“how these antique towers and vacant courts

chill the suspended soul! till expectation

wears the face of fear: and fear, half ready

to become devotion, mutters a kind

of mental orison, it knows not wherefore.

what a kind of being is circumstance!”

horace walpole.

he approached, and perceived the gothic remains of an abbey: it stood on a kind of rude lawn, overshadowed by high and spreading trees, which seemed coeval with the building, and diffused a romantic gloom around. the greater part of the pile appeared to be sinking into ruins, and that, which had withstood the ravages of time, shewed the remaining features of the fabric more awful in decay. the lofty battlements, thickly enwreathed with ivy, were half demolished, and become the residence of birds of prey. huge fragments of the eastern tower, which was almost demolished, lay scattered amid the high grass, that waved slowly to the breeze. “the thistle shook its lonely head; the moss whistled to the wind.” a gothic gate, richly ornamented with fret-work, which opened into the main body of the edifice, but which was now obstructed with brush-wood, remained entire. above the vast and magnificent portal of this gate arose a window of the same order, whose pointed arches still exhibited fragments of stained glass, once the pride of monkish devotion. la motte, thinking it possible it might yet shelter some human being, advanced to the gate and lifted a massy knocker. the hollow sounds rung through the emptiness of the place. after waiting a few minutes, he forced back the gate, which was heavy with iron work, and creaked harshly on its hinges.

he entered what appeared to have been the chapel of the abbey, where the hymn of devotion had once been raised, and the tear of penitence had once been shed; sounds, which could now only be recalled by imagination — tears of penitence, which had been long since fixed in fate. la motte paused a moment, for he felt a sensation of sublimity rising into terror — a suspension of mingled astonishment and awe! he surveyed the vastness of the place, and as he contemplated its ruins, fancy bore him back to past ages. “and these walls,” said he, “where once superstition lurked, and austerity anticipated an earthly purgatory, now tremble over the mortal remains of the beings who reared them!”

the deepening gloom now reminded la motte that he had no time to lose, but curiosity prompted him to explore farther, and he obeyed the impulse. — as he walked over the broken pavement, the sound of his steps ran in echoes through the place, and seemed like the mysterious accents of the dead, reproving the sacrilegious mortal who thus dared to disturb their precincts.

from this chapel he passed into the nave of the great church, of which one window, more perfect than the rest, opened upon a long vista of the forest, through which was seen the rich colouring of evening, melting by imperceptible gradations into the solemn grey of upper air. dark hills, whose outline appeared distinct upon the vivid glow of the horizon, closed the perspective. several of the pillars, which had once supported the roof, remained the proud effigies of sinking greatness, and seemed to nod at every murmur of the blast over the fragments of those that had fallen a little before them. la motte sighed. the comparison between himself and the gradation of decay, which these columns exhibited, was but too obvious and affecting. “a few years,” said he, “and i shall become like the mortals on whose reliques i now gaze, and, like them too, i may be the subject of meditation to a succeeding generation, which shall totter but a little while over the object they contemplate, e’er they also sink into the dust.”

retiring from this scene, he walked through the cloisters, till a door, which communicated with the lofty part of the building, attracted his curiosity. he opened this and perceived, across the foot of the stair-case, another door; — but now, partly checked by fear, and partly by the recollection of the surprize his family might feel in his absence, he returned with hasty steps to his carriage, having wasted some of the precious moments of twilight, and gained no information.

some slight answer to madame la motte’s inquiries, and a general direction to peter to drive carefully on, and look for a road, was all that his anxiety would permit him to utter. the night shade fell thick around, which, deepened by the gloom of the forest, soon rendered it dangerous to proceed. peter stopped, but la motte, persisting in his first determination, ordered him to go on. peter ventured to remonstrate, madame la motte entreated, but la motte reproved — commanded, and at length repented; for the hind wheel rising upon the stump of an old tree, which the darkness had prevented peter from observing, the carriage was in an instant overturned.

