Year: 1859

NAL 10 every department of his nature, he was


boastfu of brutal courage, and prided himself


upon having killed several men in dues. AL


fred conjectured his line of policy, and resolved


to Illustrate it, He therefore cooy replied


az have seen such slippers they are very


pretty ;" and turned away, as if the subject


were Indifferent to him.


Coward !" muttered GrosSman as he left


the counting-room. Mr.. Noble did not hear
him and if he had it would not have altered


his course He could see nothing enviable in


the reputation of being ever ready for brawls,


and dead shot in duels and he knew his life


was too important to the friend less Loo Loo
! TO be thus fooshly rsked for the qualification
| of william. This incident renewed his feelings
| of remorSe for the false position in which he
had placed the young orphan, who trusted him


so entirely. To his generous nature, the wrong
seemed all the greater, because the object was
so unconscious of it. " 1t is who have sub
| jected her to the insolence of this vile man"
| he said within himself But will repair the


wrong Innocent, confding soul that she is,


will protect her. The sanction Of marriage
shall shield her from such affronts."
| Alas for poor human nature BE was sin
| cere in his resolutions, but he was not quite


strong enough to face the prejudices Of the So


ciety in which he lived. Their sueers would
| have fallen harmless. They could not have
| taken from him q single thing he really valued
! But be had not learned to understand that the


dreaded power Of public opinion is purely fabu-
| lous, when unsustaned by the voice of con-
| science So he fell into the old snare Of moral


compromise He thought the best he could do


uuder the circumstances, was TO hasten the Pc
| riod of his departure for the north, to marry
| Loo Loo u Philadelphia, and TO remove to


some part Of the country where her private his


tory would remain unknown


To make money for this purpose he, had


more and more extended bis speculations. aud


they had uniformly proved profitable. If Mr.
/ Gro>smau's offensive cocduct had not forced


upon him painful consciousness Of his position
! with regard to the object OF bis devoted atfec-
/ ton, he would have liked to remain III Mobile
! a few years longer aud accumulate more but,


as it was he determined TO remove as soon as


he could arrange his affairs satisfactorily. lie


sat about il in good earnest But, alas the
great pecuniary crash Of 1881 was at band
Bv every mail came news of failures where he
| expected payments. The wealth which had


seemed TO be so certain fact few mouths
before. where had il vanished? It had ioated


away, like q prismatic bubble on the breeze -
He saw that ruin was inevitable. All that he
owned in the world would not cancel his debts.
And now came the horrible recollection that


Loo Loo was part Of his property. Much
as be had blamed Mr.. Duncan Tor negligence


in not manumitting her mother, be had fallen
into the same snare. In the fullneSs Of his


prosperity aud happiness he did lot compre-
heud the risk he was running by delay He
rarely thought of the fact that she was legally
his slave and when it did occur TO him il was


always accompanied with the Recollection that
! the laws of Alabama did not allow him 10
emancipate her without sending her away from
the State But this never troubled him. be-


cause there was always present with him that


vision of going to the North and making her
his wife. So time slipped away, without his
| taking any precautions on the subject and
now il was too late Immersed in debt as be


was, the law did not allow him to dispose OF
ANYTHING without the consent of his creditors
and he owed ten thousand dollars TO Mr.. Gross


man. Oh, agony sharp agony


There was meeting of the creditors Mr.
! Noble rendered an account OF all his property,
in which he was compelled to include LooLOo;


but for her he offered to give note for fifteen
hundred dollars, with good endorsement, pay


able with interest in year. 1t was known
! that his attachment for the orphan he had edu-


Gated amounted to almost infatuation and


his proverbial integrity inspired so much re-


spect, that the creditors were disposed to grant
/ him any ndugences not Incompatible with their


own interests They agreed to accept the prof
/ fered note, all except Mr.. GroSsman. He IN


sisted that the girl should be put up al auction


For her sake the ruined merchant condesceud-
I i ja cd nar I ha
I tie between them was very different from the
merely convenient connections which were 50


common; that Loo Loo was really good aud


modest, and so sensitive by nature that expo


sure IS public sale would nearly xii her. The
selfish creditor remained memorable. The very
/ fact that this delicate flower had been careful
/ " sheltered from the mud and dust of the way
! SIDE. rendered her a more desirable prize. lie
/ cuoliy declared that ever since he had seen her
| in the arbor, he had been determined TO have
| her aud now that fortune had put the chance
/ in his pow er, no MONEY should induce him to
! relinqush it.


Tie sale was inevitable aud the enly re-
manning hope was, that some kind friend might
/ be induced 10 buy her. There was gentle
| man in the city whom | will call Frank Help
/ er, he was kenguckian by birth, kud and
| open-hearted- a slave holder by habit, not 10y
nature. Warm feelings of regard had long ex-
isted between him aud Mr. Noble aud TO him
the broken merchant applied for advice in this
torturing emergency. Though Mr. Helper was
| possessed OF but moderate means, be had origi-
naIIy agreed to endorse his friends note for f!
teen hundred dollars and he promised to en- |.
pogor some one TO expend three thousand doi- |
lars in the purchase OF Loo Loo.
at is DOT likely We shall be obliged to pay
SO much" said he bad debts are pouring |
in upon Grossman, and he hasn't mint of
L L. L III u.