance is apt to find a warm heart and warm fireside within.
+
+The French excel in wit, the English in humor; the French have gayer fancy,
+the English richer imagination. The former are full of sensibility; easily
+moved, and prone to sudden and great excitement; but their excitement is
+not durable; the English are more phlegmatic; not so readily affected, but
+capable of being aroused to great enthusiasm. The faults of these opposite
+temperaments are that the vivacity of the French is apt to sparkle up and
+be frothy, the gravity of the English to settle down and grow muddy. When
+the two characters can be fixed in a medium, the French kept from
+effervescence and the English from stagnation, both will be found
+excellent.
+
+This contrast of character may also be noticed in the great concerns of the
+two nations. The ardent Frenchman is all for military renown; he fights for
+glory, that is to say, for success in arms. For, provided the national flag
+is victorious, he cares little about the expense, the injustice, or the
+inutility of the war. It is wonderful how the poorest Frenchman will revel
+on a triumphant bulletin; a great victory is meat and drink to him; and at
+the sight of a military sovereign, bringing home captured cannon and
+captured standards, he throws up his greasy cap in the air, and is ready to
+jump out of his wooden shoes for joy.
+
+John Bull, on the contrary, is a reasoning, considerate person. If he does
+wrong, it is in the most rational way imaginable. He fights because the
+good of the world requires it. He is a moral person, and makes war upon his
+neighbor for the maintenance of peace and good order, and sound principles.
+He is a money-making personage, and fights for the prosperity of commerce
+and manufactures. Thus the two nations have been fighting, time out of
+mind, for glory and good. The French, in pursuit of glory, have had their
+capital twice taken; and John, in pursuit of good, has run himself over
+head and ears in debt.
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+
+
+
+THE TUILERIES AND WINDSOR CASTLE
+
+
+I have sometimes fancied I could discover national characteristics in
+national edifices. In the Chateau of the Tuileries, for instance, I
+perceive the same jumble of contrarieties that marks the French character;
+the same whimsical mixture of the great and the little; the splendid and
+the paltry, the sublime and the grotesque. On visiting this famous pile,
+the first thing that strikes both eye and ear is military display. The
+courts glitter with steel-clad soldiery, and resound with the tramp of
+horse, the roll of drum, and the bray of trumpet. Dismounted guardsmen
+patrol its arcades, with loaded carbines, jingling spears, and clanking
+sabers. Gigantic grenadiers are posted about its staircases; young officers
+of the guards loll from the balconies, or lounge in groups upon the
+terraces; and the gleam of bayonet from window to window, shows that
+sentinels are pacing up and down the corridors and ante-chambers. The first
+floor is brilliant with the splendors of a court. French taste has tasked
+itself in adorning the sumptuous suites of apartments; nor are the gilded
+chapel and the splendid theater forgotten, where piety and pleasure are
+next-door neighbors, and harmonize together with perfect French
+_bienseance_.
+
+Mingled up with all this regal and military magnificence is a world of
+whimsical and make-shift detail. A great part of the huge edifice is cut up
+into little chambers and nestling-places for retainers of the court,
+dependents on retainers, and hangers-on of dependents. Some are squeezed
+into narrow entre-sols, those low, dark, intermediate slices of apartments
+between floors, the inhabitants of which seem shoved in edgewise, like
+books between narrow shelves; others are perched like swallows, under the
+eaves; the high roofs, too, which are as tall and steep as a French cocked
+hat, have rows of little dormant windows, tier above tier, just large
+enough to admit light and air for some dormitory, and to enable its
+occupant to peep out at the sky. Even to the very ridge of the roof may be
+seen here and there one of these air-holes, with a stove pipe beside it, to
+carry off the smoke from the handful of fuel with which its weazen-faced
+tenant simmers his _demi-tasse_ of coffee.
+
+On approaching the palace from the Pont Royal, you take in at a glance all
+the various strata of inhabitants; the garreteer in the roof; the retainer
+in the entre-sol; the courtiers at the casements of the royal apartments;
+while on the ground-floor a steam of savory odors and a score or two of
+cooks, in white caps, bobbing their heads about the windows, betray that
+scientific and all-important laboratory, the Royal Kitchen.
+
+Go into the grand ante-chamber of the royal apartments on Sunday and see
+the mixture of Old and New France; the old emigrés, returned with the
+Bourbons; little withered, spindle-shanked old noblemen, clad in court
+dresses, that figured in these saloons before the revolution, and have been
+carefully treasured up during their exile; with the solitaires and _ailes
+de pigeon_ of former days; and the court swords strutting out behind,
+like pins stuck through dry beetles. See them haunting the scenes of their
+former splendor, in hopes of a restitution of estates, like ghosts haunting
+the vicinity of buried treasure; while around them you see the Young
+France, that have grown up in the fighting school of Napoleon; all equipped
+_en militaire_; tall, hardy, frank, vigorous, sunburned,
+fierce-whiskered; with tramping boots, towering crests, and glittering
+breast-plates.
+
+It is incredible the number of ancient and hereditary feeders on royalty
+said to be housed in this establishment. Indeed all the royal palaces
+abound with noble families returned from exile, and who have
+nestling-places allotted them while they await the restoration of their
+estates, or the much-talked-of law indemnity. Some of them have fine
+quarters, but poor living. Some families have but five or six hundred
+francs a year, and all their retinue consists of a servant-woman. With all
+this, they maintain their old aristocratical hauteur, look down with vast
+contempt upon the opulent families which have risen since the revolution;
+stigmatize them all as _parvenues_ or upstarts, and refuse to visit
+them.
+
+In regarding the exterior of the Tuileries, with all its outward signs of
+internal populousness, I have often thought what a rare sight it would be
+to see it suddenly unroofed, and all its nooks and corners laid open to the
+day. It would be like turning up the stump of an old tree, and dislodging
+the world of grubs, and ants, and beetles lodged beneath. Indeed there is a
+scandalous anecdote current that in the time of one of the petty plots,
+when petards were exploded under the windows of the Tuileries, the police
+made a sudden investigation of the palace at four o'clock in the morning;
+when a scene of the most whimsical confusion ensued. Hosts of supernumerary
+inhabitants were found foisted into the huge edifice; every rat-hole had
+its occupant; and places which had been considered as tenanted only by
+spiders were found crowded with a surreptitious population. It is added
+that many ludicrous accidents occurred; great scampering and slamming of
+doors, and whisking away in nightgowns and slippers; and several persons,
+who were found by accident in their neighbors' chambers, evinced
+indubitable astonishment at the circumstance.
+
+As I have fancied I could read the French character in the national palace
+of the Tuileries, so I have pictured to myself some of the traits of John
+Bull in his royal abode of Windsor Castle. The Tuileries, outwardly a
+peaceful palace, is in effect a swaggering military hold; while the old
+castle, on the contrary, in spite of its bullying look, is completely under
+petticoat government. Every corner and nook is built up into some snug,
+cozy nestling place, some "procreant cradle," not tenanted by meager
+expectants or whiskered warriors, but by sleek placemen; knowing realizers
+of present pay and present pudding; who seem placed there not to kill and
+destroy, but to breed and multiply. Nursery maids and children shine with
+rosy faces at the windows, and swarm about the courts and terraces. The
+very soldiers have a pacific look, and when off duty may be seen loitering
+about the place with the nursery-maids; not making love to them in the gay
+gallant style of the French soldiery, but with infinite bonhomie aiding
+them to take care of the broods of children.
+
+Though the old castle is in decay, everything about it thrives; the very
+crevices of the walls are tenanted by swallows, rooks, and pigeons, all
+sure of quiet lodgment; the ivy strikes its roots deep in the fissures, and
+flourishes about the mouldering tower. [Footnote: The above sketch was
+written before the thorough repairs and magnificent additions that have
+been made of late years to Windsor Castle.] Thus it is with honest John;
+according to his own account, he is ever going to ruin, yet everything that
+lives on him thrives and waxes fat. He would fain be a soldier, and swagger
+like his neighbors; but his domestic, quiet-loving, uxorious nature
+continually gets the upper hand; and though he may mount his helmet and
+gird on his sword, yet he is apt to sink into the plodding, painstaking
+father of a family; with a troop of children at his heels, and his
+womenkind hanging on each arm.
+
+
+
+
+
+THE FIELD OF WATERLOO
+
+
+I have spoken heretofore with some levity of the contrast that exists
+between the English and French character; but it deserves more serious
+consideration. They are the two great nations of modern times most
+diametrically opposed, and most worthy of each other's rivalry; essentially
+distinct in their characters, excelling in opposite qualities, and
+reflecting luster on each other by their very opposition. In nothing is
+this contrast more strikingly evinced than in their military conduct. For
+ages have they been contending, and for ages have they crowded each other's
+history with acts of splendid heroism. Take the Battle of Waterloo, for
+instance, the last and most memorable trial of their rival prowess. Nothing
+could surpass the brilliant daring on the one side, and the steadfast
+enduring on the other. The French cavalry broke like waves on the compact
+squares of English infantry. They were seen galloping round those serried
+walls of men, seeking in vain for an entrance; tossing their arms in the
+air, in the heat of their enthusiasm, and braving the whole front of
+battle. The British troops, on the other hand, forbidden to move or fire,
+stood firm and enduring. Their columns were ripped up by cannonry; whole
+rows were swept down at a shot; the survivors closed their ranks, and stood
+firm. In this way many columns stood through the pelting of the iron
+tempest without firing a shot; without any action to stir their blood or
+excite their spirits. Death thinned their ranks, but could not shake their
+souls.
+
+A beautiful instance of the quick and generous impulses to which the French
+are prone, is given in the case of a French cavalier, in the hottest of the
+action, charging furiously upon a British officer, but perceiving in the
+moment of assault that his adversary had lost his sword-arm, dropping the
+point of his saber, and courteously riding on. Peace be with that generous
+warrior, whatever were his fate! If he went down in the storm of battle,
+with the foundering fortunes of his chieftain, may the turf of Waterloo
+grow green above his grave! and happier far would be the fate of such a
+spirit, to sink amid the tempest, unconscious of defeat, than to survive
+and mourn over the blighted laurels of his country.
+
+In this way the two armies fought through a long and bloody day. The French
+with enthusiastic valor, the English with cool, inflexible courage, until
+Fate, as if to leave the question of superiority still undecided between
+two such adversaries, brought up the Prussians to decide the fortunes of
+the field.
+
+It was several years afterward that I visited the field of Waterloo. The
+plowshare had been busy with its oblivious labors, and the frequent harvest
+had nearly obliterated the vestiges of war. Still the blackened ruins of
+Hoguemont stood, a monumental pile, to mark the violence of this vehement
+struggle. Its broken walls, pierced by bullets, and shattered by
+explosions, showed the deadly strife that had taken place within; when Gaul
+and Briton, hemmed in between narrow walls, hand to hand and foot to foot,
+fought from garden to courtyard, from courtyard to chamber, with intense
+and concentrated rivalship. Columns of smoke turned from this vortex of
+battle as from a volcano: "it was," said my guide, "like a little hell upon
+earth." Not far off, two or three broad spots of rank, unwholesome green
+still marked the places where these rival warriors, after their fierce and
+fitful struggle, slept quietly together in the lap of their common mother
+earth. Over all the rest of the field peace had resumed its sway. The
+thoughtless whistle of the peasant floated on the air, instead of the
+trumpet's clangor; the team slowly labored up the hillside, once shaken by
+the hoofs of rushing squadrons; and wide fields of corn waved peacefully
+over the soldiers' graves, as summer seas dimple over the place where many
+a tall ship lies buried.
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+To the foregoing desultory notes on the French military character, let me
+append a few traits which I picked up verbally in one of the French
+provinces. They may have already appeared in print, but I have never met
+with them.
+
+At the breaking out of the revolution, when so many of the old families
+emigrated, a descendant of the great Turenne, by the name of De Latour
+D'Auvergne, refused to accompany his relations, and entered into the
+Republican army. He served in all the campaigns of the revolution,
+distinguished himself by his valor, his accomplishments, and his generous
+spirit, and might have risen to fortune, and to the highest honors. He
+refused, however, all rank in the army, above that of captain, and would
+receive no recompense for his achievements but a sword of honor. Napoleon,
+in testimony of his merits, gave him the title of Premier Grenadier de
+France (First Grenadier of France), which was the only title he would ever
+bear. He was killed in Germany, in 1809 or '10. To honor his memory, his
+place was always retained in his regiment, as if he still occupied it; and
+whenever the regiment was mustered, and the name of De Latour D'Auvergne
+was called out, the reply was, "Dead on the field of honor!"
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+
+
+
+PARIS AT THE RESTORATION
+
+
+Paris presented a singular aspect just after the downfall of Napoleon, and
+the restoration of the Bourbons. It was filled with a restless, roaming
+population; a dark, sallow race, with fierce mustaches, black cravats, and
+feverish, menacing looks; men suddenly thrown out of employ by the return
+of peace; officers cut short in their career, and cast loose with scanty
+means, many of them in utter indigence, upon the world; the broken elements
+of armies. They haunted the places of public resort, like restless, unhappy
+spirits, taking no pleasure; hanging about, like lowering clouds that
+linger after a storm, and giving a singular air of gloom to this otherwise
+gay metropolis.
+
+The vaunted courtesy of the old school, the smooth urbanity that prevailed
+in former days of settled government and long-established aristocracy, had
+disappeared amid the savage republicanism of the revolution and the
+military furor of the empire; recent reverses had stung the national vanity
+to the quick; and English travelers, who crowded to Paris on the return of
+peace, expecting to meet with a gay, good-humored, complaisant populace,
+such as existed in the time of the "Sentimental Journey," were surprised at
+finding them irritable and fractious, quick at fancying affronts, and not
+unapt to offer insults. They accordingly inveighed with heat and bitterness
+at the rudeness they experienced in the French metropolis; yet what better
+had they to expect? Had Charles II. been reinstated in his kingdom by the
+valor of French troops; had he been wheeled triumphantly to London over the
+trampled bodies and trampled standards of England's bravest sons; had a
+French general dictated to the English capital, and a French army been
+quartered in Hyde Park; had Paris poured forth its motley population, and
+the wealthy bourgeoise of every French trading town swarmed to London;
+crowding its squares; filling its streets with their equipages; thronging
+its fashionable hotels, and places of amusements; elbowing its impoverished
+nobility out of their palaces and opera-boxes, and looking down on the
+humiliated inhabitants as a conquered people; in such a reverse of the
+case, what degree of courtesy would the populace of London have been apt to
+exercise toward their visitors? [Footnote: The above remarks were suggested
+by a conversation with the late Mr. Canning, whom the author met in Paris,
+and who expressed himself in the most liberal way concerning the
+magnanimity of the French on the occupation of their capital by strangers.]
+
+On the contrary, I have always admired the degree of magnanimity exhibited
+by the French on the occupation of their capital by the English. When we
+consider the military ambition of this nation, its love of glory; the
+splendid height to which its renown in arms had recently been carried, and
+with these, the tremendous reverses it had just undergone; its armies
+shattered, annihilated; its capital captured, garrisoned, and overrun, and
+that too by its ancient rival, the English, toward whom it had cherished
+for centuries a jealous and almost religious hostility; could we have
+wondered if the tiger spirit of this fiery people had broken out in bloody
+feuds and deadly quarrels; and that they had sought to rid themselves in
+any way of their invaders? But it is cowardly nations only, those who dare
+not wield the sword, that revenge themselves with the lurking dagger. There
+were no assassinations in Paris. The French had fought valiantly,
+desperately, in the field; but, when valor was no longer of avail, they
+submitted like gallant men to a fate they could not withstand. Some
+instances of insult from the populace were experienced by their English
+visitors; some personal rencontres, which led to duels, did take place; but
+these smacked of open and honorable hostility. No instances of lurking and
+perfidious revenge occurred, and the British soldier patroled the streets
+of Paris safe from treacherous assault.
+
+If the English met with harshness and repulse in social intercourse, it was
+in some degree a proof that the people are more sincere than has been
+represented. The emigrants who had just returned were not yet reinstated.
+Society was constituted of those who had flourished under the late regime;
+the newly ennobled, the recently enriched, who felt their prosperity and
+their consequence endangered by this change of things. The broken-down
+officer, who saw his glory tarnished, his fortune ruined, his occupation
+gone, could not be expected to look with complacency upon the authors of
+his downfall. The English visitor, flushed with health, and wealth, and
+victory, could little enter into the feelings of the blighted warrior,
+scarred with a hundred battles, an exile from the camp, broken in
+constitution by the wars, impoverished by the peace, and cast back, a needy
+stranger in the splendid but captured metropolis of his country.
+
+  "Oh! who can tell what heroes feel,
+   When all but life and honor's lost!"
+
+And here let me notice the conduct of the French soldiery on the
+dismemberment of the army of the Loire, when two hundred thousand men were
+suddenly thrown out of employ; men who had been brought up to the camp, and
+scarce knew any other home. Few in civil, peaceful life, are aware of the
+severe trial to the feelings that takes place on the dissolution of a
+regiment. There is a fraternity in arms. The community of dangers,
+hardships, enjoyments; the participation in battles and victories; the
+companionship in adventures, at a time of life when men's feelings are most
+fresh, susceptible, and ardent, all these bind the members of a regiment
+strongly together. To them the regiment is friends, family, home. They
+identify themselves with its fortunes, its glories, its disgraces. Imagine
+this romantic tie suddenly dissolved; the regiment broken up; the
+occupation of its members gone; their military pride mortified; the career
+of glory closed behind them; that of obscurity, dependence, want, neglect,
+perhaps beggary, before them. Such was the case with the soldiers of the
+army of the Loire. They were sent off in squads, with officers, to the
+principal towns where they were to be disarmed and discharged. In this way
+they passed through the country with arms in their hands, often exposed to
+slights and scoffs, to hunger and various hardships and privations; but
+they conducted themselves magnanimously, without any of those outbreaks of
+violence and wrong that so often attend the dismemberment of armies.
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+The few years that have elapsed since the time above alluded to, have
+already had their effect. The proud and angry spirits which then roamed
+about Paris unemployed begins to recover its old channels, though worn
+deeper by recent torrents. The natural urbanity of the French begins to
+find its way, like oil, to the surface, though there still remains a degree
+of roughness and bluntness of manner, partly real, and partly affected, by
+such as imagine it to indicate force and frankness. The events of the last
+thirty years have rendered the French a more reflecting people. They have
+acquired greater independence of mind and strength of judgment, together
+with a portion of that prudence which results from experiencing the
+dangerous consequences of excesses. However that period may have been
+stained by crimes, and filled with extravagances, the French have certainly
+come out of it a greater nation than before. One of their own philosophers
+observes that in one or two generations the nation will probably combine
+the ease and elegance of the old character with force and solidity. They
+were light, he says, before the revolution; then wild and savage; they have
+become more thoughtful and reflective. It is only old Frenchmen, nowadays,
+that are gay and trivial; the young are very serious personages.
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+P.S.--In the course of a morning's walk, about the time the above remarks
+were written, I observed the Duke of Wellington, who was on a brief visit
+to Paris. He was alone, simply attired in a blue frock; with an umbrella
+under his arm, and his hat drawn over his eyes, and sauntering across the
+Place Vendome, close by the Column of Napoleon. He gave a glance up at the
+column as he passed, and continued his loitering way up the Rue de la Paix;
+stopping occasionally to gaze in at the shop-windows; elbowed now and then
+by other gazers, who little suspected that the quiet, lounging individual
+they were jostling so unceremoniously was the conqueror who had twice
+entered their capital victoriously; had controlled the destinies of the
+nation, and eclipsed the glory of the military idol, at the base of whose
+column he was thus negligently sauntering.
+
+Some years afterward I was at an evening's entertainment given by the duke
+at Apsley House, to William IV. The duke had manifested his admiration of
+his great adversary, by having portraits of him in different parts of the
+house. At the bottom of the grand staircase stood the colossal statue of
+the emperor, by Canova. It was of marble, in the antique style, with one
+arm partly extended, holding a figure of victory. Over this arm the ladies,
+in tripping upstairs to the ball, had thrown their shawls. It was a
+singular office for the statue of Napoleon to perform in the mansion of the
+Duke of Wellington!
+
+  "Imperial Caesar dead, and turned to clay," etc., etc.
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+
+
+
+AMERICAN RESEARCHES IN ITALY
+
+LIFE OF TASSO: RECOVERY OF A LOST PORTRAIT OF DANTE
+
+_To the Editor of the Knickerbocker:_
+
+Sir--Permit me through the pages of your magazine to call the attention of
+the public to the learned and elegant researches in Europe of one of our
+countrymen, Mr. R. H. Wilde, of Georgia, formerly a member of the House of
+Representatives. After leaving Congress, Mr. Wilde a few years since spent
+about eighteen months in traveling through different parts of Europe, until
+he became stationary for a time in Tuscany. Here he occupied himself with
+researches concerning the private life of Tasso, whose mysterious and
+romantic love for the Princess Leonora, his madness and imprisonment, had
+recently become the theme of a literary controversy, not yet ended; curious
+in itself, and rendered still more curious by some alleged manuscripts of
+the poet's, brought forward by Count Alberti. Mr. Wilde entered into the
+investigation with the enthusiasm of a poet, and the patience and accuracy
+of a case-hunter; and has produced a work now in the press, in which the
+"vexed questions" concerning Tasso are most ably discussed, and lights
+thrown upon them by his letters, and by various of his sonnets, which last
+are rendered into English with rare felicity. While Mr. Wilde was occupied
+upon this work, he became acquainted with Signer Carlo Liverati, an artist
+of considerable merit, and especially well versed in the antiquities of
+Florence. This gentleman mentioned incidentally one day, in the course of
+conversation, that there once and probably still existed in the "Bargello,"
+anciently both the prison, and the palace of the republic, an authentic
+portrait of Dante. It was believed to be in fresco, on a wall which
+afterward, by some strange neglect or inadvertency, had been covered with
+whitewash. Signor Liverati mentioned the circumstance merely to deplore the
+loss of so precious a portrait, and to regret the almost utter hopelessness
+of its recovery.
+
+As Mr. Wilde had not as yet imbibed that enthusiastic admiration for Dante
+which possesses all Italians, by whom the poet is almost worshiped, this
+conversation made but a slight impression on him at the time. Subsequently,
+however, his researches concerning Tasso being ended, he began to amuse his
+leisure hours with attempts to translate some specimens of Italian lyric
+poetry, and to compose very short biographical sketches of the authors. In
+these specimens, which as yet exist only in manuscript, he has shown the
+same critical knowledge of the Italian language, and admirable command of
+the English, that characterize his translations of Tasso. He had not
+advanced far in these exercises, when the obscure and contradictory
+accounts of many incidents in the life of Dante caused him much
+embarrassment, and sorely piqued his curiosity. About the same time he
+received, through the courtesy of Don Neri dei Principi Corsini, what he
+had long most fervently desired, a permission from the grandduke to pursue
+his investigations in the secret archives of Florence, with power to obtain
+copies therefrom. This was a rich and almost unwrought mine of literary
+research; for to Italians themselves, as well as to foreigners, their
+archives, for the most part, have been long inaccessible. For two years Mr.
+Wilde devoted himself with indefatigable ardor to explore the records of
+the republic during the time of Dante. These being written in barbarous
+Latin and semi-Gothic characters, on parchment more or less discolored and
+mutilated, with ink sometimes faded, were rendered still more illegible by
+the arbitrary abbreviations of the notaries. They require, in fact, an
+especial study; few even of the officers employed in the "Archivio delle
+Riformagione" can read them currently and correctly.
+
+Mr. Wilde however persevered in his laborious task with a patience severely
+tried, but invincible. Being without an index, each file, each book,
+required to be examined page by page, to ascertain whether any particular
+of the immortal poet's political life had escaped the untiring industry of
+his countrymen. This toil was not wholly fruitless, and several interesting
+facts obscurely known, and others utterly unknown by the Italians
+themselves, are drawn forth by Mr. Wilde from the oblivion of these
+archives.
+
+While thus engaged, the circumstance of the lost portrait of Dante was
+again brought to Mr. Wilde's mind, but now excited intense interest. In
+perusing the notes of the late learned Canonico Moreri on Filelfo's life of
+Dante, he found it stated that a portrait of the poet by Giotto was
+formerly to be seen in the Bargello. He learned also that Signer Scotti,
+who has charge of the original drawings of the old masters in the imperial
+and royal gallery, had made several years previously an ineffectual attempt
+to set on foot a project for the recovery of the lost treasure. Here was a
+new vein of inquiry, which Mr. Wilde followed up with his usual energy and
+sagacity. He soon satisfied himself, by reference to Vasari, and to the
+still more ancient and decisive authority of Filippo Villari, who lived
+shortly after the poet, that Giotto, the friend and contemporary of Dante,
+did undoubtedly paint his likeness in the place indicated. Giotto died in
+1336, but as Dante was banished, and was even sentenced to be burned, in
+1302, it was obvious the work must have been executed before that time;
+since the portrait of one outlawed and capitally convicted as an enemy to
+the commonwealth would never have been ordered or tolerated in the chapel
+of the royal palace. It was clear, then, that the portrait must have been
+painted between 1290 and 1302.
+
+Mr. Wilde now revolved in his own mind the possibility that this precious
+relic might remain undestroyed under its coat of whitewash, and might yet
+be restored to the world. For a moment he felt an impulse to undertake the
+enterprise; but feared that, in a foreigner from a new world, any part of
+which is unrepresented at the Tuscan court, it might appear like an
+intrusion. He soon however found a zealous coadjutor. This was one Giovanni
+Aubrey Bezzi, a Piedmontese exile, who had long been a resident in England,
+and was familiar with its language and literature. He was now on a visit to
+Florence, which liberal and hospitable city is always open to men of merit
+who for political reasons have been excluded from other parts of Italy.
+Signer Bezzi partook deeply of the enthusiasm of his countrymen for the
+memory of Dante, and sympathized with Mr. Wilde in his eagerness to
+retrieve if possible the lost portrait. They had several consultations as
+to the means to be adopted to effect their purpose, without incurring the
+charge of undue officiousness. To lessen any objections that might occur
+they resolved to ask for nothing but permission to search for the fresco
+painting at their own expense; and should any remains of it be found, then
+to propose to the nobility and gentry of Florence an association for the
+purpose of completing the undertaking and effectually recovering the lost
+portrait.
+
+For the same reason the formal memorial addressed to the grandduke was
+drawn up in the name of Florentines; among whom were the celebrated
+Bartolini, now President of the School of Sculpture in the Imperial and
+Royal Academy, Signor Paolo Ferroni, of the noble family of that name, who
+has exhibited considerable talent for painting, and Signor Gasparini, also
+an artist. This petition was urged and supported with indefatigable zeal by
+Signor Bezzi; and being warmly countenanced by Count Nerli and other
+functionaries, met with more prompt success than had been anticipated.
+Signor Marini, a skillful artist, who had succeeded in similar operations,
+was now employed to remove the whitewash by a process of his own, by which
+any fresco painting that might exist beneath would be protected from
+injury. He set to work patiently and cautiously. In a short time he met
+with evidence of the existence of the fresco. From under the coat of
+whitewash the head of an angel gradually made its appearance, and was
+pronounced to be by the pencil of Giotto.
+
+The enterprise was now prosecuted with increased ardor. Several months were
+expended on the task, and three sides of the chapel wall were uncovered;
+they were all painted in fresco by Giotto, with the history of the
+Magdalen, exhibiting her conversion, her penance, and her beatification.
+The figures, however, were all those of saints and angels; no historical
+portraits had yet been discovered, and doubts began to be entertained
+whether there were any. Still the recovery of an indisputable work of
+Giotto's was considered an ample reward for any toil; and the Ministers of
+the grandduke, acting under his directions, assumed on his behalf the past
+charges and future management of the enterprise.
+
+At length, on the uncovering of the fourth wall, the undertaking was
+crowned with complete success. A number of historical figures were brought
+to light, and among them the undoubted likeness of Dante. He was
+represented in full length, in the garb of the time, with a book under his
+arm, designed most probably to represent the "Vita Nuova," for the
+"Comedia" was not yet composed, and to all appearance from thirty to
+thirty-five years of age. The face was in profile and in excellent
+preservation, excepting that at some former period a nail had unfortunately
+been driven into the eye. The outline of the eyelid was perfect, so that
+the injury could easily be remedied. The countenance was extremely
+handsome, yet bore a strong resemblance to the portraits of the poet taken
+later in life.
