The national era. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1847-1860, 1856-09-25

ton, no refusal, from such as he know him
} we'll and had told you what knew of him
and what he dared to speak of in my ear he
would not now have breath to name himself by
your fathers name, nor life to spend in the en-
Joyment of your heritage.
How long space, how dreadful step be.
tween your two last lettersl Was it kind.
Richard, to keep me in suspense so long, at last
put an end to by the realization of my worst of
fearsY l enclose q mere trife; have no
power to anticipate my payday, or it should be
more. How blessed, how glad 1 feel, that it
VIII soon be in my power to set you out of reach
Oh these hideous wants, to emulate in some little
measure the numberless and graceful kindness.
es l have received so long from you. You need
not mention him when you write, dearest. There
are some subjects cannot rightly and with
propriety discuss, even with your own dear self.
write very, very soon. Your anxious and de-.
voted
The preceding must have been instantly an.
swered; the following letter is almost of the
same date, but written very rapidly, and i'll
| punctuated:
| DEAREST RICHARD: Do not write to me
such things as these, unless you want to kill me
DO not sacrifice myself do not periure my.
sell, do not commit evil that good may come
indeed, he is not rs you describe him, Richard
1t is the worst picture you ever painted: if Sir
gilbert had been ghoul and an ogre, instead
OF only magistrate and deputy lieutenant
you could not have used worse expressions !;
U, Richard, Richard, how can you have the
neart to write OF sin and shame to me? l
snali be faithful and dutiful wife have told
him how feel towards you-as much at least
as he could understand of it-and he is not an.
CRY, only dare say thinks us very foolish do
not talk about his dirty money do not hurt
my feelings; whether adopted or natural, they
are now mine, and you must think we'll of him
nenceiorth, as the husband of her who loves you
oest on earth. return to your last letter, but
one, Ior your very sorrows are less dreadful
than your anger; the picture of the Island
sold tor . sovereign 1t is enough to make
one distrest, almost, Providence how touch
ihg' TOO, that story of the portrait! Ny poor,
oear hichard, with the fat, rich people, trying
TO catch his worshipfurs expression what an
awiuiiy bad business you must have made of it,
can well Imagine; you did not spare him a
pimpie, nor give him hair too much, I'll an
swer tor Is; were it not for the pity of it, could
laugh at 5ou, my Zeuxis; do not think. hop-
eoeT, you could ecer paint a good portrait. you
never seemed to me to have your heart in work
OF that kind and without that, little can be done
saw your little story in the magazine, standing
out from among the fables and compilations
hike fair statue amidst third-rate casts rec
ognlsed the place and characters, be sure. and
your own dear self in every line of it. / hope
that employment may be a crutch to you, but
most OF all that you may not need to use it
look to see you standing yet erect above the
crowd, in day when, whether R. A. follow
your name or not, it shall be of little matter.
DO not write before you hear from your ever.
loving
He never wrote-he never heard that was
his last letter. A love beyond all love would
have ipinistered unto him, but he starved him.
self in his pride. Think of his wretched Cath.
crime, miserable bride, and of her vain appeals
and fruitless search for the selfwilled, stubborn
boyi and yet he must have had much to love
IN ham, and on his part, too, must have deeply
loved again. Love, "more ideal artist he than
al" and love only, as it seems to me, could
have given to the "Catharine" it's perfected
grace. Through
These dead leaves that kesp their green
These noble ie.ters of the dead"
all Richards works are interesting and dear tn
me. His picture of the Near Lake" spoken
of in the first letter, has a fine Elizabethan
haHqse, ia the background; so sent to all the
its whereabouts, from which could of course
have got the rest. 1t certainly is from nature
and if equal to his representation of the
~Beck "a most spirited rendering of the
Ihlrimere stream, known well to me-a yerv
truthful painting. L have put many advertise
ments in the papers, containing all She needed.
If once the eye of love should light on them /
have also, with small success, made acauaint.
ance with half the Sir Gilberts in the land, in
Aopes OF finding where this jewel hides; I have
done all could do, without disagreeable pub.
licity; and at last l publish the whole storv !
thus The sad recital, thus. svea. Catherine.
may haply reach YOu 81 last. PstLient. pitifni
woman, 4 lear this hair is gray, and those .r-- !
dim, by this time that glow 90 Dlc-;;ou.I,, e.r Is
from thy Richards ce1-vassI 'iouS'y ior'h