The Columbia herald. [volume] (Columbia, Tenn.) 1850-1873, 1871-03-24

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had not q relation in the world, a big,
hot tear from her brimmed eyes fell
upon my hand, which she was hold
ing while she talked to me. She said
must let her be mother to me /; and
shc called up Lewis, and told him in
her serious, impetuous way, that he
was tv look upon me as abrother, and
be always kind to me.
Mrs. Lewis was an indulgent moth
err; but she was strict, too, as her step
father directed her to be, and his
word was 10 her, law in everything.
Lewis went to bed at nine, and so did
while l was at the castle. We beg
ged half an hours grace sometimes !;
but she would never yield-even when
she was in the middle of "a song. She
sang divinely, and Lewis loved to
hear his mother. Sometimes he would
keep me awake for whole hour after
we were in bed, listening to Mrs.
Lewis's voice in the drawing-room
was obliged to keep awake, being
his guest but this shows how incOn-
siderate he could be.
But he begged Mrs. Lewis to allow
him to give me one of his Shetland
ponies on my birthday and he had
surprised me with it, with bran new
saddle and bridle-which was very
good, 1 am free to own; but he might
have remembered that liked fishing
much better than riding, and that /
should have been more pleased with a
handsome rod and tackle.
| One day Mrs. Lewis's step-father
| seeing me on the terrace alone called
me to him, and began to question me
| on the life that my guardians had pro-
jected for ne. When told him that
had not heard from them for a year,
and that l had not the least idea of
their intentions in regard to me, he
pulled my ear and muttered, "POor
lad! poor lad this is the way the
world is managed" And so the SUBJ
ject dropped, and Lewis aud /, at the
end of the holidays, returned to
school. ,4...tr
Misfortune overlook me when /
was on the point of entering at the
Middle Temple. My guardians died,
and to my horror and amazement
was informed that their affairs were
involved to my utter ruin. They had
speculated with my money, and out
OF a good fortune which my parents
had left me, had something less than
three hundred pounds left. l COM
municated my distress to Lewis, and
he sympathized with me. He would
have been stone had he done less,
seeing how intimate we had been from
our early childhood. Mrs. Lewis had |
been for some time in bad health. |
Her great step-father had died over
whclmed with ruin in great law
suit and she had the castle no long
er; and young Lewis could only keep
one horse now, and was obliged to |
give himself fewer sirs. The wreck /
was more than respectable; but it |
was a wreck. Twas among those who |
did not desert them, and did not dis |
dain to ride in the modest broUgham
to which Mrs. Lewis was reduced, |
and with but one man servant to wait |
at table. Lewis never forgot my |
birthday; and Mrs. Lewis was good |
enough to insist, when she heard of |
my niisfOrtunes, that should let her |
pay my Temple fees, and that l should |
accept a couple Of rooms in her house,
to be with Lewis. She saw, expect,
that / exerted a very salutary influ. |
ence over him. How could / look |
churiish and refuse-especially when |
Lewis joined his entreaties to those |
of his mother? 1t wanted no little |
moral courage, however, to keep with |
the Lewises, although they loaded me |
with attentions, because people talked |
about them in the neighborhood and |
the tradesmCn sneercd and jeered |
when the plain little brougham rolled |
past their doors, or l and Lewis walk
ed home to dinner. / had no other
home, however, and hardly farthing |
in my pocket. AS | have said, was |
without relation in the world. But |
| do take little credit to myself for
my pluck in holding to the wreck
for-I can make no secret of it-I nev-
er liked Lewis.
Mrs. Lewis paid all my expenses
while she lived, just as she paid those
of her own child. / could hardly |
see anything in which she made diff
ference betweeh us; and when there |
was any slight advantage in Lcwis's |
share he made it up to me, for was
shrewd enough to see that he could |
not do without me. He was full of |
dreams. He was forever talking about |
his uncle and the grand old days, and
whether he could not redeem the for
tunes ofthe family. laughed at him,
L confess, and advised him with the
small fortune that remained, to put
himself in some good business in the
city. He schrugged his shoulders and
would not hear of it, but went dream
ing Or; and believe his mother en-
couraged him. He pinched himself |
to employ lawyers. who were to re-
open the old horrible lawsuit, and win |
back the tens of thousands of pounds |
and the old castle. We were to walk |
ON the old terrace once more. and |
smoke our cigars again in the famil- |
lar wineries. 1t was sad to see the in
fatuatiol which possessed Lewis like |
his blood, not to say the vanity. He
was not unmindful of me, l must say,
in all his dreams. / was to have my |
share of the glory-when he got it. |
The cause came again and again before |
the courts. had been called to the |
bar meantime; and Lewis had insist |
ed that / should be employed, and that
my brief should be handsomely mark |
ed. 1t was business to me, and any
business to young barrister is well
come. So l appeared. 1t was really
an effort of friendship on my part
for the bar was laughing outright at
young Lewis, as a fool who was
throwing good money after bad.
There was no hope for him. The
judges Uttered when rose the pub
lie smiled when, Lewis took his seat
among the attorneys. When we failed,
my Temple friends would come round
me and ask: "Well, has Young IN
fatuation had enough of it now 2"
Lewis's brother died when he was
about nineteen, and Mrs. Lewis fol-
lowed soon after. l thought Lewis
would have gone mad. He was GER
tainly an affectionate son; but who
would not have been affectionate with
such mother? Had it not been for
his spreciocs lawsuit he would have fol-
lowed Mrs. Lewis in month ortwo;
but, as the difficulties increased, and
the chances became less, he only grew
tirmer in his resolve-to spend his
last farthing and the last hour of mis-
life in the fight. lie spared me all |
as ed from him, which was mol much