the party, as may be supposed, were much terrified, but no one was materially hurt, and having disengaged themselves from their perilous situation, la motte and peter endeavoured to raise the carriage. the extent of this misfortune was now discovered, for they perceived that the wheel was broke. their distress was reasonably great, for not only was the coach disabled from proceeding, but it could not even afford a shelter from the cold dews of the night, it being impossible to preserve it in an upright situation. after a few moment’s silence, la motte proposed that they should return to the ruins which they had just quitted, which lay at a very short distance, and pass the night in the most habitable part of them: that, when morning dawned, peter should take one of the coach horses, and endeavour to find a road and a town, from whence assistance could be procured for repairing the carriage. this proposal was opposed by madame la motte, who shuddered at the idea of passing so many hours of darkness in a place so forlorn as the monastery. terrors, which she neither endeavoured to examine, or combat, overcame her, and she told la motte she had rather remain exposed to the unwholesome dews of night, than encounter the desolation of the ruins. la motte had at first felt an equal reluctance to return to this spot, but having subdued his own feelings, he resolved not to yield to those of his wife.

the horses being now disengaged from the carriage, the party moved towards the edifice. as they proceeded, peter, who followed them, struck a light, and they entered the ruins by the flame of sticks, which he had collected. the partial gleams thrown across the fabric seemed to make its desolation more solemn, while the obscurity of the greater part of the pile heightened its sublimity, and led fancy on to scenes of horror. adeline, who had hitherto remained in silence, now uttered an exclamation of mingled admiration and fear. a kind of pleasing dread thrilled her bosom, and filled all her soul. tears started into her eyes:— she wished, yet feared, to go on; — she hung upon the arm of la motte, and looked at him with a sort of hesitating interrogation.

he opened the door of the great hall, and they entered: its extent was lost in gloom. “let us stay here,” said madame de la motte, “i will go no farther.” la motte pointed to the broken roof, and was proceeding, when he was interrupted by an uncommon noise, which passed along the hall. they were all silent — it was the silence of terror. madame la motte spoke first. “let us quit this spot,” said she, “any evil is preferable to the feeling, which now oppresses me. let us retire instantly.” the stillness had for some time remained undisturbed, and la motte, ashamed of the fear he had involuntarily betrayed, now thought it necessary to affect a boldness, which he did not feel. he, therefore, opposed ridicule to the terror of madame, and insisted upon proceeding. thus compelled to acquiesce, she traversed the hall with trembling steps. they came to a narrow passage, and peter’s sticks being nearly exhausted, they awaited here, while he went in search of more.

the almost expiring light flashed faintly upon the walls of the passage, shewing the recess more horrible. across the hall, the greater part of which was concealed in shadow, the feeble ray spread a tremulous gleam, exhibiting the chasm in the roof, while many nameless objects were seen imperfectly through the dusk. adeline with a smile, inquired of la motte, if he believed in spirits. the question was ill-timed, for the present scene impressed its terrors upon la motte, and, in spite of endeavour, he felt a superstitious dread stealing upon him. he was now, perhaps, standing over the ashes of the dead. if spirits were ever permitted to revisit the earth, this seemed the hour and the place most suitable for their appearance. la motte remaining silent, adeline said, “were i inclined to superstition” — she was interrupted by a return of the noise, which had been lately heard. it sounded down the passage, at whose entrance they stood, and sunk gradually away. every heart palpitated, and they remained listening in silence. a new subject of apprehension seized la motte:— the noise might proceed from banditti, and he hesitated whether it would be safe to proceed. peter now came with the light: madame refused to enter the passage — la motte was not much inclined to it; but peter, in whom curiosity was more prevalent than fear, readily offered his services. la motte, after some hesitation, suffered him to go, while he awaited at the entrance the result of the inquiry. the extent of the passage soon concealed peter from view, and the echoes of his footsteps were lost in a sound, which rushed along the avenue, and became fainter and fainter, till it sunk into silence. la motte now called aloud to peter, but no answer was returned; at length, they heard the sound of a distant footstep, and peter soon after appeared, breathless, and pale with fear.

when he came within hearing of la motte, he called out, “an please your honour, i’ve done for them, i believe, but i’ve had a hard bout. i thought i was fighting with the devil.” — “what are you speaking of?” said la motte.

