Year: 1871


Of " subjects" upon its present satisfactory
footing, there occurred to my elder brother,
at that time delicate boy Of about IA, a
singular adventure, involving such shock
to his nerves as, the doctors believed, very
much hastened his death, which occurred
in less than o year after it.


We then resided in a large white house,
with row Of poplars in front, close to one
of our canals. Within q stones throw Of
our hall door was lock aud lock house,
and then followed, in the London direction,
one Of the longest and most solitary levels
to be met with in the United Kingdom.
The canal, at point about 70 yards
from the lock, makes a slight DETECTION.
The consequence is that neither the lock
nor our house is visible from tho long,
straight level that follows, and which is
closely fenced between tall hedges and old
| trees.


My brother had been ordered walking
exercise, and my father generally appoint,
cd the path beside the level l have de.
scribed for his walk. The traffic, never
very active, was at that time in state
little better than extinct. Not more than
three or four boats passed in a day, and
chiefly owing to its perfect quietudc it
had been chosen for the walk Of our solta-
ry invalid.


1t was now Summer, and the hour of
his daily walk was from 5 to Z; the car
lier hours Of the afternoon being pronounc.
cd too hot for exercise.


On the evening in question he set out
alone. His usual walk was to a point two
miles up the level, where there was stone
block, on which he used to sit and rest a
little before setting out for home.
While he was taking his ease on this
stone bench, and lstlessly looking up and
down the long and deserted reach of water,
there emerged few hundred yards to his
left, from a sequestcrcd path, singular
figure which approached slowly and passed
him by with only the narrow tow path be-
tween them. 1t was moving in the direc-
tion Of our home, and was that of an ema-
ciated man, with complexion dark as
very old lockwood, limping, as it seemed,
painfully, very much stopped, aud with a
big angular lump upon his back. His
hair was long and sooty-black he had
prominent dark eyes, under thick black
brows, and his face and chin were stubbled
with weeks growth of beard. He was
leaning heavily on a long stick and walked
with kind Of hitch, which resemblcd
spasn, and gave one the idea that each
step was accompanied by a separate sting
of pain.


The face of this man expressed extreme
weakness and suffering, and might almost
be that Of man dragging himself away,
with mortal wound, to some spot where
he might lie down and die in quiet.
He had long and heavy bottle green
coat, which had grown to be, indeed, a
coat of many colors; for over the thread
bare and greasy ground it was overlaid,
with fantastic and extraordinary industry,
with tesselaton of patches, of every
imaginable color, in which yellow, and
red, and blue, and black were discernable,
under varnish of grease and toned with
variety of dirt; and even these patches
were patched again, and had broken here
and there into rents and assures and
bunches Of shreds and tatters. Around
his body was buckled broad discolored
lcathern strap, and he wore wide.leafcd
felt hat, with a rather conical crown,
brown and grimmed by time and illtreat-
ment.


This figure, with long CATERS Of rabbit
skin, and shapcless "brogues," limped
past my brother without taking tho slight
est notice Of him; and uttering now and
then short groau, as if of suppressed
pain, he excited the wonder, and, in some
degree, the compassion of the boy.
He watched the progress of this man,
who was moving with great difficulty, and
with many halts, in the direction of our
home. 1t was not until he had got on
dearly quarter of mile that my brother
got up, not quite rested, to follow in the
same direction.


As this strange, crooked man, with the
stick, got on, he appeared to grow more
and more exhausted, and at length he tot
tered into little recess at the edge of the
path, and fell helplossly on his side among
the bushes.


The boy quickeued his pace. and as he
approached the spot he passed the head of
a narrow lane, in which no saw donkey
and cart standing. The cart had in it,
upon some straw, a piece of old carpet,
from under which emerged some folds Of
coarse canvas, like part of an old sack ;
but he could not see any one in charge Of
this conveyance, though being anxious to
obtain help, he called repeatedly.


Despairing of succor, he went on, and
reached the point where he had seen the
man fall Here he found him. He had
crept little further in among the bushes.
He was supporting himself feebly on the
ground upon his elbow. his eyes turning up
as if he were on the point of swooning, and
he moaned family.


The boys courage almost failed him
but the sick man seemed to perceive him,
turned his eyes upon him imploringly,
and extending his hand toward him, SO
evidently sisnaled for aid, that my brother
| could not holm ra,zinn naax