The Connecticut courant — Hartford, Conn., 1774-01-18 00:00:00, page 1

[January, M.dcc.lxxiv, . NUMBER 474 ]
THE ^■
CONN%WICU7II^^^ O U R A N T
Containing.tbe frefbeji and mo ft importer- both Foreign a»f Lmdnc.
. 11 -22 —— — —\ .
from the LONDON M^GAZINE.
RURAL PROBIT Y A Tale.
Trarjlated from the FRENCH
PERKIN »as born in a fmafl village io the
heart of a populous country. Poverty
surrounded bis cottage. He loft his father and
mother before he could pronounce their names,
and for his fabfiflarxc he wm ifdested to chari
ty, He learned to read 3c write ; *u< his educa
tion extended no further. At the age of fifteen,
he became a servant io a neighbouring farm,
when the care of tbeiheep was intruded to him.
Lucetta, the daughter of a peasant of some sub-
Hance, was employed by her father in the fame
bnfioefs. In the courfc of watching their flocks,
they used frrqoeßtiy to meet ; acdPerkin found
• pleafare in doing all the little favours to Lu
cetta, which his age and situation allowed him.
The habi uric of feeing each other, the fimi’arity
#f their accupa'ions, their mutual candour, acd
their reciprocal attempts to plcafc. attached them
to each other They loved to be together,they
waited every day with impatience for the n«o
meet that was to bring them to the fa®e fie d,
and they left bach other with a tender regret
when the time came that they mull (epar ate,
Their young hearts were not without fenfibili
ty ; for they already felt the workings of love,
without haring any idea of thatpaffi rn Five years
yaffil «w»y * a »~aoseot ^tnaUmcuts. heir
fehtimcata by this time acquired greater force,
their meetings communicated livelier j oys, and
their pJfion for etch other eocrcalcd 7 hey
ikghed tor the time that w*s to unite them. Per
kin proposed to demand Lucetta ia marriage of
her father, and they agr^t-d that they thould
meet csrly io the morning to talk over his rc
foiution. '
The young man flew to the father of hs
mistress, and opened to him his mind with a
freedom which ii uckoowa bn’ in the country.
Every thing in the town is art and afF dition.
He declared his love for Lucetta. “ You love
my daughter, (Lid tUoW ano bluntly) a id you
would marry her , but have you a hoofe to re
ccivc, and money fuflictent to maintain her r
I have ftraogih in my armr, (rep i d Perkin)
and I can always be employed while I am will
ing to labour ; acd whit is there to which I
would not submit to maintaio Lucetta ? I have
already saved twenty crowar,which wdl pay the
expcnce of our wedding The price of my
toils will inercafe : ia a little time I (hail be
able to tike a little farm The richest inhabi
tants of our village began hke me ; and why
should loot hope one day to rival them ? ’
“ Well then, (laid the pro lent father) you arc
young, and may wait yet for some years before
you marry my daughter. When you have be
some rich. I (lull freely beflow her on you ; but
till then I ought not to hear you on this sub
j A”
Perkin could obtain no other answer, and
went mufiogon his unfortunate poverty, when
fee was ftopt by Lucetta, who read in his coun
eenance the refblution of her father. “ Ah,
Lucetta ! (cried he) how miserable is it to be
so poor ! But I wlls not lefe all hope : my situ
ation tmy change for the better. If as a huf
baud I fit sold have spared no labour to main-
Sain you, at a lover can I be lets a&ive io order
to become your huforod ? We da ail 6ac day, I
Sitter myfelf, be completely happy Prcfctve io
your heart th: atfc&soa you do® bear me,” ‘f I
From TUESDA Y, January 18, to TUESDAY, January 25, 1774.
(hill your wife, (cried Luce* a) or I Hull be
the wife of noperfon whrer
While they conrcrfcd in '’is manner, the
approach of ntght mad< thcu*»». nk of Returning
home ; but they had not ad^cced far when
Perkiii flumoled and fell to the ground, la rd
ing. he fc t for the obflade th c*ulcd him to
fad. It wh a bag and of coglccfl w.c weight.
He took it up, and, curious to fee wh;»t it con
taiaed, carried it to a neighbouring field, where
there blazed the remain* of * s r e wh co the
labourers had kindled during the day. Here
they examined the contents ot the purls, which
they found to be gold. “ What do i he !
(cried Lucet l «)Ah, Pctkln, you arc become
rich •” “ Heaveo (cried the enraptured lover)
it favourable to our wishes! It has sent me wuat
is lufficif.at to fatisfy your faihrr^and to renoer
us nappy.’* This idea poured jay into their
fouls; ‘they contemplated the .toney with the
□soft perfed fatisfaSion, and ct Yd hardly turn
their eyes from it, but to look at each other
with teaderoefs. They couoic.- the money .and
it acnouoted to two hundred .tees. '* Ah,
Locctta 1 (cried Perkin) your ii’ber will net
refufe thee to my wifhet.” Lucera could rtturn
him no answer ; but flic fe>zcd bis hacd,and
pressed it to her bosom wish tra. sport. Perkin
could doubt no lunger as bis apg uackiag happi
cieft. ’ ■■
The curate was at home : Pctkln produces
before him the bag he had found : be concealed
not. at the fame time, th-t he had at firfl «m
---ccircd it to be a present (ram hetteu : he men
tioned also his love for Lucctu and the obflacle
which his poverty opposed to thsir union The
reverend pastor liflened to him with charity ;
he looked complacently at the one and at the o
ther ; their procedure sffeded him ; he saw
the ardour of their mutual piffijn, and head
mired the probity that wss foperiorto it. “ Per
kin, (Gid he) always prefers the fame fen i
menu ; heaven will reward the just, We
(hall find the master of this gold, who will ^ot
fail to rccompenfe your difiatereflcdncfi. I too
will give you fomeihiog out of my (mall acqui
fitions. You (hall pofftfs Lucetta ; I (hill ob
taiu for you the cocfeut of her father: you
are worthy of one another If the money with
which you cotrutl m: is not reclaimed, I (hill
restore it to you.”