“they were nothing but owls and rooks after all,” continued peter; “but the light brought them all about my ears, and they made such a confounded clapping with their wings, that i thought at first i had been beset with a legion of devils. but i have drove them all out, master, and you have nothing to fear now.”

the latter part of the sentence, intimating a suspicion of his courage, la motte could have dispensed with, and, to retrieve in some degree his reputation, he made a point of proceeding through the passage. they now moved on with alacrity, for, as peter said, they had “nothing to fear.”

the passage led into a large area, on one side of which, over a range of cloisters, appeared the west tower, and a lofty part of the edifice; the other side was open to the woods. la motte led the way to a door of the tower, which he now perceived was the same he had formerly entered; but he found some difficulty in advancing, for the area was overgrown with brambles and nettles, and the light, which peter carried, afforded only an uncertain gleam. when he unclosed the door, the dismal aspect of the place revived the apprehensions of madame la motte, and extorted from adeline an inquiry whither they were going. peter held up the light to shew the narrow stair-case that wound round the tower; but la motte, observing the second door, drew back the rusty bolts, and entered a spacious apartment, which, from its stile and condition, was evidently of a much later date than the other part of the structure: though desolate and forlorn it was very little impaired by time; the walls were damp, but not decayed; and the glass was yet firm in the windows.

they passed on to a suit of apartments resembling the first they had seen, and expressed their surprise at the incongruous appearance of this part of the edifice with the mouldering walls they had left behind. these apartments conducted them to a winding passage, that received light and air through narrow cavities, placed high in the wall; and was at length closed by a door barred with iron, which being with some difficulty opened, they entered a vaulted room. la motte surveyed it with a scrutinizing eye, and endeavoured to conjecture for what purpose it had been guarded by a door of such strength; but he saw little within to assist his curiosity. the room appeared to have been built in modern times upon a gothic plan. adeline approached a large window that formed a kind of recess raised by one step over the level of the floor; she observed to la motte that the whole floor was inlaid with mosaic work; which drew from him a remark, that the style of this apartment was not strictly gothic. he passed on to a door, which appeared on the opposite side of the apartment, and, unlocking it, found himself in the great hall, by which he had entered the fabric.

he now perceived, what the gloom had before concealed, a spiral stair-case, which led to a gallery above; and which, from its present condition, seemed to have been built with the more modern part of the fabric, though this also affected the gothic mode of architecture: la motte had little doubt that these stairs led to apartments, corresponding with those he had passed below, and hesitated whether to explore them; but the entreaties of madame, who was much fatigued, prevailed with him to defer all farther examination. after some deliberation, in which of the rooms they should pass the night, they determined to return to that which opened from the tower.

a fire was kindled on a hearth, which it is probable had not for many years before afforded the warmth of hospitality; and peter having spread the provision he had brought from the coach, la motte and his family, encircled round the fire, partook of a repast, which hunger and fatigue made delicious. apprehension gradually gave way to confidence, for they now found themselves in something like a human habitation, and they had leisure to laugh at their late terrors; but, as the blast shook the doors, adeline often started, and threw a fearful glance around. they continued to laugh and talk cheerfully for a time; yet their merriment was transient, if not affected; for a sense of their peculiar and distressed circumstances pressed upon their recollection, and sunk each individual into langour and pensive silence. adeline felt the forlornness of her condition with energy; she reflected upon the past with astonishment, and anticipated the future with fear. she found herself wholly dependent upon strangers, with no other claim than what distress demands from the common sympathy of kindred beings; sighs swelled her heart, and the frequent tear started to her eye; but she checked it, ere it betrayed on her cheek the sorrow, which she thought it would be ungrateful to reveal.

