The Sun.
London, England, 1852-07-09 00:00:00

" inaproving,lhe.skin2L_Bea_camain rand found
us on this floor, squaw fashion, with three puppies on our
lap and one is rain hand; s-betber it was our persona!
beauty, our pierurerque " pose," our somewhat san.ay
toegue, or our intsrast in his canine family, that Ma-
! erced his feelings, we never knew, bat certain it is that
Ben was " smitten" to a deep cxtent, and had ten years
been added to our eight, the coeseq;meet, might have
been fatal. From that day, whenever we were missing
at home, the place of our resort wag no mystery—we
were sure to be found ut Dame Hswitt's.
la-ur, kiwi, manly, six-feet-high 13,-,n, called us his
"-little sweetheart," and conducted himself with the
most lover-like devotion. He permitted us to indulge in
all sorts of wilful abominations, from interfering with
red lot horse-shoes, to taking his best straw hat on a
butterfly hunt. He allowed us to hammer on the anvil
and work the bellows as often as we chose, and when
these occupations had metamorphosed us into something
that our own mother hardly recognised, his utmost re-
buke was " Look at your pinafore," acc-mpanied by a
maternal-like attempt to restore our hands end face .to
their primitive hue at the water-trateete J 3 n rum lably
thought teat a holiday would do him a world of goad
when we propased a eartieg or wild-so aaberryirg part'
In the woods; and how he would treed ifoen the biggest
brambles in our way, and lift us in his strong arms that
we might have the pleasure of clutching at an unusually
big cluster of cob-nuts. Flow he would bring us the finest
strawberriis he found, and make us sit down where the
moss was thickest on the sunny bank, while he. smoothed
our roughened curls into something like humanity, and'
ansisted on a kiss ter his trouble. -We are afraid we
played the tyrant very often, and exercise our power
most ungenerously; but Ben seemed to- like his
slavery, and encouraged our spirit ot domination by
every possible means. The squire was in immediate
want ot his hack, which had been sent to the forge to
have a cast shoe replaa d, but. if we expressed a strong
wish that Ben should mount and take us up before him
for a canter to the turnpike and back, why, the Squire
might whistle for bis nag until our desire was gratified.
The family might scream their loudest for Ben to come
in to dinner; but if he were engaged in swinging us
under the old walnut tree in the garden, the beef was
always allowed to get cold. We wanted a young squirrel
to pet, and Ben, of course, risked his neck up the tallest
trees; we took a fancy tog large water-lily, springing
in the very middle of Miller's Brook, and Ben imme-
diately was bootless and stockingless, and knee deep in
the lucid tide. He went to London the coldest, foggiest
day in the whole winter, in order to present us with a
superb riding whip on our birthday. He gave us the
exquisite myrtle which he had cherished for three
years, and trusted us with his valuable pocket-knife
for any blade-destroying purpose whatever; in short,
Bett was our devoted slave; many a mile he walked
over Darley Common beside our pony, his white
teeth gleaming as he laughed at some confidential
impertinence of ours, his hazel eyes, brown hair, and
slim lithe figure causing. every rustic damsel that we
passed to imitate Lot's wife. And what a gentleman
he was on a Sunday: no corduroys, no velveteens, no
stripe of the rainbow about his neck; Ben was a bit of
a dandy, and his grey moleskin trowsers, olive green
shooting-jacket, and black silk "fichu" made him more
of an Apollo than a Vulcan. Ab,. Ben, how you used
to loiter on the way home from church, pulling down
the
branch of May, or getting the most out-of reach
blackberry of the autumn tor us; and when an itinerant
artist met us once, and guessed us to be you sister, how
handsomely proud you looked as you equivocated, but
did not-deny. Yes,u mßeonsirebuutwile certainly one of the
beings that loved
were tempted to better your fortunee patted us. You
enamels to America, and we were theryehmalvceodwmeptaohneyai smoky streets of London; not one word urdg
of you for many many years, and our first inquiries will
be about our first sweetheart. •
Well, here we are put down. by the stile that leans
into the churchyard—the stile which Ben has lifted us
over many a time. Let us walk through the churohyerd
on our way to the village, and have a look at the
glorious old yew once again. Ah, there it is, grand
and gloomy as ever—not a tinge less beauti-
ful than it was when we rested under it on a

