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I
SH'B SSFOSSTOItY.
From the ••Itlaulic Souvenir, for ibdS.
THE STEF-MOTHER.
It was a fine summer evening; about sunset, ,
when a young man, well mounted,rode through
a small village. There was nothing striking in
the circumstance, but the earnest manner with
which he begged to be directed to the nearest
inn, and a certain wildness in his appearance,
were calculated to excite observation. ‘ For
God’s sake,’ said he, to a teamster who was dri
ving a load of liav,‘ ti ll me where I can find a
lodging for the night?’
‘May he you have, come a long way?’ said the
man. stopping his oxen.
• I am weary and sick,’ replied the stranger,
and repeated his request.
1 Then you don’t want to know which is the
best inn, but which is the noarest?’said the
man.
‘ 1 want a place where f can lodge,’ said tin
traveller, impatiently.
‘But if you can have a better one for going a
few rods further,’ said the man, ‘ 1 suppose you
would nut mind it.’
‘1 see, suit' the stranger, ‘you have no inten J
tion of directing me.;' anti he again put his horse
forward.
• Hollo there!’ said the man, calling after him j
‘ you seem to he in a despert hurry. You had
better put up at the Golden Ball.’
‘What do you mean Sam.' Saida lad who was I
lying on the top of the hav, and notv reached :
forward. ‘ bv sending him there, when it is half
a mile, further? the Doctor is a great deal near
er. If you go along,’ continued he, addressing :
the traveller, ‘ straight forward till you come to
a turn on yonr right hand, you will soon he at
the tavern. You'll know it for sartin, because
it has the sign of a Mermaid.’
The stranger, whose strength and patience
were exhausted, again attempted to proceed.—
•' You say.’ said he, • I must lake the road on my
left hand ?’
‘ 1 did not say no such thing.’ said the man:
' that road leads to the meeting house, and I take
it, it is a tavern you want; you must go by that
turning, and when you see another to your
right, take that, and it will he aonuse ifs ^too
dark, if you don’t see the sign of the Mermaid-’
The traveller appeared satisfied with flt»r di
rection, for he again put spurs to his horse ; hut
his fatigue or indisposition hail greatly increased
by this parley, and throwing 'he bridle upon the |
neck of ihe Well broken steed h ■ r. quested one j
of the men, in a faint voice, to help him to dis
mount *
'I hero is no mistaking real distress. anil tlir j
rooiI hearted teamster "as quickly at his side,
while the 1 nl spriiMit from his elevated situation ,
to assist him. Before tin-}' cunh! disenirntre him ;
from his horse, his strentrth totally faileil, amt
they laul him senseless on ;i hank hy the road
side.
A consultation now ensued ot wnat was nest
to be done for him. ami spurn-!! both by cm i -mI y
an<l good nature, they determined to lav him no
the hay and convey him to the tavern. Tin*
horse was mounted by the lad, ami the man
turning ilia oxen, slowly followed.
It was really too dark to distinguish the Mer
maid before tile travellers arrived, hot the lad
bad gone before and related the adventure.
A new dillieulty now occurred The iand
ladv deelared she would not stiller hint to he
brought into the house, for she made no manner
of doubt but he had the yellow lever, and they
would till caleh if
The landlord, who acted in the trouble capa
city of tavern keeper and physician, or rpiaek
doctor, now entered from an examination el the
horse lb- hail found bun of no ordinary ipia
litv, and his saddle anil bridle, with the neat
portmanteau, bespoke the rider ; man of some
consequence.
Whether from (lie necessity’ of turning from
the high road, or because mine host of the (i d
den Hall presented better fare, it is didicolt to
sav ; hut one thing was certain, that the Mer
maid had of hit;- been much neglected '1 he
arrival of a guest "as a rare occurrence, and
stii-h a chance was not to be lost ; tin- doctor
decided that the best chamber should I e made
icady for the invalid, and Mrs Hon. the lam!
ladv. unwillingly set about it On on- thing
they belli agreed, that their nnly daughter. \l
tnena Saeebarissa, should not come within the
ream oi any pussmie contagion. i m re is a
constant dread nf tin* yellow lexer in the coun
try towns round those cities where it h is once
or twice appeared. Ollen. during the -iimmer
months, rep irts prevail that this dreadful dis
ease lias begun its ravages, and as it 1s presum
ed there is much pains tahen to conceal it from
tile country people, from the fear nf losing (heir
supplies, suspicion and terrnr are often fal-tlv
excited. This was the case at the present pe
riod. a few instances of sudden death at the.