la motte, at length, broke this meditative silence, by directing the fire to be renewed for the night, and the door to be secured: this seemed a necessary precaution, even in this solitude, and was effected by means of large stones piled against it, for other fastening there was none. it had frequently occurred to la motte, that this apparently forsaken edifice might be a place of refuge to banditti. here was solitude to conceal them; and a wild and extensive forest to assist their schemes of rapine, and to perplex, with its labyrinths, those who might be bold enough to attempt pursuit. these apprehensions, however, he hid within his own bosom, saving his companions from a share of the uneasiness they occasioned. peter was ordered to watch at the door, and, having given the fire a rousing stir, our desolate party drew round it, and sought in sleep a short oblivion of care.

the night passed on without disturbance. adeline slept, but uneasy dreams fleeted before her fancy, and she awoke at an early hour: the recollection of her sorrows arose upon her mind, and yielding to their pressure, her tears flowed silently and fast. that she might indulge them without restraint, she went to a window that looked upon an open part of the forest; all was gloom and silence; she stood for some time viewing the shadowy scene.

the first tender tints of morning now appeared on the verge of the horizon, stealing upon the darkness; — so pure, so fine, so ?therial! it seemed as if heaven was opening to the view. the dark mists were seen to roll off to the west, as the tints of light grew stronger, deepening the obscurity of that part of the hemisphere, and involving the features of the country below; meanwhile, in the east, the hues became more vivid, darting a trembling lustre far around, till a ruddy glow, which fired all that part of the heavens, announced the rising sun. at first, a small line of inconceivable splendour emerged on the horizon, which, quickly expanding, the sun appeared in all his glory, unveiling the whole face of nature, vivifying every colour of the landscape, and sprinkling the dewy earth with glittering light. the low and gentle responses of birds, awakened by the morning ray, now broke the silence of the hour; their soft warbling rising by degrees till they swelled the chorus of universal gladness. adeline’s heart swelled too with gratitude and adoration.

the scene before her soothed her mind, and exalted her thoughts to the great author of nature; she uttered an involuntary prayer: “father of good, who made this glorious scene! i resign myself to thy hands: thou wilt support me under my present sorrows, and protect me from future evil.”

thus confiding in the benevolence of god, she wiped the tears from her eyes, while the sweet union of conscience and reflection rewarded her trust; and her mind, losing the feelings which had lately oppressed it, became tranquil and composed.

la motte awoke soon after, and peter prepared to set out on his expedition. as he mounted his horse, “an’ please you, master,” said he, “i think we had as good look no farther for an habitation till better times turn up; for nobody will think of looking for us here; and when one sees the place by day light, its none so bad, but what a little patching up would make it comfortable enough.” la motte made no reply, but he thought of peter’s words. during the intervals of the night, when anxiety had kept him waking, the same idea had occurred to him; concealment was his only security, and this place afforded it. the desolation of the spot was repulsive to his wishes; but he had only a choice of evils — a forest with liberty was not a bad home for one, who had too much reason to expect a prison. as he walked through the apartments, and examined their condition more attentively, he perceived they might easily be made habitable; and now surveying them under the cheerfulness of morning, his design strengthened; and he mused upon the means of accomplishing it, which nothing seemed so much to obstruct as the apparent difficulty of procuring food.

he communicated his thoughts to madame la motte, who felt repugnance to the scheme. la motte, however, seldom consulted his wife till he had determined how to act; and he had already resolved to be guided in this affair by the report of peter. if he could discover a town in the neighbourhood of the forest, where provisions and other necessaries could be procured, he would seek no farther for a place of rest.

in the mean time, he spent the anxious interval of peter’s absence in examining the ruin, and walking over the environs; they were sweetly romantic, and the luxuriant woods, with which they abounded, seemed to sequester this spot from the rest of the world. frequently a natural vista would yield a view of the country, terminated by hills, which retiring in distance, faded into the blue horizon. a stream, various and musical in its course, wound at the foot of the lawn, on which stood the abbey; here it silently glided beneath the shades, feeding the flowers that bloomed on its banks, and diffusing dewy freshness around; there it spread in broad expanse to-day, reflecting the sylvan scene, and the wild deer that tasted its waves. la motte observed every where a profusion of game; the pheasants scarcely flew from his approach, and the deer gazed mildly at him as he passed. they were strangers to man!