July Sunday to cool ourselves before we went under the
Gothic porch; but see, there is the Hewlett; family

grave; and whose is the last name carved on it? " Bell

jstmin,t.ldest son of the above William and Susan; aged
twenty-eight." Poor Bed Our heart w.tuld have telt

more had it not been inursd of late to suffering; but as
it was, we got very obscure about the vision, and it wa•
' some half-hour before we bad courage to ask the sexton,
who was digging a grave close by, a few particulars
about the matter. And what did we learn? That Ben
had returned from America within a few years of his
leaving England to find alt his family dead excepting
the sinter—who vowed eternal friendship will us over
the pincushion—and she, toe, was falling fast into the
bony arms of the Great Despot. Ben watched over her
for three months, with his own cheek getting thinner,
and his own form growing, weaker every day. Con
sumption was in the family. and was as busy as-the worm
in a rose. Ben saw his favourite sister laid in the grave,
and within six weeks the chisel was adding his own name
to the long list already on the atone; and now the osier
hands were firm and green over him; there were no
more Hewing to die, and the forge and cottage had
passed into the hands of strangers.
We isood for a while dreamily musing on days gone
'by. We saw Ben leaning over the orchard-palings,
with his straw hat set jauntily on one side, and his
cricket•bat on his shoulder, while he coaxed our mater-
nal authority into permission for us to go and see the
practise" on the green. We saw him decking our
pony's bridle with blue ribbon, under the apple-tree, be-
fore we started for Chartley Fair; we heard him whist-
ling over his anvil, and breaking off in the middle of
The Jolly Miller" to bid us keep out of the way of
the sparks. We looked toward the Willow Grounds,
and remembered that it was there where he carried us
across a boggy swamp some foot deep in uncertainty,
because our wilfulness insisted that it was the nighest
way home by some fifty yards: we saw him standing
before us in his holiday snit—tall, handsome, active, and
intelligent; and then we looked down and saw the pile of
green sward speckled with daisies: we knelt ou the

neap of dust: we read once more the name that we
used to shout out in boisterous childish joy; and, some-
how, a misgiving of all the after devotions we have met
with, rose up beside the shadow of Ben Hewitt, " our
first sweetheart."—Eliza Cook's Journal.

SPURTING NOTES.
No. CCLXIL
THE LIVERPOOL JULY MEETING.

