The new Northwest. [volume] (Portland, Or.) 1871-1887, 1877-08-10
The Author of "John Halifax, ;,

Some of our readers, who admire
"JOhn Halifaxu and its companion
novels, may not know that their au-
thOress has quite romantic history of
her own. She was born at Stoke-upon-
Trent, Staffordshire, in the year 1926,
and was engaged to be married to a
gentleman whose business made it nec-
essary for him to leave England. On
his return from the voyage they were to
be united. All promised well; and
when news came that the ship was re-
turning in safety, with joyful heart
Miss MulOck and her mother went to
the wharf to welcome, as in "My
Mother and ~ the successful merchant.
The vessel came into sight, and on the
deck stood the young man, who ap-
peared overjoyed to see awaiting him
the beloved of bis heart. They ex-
changed greetings, and, mingling with
the crowd, he hurried to be first to
land; but as he was on the plank, his
foot slipped, and he fell into the water
and was drowned before her very eyes.
For long time Miss MulOck could not
occupy herself with anything; but at
last her friends induced her to write for
consolation in her great sorrow, and she
sent out "John Halifax" which estab-
thoughts. Time passed on, but she
never swerved in her allegiance to her
drowned love. But after years had
elapsed there was terrible railroad ac-
cident in her neighborhoOd, and she was
active in ministering to the wounded,
and one young man was brought to her
house, and for months she nursed him,
and he recovered, but lost one of his
limbs, and also his heart to his kind
friend. All his entreaties made no i'm
preston, as Miss Mulock said she should
never marry; but he replied that if he
waited ten years she should be his wife;
so, with the characteristic firmness of a
woman, after a year she, in 1865, be-
came Mrs. George Lille Craik, and a
happy wife she is, although twenty
years older than her husband. The
blessing of children is denied them, but
Providence gave them ample satisfac-
tiOn for that regret.
One morning Mrs. Craik was walking
out, and found little baby lying in the
roadside, forsaken by it's mother. A
basket of linen was beside it, which in
dicated that it was not of poor parent
age. She stopped to look at it, and then
began to long to have it for her own.
! She ran home to her husband, and told
him, and made him, though reluctant,
accompany her back, and where it still
lay, smiling and growing; and his heart
was touched by the helpless little child,
and he was as eager as his wife to take
it. AS fOundling babes are not generally
the most coveted of possessions, there
was no opposition to their wishes, and
they carried the wee daughter home and
christened her Theodore. Mrs. Craik Is
devoted to her; and no party of pleasure
is so delightful that she does not see heI
treasure safe in bed, after saying heI
prayers, before she goes; and she seems
to think that, in the crowd that sur
rounded the little stranger, the mother
was looking to see who would take heI
little one.
Mrs. Craik still preserves a quaint
old-fashioned dress, with it's body gath.
cred at the shoulders to point at the
waist. When asked to sing, she com
PLIES readily, and gives an old-time bal,
lad, with simple accompaniment. Ir
1854 the Queen bestowed upon the gifteC
authoress a literary pension of sixty
pounds per annum.