on his return to the abbey, la motte ascended the stairs that led to the tower. about half way up, a door appeared in the wall; it yielded, without resistance, to his hand; but, a sudden noise within, accompanied by a cloud of dust, made him step back and close the door. after waiting a few minutes, he again opened it, and perceived a large room of the more modern building. the remains of tapestry hung in tatters upon the walls, which were become the residence of birds of prey, whose sudden flight on the opening of the door had brought down a quantity of dust, and occasioned the noise. the windows were shattered, and almost without glass; but he was surprised to observe some remains of furniture; chairs, whose fashion and condition bore the date of their antiquity; a broken table, and an iron grate almost consumed by rust.

on the opposite side of the room was a door, which led to another apartment, proportioned like the first, but hung with arras somewhat less tattered. in one corner stood a small bedstead, and a few shattered chairs were placed round the walls. la motte gazed with a mixture of wonder and curiosity. “ ’tis strange,” said he, “that these rooms, and these alone, should bear the marks of inhabitation: perhaps, some wretched wanderer, like myself, may have here sought refuge from a persecuting world; and here, perhaps, laid down the load of existence: perhaps, too, i have followed his footsteps, but to mingle my dust with his!” he turned suddenly, and was about to quit the room, when he perceived a small door near the bed; it opened into a closet, which was lighted by one small window, and was in the same condition as the apartments he had passed, except that it was destitute even of the remains of furniture. as he walked over the floor, he thought he felt one part of it shake beneath his steps, and, examining, found a trap door. curiosity prompted him to explore farther, and with some difficulty he opened it. it disclosed a staircase which terminated in darkness. la motte descended a few steps, but was unwilling to trust the abyss; and, after wondering for what purpose it was so secretly constructed, he closed the trap, and quitted this suit of apartments.

the stairs in the tower above were so much decayed, that he did not attempt to ascend them: he returned to the hall, and by the spiral stair-case, which he had observed the evening before, reached the gallery, and found another suit of apartments entirely unfurnished, very much like those below.

he renewed with madame la motte his former conversation respecting the abbey, and she exerted all her endeavours to dissuade him from his purpose, acknowledging the solitary security of the spot, but pleading that other places might be found equally well adapted for concealment and more for comfort. this la motte doubted: besides, the forest abounded with game, which would, at once, afford him amusement and food, a circumstance, considering his small stock of money, by no means to be overlooked: and he had suffered his mind to dwell so much upon the scheme, that it was become a favourite one. adeline listened in silent anxiety to the discourse, and waited the issue of peter’s report.

the morning passed, but peter did not return. our solitary party took their dinner of the provision they had fortunately brought with them, and afterwards walked forth into the woods. adeline, who never suffered any good to pass unnoticed, because it came attended with evil, forgot for a while the desolation of the abbey in the beauty of the adjacent scenery. the pleasantness of the shades soothed her heart, and the varied features of the landscape amused her fancy; she almost thought she could be contented to live here. already she began to feel an interest in the concerns of her companions, and for madame la motte she felt more; it was the warm emotion of gratitude and affection.

the afternoon wore away, and they returned to the abbey. peter was still absent, and his absence now began to excite surprize and apprehension. the approach of darkness also threw a gloom upon the hopes of the wanderers: another night must be passed under the same forlorn circumstances as the preceding one; and, what was still worse, with a very scanty stock of provisions. the fortitude of madame la motte now entirely forsook her, and she wept bitterly. adeline’s heart was as mournful as madame’s, but she rallied her drooping spirits, and gave the first instance of her kindness by endeavouring to revive those of her friend.

la motte was restless and uneasy, and, leaving the abbey, he walked alone the way which peter had taken. he had not gone far, when he perceived him between the trees, leading his horse. “what news, peter?” hallooed la motte. peter came on, panting for breath, and said not a word, till la motte repeated the question in a tone of somewhat more authority. “ah, bless you, master!” said he, when he had taken breath to answer, “i am glad to see you; i thought i should never have got back again: i’ve met with a world of misfortunes.”