TO THE EDITOR OF THE SUN.
SlP."—The principal meeting of next week is that to be
held on Aintree Race-course, which extends over Wed-
nesday, Thursday, and Friday next. It will commence, as
usual, with the Croxteth Stakes,
which has yet to close and
name.
The Produce Stakes, now reduced to a match, will not
produce a race, Sir R. Pigott's FATHER THAMES walking
over.
The Lancashire Oaks of 10 sovs. each, h ft, with 100
added, for three years old fillies, Bst 71b each, with a variety
of penalties and allowances, which turns the stake into some-
thing like a Handicap. The distance is once round, being
one mile three furlongs and sixty yards. Thirty.eiy
subscriptions have been obtained to this stakes, but the
field will scarcely number a fourth. Three are already
dead, and of the rest, Captious, Attack, Harkaway, and
Lenercost fillies, Partlet, Urania, Catch'em, Vision, Sarah
Ellice, Tearaway filly, Kes,rel, and Rosary, are already
hors de combat. I think the starting of Songstress ex_
tremely doubtful, as with her penalty she will have to
carry est. Bay Rosalind, also penalised three pounds, is
anything but fit. Buttei )fi •
scarcely likely to show, being
and May Blossom, at Sat 4lb each, are hopeless speculations.
With regard to the former, it must be borne in mind that
she is not the Butterfly by Knight of the Whistle, buz. a
chance here.
much inferior animal. I merely mention this to save the
W, aterr-
public from falling into a similar error to that they a short
time since committed. Calot, Bst 41b, efter her Chester
running can possess but little
ILady
lilY, Sat 21b, is on the forlorn list; ditto Caloric
with Bst 10Ib. Osborne may start one of his couple • butc
chance is by
whether it is to be the twenty-fifth appearance r
Agnes this year, or the lately " off " Merry Bird,
present unable to tell. Should either go their
no means bad. Hirsute, at Bst ;lb, and Linnet anadmtlaiet
likely to figure in
nsJessica and Ri-
,Quireeternonotf
f,S;rpflibinia,
bBosutt.2lbMre.acwh,oratrbeinegotot
chet6e have, by their running this year,tn proved th.mselves
so very inferior that I cannot trust
all has been talked about a
Ire\rid as it has begun.-ic
ef Lincoln may possibly run well, MI now. The flied
Mr. Lawson's filly by Ballinkee e, a 3 she has no penalty.
little; but in my opin on it will
knset.er's brown filly
talk. Last of all we come to Lora
only Sst 41b up, will, in
who, I have but little doubit,lLwOiTth,
the absence of Songstress:2scarry off thes tan:
sovs.. each, with 50 aided, for
."inlen,ofillies Bst 41b ; half a mile. Ot the
The Mersey Stakes of
bare of the feminine gender, from
two yrs old, colts Bat
eleven
which
sex
xm it
tni
the
ti
fieldon s,
will i
consisting probably of
Charming Woman, accompanied by as she ought to
be, Jaquenetta, ano
In the last two will centre
other winning to the greatestthoef
katieir to Mountain Deer or Hybla.
the
the Sister to
m Mountainoreoyinterest
moral
certainties;
ttahi
ne
tri
ease,: ,
but
te
ao
sr
Deer is in another race on the same
most probable she will beerresseormveediTorL
day, and which iq
leave
HYBLA theino rlea tvtaelruab event,let iatni;
alone in her glory.
The Great Lancashire Produce Stakes, over the
bh ,y 4 I fh- 1 nevi lee,
course, out of a large nomination list, will Pr°L'aofi note, a
notwithstanding the appearance of several natuess
yet dark,
goodly field. The major portion of the enirl
but as several of the most notable names on
being not at all
wit, Constantine, Umbriel, Bobby-borse,st
,ikely come from
whoever may 0, ueing
tauf;eanclidrekrdleicskt,etno,
are doubtful runners, the winner will inuobiial
those who have already appeared in P
improbably TADEEitR,
;or
Sir
11.
Mile Course, out of its
her most powerful ants "-
g°nvisery like a walk-ov r
er
The Foal Stakes leek
tc
over . isft
sjhtLa! Ti e{
V 0
The Liverpool Cup,
tphiegorettp,rseFseinlitt:Sst.livSeTuEfßs
d six subscriptions, and sixt
one hundred sotel e at the outside have twccaccep-
tames, w"' H' 1 cl. C 1 1 more than a dozen
runners, inc u ing o s.erdal
or thirteen .. . . e, Poodle, and L • wCh
trio, in my opinion, the um-
,
among iv- ntative of the Fyfield e race certainly lie,
The represe
t 8 t 131 b 8-able, no matter whether
Teddineten, a s , or Clincher
Cossack, although very stal ,at 101 b less, I cannot
Crave;
Miss Ann, l'et 111 b, is e, at Bst 31b I should pre-
fer. not overburdened
neither is Mark Tapley, ist 61b, or D with weight ;
bort, fist 121 b, has a few admirers Doubt, at 7st 71b. Her-
Elcot and Allegro are over w • of his outside pretensions.
91b, is rot badly I
-n, or eighted. The Countess, at Gst
no comment. At the Termagant, 4st 71b. The rest require
fere remarked, the present time I consider, as I have be-
Lucio • and if race lies with Colsterdale Poodle, and
,
, I take any for choice it shall be

COISTER-D—A-
The Derby Handicap would seem to have been madejor
one of the Earl of Derby's horses, Elthiron being the only
opponent of any note.
At the distance of a week, it is impossible to say what
will start for the Liverpool St. Leger, but as Clever house is
~aid to be a non-starter, the race would seem to be between
Allred the Great and the representative of Fn.her's stable.
The Knowsley Dinner Stakes, wh ch will probably termi-
nate in a walk over, brings me observations on the Liver-
pool July meeting to a period.--I am, &c.
July P. THR SVIRIT OF LIR TURF.