+
+It is not easy to appreciate the delight of Mr. Wilde and his coadjutors at
+this triumphant result of their researches; nor the sensation produced, not
+merely in Florence but throughout Italy, by this discovery of a veritable
+portrait of Dante, in the prime of his days. It was some such sensation as
+would be produced in England by the sudden discovery of a perfectly well
+authenticated likeness of Shakespeare; with a difference in intensity
+proportioned to the superior sensitiveness of the Italians.
+
+The recovery of this portrait of the "divine poet" has occasioned fresh
+inquiry into the origin of the masks said to have been made from a cast of
+his face taken after death. One of these masks, in the possession of the
+Marquess of Torrigiani, has been pronounced as certainly the
+_original_. Several artists of high talent have concurred in this
+opinion; among these may be named Jesi, the first engraver in Florence;
+Seymour Kirkup, Esq., a painter and antiquary; and our own countryman
+Powers, whose genius, by the way, is very highly appreciated by the
+Italians.
+
+We may expect from the accomplished pen of Carlo Torrigiani, son of the
+marquess, and who is advantageously known in this country, from having
+traveled here, an account of this curious and valuable relic, which has
+been upward of a century in the possession of his family.
+
+Should Mr. Wilde finish his biographical work concerning Dante, which
+promises to be a proud achievement in American literature, he intends, I
+understand, to apply for permission to have both likenesses copied, and
+should circumstances warrant the expense, to have them engraved by eminent
+artists. We shall then have the features of Dante while in the prime of
+life as well as at the moment of his death.
+
+G. C.
+
+
+
+
+THE TAKING OF THE VEIL
+
+
+One of the most remarkable personages in Parisian society during the last
+century was Renée Charlotte Victoire de Froulay De Tesse, Marchioness De
+Crequi. She sprang from the highest and proudest of the old French
+nobility, and ever maintained the most exalted notions of the purity and
+antiquity of blood, looking upon all families that could not date back
+further than three or four hundred years as mere upstarts. When a beautiful
+girl, fourteen years of age, she was presented to Louis XIV., at
+Versailles, and the ancient monarch kissed her hand with great gallantry;
+after an interval of about eighty-five years, when nearly a hundred years
+old, the same testimonial of respect was paid her at the Tuileries by
+Bonaparte, then First Consul, who promised her the restitution of the
+confiscated forests formerly belonging to her family. She was one of the
+most celebrated women of her time for intellectual grace and superiority,
+and had the courage to remain at Paris and brave all the horrors of the
+revolution, which laid waste the aristocratical world around her.
+
+The memoirs she has left behind abound with curious anecdotes and vivid
+pictures of Parisian life during the latter days of Louis XIV., the regency
+of the Duke of Orleans, and the residue of the last century; and are highly
+illustrative of the pride, splendor, and licentiousness of the French
+nobility on the very eve of their tremendous downfall.
+
+I shall draw forth a few scenes from her memoirs, taken almost at random,
+and which, though given as actual and well-known circumstances, have quite
+the air of romance.
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+All the great world of Paris were invited to be present at a grand
+ceremonial, to take place in the church of the Abbey Royal of Panthemont.
+Henrietta de Lenoncour, a young girl, of a noble family, of great beauty,
+and heiress to immense estates, was to take the black veil. Invitations had
+been issued in grand form, by her aunt and guardian, the Countess Brigitte
+de Rupelmonde, canoness of Mauberge. The circumstance caused great talk and
+wonder in the fashionable circles of Paris; everybody was at a loss to
+imagine why a young girl, beautiful and rich, in the very springtime of her
+charms, should renounce a world which she was so eminently qualified to
+embellish and enjoy.
+
+A lady of high rank, who visited the beautiful novice at the grate of her
+convent-parlor, got a clew to the mystery. She found her in great
+agitation; for a time she evidently repressed her feelings, but they at
+length broke forth in passionate exclamations. "Heaven grant me grace,"
+said she, "some day or other to pardon my cousin Gondrecourt the sorrows he
+has caused me!"
+
+"What do you mean?--what sorrows, my child?" inquired her visitor. "What
+has your cousin done to affect you?"
+
+"He is married!" cried she in accents of despair, but endeavoring to
+repress her sobs.
+
+"Married! I have heard nothing of the kind, my dear. Are you perfectly sure
+of it?"
+
+"Alas! nothing is more certain; my aunt de Rupelmonde informed me of it."
+
+The lady retired, full of surprise and commiseration. She related the scene
+in a circle of the highest nobility, in the saloon of the Marshal Prince of
+Beauvau, where the unaccountable self-sacrifice of the beautiful novice was
+under discussion.
+
+"Alas!" said she, "the poor girl is crossed in love; she is about to
+renounce the world in despair, at the marriage of her cousin De
+Gondrecourt."
+
+"What!" cried a gentleman present, "the Viscount de Gondrecourt married!
+Never was there a greater falsehood. And 'her aunt told her so'! Oh! I
+understand the plot. The countess is passionately fond of Gondrecourt, and
+jealous of her beautiful niece; but her schemes are vain; the viscount
+holds her in perfect detestation."
+
+There was a mingled expression of ridicule, disgust, and indignation at the
+thought of such a rivalry. The Countess Rupelmonde was old enough to be the
+grandmother of the viscount. She was a woman of violent passions, and
+imperious temper; robust in person, with a masculine voice, a dusky
+complexion, green eyes, and powerful eyebrows.
+
+"It is impossible," cried one of the company, "that a woman of the
+countess's age and appearance can be guilty of such folly. No, no; you
+mistake the aim of this detestable woman. She is managing to get possession
+of the estate of her lovely niece."
+
+This was admitted to be the most probable; and all concurred in believing
+the countess to be at the bottom of the intended sacrifice; for although a
+canoness, a dignitary of a religious order, she was pronounced little
+better than a devil incarnate.
+
+The Princess de Beauvau, a woman of generous spirit and intrepid zeal,
+suddenly rose from the chair in which she had been reclining. "My prince,"
+said she, addressing her husband, "if you approve of it, I will go
+immediately and have a conversation on this subject with the archbishop.
+There is not a moment to spare. It is now past midnight; the ceremony is to
+take place in the morning. A few hours and the irrevocable vows will be
+pronounced."
+
+The prince inclined his head in respectful assent. The princess set about
+her generous enterprise with a woman's promptness. Within a short time her
+carriage was at the iron gate of the archiepiscopal palace, and her
+servants rang for admission. Two Switzers, who had charge of the gate, were
+fast asleep in the porter's lodge, for it was half-past two in the morning.
+It was some time before they could be awakened, and longer before they
+could be made to come forth.
+
+"The Princess de Beauvau is at the gate!"
+
+Such a personage was not to be received in deshabille. Her dignity and the
+dignity of the archbishop demanded that the gate should be served in full
+costume. For half an hour, therefore, had the princess to wait, in feverish
+impatience, until the two dignitaries of the porter's lodge arrayed
+themselves; and three o'clock sounded from the tower of Notre Dame before
+they came forth. They were in grand livery, of a buff color, with amaranth
+galloons, plaited with silver, and fringed sword-belts reaching to their
+knees, in which were suspended long rapiers. They had small three-cornered
+hats, surmounted with plumes; and each bore in his hand a halbert. Thus
+equipped at all points, they planted themselves before the door of the
+carriage; struck the ends of their halberts on the ground with emphasis;
+and stood waiting with official importance, but profound respect, to know
+the pleasure of the princess.
+
+She demanded to speak with the archbishop. A most reverential bow and shrug
+accompanied the reply, that "His Grandeur was not at home."
+
+Not at home! Where was he to be found? Another bow and shrug: "His Grandeur
+either was, or ought to be, in retirement in the seminary of St. Magloire;
+unless he had gone to pass the Fete of St. Bruno with the reverend
+Carthusian fathers of the Rue d'Enfer; or perhaps he might have gone to
+repose himself in his castle of Conflans-sur-Seine. Though, on further
+thought, it was not unlikely he might have gone to sleep at St. Cyr, where
+the Bishop of Chartres never failed to invite him for the anniversary
+soiree of Madame de Maintenon."
+
+The princess was in despair at this multiplicity of crossroads pointed out
+for the chase; the brief interval of time was rapidly elapsing; day already
+began to dawn; she saw there was no hope of finding the archbishop before
+the moment of his entrance into the church for the morning's ceremony; so
+she returned home quite distressed.
+
+At seven o'clock in the morning the princess was in the parlor of the
+monastery of De Panthemont, and sent in an urgent request for a moment's
+conversation with the Lady Abbess. The reply brought was, that the abbess
+could not come to the parlor, being obliged to attend in the choir at the
+canonical hours. The princess entreated permission to enter the convent, to
+reveal to the Lady Abbess in two words something of the greatest
+importance. The abbess sent word in reply, that the thing was impossible,
+until she had obtained permission from the Archbishop of Paris. The
+princess retired once more to her carriage, and now, as a forlorn hope,
+took her station at the door of the church to watch for the arrival of the
+prelate.
+
+After a while the splendid company invited to this great ceremony began to
+arrive. The beauty, rank, and wealth of the novice had excited great
+attention; and, as everybody was expected to be present on the occasion,
+everybody pressed to secure a place. The street reverberated with the
+continual roll of gilded carriages and chariots; coaches of princes and
+dukes, designated by imperials of crimson velvet, and magnificent equipages
+of six horses, decked out with nodding plumes and sumptuous harnessing. At
+length the equipages ceased to arrive; empty vehicles filled the street;
+and, with a noisy and party-colored crowd of lackeys in rich liveries,
+obstructed all the entrances to De Panthemont.
+
+Eleven o'clock had struck; the last auditor had entered the church; the
+deep tones of the organ began to swell through the sacred pile, yet still
+the archbishop came not! The heart of the princess beat quicker and quicker
+with vague apprehension; when a valet, dressed in cloth of silver, trimmed
+with crimson velvet, approached her carriage precipitately. "Madame," said
+he, "the archbishop is in the church; he entered by the portal of the
+cloister; he is already in the sanctuary; the ceremony is about to
+commence!"
+
+What was to be done? To speak with the archbishop was now impossible, and
+yet on the revelation she was to make to him depended the fate of the
+lovely novice. The princess drew forth her tablets of enameled gold, wrote
+a few lines therein with a pencil, and ordered her lackey to make way for
+her through the crowd, and conduct her with all speed to the sacristy.
+
+The description given of the church and the assemblage on this occasion
+presents an idea of the aristocratical state of the times, and of the high
+interest awakened by the affecting sacrifice about to take place. The
+church was hung with superb tapestry, above which extended a band of white
+damask, fringed with gold, and covered with armorial escutcheons. A large
+pennon, emblazoned with the arms and alliances of the high-born damsel, was
+suspended, according to custom, in place of the lamp of the sanctuary. The
+lusters, girandoles, and candelabras of the king had been furnished in
+profusion, to decorate the sacred edifice, and the pavements were all
+covered with rich carpets.
+
+The sanctuary presented a reverend and august assemblage of bishops,
+canons, and monks of various orders, Benedictines, Bernardines, Raccollets,
+Capuchins, and others, all in their appropriate robes and dresses. In the
+midst presided the Archbishop of Paris, Christopher de Beaumont; surrounded
+by his four arch priests and his vicars-general. He was seated with his
+back against the altar. When his eyes were cast down, his countenance, pale
+and severe, is represented as having been somewhat sepulchral and
+death-like; but the moment he raised his large, dark, sparkling eyes, the
+whole became animated; beaming with ardor, and expressive of energy,
+penetration, and firmness.
+
+The audience that crowded the church was no less illustrious. Excepting the
+royal family, all that was elevated in rank and title was there; never had
+a ceremonial of the kind attracted an equal concourse of the high
+aristocracy of Paris.
+
+At length the grated gates of the choir creaked on their hinges, and Madame
+de Richelieu, the high and noble Abbess of De Panthemont, advanced to
+resign the novice into the hands of her aunt, the Countess Canoness De
+Rupelmonde. Every eye was turned with intense curiosity to gain a sight of
+the beautiful victim. She was sumptuously dressed, but her paleness and
+languor accorded but little with her brilliant attire. The Canoness De
+Rupelmonde conducted her niece to her praying-desk, where, as soon as the
+poor girl knelt down, she sank as if exhausted. Just then a sort of murmur
+was heard at the lower end of the church, where the servants in livery were
+gathered. A young man was borne forth, struggling in convulsions. He was in
+the uniform of an officer of the guards of King Stanislaus, Duke of
+Lorraine. A whisper circulated that it was the young Viscount de
+Gondrecourt, and that he was a lover of the novice. Almost all the young
+nobles present hurried forth to proffer him sympathy and assistance.
+
+The Archbishop of Paris remained all this time seated before the altar; his
+eyes cast down, his pallid countenance giving no signs of interest or
+participation in the scene around him. It was noticed that in one of his
+hands, which was covered with a violet glove, he grasped firmly a pair of
+tablets, of enameled gold.
+
+The Canoness de Rupelmonde conducted her niece to the prelate, to make her
+profession of self-devotion, and to utter the irrevocable vow. As the
+lovely novice knelt at his feet, the archbishop fixed on her his dark,
+beaming eyes, with a kind but earnest expression. "Sister!" said he, in the
+softest and most benevolent tone of voice, "What is your age?"
+
+"Nineteen years, monseigneur," eagerly interposed the Countess de
+Rupelmonde.
+
+"_You_ will reply to me by-and-by, madame," said the archbishop,
+dryly. He then repeated his question to the novice, who replied in a
+faltering voice, "Seventeen years."
+
+"In what diocese did you take the white veil?"
+
+"In the diocese of Toul."
+
+"How!" exclaimed the archbishop, vehemently. "In the diocese of Toul? The
+chair of Toul is vacant! The bishop of Toul died fifteen months since; and
+those who officiate in the chapter are not authorized to receive novices.
+Your novitiate, mademoiselle, is null and void, and we cannot receive your
+profession."
+
+The archbishop rose from his chair, resumed his miter, and took the crozier
+from the hands of an attendant.
+
+"My dear brethren," said he, addressing the assembly, "there is no
+necessity for our examining and interrogating Mademoiselle de Lenoncour on
+the sincerity of her religious vocation. There is a canonical impediment to
+her professing for the present; and, as to the future, we reserve to
+ourselves the consideration of the matter; interdicting to all other
+ecclesiastical persons the power of accepting her vows, under penalty of
+interdiction, of suspension, and of nullification; all which is in virtue
+of our metropolitan rights, contained in the terms of the bull _cum
+proximis_:" "_Adjutorium nostrum in nomine Domini!_" pursued he,
+chanting in a grave and solemn voice, and turning toward the altar to give
+the benediction of the holy sacrament.
+
+The noble auditory had that habitude of reserve, that empire, or rather
+tyranny, over all outward manifestations of internal emotions, which
+belongs to high aristocratical breeding. The declaration of the archbishop,
+therefore, was received as one of the most natural and ordinary things in
+the world, and all knelt down and received the pontifical benediction with
+perfect decorum. As soon, however, as they were released from the
+self-restraint imposed by etiquette, they amply indemnified themselves; and
+nothing was talked of for a month, in the fashionable saloons of Paris, but
+the loves of the handsome Viscount and the charming Henrietta; the
+wickedness of the canoness; the active benevolence and admirable address of
+the Princess de Beauvau; and the great wisdom of the archbishop, who was
+particularly extolled for his delicacy in defeating this maneuver without
+any scandal to the aristocracy, or public stigma on the name of De
+Rupelmonde, and without any departure from pastoral gentleness, by adroitly
+seizing upon an informality, and turning it to beneficial account, with as
+much authority as charitable circumspection.
+
+As to the Canoness de Rupelmonde, she was defeated at all points in her
+wicked plans against her beautiful niece. In consequence of the caveat of
+the archbishop, her superior ecclesiastic, the Abbess de Panthemont,
+formally forbade Mademoiselle de Lenoncour to resume the white veil and the
+dress of a novitiate, and instead of a novice's cell established her in a
+beautiful apartment as a boarder. The next morning the Canoness de
+Rupelmonde called at the convent to take away her niece; but, to her
+confusion, the abbess produced a lettre-de-cachet, which she had just
+received, and which forbade mademoiselle to leave the convent with any
+other person save the Prince de Beauvau.
+
+Under the auspices and the vigilant attention of the prince, the whole
+affair was wound up in the most technical and circumstantial manner. The
+Countess de Rupelmonde, by a decree of the Grand Council, was divested of
+the guardianship of her niece. All the arrears of revenues accumulated
+during Mademoiselle de Lenoncour's minority were rigorously collected, the
+accounts scrutinized and adjusted, and her noble fortune placed safely and
+entirely in her hands.
+
+In a little while the noble personages who had been invited to the ceremony
+of taking the veil received another invitation, on the part of the Countess
+dowager de Gondrecourt, and the Marshal Prince de Beauvau, to attend the
+marriage of Adrien de Gondrecourt, Viscount of Jean-sur-Moselle, and
+Henrietta de Lenoncour, Countess de Hevouwal, etc., which duly took place
+in the chapel of the archiepiscopal palace at Paris.
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+So much for the beautiful Henrietta de Lenoncour. We will now draw forth a
+companion picture of a handsome young cavalier, who figured in the gay
+world of Paris about the same time, and concerning whom the ancient
+marchioness writes with the lingering feeling of youthful romance.
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+
+
+
+THE CHARMING LETORIÈRES
+
+
+"A good face is a letter of recommendation," says an old proverb; and it
+was never more verified than in the case of the Chevalier Letorieres. He
+was a young gentleman of good family, but who, according to the Spanish
+phrase, had nothing but his cloak and sword (capa y espada), that is to
+say, his gentle blood and gallant bearing, to help him forward in the
+world. Through the interest of an uncle, who was an abbe, he received a
+gratuitous education at a fashionable college, but finding the terms of
+study too long, and the vacations too short, for his gay and indolent
+temper, he left college without saying a word, and launched himself upon
+Paris, with a light heart and still lighter pocket. Here he led a life to
+his humor. It is true he had to make scanty meals, and to lodge in a
+garret; but what of that? He was his own master; free from all task or
+restraint. When cold or hungry, he sallied forth, like others of the
+chameleon order, and banqueted on pure air and warm sunshine in the public
+walks and gardens; drove off the thoughts of a dinner by amusing himself
+with the gay and grotesque throngs of the metropolis; and if one of the
+poorest, was one of the merriest gentlemen upon town. Wherever he went his
+good looks and frank, graceful demeanor, had an instant and magical effect
+in securing favor. There was but one word to express his fascinating
+powers--he was "charming."
+
+Instances are given of the effect of his winning qualities upon minds of
+coarse, ordinary mold. He had once taken shelter from a heavy shower under
+a gateway. A hackney coachman, who was passing by, pulled up, and asked him
+if he wished a cast in his carriage. Letorieres declined, with a melancholy
+and dubious shake of the head. The coachman regarded him wistfully,
+repeared his solicitations, and wished to know what place he was going to
+"To the Palace of Justice, to walk in the galleries; but I will wait here
+until the rain is over."
+
+"And why so?" inquired the coachman, pertinaciously.
+
+"Because I've no money; do let me be quiet."
+
+The coachman jumped down, and, opening the door of his carriage, "It shall
+never be said," cried he, "that I left so charming a young gentleman to
+weary himself, and catch cold, merely for the sake of twenty-four sous."
+
+Arrived at the Palace of Justice, he stopped before the saloon of a famous
+restaurateur, opened the door of the carriage, and taking off his hat very
+respectfully, begged the youth to accept of a Louis-d'or. "You will meet
+with some young gentlemen within," said he, "with whom you may wish to take
+a hand at cards. The number of my coach is 144. You can find me out, and
+repay me whenever you please."
+
+The worthy Jehu was some years afterward made coachman to the Princess
+Sophia, of France, through the recommendation of the handsome youth he had
+so generously obliged.
+
+Another instance in point is given with respect to his tailor, to whom he
+owed four hundred livres. The tailor had repeatedly dunned him, but was
+always put off with the best grace in the world. The wife of the tailor
+urged her husband to assume a harsher tone. He replied that he could not
+find it in his heart to speak roughly to so charming a young gentleman.
+
+"I've no patience with such want of spirit!" cried the wife; "you have not
+the courage to show your teeth: but I'm going out to get change for this
+note of a hundred crowns; before I come home, I'll seek this 'charming'
+youth myself, and see whether he has the power to charm me. I'll warrant he
+won't be able to put _me_ off with fine looks and fine speeches."
+
+With these and many more vaunts, the good dame sallied forth. When she
+returned home, however, she wore quite a different aspect.
+
+"Well," said her husband, "how much have you received from the 'charming'
+young man?"
+
+"Let me alone," replied the wife; "I found him playing on the guitar, and
+he looked so handsome, and was so amiable and genteel, that I had not the
+heart to trouble him."
+
+"And the change for the hundred-crown note?" said the tailor.
+
+The wife hesitated a moment: "Faith," cried she, "you'll have to add the
+amount to your next bill against him. The poor young gentleman had such a
+melancholy air that--I know not how it was, but--I left the hundred crowns
+on his mantel-piece in spite of him!"
+
+The captivating looks and manners of Letorieres made his way with equal
+facility in the great world. His high connections entitled him to
+presentation at court, but some questions arose about the sufficiency of
+his proofs of nobility; whereupon the king, who had seen him walking in the
+gardens of Versailles, and had been charmed with his appearance, put an end
+to all demurs of etiquette by making him a viscount.
+
+The same kind of fascination is said to have attended him throughout his
+career. He succeeded in various difficult family suits on questions of
+honors and privileges; he had merely to appear in court to dispose the
+judges in his favor. He at length became so popular that on one occasion,
+when he appeared at the theater on recovering from a wound received in a
+duel, the audience applauded him on his entrance. Nothing, it is said,
+could have been in more perfect good taste and high breeding than his
+conduct on this occasion. When he heard the applause, he rose in his box,
+stepped forward, and surveyed both sides of the house, as if he could not
+believe that it was himself they were treating like a favorite actor, or a
+prince of the blood.
+
+His success with the fair sex may easily be presumed; but he had too much
+honor and sensibility to render his intercourse with them a series of cold
+gallantries and heartless triumphs. In the course of his attendance upon
+court, where he held a post of honor about the king, he fell deeply in love
+with the beautiful Princess Julia, of Savoy Carignan. She was young,
+tender, and simple-hearted, and returned his love with equal fervor. Her
+family took the alarm at this attachment, and procured an order that she
+should inhabit the Abbey of Montmartre, where she was treated with all
+befitting delicacy and distinction, but not permitted to go beyond the
+convent walls. The lovers found means to correspond. One of their letters
+was intercepted, and it is even hinted that a plan of elopement was
+discovered. A duel was the consequence, with one of the fiery relations of
+the princess. Letorieres received two sword-thrusts in his right side. His
+wounds were serious, yet after two or three days' confinement he could not
+resist his impatience to see the princess. He succeeded in scaling the
+walls of the abbey, and obtaining an interview in an arcade leading to the
+cloister of the cemetery. The interview of the lovers was long and tender.
+They exchanged vows of eternal fidelity, and flattered themselves with
+hopes of future happiness, which they were never to realize. After repeated
+farewells, the princess re-entered the convent, never again to behold the
+charming Letorieres. On the following morning his corpse was found stiff
+and cold on the pavement of the cloister!
+
+It would seem that the wounds of the unfortunate youth had been reopened by
+his efforts to get over the wall; that he had refrained from calling
+assistance, lest he should expose the princess, and that he had bled to
+death, without any one to aid him, or to close his dying eyes.
+
+
+
+
+THE EARLY EXPERIENCES OF RALPH RINGWOOD [Footnote: Ralph Ringwood, though a
+fictitious name, is a real personage: the worthy original is now living and
+flourishing in honorable station. I have given some anecdotes of his early
+and eccentric career in, as nearly as I can recollect, the very words in
+which he related them. They certainly afforded strong temptations to the
+embellishments of fiction; but I thought them so strikingly characteristic
+of the individual, and of the scenes and society into which his peculiar
+humors carried him, that I preferred giving them in their original
+simplicity.--G. C.]
+
+
+NOTED DOWN FROM HIS CONVERSATIONS
+
+"I am a Kentuckian by residence and choice, but a Virginian by birth. The
+cause of my first leaving the 'Ancient Dominion,' and emigrating to
+Kentucky was a jackass! You stare, but have a little patience, and I'll
+soon show you how it came to pass. My father, who was of one of the old
+Virginian families, resided in Richmond. He was a widower, and his domestic
+affairs were managed by a housekeeper of the old school, such as used to
+administer the concerns of opulent Virginian households. She was a
+dignitary that almost rivaled my father in importance, and seemed to think
+everything belonged to her; in fact, she was so considerate in her economy,
+and so careful of expense, as sometimes to vex my father, who would swear
+she was disgracing him by her meanness. She always appeared with that
+ancient insignia of housekeeping trust and authority, a great bunch of keys
+jingling at her girdle. She superintended the arrangement of the table at
+every meal, and saw that the dishes were all placed according to her
+primitive notions of symmetry. In the evening she took her stand and served
+out tea with a mingled respectfulness and pride of station, truly
+exemplary. Her great ambition was to have everything in order, and that the
+establishment under her sway should be cited as a model of good
+housekeeping. If anything went wrong, poor old Barbara would take it to
+heart, and sit in her room and cry; until a few chapters in the Bible would
+quiet her spirits, and make all calm again. The Bible, in fact, was her
+constant resort in time of trouble. She opened it indiscriminately, and
+whether she chanced among the Lamentations of Jeremiah, the Canticles of
+Solomon, or the rough enumeration of the tribes in Deuteronomy, a chapter
+was a chapter, and operated like balm to her soul. Such was our good old
+housekeeper Barbara, who was destined, unwittingly, to have a most
+important effect upon my destiny.
+
+"It came to pass, during the days of my juvenility, while I was yet what is
+termed 'an unlucky boy,' that a gentleman of our neighborhood, a great
+advocate for experiments and improvements of all kinds, took it into his
+head that it would be an immense public advantage to introduce a breed of
+mules, and accordingly imported three jacks to stock the neighborhood. This
+in a part of the country where the people cared for nothing but blood
+horses! Why, sir! they would have considered their mares disgraced and
+their whole stud dishonored by such a misalliance. The whole matter was a
+town talk and a town scandal. The worthy amalgamator of quadrupeds found
+himself in a dismal scrape: so he backed out in time, abjured the whole
+doctrine of amalgamation, and turned his jacks loose to shift for
+themselves upon the town common. There they used to run about and lead an
+idle, good-for-nothing, holiday life, the happiest animals in the country.
+
+"It so happened that my way to school lay across this common. The first
+time that I saw one of these animals it set up a braying and frightened me
+confoundedly. However, I soon got over my fright, and seeing that it had
+something of a horse look, my Virginian love for anything of the equestrian
+species predominated, and I determined to back it. I accordingly applied at
+a grocer's shop, procured a cord that had been round a loaf of sugar, and
+made a kind of halter; then summoning some of my schoolfellows, we drove
+master Jack about the common until we hemmed him in an angle of a 'worm
+fence.' After some difficulty, we fixed the halter round his muzzle, and I
+mounted. Up flew his heels, away I went over his head, and off he
+scampered. However, I was on my legs in a twinkling, gave chase, caught him
+and remounted. By dint of repeated tumbles I soon learned to stick to his
+back, so that he could no more cast me than he could his own skin. From
+that time, master Jack and his companions had a scampering life of it, for
+we all rode them between school hours, and on holiday afternoons; and you
+may be sure schoolboys' nags are never permitted to suffer the grass to
+grow under their feet. They soon became so knowing that they took to their
+heels at the very sight of a schoolboy; and we were generally much longer
+in chasing than we were in riding them.
+
+"Sunday approached, on which I projected an equestrian excursion on one of
+these long-eared steeds. As I knew the jacks would be in great demand on
+Sunday morning, I secured one overnight, and conducted him home, to be
+ready for an early outset. But where was I to quarter him for the night? I
+could not put him in the stable; our old black groom George was as absolute
+in that domain as Barbara was within doors, and would have thought his
+stable, his horses, and himself disgraced, by the introduction of a
+jackass. I recollected the smoke-house; an out-building appended to all
+Virginian establishments for the smoking of hams, and other kinds of meat.
+So I got the key, put master Jack in, locked the door, returned the key to
+its place, and went to bed, intending to release my prisoner at an early
+hour, before any of the family were awake. I was so tired, however, by the
+exertions I had made in catching the donkey, that I fell into a sound
+sleep, and the morning broke without my awaking.
+
+"Not so with dame Barbara, the housekeeper. As usual, to use her own
+phrase, 'she was up before the crow put his shoes on,' and bustled about to
+get things in order for breakfast. Her first resort was to the smoke-house.