“well, you may relate them hereafter; let me hear whether you have discovered — ”

“discovered!” interrupted peter, yes, i am discovered with a vengeance! if your honour will look at my arms, you’ll see how i am discovered.”

“discoloured! i suppose you mean,” said la motte. “but how came you in this condition?”

“why, i’ll tell you how it was, sir; your honour knows i learned a smack of boxing of that englishman that used to come with his master to our house.”

“well, well — tell me where you have been.”

“i scarcely know myself, master; i’ve been where i got a sound drubbing, but then it was in your business, and so i don’t mind. but if ever i meet with that rascal again!” — “you seem to like your first drubbing so well, that you want another, and unless you speak more to the purpose, you shall soon have one.”

peter was now frightened into method, and endeavoured to proceed: “when i left the old abbey,” said he, i followed the way you directed, and, turning to the right of that grove of trees yonder, i looked this way and that to see if i could see a house, or a cottage, or even a man, but not a soul of them was to be seen, and so i jogged on, near the value of a league, i warrant, and then i came to a track; oh! oh! says i, we have you now; this will do — paths can’t be made without feet. however, i was out in my reckoning, for the devil a bit of a soul could i see, and, after following the track this way and that way, for the third of a league, i lost it, and had to find out another.”

“is it impossible for you to speak to the point?” said la motte: “omit these foolish particulars, and tell whether you have succeeded.”

“well, then, master, to be short, for that’s the nearest way after all, i wandered a long while at random, i did not know where, all through a forest like this, and i took special care to note how the trees stood, that i might find my way back. at last i came to another path, and was sure i should find something now, though i had found nothing before, for i could not be mistaken twice; so, peeping between the trees, i spied a cottage, and i gave my horse a lash, that sounded through the forest, and i was at the door in a minute. they told me there was a town about half a league off, and bade me follow the track and it would bring me there, so it did; and my horse, i believe, smelt the corn in the manger by the rate he went at. i inquired for a wheel-wright, and was told there was but one in the place, and he could not be found. i waited and waited, for i knew it was in vain to think of returning without doing my business. the man at last came home from the country, and i told him how long i had waited; for, says i, i knew it was in vain to return without my business.”

“do be less tedious,” said la motte, if it is in thy nature.”

“it is in my nature,” answered peter, and if it was more in my nature, your honour should have it all. would you think it, sir, the fellow had the impudence to ask a louis-d’or for mending the coach wheel! i believe in my conscience he saw i was in a hurry and could not do without him. a louis-d’or! says i, my master shall give no such price, he sha’n’t be imposed upon by no such rascal as you. whereupon, the fellow looked glum, and gave me a douse o’the chops: with this, i up with my fist and gave him another, and should have beat him presently, if another man had not come in, and then i was obliged to give up.”

“and so you are returned as wife as you went?”

“why, master, i hope i have too much spirit to submit to a rascal, or let you submit to one either: besides, i have bought some nails to try if i i can’t mend the wheel myself — i had always a hand at carpentry.”

“well, i commend your zeal in my cause, but on this occasion it was rather ill-timed. and what have you got in that basket?”

“why, master, i bethought me that we could not get away from this place till the carriage was ready to draw us, and in the mean time, says i, nobody can live without victuals, so i’ll e’en lay out the little money i have and take a basket with me.”

“that’s the only wife thing you have done yet, and this, indeed, redeems your blunders.”

“why now, master, it does my heart good to hear you speak; i knew i was doing for the best all the while: but i’ve had a hard job to find my way back; and here’s another piece of ill luck, for the horse has got a thorn in his foot.”

la motte made inquiries concerning the town, and sound it was capable of supplying him with provision, and what little furniture was necessary to render the abbey habitable. this intelligence almost settled his plans, and he ordered peter to return on the following morning and make inquiries concerning the abbey. if the answers were favourable to his wishes, he commissioned him to buy a cart and load it with some furniture, and some materials necessary for repairing the modern apartments. peter stared: “what, does your honour mean to live here?”

“why, suppose i do?”

