| I know, you see,? he said; ?because he married in our family
?What sort of a girl?? said Madame de Thoux, eagerly
?A treasure,? said George; ?a beautiful, intelligent, amiable girlMy mother had brought her up, and trained her as carefully, almost, as a daughterShe could read and write, embroider and sew, beautifully; and was a beautiful singer
?Was she born in your house?? said Madame de ThouxFather bought her once, in one of his trips to New Orleans, and brought her up as a present to motherShe was about eight or nine years old, thenFather would never tell mother what he gave for her; but, the other day, in looking over his old papers, we came across the bill of saleHe paid an extravagant sum for her, to be sureI suppose, on account of her extraordinary beauty
George sat with his back to Cassy, and did not see the absorbed expression of her countenance, as he was giving these details
At this point in the story, she touched his arm, and, with a face perfectly white with interest, said, ?Do you know the names of the people he bought her of??
?A man of the name of Simmons, I think, was the principal in the transactionAt least, I think that was the name on the bill of sale
?O, my God!? said Cassy, and fell insensible on the floor of the cabin
George was wide awake now, and so was Madame de ThouxThough neither of them could conjecture what was the cause of Cassy?s fainting, still they made all the tumult which is proper in such cases;?George upsetting a wash-pitcher, and breaking two tumblers, in the warmth of his humanity; and various ladies in the cabin, hearing that somebody had fainted, crowded the state-room door, and kept out all the air they possibly could, so that, on the whole, everything was done that could be expected
Poor Cassy! when she recovered, turned her face to the wall, and wept and sobbed like a child,?perhaps, mother, you can tell what she was thinking of! Perhaps you cannot,?but she felt as sure, in that hour, that God had had mercy on her, and that she should see her daughter,?as she did, months afterwards,?when?but we anticipate
1 Hamlet, Act I, scene 1, lines 115-116
Chapter 43
Results
The rest of our story is soon toldGeorge Shelby, interested, as any other young man might be, by the romance of the incident, no less than by feelings of humanity, was at the pains to send to Cassy the bill of sale of Eliza; whose date and name all corresponded with her own knowledge of facts, and felt no doubt upon her mind as to the identity of her childIt remained now only for her to trace out the path of the fugitives
Madame de Thoux and she, thus drawn together by the singular coincidence of their fortunes, proceeded immediately to Canada, and began a tour of inquiry among the stations, where the numerous fugitives from slavery are locatedAt Amherstberg they found the missionary with whom George and Eliza had taken shelter, on their first arrival in Canada; and through him were enabled to trace the family to Montreal
George and Eliza had now been five years freeGeorge had found constant occupation in the shop of a worthy machinist, where he had been earning a competent support for his family, which, in the mean time, had been increased by the addition of another daughter
Little Harry?a fine bright boy?had been put to a good school, and was making rapid proficiency in knowledge
The worthy pastor of the station, in Amherstberg, where George had first landed, was so much interested in the statements of Madame de Thoux and Cassy, that he yielded to the solicitations of the former, to accompany them to Montreal, in their search,?she bearing all the expense of the expedition
The scene now changes to a small, neat tenement, in the outskirts of Montreal; the time, eveningA cheerful fire blazes on the hearth; a tea-table, covered with a snowy cloth, stands prepared for the evening mealIn one corner of the room was a table covered with a green cloth, where was an open writing-desk, pens, paper, and over it a shelf of well-selected books
This was George?s studyThe same zeal for self-improvement, which led him to steal the much coveted arts of reading and writing, amid all the toil and discouragements of his early life, still led him to devote all his leisure time to self-cultivation
At this present time, he is seated at the table, making notes from a volume of the family library he has been reading
?Come, George,? says Eliza, ?you?ve been gone all dayDo put down that book, and let?s talk, while I?m getting tea,?do
And little Eliza seconds the effort, by toddling up to her father, and trying to pull the book out of his hand, and install herself on his knee as a substitute
?O, you little witch!? says George, yielding, as, in such circumstances, man always must
?That?s right,? says Eliza, as she begins to cut a loaf of breadA little older she looks; her form a little fuller; her air more matronly than of yore; but evidently contented and happy as woman need be
?Harry, my boy, how did you come on in that sum, today?? says George, as he laid his land on his son?s shop head |