+Scarce had she opened the door, when master Jack, tired of his confinement,
+and glad to be released from darkness, gave a loud bray, and rushed forth.
+Down dropped old Barbara; the animal trampled over her, and made off for
+the common. Poor Barbara! She had never before seen a donkey, and having
+read in the Bible that the devil went about like a roaring lion, seeking
+whom he might devour, she took it for granted that this was Beelzebub
+himself. The kitchen was soon in a hubbub; the servants hurried to the
+spot. There lay old Barbara in fits; as fast as she got out of one, the
+thoughts of the devil came over her, and she fell into another, for the
+good soul was devoutly superstitious.
+
+"As ill luck would have it, among those attracted by the noise was a
+little, cursed, fidgety, crabbed uncle of mine; one of those uneasy spirits
+that cannot rest quietly in their beds in the morning, but must be up
+early, to bother the household. He was only a kind of half-uncle, after
+all, for he had married my father's sister; yet be assumed great authority
+on the strength of this left-handed relationship, and was a universal
+intermeddler and family pest. This prying little busybody soon ferreted out
+the truth of the story, and discovered, by hook and by crook, that I was at
+the bottom of the affair, and had locked up the donkey in the smoke-house.
+He stopped to inquire no further, for he was one of those testy curmudgeons
+with whom unlucky boys are always in the wrong. Leaving old Barbara to
+wrestle in imagination with the devil, he made for my bedchamber, where I
+still lay wrapped in rosy slumbers, little dreaming of the mischief I had
+done, and the storm about to break over me.
+
+"In an instant I was awakened by a shower of thwacks, and started up in
+wild amazement, I demanded the meaning of this attack, but received no
+other reply than that I had murdered the housekeeper; while my uncle
+continued whacking away during my confusion. I seized a poker, and put
+myself on the defensive. I was a stout boy for my years, while my uncle was
+a little wiffet of a man; one that in Kentucky we would not call even an
+'individual'; nothing more than a 'remote circumstance.' I soon, therefore,
+brought him to a parley, and learned the whole extent of the charge brought
+against me. I confessed to the donkey and the smoke-house, but pleaded not
+guilty of the murder of the housekeeper. I soon found out that old Barbara
+was still alive. She continued under the doctor's hands, however, for
+several days; and whenever she had an ill turn my uncle would seek to give
+me another flogging. I appealed to my father, but got no redress. I was
+considered an 'unlucky boy,' prone to all kinds of mischief; so that
+prepossessions were against me in all cases of appeal.
+
+"I felt stung to the soul at all this. I had been beaten, degraded, and
+treated with slighting when I complained. I lost my usual good spirits and
+good humor; and, being out of temper with everybody, fancied everybody out
+of temper with me. A certain wild, roving spirit of freedom, which I
+believe is as inherent in me as it is in the partridge, was brought into
+sudden activity by the checks and restraints I suffered. 'I'll go from
+home,' thought I, 'and shift for myself.' Perhaps this notion was quickened
+by the rage for emigrating to Kentucky, which was at that time prevalent in
+Virginia. I had heard such stories of the romantic beauties of the country;
+of the abundance of game of all kinds, and of the glorious independent life
+of the hunters who ranged its noble forests, and lived by the rifle; that I
+was as much agog to get there as boys who live in seaports are to launch
+themselves among the wonders and adventures of the ocean.
+
+"After a time old Barbara got better in mind and body, and matters were
+explained to her; and she became gradually convinced that it was not the
+devil she had encountered. When she heard how harshly I had been treated on
+her account, the good old soul was extremely grieved, and spoke warmly to
+my father in my behalf. He had himself remarked the change in my behavior,
+and thought punishment might have been carried too far. He sought,
+therefore, to have some conversation with me, and to soothe my feelings;
+but it was too late. I frankly told him the course of mortification that I
+had experienced, and the fixed determination I had made to go from home.
+
+"'And where do you mean to go?'
+
+"'To Kentucky.'
+
+"'To Kentucky! Why, you know nobody there.'
+
+"'No matter: I can soon make acquaintances.'
+
+"'And what will you do when you get there?'
+
+"'Hunt!'
+
+"My father gave a long, low whistle, and looked in my face with a
+serio-comic expression. I was not far in my teens, and to talk of setting
+off alone for Kentucky, to turn hunter, seemed doubtless the idle prattle
+of a boy. He was little aware of the dogged resolution of my character; and
+his smile of incredulity but fixed me more obstinately in my purpose. I
+assured him I was serious in what I said, and would certainly set off for
+Kentucky in the spring.
+
+"Month after month passed away. My father now and then adverted slightly to
+what had passed between us; doubtless for the purpose of sounding me. I
+always expressed the same grave and fixed determination. By degrees he
+spoke to me more directly on the subject, endeavoring earnestly but kindly
+to dissuade me. My only reply was, 'I had made up my mind.'
+
+"Accordingly, as soon as the spring had fairly opened, I sought him one day
+in his study, and informed him I was about to set out for Kentucky, and had
+come to take my leave. He made no objection, for he had exhausted
+persuasion and remonstrance, and doubtless thought it best to give way to
+my humor, trusting that a little rough experience would soon bring me home
+again. I asked money for my journey. He went to a chest, took out a long
+green silk purse, well filled, and laid it on the table. I now asked for a
+horse and servant.
+
+"'A horse!' said my father, sneeringly: 'why, you would not go a mile
+without racing him, and breaking your neck; and, as to a servant, you
+cannot take care of yourself much less of him.'
+
+"'How am I to travel, then?'
+
+"'Why, I suppose you are man enough to travel on foot.'
+
+"He spoke jestingly, little thinking I would take him at his word; but I
+was thoroughly piqued in respect to my enterprise; so I pocketed the purse,
+went to my room, tied up three or four shirts in a pocket-handkerchief, put
+a dirk in my bosom, girt a couple of pistols round my waist, and felt like
+a knight errant armed cap a-pie, and ready to rove the world in quest of
+adventures.
+
+"My sister (I had but one) hung round me and wept, and entreated me to
+stay. I felt my heart swell in my throat; but I gulped it back to its
+place, and straightened myself up; I would not suffer myself to cry. I at
+length disengaged myself from her, and got to the door.
+
+"'When will you come back?' cried she.
+
+"'Never, by heavens!' cried I, 'until I come back a member of Congress from
+Kentucky. I am determined to show that I am not the tail-end of the
+family.'
+
+"Such was my first outset from home. You may suppose what a greenhorn I
+was, and how little I knew of the world I was launching into.
+
+"I do not recollect any incident of importance until I reached the borders
+of Pennsylvania. I had stopped at an inn to get some refreshment; and as I
+was eating in the back room, I overheard two men in the barroom conjecture
+who and what I could be. One determined, at length, that I was a runaway
+apprentice, and ought to be stopped, to which the other assented. When I
+had finished my meal, and paid for it, I went out at the back door, lest I
+should be stopped by my supervisors. Scorning, however, to steal off like a
+culprit, I walked round to the front of the house. One of the men advanced
+to the front door. He wore his hat on one side, and had a consequential air
+that nettled me.
+
+"'Where are you going, youngster?' demanded he.
+
+"'That's none of your business!' replied I, rather pertly.
+
+"'Yes, but it is, though! You have run away from home, and must give an
+account of yourself.'
+
+"He advanced to seize me, when I drew forth a pistol. 'If you advance
+another step, I'll shoot you!'
+
+"He sprang back as if he had trodden upon a rattlesnake, and his hat fell
+off in the movement.
+
+"'Let him alone!' cried his companion; 'he's a foolish, mad-headed boy, and
+don't know what he's about. He'll shoot you, you may rely on it.'
+
+"He did not need any caution in the matter; he was afraid even to pick up
+his hat: so I pushed forward on my way, without molestation. This incident,
+however, had its effect upon me. I became fearful of sleeping in any house
+at night, lest I should be stopped. I took my meals in the houses, in the
+course of the day, but would turn aside at night into some wood or ravine,
+make a fire, and sleep before it. This I considered was true hunter's
+style, and I wished to inure myself to it.
+
+"At length I arrived at Brownsville, leg-weary and wayworn, and in a shabby
+plight, as you may suppose, having been 'camping out' for some nights past.
+I applied at some of the inferior inns, but could gain no admission. I was
+regarded for a moment with a dubious eye, and then informed they did not
+receive foot-passengers. At last I went boldly to the principal inn. The
+landlord appeared as unwilling as the rest to receive a vagrant boy beneath
+his roof; but his wife interfered in the midst of his excuses, and half
+elbowing him aside:
+
+"'Where are you going, my lad?' said she.
+
+"'To Kentucky.'
+
+"'What are you going there for?'
+
+"'To hunt.'
+
+"She looked earnestly at me for a moment or two. 'Have you a mother
+living?' said she at length.
+
+"'No, madam: she has been dead for some time.'
+
+"'I thought so!' cried she warmly. 'I knew if you had a mother living you
+would not be here.' From that moment the good woman treated me with a
+mother's kindness.
+
+"I remained several days beneath her roof recovering from the fatigue of my
+journey. While here I purchased a rifle and practiced daily at a mark to
+prepare myself for a hunter's life. When sufficiently recruited in strength
+I took leave of my kind host and hostess and resumed my journey.
+
+"At Wheeling I embarked in a flat bottomed family boat, technically called
+a broad-horn, a prime river conveyance in those days. In this ark for two
+weeks I floated down the Ohio. The river was as yet in all its wild beauty.
+Its loftiest trees had not been thinned out. The forest overhung the
+water's edge and was occasionally skirted by immense cane-brakes. Wild
+animals of all kinds abounded. We heard them rushing through the thickets
+and plashing in the water. Deer and bears would frequently swim across the
+river; others would come down to the bank and gaze at the boat as it
+passed. I was incessantly on the alert with my rifle; but somehow or other
+the game was never within shot. Sometimes I got a chance to land and try my
+skill on shore. I shot squirrels and small birds and even wild turkeys; but
+though I caught glimpses of deer bounding away through the woods, I never
+could get a fair shot at them.
+
+"In this way we glided in our broad-horn past Cincinnati, the 'Queen of the
+West' as she is now called, then a mere group of log cabins; and the site
+of the bustling city of Louisville, then designated by a solitary house. As
+I said before, the Ohio was as yet a wild river; all was forest, forest,
+forest! Near the confluence of Green River with the Ohio, I landed, bade
+adieu to the broad-horn, and struck for the interior of Kentucky. I had no
+precise plan; my only idea was to make for one of the wildest parts of the
+country. I had relatives in Lexington and other settled places, to whom I
+thought it probable my father would write concerning me: so as I was full
+of manhood and independence, and resolutely bent on making my way in the
+world without assistance or control, I resolved to keep clear of them all.
+
+"In the course of my first day's trudge, I shot a wild turkey, and slung it
+on my back for provisions. The forest was open and clear from underwood. I
+saw deer in abundance, but always running, running. It seemed to me as if
+these animals never stood still.
+
+"At length I came to where a gang of half-starved wolves were feasting on
+the carcass of a deer which they had run down; and snarling and snapping
+and fighting like so many dogs. They were all so ravenous and intent upon
+their prey that they did not notice me, and I had time to make my
+observations. One, larger and fiercer than the rest, seemed to claim the
+larger share, and to keep the others in awe. If any one came too near him
+while eating, he would fly off, seize and shake him, and then return to his
+repast. 'This,' thought I, 'must be the captain; if I can kill him, I shall
+defeat the whole army.' I accordingly took aim, fired, and down dropped
+the old fellow. He might be only shamming dead; so I loaded and put a
+second ball through him. He never budged; all the rest ran off, and my
+victory was complete.
+
+"It would not be easy to describe my triumphant feelings on this great
+achievement. I marched on with renovated spirit, regarding myself as
+absolute lord of the forest. As night drew near, I prepared for camping. My
+first care was to collect dry wood and make a roaring fire to cook and
+sleep by, and to frighten off wolves, and bears, and panthers. I then began
+to pluck my turkey for supper. I had camped out several times in the early
+part of my expedition; but that was in comparatively more settled and
+civilized regions, where there were no wild animals of consequence in the
+forest. This was my first camping out in the real wilderness; and I was
+soon made sensible of the loneliness and wildness of my situation.
+
+"In a little while a concert of wolves commenced: there might have been a
+dozen or two, but it seemed to me as if there were thousands. I never heard
+such howling and whining. Having prepared my turkey, I divided it into two
+parts, thrust two sticks into one of the halves, and planted them on end
+before the fire, the hunter's mode of roasting. The smell of roast meat
+quickened the appetites of the wolves, and their concert became truly
+infernal. They seemed to be all around me, but I could only now and then
+get a glimpse of one of them, as he came within the glare of the light.
+
+"I did not much care for the wolves, who I knew to be a cowardly race, but
+I had heard terrible stories of panthers, and began to fear their stealthy
+prowlings in the surrounding darkness. I was thirsty, and heard a brook
+bubbling and tinkling along at no great distance, but absolutely dared not
+go there, lest some panther might lie in wait, and spring upon me.
+By-and-by a deer whistled. I had never heard one before, and thought it
+must be a panther. I now felt uneasy lest he might climb the trees, crawl
+along the branches overhead, and plump down upon me; so I kept my eyes
+fixed on the branches, until my head ached. I more than once thought I saw
+fiery eyes glaring down from--among the leaves. At length I thought of my
+supper and turned to see if my half-turkey was cooked. In crowding so near
+the fire I had pressed the meat into the flames, and it was consumed. I had
+nothing to do but toast the other half, and take better care of it. On that
+half I made my supper, without salt or bread. I was still so possessed with
+the dread of panthers that I could not close my eyes all night, but lay
+watching the trees until daybreak, when all my fears were dispelled with
+the darkness; and as I saw the morning sun sparkling down through the
+branches of the trees, I smiled to think how I had suffered myself to be
+dismayed by sounds and shadows; but I was a young woodsman, and a stranger
+in Kentucky.
+
+"Having breakfasted on the remainder of my turkey, and slaked my thirst at
+the bubbling stream, without further dread of panthers, I resumed my
+wayfaring with buoyant feelings. I again saw deer, but as usual running,
+running! I tried in vain to get a shot at them, and began to fear I never
+should. I was gazing with vexation after a herd in full scamper, when I was
+startled by a human voice. Turning round, I saw a man at a short distance
+from me in a hunting dress.
+
+"'What are you after, my lad?' cried he.
+
+"'Those deer,' replied I, pettishly: 'but it seems as if they never stand
+still.'
+
+"Upon that he burst out laughing. 'Where are you from?' said he.
+
+"'From Richmond.'
+
+"'What! In old Virginny?'
+
+"'The same.'
+
+"'And how on earth did you get here?'
+
+"'I landed at Green River from a broad-horn.
+
+"'And where are your companions?'
+
+"' I have none.'
+
+"'What?--all alone!"
+
+"'Yes.'
+
+"'Where are you going?'
+
+"'Anywhere.'
+
+"'And what have you come here for?'
+
+"'To hunt.'
+
+"'Well,' said he, laughingly, 'you'll make a real hunter; there's no
+mistaking that! Have you killed anything?'
+
+"'Nothing but a turkey; I can't get within shot of a deer: they are always
+running.'
+
+"'Oh, I'll tell you the secret of that. You're always pushing forward, and
+starting the deer at a distance, and gazing at those that are scampering;
+but you must step as slow, and silent, and cautious as a cat, and keep your
+eyes close around you, and lurk from tree to tree, if you wish to get a
+chance at deer. But come, go home with me. My name is Bill Smithers; I live
+not far off: stay with me a little while, and I'll teach you how to hunt.'
+
+"I gladly accepted the invitation of honest Bill Smithers. We soon reached
+his habitation; a mere log hut, with a square hole for a window and a
+chimney made of sticks and clay. Here he lived with a wife and child. He
+had 'girdled' the trees for an acre or two around, preparatory to clearing
+a space for corn and potatoes. In the meantime he maintained his family
+entirely by his rifle, and I soon found him to be a first-rate huntsman.
+Under his tutelage I received my first effective lessons in 'woodcraft.'
+
+"The more I knew of a hunter's life, the more I relished it. The country,
+too, which had been the promised land of my boyhood, did not, like most
+promised lands, disappoint me. No wilderness could be more beautiful than
+this part of Kentucky in those times. The forests were open and spacious,
+with noble trees, some of which looked as if they had stood for centuries.
+There were beautiful prairies, too, diversified with groves and clumps of
+trees, which looked like vast parks, and in which you could see the deer
+running, at a great distance. In the proper season these prairies would be
+covered in many places with wild strawberries, where your horses' hoofs
+would be dyed to the fetlock. I thought there could not be another place in
+the world equal to Kentucky--and I think so still.
+
+"After I had passed ten or twelve days with Bill Smithers, I thought it
+time to shift my quarters, for his house was scarce large enough for his
+own family, and I had no idea of being an encumbrance to any one. I
+accordingly made up my bundle, shouldered my rifle, took a friendly leave
+of Smithers and his wife, and set out in quest of a Nimrod of the
+wilderness, one John Miller, who lived alone, nearly forty miles off, and
+who I hoped would be well pleased to have a hunting companion.
+
+"I soon found out that one of the most important items in woodcraft in a
+new country was the skill to find one's way in the wilderness. There were
+no regular roads in the forests, but they were cut up and perplexed by
+paths leading in all directions. Some of these were made by the cattle of
+the settlers, and were called 'stock-tracks,' but others had been made by
+the immense droves of buffaloes which roamed about the country, from the
+flood until recent times. These were called buffalo-tracks, and traversed
+Kentucky from end to end, like highways. Traces of them may still be seen
+in uncultivated parts, or deeply worn in the rocks where they crossed the
+mountains. I was a young woodman, and sorely puzzled to distinguish one
+kind of track from the other, or to make out my course through this tangled
+labyrinth. While thus perplexed, I heard a distant roaring and rushing
+sound; a gloom stole over the forest: on looking up, when I could catch a
+stray glimpse of the sky, I beheld the clouds rolled up like balls, the
+lower parts as black as ink. There was now and then an explosion, like a
+burst of cannonry afar off, and the crash of a falling tree. I had heard of
+hurricanes in the woods, and surmised that one was at hand. It soon came
+crashing its way; the forest writhing, and twisting, and groaning before
+it. The hurricane did not extend far on either side, but in a manner plowed
+a furrow through the woodland; snapping off or uprooting trees that had
+stood for centuries, and filling the air with whirling branches. I was
+directly in its course, and took my stand behind an immense poplar, six
+feet in diameter. It bore for a time the full fury of the blast, but at
+length began to yield. Seeing it falling, I scrambled nimbly round the
+trunk like a squirrel. Down it went, bearing down another tree with it. I
+crept under the trunk as a shelter, and was protected from other trees
+which fell around me, but was sore all over from the twigs and branches
+driven against me by the blast.
+
+"This was the only incident of consequence that occurred on my way to John
+Miller's, where I arrived on the following day, and was received by the
+veteran with the rough kindness of a backwoodsman. He was a gray-haired
+man, hardy and weather-beaten, with a blue wart, like a great beard, over
+one eye, whence he was nicknamed by the hunters 'Bluebeard Miller.' He had
+been in these parts from the earliest settlements, and had signalized
+himself in the hard conflicts with the Indians, which gained Kentucky the
+appellation of 'the Bloody Ground.' In one of these fights he had had an
+arm broken; in another he had narrowly escaped, when hotly pursued, by
+jumping from a precipice thirty feet high into a river.
+
+"Miller willingly received me into his house as an inmate, and seemed
+pleased with the idea of making a hunter of me. His dwelling was a small
+log-house, with a loft or garret of boards, so that there was ample room
+for both of us. Under his instruction I soon made a tolerable proficiency
+in hunting. My first exploit, of any consequence, was killing a bear. I was
+hunting in company with two brothers, when we came upon the track of bruin,
+in a wood where there was an undergrowth of canes and grapevines. He was
+scrambling up a tree, when I shot him through the breast: he fell to the
+ground and lay motionless. The brothers sent in their dog, who seized the
+bear by the throat. Bruin raised one arm and gave the dog a hug that
+crushed his ribs. One yell, and all was over. I don't know which was first
+dead, the dog or the bear. The two brothers sat down and cried like
+children over their unfortunate dog. Yet they were mere rough huntsmen,
+almost as wild and untamable as Indians; but they were fine fellows.
+
+"By degrees I became known, and somewhat of a favorite among the hunters of
+the neighborhood; that is to say, men who lived within a circle of thirty
+or forty miles, and came occasionally to see John Miller, who was a
+patriarch among them. They lived widely apart, in log huts and wigwams,
+almost with the simplicity of Indians, and wellnigh as destitute of the
+comforts and inventions of civilized life. They seldom saw each other;
+weeks, and even months, would elapse, without their visiting. When they did
+meet, it was very much after the manner of Indians; loitering about all
+day, without having much to say, but becoming communicative as evening
+advanced, and sitting up half the night before the fire, telling hunting
+stories, and terrible tales of the fights of the Bloody Ground.
+
+"Sometimes several would join in a distant hunting expedition, or rather
+campaign. Expeditions of this kind lasted from November until April; during
+which we laid up our stock of summer provisions. We shifted our hunting
+camps from place to place, according as we found the game. They were
+generally pitched near a run of water, and close by a cane-brake, to screen
+us from the wind. One side of our lodge was open toward the fire. Our
+horses were hoppled and turned loose in the cane-brakes, with bells round
+their necks. One of the party stayed at home to watch the camp, prepare the
+meals and keep off the wolves; the others hunted. When a hunter killed a
+deer at a distance from the camp, he would open it and take out the
+entrails; then climbing a sapling he would bend it down, tie the deer to
+the top, and let it spring up again, so as to suspend the carcass out of
+reach of the wolves. At night he would return to the camp and give an
+account of his luck. The next morning early he would get a horse out of the
+canebrake and bring home his game. That day he would stay at home to cut up
+the carcass, while the others hunted.
+
+"Our days were thus spent in silent and lonely occupations. It was only at
+night that we would gather together before the fire and be sociable. I was
+a novice, and used to listen with open eyes and ears to the strange and
+wild stories told by the old hunters, and believed everything I heard. Some
+of their stories bordered upon the supernatural. They believed that their
+rifles might be spellbound, so as not to be able to kill a buffalo, even at
+arms-length. This superstition they had derived from the Indians, who often
+think the white hunters have laid a spell upon their rifles. Miller partook
+of this superstition, and used to tell of his rifle's having a spell upon
+it; but it often seemed to me to be a shuffling way of accounting for a bad
+shot. If a hunter grossly missed his aim he would ask, 'Who shot last with
+this rifle?'--and hint that he must have charmed it. The sure mode to
+disenchant the gun was to shoot a silver bullet out of it.
+
+"By the opening of spring we would generally have quantities of bears'-meat
+and venison salted, dried, and smoked, and numerous packs of skins. We
+would then make the best of our way home from our distant hunting-grounds;
+transporting our spoils, sometimes in canoes along the rivers, sometimes on
+horseback over land, and our return would often be celebrated by feasting
+and dancing, in true backwoods style. I have given you some idea of our
+hunting; let me now give you a sketch of our frolicking.
+
+"It was on our return from a winter's hunting in the neighborhood of Green
+River, when we received notice that there was to be a grand frolic at Bob
+Mosely's, to greet the hunters. This Bob Mosely was a prime fellow
+throughout the country. He was an indifferent hunter, it is true, and
+rather lazy to boot; but then he could play the fiddle, and that was enough
+to make him of consequence. There was no other man within a hundred miles
+that could play the fiddle, so there was no having a regular frolic without
+Bob Mosely. The hunters, therefore, were always ready to give him a share
+of their game in exchange for his music, and Bob was always ready to get up
+a carousal, whenever there was a party returning from a hunting expedition.
+The present frolic was to take place at Bob Mosely's own house, which was
+on the Pigeon Roost Fork of the Muddy, which is a branch of Rough Creek,
+which is a branch of Green River.
+
+"Everybody was agog for the revel at Bob Mosely's; and as all the fashion
+of the neighborhood was to be there, I thought I must brush up for the
+occasion. My leathern hunting-dress, which was the only one I had, was
+somewhat the worse for wear, it is true, and considerably japanned with
+blood and grease; but I was up to hunting expedients. Getting into a
+periogue, I paddled off to a part of the Green River where there was sand
+and clay, that might serve for soap; then taking off my dress, I scrubbed
+and scoured it, until I thought it looked very well. I then put it on the
+end of a stick, and hung it out of the periogue to dry, while I stretched
+myself very comfortably on the green bank of the river. Unluckily a flaw
+struck the periogue, and tipped over the stick: down went my dress to the
+bottom of the river, and I never saw it more. Here was I, left almost in a
+state of nature. I managed to make a kind of Robinson Crusoe garb of
+undressed skins, with the hair on, which enabled me to get home with
+decency; but my dream of gayety and fashion was at an end; for how could I
+think of figuring in high life at the Pigeon Roost, equipped like a mere
+Orson?
+
+"Old Miller, who really began to take some pride in me, was confounded when
+he understood that I did not intend to go to Bob Mosely's; but when I told
+him my misfortune, and that I had no dress: 'By the powers,' cried he, 'but
+you _shall_ go, and you shall be the best dressed and the best mounted
+lad there!'
+
+"He immediately set to work to cut out and make up a hunting-shirt of
+dressed deer-skin, gayly fringed at the shoulders, with leggings of the
+same, fringed from hip to heel. He then made me a rakish raccoon-cap, with
+a flaunting tail to it; mounted me on his best horse; and I may say,
+without vanity, that I was one of the smartest fellows that figured on that
+occasion at the Pigeon Roost Fork of the Muddy.
+
+"It was no small occasion, either, let me tell you. Bob Mosely's house was
+a tolerably large bark shanty, with a clap-board roof; and there were
+assembled all the young hunters and pretty girls of the country, for many a
+mile round. The young men were in their best hunting-dresses, but not one
+could compare with mine; and my raccoon-cap, with its flowing tail, was the
+admiration of everybody. The girls were mostly in doe-skin dresses; for
+there was no spinning and weaving as yet in the woods; nor any need of it.
+I never saw girls that seemed to me better dressed; and I was somewhat of a
+judge, having seen fashions at Richmond. We had a hearty dinner, and a
+merry one; for there was Jemmy Kiel, famous for raccoon-hunting, and Bob
+Tarleton, and Wesley Pigman, and Joe Taylor, and several other prime
+fellows for a frolic, that made all ring again, and laughed that you might
+have heard them a mile.
+
+"After dinner we began dancing, and were hard at it, when, about three
+o'clock in the afternoon, there was a new arrival--the two daughters of old
+Simon Schultz; two young ladies that affected fashion and late hours. Their
+arrival had nearly put an end to all our merriment. I must go a little
+roundabout in my story to explain to you how that happened.
+
+"As old Schultz, the father, was one day looking in the cane-brakes for his
+cattle, he came upon the track of horses. He knew they were none of his,
+and that none of his neighbors had horses about that place. They must be
+stray horses; or must belong to some traveler who had lost his way, as the
+track led nowhere. He accordingly followed it up, until he came to an
+unlucky peddler, with two or three pack-horses, who had been bewildered
+among the cattle-tracks, and had wandered for two or three days among woods
+and cane-brakes, until he was almost famished.
+
+"Old Schultz brought him to his house; fed him on venison, bear's-meat, and
+hominy, and at the end of a week put him in prime condition. The peddler
+could not sufficiently express his thankfulness; and when about to depart
+inquired what he had to pay? Old Schultz stepped back with surprise.
+'Stranger,' said he, 'you have been welcome under my roof. I've given you
+nothing but wild meat and hominy, because I had no better, but have been
+glad of your company. You are welcome to stay as long as you please; but,
+by Zounds! if any one offers to pay Simon Schultz for food he affronts
+him!' So saying, he walked out in a huff.
+
+"The peddler admired the hospitality of his host, but could not reconcile
+it to his conscience to go away without making some recompense. There were
+honest Simon's two daughters, two strapping, red-haired girls. He opened
+his packs and displayed riches before them of which they had no conception;
+for in those days there were no country stores in those parts, with their
+artificial finery and trinketry; and this was the first peddler that had
+wandered into that part of the wilderness. The girls were for a time
+completely dazzled, and knew not what to choose: but what caught their eyes
+most were two looking-glasses, about the size of a dollar, set in gilt tin.
+They had never seen the like before, having used no other mirror than a
+pail of water. The peddler presented them these jewels, without the least
+hesitation; nay, he gallantly hung them round their necks by red ribbons,
+almost as fine as the glasses themselves. This done, he took his departure,
+leaving them as much astonished as two princesses in a fairy tale that have
+received a magic gift from an enchanter.
