The daily dispatch. [volume] (Richmond [Va.]) 1850-1884, 1855-08-08


DOCTOR DUBOIS.
lcoEcIuDED.l
WA % ~rits : prescription said Doc.
tof ft wapo wcu step this wayf' replied the
80 man Who had brought him to that
y"cs md who now conducted him to q lit
r. room furnished with only one chair and
- IA uoyored with books. Other books, ana
avariety of papers, were scattered about me
a student, see !, Doctor Dubois smiled
He Wished to intimate that he attributed
the disorder and nudity he could not but
perceive, to eccentYicity rather than to pow
erty. .n,;ed
tho vouth. 70 if delighted at the opportunity
of a sudden confession We are too poor TO
he Otherwise than you see.'
Doctor Dubois tried to look pompous and
conce;ted Madame de-de-'
laramie on
Madame de laramie he continued, has
been undermined by q slow fever, the result
of-what shall eay?-ani insufficient supply
of those necessaries Of life which humble
people call luxuries. You need not hang
your head. my young friend. These things
have passed through the same ordeal How
long has this state Of things lastedP
Two years
"A long time 1t seems to me that your
mother has been kept in state of delusion
a. to her position. She believes herself to be
still wealthy, still to form part of the world
of fashion, in spite of the accident which re
moved her from it.
You know our history, them
One incident know, 10 common with all
Paris. Every one read in the papers the re
port ofths trial by which your family LOS. us
Paris; and never dreamed that after that dis
aster-' ;,
You mean disgrace put in the youth.
bitterly.
That after that disaster you continued to
inhabit your old hotel in the Faubourg st.
GERMAN. Whenever pass see the shut
tiers closed. see no one come in or go out.
am not inquisitive. Indeed have noticed
these symptoms without even rejecting up.
on them. had not forgotten your name l
now understand that you have remained here
ever since; living on the ruins of your for
tune, and keeping your poor mother IN the
Illusion that nothing has been changed-that
she is still rich, honored and happy
All this is true exclaimed the youth,
Selling the hand of the doctor: but you do
not know ALL
know enough was the reply, TO make
me honor and respect YOU .l.
The story which the young man in the
fullness of his heart now told was curious
and painful. M de Chesnel, his grandfather,
the old man whom Doctor Dubois had seen
in the other room, was one of the mobiles who
had emigrated during the first French revo.
luton. He had gone to America, where he
married the daughter of a Virginia planter,
and settled down, quite hopeless of ever re-
turning to his native country. After time
his wife died. and left him with an only
daughter He came to Paris; where although
his fortune was small, he was able to give his
child complete education. After eighteen
hundred and thirty, news came to him from
America that his fatherin-law had died,
leaving all his property to him. He again
crossed the Atlantic with his daughter, then
nineteen years of age. On the voyage out
he made the acquaintance of NJ. de laramie, a
Young French nobleman ofgreat wealth, who
was going to the west in order to expend his
superabundant activity in travel. An affec-
ton sprang up between this young man and
M. de Chesners daughter. The consequence
was that, some time after their arrival in
America, they were married. But M. de
laramie had not entirely lost his wandering
propensities. Whilst M. de Chesnel was en-
gagged in an unexpected lawsuit with the re-
iations of his father in law-which ended in
the will being utterly set aside-the young
couple travelled together in various direc
tons. This lasted some years. Victor, the
youth who related the story to the Doctor,
and Valerie were born, and the mother found
it necessary to remaip more stationary than
before, to look after her children. Then nj
de laramie undertook to explore the cordil
leras of the Andes alone, and sent his wife
and family back to France.
Victor evidently slurred over certain do
nestle quarrels here; but it came out that
M de Chesnel had reproached his SON. law
with neglecting his daughter, and seemed to
think that it was partly because the fortune
which she had expected had been taken from
her NJ laramie afterwards returned in safe.
ty, and led very qaiet life in Paris. His
wife thought that his restlessness was now
quite worn out; but at length he again start
ed for South America, wrote hOme-frequent
ly sending valuable collections which he
made by the way-and was last heard of
when about to undertake voyage across the
Pacific. This happened six years before the
period at which Doctor Dubois became &C
quainted with the story. For some time
Madame de laramie suffered no misfortune
but separation from her husband; but at
length his relations had reason to consider
him to be dead. They asked his wife to give
an account OF his Immense fortune. She re
fused saying that it devolved upon her chill
dren. Then, to her surprise, they asked for
proofs of her marriage She had none TO
give. A trial took place; and, although
some c0rroborative testimony was brought
forward, it did not satisfy the law, and Ma
dame de Jerante was not only deprived Of
her husbands fortune but was called upon
to give an account of many large sums she
had spent. NJ. de Chesnel sacrificed all that
remained to him to protect her. The hotel
in which they lived had luckily been taken
in his name. They sold the furniture piece
meal to enable them to live. Then it was
that Madame de laramie first showed symp.
toms of her mental disorder. She could not
believe in the disaster that had overtaken
her; and to save her from complete insanity,
her father and children found it necessary to
commence the system of deception which
they had ever afterwards been compelled to
carry on. Victor gave many details of the
extraordinary means they took for this pur.
pose-always successfully. His mo.her in.
variably kept her room. Only in the last
few weeks, however, had she shown signs of
bodily decay. Assistance had no. been cal.ed
in, simply on account ofthe poverty.
And what, may now enquire, said the
doctor, deeply interested, are the grounds
of hopes of better times which Won saeY,, TN