“why then your honour has made a wise determination, according to my hint; for your honour knows i said” — “well, peter, it is not necessary to repeat what you said; perhaps, i had determined on the subject before.”

“egad, master, you’re in the right, and i’m glad of it, for, i believe, we shall not quickly be disturbed here, except by the rooks and owls. yes, yes — i warrant i’ll make it a place fit for a king; and as for the town, one may get any thing, i’m sure of that; though they think no more about this place than they do about india or england, or any of those places.”

they now reached the abbey, where peter was received with great joy; but the hopes of his mistress and adeline were repressed, when they learned that he returned, without having executed his commission, and heard his account of the town. la motte’s orders to peter were heard with almost equal concern by madame and adeline; but the latter concealed her uneasiness, and used all her efforts to overcome that of her friend. the sweetness of her behaviour, and the air of satisfaction she assumed, sensibly affected madame, and discovered to her a source of comfort, which she had hitherto overlooked. the affectionate attentions of her young friend promised to console her for the want of other society, and her conversation to enliven the hours which might otherwise be passed in painful regret.

the observations and general behaviour of adeline already bespoke a good understanding and an amiable heart, but she had yet more — she had genius. she was now in her nineteenth year; her figure of the middling size, and turned to the most exquisite proportion; her hair was dark auburn, her eyes blue, and whether they sparkled with intelligence, or melted with tenderness, they were equally attractive: her form had the airy lightness of a nymph, and, when she smiled, her countenance might have been drawn for the younger sister of hebe: the captivations of her beauty were heightened by the grace and simplicity of her manners, and confirmed by the intrinsic value of a heart

“that might be shrin’d in crystal, and have all its movements scann’d.”

annette now kindled the fire for the night: peter’s basket was opened, and supper prepared. madame la motte was still pensive and silent. “there is scarcely any condition so bad,” said adeline, “but we may one time or other wish we had not quitted it. honest peter, when he was bewildered in the forest, or had two enemies to encounter instead of one, confesses he wished himself at the abbey. and i am certain, there is no situation so destitute, but comfort may be extracted from it. the blaze of this fire shines yet more cheerfully from the contrasted dreariness of the place; and this plentiful repast is made yet more delicious, from the temporary want we have suffered. let us enjoy the good and forget the evil.”

“you speak, my dear,” replied madame la motte, “like one, whose spirits have not been often depressed by misfortune, (adeline sighed) and whose hopes are, therefore, vigorous.” long suffering,” said la motte, has subdued in our minds that elastic energy, which repels the pressure of evil, and dances to the bound of joy. “but i speak in rhapsody, though only from the remembrance of such a time. i once, like you, adeline, could extract comfort from most situations.”

“and may now, my dear sir,” said adeline. “still believe it possible, and you will find it is so.”

“the illusion is gone — i can no longer deceive myself.”

“pardon me, sir, if i say, it is now only you deceive yourself, by suffering the cloud of sorrow to tinge every object you look upon.”

“it may be so,” said la motte, “but let us leave the subject.”

after supper, the doors were secured, as before, for the night, and the wanderers resigned themselves to repose.

on the following morning, peter again set out for the little town of auboine, and the hours of his absence were again spent by madame la motte and adeline in much anxiety and some hope, for the intelligence he might bring concerning the abbey might yet release them from the plans of la motte. towards the close of day he was descried coming slowly on; and the cart, which accompanied him, too certainly confirmed their fears. he brought materials for repairing the place, and some furniture.

of the abbey he gave an account, of which the following is the substance:— it belonged, together with a large part of the adjacent forest, to a nobleman, who now resided with his family on a remote estate. he inherited it, in right of his wife, from his father-in-law, who had caused the more modern apartments to be erected, and had resided in them some part of every year, for the purpose of shooting and hunting. it was reported, that some person was, soon after it came to the present possessor, brought secretly to the abbey and confined in these apartments; who, or what he was, had never been conjectured, and what became of him nobody knew. the report died gradually away, and many persons entirely disbelieved the whole of it. but however this affair might be, certain it was, the present owner had visited the abbey only two summers, since his succeeding to it; and the furniture, after some time, was removed.

