Burlington free press. [volume] (Burlington, Vt.) 1827-1865, 1843-10-06

dent Of having seen some trunks put on board
the Great Western, just before her depart
ure a week previous, upon the sides ofwhich
trunks the letter Q. marked with brass nails
was conspicuously visible. The gentleman
to whom they belonged, had put down his
name on the ships books as Haynes, butth
: old inhabitant' was disposed TO think that
he could have been no other than Queer
himself. Further investigation seemed to
confirm this belief
Mr.. Queer a defaulter! What was the
world coming to!
Calumny spreads her news always with
telegraphic CELEBRITY; and it was not long be-
fore the whole city was talking of Nh. Queer's
iniquity and poor Volney's misfortune. The
same day that the distressing intelligence
reached Mrs. Auburn, that lady, by a singu-
lar coincidence, received a luminous from
a relative who was dangerously i'll, and was
compelled to take leave of Charlotte and the
distracted Balfour. Whether the visits of.
some grim-looking functionaries, who came
10 attach the furniture in the house, the coach
and horses. on behalf of Mr.. Stockdale-
whether this untoward circumstance had any
thing to do with the spinster's precipitated de-
parture, it would be very uncharitable to
surmise.
But where were Charlotte's dear relatives
and friends, the Greens, the Browns, the
White. the Myrtles, and fifty others, who had
SO often partaken of her lavish hospitality !;
where were those tender and affeclione crea.
lures, who had so hung upon her words, and
twined themselves round her hearth Every
time the bell rung, Charlotte thought to her.
self, there they come, l am sure.' Alas
it was merely the dun of some important
tradesman, who could not be put off.
And where were those : prime fellows who
would 60 the death for him any day. whom
Volney used to bring home to dinner?-
Alas! the French cook was discharged-the
old wines had been put under the hammer,
and the prime fellows no longer, by acci-
dent, knocked at the door on which misfor-
tune had put his mark.
Six weeks after the disastrous disappear
ance of Mr.. Queer, Volney and his wife
found themselves the inmates of neat but Sc.
cluded lodgings in a street east of the Bowe-
ry. There was a parlor with two windows,
and a little chamber with one and these
Charlotte had managed to fill decently with
articles saved from the wreck of her furniture.
Come, cheer up, smile, Volney,' said
Charlotte, as her husband sank into a chair,
and heaved a deep sigh. The storm, thank
Heaven, is now past, and we can look around
and see what is lost and what is left. Oh
let US be grateful that something really de-
plorable has not unprecedented our health,
our honor are u%nimpaired, and that we have
troacnrao ,pl,rL, M l,y,,oss, ,-.o. ,o~ L.
prive US Of
Bless you, my dear, for your undaunted
cheerfulness, replied Volney, but my blood
boils when | think of the base ingratitude of
that swarm Of parasites who have so utterly
deserted us in our fall. What blind fools we
were to believe in the friendship of those no.
liday visitors! Where is the being among
the many whom we warmed in our prosperi-
~, who now would contribute Il copper to
, our comfort =.
Nay, you go to far, Volney. Let US not
think too hardly of human nature
Name one, il you can, whom we can still
call our friend
well, there is little Miss Twlllet. She
has called on mo several times, and shown a
solicitudo 10 DO scrviceable, which | cannot
well resist
'Wlh, that unfortunate little piece OF
dcformity whom you, at tho instigation of a
c~onclavo Of your fashionable friends, OStra-
cised and dropped from your visiting list
has she indeed renewed the acquaintance OF
her own accord
Even so and it is with shame | remem-
J Dor, that | could ever have been induced to
treat her with neglect
Can you name any other r
DO you remember Mary Messenger, the
pretty mantua-m maker, who used to work for
me the first two years we were married p
DO you mean the girl whom your cousin
Auburn charged with having designs upon
my loyalty as a husband 2
The same. Miss Auburn managed 10
have a quarrel with the poor girl, and then to
come to me with "A story of her having been
insulted /; and soon afterwards she took upon
herself the responsibility of engaging some
other mantua-maker; and thus Mary and |
were parted. We'll who should come to
me the very day we moved into these lodg-
ings, but Mary Messenger. She is, you may
not remember, one Of a large family of girls,
the father of whom was once wealthy, but
now reduced in his circumstances. One of
her sisters sings in public; another assists in
a millenery store and the rest are respect
ably married. Mary had just heard of our
misfortunes, and came anxious to see il she
could not be Of some assistance. She paid
me another visit yesterday, and was accom-
panied by her father, a courtly old gentle
man, grey and in6rm, but with all the viva
city Of youth. 1t would have amused you
to see his frockcoat of faded blue, clearly
but napless, tightly buttoned up TO his chin,
and his venerable gloves. All, VoIney,
am convinced that we can live upon a little
and happily too, il wo only think so. Do
you know that | never knew how well | low
ed you until these reverses happened
And so il was. Adversely had developed
T Charlotte's better nature. The delightful
consciousness of this fact amply compensa-
ted her for the harsh lesson which she had
been taught in the sudden detection of her
gay friends. Some natural tears she shed TO
think how misplaced had been the strong af-
~fections Of her heart /; but better thoughts
soon came 10 drive away her sadness. Ano-