The national era. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1847-1860, 1858-06-10
WASHINGTON, D. c,
From Fraser's Magazine.
O NE o u Sc 0ht &.
ZcHAprER THE FIRST.

CHATTER The rlhSi' . r....Et /
Fortune made no favorite of Mr.. Arden.
Ncthipg ever succeeded with him as with other
raonle, and all that he undertook failed the
instant he put his hand to 1t. III ne entered
;Dto a speculation, the shares we're sure to
fall the next day; aud ell his partners-and
ba had had several-were either bankrupt
,sbsn they drew him into their affairs, or died
soon after the signing of the deeds-leaving
bim their debts as a legacy. Perhaps he was
bora under an unlucky star or perhaps he
vas one of those saDguine visionaries who
home without examination, aud take their
wishes for certanties who, because they de-
sire act as if they have attained, and SO lose
their chance of success by over certainty OF
fglGlmept. For there are men actually inca
nable by mental organization from distinguish
;pg between the future possible and the future
positive and Mr.. Arden was one Of them.
When his list of failures comprised every
scheme he had ever entered into, and when he
was well wearied of the conflict, and thoroughly
dsspairing of the home future, he realized all
bis possessions, and with his wife and only
daughter placed himself on board vessel
bound for Australia sure that in that young
land of hope and energy he might retrieve his
broken fortunes, if, indeed, they could be re-
t-ieved at all. Perhaps he might, if he had
ever got there; but, when off the coast of Corn.
wall, a heavy storm drove the vessel ON shore ;
and when the morning sun frightened On the
wreck, it shone on the dead bodies of Mr.. and
Mrs. Arden, dashed by the boiling surf, and on
the pale form of poor Rosa, their orohan, lying
wellnigh lifeless on the sands This, then,
was the end of the luckless mans last venture
shipwreck, death, and ruined orphan girl,
scarce twenty-one, left to the cold charities of
the world. His evil star had sunk at last. But
it made fiery and stormy setting. in tragi.
cal exsggerstion of the tenor of his life.
There were but few houses in the village
Of Lone-house Dale, on the coast of which the
i'll fated ArethuSd had gone down. Indeed,
habitstions had been 80 scarce there that the
one solitary dwelling, which some bold man
had dared to build in that bleak gorge, had
given the valley its original name By degrees
a few cottags and huts had grouped themselves
around the Lone house, till small hamlet was
created, which in time took to itself the privie.
yes Of parish, and gained q church and an
incumbent but nothing else of the machinery
of modern society. At the time of the wreck
the only gentlefolk in the Dale were Mr.. and
Mrs. Devotion, the clergyman and his wife, and
their one daughter, living at the Lone house
of history, now converted into the parsonage
About SIX miles inland was q young Esquire, "
lately come to his estate, and not an educated
person besides for dresry waste of miles
round. The rest of the inhabitants were fisher
men, and few wretched farmers inland but
as there was only barren moor and craggy fell
TO farm, they were even worse off than the
coast folk. Altogether, a more lonely, desolate
poverty stricken place could not have been
found i'll the three kingdoms--a place where
the sun never seemed to shine, or if by chance
II did break through the leaden sky, it only
hap he IL
storm and gloom, for it spoke of Joy, and life
sud gaiety, and happiness, to others, while look
ing down on nothing but dull dead MISERY
there; q place so hfe,ess that even shipwrecks
were better than nothing, for at least they were
exciting, f tEEicai. TIC very poorest would
rather have had half dozen Of the shipwreck
ed to feed for q month, than have gone without
the pleasure of something to talk of and to do
These strangers from the outside life were al
good as a file of newspapers or batch of new
novels; they were material of talk for twelve
month after. It was place where every fami
ly had several idiotic or insane among them
and where no one seemed to be as wise or a.
sharp as the rest of the world. A strange, slow
vacant, i'll formed race were they, as if povert,
and wretchedness had dried up all the richnes
OF life among them, and reduced them to some
thing below ordinary humanity.
gone ashore, and was rapidly breaking NJ
against the Long Point rocks, they hurrie.
down to the coast, partly to encourage the fish
ermen in any efforts that might be practicable
partly to repress possible outbreak of wreck
ing;" for there had been such things talked Of
even in quiet Lone-house Dale, when povert
had lain heavy on all, and destitution ha
stalked, like wild wolf, from door to door
However, there were no signs of this ghastl
wrong to-day. Fish had been plentiful of late
and life had been weary and the dalesme
and the coastfolk alike were glad to receiv
Visilers among them, though these we're bu
ruined men, whom they had to feed aud cloth
and send on their way. The Dovetons, f
their share of the jetsam and fotsam," too
possession of poor Rosa Arden, and carried be
home to the parsonage, among the first of tn
saved, where in a short time she recovered, (
. ind herself an orphan, ruined, wrecked, an
dependent-a whole lies history enacted in
brief five minutes.
AS we have nothing to do with the rest
the passengers we need not tell how one We
saved and another lost how some who ha
friends Joined those friends without delay, an
others who had reserve fluids found themselvt
simply minus their passage-money and the
Cutht; how some were ruined and other
broken-hearted; and others again rode gaily O
the crest of even this dark wave, and conquere
fortune afresh. Our history lies simply Wit
Rosa and the Dovetons, and for the good shi
Arethusa-her giant ribs bleaching in the 81
are but as skeletons bones, with no Twin
worth to us or to others.
CHAPTER THE SECOND.
Never was there such godsend as Rosa A
den in that monotonous parsonage As Mr.
Devotion often said to her husband, it was tn,
who ought to be grateful to Der for living vii
them, not she who owed them anything. F.
was she not their superior in all things, al
was 1t not of incalculable advantage to MAris
10 have such a companion? Marian was the
daughter, " our Marian" and at young lady
OF the village. If they had offered hundred
year, could they have got such a governess
TINS sweet creature2 and was she not b,
Ter than any governess to our dear child, ell {
board and lodging, and few gowns al
gloves which won't be very much, add
MRS Devotion, in calculating manner, coui
ing on 80 many months wear" and prices
her fingers
80 the Dovetons were more than conte
with their spoil from the wreck, and poor Ro
was SIS satisfied here as she would have be-
aay"here else; which was not saying We
ucn, though; for, unfortunately for herse
nOss Arden was one of those disastrously. u
ture6 people, the chronicslly discontinued.
ner flowers were buried in thorns, and her 50
niesI apples had sour cores Life was q d.
PE'ual suffering to her; rain or shine, it "
Oh 'ne same misery, and she forever q gu
ysct Oh self pity-the secret of her disconte
ipelhg thai she had always been too mu,
ioseo' that she had received and had not Civ,
oach, ana thereby had become that saddle
gesture on whom the glad sun shines
woman spoilt and rendered self ,h by Overflow
as the reputed heiress of the suppos