+
+"It was with these looking-glasses, hung round their necks as lockets, by
+red ribbons, that old Schultz's daughters made their appearance at three
+o'clock in the afternoon, at the frolic at Bob Mosely's, on the Pigeon
+Roost Fork of the Muddy.
+
+"By the powers, but it was an event! Such a thing had never before been
+seen in Kentucky. Bob Tarleton, a strapping fellow, with a head like a
+chestnut-burr and a look like a boar in an apple orchard, stepped up,
+caught hold of the looking-glass of one of the girls, and gazing at it for
+a moment, cried out: 'Joe Taylor, come here! come here! I'll be darn'd if
+Patty Schultz ain't got a locket that you can see your face in, as clear as
+in a spring of water!'
+
+"In a twinkling all the young hunters gathered round old Schultz's
+daughters. I, who knew what looking-glasses were, did not budge. Some of
+the girls who sat near me were excessively mortified at finding themselves
+thus deserted. I heard Peggy Pugh say to Sally Pigman, 'Goodness knows,
+it's well Schultz's daughters is got them things round their necks, for
+it's the first time the young men crowded round them!'
+
+"I saw immediately the danger of the case. We were a small community, and
+could not afford to be split up by feuds. So I stepped up to the girls, and
+whispered to them: 'Polly,' said I, 'those lockets are powerful fine, and
+become you amazingly; but you don't consider that the country is not
+advanced enough in these parts for such things. You and I understand these
+matters, but these people don't. Fine things like these may do very well in
+the old settlements, but they won't answer at the Pigeon Roost Fork of the
+Muddy. You had better lay them aside for the present, or we shall have no
+peace.'
+
+"Polly and her sister luckily saw their error; they took off the lockets,
+laid them aside, and harmony was restored: otherwise, I verily believe
+there would have been an end of our community. Indeed, notwithstanding the
+great sacrifice they made on this occasion, I do not think old Schultz's
+daughters were ever much liked afterward among the young women.
+
+"This was the first time that looking-glasses were ever seen in the Green
+River part of Kentucky.
+
+"I had now lived some time with old Miller, and had become a tolerably
+expert hunter. Game, however, began to grow scarce. The buffalo had
+gathered together, as if by universal understanding, and had crossed the
+Mississippi, never to return. Strangers kept pouring into the country,
+clearing away the forests and building in all directions. The hunters began
+to grow restive. Jemmy Kiel, the same of whom I have already spoken for his
+skill in raccoon catching, came to me one day: 'I can't stand this any
+longer,' said he; 'we're getting too thick here. Simon Schultz crowds me so
+that I have no comfort of my life.'
+
+"'Why, how you talk!' said I; 'Simon Schultz lives twelve miles off.'
+
+"'No matter; his cattle run with mine, and I've no idea of living where
+another man's cattle can run with mine. That's too close neighborhood; I
+want elbow-room. This country, too, is growing too poor to live in; there's
+no game; so two or three of us have made up our minds to follow the buffalo
+to the Missouri, and we should like to have you of the party.' Other
+hunters of my acquaintance talked in the same manner. This set me thinking;
+but the more I thought the more I was perplexed. I had no one to advise
+with; old Miller and his associates knew but of one mode of life, and I had
+had no experience in any other; but I had a wide scope of thought. When out
+hunting alone I used to forget the sport, and sit for hours together on the
+trunk of a tree, with rifle in hand, buried in thought, and debating with
+myself: 'Shall I go with Jemmy Kiel and his company, or shall I remain
+here? If I remain here there will soon be nothing left to hunt; but am I to
+be a hunter all my life? Have not I something more in me than to be
+carrying a rifle on my shoulder, day after day, and dodging about after
+bears, and deer, and other brute beasts?' My vanity told me I had; and I
+called to mind my boyish boast to my sister, that I would never return home
+until I returned a member of Congress from Kentucky; but was this the way
+to fit myself for such a station?
+
+"Various plans passed through my mind, but they were abandoned almost as
+soon as formed. At length I determined on becoming a lawyer. True it is, I
+knew almost nothing. I had left school before I had learned beyond the
+'rule of three.' 'Never mind,' said I to myself, resolutely; 'I am a
+terrible fellow for hanging on to anything when I've once made up my mind;
+and if a man has but ordinary capacity, and will set to work with heart and
+soul, and stick to it, he can do almost anything.' With this maxim, which
+has been pretty much my mainstay throughout life, I fortified myself in my
+determination to attempt the law. But how was I to set about it? I must
+quit this forest life, and go to one or other of the towns, where I might
+be able to study, and to attend the courts. This too required funds. I
+examined into the state of my finances. The purse given me by my father had
+remained untouched, in the bottom of an old chest up in the loft, for money
+was scarcely needed in these parts. I had bargained away the skins acquired
+in hunting for a horse and various other matters, on which in case of need
+I could raise funds. I therefore thought I could make shift to maintain
+myself until I was fitted for the bar.
+
+"I informed my worthy host and patron, old Miller, of my plan. He shook his
+head at my turning my back upon the woods, when I was in a fair way of
+making a first-rate hunter; but he made no effort to dissuade me. I
+accordingly set off in September, on horseback, intending to visit
+Lexington, Frankfort, and other of the principal towns, in search of a
+favorable place to prosecute my studies. My choice was made sooner than I
+expected. I had put up one night at Bardstown, and found, on inquiry, that
+I could get comfortable board and accommodation in a private family for a
+dollar and a half a week. I liked the place, and resolved to look no
+further. So the next morning I prepared to turn my face homeward, and take
+my final leave of forest life.
+
+"I had taken my breakfast, and was waiting for my horse, when, in pacing up
+and down the piazza, I saw a young girl seated near a window, evidently a
+visitor. She was very pretty; with auburn hair and blue eyes, and was
+dressed in white. I had seen nothing of the kind since I had left Richmond;
+and at that time I was too much of a boy to be much struck by female
+charms. She was so delicate and dainty-looking, so different from the hale,
+buxom, brown girls of the woods; and then her white dress!--it was
+perfectly dazzling! Never was poor youth more taken by surprise, and
+suddenly bewitched. My heart yearned to know her; but how was I to accost
+her? I had grown wild in the woods, and had none of the habitudes of polite
+life. Had she been like Peggy Pugh or Sally Pigman, or any other of my
+leathern-dressed belles of the Pigeon Roost, I should have approached her
+without dread; nay, had she been as fair as Schultz's daughters, with their
+looking-glass lockets, I should not have hesitated; but that white dress,
+and those auburn ringlets, and blue eyes, and delicate looks, quite
+daunted, while they fascinated me. I don't know what put it into my head,
+but I thought, all at once, that I would kiss her! It would take a long
+acquaintance to arrive at such a boon, but I might seize upon it by sheer
+robbery. Nobody knew me here. I would just step in, snatch a kiss, mount my
+horse, and ride off. She would not be the worse for it; and that kiss--oh!
+I should die if I did not get it!
+
+"I gave no time for the thought to cool, but entered the house, and stepped
+lightly into the room. She was seated with her back to the door, looking
+out at the window, and did not hear my approach. I tapped her chair, and as
+she turned and looked up, I snatched as sweet a kiss as ever was stolen,
+and vanished in a twinkling. The next moment I was on horseback, galloping
+homeward; my very ears tingling at what I had done.
+
+"On my return home I sold my horse, and turned everything to cash; and
+found, with the remains of the paternal purse, that I had nearly four
+hundred dollars; a little capital which I resolved to manage with the
+strictest economy.
+
+"It was hard parting with old Miller, who had been like a father to me; it
+cost me, too, something of a struggle to give up the free, independent
+wild-wood life I had hitherto led; but I had marked out my course, and had
+never been one to flinch or turn back.
+
+"I footed it sturdily to Bardstown; took possession of the quarters for
+which I had bargained, shut myself up, and set to work with might and main
+to study. But what a task I had before me! I had everything to learn; not
+merely law, but all the elementary branches of knowledge. I read and read,
+for sixteen hours out of the four-and-twenty; but the more I read the more
+I became aware of my own ignorance, and shed bitter tears over my
+deficiency. It seemed as if the wilderness of knowledge expanded and grew
+more perplexed as I advanced. Every height gained only revealed a wider
+region to be traversed, and nearly filled me with despair. I grew moody,
+silent, and unsocial, but studied on doggedly and incessantly. The only
+person with whom I held any conversation was the worthy man in whose house
+I was quartered. He was honest and well meaning, but perfectly ignorant,
+and I believe would have liked me much better if I had not been so much
+addicted to reading. He considered all books filled with lies and
+impositions, and seldom could look into one without finding something to
+rouse his spleen. Nothing put him into a greater passion than the assertion
+that the world turned on its own axis every four-and-twenty hours. He swore
+it was an outrage upon common sense. 'Why, if it did,' said he, 'there
+would not be a drop of water in the well by morning, and all the milk and
+cream in the dairy would be turned topsy-turvy! And then to talk of the
+earth going round the sun! How do they know it? I've seen the sun rise
+every morning and set every evening for more than thirty years. They must
+not talk to _me_ about the earth's going round the sun!'
+
+"At another time he was in a perfect fret at being told the distance
+between the sun and moon. 'How can any one tell the distance?' cried he.
+'Who surveyed it? who carried the chain? By Jupiter! they only talk this
+way before me to annoy me. But then there's some people of sense who give
+in to this cursed humbug! There's Judge Broadnax, now, one of the best
+lawyers we have; isn't it surprising he should believe in such stuff? Why,
+sir, the other day I heard him talk of the distance from a star he called
+Mars to the sun! He must have got it out of one or other of those
+confounded books he's so fond of reading; a book some impudent fellow has
+written, who knew nobody could swear the distance was more or less.'
+
+"For my own part, feeling my own deficiency in scientific lore, I never
+ventured to unsettle his conviction that the sun made his daily circuit
+round the earth; and for aught I said to the contrary, he lived and died in
+that belief.
+
+"I had been about a year at Bardstown, living thus studiously and
+reclusely, when, as I was one day walking the street, I met two young
+girls, in one of whom I immediately recalled the little beauty whom I had
+kissed so impudently. She blushed up to the eyes, and so did I; but we both
+passed on with further sign of recognition. This second glimpse of her,
+however, caused an odd fluttering about my heart. I could not get her out
+of my thoughts for days. She quite interfered with my studies. I tried to
+think of her as a mere child, but it would not do; she had improved in
+beauty, and was tending toward womanhood; and then I myself was but little
+better than a stripling. However, I did not attempt to seek after her, or
+even to find out who she was, but returned doggedly to my books. By degrees
+she faded from my thoughts, or if she did cross them occasionally, it was
+only to increase my despondency; for I feared that with all my exertions, I
+should never be able to fit myself for the bar, or enable myself to support
+a wife.
+
+"One cold stormy evening I was seated, in dumpish mood, in the bar-room of
+the inn, looking into the fire, and turning over uncomfortable thoughts,
+when I was accosted by some one who had entered the room without my
+perceiving it. I looked up, and saw before me a tall and, as I thought,
+pompous-looking man, arrayed in small clothes and knee-buckles, with
+powdered head, and shoes nicely blacked and polished; a style of dress
+unparalleled in those days, in that rough country. I took a pique against
+him from the very portliness of his appearance, and stateliness of his
+manner, and bristled up as he accosted me. He demanded if my name was not
+Ringwood.
+
+"I was startled, for I supposed myself perfectly incog.; but I answered in
+the affirmative.
+
+"'Your family, I believe, lives in Richmond?'
+
+"My gorge began to rise. 'Yes, sir,' replied I sulkily, 'my family does
+live in Richmond.'
+
+"'And what, may I ask, has brought you into this part of the country?'
+
+"'Zounds, sir!' cried I, starting on my feet, 'what business is it of
+yours? How dare you to question me in this manner?'
+
+"The entrance of some persons prevented a reply; but I walked up and down
+the bar-room, fuming with conscious independence and insulted dignity,
+while the pompous-looking personage, who had thus trespassed upon my
+spleen, retired without proffering another word.
+
+"The next day, while seated in my room, some one tapped at the door, and,
+on being bid to enter, the stranger in the powdered head, small-clothes,
+and shining shoes and buckles, walked in with ceremonious courtesy.
+
+"My boyish pride was again in arms; but he subdued me. He was formal, but
+kind and friendly. He knew my family and understood my situation, and the
+dogged struggle I was making. A little conversation, when my jealous pride
+was once put to rest, drew everything from me. He was a lawyer of
+experience and of extensive practice, and offered at once to take me with
+him, and direct my studies. The offer was too advantageous and gratifying
+not to be immediately accepted. From that time I began to look up. I was
+put into a proper track, and was enabled to study to a proper purpose. I
+made acquaintance, too, with some of the young men of the place, who were
+in the same pursuit, and was encouraged at finding that I could 'hold my
+own' in argument with them. We instituted a debating club, in which I soon
+became prominent and popular. Men of talents, engaged in other pursuits,
+joined it, and this diversified our subjects and put me on various tracks
+of inquiry. Ladies, too, attended some of our discussions, and this gave
+them a polite tone, and had an influence on the manners of the debaters. My
+legal patron also may have had a favorable effect in correcting any
+roughness contracted in my hunter's life. He was calculated to bend me in
+an opposite direction, for he was of the old school; quoted Chesterfield on
+all occasions, and talked of Sir Charles Grandison, who was his beau
+ideal. It was Sir Charles Grandison, however, Kentuckyized.
+
+"I had always been fond of female society. My experience, however, had
+hitherto been among the rough daughters of the backwoodsmen; and I felt an
+awe of young ladies in 'store clothes,' and delicately brought up. Two or
+three of the married ladies of Bardstown, who had heard me at the debating
+club, determined that I was a genius and undertook to bring me out. I
+believe I really improved under their hands; became quiet where I had been
+shy or sulky, and easy where I had been impudent.
+
+"I called to take tea one evening with one of these ladies, when to my
+surprise, and somewhat to my confusion, I found with her the identical
+blue-eyed little beauty whom I had so audaciously kissed. I was formally
+introduced to her, but neither of us betrayed any sign of previous
+acquaintance, except by blushing to the eyes. While tea was getting ready
+the lady of the house went out of the room to give some directions, and
+left us alone.
+
+"Heavens and earth, what a situation! I would have given all the pittance I
+was worth to have been in the deepest dell of the forest. I felt the
+necessity of saying something in excuse of my former rudeness, but I could
+not conjure up an idea, nor utter a word. Every moment matters were growing
+worse. I felt at one time tempted to do as I had done when I robbed her of
+the kiss; bolt from the room, and take to flight; but I was chained to the
+spot, for I really longed to gain her good-will.
+
+"At length I plucked up courage, on seeing that she was equally confused
+with myself, and walking desperately up to her, I exclaimed:
+
+"'I have been trying to muster up something to say to you, but I cannot. I
+feel that I am in a horrible scrape. Do have pity on me, and help me out of
+it.'
+
+"A smile dimpled about her mouth, and played among the blushes of her
+cheek. She looked up with a shy, but arch glance of the eye, that expressed
+a volume of comic recollection; we both broke into a laugh, and from that
+moment all went on well.
+
+"A few evenings afterward I met her at a dance, and prosecuted the
+acquaintance. I soon became deeply attached to her; paid my court
+regularly; and before I was nineteen years of age had engaged myself to
+marry her. I spoke to her mother, a widow lady, to ask her consent. She
+seemed to demur; upon which, with my customary haste, I told her there
+would be no use in opposing the match, for if her daughter chose to have
+me, I would take her, in defiance of her family, and the whole world.
+
+"She laughed, and told me I need not give myself any uneasiness; there
+would be no unreasonable opposition. She knew my family and all about me.
+The only obstacle was that I had no means of supporting a wife, and she had
+nothing to give with her daughter.
+
+"No matter; at that moment everything was bright before me. I was in one of
+my sanguine moods. I feared nothing, doubted nothing. So it was agreed that
+I should prosecute my studies, obtain a license, and as soon as I should be
+fairly launched in business we would be married.
+
+"I now prosecuted my studies with redoubled ardor, and was up to my ears in
+law, when I received a letter from my father, who had heard of me and my
+whereabout. He applauded the course I had taken, but advised me to lay a
+foundation of general knowledge, and offered to defray my expenses, if I
+would go to college. I felt the want of a general education, and was
+staggered with this offer. It militated somewhat against the self-dependent
+course I had so proudly or rather conceitedly marked out for myself, but it
+would enable me to enter more advantageously upon my legal career. I talked
+over the matter with the lovely girl to whom I was engaged. She sided in
+opinion with my father, and talked so disinterestedly, yet tenderly, that,
+if possible, I loved her more than ever. I reluctantly, therefore, agreed
+to go to college for a couple of years, though it must necessarily postpone
+our union.
+
+"Scarcely had I formed this resolution, when her mother was taken ill and
+died, leaving her without a protector. This again altered all my plans. I
+felt as if I could protect her. I gave up all idea of collegiate studies;
+persuaded myself that by dint of industry and application I might overcome
+the deficiencies of education, and resolved to take out a license as soon
+as possible.
+
+"That very autumn I was admitted to the bar, and within a month afterward
+was married. We were a young couple, she not much above sixteen, I not
+quite twenty; and both almost without a dollar in the world. The
+establishment which we set up was suited to our circumstances: a log-house,
+with two small rooms; a bed, a table, a half dozen chairs, a half dozen
+knives and forks, a half dozen spoons; everything by half dozens; a little
+delf ware; everything in a small way; we were so poor, but then so happy!
+
+"We had not been married many days, when court was held at a county town,
+about twenty-five miles distant. It was necessary for me to go there, and
+put myself in the way of business; but how was I to go? I had expended all
+my means on our establishment; and then it was hard parting with my wife so
+soon after marriage. However, go I must. Money must be made, or we should
+soon have the wolf at the door. I accordingly borrowed a horse, and
+borrowed a little cash, and rode off from my door, leaving my wife standing
+at it, and waving her hand after me. Her last look, so sweet and beaming,
+went to my heart. I felt as if I could go through fire and water for her.
+
+"I arrived at the county town on a cool October evening. The inn was
+crowded, for the court was to commence on the following day. I knew no one,
+and wondered how I, a stranger, and a mere youngster, was to make my way in
+such a crowd, and to get business. The public room was thronged with the
+idlers of the country, who gather together on such occasions. There was
+some drinking going forward, with much noise, and a little altercation.
+Just as I entered the room I saw a rough bully of a fellow, who was partly
+intoxicated, strike an old man. He came swaggering by me, and elbowed me as
+he passed. I immediately knocked him down, and kicked him into the street.
+I needed no better introduction. In a moment I had a dozen rough shakes of
+the hand, and invitations to drink, and found myself quite a personage in
+this rough assembly.
+
+"The next morning the court opened. I took my seat among the lawyers, but
+felt as a mere spectator, not having a suit in progress or prospect, nor
+having any idea where business was to come from. In the course of the
+morning a man was put at the bar, charged with passing counterfeit money,
+and was asked if he was ready for trial. He answered in the negative. He
+had been confined in a place where there were no lawyers, and had not had
+an opportunity of consulting any. He was told to choose counsel from the
+lawyers present, and to be ready for trial on the following day. He looked
+round the court and selected me. I was thunderstruck. I could not tell why
+he should make such a choice. I, a beardless youngster; unpracticed at the
+bar; perfectly unknown. I felt diffident yet delighted, and could have
+hugged the rascal.
+
+"Before leaving the court he gave me one hundred dollars in a bag as a
+retaining fee. I could scarcely believe my senses; it seemed like a dream.
+The heaviness of the fee spoke but lightly in favor of his innocence, but
+that was no affair of mine. I was to be advocate, not judge nor jury. I
+followed him to jail, and learned from him all the particulars of his case;
+from thence I went to the clerk's office and took minutes of the
+indictment. I then examined the law on the subject, and prepared my brief
+in my room. All this occupied me until midnight, when I went to bed and
+tried to sleep. It was all in vain. Never in my life was I more wide-awake.
+A host of thoughts and fancies kept rushing through my mind; the shower of
+gold that had so unexpectedly fallen into my lap; the idea of my poor
+little wife at home, that I was to astonish with my good fortune! But then
+the awful responsibility I had undertaken!--to speak for the first time in
+a strange court; the expectations the culprit had evidently formed of my
+talents; all these, and a crowd of similar notions, kept whirling through
+my mind. I tossed about all night, fearing the morning would find me
+exhausted and incompetent; in a word, the day dawned on me, a miserable
+fellow!
+
+"I got up feverish and nervous. I walked out before breakfast, striving to
+collect my thoughts and tranquilize my feelings. It was a bright morning;
+the air was pure and frosty. I bathed my forehead and my hands in a
+beautiful running stream; but I could not allay the fever heat that raged
+within. I returned to breakfast, but could not eat. A single cup of coffee
+formed my repast. It was time to go to court, and I went there with a
+throbbing heart. I believe if it had not been for the thoughts of my little
+wife, in her lonely log house, I should have given back to the man his
+hundred dollars, and relinquished the cause. I took my seat, looking, I am
+convinced, more like a culprit than the rogue I was to defend.
+
+"When the time came for me to speak, my heart died within me. I rose
+embarrassed and dismayed, and stammered in opening my cause. I went on from
+bad to worse, and felt as if I was going down hill. Just then the public
+prosecutor, a man of talents, but somewhat rough in his practice, made a
+sarcastic remark on something I had said. It was like an electric spark,
+and ran tingling through every vein in my body. In an instant my diffidence
+was gone. My whole spirit was in arms. I answered with promptness and
+bitterness, for I felt the cruelty of such an attack upon a novice in my
+situation. The public prosecutor made a kind of apology: this, from a man
+of his redoubted powers, was a vast concession. I renewed my argument with
+a fearless glow; carried the case through triumphantly, and the man was
+acquitted.
+
+"This was the making of me. Everybody was curious to know who this new
+lawyer was, that had thus suddenly risen among them, and bearded the
+attorney-general at the very outset. The story of my debut at the inn on
+the preceding evening, when I had knocked down a bully, and kicked him out
+of doors for striking an old man, was circulated with favorable
+exaggerations. Even my very beardless chin and juvenile countenance were in
+my favor, for people gave me far more credit than I really deserved. The
+chance business which occurs in our country courts came thronging upon me.
+I was repeatedly employed in other causes; and by Saturday night, when the
+court closed, and I had paid my bill at the inn, I found myself with a
+hundred and fifty dollars in silver, three hundred dollars in notes, and a
+horse that I afterward sold for two hundred dollars more.
+
+"Never did miser gloat on his money with more delight. I locked the door of
+my room; piled the money in a heap upon the table; walked round it; sat
+with my elbows on the table, and my chin upon my hands, and gazed upon it.
+Was I thinking of the money? No! I was thinking of my little wife at home.
+Another sleepless night ensued; but what a night of golden fancies, and
+splendid air-castle! As soon as morning dawned, I was up, mounted the
+borrowed horse with which I had come to court, and led the other which I
+had received as a fee. All the way I was delighting myself with the
+thoughts of the surprise I had in store for my little wife; for both of us
+had expected nothing but that I should spend all the money I had borrowed,
+and should return in debt.
+
+"Our meeting was joyous, as you may suppose: but I played the part of the
+Indian, hunter, who, when he returns from the chase, never for a time
+speaks of his success. She had prepared a snug little rustic meal for me,
+and while it was getting ready I seated myself at an old-fashioned desk in
+one corner, and began to count over my money, and put it away. She came to
+me before I had finished, and asked who I had collected the money for.
+
+"'For myself, to be sure,' replied I, with affected coolness; 'I made it at
+court.'
+
+"She looked me for a moment in the face, incredulously. I tried to keep my
+countenance, and to play Indian, but it would not do. My muscles began to
+twitch; my feelings all at once gave way. I caught her in my arms; laughed,
+cried, and danced about the room, like a crazy man. From that time forward,
+we never wanted for money.
+
+"I had not been long in successful practice, when I was surprised one day
+by a visit from my woodland patron, old Miller. The tidings of my
+prosperity had reached him in the wilderness, and he had walked one hundred
+and fifty miles on foot to see me. By that tame I had improved my domestic
+establishment, and had all things comfortable about me. He looked around
+him with a wondering eye, at what he considered luxuries and superfluities;
+but supposed they were all right in my altered circumstances. He said he
+did not know, upon the whole, but that I had acted for the best It is true,
+if game had continued plenty, it would have been a folly for me to quit a
+hunter's life; but hunting was pretty nigh done up in Kentucky. The buffalo
+had gone to Missouri; the elk were nearly gone also; deer, too, were
+growing scarce; they might last out his time, as he was growing old, but
+they were not worth setting up life upon. He had once lived on the borders
+of Virginia. Game grew scarce there; he followed it up across Kentucky, and
+now it was again giving him the slip; but he was too old to follow it
+further.
+
+"He remained with us three days. My wife did everything in her power to
+make him comfortable; but at the end of that time he said he must be off
+again to the woods. He was tired of the village, and of having so many
+people about him. He accordingly returned to the wilderness and to hunting
+life. But I fear he did not make a good end of it; for I understand that a
+few years before his death he married Sukey Thomas, who lived at the White
+Oak Run."
+
+
+
+
+THE SEMINOLES
+
+
+From the time of the chimerical cruising of Old Ponce de Leon in search of
+the Fountain of Youth, the avaricious expedition of Pamphilo de Narvaez in
+quest of gold, and the chivalrous enterprise of Hernando de Soto, to
+discover and conquer a second Mexico, the natives of Florida have been
+continually subjected to the invasions and encroachments of white men. They
+have resisted them perseveringly but fruitlessly, and are now battling amid
+swamps and morasses for the last foothold of their native soil, with all
+the ferocity of despair. Can we wonder at the bitterness of a hostility
+that has been handed down from father to son, for upward of three
+centuries, and exasperated by the wrongs and miseries of each succeeding
+generation! The very name of the savages with which we are fighting
+betokens their fallen and homeless condition. Formed of the wrecks of once
+powerful tribes, and driven from their ancient seats of prosperity and
+dominion, they are known by the name of the Seminoles, or "Wanderers."
+
+Bartram, who traveled through Florida in the latter part of the last
+century, speaks of passing through a great extent of ancient Indian fields,
+now silent and deserted, overgrown with forests, orange groves, and rank
+vegetation, the site of the ancient Alachua, the capital of a famous and
+powerful tribe, who in days of old could assemble thousands at bull-play
+and other athletic exercises "over these then happy fields and green
+plains." "Almost every step we take," adds he, "over these fertile heights,
+discovers the remains and traces of ancient human habitations and
+cultivation."
+
+About the year 1763, when Florida was ceded by the Spaniards to the
+English, we are told that the Indians generally retired from the towns and
+the neighborhood of the whites, and burying themselves in the deep forests,
+intricate swamps and hommocks, and vast savannas of the interior, devoted
+themselves to a pastoral life, and the rearing of horses and cattle. These
+are the people that received the name of the Seminoles, or Wanderers, which
+they still retain.
+
+Bartram gives a pleasing picture of them at the time he visited them in
+their wilderness; where their distance from the abodes of the white man
+gave them a transient quiet and security. "This handful of people," says
+he, "possesses a vast territory, all East and the greatest part of West
+Florida, which being naturally cut and divided into thousands of islets,
+knolls, and eminences, by the innumerable rivers, lakes, swamps, vast
+savannas, and ponds, form so many secure retreats and temporary
+dwelling-places that effectually guard them from any sudden invasions or
+attacks from their enemies; and being such a swampy, hommocky country,
+furnishes such a plenty and variety of supplies for the nourishment of
+varieties of animals that I can venture to assert that no part of the globe
+so abounds with wild game, or creatures fit for the food of man.
+
+"Thus they enjoy a superabundance of the necessaries and conveniences of
+life, with the security of person and property, the two great concerns of
+mankind. The hides of deer, bears, tigers, and wolves, together with honey,
+wax, and other productions of the country, purchase their clothing equipage
+and domestic utensils from the whites. They seem to be free from want or
+desires. No cruel enemy to dread; nothing to give them disquietude but the
+gradual encroachments of the white people. Thus contented and undisturbed,
+they appear as blithe and free as the birds of the air, and like them as
+volatile and active, tuneful and vociferous. The visage, action, and
+deportment of the Seminoles form the most striking picture of happiness in
+this life; joy, contentment, love, and friendship, without guile or
+affectation, seem inherent in them, or predominant in their vital
+principle, for it leaves them with but the last breath of life.... They are
+fond of games and gambling, and amuse themselves like children, in relating
+extravagant stories, to cause surprise and mirth." [Footnote: Bartram's
+Travels in North America.]
+
+The same writer gives an engaging picture of his treatment by these
+savages:
+
+"Soon after entering the forests, we were met in the path by a small
+company of Indians, smiling and beckoning to us long before we joined them.