metropolis, though unuernmp mied hv any ma
lignant symptoms, had given rise to exaggerated
reports of the yellow- fever In vain the pity si
cians gave the most solemn assurances of the
city: still it was whispered that people were
thrown into their graves, at dead of night, with
out any funeral procession, any tolling of hells,
any black crape or bombazine, all of which eo
rernonie*. in the estimation of many people,
greatly alleviate the horrors of death It was
not wonderful, therefore, that both the landlord
and landlady should have hesitated about re
ceiving an unknown traveller, with every indi
cation of disease. The 1 hardness of the times,’
was the strongest argument in favor of the men
sure, and Mrs. Don. the landlady, after hanging
camphor bags around the neck of every indivi
dual of the family, suffered the stranger to be
brought in and laid in a deeent bed A few re
storatives were administered, and as he had
fainted from exhaustion, he soon opened his
eyes. Dr. Don, who had no hesitation in intro
• !'icinu himself in his mini r f:ipii-iiy as a phv
sieian, frit In- [ml -i- am! iiiqu red into Li^ svm[*
toms. The li avelh r disrnvrrcd every si^n of
impair nee, renoested ta hr h it iihme, and sail!
hr wanted nothin;? hat rest. In the r..!>rnin™
tlir doctor ar-am |ianl him a vi'it, ami hinted at
tin* fears ol his wife, hut the stranger assured
him that hr had horn travelling several days,
and that li s nidi-position arose from fatigue,
hot as he still li lt weak, he wished to remain
where he was. till the next da w The landlord
roumieit so t:i-- 1;.ir lu ll -A nit liiis :iti
nu nt. ami rniir.lv interi upti-il the account that
Deity, till1 house maul, was ynin^. tltal ‘ the
sirk man was a-- yellow as the i ;;; sin- was rook
ii)d.’ Many conjectures wrir now hazarded
'.villi regard to the tiavi ilt r’s ilwtin ition In t)■.
midst of tin ii’. Mini !.a entiled tin- renin. It
was willi no small decree of pleasure, that «!i>
heard that the ja iilli maii I: rl no svmptun s 0!
the yellow fever, that he was a youm; man, and
to remain till tin' mat day Mi • Inid a few
weeks he fore returned fr< ail a Ik ardinn sehoi I,
where she had hi i n tanyht every elegant and
polite aeceiophshnieiit. Mie considi red iierself
mistress of French, had a pretty turn lor poetry,
and would no doulit have excelled in music, had
the doctor's f i, it.rrs allowed her a piano forte.
tint this was hevi iu! his means; all the indnl
went father could do, In' had done; lie had pro
cured her a small second hand barrel impair,
upon which the fair Almeiia j lived, to tlic as
tonisliment • f the few quests that strayed from
the hitrh road to the Mermaid. It had some ad
vantages even over dementi’s pianos—it was
portable, and In r father thought it "ood, whole
some exercise to turn the crank of the. organ.
It is tine, that it was not so classic in its form
as might haw Ireeii wished; it resembled nn
tlier a lyre, a harp, nor a guitar, hut might hai
been mistaken in its exteiior lor an old-fishion
i d coffee mill.
But fo what purpose worn all Almcria's
accomplishmentsThem uoro none to ad
mire, atid it was with invigorated hope that
she thins aside her ramphor has. to make
preparations her the stranger, who had asked
ter breakfast. IVrhaps it might he conjectured
that these preparations were to ronli ilmte tn the
cnmfmt ot die guest; quite the contrary; they
were intended to display herself. Any body
could get a hrcnklast ; hut no body but Ahneria
could give the apartment that air of gentility
that might captivate the strarg rscye No
person that has resided in a small village can
lie ignoiant of the tenacity with which light is
cherished. The room destined to receive the
guest, presented two w indow s to the east and
two to the south; not a shutter, not even a pa
per hanging was suffered to exclude the blight
luminary of day, as it pursued its glorious
course from w indow to w indon , east its broad
yellow beam upon the breakfast table, on the
mourning pieces and landscapes painted by Al
meria, and at last settled on a bright tin reflec
tor, w Inch, from its rarions angles, sent back
multiplied rays On a small table were arrang
i cd t ariotis hooks. " ith s0me of them lying open
j at passages that marked the elegant taste of the
i owner, who-e name was written with many a
! flourish on tlm title page. • Alrueria tvcclnrissa
Don ’ Nor must the red morocco Album he
! forgotten, which contained many extravagant