The lovers retired with the fatisfa&ion of
having done their duty,and filled with the hop u
that were glvco them The curate gave in i
matioo through his own and the neighhouriog
parishes of the meoey found ; and many avari
cidus audiotcrcftcd persons presented themselves
to lay c ! aim to it ; but could not name the fpecica
of the Cain, nor futn contained in the bag.
Theyreturo the money into ’be bag, and
make hsfle to present themfe>ves before the 0 d
man. They had already enined the door of
his house, when Perkin making a sudden flop,
called out, “ We cxptS to be made happy by
this money —hut is it our property ? It mud
h.-ve beiooged to some traveller, acd while we
gire ourfclvcs up to joy, he is plunged in def
pair ” •• Ah, Pctkio Z (cried Lucent) your
rtfiedion is just : we ctanor m-ke ufc of this
monty Chance ha* rhrowo it in our way.but
to retain it wu d be robbery. We meant to
carry it to my father ; hu< it will be better to
gy with it to our curate ; he will ioilrua us
what to do with it.”
Mean while the curate did not negiedl the
proniilc he had gi»eo to Perkin, to take care to
secure his h»pp nets He procured for Inma
(mail farm, (urr.ifhed it with cattle and with the
ipfhuasents of un(b.ndr.y, and two mouth: after
married him to Lucetta. The two lovers.iron
(ported with the Hate ol felicity to which they
were advanced, never ceased to return thanks
to heaven and the curate Perkin was labori
ous. Luceita was entire y occupied with what
fell io h«r charge, acd they were ex*d m pay
ing what they owed to th? proprietor of the
ground. On what remsiaed they lived decent
ly and happily.
The bag of - old was not reclaimed doting
two years, and the cars c did cot it txpa
dicni to wsk longer for its being demended.
He carried it to ‘be virtuous coupe *kom he
hrd united. “ My chiidren, fiad he) cjuy
the prefect which providence has pivtn you*
if by any chance you lb ui>j cou<c tu thr know
ledge of their proprietor it it proper hdv you
(hsu d rdlort them. Put them, th^relqr- to
au ufc. by which they wi 1 not be dem'n (h^4.”
Perkin took this [age advice, and MUthi the
farm which heihcn rented The mcocy which he
regarded a: a dtpofiic. could not be mo'e pro
perly difpofiJ Of Its proprietor ccu-r’ no 1 fi td
fault with a mao&gerneat in every rdpedt fa
ptodtot,
The farm, while Perkin confidetc i hi nfeif
as its real p.ffeflbr, iflbmed a different sp car
aace : the lauds were bet; ier cultivated, st d bc
camc mote fertile. He fijoved that ceoveni'
cnee and eafa, which he had w (bed to procure
for Lucetta. Two cblHren fucccfliyely b'cffvd
their union and they found Jhtmfclres fevivk
io these pledges of their a.ffiiLoa. '' heb he
returned frem the field. Pcrkm was always met
by Lucetta, who :<i Idm his ch ! run.
He embraced them, and could r.ca cease to
caiefi them, but to p,cfs his wife tc c.etiy to
his bosom. These fruits of h>? love ac b; i cGy
contccded to pleale him ; ti e g’c wiped cfF
from his face the daft a?d ths 9.1 with which
it was covered • the other tried to fife bio
of the weight of the inllrumeois of hi. 1 ‘ >ur.
He (njiled et tb«fe fcWe fFotts, cate if: d t bens
again,aod thighed heaven that he hed -c sflec
tioua'c wife, and chile ren that refea bed him.
Some years after, the old curate died, and
was fi ccrcly Ismcnted by P.’fk n and Lucetta,
who thought wiih gratitude of the good offices
thsy hid received (rma* him. Hi* death made
them refit fl on their own mortality . “ We
also ctpfl die (Lid they ) la that case enr farm
will go to our children ; but it is rot our pro
perty, aud if its proprietor should appesr when
we are gone, he waft lefe it for ever. T heir
delicacy could not support this idea. They
gave a written declaration of the case, which
they depofiied with the new curate, and which
was attefled by the moil refpcdhb’c inhabit ants
of the pr ffi This ^reewuon, which they
judged neccifary to eofur; reflituttMt from their
children to the owner of ihe wealth they had
found, reflated (him to tratqudity
Ten yetrs had pjff.d away io this fnuatioD,
whto Perkin, after fetetc labour, returning odc
diy with his wife to dinner, obfervtd a carriage
overturn on the high road. He hadened to the
relief of the traveller whom be prrffcd to take
refuge at his cottage. It happened fortunately
that they were not hurt. “ This place (said