+This was a family of Talahasochte, who had been out on a hunt and were
+returning home loaded with barbecued meat, hides, and honey. Their company
+consisted of the man, his wife and children, well mounted on fine horses,
+with a number of pack-horses. The man offered us a fawn skin of honey,
+which I accepted, and at parting presented him with some fish-hooks,
+sewing-needles, etc.
+
+"On our return to camp in the evening, we were saluted by a party of young
+Indian warriors, who had pitched their tents on a green eminence near the
+lake, at a small distance from our camp, under a little grove of oaks and
+palms. This company consisted of seven young Seminoles, under the conduct
+of a young prince or chief of Talahasochte, a town southward in the
+isthmus. They were all dressed and painted with singular elegance, and
+richly ornamented with silver plates, chains, etc., after the Seminole
+mode, with waving plumes of feathers on their crests. On our coming up to
+them, they arose and shook hands; we alighted and sat a while with them by
+their cheerful fire.
+
+"The young prince informed our chief that he was in pursuit of a young
+fellow who had fled from the town carrying off with him one of his favorite
+young wives. He said, merrily, he would have the ears of both of them
+before he returned. He was rather above the middle stature, and the most
+perfect human figure I ever saw; of an amiable, engaging countenance, air,
+and deportment; free and familiar in conversation, yet retaining a becoming
+gracefulness and dignity. We arose, took leave of them, and crossed a
+little vale, covered with a charming green turf, already illuminated by the
+soft light of the full moon.
+
+"Soon after joining our companions at camp, our neighbors, the prince and
+his associates, paid us a visit. We treated them with the best fare we had,
+having till this time preserved our spirituous liquors. They left us with
+perfect cordiality and cheerfulness, wishing us a good repose, and retired
+to their own camp. Having a band of music with them, consisting of a drum,
+flutes, and a rattle-gourd, they entertained us during the night with their
+music, vocal and instrumental.
+
+"There is a languishing softness and melancholy air in the Indian convivial
+songs, especially of the amorous class, irresistibly moving attention, and
+exquisitely pleasing, especially in their solitary recesses, when all
+nature is silent."
+
+Travelers who have been among them, in more recent times, before they had
+embarked in their present desperate struggle, represent them in much the
+same light; as leading a pleasant, indolent life, in a climate that
+required little shelter or clothing, and where the spontaneous fruits of
+the earth furnished subsistence without toil. A cleanly race, delighting in
+bathing, passing much of their time under the shade of their trees, with
+heaps of oranges and other fine fruits for their refreshment; talking,
+laughing, dancing and sleeping. Every chief had a fan hanging to his side,
+made of feathers of the wild turkey, the beautiful pink-colored crane, or
+the scarlet flamingo. With this he would sit and fan himself with great
+stateliness, while the young people danced before him. The women joined in
+the dances with the men, excepting the war-dances. They wore strings of
+tortoise-shells and pebbles round their legs, which rattled in cadence to
+the music. They were treated with more attention among the Seminoles than
+among most Indian tribes.
+
+
+
+
+ORIGIN OF THE WHITE, THE RED, AND THE BLACK MEN
+
+A SEMINOLE TRADITION
+
+
+When the Floridas were erected into a territory of the United States, one
+of the earliest cares of the Governor, William P. Duval, was directed to
+the instruction and civilization of the natives. For this purpose he called
+a meeting of the chiefs, in which he informed them of the wish of their
+Great Father at Washington that they should have schools and teachers among
+them, and that their children should be instructed like the children of
+white men. The chiefs listened with their customary silence and decorum to
+a long speech, setting forth the advantages that would accrue to them from
+this measure, and when he had concluded, begged the interval of a day to
+deliberate on it.
+
+On the following day a solemn convocation was held, at which one of the
+chiefs addressed the governor in the name of all the rest. "My brother,"
+said he, "we have been thinking over the proposition of our Great Father at
+Washington, to send teachers and set up schools among us. We are very
+thankful for the interest be takes in our welfare; but after much
+deliberation have concluded to decline his offer. What will do very well
+for white men will not do for red men. I know you white men say we all come
+from the same father and mother, but you are mistaken. We have a tradition
+handed down from our forefathers, and we believe it, that the Great Spirit,
+when he undertook to make men, made the black man; it was his first
+attempt, and pretty well for a beginning; but he soon saw he had bungled;
+so he determined to try his hand again. He did so, and made the red man. He
+liked him much better than the black man, but still he was not exactly what
+he wanted. So he tried once more, and made the white man; and then he was
+satisfied. You see, therefore, that you were made last, and that is the
+reason I call you my youngest brother.
+
+"When the Great Spirit had made the three men, he called them together and
+showed them three boxes. The first was filled with books, and maps, and
+papers; the second with bows and arrows, knives and tomahawks; the third
+with spades, axes, hoes, and hammers. 'These, my sons,' said he, 'are the
+means by which you are to live: choose among them according to your fancy.'
+
+"The white man, being the favorite, had the first choice. He passed by the
+box of working-tools without notice; but when he came to the weapons for
+war and hunting, he stopped and looked hard at them. The red man trembled,
+for he had set his heart upon that box. The white man, however, after
+looking upon it for a moment, passed on, and chose the box of books and
+papers. The red man's turn came next; and you may be sure he seized with
+joy upon the bows and arrows and tomahawks. As to the black man, he had no
+choice left but to put up with the box of tools.
+
+"From this it is clear that the Great Spirit intended the white man should
+learn to read and write; to understand all about the moon and stars; and to
+make everything, even rum and whisky. That the red man should be a
+first-rate hunter, and a mighty warrior, but he was not to learn anything
+from books, as the Great Spirit had not given him any: nor was he to make
+rum and whisky, lest he should kill himself with drinking. As to the black
+man, as he had nothing but working-tools, it was clear he was to work for
+the white and red man, which he has continued to do.
+
+"We must go according to the wishes of the Great Spirit, or we shall get
+into trouble. To know how to read and write is very good for white men, but
+very bad for red men. It makes white men better, but red men worse. Some of
+the Creeks and Cherokees learned to read and write, and they are the
+greatest rascals among all the Indians. They went on to Washington, and
+said they were going to see their Great Father, to talk about the good of
+the nation. And when they got there, they all wrote upon a little piece of
+paper, without the nation at home knowing anything about it. And the first
+thing the nation at home knew of the matter, they were called together by
+the Indian agent, who showed them a little piece of paper, which he told
+them was a treaty, which their brethren had made in their name, with their
+Great Father at Washington. And as they knew not what a treaty was, he held
+up the little piece of paper, and they looked under it, and lo! it covered
+a great extent of country, and they found that their brethren, by knowing
+how to read and write, had sold their houses and their lands and the graves
+of their fathers; and that the white man, by knowing how to read and write,
+had gained them. Tell our Great Father at Washington, therefore, that we
+are very sorry we cannot receive teachers among us; for reading and
+writing, though very good for white men, is very bad for the Indians."
+
+
+
+
+THE CONSPIRACY OF NEAMATHLA
+
+AN AUTHENTIC SKETCH
+
+
+In the autumn of 1823, Governor Duval, and other commissioners on the part
+of the United States, concluded a treaty with the chiefs and warriors of
+the Florida Indians, by which the latter, for certain considerations, ceded
+all claims to the whole territory, excepting a district in the eastern
+part, to which they were to remove, and within which they were to reside
+for twenty years. Several of the chiefs signed the treaty with great
+reluctance; but none opposed it more strongly than Neamathla, principal
+chief of the Mickasookies, a fierce and warlike people, many of them Creeks
+by origin, who lived about the Mickasookie lake. Neamathla had always been
+active in those depredations on the frontiers of Georgia which had brought
+vengeance and ruin on the Seminoles. He was a remarkable man; upward of
+sixty years of age, about six feet high, with a fine eye, and a strongly
+marked countenance, over which he possessed great command. His hatred of
+the white men appeared to be mixed with contempt: on the common people he
+looked down with infinite scorn. He seemed unwilling to acknowledge any
+superiority of rank or dignity in Governor Duval, claiming to associate
+with him on terms of equality, as two great chieftains. Though he had been
+prevailed upon to sign the treaty, his heart revolted at it. In one of his
+frank conversations with Governor Duval, he observed: "This country belongs
+to the red man; and if I had the number of warriors at my command that this
+nation once had I would not leave a white man on my lands. I would
+exterminate the whole. I can say this to you, for you can understand me:
+you are a man; but I would not say it to your people. They'd cry out I was
+a savage, and would take my life. They cannot appreciate the feelings of a
+man that loves his country."
+
+As Florida had but recently been erected into a territory, everything as
+yet was in rude and simple style. The governor, to make himself acquainted
+with the Indians, and to be near at hand to keep an eye upon them, fixed
+his residence at Tallahassee, near the Fowel towns, inhabited by the
+Mickasookies. His government palace for a time was a mere log house, and he
+lived on hunters' fare. The village of Neamathla was but about three miles
+off, and thither the governor occasionally rode, to visit the old
+chieftain. In one of these visits he found Neamathla seated in his wigwam,
+in the center of the village, surrounded by his warriors. The governor had
+brought him some liquor as a present, but it mounted quickly into his brain
+and rendered him quite boastful and belligerent. The theme ever uppermost
+in his mind was the treaty with the whites. "It was true," he said, "the
+red men had made such a treaty, but the white men had not acted up to it.
+The red men had received none of the money and the cattle that had been
+promised them: the treaty, therefore, was at an end, and they did not mean
+to be bound by it."
+
+Governor Duval calmly represented to him that the time appointed in the
+treaty for the payment and delivery of the money and the cattle had not yet
+arrived. This the old chieftain knew full well, but he chose, for the
+moment, to pretend ignorance. He kept on drinking and talking, his voice
+growing louder and louder, until it resounded all over the village. He held
+in his hand a long knife, with which he had been rasping tobacco; this he
+kept flourishing backward and forward, as he talked, by way of giving
+effect to his words, brandishing it at times within an inch of the
+governor's throat. He concluded his tirade by repeating that the country
+belonged to the red men, and that sooner than give it up his bones and the
+bones of his people should bleach upon its soil.
+
+Duval saw that the object of all this bluster was to see whether he could
+be intimidated. He kept his eye, therefore, fixed steadily on the chief,
+and the moment he concluded with his menace, seized him by the bosom of his
+hunting shirt, and clinching his other fist:
+
+"I've heard what you have said," replied he. "You have made a treaty, yet
+you say your bones shall bleach before you comply with it. As sure as there
+is a sun in heaven, your bones _shall_ bleach, if you do not fulfill
+every article of that treaty I I'll let you know that I am _first_
+here, and will see that you do your duty!"
+
+Upon this, the old chieftain threw himself back, burst into a fit of
+laughing, and declared that all he had said was in joke. The governor
+suspected, however, that there was a grave meaning at the bottom of this
+jocularity.
+
+For two months, everything went on smoothly: the Indians repaired daily to
+the log-cabin palace of the governor, at Tallahassee, and appeared
+perfectly contented. All at once they ceased their visits, and for three or
+four days not one was to be seen. Governor Duval began to apprehend that
+some mischief was brewing. On the evening of the fourth day a chief named
+Yellow-Hair, a resolute, intelligent fellow, who had always evinced an
+attachment for the governor, entered his cabin about twelve o'clock at
+night, and informed him that between four and five hundred warriors,
+painted and decorated, were assembled to hold a secret war-talk at
+Neamathla's town. He had slipped off to give intelligence, at the risk of
+his life, and hastened back lest his absence should be discovered.
+
+Governor Duval passed an anxious night after this intelligence. He knew the
+talent and the daring character of Neamathla; he recollected the threats he
+had thrown out; he reflected that about eighty white families were
+scattered widely apart, over a great extent of country, and might be swept
+away at once, should the Indians, as he feared, determine to clear the
+country. That he did not exaggerate the dangers of the case has been proved
+by the horrid scenes of Indian warfare that have since desolated that
+devoted region. After a night of sleepless cogitation, Duval determined on
+a measure suited to his prompt and resolute character. Knowing the
+admiration of the savages for personal courage, he determined, by a sudden
+surprise, to endeavor to overawe and check them. It was hazarding much; but
+where so many lives were in jeopardy, he felt bound to incur the hazard.
+
+Accordingly, on the next morning, he set off on horseback, attended merely
+by a white man who had been reared among the Seminoles, and understood
+their language and manners, and who acted as interpreter. They struck into
+an Indian "trail," leading to Neamathla's village. After proceeding about
+half a mile, Governor Duval informed the interpreter of the object of his
+expedition. The latter, though a bold man, paused and remonstrated. The
+Indians among whom they were going were among the most desperate and
+discontented of the nation. Many of them were veteran warriors,
+impoverished and exasperated by defeat, and ready to set their lives at any
+hazard. He said that if they were holding a war council, it must be with
+desperate intent, and it would be certain death to intrude among them.
+
+Duval made light of his apprehensions: he said he was perfectly well
+acquainted with the Indian character, and should certainly proceed. So
+saying, he rode on. When within half a mile of the village, the interpreter
+addressed him again, in such a tremulous tone that Duval turned and looked
+him in the face. He was deadly pale, and once more urged the governor to
+return, as they would certainly be massacred if they proceeded.
+
+Duval repeated his determination to go on, but advised the other to return,
+lest his pale face should betray fear to the Indians, and they might take
+advantage of it. The interpreter replied that he would rather die a
+thousand deaths than have it said he had deserted his leader when in peril.
+
+Duval then told him he must translate faithfully all he should say to the
+Indians, without softening a word. The interpreter promised faithfully to
+do so, adding that he well knew, when they were once in the town, nothing
+but boldness could save them.
+
+They now rode into the village, and advanced to the council house. This was
+rather a group of four houses, forming a square, in the center of which was
+a great council-fire. The houses were open in front, toward the fire, and
+closed in the rear. At each corner of the square there was an interval
+between the houses, for ingress and egress. In these houses sat the old men
+and the chiefs; the young men were gathered round the fire. Neamathla
+presided at the council, elevated on a higher seat than the rest.
+
+Governor Duval entered by one of the corner intervals, and rode boldly into
+the center of the square. The young men made way for him; an old man who
+was speaking paused in the midst of his harangue. In an instant thirty or
+forty rifles were cocked and leveled. Never had Duval heard so loud a click
+of triggers; it seemed to strike on his heart. He gave one glance at the
+Indians, and turned off with an air of contempt. He did not dare, he says,
+to look again, lest it might affect his nerves; and on the firmness of his
+nerves everything depended.
+
+The chief threw up his arm. The rifles were lowered. Duval breathed more
+freely: he felt disposed to leap from his horse, but restrained himself,
+and dismounted leisurely. He then walked deliberately up to Neamathla, and
+demanded, in an authoritative tone, what were his motives for holding that
+council. The moment he made this demand the orator sat down. The chief made
+no reply, but hung his head in apparent confusion. After a moment's pause,
+Duval proceeded:
+
+"I am well aware of the meaning of this war-council; and deem it my duty to
+warn you against prosecuting the schemes you have been devising. If a
+single hair of a white man in this country falls to the ground, I will hang
+you and your chiefs on the trees around your council house! You cannot
+pretend to withstand the power of the white men. You are in the palm of the
+hand of your Great Father at Washington, who can crush you like an
+egg-shell. You may kill me: I am but one man; but recollect, white men are
+numerous as the leaves on the trees. Remember the fate of your warriors
+whose bones are whitening in battlefields. Remember your wives and children
+who perished in swamps. Do you want to provoke more hostilities? Another
+war with the white men, and there will not be a Seminole left to tell the
+story of his race."
+
+Seeing the effect of his words, he concluded by appointing a day for the
+Indians to meet him at St. Marks, and give an account of their conduct. He
+then rode off, without giving them time to recover from their surprise.
+That night he rode forty miles to Apalachicola River, to the tribe of the
+same name, who were in feud with the Seminoles. They promptly put two
+hundred and fifty warriors at his disposal, whom he ordered to be at St.
+Marks at the appointed day. He sent out runners, also, and mustered one
+hundred of the militia to repair to the same place, together with a number
+of regulars from the army. All his arrangements were successful.
+
+Having taken these measures, he returned to Tallahassee, to the
+neighborhood of the conspirators, to show them that he was not afraid. Here
+he ascertained, through Yellow-Hair, that nine towns were disaffected, and
+had been concerned in the conspiracy. He was careful to inform himself,
+from the same source, of the names of the warriors in each of those towns
+who were most popular, though poor, and destitute of rank and command.
+
+When the appointed day was at hand for the meeting at St. Marks, Governor
+Duval set off with Neamathla, who was at the head of eight or nine hundred
+warriors, but who feared to venture into the fort without him. As they
+entered the fort, and saw troops and militia drawn up there, and a force of
+Apalachicola soldiers stationed on the opposite bank of the river, they
+thought they were betrayed, and were about to fly; but Duval assured them
+they were safe, and that when the talk was over they might go home
+unmolested.
+
+A grand talk was now held, in which the late conspiracy was discussed. As
+he had foreseen, Neamathla and the other old chiefs threw all the blame
+upon the young men, "Well," replied Duval, "with us white men, when we find
+a man incompetent to govern those under him, we put him down, and appoint
+another in his place. Now as you all acknowledge you cannot manage your
+young men, we must put chiefs over them who can."
+
+So saying, he deposed Neamathla first; appointing another in his place; and
+so on with all the rest; taking care to substitute the warriors who had
+been pointed out to him as poor and popular; putting medals round their
+necks, and investing them with great ceremony. The Indians were surprised
+and delighted at finding the appointments fall upon the very men they would
+themselves have chosen, and hailed them with acclamations. The warriors
+thus unexpectedly elevated to command, and clothed with dignity, were
+secured to the interests of the governor, and sure to keep an eye on the
+disaffected. As to the great chief Neamathla, he left the country in
+disgust, and returned to the Creek nation, who elected him a chief of one
+of their towns. Thus by the resolute spirit and prompt sagacity of one man,
+a dangerous conspiracy was completely defeated. Governor Duval was
+afterward enabled to remove the whole nation, through his own personal
+influence, without the aid of the general government.
+
+To the Editor of the Knickerbocker:
+
+SIR--The following letter was scribbled to a friend during my sojourn in
+the Alhambra, in 1828. As it presents scenes and impressions noted down at
+the time, I venture to offer it for the consideration of your readers.
+Should it prove acceptable, I may from tune to time give other letters,
+written in the course of my various ramblings, and which have been kindly
+restored to me by my friends.
+
+Yours, G. C.
+
+
+
+
+LETTER FROM GRANADA
+
+GRANADA, 1828.
+
+
+My Dear--: Religious festivals furnish, in all Catholic countries,
+occasions of popular pageant and recreation; but in none more so than in
+Spain, where the great end of religion seems to be to create holidays and
+ceremonials. For two days past, Granada has been in a gay turmoil with the
+great annual fete of Corpus Christi. This most eventful and romantic city,
+as you well know, has ever been the rallying point of a mountainous region,
+studded with small towns and villages. Hither, during the time that Granada
+was the splendid capital of a Moorish kingdom, the Moslem youth repaired
+from all points, to participate in chivalrous festivities; and hither the
+Spanish populace at the present day throng from all parts of the
+surrounding country to attend the festivals of the church.
+
+As the populace like to enjoy things from the very commencement, the stir
+of Corpus Christ! began in Granada on the preceding evening. Before dark
+the gates of the city were thronged with the picturesque peasantry from the
+mountain villages, and the brown laborers from the Vega, or vast fertile
+plain. As the evening advanced, the Vivarambla thickened and swarmed with a
+motley multitude. This is the great square in the center of the city,
+famous for tilts and tourneys during the times of Moorish domination, and
+incessantly mentioned in all the old Moorish ballads of love and chivalry.
+For several days the hammer had resounded throughout this square. A gallery
+of wood had been erected all round it, forming a covered way for the grand
+procession of Corpus Christi. On this eve of the ceremonial this gallery
+was a fashionable promenade. It was brilliantly illuminated, bands of music
+were stationed in balconies on the four sides of the square, and all the
+fashion and beauty of Granada, and all its population that could boast a
+little finery of apparel, together with the majos and majas, the beaux and
+belles of the villages, in their gay Andalusian costumes, thronged this
+covered walk, anxious to see and to be seen. As to the sturdy peasantry of
+the Vega, and such of the mountaineers as did not pretend to display, but
+were content with hearty enjoyment, they swarmed in the center of the
+square; some in groups listening to the guitar and the traditional ballad;
+some dancing their favorite bolero; some seated on the ground making a
+merry though frugal supper; and some stretched out for their night's
+repose.
+
+The gay crowd of the gallery dispersed gradually toward midnight; but the
+center of the square resembled the bivouac of an army; for hundreds of the
+peasantry, men, women, and children, passed the night there, sleeping
+soundly on the bare earth, under the open canopy of heaven. A summer's
+night requires no shelter in this genial climate; and with a great part of
+the hardy peasantry of Spain a bed is a superfluity which many of them
+never enjoy, and which they affect to despise. The common Spaniard spreads
+out his manta, or mule-cloth, or wraps himself in his cloak, and lies on
+the ground, with his saddle for a pillow.
+
+The next morning I revisited the square at sunrise. It was still strewed
+with groups of sleepers; some were reposing from the dance and revel of the
+evening; others had left their villages after work, on the preceding day,
+and having trudged on foot the greater part of the night, were taking a
+sound sleep to freshen them for the festivities of the day. Numbers from
+the mountains, and the remote villages of the plain, who had set out in the
+night, continued to arrive, with their wives and children. All were in high
+spirits; greeting each other, and exchanging jokes and pleasantries. The
+gay tumult thickened as the day advanced. Now came pouring in at the city
+gates, and parading through the streets, the deputations from the various
+villages, destined to swell the grand procession. These village deputations
+were headed by their priests, bearing their respective crosses and banners,
+and images of the Blessed Virgin and of patron saints; all which were
+matters of great rivalship and jealousy among the peasantry. It was like
+the chivalrous gatherings of ancient days, when each town and village sent
+its chiefs, and warriors, and standards, to defend the capital or grace its
+festivities.
+
+At length, all these various detachments congregated into one grand
+pageant, which slowly paraded round the Vivarambla, and through the
+principal streets, where every window and balcony was hung with tapestry.
+In this procession were all the religious orders, the civil and military
+authorities, and the chief people of the parishes and villages; every
+church and convent had contributed its banners, its images, its relics, and
+poured forth its wealth for the occasion. In the center of the procession
+walked the archbishop, under a damask canopy, and surrounded by inferior
+dignitaries and their dependents. The whole moved to the swell and cadence
+of numerous bands of music, and, passing through the midst of a countless
+yet silent multitude, proceeded onward to the cathedral.
+
+I could not but be struck with the changes of times and customs, as I saw
+this monkish pageant passing through the Vivarambla, the ancient seat of
+Moslem pomp and chivalry. The contrast was indeed forced upon the mind by
+the decorations of the square. The whole front of the wooden gallery
+erected for the procession, extending several hundred feet, was faced with
+canvas, on which some humble though patriotic artist had painted, by
+contract, a series of the principal scenes and exploits of the conquest, as
+recorded in chronicle and romance. It is thus the romantic legends of
+Granada mingle themselves with everything, and are kept fresh in the public
+mind. Another great festival at Granada, answering in its popular character
+to our Fourth of July, is _El Dia de la Toma_; "The day of the
+Capture"; that is to say, the anniversary of the capture of the city by
+Ferdinand and Isabella. On this day all Granada is abandoned to revelry.
+The alarm-bell on the Terre de la Campana, or watch-tower of the Alhambra,
+keeps up a clangor from morn till night; and happy is the damsel that can
+ring that bell; it is a charm to secure a husband in the course of the
+year.
+
+The sound, which can be heard over the whole Vega, and to the top of the
+mountains, summons the peasantry to the festivities. Throughout the day the
+Alhambra is thrown open to the public. The halls and courts of the Moorish
+monarchs resound with the guitar and castanet, and gay groups, in the
+fanciful dresses of Andalusia, perform those popular dances which they have
+inherited from the Moors.
+
+In the meantime a grand procession moves through the city. The banner of
+Ferdinand and Isabella, that precious relic of the conquest, is brought
+forth from its depository, and borne by the Alferez Mayor, or grand
+standard-bearer, through the principal streets. The portable camp-altar,
+which was carried about with them in all their campaigns, is transported
+into the chapel royal, and placed before their sepulcher, where their
+effigies lie in monumental marble. The procession fills the chapel. High
+mass is performed in memory of the conquest; and at a certain part of the
+ceremony the Alferez Mayor puts on his hat, and waves the standard above
+the tomb of the conquerors.
+
+A more whimsical memorial of the conquest is exhibited on the same evening
+at the theater, where a popular drama is performed, entitled "Ave Maria."
+This turns on the oft-sung achievement of Hernando del Pulgar, surnamed El
+de las Hazanas, "He of the Exploits," the favorite hero of the populace of
+Granada.
+
+During the time that Ferdinand and Isabella besieged the city, the young
+Moorish and Spanish knights vied with each other in extravagant bravadoes.
+On one occasion Hernando del Pulgar, at the head of a handful of youthful
+followers, made a dash into Granada at the dead of night, nailed the
+inscription of Ave Maria, with his dagger, to the gate of the principal
+mosque, as a token of having consecrated it to the Virgin, and effected his
+retreat in safety.
+
+While the Moorish cavaliers admired this daring exploit, they felt bound to
+revenge it. On the following day, therefore, Tarfe, one of the stoutest of
+the infidel warriors, paraded in front of the Christian army, dragging the
+sacred inscription of Ave Maria at his horse's tail. The cause of the
+Virgin was eagerly vindicated by Garcilaso de la Vega, who slew the Moor in
+single combat, and elevated the inscription of Ave Maria, in devotion and
+triumph, at the end of his lance.
+
+The drama founded on this exploit is prodigiously popular with the common
+people. Although it has been acted time out of mind, and the people have
+seen it repeatedly, it never fails to draw crowds, and so completely to
+engross the feelings of the audience, as to have almost the effect on them
+of reality. When their favorite Pulgar strides about with many a mouthy
+speech, in the very midst of the Moorish capital, he is cheered with
+enthusiastic bravoes; and when he nails the tablet of Ave Maria to the door
+of the mosque, the theater absolutely shakes with shouts and thunders of
+applause. On the other hand, the actors who play the part of the Moors have
+to bear the brunt of the temporary indignation of their auditors; and when
+the infidel Tarfe plucks down the tablet to tie it to his horse's tail,
+many of the people absolutely rise in fury, and are ready to jump upon the
+stage to revenge this insult to the Virgin.
+
+Besides this annual festival at the capital, almost every village of the
+Vega and the mountains has its own anniversary, wherein its own deliverance
+from the Moorish yoke is celebrated with uncouth ceremony and rustic pomp.
+
+On these occasions a kind of resurrection takes place of ancient Spanish
+dresses and armor; great two-handed swords, ponderous arquebuses, with
+matchlocks, and other weapons and accouterments, once the equipments of the
+village chivalry, and treasured up from generation to generation, since the
+time of the conquest. In these hereditary and historical garbs some of the
+most sturdy of the villagers array themselves as champions of the faith,
+while its ancient opponents are represented by another band of villagers,
+dressed up as Moorish warriors. A tent is pitched in the public square of
+the village, within which is an altar and an image of the Virgin. The
+Spanish warriors approach to perform their devotions at this shrine, but
+are opposed by the infidel Moslems, who surround the tent. A mock fight
+succeeds, in the course of which the combatants sometimes forget that they
+are merely playing a part, and exchange dry blows of grievous weight; the
+fictious Moors especially are apt to bear away pretty evident marks of the
+pious zeal of their antagonists. The contest, however, invariably
+terminates in favor of the good cause. The Moors are defeated and taken
+prisoners. The image of the Virgin, rescued from thralldom, is elevated in
+triumph; and a grand procession succeeds, in which the Spanish conquerors
+figure with great vainglory and applause, and their captives are led in
+chains, to the infinite delight and edification of the populace. These
+annual festivals are the delight of the villagers, who expend considerable
+sums in their celebration. In some villages they are occasionally obliged
+to suspend them for want of funds; but when times grow better, or they have
+been enabled to save money for the purpose, they are revived with all their
+grotesque pomp and extravagance.