this circumstance had at first excited surprize, and various reports arose in consequence, but it was difficult to know what ought to be believed. among the rest, it was said, that strange appearances had been observed at the abbey, and uncommon noises heard; and though this report had been ridiculed by sensible persons as the idle superstition of ignorance, it had fastened so strongly upon the minds of the common people, that for the last seventeen years none of the peasantry had ventured to approach the spot. the abbey was now, therefore, abandoned to decay.

la motte ruminated upon this account. at first, it called up unpleasant ideas, but they were soon dismissed, and considerations more interesting to his welfare took place: he congratulated himself that he had now found a spot, where he was not likely to be either discovered or disturbed; yet it could not escape him that there was a strange coincidence between one part of peter’s narrative, and the condition of the chambers that opened from the tower above stairs. the remains of furniture, of which the other apartments were void — the solitary bed — the number and connection of the rooms, were circumstances that united to confirm his opinion. this, however, he concealed in his own breast, for he already perceived that peter’s account had not assisted in reconciling his family to the necessity of dwelling at the abbey.

but they had only to submit in silence, and whatever disagreeable apprehension might intrude upon them, they now appeared willing to suppress the expression of it. peter, indeed, was exempt from any evil of this kind; he knew no fear, and his mind was now wholly occupied with his approaching business. madame la motte, with a placid kind of despair, endeavoured to reconcile herself to that, which no effort of understanding could teach her to avoid, and which, an indulgence in lamentation, could only make more intolerable. indeed, though a sense of the immediate inconveniences to be endured at the abbey, had made her oppose the scheme of living there, she did not really know how their situation could be improved by removal: yet her thoughts often wandered towards paris, and reflected the retrospect of past times, with the images of weeping friends left, perhaps, for ever. the affectionate endearments of her only son, whom, from the danger of his situation, and the obscurity of hers, she might reasonably fear never to see again, arose upon her memory and overcame her fortitude. “why — why was i reserved for this hour?” would she say, “and what will be my years to come?”

adeline had no retrospect of past delight to give emphasis to present calamity — no weeping friends — no dear regretted objects to point the edge of sorrow, and throw a sickly hue upon her future prospects: she knew not yet the pangs of disappointed hope, or the acuter sting of self-accusation; she had no misery, but what patience could assuage, or fortitude overcome.

at the dawn of the following day peter arose to his labour: he proceeded with alacrity, and, in a few days, two of the lower apartments were so much altered for the better, that la motte began to exult, and his family to perceive that their situation would not be so miserable as they had imagined. the furniture peter had already brought was disposed in these rooms, one of which was the vaulted apartment. madame la motte furnished this as a sitting room, preferring it for its large gothic window, that descended almost to the floor, admitting a prospect of the lawn, and the picturesque scenery of the surrounding woods.

peter having returned to auboine for a farther supply, all the lower apartments were in a few weeks not only habitable, but comfortable. these, however, being insufficient for the accommodation of the family, a room above stairs was prepared for adeline: it was the chamber that opened immediately from the tower, and she preferred it to those beyond, because it was less distant from the family, and the windows fronting an avenue of the forest, afforded a more extensive prospect. the tapestry, that was decayed, and hung loosely from the walls, was now nailed up, and made to look less desolate; and, though the room had still a solemn aspect, from its spaciousness and the narrowness of the windows, it was not uncomfortable.

the first night that adeline retired hither, she slept little: the solitary air of the place affected her spirits; the more so, perhaps, because she had, with friendly consideration, endeavoured to support them in the presence of madame la motte. she remembered the narrative of peter, several circumstances of which had impressed her imagination in spite of her reason, and she found it difficult wholly to subdue apprehension. at one time, terror so strongly seized her mind, that she had even opened the door with an intention of calling madame la motte; but, listening for a moment on the stairs of the tower, every thing seemed still; at length, she heard the voice of la motte speaking cheerfully, and the absurdity of her fears struck her forcibly; she blushed that she had for a moment submitted to them, and returned to her chamber wondering at herself.