+
+To recur to the exploit of Hernando del Pulgar. However extravagant and
+fabulous it may seem, it is authenticated by certain traditional usages,
+and shows the vainglorious daring that prevailed between the youthful
+warriors of both nations, in that romantic war. The mosque thus consecrated
+to the Virgin was made the cathedral of the city after the conquest; and
+there is a painting of the Virgin beside the royal chapel, which was put
+there by Hernando del Pulgar. The lineal representative of the hare-brained
+cavalier has the right to this day to enter the church, on certain
+occasions, on horseback, to sit within the choir, and to put on his hat at
+the elevation of the host, though these privileges have often been
+obstinately contested by the clergy.
+
+The present lineal representative of Hernando del Pulgar is the Marquis de
+Salar, whom I have met occasionally in society. He is a young man of
+agreeable appearance and manners, and his bright black eyes would give
+indication of his inheriting the fire of his ancestor. When the paintings
+were put up in the Vivarambla, illustrating the scenes of the conquest, an
+old gray-headed family servant of the Pulgars was so delighted with those
+which related to the family hero, that he absolutely shed tears, and
+hurrying home to the marquis, urged him to hasten and behold the family
+trophies. The sudden zeal of the old man provoked the mirth of his young
+master; upon which, turning to the brother of the marquis, with that
+freedom allowed to family servants in Spain, "Come, señor," cried he, "you
+are more grave and considerate than your brother; come and see your
+ancestor in all his glory!"
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+Within two or three years after the above letter was written, the Marquis
+de Salar was married to the beautiful daughter of the Count -----,
+mentioned by the author in his anecdotes of the Alhambra. The match was
+very agreeable to all parties, and the nuptials were celebrated with great
+festivity.
+
+
+
+
+ABDERAHMAN
+
+FOUNDER OF THE DYNASTY OF THE OMMIADES OF SPAIN
+
+
+_To the Editor of the Knickerbocker:_
+
+SIR--In the following memoir I have conformed to the facts furnished by the
+Arabian chroniclers, as cited by the learned Conde. The story of Abderahman
+has almost the charm of romance; but it derives a higher interest from the
+heroic yet gentle virtues which it illustrates, and from recording the
+fortunes of the founder of that splendid dynasty, which shed such a luster
+upon Spain during the domination of the Arabs. Abderahman may, in some
+respects, be compared to our own Washington. He achieved the independence
+of Moslem Spain, freeing it from subjection to the caliphs; he united its
+jarring parts under one government; he ruled over it with justice,
+clemency, and moderation; his whole course of conduct was distinguished by
+wonderful forbearance and magnanimity; and when he died he left a legacy of
+good example and good counsel to his successors.
+
+G.C.
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+"Blessed be God!" exclaims an Arabian historian; "in His hands alone is the
+destiny of princes. He overthrows the mighty, and humbles the haughty to
+the dust; and he raises up the persecuted and afflicted from the very
+depths of despair!"
+
+The illustrious house of Omeya had swayed the scepter at Damascus for
+nearly a century, when a rebellion broke out, headed by Aboul Abbas Safah,
+who aspired to the throne of the caliphs, as being descended from Abbas,
+the uncle of the prophet. The rebellion was successful. Marvau, the last
+caliph of the house of Omeya, was defeated and slain. A general
+proscription of the Ommiades took place. Many of them fell in battle; many
+were treacherously slain, in places where they had taken refuge; above
+seventy most noble and distinguished were murdered at a banquet to which
+they had been invited, and their dead bodies covered with cloths, and made
+to serve as tables for the horrible festivity. Others were driven forth,
+forlorn and desolate wanderers in various parts of the earth, and pursued
+with relentless hatred; for it was the determination of the usurper that
+not one of the persecuted family should escape. Aboul Abbas took possession
+of three stately palaces and delicious gardens, and founded the powerful
+dynasty of the Abbassides, which, for several centuries, maintained
+dominion in the east.
+
+"Blessed be God!" again exclaims the Arabian historian; "it was written in
+His eternal decrees that, notwithstanding the fury of the Abbassides, the
+noble stock of Omeya should not be destroyed. One fruitful branch remained
+to nourish with glory and greatness in another land."
+
+When the sanguinary proscription of the Ommiades took place, two young
+princes of that line, brothers, by the names of Solyman and Abderahman were
+spared for a time. Their personal graces, noble demeanor, and winning
+affability, had made them many friends, while their extreme youth rendered
+them objects of but little dread to the usurper. Their safety, however, was
+but transient. In a little while the suspicions of Aboul Abbas were
+aroused. The unfortunate Solyman fell beneath the scimiter of the
+executioner. His brother Abderahman was warned of his danger in time.
+Several of his friends hastened to him, bringing him jewels, a disguise,
+and a fleet horse. "The emissaries of the caliph," said they, "are in
+search of thee; thy brother lies weltering in his blood; fly to the desert!
+There is no safety for thee in the habitations of man!"
+
+Abderahman took the jewels, clad himself in the disguise, and mounting his
+steed, fled for his life. As he passed, a lonely fugitive, by the palaces
+of his ancestors, in which his family had long held sway, their very walls
+seemed disposed to betray him, as they echoed the swift clattering of his
+steed.
+
+Abandoning his native country, Syria, where he was liable at each moment to
+be recognized and taken, he took refuge among the Bedouin Arabs, a
+half-savage race of shepherds. His youth, his inborn majesty and grace, and
+the sweetness and affability that shone forth in his azure eyes, won the
+hearts of these wandering men. He was but twenty years of age, and had been
+reared in the soft luxury of a palace; but he was tall and vigorous, and in
+a little while hardened himself so completely to the rustic life of the
+fields that it seemed as though he had passed all his days in the rude
+simplicity of a shepherd's cabin.
+
+His enemies, however, were upon his traces, and gave him but little rest.
+By day he scoured the plain with the Bedouins, hearing in every blast the
+sound of pursuit, and fancying in every distant cloud of dust a troop of
+the caliph's horsemen. That night was passed in broken sleep and frequent
+watchings, and at the earliest dawn he was the first to put the bridle to
+his steed.
+
+Wearied by these perpetual alarms, he bade farewell to his friendly
+Bedouins, and leaving Egypt behind, sought a safer refuge in Western
+Africa. The province of Barea was at that time governed by Aben Habib, who
+had risen to rank and fortune under the fostering favor of the Ommiades.
+"Surely," thought the unhappy prince, "I shall receive kindness and
+protection from this man; he will rejoice to show his gratitude for the
+benefits showered upon him by my kindred."
+
+Abderahman was young, and as yet knew little of mankind. None are so
+hostile to the victim of power as those whom he has befriended. They fear
+being suspected of gratitude by his persecutors, and involved in his
+misfortunes.
+
+The unfortunate Abderahman had halted for a few days to repose himself
+among a horde of Bedouins, who had received him with their characteristic
+hospitality. They would gather round him in the evenings, to listen to his
+conversation, regarding with wonder this gently-spoken stranger from the
+more refined country of Egypt. The old men marveled to find so much
+knowledge and wisdom in such early youth, and the young men, won by his
+frank and manly carriage, entreated him to remain among them.
+
+One night, when all were buried in sleep, they were roused by the tramp of
+horsemen. The Wali Aben Habib, who, like all the governors of distant
+ports, had received orders from the caliph to be on the watch for the
+fugitive prince, had heard that a young man, answering the description, had
+entered the province alone, from the frontiers of Egypt, on a steed worn
+down by travel. He had immediately sent forth horsemen in his pursuit, with
+orders to bring him to him dead or alive. The emissaries of the Wali had
+traced him to his resting-place, and demanded of the Arabs whether a young
+man, a stranger from Syria, did not sojourn among their tribe. The Bedouins
+knew by the description that the stranger must be their guest, and feared
+some evil was intended him. "Such a youth," said they, "has indeed
+sojourned among us; but he has gone, with some of our young men, to a
+distant valley, to hunt the lion." The emissaries inquired the way to the
+place, and hastened on to surprise their expected prey.
+
+The Bedouins repaired to Abderahman, who was still sleeping. "If thou hast
+aught to fear from man in power," said they, "arise and fly; for the
+horsemen of the Wali are in quest of thee! We have sent them off for a time
+on a wrong errand, but they will soon return."
+
+"Alas! whither shall I fly!" cried the unhappy prince; "my enemies hunt me
+like the ostrich of the desert. They follow me like the wind, and allow me
+neither safety nor repose!"
+
+Six of the bravest youth of the tribe stepped forward. "We have steeds,"
+said they, "that can outstrip the wind, and hands that can hurl the
+javelin. We will accompany thee in thy flight, and will fight by thy side
+while life lasts, and we have weapons to wield."
+
+Abderahman embraced them with tears of gratitude. They mounted their
+steeds, and made for the most lonely parts of the desert. By the faint
+light of the stars, they passed through dreary wastes and over hills of
+sand. The lion roared, and the hyena howled unheeded, for they fled from
+man, more cruel and relentless, when in pursuit of blood, than the savage
+beasts of the desert.
+
+At sunrise they paused to refresh themselves beside a scanty well,
+surrounded by a few palm-trees. One of the young Arabs climbed a tree, and
+looked in every direction, but not a horseman was to be seen.
+
+"We have outstripped pursuit," said the Bedouins; "whither shall we conduct
+thee? Where is thy home and the land of thy people?"
+
+"Home have I none!" replied Abderahman, mournfully, "nor family, nor
+kindred! My native land is to me a land of destruction, and my people seek
+my life!"
+
+The hearts of the youthful Bedouins were touched with compassion at these
+words, and they marveled that one so young and gentle should have suffered
+such great sorrow and persecution.
+
+Abderahman sat by the well and mused for a time. At length, breaking
+silence, "In the midst of Mauritania," said he, "dwells the tribe of
+Zeneta. My mother was of that tribe; and perhaps when her son presents
+himself, a persecuted wanderer, at their door, they will not turn him from
+the threshold."
+
+"The Zenetes," replied the Bedouins, "are among the bravest and most
+hospitable of the people of Africa. Never did the unfortunate seek refuge
+among them in vain, nor was the stranger repulsed from their door." So they
+mounted their steeds with renewed spirits, and journeyed with all speed to
+Tahart, the capital of the Zenetes.
+
+When Abderahman entered the place, followed by his six rustic Arabs, all
+wayworn and travel-stained, his noble and majestic demeanor shone through
+the simple garb of a Bedouin. A crowd gathered around him, as he alighted
+from his weary steed. Confiding in the well known character of the tribe,
+he no longer attempted concealment.
+
+"You behold before you," said he, "one of the proscribed house of Omeya. I
+am that Abderahman upon whose head a price has been set, and who has been
+driven from land to land. I come to you as my kindred. My mother was of
+your tribe, and she told me with her dying breath that in all time of need
+I would find a home and friends among the Zenetes."
+
+The words of Abderahman went straight to the hearts of his hearers. They
+pitied his youth and his great misfortunes, while they were charmed by his
+frankness, and by the manly graces of his person. The tribe was of a bold
+and generous spirit, and not to be awed by the frown of power. "Evil be
+upon us and upon our children," said they, "if we deceive the trust thou
+hast placed in us!"
+
+Then one of the noblest Xeques took Abderahman to his house, and treated
+him as his own child; and the principal people of the tribe strove who most
+should cherish him, and do him honor; endeavoring to obliterate by their
+kindness the recollection of his past misfortunes.
+
+Abderahman had resided some time among the hospitable Zenetes, when one day
+two strangers, of venerable appearance, attended by a small retinue,
+arrived at Tahart. They gave themselves out as merchants, and from the
+simple style in which they traveled, excited no attention. In a little
+while they sought out Abderahman, and, taking him apart: "Hearken," said
+they, "Abderahman, of the royal line of Omeya; we are embassadors sent on
+the part of the principal Moslems of Spain, to offer thee, not merely an
+asylum, for that thou hast already among these brave Zenetes, but an
+empire! Spain is a prey to distracting factions, and can no longer exist as
+a dependency upon a throne too remote to watch over its welfare. It needs
+to be independent of Asia and Africa, and to be under the government of a
+good prince, who shall reside within it, and devote himself entirely to its
+prosperity; a prince with sufficient title to silence all rival claims, and
+bring the warring parties into unity and peace; and at the same time with
+sufficient ability and virtue to insure the welfare of his dominions. For
+this purpose the eyes of all the honorable leaders in Spain have been
+turned to thee, as a descendant of the royal line of Omeya, and an offset
+from the same stock as our holy prophet. They have heard of thy virtues,
+and of thy admirable constancy under misfortunes; and invite thee to accept
+the sovereignty of one of the noblest countries in the world. Thou wilt
+have some difficulties to encounter from hostile men; but thou wilt have on
+thy side the bravest captains that have signalized themselves in the
+conquest of the unbelievers."
+
+The embassadors ceased, and Abderahman remained for a time lost in wonder
+and admiration. "God is great!" exclaimed he, at length; "there is but one
+God, who is God, and Mahomet is his prophet! Illustrious embassadors, you
+have put new life into my soul, for you have shown me something to live
+for. In the few years that I have lived, troubles and sorrows have been
+heaped upon my head, and I have become inured to hardships and alarms.
+Since it is the wish of the valiant Moslems of Spain, I am willing to
+become their leader and defender, and devote myself to their cause, be it
+happy or disastrous."
+
+The embassadors now cautioned him to be silent as to their errand, and to
+depart secretly for Spain. "The seaboard of Africa," said they, "swarms
+with your enemies, and a powerful faction in Spain would intercept you on
+landing, did they know your name and rank, and the object of your coming."
+
+But Abderahman replied: "I have been cherished in adversity by these brave
+Zenetes; I have been protected and honored by them, when a price was set
+upon my head, and to harbor me was great peril. How can I keep my good
+fortune from my benefactors, and desert their hospitable roofs in silence?
+He is unworthy of friendship, who withholds confidence from his friend."
+
+Charmed with the generosity of his feelings, the embassadors made no
+opposition to his wishes. The Zenetes proved themselves worthy of his
+confidence. They hailed with joy the great change in his fortunes. The
+warriors and the young men pressed forward to follow, and aid them with
+horse and weapon; "for the honor of a noble house and family," said they,
+"can be maintained only by lances and horsemen." In a few days he set
+forth, with the embassadors, at the head of nearly a thousand horsemen
+skilled in war, and exercised in the desert, and a large body of infantry,
+armed with lances. The venerable Xeque, with whom he had resided, blessed
+him and shed tears over him at parting, as though he had been his own
+child; and when the youth passed over the threshold, the house was filled
+with lamentations.
+
+Abderahman reached Spain in safely, and landed at Almanecar, with his
+little band of warlike Zenetes. Spain was at that time in a state of great
+confusion. Upward of forty years had elapsed since the conquest. The civil
+wars in Syria and Egypt had prevented the main government at Damascus from
+exercising control over this distant and recently acquired territory. Every
+Moslem commander considered the town or province committed to his charge an
+absolute property; and accordingly exercised the most arbitrary extortions.
+These excesses at length became insupportable, and, at a convocation of
+many of the principal leaders, it was determined, as a means to end these
+dissensions, to unite all the Moslem provinces of Spain under one emir, or
+general governor. Yusuf el Fehri, an ancient man, of honorable lineage, was
+chosen for this station. He began his reign with policy, and endeavored to
+conciliate all parties; but the distribution of offices soon created
+powerful enemies among the disappointed leaders. A civil war was the
+consequence, and Spain was deluged with blood. The troops of both parties
+burned and ravaged and laid every thing waste, to distress their
+antagonists; the villages were abandoned by their inhabitants, who fled to
+the cities for refuge; and flourishing towns disappeared from the face of
+the earth, or remained mere heaps of rubbish and ashes. At the time of the
+landing of Abderahman in Spain, the old Emir Yusuf had obtained a signal
+victory. He had captured Saragossa, in which was Ameer ben Amru, his
+principal enemy, together with his son and secretary. Loading his prisoners
+with chains, and putting them on camels, he set out in triumph for Cordova,
+considering himself secure in the absolute domination of Spain.
+
+He had halted one day in a valley called Wadarambla, and was reposing with
+his family in his pavilion, while his people and the prisoners made a
+repast in the open air. In the midst of his repose, his confidential
+adherent and general, the Wali Samael, galloped into the camp covered with
+dust and exhausted with fatigue. He brought tidings of the arrival of
+Abderahman and that the whole seaboard was flocking to his standard.
+Messenger after messenger came hurrying into the camp, confirming the
+fearful tidings, and adding that this descendant of the Omeyas had secretly
+been invited to Spain by Amru and his followers. Yusuf waited not to
+ascertain the truth of this accusation. Giving way to a transport of fury,
+he ordered that Amru, his son and secretary, should be cut to pieces. His
+commands were instantly executed. "And this cruelty," says the Arabian
+chronicler, "lost him the favor of Allah; for from that time success
+deserted his standard."
+
+Abderahman had indeed been hailed with joy on his landing in Spain. The old
+people hoped to find tranquillity under the sway of one supreme chieftain,
+descended from their ancient caliphs; the young men were rejoiced to have a
+youthful warrior to lead them on to victories; and the populace, charmed
+with his freshness and manly beauty, his majestic yet gracious and affable
+demeanor, shouted: "Long live Abderahman ben Moavia Meramamolin of Spain!"
+
+In a few days the youthful sovereign saw himself at the head of more than
+twenty thousand men, from the neighborhood of Elvira, Almeria, Malaga,
+Xeres, and Sidonia. Fair Seville threw open its gates at his approach, and
+celebrated his arrival with public rejoicings. He continued his march into
+the country, vanquished one of the eons of Yusuf before the gates of
+Cordova, and obliged him to take refuge within its walls, where he held him
+in close siege. Hearing, however, of the approach of Yusuf, the father,
+with a powerful army, he divided his forces, and leaving ten thousand men
+to press the siege, he hastened with the other ten to meet the coming foe.
+
+Yusuf had indeed mustered a formidable force, from the east and south of
+Spain, and accompanied by his veteran general, Samael, came with confident
+boasting to drive this intruder from the land. His confidence increased on
+beholding the small army of Abderahman. Turning to Samael, he repeated,
+with a scornful sneer, a verse from an Arabian poetess, which says:
+
+"How hard is our lot! We come, a thirsty multitude, and lo! but this cup of
+water to share among us!"
+
+There was indeed a fearful odds. On the one side were two veteran generals,
+grown gray in victory, with a mighty host of warriors, seasoned in the wars
+of Spain. On the other side was a mere youth, scarce attained to manhood,
+with a hasty levy of half-disciplined troops; but the youth was a prince,
+flushed with hope, and aspiring after fame and empire; and surrounded by a
+devoted band of warriors from Africa, whose example infused desperate zeal
+into the little army.
+
+The encounter took place at daybreak. The impetuous valor of the Zenetes
+carried everything before it. The cavalry of Yusuf was broken, and driven
+back upon the infantry, and before noon the whole host was put to headlong
+flight. Yusuf and Samael were borne along in the torrent of the fugitives,
+raging and storming, and making ineffectual efforts to rally them. They
+were separated widely in the confusion of the flight, one taking refuge in
+the Algarves, the other in the kingdom of Murcia. They afterward rallied,
+reunited their forces, and made another desperate stand near Almunecar. The
+battle was obstinate and bloody, but they were again defeated, and driven,
+with a handful of followers, to take refuge in the rugged mountains
+adjacent to Elvira.
+
+The spirit of the veteran Samael gave way before these fearful reverses.
+"In vain, oh Yusuf!" said he, "do we contend with the prosperous star of
+this youthful conqueror: the will of Allah be done! Let us submit to our
+fate, and sue for favorable terms, while we have yet the means of
+capitulation."
+
+It was a hard trial for the proud spirit of Yusuf, that had once aspired to
+uncontrolled sway; but he was compelled to capitulate. Abderahman was as
+generous as brave. He granted the two gray-headed generals the most
+honorable conditions, and even took the veteran Samael into favor,
+employing him, as a mark of confidence, to visit the eastern provinces of
+Spain, and restore them to tranquillity. Yusuf, having delivered up Elvira
+and Granada, and complied with other articles of his capitulation, was
+permitted to retire to Murcia, and rejoin his son Muhamad. A general
+amnesty to all chiefs and soldiers who should yield up their strongholds,
+and lay down their arms, completed the triumph of Abderahman, and brought
+all hearts into obedience.
+
+Thus terminated this severe struggle for the domination of Spain; and thus
+the illustrious family of Omeya, after having been cast down and almost
+exterminated in the East, took new root, and sprang forth prosperously in
+the West.
+
+Wherever Abderahman appeared, he was received with rapturous acclamations.
+As he rode through the cities, the populace rent the air with shouts of
+joy; the stately palaces were crowded with spectators, eager to gain a
+sight of his graceful form and beaming countenance; and when they beheld
+the mingled majesty and benignity of their new monarch, and the sweetness
+and gentleness of his whole conduct, they extolled him as something more
+than mortal; as a beneficent genius, sent for the happiness of Spain.
+
+In the interval of peace which now succeeded, Abderahman occupied himself
+in promoting the useful and elegant arts, and in introducing into Spain the
+refinements of the East. Considering the building and ornamenting of cities
+as among the noblest employments of the tranquil hours of princes, he
+bestowed great pains upon beautifying the city of Cordova and its environs.
+He reconstructed banks and dikes, to keep the Guadalquivir from overflowing
+its borders, and on the vast terraces thus formed he planted delightful
+gardens. In the midst of these, he erected a lofty tower, commanding a view
+of the vast and fruitful valley, enlivened by the windings of the river. In
+this tower he would pass hours of meditation, gazing on the soft and varied
+landscape, and inhaling the bland and balmy airs of that delightful region.
+At such times, his thoughts would recur to the past, and the misfortunes of
+his youth; the massacre of his family would rise to view, mingled with
+tender recollections of his native country, from which he was exiled. In
+these melancholy musings he would sit with his eyes fixed upon a palm-tree
+which he had planted in the midst of his garden. It is said to have been
+the first ever planted in Spain, and to have been the parent stock of all
+the palm-trees which grace the southern provinces of the peninsula. The
+heart of Abderahman yearned toward this tree; it was the offspring of his
+native country, and, like him, an exile. In one of his moods of tenderness,
+he composed verses upon it, which have since become famous throughout the
+world. The following is a rude but literal translation:
+
+"Beauteous Palm! thou also wert hither brought a stranger; but thy roots
+have found a kindly soil, thy head is lifted to the skies, and the sweet
+airs of Algarve fondle and kiss thy branches.
+
+"Thou hast known, like me, the storms of adverse fortune. Bitter tears
+wouldst thou shed, couldst thou feel my woes. Repeated griefs have
+overwhelmed me. With early tears I bedewed the palms on the banks of the
+Euphrates; but neither tree nor river heeded my sorrows, when driven by
+cruel fate, and the ferocious Aboul Abbas, from the scenes of my childhood
+and the sweet objects of my affection.
+
+"To thee no remembrance remains of my beloved country; I, unhappy! can
+never recall it without tears."
+
+The generosity of Abderahman to his vanquished foes was destined to be
+abused. The veteran Yusuf, in visiting certain of the cities which he had
+surrendered, found himself surrounded by zealous partisans, ready to peril
+life in his service. The love of command revived in his bosom, and he
+repented the facility with which he had suffered himself to be persuaded to
+submission. Flushed with new hopes of success, he caused arms to be
+secretly collected, and deposited in various villages, most zealous in
+their professions of devotion, and raising a considerable body of troops,
+seized upon the castle of Almodovar. The rash rebellion was short-lived. At
+the first appearance of an army sent by Abderahman, and commanded by
+Abdelmelee, governor of Seville, the villages which had so recently
+professed loyalty to Yusuf hastened to declare their attachment to the
+monarch, and to give up the concealed arms. Almodovar was soon retaken, and
+Yusuf, driven to the environs of Lorea, was surrounded by the cavalry of
+Abdelmelee. The veteran endeavored to cut a passage through the enemy, but
+after fighting with desperate fury, and with a force of arm incredible in
+one of his age, he fell beneath blows from weapons of all kinds, so that
+after the battle his body could scarcely be recognized, so numerous were
+the wounds. His head was cut off and sent to Cordova, where it was placed
+in an iron cage, over the gate of the city.
+
+The old lion was dead, but his whelps survived. Yusuf had left three sons,
+who inherited his warlike spirit, and were eager to revenge his death.
+Collecting a number of the scattered adherents of their house, they
+surprised and seized upon Toledo, during the absence of Temam, its Wali or
+commander. In this old warrior city, built upon a rock, and almost
+surrounded by the Tagus, they set up a kind of robber hold, scouring the
+surrounding country, levying tribute, seizing upon horses, and compelling
+the peasantry to join their standard. Every day cavalcades of horses and
+mules, laden with spoil, with flocks of sheep and droves of cattle, came
+pouring over the bridges on either side of the city, and thronging in at
+the gates, the plunder of the surrounding country. Those of the inhabitants
+who were still loyal to Abderahman dared not lift up their voices, for men
+of the sword bore sway. At length one day, when the sons of Yusuf, with
+their choicest troops, were out on a maraud, the watchmen on the towers
+gave the alarm. A troop of scattered horsemen were spurring wildly toward
+the gates. The banners of the sons of Yusuf were descried. Two of them
+spurred into the city, followed by a handful of warriors, covered with
+confusion, and dismay. They had been encountered and defeated by the Wali
+Temam, and one of the brothers had been slain.
+
+The gates were secured in all haste, and the walls were scarcely manned,
+when Temam appeared before them with his troops, and summoned the city to
+surrender. A great internal commotion ensued between the loyalists and the
+insurgents; the latter, however, had weapons in their hands, and prevailed;
+and for several days, trusting to the strength of their rock-built
+fortress, they set the Wali at defiance. At length some of the loyal
+inhabitants of Toledo, who knew all its secret and subterraneous passages,
+some of which, if chroniclers may be believed, have existed since the days
+of Hercules, if not of Tubal Cain, introduced Temam and a chosen band of
+his warriors into the very center of the city, where they suddenly appeared
+as if by magic. A panic seized upon the insurgents. Some sought safety in
+submission, some in concealment, some in flight. Casim, one of the sons of
+Yusuf, escaped in disguise; the youngest, unarmed, was taken, and was sent
+captive to the king, accompanied by the head of his brother, who had been
+slain in battle.
+
+When Abderahman beheld the youth laden with chains, he remembered his own
+sufferings in his early days, and had compassion on him; but, to prevent
+him from doing further mischief, he imprisoned him in a tower of the wall
+of Cordova.
+
+In the meantime Casim, who had escaped, managed to raise another band of
+warriors. Spain, in all ages a guerrilla country, prone to partisan warfare
+and petty maraud, was at that time infested by bands of licentious troops,
+who had sprung up in the civil contests; their only object pillage, their
+only dependence the sword, and ready to flock to any new and desperate
+standard, that promised the greatest license. With a ruffian force thus
+levied, Casim scoured the country, took Sidonia by storm, and surprised
+Seville while in a state of unsuspecting security.
+
+Abderahman put himself at the head of his faithful Zenetes, and took the
+field in person. By the rapidity of his movements, the rebels were
+defeated, Sidonia and Seville speedily retaken, and Casim was made
+prisoner. The generosity of Abderahman was again exhibited toward this
+unfortunate son of Yusuf. He spared his life, and sent him to be confined
+in a tower at Toledo.
+
+The veteran Samael had taken no part in these insurrections, but had
+attended faithfully to the affairs intrusted to him by Abderahman. The
+death of his old friend and colleague, Yusuf, however, and the subsequent
+disasters of his family, filled him with despondency. Fearing the
+inconstancy of fortune, and the dangers incident to public employ, he
+entreated the king to be permitted to retire to his house in Seguenza, and
+indulge a privacy and repose suited to his advanced age. His prayer was
+granted. The veteran laid by his arms, battered in a thousand conflicts;
+hung his sword and lance against the wall, and, surrounded by a few
+friends, gave himself up apparently to the sweets of quiet and unambitious
+leisure.
+
+Who can count, however, upon the tranquil content of a heart nurtured amid
+the storms of war and ambition! Under the ashes of this outward humility
+were glowing the coals of faction. In his seemingly philosophical
+retirement, Samael was concerting with his friends new treason against
+Abderahman. His plot was discovered; his house was suddenly surrounded by
+troops; and he was conveyed to a tower at Toledo, where, in the course of a
+few months, he died in captivity.
+
+The magnanimity of Abderahman was again put to the proof, by a new
+insurrection at Toledo. Hixem ben Adra, a relation of Yusuf, seized upon
+the Alcazar, or citadel, slew several of the royal adherents of the king,
+liberated Casim from his tower, and, summoning all the banditti of the
+country, soon mustered a force of ten thousand men. Abderahman was quickly
+before the walls of Toledo, with the troops of Cordova and his devoted
+Zenetes. The rebels were brought to terms, and surrendered the city on
+promise of general pardon, which was extended even to Hixem and Casim. When
+the chieftains saw Hixem and his principal confederates in the power of
+Abderahman, they advised him to put them all to death. "A promise given to
+traitors and rebels," said they, "is not binding, when it is to the
+interest of the state that it should be broken."
+
+"No!" replied Abderahman, "if the safety of my throne were at stake, I
+would not break my word." So saying, he confirmed the amnesty, and granted
+Hixem ben Adra a worthless life, to be employed in further treason.
+
+Scarcely had Abderahman returned from this expedition, when a powerful
+army, sent by the caliph, landed from Africa on the coast of the Algarves.
+The commander, Aly ben Mogueth, Emir of Cairvan, elevated a rich banner
+which he had received from the hands of the caliph. Wherever he went, he
+ordered the caliph of the East to be proclaimed by sound of trumpet,
+denouncing Abderahman as a usurper, the vagrant member of a family
+proscribed and execrated in all the mosques of the East.
+
+One of the first to join his standard was Hixem ben Adra, so recently
+pardoned by Abderahman. He seized upon the citadel of Toledo, and repairing
+to the camp of Aly, offered to deliver the city into his hands.
+
+Abderahman, as bold in war as he was gentle in peace, took the field with
+his wonted promptness; overthrew his enemies, with great slaughter, drove
+some to the seacoast to regain their ships, and others to the mountains.
+The body of Aly was found on the field of battle. Abderahman caused the
+head to be struck off, and conveyed to Cairvan, where it was affixed at
+night to a column in the public square, with this inscription: "Thus
+Abderahman, the descendant of the Omeyas, punishes the rash and arrogant."
+
+Hixem ben Adra escaped from the field of battle, and excited further
+troubles, but was eventually captured by Abdelmelee, who ordered his head
+to be struck off on the spot, lest he should again be spared, through the
+wonted clemency of Abderahman.
+
+Notwithstanding these signal triumphs, the reign of Abderahman was
+disturbed by further insurrections, and by another descent from Africa, but
+he was victorious over them all; striking the roots of his power deeper and
+deeper into the land. Under his sway, the government of Spain became more
+regular and consolidated, and acquired an independence of the empire of the
+East. The caliph continued to be considered as first pontiff and chief of
+the religion, but he ceased to have any temporal power over Spain.
+
+Having again an interval of peace, Abderahman devoted himself to the
+education of his children. Suleiman, the eldest, he appointed Wali or
+governor of Toledo; Abdallah, the second, was intrusted with the command of
+Merida; but the third son, Hixem, was the delight of his heart, the son of
+Howara, his favorite sultana, whom he loved throughout life with the utmost
+tenderness. With this youth, who was full of promise, he relaxed from the
+fatigues of government; joining in his youthful sports amid the delightful
+gardens of Cordova, and teaching him the gentle art of falconry, of which
+the king was so fond that he received the name of the Falcon of Coraixi.
+
+While Abderahman was thus indulging in the gentle propensities of his
+nature, mischief was secretly at work. Muhamad, the youngest son of Yusuf,
+had been for many years a prisoner in the tower of Cordova. Being passive
+and resigned, his keepers relaxed their vigilance, and brought him forth
+from his dungeon. He went groping about, however, in broad daylight, as if
+still in the darkness of his tower. His guards watched him narrowly, lest
+this should be a deception, but were at length convinced that the long
+absence of light had rendered him blind. They now permitted him to descend
+frequently to the lower chambers of the tower, and to sleep there
+occasionally, during the heats of summer. They even allowed him to grope
+his way to the cistern, in quest of water for his ablutions.
+
+A year passed in this way without anything to excite suspicion. During all
+this time, however, the blindness of Muhamad was entirely a deception; and
+he was concerting a plan of escape, through the aid of some friends of his
+father, who found means to visit him occasionally. One sultry evening in
+midsummer, the guards had gone to bathe in the Guadalquivir, leaving
+Muhamad alone, in the lower chambers of the tower. No sooner were they out
+of sight and hearing than he hastened to a window of the staircase, leading
+down to the cistern, lowered himself as far as his arms would reach, and
+dropped without injury to the ground. Plunging into the Guadalquivir, he
+swam across to a thick grove on the opposite side, where his friends were
+waiting to receive him. Here, mounting a horse which they had provided for
+an event of the kind, he fled across the country, by solitary roads, and
+made good his escape to the mountains of Jaen.
+
+The guardians of the tower dreaded for some time to make known his flight
+to Abderahman. When at length it was told to him, he exclaimed: "All is the
+work of eternal wisdom; it is intended to teach us that we cannot benefit
+the wicked without injuring the good. The flight of that blind man will
+cause much trouble and bloodshed."
+
+His predictions were verified. Muhamad reared the standard of rebellion on
+the mountains; the seditious and discontented of all kinds hastened to join
+it, together with soldiers of fortune, or rather wandering banditti, and he
+had soon six thousand men, well armed, hardy in habits and desperate in
+character. His brother Casim also reappeared about the same time in the
+mountains of Ronda, at the head of a daring band that laid all the
+neighboring valleys under contribution.
+
+Abderahman summoned his alcaydes from their various military posts, to
+assist in driving the rebels from their mountain fastnesses into the
+plains. It was a dangerous and protracted toil, for the mountains were
+frightfully wild and rugged. He entered them with a powerful host, driving
+the rebels from height to height and valley to valley, and harassing them
+by a galling fire from thousands of crossbows. At length a decisive battle
+took place near the river Guadalemar. The rebels were signally defeated;
+four thousand fell in action, many were drowned in the river, and Muhamad,
+with a few horsemen, escaped to the mountains of the Algarves. Here he was
+hunted by the alcaydes from one desolate retreat to another; his few
+followers grew tired of sharing the disastrous fortunes of a fated man; one
+by one deserted him, and he himself deserted the remainder, fearing they
+might give him up, to purchase their own pardon.
+
+Lonely and disguised, he plunged into the depths of the forests, or lurked
+in dens and caverns, like a famished wolf, often casting back his thoughts
+with regret to the time of his captivity in the gloomy tower of Cordova.
+Hunger at length drove him to Alarcon, at the risk of being discovered.
+Famine and misery, however, had so wasted and changed him that he was not
+recognized. He remained nearly a year in Alarcon, unnoticed and unknown,
+yet constantly tormenting himself with the dread of discovery, and with
+groundless fears of the vengeance of Abderahman. Death at length put an end
+to his wretchedness.
+
+A milder fate attended his brother Casim. Being defeated in the mountains
+of Murcia, he was conducted in chains to Cordova. On coming into the
+presence of Abderahman, his once fierce and haughty spirit, broken by
+distress, gave way; he threw himself on the earth, kissed the dust beneath
+the feet of the king, and implored his clemency. The benignant heart of
+Abderahman was filled with melancholy, rather than exultation, at beholding
+this wreck of the once haughty family of Yusuf a suppliant at his feet, and
+suing for mere existence. He thought upon the mutability of fortune, and
+felt how insecure are all her favors. He raised the unhappy Casim from the
+earth, ordered his irons to be taken off, and, not content with mere
+forgiveness, treated him with honor, and gave him possessions in Seville,
+where he might live in state conformable to the ancient dignity of his
+family. Won by this great and persevering magnanimity, Casim ever after
+remained one of the most devoted of his subjects.
+
+All the enemies of Abderahman were at length subdued; he reigned undisputed
+sovereign of the Moslems of Spain; and so benign was his government that
+every one blessed the revival of the illustrious line of Omeya. He was at
+all times accessible to the humblest of his subjects: the poor man ever
+found in him a friend, and the oppressed a protector. He improved the
+administration of justice; established schools for public instruction;
+encouraged poets and men of letters, and cultivated the sciences. He built
+mosques in every city that he visited; inculcated religion by example as
+well as by precept; and celebrated all the festivals prescribed by the
+Koran with the utmost magnificence.
+
+As a monument of gratitude to God for the prosperity with which he had been
+favored, he undertook to erect a mosque in his favorite city of Cordova
+that should rival in splendor the great mosque of Damascus, and excel the
+one recently erected in Bagdad by the Abbassides, the supplanters of his
+family.
+
+It is said that he himself furnished the plan for this famous edifice, and
+even worked on it, with his own hands, one hour in each day, to testify his
+zeal and humility in the service of God, and to animate his workmen. He did
+not live to see it completed, but it was finished according to his plans by
+his son Hixem. When finished, it surpassed the most splendid mosques of the
+east. It was six hundred feet in length, and two hundred and fifty in
+breadth. Within were twenty-eight aisles, crossed by nineteen, supported by
+a thousand and ninety-three columns of marble. There were nineteen portals,
+covered with plates of bronze of rare workmanship. The principal portal was
+covered with plates of gold. On the summit of the grand cupola were three
+gilt balls surmounted by a golden pomegranate. At night, the mosque was
+illuminated with four thousand seven hundred lamps, and great sums were
+expended in amber and aloes, which were burned as perfumes. The mosque
+remains to this day, shorn of its ancient splendor, yet still one of the
+grandest Moslem monuments in Spain.
+
+Finding himself advancing in years, Abderahman assembled in his capital of
+Cordova the principal governors and commanders of his kingdom, and in
+presence of them all, with great solemnity, nominated his son Hixem as the
+successor to the throne. All present made an oath of fealty to Abderahman
+during his life, and to Hixem after his death. The prince was younger than
+his brothers, Suleiman and Abdallah; but he was the son of Howara, the
+tenderly beloved sultana of Abderahman, and her influence, it is said,
+gained him this preference.
+
+Within a few months afterward, Abderahman fell grievously sick at Merida.
+Finding his end approaching, he summoned Hixem to his bedside: "My son,"
+said he, "the angel of death is hovering over me; treasure up, therefore,
+in thy heart this dying counsel, which I give through the great love I bear
+thee. Remember that all empire is from God, who gives and takes it away,
+according to his pleasure. Since God, through his divine goodness, has
+given us regal power and authority, let us do his holy will, which is
+nothing else than to do good to all men, and especially to those committed
+to our protection. Render equal justice, my son, to the rich and the poor,
+and never suffer injustice to be done within thy dominion, for it is the
+road to perdition. Be merciful and benignant to those dependent upon thee.
+Confide the government of thy cities and provinces to men of worth and
+experience; punish without compassion those ministers who oppress thy
+people with exorbitant exactions. Pay thy troops punctually; teach them to
+feel a certainty in thy promises; command them with gentleness but
+firmness, and make them in truth the defenders of the state, not its
+destroyers. Cultivate unceasingly the affections of thy people, for in
+their good-will consists the security of the state, in their distrust its
+peril, in their hatred its certain ruin. Protect the husbandmen who
+cultivate the earth, and yield us necessary sustenance; never permit their
+fields, and groves, and gardens to be disturbed. In a word, act in such
+wise that thy people may bless thee, and may enjoy, under the shadow of thy
+wing, a secure and tranquil life. In this consists good government; if thou
+dost practice it, thou wilt be happy among thy people, and renowned
+throughout the world."
+
+Having given this excellent counsel, the good king Abderahman blessed his
+son Hixem, and shortly after died; being but in the sixtieth year of his
+age. He was interred with great pomp; but the highest honors that
+distinguished his funeral were the tears of real sorrow shed upon his
+grave. He left behind him a name for valor, justice, and magnanimity, and
+forever famous as being the founder of the glorious line of the Ommiades in
+Spain.
+
+
+
+
+THE WIDOW'S ORDEAL
+
+OR A JUDICIAL TRIAL BY COMBAT
+
+
+The world is daily growing older and wiser. Its institutions vary with its
+years, and mark its growing wisdom; and none more so than its modes of
+investigating truth, and ascertaining guilt or innocence. In its nonage,
+when man was yet a fallible being, and doubted the accuracy of his own
+intellect, appeals were made to heaven in dark and doubtful cases of
+atrocious accusation.
+
+The accused was required to plunge his hand in boiling oil, or to walk
+across red-hot plowshares, or to maintain his innocence in armed fight and
+listed field, in person or by champion. If he passed these ordeals
+unscathed, he stood acquitted, and the result was regarded as a verdict
+from on high.
+
+It is somewhat remarkable that, in the gallant age of chivalry, the gentler
+sex should have been most frequently the subjects of these rude trials and
+perilous ordeals; and that, too, when assailed in their most delicate and
+vulnerable part--their honor.
+
+In the present very old and enlightened age of the world, when the human
+intellect is perfectly competent to the management of its own concerns, and
+needs no special interposition of heaven in its affairs, the trial by jury
+has superseded these superhuman ordeals; and the unanimity of twelve
+discordant minds is necessary to constitute a verdict. Such a unanimity
+would, at first sight, appear also to require a miracle from heaven; but it
+is produced by a simple device of human ingenuity. The twelve jurors are
+locked up in their box, there to fast until abstinence shall have so
+clarified their intellects that the whole jarring panel can discern the
+truth, and concur in a unanimous decision. One point is certain, that truth
+is one and is immutable--until the jurors all agree, they cannot all be
+right.
+
+It is not our intention, however, to discuss this great judicial point, or
+to question the avowed superiority of the mode of investigating truth
+adopted in this antiquated and very sagacious era. It is our object merely
+to exhibit to the curious reader one of the most memorable cases of
+judicial combat we find in the annals of Spain. It occurred at the bright
+commencement of the reign, and in the youthful, and, as yet, glorious days,
+of Roderick the Goth; who subsequently tarnished his fame at home by his
+misdeeds, and, finally, lost his kingdom and his life on the banks of the
+Guadalete, in that disastrous battle which gave up Spain a conquest to the
+Moors. The following is the story:
+
+There was once upon a time a certain duke of Lorraine, who was acknowledged
+throughout his domains to be one of the wisest princes that ever lived. In
+fact, there was no one measure adopted by him that did not astonish his
+privy counselors and gentlemen in attendance; and he said such witty
+things, and made such sensible speeches, that the jaws of his high
+chamberlain were wellnigh dislocated from laughing with delight at one, and
+gaping with wonder at the other.
+
+This very witty and exceedingly wise potentate lived for half a century in
+single blessedness; at length his courtiers began to think it a great pity
+so wise and wealthy a prince should not have a child after his own
+likeness, to inherit his talents and domains; so they urged him most
+respectfully to marry, for the good of his estate, and the welfare of his
+subjects.
+
+He turned their advice over in his mind some four or five years, and then
+sent forth emissaries to summon to his court all the beautiful maidens in
+the land who were ambitious of sharing a ducal crown. The court was soon
+crowded with beauties of all styles and complexions, from among whom he
+chose one in the earliest budding of her charms, and acknowledged by all
+the gentlemen to be unparalleled for grace and loveliness. The courtiers
+extolled the duke to the skies for making such a choice, and considered it
+another proof of his great wisdom. "The duke," said they, "is waxing a
+little too old, the damsel, on the other hand, is a little too young; if
+one is lacking in years, the other has a superabundance; thus a want on one
+side is balanced by the excess on the other, and the result is a
+well-assorted marriage."
+
+The duke, as is often the case with wise men who marry rather late, and
+take damsels rather youthful to their bosoms, became dotingly fond of his
+wife, and very properly indulged her in all things. He was, consequently,
+cried up by his subjects in general, and by the ladies in particular, as a
+pattern for husbands; and, in the end, from the wonderful docility with
+which he submitted to be reined and checked, acquired the amiable and
+enviable appellation of Duke Philibert the wife-ridden.
+
+There was only one thing that disturbed the conjugal felicity of this
+paragon of husbands--though a considerable tine elapsed after his marriage,
+there was still no prospect of an heir. The good duke left no means untried
+to propitiate heaven. He made vows and pilgrimages, he fasted and he
+prayed, but all to no purpose. The courtiers were all astonished at the
+circumstance. They could not account for it. While the meanest peasant in
+the country had sturdy brats by dozens, without putting up a prayer, the
+duke wore himself to skin and bone with penances and fastings, yet seemed
+further off from his object than ever.
+
+At length, the worthy prince fell dangerously ill, and felt his end
+approaching. He looked sorrowfully and dubiously upon his young and tender
+spouse, who hung over him with tears and sobbings. "Alas!" said he, "tears
+are soon dried from youthful eyes, and sorrow lies lightly on a youthful
+heart. In a little while thou wilt forget in the arms of another husband
+him who has loved thee so tenderly."
+
+"Never! never!" cried the duchess. "Never will I cleave to another! Alas,
+that my lord should think me capable of such inconstancy!"
+
+The worthy and wife-ridden duke was soothed by her assurances; for he could
+not brook the thought of giving her up even after he should be dead. Still
+he wished to have some pledge of her enduring constancy:
+
+"Far be it from me, my dearest wife," said he, "to control thee through a
+long life. A year and a day of strict fidelity will appease my troubled
+spirit. Promise to remain faithful to my memory for a year and a day, and I
+will die in peace."
+
+The duchess made a solemn vow to that effect, but the uxorious feelings of
+the duke were not yet satisfied. "Safe bind, safe find," thought he; so he
+made a will, bequeathing to her all his domains, on condition of her
+remaining true to him for a year and a day after his decease; but, should
+it appear that, within that time, she had in anywise lapsed from her
+fidelity, the inheritance should go to his nephew, the lord of a
+neighboring territory.
+
+Having made his will, the good duke died and was buried. Scarcely was he in
+his tomb, when his nephew came to take possession, thinking, as his uncle
+had died without issue, the domains would be devised to him of course. He
+was in a furious passion, when the will was produced, and the young widow
+declared inheritor of the dukedom. As he was a violent, high-handed man,
+and one of the sturdiest knights in the land, fears were entertained that
+he might attempt to seize on the territories by force. He had, however, two
+bachelor uncles for bosom counselors, swaggering, rakehelly old cavaliers,
+who, having led loose and riotous lives, prided themselves upon knowing the
+world, and being deeply experienced in human nature. "Prithee, man, be of
+good cheer," said they, "the duchess is a young and buxom widow. She has
+just buried our brother, who, God rest his soul! was somewhat too much
+given to praying and fasting, and kept his pretty wife always tied to his
+girdle. She is now like a bird from a cage. Think you she will keep her
+vow? Pooh, pooh--impossible! Take our words for it--we know mankind, and,
+above all, womankind. She cannot hold out for such a length of time; it is
+not in womanhood--it is not in widowhood--we know it, and that's enough.
+Keep a sharp lookout upon the widow, therefore, and within the twelvemonth
+you will catch her tripping--and then the dukedom is your own."
+
+The nephew was pleased with this counsel, and immediately placed spies
+round the duchess, and bribed several of her servants to keep watch upon
+her, so that she could not take a single step, even from one apartment of
+her palace to another, without being observed. Never was young and
+beautiful widow exposed to so terrible an ordeal.
+
+The duchess was aware of the watch thus kept upon her. Though confident of
+her own rectitude, she knew that it is not enough for a woman to be
+virtuous--she must be above the reach of slander. For the whole term of her
+probation, therefore, she proclaimed a strict non-intercourse with the
+other sex. She had females for cabinet ministers and chamberlains, through
+whom she transacted all her public and private concerns; and it is said
+that never were the affairs of the dukedom so adroitly administered.
+
+All males were rigorously excluded from the palace; she never went out of
+its precincts, and whenever she moved about its courts and gardens she
+surrounded herself with a bodyguard of young maids of honor, commanded by
+dames renowned for discretion. She slept in a bed without curtains, placed
+in the center of a room illuminated by innumerable wax tapers. Four ancient
+spinsters, virtuous as Virginia, perfect dragons of watchfulness, who only
+slept during the daytime, kept vigils throughout the night, seated in the
+four corners of the room on stools without backs or arms, and with seats
+cut in checkers of the hardest wood, to keep them from dozing.
+
+Thus wisely and warily did the young duchess conduct herself for twelve
+long months, and slander almost bit her tongue off in despair, at finding
+no room even for a surmise. Never was ordeal more burdensome, or more
+enduringly sustained.
+
+
+The year passed away. The last, odd day, arrived, and a long, long day it
+was. It was the twenty-first of June, the longest day in the year. It
+seemed as if it would never come to an end. A thousand times did the
+duchess and her ladies watch the sun from the windows of the palace, as he
+slowly climbed the vault of heaven, and seemed still more slowly to roll
+down. They could not help expressing their wonder, now and then, why the
+duke should have tagged this supernumerary day to the end of the year, as
+if three hundred and sixty-five days were not sufficient to try and task
+the fidelity of any woman. It is the last grain that turns the scale--the
+last drop that overflows the goblet--and the last moment of delay that
+exhausts the patience. By the time the sun sank below the horizon, the
+duchess was in a fidget that passed all bounds, and, though several hours
+were yet to pass before the day regularly expired, she could not have
+remained those hours in durance to gain a royal crown, much less a ducal
+coronet. So she gave orders, and her palfrey, magnificently caparisoned,
+was brought into the courtyard of the castle, with palfreys for all her
+ladies in attendance. In this way she sallied forth, just as the sun had
+gone down. It was a mission of piety--a pilgrim cavalcade to a convent at
+the foot of a neighboring mountain--to return thanks to the blessed Virgin,
+for having sustained her through this fearful ordeal.
+
+The orisons performed, the duchess and her ladies returned, ambling gently
+along the border of a forest. It was about that mellow hour of twilight
+when night and day are mingled and all objects are indistinct. Suddenly,
+some monstrous animal sprang from out a thicket, with fearful howlings. The
+female bodyguard was thrown into confusion, and fled different ways. It was
+some time before they recovered from their panic, and gathered once more
+together; but the duchess was not to be found. The greatest anxiety was
+felt for her safety. The hazy mist of twilight had prevented their
+distinguishing perfectly the animal which had affrighted them. Some thought
+it a wolf, others a bear, others a wild man of the woods. For upward of an
+hour did they beleaguer the forest, without daring to venture in, and were
+on the point of giving up the duchess as torn to pieces and devoured, when,
+to their great joy, they beheld her advancing in the gloom, supported by a
+stately cavalier.
+
+He was a stranger knight, whom nobody knew. It was impossible to
+distinguish his countenance in the dark; but all the ladies agreed that he
+was of noble presence and captivating address. He had rescued the duchess
+from the very fangs of the monster, which, he assured the ladies, was
+neither a wolf, nor a bear, nor yet a wild man of the woods, but a
+veritable fiery dragon, a species of monster peculiarly hostile to
+beautiful females in the days of chivalry, and which all the efforts of
+knight-errantry had not been able to extirpate.
+
+The ladies crossed themselves when they heard of the danger from which they
+had escaped, and could not enough admire the gallantry of the cavalier. The
+duchess would fain have prevailed on her deliverer to accompany her to her
+court; but he had no time to spare, being a knight-errant, who had many
+adventures on hand, and many distressed damsels and afflicted widows to
+rescue and relieve in various parts of the country. Taking a respectful
+leave, therefore, he pursued his wayfaring, and the duchess and her train
+returned to the palace. Throughout the whole way, the ladies were unwearied
+in chanting the praises of the stranger knight, nay, many of them would
+willingly have incurred the danger of the dragon to have enjoyed the happy
+deliverance of the duchess. As to the latter, she rode pensively along, but
+said nothing.
+
+No sooner was the adventure of the wood made public than a whirlwind was
+raised about the ears of the beautiful duchess. The blustering nephew of
+the deceased duke went about, armed to the teeth, with a swaggering uncle
+at each shoulder, ready to back him, and swore the duchess had forfeited
+her domain. It was in vain that she called all the saints, and angels, and
+her ladies in attendance into the bargain, to witness that she had passed a
+year and a day of immaculate fidelity. One fatal hour remained to be
+accounted for; and into the space of one little hour sins enough may be
+conjured up by evil tongues to blast the fame of a whole life of virtue.
+
+The two graceless uncles, who had seen the world, were ever ready to
+bolster the matter through, and as they were brawny, broad-shouldered
+warriors, and veterans in brawl as well as debauch, they had great sway
+with the multitude. If any one pretended to assert the innocence of the
+duchess, they interrupted him with a loud ha! ha! of derision. "A pretty
+story, truly," would they cry, "about a wolf and a dragon, and a young
+widow rescued in the dark by a sturdy varlet who dares not show his face in
+the daylight. You may tell that to those who do not know human nature, for
+our parts, we know the sex, and that's enough."
+
+If, however, the other repeated his assertion, they would suddenly knit
+their brows, swell, look big, and put their hands upon their swords. As few
+people like to fight in a cause that does not touch their own interests,
+the nephew and the uncles were suffered to have their way, and swagger
+uncontradicted.
+
+The matter was at length referred to a tribunal, composed of all the
+dignitaries of the dukedom, and many and repeated consultations were held.
+The character of the duchess throughout the year was as bright and spotless
+as the moon in a cloudless night; one fatal hour of darkness alone
+intervened to eclipse its brightness. Finding human sagacity incapable of
+dispelling the mystery, it was determined to leave the question to heaven;
+or, in other words, to decide it by the ordeal of the sword--a sage
+tribunal in the age of chivalry. The nephew and two bully uncles were to
+maintain their accusation in listed combat, and six months were allowed to
+the duchess to provide herself with three champions to meet them in the
+field. Should she fail in this, or should her champions be vanquished, her
+honor would be considered as attainted, her fidelity as forfeit, and her
+dukedom would go to the nephew, as a matter of right.
+
+With this determination the duchess was fain to comply. Proclamations were
+accordingly made, and heralds sent to various parts; but day after day,
+week after week, and month after month elapsed without any champion
+appearing to assert her loyalty throughout that darksome hour. The fair
+widow was reduced to despair, when tidings reached her of grand tournaments
+to be held at Toledo, in celebration of the nuptials of Don Roderick, the
+last of the Gothic kings, with the Morisco princess Exilona. As a last
+resort, the duchess repaired to the Spanish court, to implore the gallantry
+of its assembled chivalry.
+
+The ancient city of Toledo was a scene of gorgeous revelry on the event of
+the royal nuptials. The youthful king, brave, ardent, and magnificent, and
+his lovely bride, beaming with all the radiant beauty of the East, were
+hailed with shouts and acclamations whenever they appeared. Their nobles
+vied with each other in the luxury of their attire, their prancing steeds,
+and splendid retinues; and the haughty dames of the court appeared in a
+blaze of jewels.
+
+In the midst of all this pageantry, the beautiful, but afflicted Duchess of
+Lorraine made her approach to the throne. She was dressed in black, and
+closely veiled; for duennas of the most staid and severe aspect, and six
+beautiful demoiselles, formed her female attendants. She was guarded by
+several very ancient, withered, and grayheaded cavaliers; and her train was
+borne by one of the most deformed and diminutive dwarfs in existence.
+
+Advancing to the foot of the throne, she knelt down, and, throwing up her
+veil, revealed a countenance so beautiful that half the courtiers present
+were ready to renounce wives and mistresses, and devote themselves to her
+service; but when she made known that she came in quest of champions to
+defend her fame, every cavalier pressed forward to offer his arm and sword,
+without inquiring into the merits of the case; for it seemed clear that so
+beauteous a lady could have done nothing but what was right; and that, at
+any rate, she ought to be championed in following the bent of her humors,
+whether right or wrong.
+
+Encouraged by such gallant zeal, the duchess suffered herself to be raised
+from the ground, and related the whole story of her distress. When she
+concluded, the king remained for some time silent, charmed by the music of
+her voice. At length: "As I hope for salvation, most beautiful duchess,"
+said he, "were I not a sovereign king, and bound in duty to my kingdom, I
+myself would put lance in rest to vindicate your cause; as it is, I here
+give full permission to my knights, and promise lists and a fair field, and
+that the contest shall take place before the walls of Toledo, in presence
+of my assembled court."
+
+As soon as the pleasure of the king was known, there was a strife among the
+cavaliers present for the honor of the contest. It was decided by lot, and
+the successful candidates were objects of great envy, for every one was
+ambitious of finding favor in the eyes of the beautiful widow.
+
+Missives were sent, summoning the nephew and his two uncles to Toledo, to
+maintain their accusation, and a day was appointed for the combat. When the
+day arrived, all Toledo was in commotion at an early hour. The lists had
+been prepared in the usual place, just without the walls, at the foot of
+the rugged rocks on which the city is built, and on that beautiful meadow
+along the Tagus, known by the name of the king's garden. The populace had
+already assembled, each one eager to secure a favorable place; the
+balconies were filled with the ladies of the court, clad in their richest
+attire, and bands of youthful knights, splendidly armed and decorated with
+their ladies' devices, were managing their superbly caparisoned steeds
+about the field. The king at length came forth in state, accompanied by the
+queen Exilona. They took their seats in a raised balcony, under a canopy of
+rich damask; and, at sight of them, the people rent the air with
+acclamations.
+
+The nephew and his uncles now rode into the field, armed cap-a-pie, and
+followed by a train of cavaliers of their own roistering cast, great
+swearers and carousers, arrant swashbucklers, with clanking armor and
+jingling spurs. When the people of Toledo beheld the vaunting and
+discourteous appearance of these knights, they were more anxious than ever
+for the success of the gentle duchess; but, at the same time, the sturdy
+and stalwart frames of these warriors showed that whoever won the victory
+from them must do it at the cost of many a bitter blow.
+
+As the nephew and his riotous crew rode in at one side of the field, the
+fair widow appeared at the other, with her suite of grave grayheaded
+courtiers, her ancient duennas and dainty demoiselles, and the little dwarf
+toiling along under the weight of her train. Every one made way for her as
+she passed, and blessed her beautiful face, and prayed for success to her
+cause. She took her seat in a lower balcony, not far from the sovereigns;
+and her pale face, set off by her mourning weeds, was as the moon shining
+forth from among the clouds of night.
+
+The trumpets sounded for the combat. The warriors were just entering the
+lists, when a stranger knight, armed in panoply, and followed by two pages
+and an esquire, came galloping into the field, and, riding up to the royal
+balcony, claimed the combat as a matter of right.
+
+"In me," cried he, "behold the cavalier who had the happiness to rescue the
+beautiful duchess from the peril of the forest, and the misfortune to bring
+on her this grievous calumny. It was but recently, in the course of my
+errantry, that tidings of her wrongs have reached my ears, and I have urged
+hither at all speed, to stand forth in her vindication."
+
+No sooner did the duchess hear the accents of the knight than she
+recognized his voice, and joined her prayers with his that he might enter
+the lists. The difficulty was, to determine which of the three champions
+already appointed should yield his place, each insisting on the honor of
+the combat. The stranger knight would have settled the point, by taking the
+whole contest upon himself; but this the other knights would not permit. It
+was at length determined, as before, by lot, and the cavalier who lost the
+chance retired murmuring and disconsolate.
+
+The trumpets again sounded--the lists were opened. The arrogant nephew and
+his two drawcansir uncles appeared so completely cased in steel that they
+and their steeds were like moving masses of iron. When they understood the
+stranger knight to be the same that had rescued the duchess from her peril,
+they greeted him with the most boisterous derision:
+
+"Oh, ho! sir Knight of the Dragon," said they, "you who pretend to champion
+fair widows in the dark, come on, and vindicate your deeds of darkness in
+the open day."
+
+The only reply of the cavalier was to put lance in rest, and brace himself
+for the encounter. Needless is it to relate the particulars of a battle,
+which was like so many hundred combats that have been said and sung in
+prose and verse. Who is there but must have foreseen the event of a
+contest, where Heaven had to decide on the guilt or innocence of the most
+beautiful and immaculate of widows?
+
+The sagacious reader, deeply read in this kind of judicial combats, can
+imagine the encounter of the graceless nephew and the stranger knight. He
+sees their concussion, man to man, and horse to horse, in mid career, and
+Sir Graceless hurled to the ground and slain. He will not wonder that the
+assailants of the brawny uncles were less successful in their rude
+encounter; but he will picture to himself the stout stranger spurring to
+their rescue, in the very critical moment; he will see him transfixing one
+with his lance, and cleaving the other to the chine with a back stroke of
+his sword, thus leaving the trio of accusers dead upon the field, and
+establishing the immaculate fidelity of the duchess, and her title to the
+dukedom, beyond the shadow of a doubt.
+
+The air rang with acclamations; nothing was heard but praises of the beauty
+and virtue of the duchess, and of the prowess of the stranger knight; but
+the public joy was still more increased when the champion raised his visor,
+and revealed the countenance of one of the bravest cavaliers of Spain,
+renowned for his gallantry in the service of the sex, and who had been
+round the world in quest of similar adventures.
+
+That worthy knight, however, was severely wounded, and remained for a long
+time ill of his wounds. The lovely duchess, grateful for having twice owed
+her protection to his arm, attended him daily during his illness; and
+finally rewarded his gallantry with her hand.
+
+The king would fain have had the knight establish his title to such high
+advancement by further deeds of arms; but his courtiers declared that he
+already merited the lady, by thus vindicating her fame and fortune in a
+deadly combat _à outrance_; and the lady herself hinted that she was
+perfectly satisfied of his prowess in arms, from the proofs she had
+received in his achievement in the forest.
+
+Their nuptials were celebrated with great magnificence. The present husband
+of the duchess did not pray and fast like his predecessor, Philibert the
+wife-ridden; yet he found greater favor in the eyes of heaven, for their
+union was blessed with a numerous progeny--the daughters chaste and
+beauteous as their mother; the sons stout and valiant as their sire, and
+renowned, like him, for relieving disconsolate damsels and desolated
+widows.
+
+
+
+
+THE CREOLE VILLAGE
+
+A SKETCH FROM A STEAMBOAT
+
+First published in 1887
+
+
+In traveling about our motley country, I am often reminded of Ariosto's
+account of the moon, in which the good paladin Astolpho found everything
+garnered up that had been lost on earth. So I am apt to imagine, that many
+things lost in the old world are treasured up in the new; having been
+handed down from generation to generation, since the early days of the
+colonies. A European antiquary, therefore, curious in his researches after
+the ancient and almost obliterated customs and usages of his country, would
+do well to put himself upon the track of some early band of emigrants,
+follow them across the Atlantic, and rummage among their descendants on our
+shores.
+
+In the phraseology of New England might be found many an old English
+provincial phrase, long since obsolete in the parent country; with some
+quaint relics of the roundheads; while Virginia cherishes peculiarities
+characteristic of the days of Elizabeth and Sir Walter Raleigh.
+
+In the same way the sturdy yeomanry of New Jersey and Pennsylvania keep up
+many usages fading away in ancient Germany; while many an honest,
+broad-bottomed custom, nearly extinct in venerable Holland, may be found
+flourishing in pristine vigor and luxuriance in Dutch villages, on the
+banks of the Mohawk and the Hudson.
+
+In no part of our country, however, are the customs and peculiarities,
+imported from the old world by the earlier settlers, kept up with more
+fidelity than in the little, poverty-stricken villages of Spanish and
+French origin, which border the rivers of ancient Louisiana. Their
+population is generally made up of the descendants of those nations,
+married and interwoven together, and occasionally crossed with a slight
+dash of the Indian. The French character, however, floats on top, as, from
+its buoyant qualities, it is sure to do, whenever it forms a particle,
+however small, of an intermixture.
+
+In these serene and dilapidated villages, art and nature stand still, and
+the world forgets to turn round. The revolutions that distract other parts
+of this mutable planet reach not here, or pass over without leaving any
+trace. The fortunate inhabitants have none of that public spirit which
+extends its cares beyond its horizon, and imports trouble and perplexity
+from all quarters in newspapers. In fact, newspapers are almost unknown in
+these villages, and as French is the current language, the inhabitants have
+little community of opinion with their republican neighbors. They retain,
+therefore, their old habits of passive obedience to the decrees of
+government, as though they still lived under the absolute sway of colonial
+commandants, instead of being part and parcel of the sovereign people, and
+having a voice in public legislation.
+
+A few aged men, who have grown gray on their hereditary acres, and are of
+the good old colonial stock, exert a patriarchal sway in all matters of
+public and private import; their opinions are considered oracular, and
+their word is law.
+
+The inhabitants, moreover, have none of that eagerness for gain and rage
+for improvement which keep our people continually on the move, and our
+country towns incessantly in a state of transition. There the magic
+phrases, "town lots," "water privileges," "railroads," and other
+comprehensive and soul-stirring words from the speculator's vocabulary, are
+never heard. The residents dwell in the houses built by their forefathers,
+without thinking of enlarging or modernizing them, or pulling them down and
+turning them into granite stores. The trees, under which they have been
+born and have played in infancy, flourish undisturbed; though, by cutting
+them down, they might open new streets, and put money in their pockets. In
+a word, the almighty dollar, that great object of universal devotion
+throughout our land, seems to have no genuine devotees in these peculiar
+villages; and unless some of its missionaries penetrate there, and erect
+banking houses and other pious shrines, there is no knowing how long the
+inhabitants may remain in their present state of contented poverty.
+
+In descending one of our great Western rivers in a steam-boat, I met with
+two worthies from one of these villages, who had been on a distant
+excursion, the longest they had ever made, as they seldom ventured far from
+home. One was the great man, or grand seigneur, of the village; not that he
+enjoyed any legal privileges or power there, everything of the kind having
+been done away when the province was ceded by France to the United States.
+His sway over his neighbors was merely one of custom and convention, out of
+deference to his family. Beside, he was worth full fifty thousand dollars,
+an amount almost equal, in the imaginations of the villagers, to the
+treasures of King Solomon.
+
+This very substantial old gentleman, though of the fourth or fifth
+generation in this country, retained the true Gallic feature and
+deportment, and reminded me of one of those provincial potentates that are
+to be met with in the remote parts of France. He was of a large frame, a
+ginger-bread complexion, strong features, eyes that stood out like glass
+knobs, and a prominent nose, which he frequently regaled from a gold
+snuff-box, and occasionally blew, with a colored handkerchief, until it
+sounded like a trumpet.
+
+He was attended by an old negro, as black as ebony, with a huge mouth in a
+continual grin; evidently a privileged and favorite servant, who had grown
+up and grown old with him. He was dressed in creole style--with white
+jacket and trousers, a stiff shirt collar that threatened to cut off his
+ears, a bright Madras handkerchief tied round his head, and large gold
+earrings. He was the politest negro I met with in a Western tour; and that
+is saying a great deal, for, excepting the Indians, the negroes are the
+most gentlemanlike personages to be met with in those parts. It is true,
+they differ from the Indians in being a little extra polite and
+complimentary. He was also one of the merriest; and here, too, the negroes,
+however we may deplore their unhappy condition, have the advantage of their
+masters. The whites are, in general, too free and prosperous to be merry.
+The cares of maintaining their rights and liberties, adding to their
+wealth, and making presidents, engross all their thoughts, and dry up all
+the moisture of their souls. If you hear a broad, hearty, devil-may-care
+laugh, be assured it is a negro's.
+
+Besides this African domestic, the seigneur of the village had another no
+less cherished and privileged attendant. This was a huge dog, of the
+mastiff breed, with a deep, hanging mouth, and a look of surly gravity. He
+walked about the cabin with the air of a dog perfectly at home, and who had
+paid for his passage. At dinner time he took his seat beside his master,
+giving him a glance now and then out of a corner of his eye, which bespoke
+perfect confidence that he would not be forgotten. Nor was he--every now
+and then a huge morsel would be thrown to him, peradventure the half-picked
+leg of a fowl, which he would receive with a snap like the springing of a
+steel-trap--one gulp, and all was down; and a glance of the eye told his
+master that he was ready for another consignment.
+
+The other village worthy, traveling in company with the seigneur, was of a
+totally different stamp. Small, thin, and weazen faced, as Frenchmen are
+apt to be represented in caricature, with a bright, squirrel-like eye, and
+a gold ring in his ear. His dress was flimsy, and sat loosely on his frame,
+and he had altogether the look of one with but little coin in his pocket.
+Yet, though one of the poorest, I was assured he was one of the merriest
+and most popular personages in his native village.
+
+Compere Martin, as he was commonly called, was the factotum of the
+place-sportsman, schoolmaster, and land surveyor. He could sing, dance,
+and, above all, play on the fiddle, an invaluable accomplishment in an old
+French Creole village, for the inhabitants have a hereditary love for balls
+and fetes; if they work but little, they dance a great deal, and a fiddle
+is the joy of their heart.
+
+What had sent Compere Martin traveling with the grand seigneur I could not
+learn; he evidently looked up to him with great deference, and was
+assiduous in rendering him petty attentions; from which I concluded that he
+lived at home upon the crumbs which fell from his table. He was gayest when
+out of his sight; and had his song and his joke when forward, among the
+deck passengers; but altogether Compere Martin was out of his element on
+board of a steamboat. He was quite another being, I am told, when at home
+in his own village.
+
+Like his opulent fellow-traveler, he too had his canine follower and
+retainer--and one suited to his different fortunes--one of the civilest,
+most unoffending little dogs in the world. Unlike the lordly mastiff, he
+seemed to think he had no right on board of the steamboat; if you did but
+look hard at him, he would throw himself upon his back, and lift up his
+legs, as if imploring mercy.
+
+At table he took his seat a little distance from his master; not with the
+bluff, confident air of the mastiff, but quietly and diffidently, his head
+on one side, with one ear dubiously slouched, the other hopefully cocked
+up; his under teeth projecting beyond his black nose, and his eye wistfully
+following each morsel that went into his master's mouth.
+
+If Compere Martin now and then should venture to abstract a morsel from his
+plate to give to his humble companion, it was edifying to see with what
+diffidence the exemplary little animal would take hold of it, with the very
+tip of his teeth, as if he would almost rather not, or was fearful of
+taking too great a liberty. And then with what decorum would he eat it! How
+many efforts would he make in swallowing it, as if it stuck in his throat;
+with what daintiness would he lick his lips; and then with what an air of
+thankfulness would he resume his seat, with his teeth once more projecting
+beyond his nose, and an eye of humble expectation fixed upon his master.
+
+It was late in the afternoon when the steamboat stopped at the village
+which was the residence of these worthies. It stood on the high bank of the
+river, and bore traces of having been a frontier trading post. There were
+the remains of stockades that once protected it from the Indians, and the
+houses were in the ancient Spanish and French colonial taste, the place
+having been successively under the domination of both those nations prior
+to the cession of Louisiana to the United States.
+
+The arrival of the seigneur of fifty thousand dollars, and his humble
+companion, Compere Martin, had evidently been looked forward to as an event
+in the village. Numbers of men, women, and children, white, yellow, and
+black, were collected on the river bank; most of them clad in old-fashioned
+French garments, and their heads decorated with colored handkerchiefs, or
+white nightcaps. The moment the steamboat came within sight and hearing,
+there was a waving of handkerchiefs, and a screaming and bawling of
+salutations, and felicitations, that baffle all description.
+
+The old gentleman of fifty thousand dollars was received by a train of
+relatives, and friends, and children, and grandchildren, whom he kissed on
+each cheek, and who formed a procession in his rear, with a legion of
+domestics, of all ages, following him to a large, old-fashioned French
+house, that domineered over the village.
+
+His black valet de chambre, in white jacket and trousers, and gold
+earrings, was met on the shore by a boon, though rustic companion, a tall
+negro fellow, with a long good-humored face, and the profile of a horse,
+which stood out from beneath a narrow-rimmed straw hat, stuck on the back
+of his head. The explosions of laughter of these two varlets on meeting and
+exchanging compliments were enough to electrify the country round.
+
+The most hearty reception, however, was that given to Compere Martin.
+Everybody, young and old, hailed him before he got to land. Everybody had a
+joke for Compere Martin, and Compere Martin had a joke for everybody. Even
+his little dog appeared to partake of his popularity, and to be caressed by
+every hand. Indeed, he was quite a different animal the moment he touched
+the land. Here he was at home; here he was of consequence. He barked, he
+leaped, he frisked about his old friends, and then would skim round the
+place in a wide circle, as if mad.
+
+I traced Compere Martin and his little dog to their home. It was an old
+ruinous Spanish house, of large dimensions, with verandas overshadowed by
+ancient elms. The house had probably been the residence, in old times, of
+the Spanish commandant. In one wing of this crazy, but aristocratical
+abode, was nestled the family of my fellow-traveler; for poor devils are
+apt to be magnificently clad and lodged, in the cast-off clothes and
+abandoned palaces of the great and wealthy.
+
+The arrival of Compere Martin was welcomed by a legion of women, children,
+and mongrel curs; and, as poverty and gayety generally go hand in hand
+among the French and their descendants, the crazy mansion soon resounded
+with loud gossip and light-hearted laughter.
+
+As the steamboat paused a short time at the village, I took occasion to
+stroll about the place. Most of the houses were in the French taste, with
+casements and rickety verandas, but most of them in flimsy and ruinous
+condition. All the wagons, plows, and other utensils about the place were
+of ancient and inconvenient Gallic construction, such as had been brought
+from France in the primitive days of the colony. The very looks of the
+people reminded me of the villages of France.
+
+From one of the houses came the hum of a spinning wheel, accompanied by a
+scrap of an old French chanson, which I have heard many a time among the
+peasantry of Languedoc, doubtless a traditional song, brought over by the
+first French emigrants, and handed down from generation to generation.
+
+Half a dozen young lasses emerged from the adjacent dwellings, reminding
+me, by their light step and gay costume, of scenes in ancient France, where
+taste in dress comes natural to every class of females. The trim bodice and
+covered petticoat, and little apron, with its pockets to receive the hands
+when in an attitude for conversation; the colored kerchief wound tastefully
+round the head, with a coquettish knot perking above one ear; and the neat
+slipper and tight drawn stocking with its braid of narrow ribbon embracing
+the ankle where it peeps from its mysterious curtain. It is from this
+ambush that Cupid sends his most inciting arrows.
+
+While I was musing upon the recollections thus accidentally summoned up, I
+heard the sound of a fiddle from the mansion of Compere Martin, the signal,
+no doubt, for a joyous gathering. I was disposed to turn my steps thither,
+and witness the festivities of one of the very few villages I had met with
+in my wide tour that was yet poor enough to be merry; but the bell of the
+steamboat summoned me to re-embark.
+
+As we swept away from the shore, I cast back a wistful eye upon the
+moss-grown roofs and ancient elms of the village, and prayed that the
+inhabitants might long retain their happy ignorance, their absence of all
+enterprise and improvement, their respect for the fiddle, and their
+contempt for the almighty dollar. [Footnote: This phrase, used for the
+first time in this sketch, has since passed into current circulation, and
+by some has been questioned as savoring I fear, however, my prayer is of
+irreverence. The author, therefore, owes it to his orthodoxy to declare
+that no irreverence was intended even to the dollar itself; which he is
+aware is daily becoming more and more an object of worship.] I fear,
+however, my prayer is doomed to be of no avail. In a little while the
+steamboat whirled me to an American town, just springing into bustling
+and prosperous existence.
+
+The surrounding forest had been laid out in town lots; frames of wooden
+buildings were rising from among stumps and burned trees. The place already
+boasted a court-house, a jail, and two banks, all built of pine boards, on
+the model of Grecian temples. There were rival hotels, rival churches, and
+rival newspapers; together with the usual number of judges, and generals,
+and governors; not to speak of doctors by the dozen, and lawyers by the
+score.
+
+The place, I was told, was in an astonishing career of improvement, with a
+canal and two railroads in embryo. Lots doubled in price every week;
+everybody was speculating in land; everybody was rich; and everybody was
+growing richer. The community, however, was torn to pieces by new doctrines
+in religion and in political economy; there were camp meetings, and
+agrarian meetings; and an election was at hand, which, it was expected,
+would throw the whole country into a paroxysm.
+
+Alas! with such an enterprising neighbor, what is to become of the poor
+little Creole village!
+
+
+
+
+A CONTENTED MAN
+
+
+In the garden of the Tuileries there is a sunny corner under the wall of a
+terrace which fronts the south. Along the wall is a range of benches
+commanding a view of the walks and avenues of the garden. This genial nook
+is a place of great resort in the latter part of autumn and in fine days in
+winter, as it seems to retain the flavor of departed summer. On a calm,
+bright morning it is quite alive with nursery-maids and their playful
+little charges. Hither also resort a number of ancient ladies and
+gentlemen, who, with the laudable thrift in small pleasures and small
+expenses for which the French are to be noted, come here to enjoy sunshine
+and save firewood. Here may often be seen some cavalier of the old school,
+when the sunbeams have warmed his blood into something like a glow,
+fluttering about like a frost-bitten moth thawed before the fire, putting
+forth a feeble show of gallantry among the antiquated dames, and now and
+then eying the buxom nursery-maids with what might almost be mistaken for
+an air of libertinism.
+
+Among the habitual frequenters of this place I had often remarked an old
+gentleman whose dress was decidedly ante-revolutional. He wore the
+three-cornered cocked hat of the _ancien regime_; his hair was frizzed
+over each ear into _ailes de pigeon_, a style strongly savoring of
+Bourbonism; and a queue stuck out behind, the loyalty of which was not to
+be disputed. His dress, though ancient, had an air of decayed gentility,
+and I observed that he took his snuff out of an elegant though
+old-fashioned gold box. He appeared to be the most popular man on the walk.
+He had a compliment for every old lady, he kissed every child, and he
+patted every little dog on the head; for children and little dogs are very
+important members of society in France. I must observe, however, that he
+seldom kissed a child without, at the same time, pinching the
+nursery-maid's cheek; a Frenchman of the old school never forgets his
+devoirs to the sex.
+
+I had taken a liking to this old gentleman. There was an habitual
+expression of benevolence in his face which I have very frequently remarked
+in these relics of the politer days of France. The constant interchange of
+those thousand little courtesies which imperceptibly sweeten life have a
+happy effect upon the features, and spread a mellow evening charm over the
+wrinkles of old age.
+
+Where there is a favorable predisposition one soon forms a kind of tacit
+intimacy by often meeting on the same walks. Once or twice I accommodated
+him with a bench, after which we touched hats on passing each other; at
+length we got so far as to take a pinch of snuff together out of his box,
+which is equivalent to eating salt together in the East; from that time our
+acquaintance was established.
+
+I now became his frequent companion in his morning promenades, and derived
+much amusement from his good-humored remarks on men and manners. One
+morning, as we were strolling through an alley of the Tuileries, with the
+autumnal breeze whirling the yellow leaves about our path, my companion
+fell into a peculiarly communicative vein, and gave me several particulars
+of his history. He had once been wealthy, and possessed of a fine estate in
+the country and a noble hotel in Paris; but the revolution, which effected
+so many disastrous changes, stripped him of everything. He was secretly
+denounced by his own steward during a sanguinary period of the revolution,
+and a number of the bloodhounds of the Convention were sent to arrest him.
+He received private intelligence of their approach in time to effect his
+escape. He landed in England without money or friends, but considered
+himself singularly fortunate in having his head upon his shoulders; several
+of his neighbors having been guillotined as a punishment for being rich.
+
+When he reached London he had but a louis in his pocket, and no prospect of
+getting another. He ate a solitary dinner of beefsteak, and was almost
+poisoned by port wine, which from its color he had mistaken for claret. The
+dingy look of the chop-house, and of the little mahogany-colored box in
+which he ate his dinner, contrasted sadly with the gay saloons of Paris.
+Everything looked gloomy and disheartening. Poverty stared him in the face;
+he turned over the few shillings he had of change; did not know what was to
+become of him; and--went to the theater!
+
+He took his seat in the pit, listened attentively to a tragedy of which he
+did not understand a word, and which seemed made up of fighting, and
+stabbing, and scene shifting, and began to feel his spirits sinking within
+him; when, casting his eyes into the orchestra, what was his surprise to
+recognize an old friend and neighbor in the very act of extorting music
+from a huge violoncello.
+
+As soon as the evening's performance was over he tapped his friend on the
+shoulder; they kissed each other on each cheek, and the musician took him
+home, and shared his lodgings with him. He had learned music as an
+accomplishment; by his friend's advice he now turned to it as a means of
+support. He procured a violin, offered himself for the orchestra, was
+received, and again considered himself one of the most fortunate men upon
+earth.
+
+Here therefore he lived for many years during the ascendency of the
+terrible Napoleon. He found several emigrants living, like himself, by the
+exercise of their talents. They associated together, talked of France and
+of old times, and endeavored to keep up a semblance of Parisian life in the
+center of London.
+
+They dined at a miserable cheap French restaurant in the neighborhood of
+Leicester Square, where they were served with a caricature of French
+cookery. They took their promenade in St. James's Park, and endeavored to
+fancy it the Tuileries; in short, they made shift to accommodate themselves
+to everything but an English Sunday. Indeed the old gentleman seemed to
+have nothing to say against the English, whom he affirmed to be _braves
+gens_; and he mingled so much among them that at the end of twenty years
+he could speak their language almost well enough to be understood.
+
+The downfall of Napoleon was another epoch in his life. He had considered
+himself a fortunate man to make his escape penniless out of France, and he
+considered himself fortunate to be able to return penniless into it. It is
+true that he found his Parisian hotel had passed through several hands
+during the vicissitudes of the times, so as to be beyond the reach of
+recovery; but then he had been noticed benignantly by government, and had a
+pension of several hundred francs, upon which, with careful management, he
+lived independently, and, as far as I could judge, happily. As his once
+splendid hotel was now occupied as a _hotel garni_, he hired a small
+chamber in the attic; it was but, as he said, changing his bedroom up two
+pair of stairs--he was still in his own house. His room was decorated with
+pictures of several beauties of former times, with whom he professed to
+have been on favorable terms: among them was a favorite opera-dancer, who
+had been the admiration of Paris at the breaking out of the revolution. She
+had been a protegee of my friend, and one of the few of his youthful
+favorites who had survived the lapse of time and its various vicissitudes.
+They had renewed their acquaintance, and she now and then visited him; but
+the beautiful Psyche, once the fashion of the day and the idol of the
+_parterre_, was now a shriveled, little old woman, warped in the back
+and with a hooked nose.
+
+The old gentleman was a devout attendant upon levees; he was most zealous
+in his loyalty, and could not speak of the royal family without a burst of
+enthusiasm, for he still felt toward them as his companions in exile. As to
+his poverty he made light of it, and indeed had a good-humored way of
+consoling himself for every cross and privation. If he had lost his chateau
+in the country, he had half a dozen royal palaces, as it were, at his
+command. He had Versailles and St. Cloud for his country resorts, and the
+shady alleys of the Tuileries and the Luxembourg for his town recreation.
+Thus all his promenades and relaxations were magnificent, yet cost nothing.
+
+When I walk through these fine gardens, said he, I have only to fancy
+myself the owner of them, and they are mine. All these gay crowds are my
+visitors, and I defy the grand seignior himself to display a greater
+variety of beauty. Nay, what is better, I have not the trouble of
+entertaining them. My estate is a perfect Sans Souci, where every one does
+as he pleases, and no one troubles the owner. All Paris is my theater, and
+presents me with a continual spectacle. I have a table spread for me in
+every street, and thousands of waiters ready to fly at my bidding. When my
+servants have waited upon me I pay them, discharge them, and there's an
+end; I have no fears of their wronging or pilfering me when my back is
+turned. Upon the whole, said the old gentleman with a smile of infinite
+good humor, when I think upon the various risks I have run, and the manner
+in which I have escaped them; when I recollect all that I have suffered,
+and consider all that I at present enjoy, I cannot but look upon myself as
+a man of singular good fortune.
+
+Such was the brief history of this practical philosopher, and it is a
+picture of many a Frenchman ruined by the revolution. The French appear to
+have a greater facility than most men in accommodating themselves to the
+reverses of life, and of extracting honey out of the bitter things of this
+world. The first shock of calamity is apt to overwhelm them, but when it is
+once past, their natural buoyancy of feeling soon brings them to the
+surface. This may be called the result of levity of character, but it
+answers the end of reconciling us to misfortune, and if it be not true
+philosophy, it is something almost as efficacious. Ever since I have heard
+the story of my little Frenchman, I have treasured it up in my heart; and I
+thank my stars I have at length found what I had long considered as not to
+be found on earth--a contented man.
+
+P. S.--There is no calculating on human happiness. Since writing the
+foregoing, the law of indemnity has been passed, and my friend restored to
+a great part of his fortune. I was absent from Paris at the time, but on my
+return hastened to congratulate him. I found him magnificently lodged on
+the first floor of his hotel. I was ushered, by a servant in livery,
+through splendid saloons, to a cabinet richly furnished, where I found my
+little Frenchman reclining on a couch. He received me with his usual
+cordiality; but I saw the gayety and benevolence of his countenance had
+fled; he had an eye full of care and anxiety.
+
+I congratulated him on his good fortune. "Good fortune?" echoed he; "bah! I
+have been plundered of a princely fortune, and they give me a pittance as
+an indemnity."
+
+Alas! I found my late poor and contented friend one of the richest and most
+miserable men in Paris. Instead of rejoicing hi the ample competency
+restored to him, he is daily repining at the superfluity withheld. He no
+longer wanders in happy idleness about Paris, but is a repining attendant
+in the ante-chambers of ministers. His loyalty has evaporated with his
+gayety; he screws his mouth when the Bourbons are mentioned, and even
+shrugs his shoulders when he hears the praises of the king. In a word, he
+is one of the many philosophers undone by the law of indemnity, and his
+case is desperate, for I doubt whether even another reverse of fortune,
+which should restore him to poverty, could make him again a happy man.
+
+
+
+
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